Fast Friday Recap September 13 2019
With just two weeks left in the championship points battles at Seekonk Speedway, drivers showed up on a crisp and cool Friday night ready to throw down on the third-mile. In the end, one champion was crowned a week early, while the other title battles closed up heading into the final race.
In the Seekonk Grand Prix Bandolero Bandit division, Reese Bogue’s domination proved enough to clinch him the crown even before the finale. Bogue, who started deep in the field, quickly worked his way to the front, earning the second spot by lap three, setting his chase to leader PJ Evans. However, when Bogue heard over the radio that Evans would be penalized two spots for contact, he settled in, now the leader. He would coast around to the victory in the 15-lap feature, adding another win to his dominating season, and capping it off with his first Seekonk title. Adam Harrison would finish second, with Evans third in the final tally.
The Sport 4 title chase is the closest of the nine battles we have at Seekonk, and it’s going down to the final night. Entering Friday, three drivers were tied at the top — AJ Manuel, Jordan Lopes and Mike Lefort. All three of them have proven they can win, and proven they can run consistently at the front of the field. Friday was no different. In the final laps, it was Lopes leading, with Manuel second, and Lefort third. They were stuck together like glue around the third-mile, with Lopes earning another checkered flag, making it four on the season. He enters the final week up by two points on Manuel, the defending champion, and up by four on Lefort.
The championship battle in the Seekonk Grand Prix Bandolero Outlaw division closed up a bit more, with Samantha Dell earning a third-place finish, and Giovanni Ruggerio finishing sixth. That leaves Ruggerio’s stranglehold at the top of the standings at just eight points, while the two of them and the rest of the field watched Isaiah Newcomb charge to the front and earn another victory. Nathan Smith, who is yet to earn a victory this season, looked to be in control, before Newcomb took the top spot away.
A thriller of a Nick’s Pit Stop Legends Cars race went down to the final few feet, in one of the most memorable finishes to any race at Seekonk in the last few decades. Brendon Hammann looked to be cruising to another victory in his No. 7, but as he charged off turn four to the checkered, there was a car spun at the start/finish line, forcing him to check-up and take some evasive action. That allowed Josh Parsons to erase the few car length lead Hammann had, charge to the outside, and slip by at the line, winning by .008 seconds. In the Legends title battle, Parsons closed the gap to just 28 points behind Peter Bennett.
And in the Pure Stocks, another exciting main event went down to the final laps, with Danny Massa flexing his muscle to the front, and scoring his first checkered flag in a 25-lap race in his Seekonk career. Massa had earned plenty of wins in the extra distance features before, but this was the first-time he took a car to Victory Lane in a regular distance event. His checkered, combined with the fourth-place finish of Greg Perry, has Perry leading by 10 points entering the final race.
Sources: SeekonkSpeedway.com