08/09/2004
Rob Murray
Earns First Seekonk Pro Stock Win
Seekonk, MA --
Tiverton
,
RI
’s Rob Murray withstood a half-dozen caution flags to post his first
career victory in the NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series Pro Stock division at
Seekonk Speedway Saturday night.
The 31-year old second generation racer also had to wait
through a 55-minute rain delay which halted the evening’s program
with 10 of 14 qualifying events in the books.
Murray
started eighth in the 25-car feature event in the Quality Island
Construction-Affordable Kitchens #08 Chevrolet, and was able to avoid
several accidents that marred the first third of the 35-lap race.
Rookie Brian Clarke led the first circuit until fellow
first-year pilot Tom Scully, Jr. took over.
The most serious incident of the race took place on the second
lap when Clarke got turned around in turn three.
Several cars tangled trying to avoid Clarke, including veteran
Matt Dewey whose Dodge was sent nose-first into the concrete retaining
wall.
With four laps complete, Scully led Murray, Les Rose,
Jr., Charlie Rose, and point leader Vinnie Annarummo.
Murray
passed Scully on the ensuing restart and never trailed again.
When the final yellow waved on lap 12, Scully, Les Rose Jr.,
Annarummo, Charlie Rose, Wayne Dion, and Ray Parent comprised
positions two through seven
The remaining 24 laps were run caution-free, allowing
Murray
to build up a half-straightaway advantage over the rest of the field.
Les Rose Jr. took second from Scully on the final restart and
held the position to the checkers to earn his best finish of 2004.
Charlie Rose motored past Annarummo and Scully just before the
halfway signal to take third, but neither driver could do anything
with
Murray
without a caution.
“Everything just played into our hands tonight,”
remarked Murray, the son of former Seekonk Mini-Modified champion
Richie Murray. “I could
see we had a big lead, and we wanted it that way so we could take our
time getting around the lapped cars at the end.
We’ve led so many times and had the caution come out with
five laps to go. Something
would always happen and we didn’t win.
The cautions always killed me.
It’s never gone green for me like that before.
We were a little loose tonight.
We were good, but not at our best.
Luck was just on our side for a change.”
After being involved in several hard crashes earlier
in the season, Les Rose, Jr. was more than happy to finish second in
his unsponsored Chevy. “I’d like to congratulate Robbie and his
crew. With what we’ve
been through, this is just as good as winning.
Our car was really pushing.
We tightened it up too much after the heat race, and the track
tightened up a lot after the rain.
Still, this is a big relief for me.”
Charlie Rose, Jr. finished third, followed by Vinnie Annarummo,
Tom Scully, Jr., Ray Parent, Todd Annarummo, Wayne Dion, Dean Pettey,
and Tom Scully, Sr.
Attleboro
,
MA
’s Dave Titus made his first trip to
Victory Lane
in nearly three years in Late Model action.
After three false starts, Mike Becker took the initial lead in
the 25-lapper, followed closely by Scott Dion and Titus, who had
steered his Dunkin’ Donuts-Levesque & Sons Ford Taurus from
seventh to third. On the
second go-around, Titus executed a three-wide pass to the inside of
Becker and Dion to take the lead.
A frontstretch scrape with the wall on lap 8 ruined
the night for Glenn Lawton, who saw his lead in the championship
standings slip to just five points over Scott Fournier.
At the halfway point, Titus led Dion, Becker, Alex Bernard,
Ryan Vanasse, Fournier, Peter Donato, and Robin Sloane.
Becker’s
Pontiac
took second on the 13th circuit, but was sent spinning from
third on the 20th lap, negating his bid for a top five
finish. In the final
sprint to the checkers, Alex Bernard applied the pressure to the
leader, but Titus refused to give up the bottom of the race track.
“I saw him on the inside, and I knew I had to protect that
lane,” Titus explained. “The
only way he was going to go around me was on the outside.
It’s nice to be back in
Victory Lane
again.”
Bernard and Fournier finished second and third,
followed by Scott Dion and Gerry DeGasparre, Jr.
Peter Donato, Robin Sloane, Kevin Folan, Billy Goodrow, and
Bobby Grigas rounded out the top ten.
In the 20-lap Sport Truck feature,
Fall River
,
MA
’s Lee Hayes scored his fifth win of the season, extending his lead
in the championship standings. Polesitter
Ryan Berthelette led the first three laps until Nick Brightman muscled
past on the inside. Hayes,
who started 15th, had worked his way to fourth by lap 5
behind Brightman and veterans Ray Souliere and Bill Clarke.
Using the outside groove, Hayes’ Chevy had passed all three
by the halfway point. A
three-wide battle for third between Souliere, Bill Flint and Stan
Sherman evolved into a backstretch wreck on lap 14, with the seventh
place truck of Chad Hancock going nose-first into the outside wall.
Bobby Ambroceo made a nice move to the inside of
Souliere to take second on the restart, but was unable to challenge
Hayes over the final circuits. At
the line, it was Lee Hayes earning his ninth career Sport Truck
victory, followed by Ambroceo, defending champion Kevin Casper, Nick
Brightman, and Berthelette. Peter
Gloddy bounced back from an early race incident to claim sixth, with
Mike Cavallaro, Souliere, Ken Morrissette, and Bill Prisco comprising
the remainder of the top ten.
Jim “Pepe” Silvia of Middletown, RI rocketed to
victory for the first time this season in the 20-lap Street Stock
feature. The popular
veteran utilized the high line around the 1/3-mile oval to climb from
12th to seventh on the very first lap.
Rookie Frank Duquette led the first five laps, which were
slowed by a pair of cautions. Silvia,
who had worked his way to second, blasted into the lead on the lap 6
restart. At the halfway
point, rookie Greg Perry was second, followed by Mike Taschereau,
David Ratcliffe, Tony Oliveira, and Sparky Arsenault.
A crash involving Rey Lovelace and Stephen Potter set
up a green-white-checker finish, pitting Perry alongside Silvia.
When racing resumed, Silvia put some distance between his East
Coast Construction Camaro and his challengers.
Following Silvia across the line were Perry, Taschereau,
Ratcliffe, and Dick Cavallaro. Tony
Oliveira was sixth, followed by Sparky Arsenault, Paul Lallier and Bob
Bettencourt, who broke an axle in his heat race, qualified through the
consi, and started 22nd.
Previous race winner Peter Simpson was tenth.
On Cumberland Farms-Providence Journal Mid-Season
Championship night for the Seekonk Youth Racing Association, 13-year
old second generation racer Nick Ribbe of
Kingston
,
MA
won his third feature of the year after a spirited side-by-side battle
with Kyle Dimond. John
Geremia III took second from Dimond on the final go-around of the
20-lapper.
In the 20-lap main for the 600-restrictor plate
Apprentice class, 12-year old Chris Robinson of
West Warwick
,
RI
captured his third win of the season, pacing two-time winners Zach
Tucan and Tom McVay. Brian
Como, Jr., 11, of
Charlton
,
MA
visited
Victory Lane
for the second time in the Apprentice Rookie 10-lapper.
Following a further review of the July 31 Sport Truck
event by the Seekonk Speedway competition board, the disqualification
of Chad Hancock's #6 Sport Truck was overturned, and his 11th place
finish was reinstated.
On Saturday August 14, the New England Dodge
American-Canadian Tour will return to Seekonk to compete in a special
100-lap feature. The
1/3-mile Bay State oval’s NASCAR Dodge Weekly Series Pro Stocks,
Late Models, Sport Trucks, Street Stocks, and Seekonk Youth Racing
Association divisions will also be in action, beginning at 6 PM.
Tickets are priced at $15 for adults and $5 for children 6 to
12. Children five and
under are admitted free. The
Northeastern Midget Association makes their annual visit to the
Cement
Palace
on Saturday night, August 21. Adult
tickets for the show featuring NEMA’s open-wheel stars are $17 for
adults and $5 for children 6 to 12.
Children five and under will be admitted free.
Craftsman Night, Saturday, August 28, will feature a
special 50-lap main event for the top tier Pro Stock class.
The Cumberland Farms-Providence Journal Mid-Season Championship
Presented by St. Angelo Buick-Pontiac-GMC carries a purse of $10,100
with $1,800 going to the feature winner.
Twenty-five cars will qualify for the race.
Tickets for the regular Saturday night shows are
priced at just $12 for adults and $4 for children 6 to 12.
A family four-pack for two adults and two children up to age 12
is available for just $25, a savings of $7.
Children 5 and under are admitted free.
For more information, or to order tickets or gift certificates,
contact the track office Monday through Friday at (508)-336-9959 or
visit online at www.seekonkspeedway.com.
Pro
Stock Feature (35 laps)
1.
#08-Rob
Murray
,
Tiverton
,
RI
2.
#62-Les Rose, Jr.,
Wareham
,
MA
3.
#91-Charlie Rose, Jr.,
Tiverton
,
RI
4.
#11-Vinnie Annarummo,
Swansea
,
MA
5.
#2-Tom Scully, Jr.,
Cranston
,
RI
6.
#17-Ray Parent,
Tiverton
,
RI
7.
#10-Todd Annarummo,
Swansea
,
MA
8.
#99-Wayne Dion,
Warwick
,
RI
9.
#57-Dean Pettey,
Assonet
,
MA
10.
#3-Tom Scully, Sr.,
Westport
,
MA
Late
Model Feature (25 laps)
1.
#31-Dave Titus,
Attleboro
,
MA
2.
#49-Alex Bernard,
Warwick
,
RI
3.
#57-Scott Fournier,
Berkley
,
MA
4.
#10-Scott Dion,
Taunton
,
MA
5.
#71-Gerry DeGasparre, Jr.,
Pawtucket
,
RI
6.
#50-Peter Donato,
West Warwick
,
RI
7.
#81-Robin Sloane,
East Providence
,
RI
8.
#17-Kevin Folan,
Attleboro
,
MA
9.
#32-Bill Goodrow,
Pembroke
,
MA
10.
#9-Bob Grigas,
Marshfield
,
MA
Sport
Truck Feature (20 laps)
1.
#10-Lee Hayes,
Fall River
,
MA
2.
#78-Bobby Ambroceo,
Needham
,
MA
3.
#88-Kevin
Casper
,
Somerset
,
MA
4.
#5-Nick Brightman,
Acushnet
,
MA
5.
#13-Ryan Berthelette,
Assonet
,
MA
6.
#4-Peter Gloddy,
Tiverton
,
RI
7.
#80-Mike Cavallaro,
Seekonk
,
MA
8.
#24-Ray Souliere,
Swansea
,
MA
9.
#35-Ken Morrissette,
Warwick
,
RI
10.
#94-Bill Prisco,
Cranston
,
RI
Street
Stock Feature (20 laps)
1.
#116-Jim Silvia,
Middletown
,
RI
2.
#0-Greg Perry, Jr.,
Taunton
,
MA
3.
#33-Mike Taschereau,
West Warwick
,
RI
4.
#84-David Ratcliffe,
Lincoln
,
RI
5.
#6-Dick Cavallaro,
Seekonk
,
MA
6.
#41-Tony Oliveira,
Taunton
,
MA
7.
#98-Sparky Arsenault,
Attleboro
,
MA
8.
#77-Paul Lallier,
Attleboro
,
MA
9.
#21-Bob Bettencourt,
Fall River
,
MA
10.
#17-Pete Simpson,
Warwick
,
RI
SYRA-Journeymen
Mid-Season Championship Feature (20 laps)
1.
#85-Nick Ribbe,
Kingston
,
MA
2.
#7-John Geremia III,
Johnston
,
RI
3.
#83-Kyle Dimond, Middleboro, MA
4.
#25-Louie DeChello,
North Haven
,
CT
5.
#78-Danny Thibeault,
Fall River
,
MA
6.
#00-Matt Breault,
Acushnet
,
MA
7.
#14-Justin Perry,
Somerset
,
MA
8.
#21-Joe Ferrucci,
East Haven
,
CT
9.
#02-Matt Sagar,
Seekonk
,
MA
10.
#1-Dale Thomas,
Fall River
,
MA
SYRA-Apprentice
Mid-Season Championship Feature (20 laps)
1.
#9-Chris Robinson,
West Warwick
,
RI
2.
#3-Zach Tucan,
Taunton
,
MA
3.
#80-Tom McVay,
Riverside
,
RI
4.
#32-Bobby Alberti, Carver, MA
5.
#11-Dan Nickless,
Halifax
,
MA
SYRA-Apprentice
Rookie Mid-Season Championship Feature (10 laps)
1.
#13-Brian Como, Jr.,
Charlton
,
MA
2.
#5-Christian Brown,
Chatham
,
MA
3.
#17-Jessica Rosenfield, Middleboro, MA
Source: Todd Baptista/Seekonk Speedway PR
Posted: August 9, 2004
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