QUALIFYING: Record Run for Pitkat
Thunders To Bristol Modified Pole
BRISTOL, Tenn. – “Thunder Valley” is one of multiple nicknames that Bristol Motor Speedway carries. Wednesday the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tours provided plenty of thunder in Coors Light Pole qualifying.
Woody Pitkat led a charge of 10 cars who qualified under the previous track mark for the division. A fast lap of 14.654 seconds (130.940 mph) earned the Stafford, Connecticut, native his fourth career Whelen Modified Tour pole and topped Donny Lia’s previous record set in 2009 at 14.806 (129.596).
The first three of Pitkat’s Coors Light Poles all came at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
Pitkat, the Whelen Modified Tour championship leader by one point over Ryan Preece, will see Preece join him in the front row for tonight’s 150-lap race. Preece qualified second-fastest at 14.699 (130.539). Rookie Jeff Goodale, in his first appearance at Bristol, qualified third with the same time as Preece.
Goodale’s cousin, tour veteran Eric Goodale, was fourth-fastest followed by Doug Coby. Todd Szegedy, Chase Dowling, Timmy Solomito, Bobby Santos and Patrick Emerling all also came in under the previous track record.
Gary Putnam, who qualified 11th, was the fastest Whelen Southern Modified Tour driver in time trials for the annual combination race between the two tours.
The Bush’s Beans 150 is slated to go green at 6:15 p.m.
NWMT Bristol 8/19/15 Qualifying
Pos No. Name Sponsor Time Speed
1 88 Woody Pitkat Buzz Chew Chevrolet/Elbow East 14.654 130.940
2 6 Ryan Preece TS Haulers/East West Marine 14.699 130.539
3 46 Jeff Goodale* Riverhead Building Supply 14.699 130.539
4 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing/Supreme Skylights 14.720 130.353
5 2 Doug Coby Dunleavy’s Repair/A&J Romano Const. 14.720 130.353
6 41 Todd Szegedy Mystic Missile Racing 14.734 130.229
7 9 Chase Dowling* S&S Asphalt Paving/Dunleavy’s Repair 14.754 130.053
8 16 Timmy Solomito Diversified Metals/RB Enterprises 14.767 129.938
9 44 Bobby Santos Tinio Corp./Dan Kelley/Curb Records 14.793 129.710
10 07 Patrick Emerling Buffalo Auto Auction 14.804 129.614
11 77 Gary Putnam Curb Records 14.826 129.421
12 8 Donny Lia Sypher Construction/Bardahl 14.832 129.369
13 64 Anthony Nocella* Nocella Reclamation/Hughes Motors 14.845 129.256
14 3 Kyle Bonsignore* Snap-On Tools 14.846 129.247
15 51 Justin Bonsignore M3 Technology 14.857 129.151
16 29 Brendon Bock* Pro-Systems Brakes/L.I. Performance 14.873 129.012
17 79 James Civali Hillbilly Racing/Coors Lights 14.883 128.926
18 4 Jason Myers Adam’s Towing & Recovery 14.885 128.908
19 75 Shawn Solomito Eastport Feeds 14.889 128.874
20 40 Frank Fleming AutosbyNation.com/Lewisville Motors 14.937 128.460
21 74 Bobby Measmer Jr. Powerhouse Recycling 14.939 128.442
22 22 Ted Christopher Canto Paving/Ferguson Waterworks 14.972 128.159
23 19 Joe Ryan Osborne Hillbilly Racing/Coors Light 21 Means 21 15.021 127.741
24 93 Rowan Pennink Van Wickle Auto Supply 15.025 127.707
25 43 David Calabrese Diamond Back Towing 15.030 127.665
26 28 George Brunnhoelzl III Composite Tech/Dunleavy Repair 15.034 127.631
27 7 Ryan Newman Menards/Wix Filters 15.041 127.571
28 11 Andy Seuss NorthEast Race Cars/Ideal Finance 15.043 127.554
29 15 Jeremy Gerstner GMR Lawncare/Shady Grady Racing 15.163 126.545
30 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood 15.169 126.495
31 95 Cale Gale Rheem/Gale Force 15.178 126.420
32 1 Burt Myers CitruSafe/Remington SCT 15.204 126.204
33 14 Max Zachem* ThrowBridge Transport/Dunleavy’s 15.231 125.980
34 5 Kyle Ebersole Ebersole Excavating 15.324 125.215
35 21 JR Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 15.369 124.849
36 36 David Sapienza* Frankie’s Towing/Wine Country 15.497 123.818
37 99 Jamie Tomaino Dunleavy’s Repair/Atlantic Sprinkler 15.501 123.786
38 13 Johnny Bush JB Stone 15.675 122.411
39 33 Wade Cole Performance Engines/Kendall Oil 16.277 117.884
40 01 Melissa Fifield Big Moose RV 16.681 115.029