O’Sullivan, Moretti, Toner, Caddick & Serydynski Take Home Fast Friday Wins!
O’SULLIVAN HOLDS OFF MARTINEZ IN LEGENDS SEAT-SQUIRMER
John O’Sullivan nailed down his first Legends divisional win in heroic fashion, surviving a 13-lap dogfight with Brandon “Batman” Martinez, Chris Robbins, and Ryan Kuhn. Martinez had moved past O’Sullivan on lap 15 immediately after depriving Ryan Kuhn of second, but O’Sullivan battled back one circuit later. They locked nose-to-tail with Robbins and Kuhn bearing down on them as they roared toward the finish. Martinez caught O’Sullivan with a drop-under move when they made a lap 22 restart and was headed away, but was halted by a four-car wreck on the same lap. They lined back up but this time O’Sullivan defended well and they brawled to the finish line, O’Sullivan holding Martinez off for a .2-second win. Robbins roared in .3 back while Kuhn grabbed fourth, still on the same second. Colin Haley ran in for fifth.
Shileigh Martinez, Brandon’s Sister, leapt off the outside pole at the outset and O’Sullivan passed pole sitter Brendon Hammond into second. But Ray Parent was around between turns one and two, bringing a lap 2 restart.
Shileigh was off the pole rapidly as O’Sullivan pursued but Brandon Packard spun in turn one for a second lap two caution. She was away again, but this time O’Sullivan came back for a duel and Robbins, who had come from seventh on the green nosed past into second. Packard, Kuhn and Brendan Hammond gave chase until Jessica O’Leary lost speed and Jesse Melberg spun trying to avoid her.
Again, Shileigh pulled rapidly away, this time from Robbins. But the duo roared up on either side, creating a three-wide at the front. Robbins, on the outside, tried to drop in but hadn’t completely cleared and he locked bumpers with Martinez and spun. Martinez and O’Sullivan paired up again as Robbins retired to the rear of the pack.
They were door-to-door again, but this time O’Sullivan rocketed out of turn two and Kuhn ran by into second, while Jesse Jeakubajtys wedged himself under Martinez. But Batman had arrived and went under Jakubajtys into fourth on the backstretch. Cassandra Cole, running sixth, was debating the position with Haley, who ducked under. He had the position on the backstretch on lap nine. But Robbins was not static, and had come from thirteenth and now ran eighth behind Cole.
Brandon dropped under Shileigh on lap eleven and took third behind O’Sullivan and Kuhn. Bob Disimmone spun on lap fourteen, bringing a caution. O’Sullivan pulled away with Batman locked to his bumper. There was contact and O’Sullivan drifted up, allowing Martinez to take the lead. O’Sullivan recovered and fired back up to retake the lead and ran ahead by a length on lap 16. Robbins took advantage on the restart, running past Jakubajtys, Haley and Shileigh into fourth.
But Batman was back on O’Sullivan’s bumper and was all over him as Kuhn was closing with Robbins running hard, five cars back. Martinez tried to put his nose under, but O’Sullivan shut the door, just before Jakubajtys erupted in smoke in turn two, and a fire broke out under his hood as he braked hard to a stop. The fire went out as he skidded to a stop and immediately threw open his door as the red flag flew. The field was stopped on the frontstretch and many drivers had their doors open to expel the heat buildup.
Martinez made the drop-under-to-lead move as the green fell, but behind them, there was a hard crash scattering four cars in turns one and two. Joseph Marfeo and (91) were on the wall in turn two while Cassandra Cole and Adam Thompson were together low in turn one. Cole retired for the nights and (91) went off on the hook.
They were away on the second try and O’Sullivan and Martinez brawled all the way to the checkers as Robbins and Kuhn roared after them.
Rounding out the top ten were Shileigh, Packard, Nick Wisialko, Melberg and Hammond.
MORETTI OUTDUELS KUN AND MASSA FOR PURE STOCKS VICTORY
Randy Moretti put it all together after an early season of steadily improving his car to lead all of the feature’s 25 laps and claim his trip to Victory Lane. After dueling pole sitter Colby Lambert at the outset, he grimly held on to the lead as Andrew Kun moved up from fifth to deprive Lambert of second on lap 6. From there, he relentlessly pursued the leader all the way to the finish line. Massa arrived in third on lap ten, easing Lambert back to fourth and continued to finish third. Amy Arsenault and Jamie Burch came on to complete the top five.
Lambert jumped off the pole Moretti in battle as Kun got under Ron Dardinsky over third. Moretti, on the outside surged ahead and led at the end of lap one. Keri-Lynn Manfredo came from seventh to fifth on lap one then moved into fourth past Dardinski. Massa followed and two laps later took over the spot. Manfredo pursued with Arsenault giving chase. Mike Henriques and Dardinsky debated seventh.
Moretti had roared out to a straightaway lead by lap seven as Kun sought a handle. The field stretched out behind them, with Massa, Lambert, Manfredo, Arsenault (who began to contest position with Manfredo) Mike Henriques and Lenny Sousa.
Kun found his sweet spot and began to close and by lap 17, had cut Moretti’s extensive lead down to two car lengths and one lap later he was just one car in arrears. Burch, running at mid pack, spun, but gathered it in and continued without a caution. But lap 19 saw Manfredo, running amid a group, spun on lap 20.
Kun lined up outside Moretti with Massa and Arsenault behind them. Moretti nosed out and took the lead out of turn two. He had to drop as Massa tried to look underneath. Dave Desrosiers exploded on the restart, leaping from tenth to sixth, behind Dardinsky. They debated fifth until while a resurgent Burch made his way past Lambert into seventh, behind Desrosiers.
Melissa Charette got past Lambert into eighth as Desrosiers moved Dardinsky back to sixth. But Tommy Blackwell went around out of turn three, scattering the field to avoid him. Lambert went to the infield and was caught in a ditch in the grass opposite the starter’s stand. He was hand-pushed from the depression before he could retire to the pits.
Moretti again outran Kun, who dropped in on turn one. Arsenault went to the outside as Dardinsky and Desrosiers pursued. He went around Dardinsky and tried to drop in, catching his quarter on Dardinsksy’s nose and spun in turn one. Last-lap action continued without caution. An unhappy Desrosiers expressed his dissatisfaction with a minute’s worth of tire smoke going down the backstretch.
Charette followed Burch in for sixth, followed by Baxter, Sousa, Henriques, Manfredo and Blackwell.
TONER CLOSES ON SYRA 750 WIN IN CLOSING LAPS
Michael Toner took over the lead from Tom Ouelette on lap 17 of a 20-lap feature, which had seen the latter holding the front since lap four. The race ended in a green-white-checker finish that took three tries to complete. As Brandon Lillie tried to pass under Shea Kulpa they brushed and Lillie shot up the track and Kulpa dived into the infield grass in turn four, setting up the final action. It took two tries to get in the lap 17 restart as Cassie Meservey spun on the first attempt. Toner nosed ahead as Ouelette was nudged by Eric Lebrun. Toner and Ouellette continued to brawl but back in the pack, Kulpa’s woes continued as she was involve with Matthew Barboza, bringing another caution. Kulpa retired to the pits.
Toner nosed out and LeBrun ducked under into second. Lillie followed through into third and then Taylor Bowser barged into fourth. Ouellette held on for fifth.
Meservey and Barboza faced off for the green and Meservey edged ahead down the frontstretch. At the back, Kulpa went to the outside and left enough room for Bowser to run between her and Ouellete for a three wide. On the following lap, another three-wide stacked up behind them. The stacking broke down and reformed with LeBrun Bowser and Kulpa going door-to-door.
By lap four, Meservey was leading Ouelette and Toner. Ouelette nosed under on the following lap and went to the front as Lillie eased Toner back to fourth. Kulpa had gotten back to speed and got into yet another three-wide involving Bowser and LeBrun. By lap seven she was running fourth behind Toner. But Bowser wedged in under her as she tried around Toner, making yet another triple. As it began to break down, LeBrun came in low to continue the triple stack into lap ten.
Halfway through the 20 lapper, Ouellette was ensconced in the lead, ahead of Lillie and Toner, who was contending with LeBrun. Bowser and Kulpa were brawling door-to-door as Lillie looked to the outside for the lead. They went wheel-to-wheel at the front until Ouelette was able to pull away and Toner followed through on his bumper, leaving Lillie in third. Bowser and then Kulpa were able to leverage past Lillie and the front six cars were running hard, nose-to-tail in lap 15. They ran this way through lap 16, when LeBrun looked under Toner but couldn’t make the move. Again, Bowser and Kulpa were side-by-side, dueling for position. Bowser moved ahead and Lillie dropped under and alongside of Kulpa. They brushed in turn four, spun and brought the lap 17 caution which set up the final run to the checkers after the third try.
Meservey finished seventh, ahead of Barboza, the final car running on the field. Kulpa, in the pits, gathered in eighth place. Due to incidents after the race off the track, both Kulpa and Barboza were disqualified.
COREY CADDICK DOMINANT FOR SPORT FOUR TRIPLE CROWN WIN
Corey Caddick climbed past four competitors in the first two laps of the Sport Four running of the second stop on the Phil’s Propane Triple Crown, then edged Dylan Cabral out of the lead to gather in the double points and opportunity to participate in the Triple Crown finale. His car flew like a Tomcat in full afterburners, leaving his competition in the dust en route to a ¾-lap margin at the finish. Ray Herman was able to outrun Cabral with two laps remaining for second, leaving Cabral in third. Last week’s winner, Michael Glad scrambled from eleventh to fourth while David Westgate claimed fifth.
Unfortunately, Herman was caught up in an infraction during post-race tech inspection. A violation was determined, which cost Herman his second place. Cabral was elevated to second, and Glad and Westgate went to third and fourth. Gil Bradstreet then moved into the top five.
The race was caution free from a lap two restart through the lap 25 finish. While Caddick ran further and further ahead as the laps closed down, there was plenty of action in the pack to keep the crowd enthused.
Pole sitter Nick Mattera gave way to Chuck McDonald down the frontstretch as Cabral ran outside Mattera. Caddick roared past Matt Smith and Emily Charette into fourth on lap one, then by McDonald and Mattera. Charette and Ray Herman, who was firing up from fourteenth, got together in turn two, almost into the wall.
Caddick was low in the second row behind Cabral and McDonald. On the green, he was under McDonald into second while Bradstreet seized third. Glad, McDonald and Westgate were three-wide behind them. Caddick went to the outside and dropped into first on lap seven and moved rapidly away. He had a five car lead one lap later while behind him, Cabral, Bradstreet, Glad and Westgate were nose-to-tail. They stayed locked in as Caddick extended to a straightaway lead on the following circuit. By lap 11 he was lapping competitors.
Meanwhile, Cabral led Bradstreet in the runner-up spot but Glad roared underneath the latter. He was able to wrest third from Bradstreet as Westgate moved past into fourth. Herman came on for fifth. Three laps later, Herman had moved Westgate out of fourth and began a duel over third with Glad.
Lap twenty saw Glad and Herman brawling over third. They whipsawed the front until Herman claimed third. He set out after Cabral and in short order took over second as Caddick continued to romp toward the checkers.
Sixth through tenth went to Christine Cavallaro, David Simpson, Mattera, John Lineberger and Steve Nemet.
SERYDYNSKI NABS FIRST OF SEASON IN SYRA 600
Scott Serydynski, Jr. just wasn’t letting anybody by. He leapt off the pole away from Ava Chouinard, held of Anthony Marvin at the beginning and the end. Luke LeBrun spent the middle eight laps in hot pursuit and Karlin Levesque was there for a lap before Marvin spent the final seven laps trying to chase him down. Scott, Jr., held them all off from green to checkers, at times leading by as much as 20 cars.
Marvin finished second, followed by Karlin Levesque, Trenton Goodrow and Luke LeBrun.
Serydynski nosed out of the box into the first turn. Marvin took advantaged as Chouinard and Trenton Goodrow suddenly dropped to the back. LeBrun leapt into third ahead of Marissa Morgan, Zachary Martinez and Karlin Levesque and the field began to string out into a single file. LeBrun latched onto Marvin’s bumper but by lap 3 Scotty had rushed out to a twenty-car lead over them.
Levesque pushed in under Morgan and they began trading paint. But Even Marchand spun and Goodrow received the call for the assist.
Serydynski and Marvin went door-to-door down the front before Serydynski snagged the lead out of turn two. LeBrun then went low to take second from Marvin while Levesque followed into third. Two laps later, the field was again single-file. LeBrun and Levesque then moved up until the lead three were nose-to-tail and behind them, Morgan had moved up to Marvin’s bumper.
Lap 12 saw LeBrun in a spin and Levesque, who was on his bumper, got the assist. This put Marvin outside Serydynski for the restart. Morgan and Martinez followed with Chouinard and Goodrow in row three.
Serydynski claimed the lead while Levesque made a grand outside move from eighth to fourth before Chouinard spun on the next lap.
The lap 14 restart saw Serydynski go wheel-to-wheel down the front before Scott was able to take the lead into turn two. Levesque and LeBrun traded places, debating fourth through lap 17 when Levesquer passed Goodrow for third, behind Marvin. LeBrun continued in fourth.
Serydynski then led of parade of pursuers through the final three laps to the checkers and his trip to Victory Lane. Following the top five were Zachary Martinez, Marissa Morgan, Ava Chouinard and Evan Marchand.
Sources: Seekonk Speedway PR