Stafford Speedway’s Late Models Racing for Xtra Cash in Aug. 1 Late Model Xtra Mart Xtra D 60-lap Event
Stafford Springs, CT — Stafford’s Late Model division takes center stage this Friday night with their double distance 60-lap Xtra Mart Xtra D feature event. As the Late Model drivers take to the track, they will be racing for over $8,600 in total posted awards, which is more than double what they race for in a regular 30-lap feature event. The race purse is almost $6,400 with the winner taking home $1,125 and tenth place paying $250, which is double what a 5th place finish would earn in a regular 30-lap feature.
Adding to the total posted awards is a $1,000 bonus from Xtra Mart Convenience Stores, which will be split among the top-5 finishers for $200 per position. Additional contingency awards that are available are a $125 bonus from Connecticut Trailers for the feature winner, and New England Racing Fuel will present a $25 fuel certificate to each of the top-3 finishing cars using the Stafford Late Model Spec Engine as well as an additional $50 fuel certificate to the third place finisher.
Among the favorites to take the checkered flag this Friday night have to be Jay Stuart and Adam Gray. Stuart and Gray are 1-2 in the Late Model point standings and they are also the only drivers to have won more than one feature thus far during the 2014 season. Stuart is in fact coming off two consecutive victories that have pushed his 2014 win total up to 3, while Gray has 2 wins this season. Gray is the defending champion of last year’s 60-lap Late Model race and the Xtra Mart Xtra D race as well. He is also the defending Late Model track champion. Stuart is also a former Late Model track champion, with his championship coming back in the 1994 season. Should Stuart go on to win the championship this season, it would be a Stafford record for time elapsed between a driver’s first and second championship wins.
The Late Model field is stacked with competitive cars and this Friday night’s 60-lap feature should be an exciting event. In addition to Stuart and Gray, Tom Fearn, J.J. Hill, and Jim Peterson are the other drivers who have recorded a Late Model win this season. Both Hill and Peterson have won extra distance Late Model features at Stafford in previous seasons while Fearn is still in search of his very first extra distance victory at Stafford. The Late Model field contains several other former Stafford track champions that will be in Friday night’s Late Model field including Jim Peterson, who is a former 2-time Late Model champion, Cory Casagrande and Michael Bennett, who are both former Limited Late Model champions, Kevin Gambacorta, who is a former DARE Stock and Limited Late Model champion, and Fearn, who is a former 3-time ProStock champion at Stafford. The championship winning drivers will be joined by Late Model veterans like Jim Mavlouganes and Dennis Botticello as well as the return to the Late Model division of Rick Lanagan. There is also a stellar rookie crop including Kyle Casagrande, and Josh Wood. With such an outstanding field taking the green flag, it’s anybody’s guess as to who will come away from Friday night with the checkered flag and $1,475 in winnings.
The Late Model Xtra Mart Xtra D event gets underway at 6:15pm with qualifying heats and feature events will begin around 7:15pm. Tickets for this Friday night’s Late Model 60 Xtra Mart Xtra D 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. Reserved seating is priced at $23.00 for all ages. All ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax and Stafford Motor Speedway offers free parking with overnight parking available.
For more information on the Late Model Xtra Mart Xtra D 60, please contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at 860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Sources: Scott Running/Stafford Motor Speedway PR