Justin Bonsignore Finally Finds Victory Lane at Bristol
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Championship Points Leader Conquers Thunder Valley
BRISTOL, Tenn. — Justin Bonsignore’s dream season just keeps on rolling.
The Holtsville, New York, driver led the final 60 laps of the Bush’s Beans 150 at Bristol Motor Speedway, held off Chase Dowling over the run to the checkered flag and rolled into Bristol’s Victory Lane for the first time in his career on Thursday night.
The win was his sixth of the 2018 season, his 18th career in Whelen Modified Tour competition and his first at the 0.533-mile Tennessee oval. He was finally able to knock ‘Thunder Valley’ off his bucket list.
RACING-REFERENCE: Bush’s Beans 150 Race Results
“We’ve always had a lot of speed and a lot of success here, but the last couple of years has been feast or famine for us,” Bonsignore said. “We wanted to win Bristol. It’s a huge win to check off the list as a modified driver. I’m really glad we were able to drive up the ramp (Victory Lane). It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.”
Bonsignore started from the pole after posting the fastest time in qualifying, but lost the lead on lap one to Patrick Emerling. From there, Bonsignore’s difficult climb back to the front of the field came to a close just after the mandatory halfway, break where teams changed their Hoosier tires.
He took the lead on lap 90, and never relinquished the top spot, cutting through lapped traffic while Chase Dowling tried everything to make a move to the lead in search of his first tour win.
Dowling chased Bonsignore across the line and finished second. It was the sixth top-five finish of the season for the Roxbury, Connecticut, driver, and the fourth time that he crossed the line in the runner-up spot.
“Justin did what he had to do,” Dowling said following his second-place effort. “We are bringing fast race cars to the track every week. We are top five.”
RACING-REFERENCE: Career Stats For Justin Bonsignore
Rob Summers finished third, while Patrick Emerling, who led 52 laps, finished fourth. Five-time and defending series champion Doug Coby faded in the final circuits and rounded out the top five.
Ronnie Williams was sixth, followed by Dave Sapienza, Rowan Pennink, Burt Myers and Eric Goodale.
Bonsignore extended his points lead to 64 points over Dowling with five races remaining, while Timmy Solomito is third, 96 points back.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to the track at Oswego Speedway in New York on Saturday, September 1.
Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race WeekendAugust 2018
Justin Bonsignore scores his sixth win of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season and his first career win at Bristol Motor Speedway. (Russell LaBounty/NKP).
Sources: Jason Christley/NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour-Bush’s Beans “150” Results
Thursday
At Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol, Tenn.
Lap length: 0.533 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (1) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, NY, Chevrolet, 150 laps, 91.985 mph.
2. (4) Chase Dowling, Roxbury, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
3. (7) Rob Summers, Manchester, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
4. (2) Patrick Emerling, Orchard Park, NY, Chevrolet, 150.
5. (5) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
6. (8) Ronnie Williams, Ellington, Conn., Chevrolet, 150.
7. (11) Dave Sapienza, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150.
8. (10) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, Pa., Chevrolet, 150.
9. (9) Burt Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C., Chevrolet, 150.
10. (6) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 149.
11. (12) Craig Lutz, Miller Place, N.Y., Chevrolet, 149.
12. (14) Tommy Catalano, Ontario, N.Y., Chevrolet, 148.
13. (15) Andy Seuss, Hampstead, N.H., Chevrolet, 148.
14. (17) Gary Putnam, Vernon, Conn., Chevrolet, 148.
15. (3) Timmy Solomito, Islip, N.Y., Ford, 148.
16. (19) Gary McDonald, Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Chevrolet, 145.
17. (20) Wade Cole, Hartland, Conn., Chevrolet, 144.
18. (18) Austin Pickens, Windermere, Fla., Chevrolet, 65, engine.
19. (13) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Chevrolet, 33, electrical.
20. (16) Ken Heagy, Calverton, N.Y., Ford, 30, engine.
21. (21) Melissa Fifield, Wakefield, N.H., Chevrolet, 15, power steering.
22. (22) Calvin Carroll, Newton, N.J., Chevrolet, 0, withdrew.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 52 minutes 9 seconds
Margin of Victory: 0.519 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: J.Bonsignore (128.986 mph, 14.876 seconds)
Caution Flags: 4 for 15 laps.
Lead Changes: 3 among 3 drivers.
Lap Leaders: P. Emerling 1-52; J. Bonsignore 53-60; T. Solomito 61-89; J. Bonsignore 90-150.
Standings: 1. J. Bonsignore, 484; 2. C. Dowling, 420; 3. T. Solomito, 388; 4. D. Coby, 376; 5. C. Lutz, 376; 6. R. Summers, 358; 7. R. Pennink, 341; 8. E. Goodale, 338; 9. D. Sapienza, 329; 10. R. Williams, 319.
2018 Bush’s Beans 150
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race number 11 of 11
Wednesday, August 15, 2018 at Bristol Motor Speedway, Bristol, TN
150 laps on a .533 mile paved track (80.0 miles)
Time of race: 0
Average speed: 91.985 mph
Pole speed: 128.986 mph Cautions: 4 for 15 laps
Margin of victory: .519 sec
Attendance: n/a
Lead changes: 4
Fin St # Driver Sponsor / Owner Car Laps Status Led Pts
1 1 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. (Kenneth Massa) Chevrolet 150 running 69 48
2 4 15 Chase Dowling 15-40 Connection / S&S Paving (Rob Fuller) Chevrolet 150 running 0 42
3 7 64 Rob Summers Hoosier Tire East / Fast Track Electrical (Mike Murphy) Chevrolet 150 running 0 41
4 2 07 Patrick Emerling Buffalo Auto Auction (Jennifer Emerling) Chevrolet 150 running 52 41
5 5 2 Doug Coby Mayhew / Dunleavy’s / AJ Roman’s Const. (Mike Smeriglio III) Chevrolet 150 running 0 39
6 8 21 Ronnie Williams Empower Financial / Gershow Recycling (Joseph Bertuccio) Chevrolet 150 running 0 38
7 11 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprise (Judy Thilberg) Chevrolet 150 running 0 37
8 10 3 Rowan Pennink Cape Cod Copper / USNE, Inc. (Jan Boehler) Chevrolet 150 running 0 36
9 9 1 Burt Myers Dunleavy Truck & Repairs / LFR / Citrusafe (Eddie Harvey) Chevrolet 150 running 0 35
10 6 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing (Edgar Goodale) Chevrolet 149 running 0 34
11 12 46 Craig Lutz Riverhead Building Supply (Russell Goodale) Chevrolet 149 running 0 33
12 14 54 Tommy Catalano * Catalano Motorsports (Amy Catalano) Chevrolet 148 running 0 32
13 15 57 Andy Seuss O.B. Builders (Bryan Dauzat) Chevrolet 148 running 0 31
14 17 77 Gary Putnam Curb Records (Mike Curb) Chevrolet 148 running 0 30
15 3 16 Timmy Solomito Starrett Racing (Eric Sanderson) Ford 148 running 29 30
16 19 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Landscape / TRC Electric (Sean McDonald) Chevrolet 145 running 0 28
17 20 33 Wade Cole Performance Engines / Kendall Oil (Wade Cole) Chevrolet 144 running 0 27
18 18 63 Austin Pickens Site One Greenbrier (Steve Pickens) Chevrolet 65 engine 0 26
19 13 82 Woody Pitkat Last Minute Racing (Danny Watts Jr.) Chevrolet 33 electrical 0 25
20 16 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood (Robert Pollifrone) Ford 30 engine 0 24
21 21 01 Melissa Fifield Truck Stop Northeast (Kenneth Fifield) Chevrolet 15 power steering 0 23
22 22 25 Calvin Carroll Power with Prestige / Cruising w / Betty (Joe Carroll) Chevrolet 0 did not start 0 22
Rookie drivers are denoted with an asterisk.
Caution flag breakdown:
Condition From
Lap To
Lap # Of
Laps Reason Free
Pass
1 56 56
57 60 4 #07 spun turn 1 #54
61 66 6
67 70 4 #63 spun turn 2 #46
71 81 11
82 85 4 break #77
86 95 10
96 98 3 #16 spun frontstretch #57
99 150 52
Percent of race run under caution: 10.0% Average green flag run: 27.0 laps
Lap leader breakdown:
Leader From
Lap To
Lap # Of
Laps
Patrick Emerling 1 52 52
Justin Bonsignore 53 60 8
Timmy Solomito 61 89 29
Justin Bonsignore 90 150 61
Points standings after this race:
Rank Driver Points Diff
1 Justin Bonsignore 483
2 Chase Dowling 421 -62
3 Timmy Solomito 388 -95
4 Doug Coby 376 -107
4 Craig Lutz 376 -107
6 Rob Summers 358 -125
7 Rowan Pennink 341 -142
8 Eric Goodale 339 -144
9 Dave Sapienza 329 -154
10 Ronnie Williams 319 -164
11 Chris Pasteryak 282 -201
12 Tommy Catalano 275 -208
13 Ryan Preece 274 -209
14 Gary McDonald 265 -218
15 Calvin Carroll 260 -223
16 Blake Barney 256 -227
17 Woody Pitkat 251 -232
18 Wade Cole 247 -236
19 Ken Heagy 234 -249
20 Jon McKennedy 232 -251
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings for 2018
Click on the Driver to see 2018 race-level statistics for that driver.
Previous year
Glossary Tweet
Owner Standings | Contingency & Rookie Awards
Driver Races Win T5 T10 Pole Laps Led Earnings AvSt AvFn RAF Miles LLF Points Diff
1 Justin Bonsignore 11 6 9 11 4 1675 474 0 3.0 2.9 11 866.42 11 484
2 Chase Dowling 11 0 6 10 2 1607 236 0 6.3 6.5 10 832.67 9 420 -64
3 Timmy Solomito 11 0 3 8 0 1672 59 0 9.2 9.1 11 865.10 9 388 -96
4 Doug Coby 11 1 5 6 1 1578 163 0 5.0 10.7 9 815.94 8 376 -108
5 Craig Lutz 11 0 2 8 0 1550 11 0 11.2 10.0 10 816.25 7 376 -108
6 Rob Summers 11 0 1 4 0 1667 0 0 10.0 11.5 11 863.42 8 358 -126
7 Rowan Pennink 9 0 5 8 0 1371 52 0 6.7 6.4 9 690.97 8 341 -143
8 Eric Goodale 11 0 3 5 0 1481 0 0 12.0 13.3 9 768.26 6 338 -146
9 Dave Sapienza 11 0 2 5 0 1413 0 0 13.7 14.1 8 734.33 5 329 -155
10 Ronnie Williams 10 0 0 5 1 1488 0 0 9.3 13.7 8 754.25 4 319 -165
11 Chris Pasteryak 9 0 0 3 0 1406 0 0 15.7 12.7 9 671.55 6 282 -202
12 Tommy Catalano 10 0 0 1 0 1477 0 0 20.8 16.5 9 764.47 4 275 -209
13 Ryan Preece 8 2 5 5 1 1075 298 0 11.4 11.2 6 556.28 5 274 -210
14 Gary McDonald 11 0 0 0 0 1515 0 0 26.2 19.9 9 799.02 4 265 -219
15 Calvin Carroll 10 0 0 1 0 1228 0 0 17.6 20.2 8 595.94 3 260 -224
16 Blake Barney 10 0 0 1 0 1268 0 0 17.3 18.4 7 617.45 4 256 -228
17 Woody Pitkat 9 0 1 2 0 975 2 0 18.3 16.2 6 593.73 4 251 -233
18 Wade Cole 11 0 0 0 0 1544 0 0 26.2 21.5 9 814.73 1 247 -237
19 Ken Heagy 10 0 0 0 0 1317 0 0 24.0 20.6 7 655.70 2 234 -250
20 Jon McKennedy 8 1 1 2 0 1012 87 0 4.4 15.9 5 597.88 4 232 -252
21 Matt Swanson 6 0 2 5 0 765 0 0 15.5 10.3 5 484.74 5 216 -268
22 Joe DeGracia 10 0 0 0 0 1269 1 0 26.6 22.8 8 692.60 1 213 -271
23 Gary Putnam 7 0 0 0 0 1094 6 0 21.3 14.9 7 535.43 4 205 -279
24 Melissa Fifield 11 0 0 0 0 923 0 0 27.8 25.6 4 481.45 0 202 -282
25 Bobby Santos III 5 1 2 3 0 737 3 0 11.6 9.8 4 461.80 3 175 -309
26 Burt Myers 6 0 0 1 0 838 5 0 11.8 16.2 5 414.65 3 168 -316
27 Ron Silk 6 0 1 2 0 634 0 0 12.2 16.7 3 369.49 3 164 -320
28 Andrew Krause 5 0 0 1 0 674 0 0 14.8 13.6 5 420.75 4 152 -332
29 Walter Sutcliffe, Jr. 7 0 0 0 0 568 0 0 28.7 27.4 2 255.16 0 144 -340
30 Jimmy Blewett 5 0 1 2 0 573 15 0 15.4 16.8 3 324.45 2 138 -346
31 Patrick Emerling 4 0 2 3 0 475 92 0 6.0 12.5 3 301.37 3 128 -356
32 Matt Hirschman 3 0 3 3 1 450 147 0 1.7 3.0 3 190.05 3 127 -357
33 Kyle Bonsignore 5 0 0 1 0 491 7 0 13.2 21.6 3 238.52 2 113 -371
34 Andy Seuss 4 0 0 0 0 516 1 0 14.0 19.8 2 332.20 1 98 -386
35 Ray Parent 3 0 0 0 0 420 0 0 21.3 16.0 3 243.75 1 84 -400
36 Austin Pickens 3 0 0 0 0 337 0 0 14.7 21.7 2 204.64 0 67 -417
37 Shawn Solomito 2 0 0 1 0 323 0 0 16.5 11.0 2 177.00 0 66 -418
38 Anthony Nocella 2 0 0 0 0 248 0 0 10.0 17.5 2 155.08 1 53 -431
39 Kyle Soper 2 0 0 1 0 255 0 0 23.0 20.5 1 85.12 0 47 -437
40 Kyle Ellwood 2 0 0 0 0 237 0 0 18.0 21.0 1 62.57 0 46 -438
41 Jeff Rocco 2 0 0 0 0 189 0 0 18.0 21.5 1 72.32 0 45 -439
42 Bryan Dauzat 2 0 0 0 0 245 0 0 27.5 21.5 2 195.99 0 45 -439
43 Jamie Tomaino 2 0 0 0 0 241 0 0 27.0 22.0 2 176.97 1 44 -440
44 Ryan Newman 1 0 1 1 1 100 16 0 1.0 3.0 1 105.80 1 42 -442
45 Tom Rogers, Jr. 1 0 0 1 0 198 0 0 6.0 8.0 1 49.50 0 36 -448
46 Kyle Ebersole 1 0 0 0 0 150 0 0 14.0 12.0 1 59.40 1 32 -452
47 John Beatty, Jr. 1 0 0 0 0 197 0 0 17.0 15.0 1 49.25 0 29 -455
48 Dave Salzarulo 2 0 0 0 0 75 0 0 30.5 30.0 0 51.45 0 28 -456
49 John Fortin 1 0 0 0 0 196 0 0 19.0 17.0 1 49.00 0 27 -457
51 Spencer Davis 1 0 0 0 0 145 0 0 19.0 20.0 1 57.42 0 24 -460
52 Manny Dias 1 0 0 0 0 147 0 0 33.0 21.0 1 91.87 0 23 -461
53 Max Zachem 2 0 0 0 0 59 0 0 20.5 32.5 0 61.98 0 23 -461
54 Frank Fleming 1 0 0 0 0 148 0 0 23.0 22.0 1 79.62 0 22 -462
55 Roger Turbush 1 0 0 0 0 189 0 0 22.0 25.0 0 47.25 0 19 -465
56 Cory Osland 1 0 0 0 0 58 0 0 30.0 29.0 0 14.50 0 15 -469
J.B. Fortin 1 0 0 0 0 196 0 0 29.0 19.0 1 49.00 0
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour owner standings for 2018
Previous year
Glossary Tweet
Driver Standings | Contingency & Rookie Awards
Owner # Points Starts Wins 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th Top 5 Top 10 Attempts
1 Ken Massa 51 484 11 6 1 0 1 1 0 9 11 11
2 Rob Fuller 15 420 11 0 4 0 2 0 1 6 10 11
3 Eric Sanderson 16 388 11 0 0 0 1 2 1 3 8 11
4 Jan Boehler 3 383 10 0 2 2 2 0 1 6 9 10
5 Mike Smeriglio III 2 376 11 1 0 3 0 1 1 5 6 11
6 Russell Goodale 46 376 11 0 1 0 0 1 2 2 8 11
7 Mike Murphy 64 358 11 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 4 11
8 Edgar Goodale 58 338 11 0 0 1 0 2 0 3 5 11
9 Judy Thilburg 36 329 11 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 5 11
10 Joe Bertuccio, Sr. 21 319 11 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 5 11
11 Ed Partridge 6 316 9 2 2 0 2 0 0 6 6 9
12 Pamla Hulse 82 311 11 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 3 11
13 Charles Pasteryak 75 282 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 9
14 Amy Catalano 54 275 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 10
15 Sean McDonald 26 265 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11
16 Calvin Carroll 25 260 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 11
17 Richard Barney 14 256 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 10
18 Mike Curb 77 247 8 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 8
19 Wade Cole 33 247 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11
20 Robert Pollifrone 18 234 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10
21 Tommy Baldwin 7 232 8 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 8
22 Eddie Harvey 1 225 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 9
23 Paul Degracia 23 213 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10
24 Kenneth Fifield 01 202 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11
25 Sully Tinio 44 175 5 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 3 5
26 John Swanson 89 174 6 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 6
27 Kevin Stuart 85 164 6 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 6
28 Diane Krause 24 152 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5
29 Steven Sutcliffe 78 144 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9
30 Jennifer Emerling 07 128 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 3 4
31 Roy Hall 60 127 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 3 3 3
32 Kyle Bonsignore 22 113 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5
33 Steve Pickens 63 95 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4
34 John Blewett, Sr 76 84 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3
35 Bryan Dauzat 97 77 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
36 Jerry Solomito 66 66 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2
37 Bryan Dauzat 57 66 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
38 Linda Rodenbaugh 38 66 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4
39 Don Parsons 98 56 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
40 Anthony Nocella 92 53 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
41 Wayne Anderson 95 47 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2
42 Cheryl Tomaino 99 44 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
43 Bob Ebersole 5 32 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
44 John Ellwood, Jr. 17 31 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
45 Mark Mina 5 29 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
46 Nicole Fortin 84 27 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
47 Nicole Fortin 34 25 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
48 Ken Zachem 20 23 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
49 Gina Fleming 40 22 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
50 Pat Kennedy 88 19 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
51 Brian Midgett 04 15 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1