10-Time Bowman Gray Champion Burt Myers to Join SK Modified® Field at Stafford for Sept. 11 TC 13 Shootout
(Stafford Springs, CT)—When Stafford’s SK Modifieds® take to the track this Friday night, September 11, for their regularly scheduled 40-lap feature plus the TC 13 Shootout, there will be a special invader among the driver ranks. 10-time Bowman Gray Stadium champion and 2-time Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion Burt Myers will be behind the wheel of the #57 car prepared by Keith Rocco Racing.
“I’m pretty excited about the way this deal came together,” said Myers. “I talked with Keith [Rocco] 2 or 3 years ago at the NASCAR awards banquet in Charlotte about putting a deal together for me to come up to Stafford and run one of his SK cars. I got the opportunity to watch the SK’s several times whenever I came up for a Whelen Modified Tour race and it’s something that I’ve always wanted to do and it finally worked out. My schedule down south was always pretty hectic but we’re not doing much racing right now with our Covid restrictions so it was a really good deal for both of us. I’m excited for the opportunity and I have to thank Keith Rocco, Citrusafe Cleaners, and Superior Refinishing, there’s a lot of people who have come together to help make this possible for me.”
Myers has made 2 career Whelen Modified Tour starts at Stafford in 2018 with a best finish of 10th in the NAPA Fall Final and this Friday night will mark his debut in the SK Modified® division. Despite his lack of experience in a SK style car, Myers is relishing the challenge of driving the #57 car to the front in a field that is filled with top-notch modified talent.
“I can’t wait,” said Myers. “I don’t want to sound arrogant but I think I can win otherwise I wouldn’t be coming up to Stafford. One of the main reasons why I partnered with Keith is because his equipment is top-notch and so is his knowledge of the cars and the track. I know if something goes wrong and we’re not competitive, everything is in my hands. I’m realistic and I know I’m coming into those guys’ backyard and it’s going to be a battle. At the same time, the old saying is adversity causes some men to break and some men to break records, and coming up there to do the best I can to compete with the SK guys is what makes this so exciting.”
Myers couldn’t have picked a much better partner than Rocco to team up with. Rocco is a 3-time Stafford SK Modified® champion and he just recorded his 61st career SK Modified® win last Friday at Stafford. Rocco leads all SK Modified® drivers this season with 4 victories and he currently leads the 2020 SK Modified® points standings.
“With Keith’s equipment, I know the car should be where it needs to be and it’ll be up to me to do my job,” said Myers. “I know there’s going to be a limited amount of practice so I wanted to make sure I checked off as many checkmarks as I could before I get to the track. It definitely helps to have some laps under my belt under my lap at Stafford. With the horsepower difference, you have to drive the SK car totally different from a Tour car but I think I can get adapted to that pretty quickly. I feel like we should be pretty good and I’m looking forward to it.”
In addition to the regularly scheduled 40-lap feature event, SK Modified® drivers will be fighting to finish in the top-13 so they can transfer into the 13-lap TC 13 Shootout.
“I’m going to do everything I can to try to win both races, that’s why I’m coming to Stafford,” said Myers. “This might sound kind of odd, but I really enjoy racing up north because you guys have grip and we don’t. Most of the tracks down south here are tire eaters. It’s a welcome scene for me when I come up north because you can actually drive the car hard and not have to worry about a big fall off with the tires. To me a modified was built for driving hard and there’s not many times where you get to drive a modified as hard as you can so I’m looking forward to doing that and seeing what we can do. I promise you I’m going to give it all I’ve got and if that’s not enough then we’ll regroup and try again.”
This Friday night, September 11, the TC 13 SK Modified® Shootout and regularly scheduled 40-lap SK Modified® feature will be paired with Stafford’s Late Models, SK Lights, Limited Late Models, and Street Stocks for a full night of NASCAR Weekly Racing. Tickets are priced at $20.00 for adult general admission, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, and children ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by an adult. Paddock passes are $40 and all tickets for this event are available for purchase now at www.staffordspeedway.com. Don’t wait, most events have sold out. If tickets are sold the day of the event the price increases $5 at the gates.
Any fans who can’t make the race in person can watch a live stream of the entire evening starting at 6pm with qualifying heats all the way through the final feature event of the night on www.staffordspeedway.tv for only $20.
For more information, visit www.staffordspeedway.com, checkout Stafford Speedway on Facebook or Twitter, or contact the track office at 860-684-2783.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR