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Waterford, CT (September 1, 2012) – Waterford
Speedbowl was in action on Saturday of Labor Day weekend with its
annual Thunder on the Sound event, presented by The Connecticut
National Guard. Mother Nature interfered more than once, as rain
soaked the racing surface on two separate occasions. Nine events
were scheduled for the program in total with five feature races
completed before rain began falling for the final time during the
16th annual Budweiser Modified Nationals SK Modified® 150. The
remainder of the night’s races, including the SK-150, were postponed
to later dates.
Taking victories in the races completed included Todd Bertrand of
Suffield in a special tribute Northeastern Midget Association race.
Keith Rocco of Meriden scored a career first win in the NEMA Lite
series after making his first-ever start in the division. Cam
McDermott of Scituate, RI took home the checkered flag in a
rain-shortened NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Light Modified
feature and in INEX racing action, Joe Mucciacciaro of Wolcott
landed his first career Speedbowl win in the Legend Cars and Ken
Morin Jr. of Old Saybrook was declared the winner of the Bandolero
feature.
Bertrand withstood stiff challenges from Randy Cabral during the
30-lap NEMA Midget race, which was a tribute to Gene and Marilyn
Angelillo, long-time car owners and contributors to the division.
Bertrand used the fourth starting position to race his way into the
lead on lap-5. He passed Paul Scally, who led from the drop of the
green flag. Cabral arrived in second position behind Bertrand on
lap-8, however Bertrand was able to hold off Cabral in a quickly
paced race. Bertrand got the jump over Cabral on the final restart
and kept him at bay until he was able to pull back ahead. Cabral
finished in second while Mike Horn finished third. Angelillo-piloted
cars claimed over 100 victories and 14 championships over the years
in NEMA. Each served the club in various roles, including Gene as
president and Marilyn as secretary for several seasons. Russ Stoehr,
racing in the famous Dumo’s Desire #45 entry fielded by the
Angelillo’s for years, finished fourth.
Rocco was a surprise winner in the 25-lap NEMA Lite feature.
Christian Briggs raced into the lead from the pole starting
position, however it was Rocco who made all the moves during the
race. He started deep in the field in 15th position and steadily
climbed into contention over the opening 10 laps of the race.
Following a caution on lap-6, Rocco moved into contention by racing
into third behind leaders Briggs and Brandon Igo on lap-7. A lap
later, Rocco passed Igo for second position and began to stalk
Briggs, who continued to lead. He moved into the lead on lap-11,
then withstood three final caution periods over the final half of
the race. Rocco was making his first-ever start in the series and
adapted quickly, commenting how much “fun” the division was to race
in. Ian Cummens was able to take second position at the checkered
flag, while Igo hung on for third.
The NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Light Modified feature was
interrupted by rain on lap-17, forcing the field to the pits for
cover. During an extended rain delay the event was declared
official, giving the win to McDermott who was the leader at the
time. Alan Benincaso led the opening three laps before Tyler Jackson
was able to take over through turns one and two. Defending division
Paul French was able to get to Benincaso’s inside, moving to second
position on lap-5. Once in the outside lane, Benincaso dropped back
as Corey Barry and McDermott moved in to the top four on lap-6.
Victoria Bergenty spun to bring out the first caution flag a lap
later, resuming from the rear of the field.
Once racing got back underway, the top four resumed their position
and ran in order until McDermott got to the inside of Barry for
third position on lap-10. McDermott continued to flex his muscle, by
getting around the outside of French for second on lap-14. McDermott
immediately went on the offensive on race leader Jackson, making an
inside move on Jackson in turn three a lap later to be scored as the
new race leader on lap-15. Behind McDermott, French tried to find
room under Jackson as the pair entered turn one. The two made the
slightest of contact, with Jackson spinning around in turn one to
bring out the caution flag.
McDermott resumed his lead on the restart as French held second
ahead of Randy Churchill, making his first start of the season in
the division. Barry was in trouble on lap-17, sliding to a stop in
turn two after running among the top-five for most of the race. It
was during the caution for Barry when rains began to fall and the
race was halted, crediting McDermott with the win and French and
Churchill rounding out the podium.
The 20-lap Legend Cars feature was another entertaining affair for
the division which has staged great racing of late. First-year
drivers Cory Dimatteo and Nicholas Sowa led the field to the green
flag, with Dimatteo jumping into the race lead. Sowa tucked in line
behind Dimatteo and tailed the leader over the opening laps. Before
long, Sowa was looking for a way around Dimatteo while behind the
top two Mucciacciaro was in a pack of cars moving into contention
that included Paul Kusheba and Dylan Izzo. Mucciacciaro led that
battle and moved up to second position when he found room to Sowa’s
inside off turn four on lap-4. Once in second, Mucciacciaro made the
move to Dimatteo’s inside entering turn three on lap-5 to take over
command of the race, which was run without a single caution flag.
Once in the lead Mucciacciaro could not shake Kusheba, who shadowed
the leader from lap-8 to the checkered flag. Izzo moved to third and
made it a three-car battle for the top spot over the second half of
the race. Kusheba stayed in striking distance and turned up his
pressure on Mucciacciaro over the final three laps. He got to
Mucciacciaro’s back bumper in turn one over each of the final three
laps, but was unable to find room to pull alongside. Mucciacciaro
streaked to his first career win at the Speedbowl in another
thrilling finish for the division. Kusheba settled for second with
Izzo taking third. Behind them, Sowa and Dana Dimatteo rounded out
the top-five positions.
The Bandolero feature was slowed by one caution flag on lap-3 when
the division’s hottest driver, Derek Debbis, dropped off the pace
with mechanical failure and came to rest on the apron of the track
just off turn four. Rene Morgillo led the remainder of the way
unchallenged following the race’s lone restart, appearing to go on
to her first career victory in the division. Morgillo’s car failed
post-race inspection however, giving the win to Ken Morin Jr. Behind
Morin, Anthony Marvin and Andrew Morin completed the top three.
The Speedbowl returns to action next Saturday with the Valenti
Modified Racing Series joining another round of NASCAR Whelen
All-American Series racing. The Valenti Modified Racing Series was
added to the event date weeks ago after being postponed from the
track’s 5th annual Wings & Wheels show. Mother Nature continued to
wreak havoc on the Speedbowl’s late season schedule, as the
remaining four features from Saturday’s Thunder on the Sound card
were postponed to upcoming weeks later in September. All the details
on the adjusted upcoming September event schedules can be found on
Speedbowl.com.
Waterford Speedbowl Saturday 9/1 Thunder on the Sound Results:
NASCAR Whelen All-American Series SK Light Modifieds (25-laps): 1.
Cam McDermott, Scituate, RI; 2. Paul French, Andover; 3. Randy
Churchill Jr., Oakdale; 4. Victoria Bergenty, Plainville; 5. Chris
Correll, Quaker Hill; 6. Tyler Jackson, Milford; 7. Chris Ignazio,
Colchester; 8. Corey Larson, Bolton; 9. Alan Benincaso, Westport;
10. Larry Goss, North Windham; 11. Corey Barry, Plainfield; 12.
Shayne Prucker, Stafford Springs
Northeastern Midget Association Angelillo Memorial (30-laps): 1.
Todd Bertrand, Suffield; 2. Randy Cabral, Plymouth, MA; 3. Mike
Horn, Ashland, MA; 4. Russ Stoehr, Lakeville, MA; 5. Adam Cantor,
Dix Hills, NY; 6. Paul Scally, Raynham, MA; 7. Jeff Horn, Ashland,
MA; 8. Greg Stoehr, Bridgewater, MA; 9. Jim Miller, Weymouth, MA;
10. Anthony Marvuglio, East Bridgewater, MA; 11. Jim SantaMaria,
Burlington; 12. Matt O’Brien, Wilmington, MA; 13. Lee Bundy,
Kennebunkport, ME; 14. Pete Pernesiglio Jr., Lake Grove, NY; 15.
Doug Cleveland, Sudbury, MA; 16. Seth Carlson, Brimfield
NEMA Lites (25-laps): 1. Keith Rocco, Meriden; 2. Ian Cummens,
Lydell, PA; 3. Brandon Igo, Enfield; 4. Christian Briggs,
Mattapoisett, MA; 5. Bethany Stoehr, Bridgewater, MA; 6. Avery
Stoehr, Lakeville, MA; 7. Randy Cabral, Plymouth, MA; 8. Danny
Cugini, Marshfield, MA; 9. R.J. Tufano, West Haven; 10. Ryan
Bigelow, East Hampton; 11. Scott Bigelow, East Hampton; 12. Jim
SantaMaria, Burlington; 13. Eric Leduc; 14. Kevin Park; 15. Dylan
Duhaime, Loudon, NH; 16. Carl Medeiros Jr., Westport, MA; 17. Paul
Bigelow; 18. Kenney Johnson, Bethany
INEX Legend Cars Saturday Showdown Series (20-laps): 1. Joe
Mucciacciaro, Wolcott; 2. Paul Kusheba IV, Monroe; 3. Dylan Izzo,
Westport; 4. Dana Dimatteo, Farmington; 5. Nicholas Sowa,
Middletown; 6. Joey Ternullo, Middletown; 7. Giovanni Giarratana,
Newington; 8. Kyle Rogers, Waterbury; 9. Stephen Kopcik, Newtown;
10. Cory Dimatteo, Farmington; 11. Jordan Churchill, Lisbon; 12. Ed
Field, Deep River; 13. Calvin Therrien, Vernon; 14. Kyle Hardwick,
Chaplin; 15. Christopher Kearney, Ellington; 16. Scott McKnickle,
Ledyard; 17. John O’Sullivan, Salem; 18. Richard Erlandson, Moodus
INEX Bandoleros Saturday Showdown Series (10-laps): 1. Ken Morin
Jr., Old Saybrook; 2. Anthony Marvin, Colchester; 3. Andrew Morin,
Old Saybrook; 4. Derek Debbis, Oakdale; DQ – Rene Morgillo, Niantic |
