Preece Continues to Roll at Stafford

By admin August 5, 2017 NASCAR WMT, Stafford

Late Pass Of Coby Nets Third NASCAR Whelen Modified Win of Season

STAFFORD, Conn. (Aug. 4, 2017) – Ryan Preece has been nearly unbeatable of late when he straps behind the wheel of a race car.

Last weekend, Preece scored his first career NASCAR XFINITY Series victory at Iowa Speedway. He marked his return to the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Friday at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway with another trip to Victory Lane in the Stafford 150. 

The Berlin, Connecticut, driver took the lead from four-time tour champion Doug Coby on a Lap 148 restart and didn’t look back. The win was the 18th career in Whelen Modified Tour action for Preece and also his seventh at the half-mile Stafford. He won the NAPA Spring Sizzler at the track on April 30.

“I would have liked the restarts lane to go more my way, but we had a really good car tonight,” said Preece, who started in the back after having his qualifying lap disallowed for failing post-qualifying technical inspection. “It was tough to have to start in the back, but my car was in the track all day. We’ve just had a great car all year long. I enjoy doing this. I enjoy showing up and knowing what I have and being successful.”

Preece’s No. 6 TS Hauler Chevrolet crossed the the finish line 0.302 seconds ahead of Coby, while Justin Bonsignore followed in third. 

Although it looked like Coby was en route to winning for the 11th time at Stafford after leading 135 laps, a few late caution flags allowed the rest of the field to close to his back bumper. After a multiple car crash on the frontstretch on lap 144, Preece got his chance at Coby, lining up to his outside on a restart with just two laps remaining. When the green flag flew, Preece used the outside lane and powered around Coby going into turn one. He never looked back.

“I think the biggest thing was I had a better left-rear tire to fire (on the restart),” Preece said. “Having both fresher rear tires helped me be able to get in front of him and have the right line going into turn one.”

Timmy Solomito took the championship points lead with a fourth-place finish, while Jon McKennedy completed the top five. 

Rob Summers was sixth, followed by Dave Sapienza, Craig Lutz, Gary Putnam and Matt Swanson. Rowan Pennink, who held the points lead coming into the event, finished 17th and is seven points behind Solomito. Preece is fifth in points, one behind Eric Goodale and Bonsignore and 26 back of Solomito. 

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to action on Wednesday night, with the running of the Bud 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. From there, the series will visit Bristol Motor Speedway on Wednesday, August 16. 

RESULTS | RACE CENTRAL LIVE REPLAY

Sources: Jason Christley/NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications

NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour-Stafford 150 Results

Friday

At Stafford Motor Speedway

Stafford Springs, CT

Lap length: 0.5 miles

(Start position in parentheses)

  1. (27) Ryan Preece, Berlin, Conn., Chevrolet, 150 laps, 61.114 mph.
  2. (2) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
  3. (6) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, NY, Chevrolet, 150.
  4. (10) Timmy Solomito, Islip, N.Y., Ford, 150.
  5. (28) Jon McKennedy, Chelmsford, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
  6. (20) Rob Summers, Manchester, CT, Chevrolet, 150.
  7. (14) Dave Sapienza, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
  8. (1) Craig Lutz, Miller Place, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
  9. (17) Gary Putnam, Vernon, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
  10. (19) Matt Swanson, Acton, Mass., Ford, 150.
  11. (13) Bobby Santos, Franklin, Mass., Chevrolet, 150.
  12. (18) Andrew Krause, Holmdel, N.J., Chevrolet, 150.
  13. (15) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
  14. (25) Walter Sutcliffe Jr., East Haven, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
  15. (7) Ronnie Williams, Ellington, Conn., Chevrolet, 148.
  16. (22) Gary McDonald, Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Chevrolet, 148.
  17. (9) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, Pa., Chevrolet, 146, fuel.
  18. (11) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Chevrolet, 144, accident.
  19. (5) Max Zachem, Preston, Conn., Chevrolet, 144.
  20. (3) Brendon Bock, Franklin Square, N.Y., Chevrolet, 141, accident.
  21. (21) Calvin Carroll, Newton, N.J., Chevrolet, 119.
  22. (4) Shawn Solomito, Islip, N.Y., Chevrolet, 111, accident.
  23. (16) CJ Lehmann, Shirley, Pa., Chevrolet, 105, accident.
  24. (8) Todd Szegedy, Ridgefield, Conn., Chevrolet, 54, overheating.
  25. (26) Wade Cole, Hartland, Conn., Chevrolet, 44, accident.
  26. (12) Ted Christopher, Plainville, Conn., Chevrolet, 37, accident.
  27. (23) Dave Salzarulo, Monson, Mass., Chevrolet, 26, mechanical.
  28. (24) Melissa Fifield, Wakefield, N.H., Chevrolet, 21, power steering.

Race Statistics

Time of Race: 1 hour 13 minutes 38 seconds

Margin of Victory: 0.302 seconds

Caution Flags: 9 for 43 laps.

Lead Changes: 15 among 5 drivers.

Lap Leaders: D. Coby 1-54; J. Bonsignore 55; D. Coby 56-62; R. Preece 63; D. Coby 64-66; Solomito 67; D. Coby 68-102; T. Solomito 103; J. McKennedy 104; T. Solomito 105-109; Coby 110-114; T. Solomito 115; D. Coby 116-143; R. Preece 144; D. Coby 145-147; R. Preece 148-150.

Standings: 1. T. Solomito, 310; 2. R. Pennink, 303; 3. E. Goodale, 285; 4. J. Bonsignore, 285; 5. R. Preece, 284; 6. D. Coby, 278; 7. M. Zachem, 272; 8. D. Sapienza, 261; 9. R. Summers, 249; 10. W. Pitkat, 249.

NWMT Stafford 8/4/17 Results
Whelen Modified Tour
Race: NWMT Stafford 8/4/17
FOR PRINTABLE FORMAT (PDF)

Fin Str Car Driver Team Laps Points B/Points Status
1 27 6 Ryan Preece TS Hauler Chevrolet 150 47 4 Running
2 2 2 Doug Coby Mayhew Tools/Dunleavy/AJ Romano Chevrolet 150 44 2 Running
3 6 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. Chevrolet 150 42 1 Running
4 10 16 Timmy Solomito Starrett Racing Ford 150 41 1 Running
5 28 0 Jon McKennedy Brady Bunch Racing/Copeland Toyota & Chevrolet 150 40 1 Running
6 20 64 Rob Summers Hoosier Tire East/Fast Track Elect/Hughes Motors 150 38 Running
7 14 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprise Chevrolet 150 37 Running
8 1 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply Chevrolet 150 36 Running
9 17 77 Gary Putnam Curb Records Chevrolet 150 35 Running
10 19 89 Matt Swanson Starrett Racing Ford 150 34 Running
11 13 44 Bobby Santos Sully Tinio/Brendan Kelley Music Chevrolet 150 33 Running
12 18 24 Andrew Krause Supreme Manufacturing Chevrolet 150 32 Running
13 15 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing Chevrolet 150 31 Running
14 25 78 Walter Sutcliffe Jr. Last Minute Racing Chevrolet 150 30 Running
15 7 21 Ronnie Williams * Gershow Recycling Chevrolet 148 29 Running
16 22 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Landscape /TRC Electric Chevrolet 148 28 Running
17 9 3 Rowan Pennink Cape Cod Copper/USNE Chevrolet 146 27 Fuel
18 11 7 Woody Pitkat Bardahl Chevrolet 144 26 Accident
19 5 20 Max Zachem Course Legend/Robert B Our Chevrolet 144 25 Running
20 3 29 Brendon Bock Meadow Brook Collision Chevrolet 141 24 Accident
21 21 39 Calvin Carroll * Power with Prestige/Cruising w/Betty Chevrolet 119 23 Running
22 4 66 Shawn Solomito New England Gear/Natural Designs/Starrett Chevrolet 111 22 Accident
23 16 74 CJ Lehmann * IGA Food Markets/Applebee’s/Baldwin Automotive 105 21 Accident
24 8 85 Todd Szegedy Stuarts Automotiive/J&R Pre-Cast Chevrolet 54 20 Overheating
25 26 33 Wade Cole Perf. Engines/Kendall Oil Chevrolet 44 19 Accident
26 12 82 Ted Christopher Horton Avenue Materials Chevrolet 37 18 Accident
27 23 38 Dave Salzarulo Perf Engines/Kendall Oil/Ryan’s Chevrolet 26 17 Mechanical
28 24 1 Melissa Fifield Eastern Propane & Oil Chevrolet 21 16 Power Steering
RACE STATISTICS

Time of Race: 1 hrs., 13 mins, 38 secs Average Speed: 61.114 mph Margin of Victory: 0.302 Seconds

Caution Flags: Laps 36-41; 46-54; 61-66; 100-104; 106-109; 111-114; 126-128; 141-143; 145-147. 9 for 43 laps.

Lap Leaders: Doug Coby 1-54, Justin Bonsignore 55, Doug Coby 56-62, Ryan Preece 63, Doug Coby 64-66, Timmy Solomito 67, Doug Coby 68-102, Timmy Solomito 103, Jon McKennedy 104, Timmy Solomito 105-109, Doug Coby 110-114, Timmy Solomito 115, Doug Coby 116-143, Ryan Preece 144, Doug Coby 145-147, Ryan Preece 148-150.

Total Laps Led: Doug Coby 135, Timmy Solomito 8, Ryan Preece 5, Justin Bonsignore 1, Jon McKennedy 1. 15 changes involving 5 drivers.

Top 10 Driver Points: Timmy Solomito 310, Rowan Pennink 303, Eric Goodale 285, Justin Bonsignore 285, Ryan Preece 284, Doug Coby 278, Max Zachem 272, Dave Sapienza 261, Rob Summers 249, Woody Pitkat 249

Top 5 Rookie Points:

Next Race: Thompson

*Denotes Sunoco Rookie of the Year Contender

STANDINGS
2017 Driver Standings: Stafford
Whelen Modified Tour

Race:
NWMT Stafford 8/4/17
Print Version (PDF) | Owner Standings | Rookie & Contingency Award Standings
Pos Driver Name Points Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10
1 Timmy Solomito 310 8 3 5 6
2 Rowan Pennink 303 8 1 2 7
3 Eric Goodale 285 8 0 4 5
4 Justin Bonsignore 285 8 0 3 6
5 Ryan Preece 284 7 3 6 6
6 Doug Coby 278 8 0 4 4
7 Max Zachem 272 8 0 3 6
8 Dave Sapienza 261 8 0 2 4
9 Rob Summers 249 8 0 1 3
10 Woody Pitkat 249 8 0 0 2
11 Matt Swanson 247 8 0 0 3
12 Craig Lutz 199 7 0 0 2
13 Calvin Carroll * 191 8 0 0 0
14 Wade Cole 182 8 0 0 0
15 Brendon Bock 169 6 0 1 1
16 Shawn Solomito 168 7 0 0 1
17 Ted Christopher 164 5 0 1 3
18 Melissa Fifield 164 8 0 0 0
19 Bobby Santos 162 4 1 3 3
20 Gary Putnam 152 5 0 0 1
21 Todd Szegedy 149 7 0 0 1
22 Andy Seuss 145 5 0 1 2
23 Andrew Krause 141 5 0 0 1
24 Chase Dowling 123 4 0 2 2
25 Walter Sutcliffe Jr. 122 5 0 0 0
26 Ron Silk 110 4 0 0 1
27 Kyle Ellwood 87 3 0 0 0
28 Ronnie Williams * 84 3 0 0 0
29 Donny Lia 84 4 0 0 0
30 Bryan Dauzat 81 3 0 0 0
31 Jon McKennedy 78 2 0 1 2
32 Danny Bohn 68 2 0 0 1
33 Kyle Bonsignore 67 2 0 1 1
34 Kyle Ebersole 65 2 0 0 1
35 Gary McDonald 64 3 0 0 0
36 Patrick Emerling 51 2 0 0 1
37 George Brunnhoelzl III 50 2 0 0 0
38 CJ Lehmann * 47 2 0 0 0
39 Jamie Tomaino 45 2 0 0 0
40 Jeremy Gerstner 40 1 0 0 0
41 Dave Salzarulo 37 2 0 0 0
42 Tom Rogers, Jr. 36 1 0 0 1
43 Les Hinckley, III * 35 1 0 0 1
44 Dillon Steuer * 35 1 0 0 1
45 Burt Myers 34 1 0 0 1
46 Gary Byington * 30 2 0 0 0
47 Jeff Rocco * 29 1 0 0 0
48 Matt Hirschman 27 1 0 0 0
49 Vincent Biondolillo * 24 1 0 0 0
50 Brad Vanhouten * 23 1 0 0 0
51 Ryan Newman 22 1 0 0 0
52 Spencer Davis 21 1 0 0 0
53 Jerry Solomito 21 1 0 0 0
54 Jimmy Blewett 20 1 0 0 0
55 Lauren Edgerton * 19 1 0 0 0
56 Anthony Nocella 17 1 0 0 0
*Denotes Sunoco Rookie of the Year Candidate

STANDINGS
2017 Owner Standings: Stafford
Whelen Modified Tour

Race:
NWMT Stafford 8/4/17
Print Version (PDF) | Driver Standings | Rookie & Contingency Award Standings
Pos Driver Name Points Starts Wins Top 5 Top 10
1 Ed Partridge #6 310 8 3 6 6
2 Eric Sanderson #16 310 8 3 5 6
3 Jan Boehler #3 303 8 1 2 7
4 Edgar Goodale #58 285 8 0 4 5
5 Ken Massa #51 285 8 0 3 6
6 Mike Smeriglio III #2 278 8 0 4 4
7 Ken Zachem #20 272 8 0 3 6
8 Judy Thilburg #36 261 8 0 2 4
9 Russell Goodale #46 259 8 0 0 3
10 Mike Murphy #64 249 8 0 1 3
11 John Swanson #89 247 8 0 0 3
12 Danny Watts Jr. #82 242 8 0 0 3
13 Joe Carroll #39 191 8 0 0 0
14 Wade Cole #33 182 8 0 0 0
15 Robert Katon Jr. #85 178 8 0 0 1
16 Mike Curb #77 174 6 0 0 1
17 George Bock #29 169 6 0 1 1
18 Brian Brady #00 166 5 0 2 4
19 Kenneth Fifield #01 164 8 0 0 0
20 Renee Lutz #56 163 6 0 0 1
21 Sully Tinio #44 162 4 1 3 3
22 Wayne Anderson #48 146 6 0 0 1
23 Cliff Krause #24 141 5 0 0 1
24 Rob Fuller #15 123 4 0 2 2
25 Steven Sutcliffe #78 122 5 0 0 0
26 Tommy Baldwin #7 110 5 0 0 0
27 Eddie Harvey #11 107 4 0 1 1
28 John Ellwood, Jr. #17 87 3 0 0 0
29 Joe Bertuccio, Sr. #21 84 3 0 0 0
30 Bryan Dauzat #97 81 3 0 0 0
31 Gina Fleming #40 68 2 0 0 1
32 Kyle Bonsignore #22 67 2 0 1 1
33 Linda Rodenbaugh #38 67 4 0 0 0
34 Bob Ebersole #5 65 2 0 0 1
35 Sean McDonald #26 64 3 0 0 0
36 Jennifer Emerling #07 51 2 0 0 1
37 Marie Benevento #74 47 2 0 0 0
38 Cheryl Tomaino #99 45 2 0 0 0
39 Steve Seuss #70 38 1 0 0 1
40 Joe Ambrose #0 36 1 0 0 1
41 Chuck Steuer #45 35 1 0 0 1
42 Kim Myers #1 34 1 0 0 1
43 Roy Hall #60 27 1 0 0 0
44 Heather Brunnhoelzl #28 24 1 0 0 0
45 Michelle Biondolillo #06 24 1 0 0 0
46 Jeff Goodale #09 23 1 0 0 0
47 Jerry Solomito #66 22 1 0 0 0
48 Grady Jeffreys, Jr #15 22 1 0 0 0
49 Erin Solomito #10 21 1 0 0 0
50 Jimmy Blewett #76 20 1 0 0 0
51 Rusty Edgerton #72 19 1 0 0 0
52 Dawn Gerstner #70 18 0 0 0 0
53 Anthony Nocella #92 17 1 0 0 0

STANDINGS
Rookie & Contingency Award Standings: New Hampshire
Whelen Modified Tour

Race:
NWMT New Hampshire 7/15/17
Driver Standings | Owner Standings
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour rookie and contingency award standings. All standings are unofficial until postseason review.

2011_contingency_coke

COCA-COLA MOVE OF THE RACE AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
David Sapienza 2
Kyle Bonsignore 1
Ted Christopher 1
Bryan Dauzat 1
Les Hinckley III 1
Ryan Preece 1
Water Sutcliffe Jr. 1
2011_contingency_coors_light

COORS LIGHT POLE AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Doug Coby 2
Timmy Solomito 2
Donny Lia 1
Rowan Pennink 1
Ryan Preece 1
Rob Summers 1
duralast-logo
DURALAST GT BREAK OF THE RACE AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Ryan Preece 2
Eric Goodale 1
Ryan Newman 1

HOOSIER TIRE FASTEST LAP AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Ryan Preece 3
Doug Coby 1
Chase Dowling 1
Eric Goodale 1
Bobby Santos 1
Rob Summers 1
HOOSIER TIRE LAP LEADER AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Doug Coby 2
Ryan Preece 2
Rowan Pennink 1
Timmy Solomito 1
Rob Summers 1
HOOSIER TIRE MOST IMPROVED AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Calvin Carroll 5
Walter Sutcliffe Jr. 1
Dillon Steuer 1

SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE RACE AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Calvin Carroll 5
Walter Sutcliffe Jr. 1
Dillon Steuer 1

SUNOCO ROOKIE OF THE YEAR STANDINGS

DRIVER POINTS
Calvin Carroll 64
Walter Sutcliffe Jr. 36
Gary Byington 15
Ronnie Williams 15
Les Hinckley III 10
Dillon Steuer 10
Brad Vanhouten 9
Jeff Rocco 9
Lauren Edgerton 8
CJ Lehmann 8
Vincent Biondolillo 6

SUNOCO SPEC FUEL AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Ryan Preece 3
Timmy Solomito 3
Rowan Pennink 1
Bobby Santos 1
2011_contingency_whelen

WHELEN WINNER OF THE RACE AWARD

DRIVER AWARDS
Ryan Preece 3
Timmy Solomito 3
Rowan Pennink 1
Bobby Santos 1