Preece Returns to Winning Form
STAFFORD, Conn. — Returning to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour full-time this year, Ryan Preece was itching to get back into Victory Lane.
He accomplished that goal Sunday in the 46th running of the NAPA Spring Sizzler at Stafford Motor Speedway.
He took the lead from race leader Doug Coby with 13 laps to go and drove away with his first career Spring Sizzler victory behind the wheel of his No. 6 TS Haulers Chevrolet.
The win was his first since August of 2015 at Bristol Motor Speedway and his first of the newly unified Whelen Modified Tour. Preece, who previously had won 15 times on the Whelen Modified Tour and three times on the Whelen Southern Modified Tour, spent last year driving full-time on the NASCAR XFINITY Series and made just 10 starts between the two tours.
More importantly for Preece, his sixth victory at the Stafford half-mile came in the track’s prestigious spring race.
“This means more to me than my first tour win, it was so much hard work,” said an emotional Preece in the press box after the win. “My grandfather has won this race. There are just so many things that come to my head right now. I started racing a modified when I was 12 or 13 years old.”
Preece led 55 laps. Doug Coby, who set the track record en route to his sixth straight Coors Light Pole at the track Saturday, led a race-high 142. But a late caution helped set up Preece’s pass for the lead. While Coby snagged the lead back on the Lap 192 restart, Preece quickly powered back to the front.
Chase Dowling finished third. The 18-year-old won the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series 40-lap SK Modified division feature earlier in the day.
Eric Goodale led three laps and finished fourth, and Ted Christopher was fifth.
Rowan Pennink, Craig Lutz, Ron Silk, Justin Bonsignore and David Sapienza rounded out the top 10.
Pennink took the championship points lead by one over Timmy Solomito. Bonsignore is third, 16 behind Pennink and leading a pack of six drivers — including Preece in fifth — separated by just eight points.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to the track at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia, on May 13.
NWMT Stafford 4/30/17 Results
Whelen Modified Tour
Race: FOR PRINTABLE FORMAT (PDF)
Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Points B/Points Status
1 4 6 Ryan Preece TS Hauler Chevrolet 200 47 4 Running
2 1 2 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools Chevrolet 200 44 2 Running
3 6 15 Chase Dowling 15-40 Connection Chevrolet 200 41 Running
4 3 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing Chevrolet 200 41 1 Running
5 9 0 Ted Christopher Brad Brady Racing Chevrolet 200 39 Running
6 8 3 Rowan Pennink Cape Cod Copper Chevrolet 200 38 Running
7 13 56 Craig Lutz Lutz Motorsports Chevrolet 200 37 Running
8 7 82 Ron Silk Horton Avenue Materials Chevrolet 200 36 Running
9 5 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. Chevrolet 200 35 Running
10 16 36 Dave Sapienza SAP Enterprise Chevrolet 200 34 Running
11 12 16 Timmy Solomito Starrett Tools Ford 200 33 Running
12 17 46 Woody Pitkat Riverhead Building Supply Chevrolet 200 32 Running
13 15 64 Rob Summers Hoosier Tire East/Fast Track Elect/Hughes Motors 200 31 Running
14 19 89 Matt Swanson Starrett Tools Ford 199 30 Running
15 22 4 Gary Putnam Curb Records Chevrolet 198 29 Running
16 21 17 Kyle Ellwood First Data/Clover Chevrolet 198 28 Running
17 24 33 Wade Cole Perf. Engines/Kendall Oil Ford 197 27 Running
18 26 78 Walter Sutcliffe Jr. * Last Minute Racing Chevrolet 193 26 Mechanical
19 10 48 Shawn Solomito Eastport Feeds Chevrolet 189 25 Running
20 18 28 George Brunnhoelzl III Dunleavy’s Repair Chevrolet 186 24 Running
21 14 20 Max Zachem MPZ Motorsports/Lu-Mac’s Chevrolet 175 23 Accident
22 11 7 Donny Lia Bardahl Chevrolet 169 22 Accident
23 2 85 Todd Szegedy Montanari Fuel/Stuarts Auto/J&R Pre-Cast Chevrolet 148 21 Brakes
24 27 1 Melissa Fifield Eastern Propane & Oil Chevrolet 83 20 Mechanical
25 23 39 Calvin Carroll * Power with Prestige/Cruising w/Betty Chevrolet 79 19 Overheating
26 20 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing Chevrolet 64 18 Mechanical
27 28 92 Anthony Nocella Nocella Paving/Airgas Chevrolet 50 17 Mechanical
28 25 38 Gary Byington * Perf Engines/Kendall Oil/Ryan’s Chevrolet 5 16 Accident
RACE STATISTICS
Fastest Qualifier: Doug Coby, Time: 17.896 Seconds, Speed: 100.581 mph
Time of Race: 1 hrs., 29 mins, 9 secs Average Speed: 67.302 mph Margin of Victory: 0.220 Seconds
Caution Flags: Laps 6-11; 42-47; 61-65; 74-77; 81-85; 155-160; 168-172; 176-181; 189-191. 9 for 46 laps.
Lap Leaders: Doug Coby 1-44, Ryan Preece 45-86, Doug Coby 87-162, Eric Goodale 163-165, Doug Coby 166-186, Ryan Preece 187-191, Doug Coby 192, Ryan Preece 193-200.
Total Laps Led: Doug Coby 142, Ryan Preece 55, Eric Goodale 3. 7 changes involving 3 drivers.
Top 10 Driver Points: Rowan Pennink 124, Timmy Solomito 123, Justin Bonsignore 108, Eric Goodale 106, Ryan Preece 104, Woody Pitkat 104, Max Zachem 103, Matt Swanson 100, Ron Silk 96, Rob Summers 92
Next Race:Langley Speedway, May 13
* Denotes Sunoco Rookie of the Year contender
Sources: Kyle Souza, NASCARHomeTracks.com
April 30, 2017 – 7:06pm above