Restart Melee Collects Delaney; Finishes 14^th At NHMS

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): A lap 76 restart spelled disaster for Dustin Delaney in the Heluva Good Fall 125 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Friday evening. Delaney got collected in a restart gone wrong sending him to pit road to repair right front nose damage and ultimately sending him to the rear of the field. The race was shortened to 100 laps when it rained at the originally scheduled start time of 5 p.m. and was further shortened to 99 laps due to darkness. The team just ran out of time. They were able to salvage a 14^th place finish before the checkers dropped.

            “We had a good run going until that restart. Someone missed a shift and everyone slammed their brakes on and we got turned,” explained Delaney.

            The No. 39 Delaney Infrastructure/CarDaddy.com Chevrolet only got five laps of practice Thursday afternoon before the team opted to change everything in the car. They discovered a transmission issue when working on the car, but never had any track time before going out for time trials. Delaney turned a lap of 121.388 mph in qualifying to earn a 25^th place starting position.

            “Qualifying came and the car was not good. We did a little adjusting early in the race and the car was good. I have to hand it to these guys on the crew. They worked really hard all weekend and the car came around pretty good. We were really fast.”

            Delaney pitted on lap 15 for fuel and adjustments and returned to the track for a lap 18 restart outside the top-20, but made it up to 18^th before the next caution flew at lap 30. He continued to patiently make his way towards the front and was running 15^th at lap 63, the race’s originally scheduled halfway distance. Delaney gained two more spots before the lap 76 restart that collected the No. 39 Delaney Infrastructure Chevrolet.

            “It was just a bad weekend,” said Delaney. “We were in the back with 20 to go so that’s a lot of ground to make up in a little amount of time. Everything we had gained in the race up until that point just disappeared. It was like starting all over.”

            Delaney rallied in the closing laps and went from 20^th, where he was on a lap 81 restart to 14^th when the checkers dropped at lap 99.

            One race remains in the 2009 NASCAR Camping World Series East with Delaney currently seventh in the point standings. The team will compete next at Dover International Speedway on Friday, September 25^th in the Sunoco 150. For more information on Dustin Delaney or Delaney Motorsports, visit www.dustindelaney.com.

 

Up And Down Weekend At NHMS For Leighton

Posts 25^th Place Finish In CWSE And 7^th In ACT Invitational

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): The weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was a roller coaster ride of sorts for Irving Oil sponsored driver Brad Leighton. After posting a disappointing 25^th place finish in the NASCAR Camping World Series East race on Friday evening, Leighton bounced back with a top-10 finish in the inaugural ACT Invitational on Saturday night.

            Leighton kicked off the weekend in the Camping World Series East where he remains a favorite for victory based on his series leading eight wins at the 1.058-mile oval. Leighton qualified the No. 55 Irving Racing Chevrolet 15^th fastest with a speed of 124.255 mph, and was a consistent threat in the top-10 for the first 30 laps of the race.

            Leighton made his first pit stop at lap 15 and followed that up with another pit stop at lap 33. As it turned out, Leighton was having a tire issue that had to be addressed.

            “Three laps into the race after our first stop, we were headed backwards. We had an inch more stagger in the back than we should have,” he explained. “We had to come back in and change the tire. We had a big cut in the tire and it may have blown anyway.”

            Things went downhill from there. After making his way back up to 12^th, Leighton was involved in a wreck that happened on a lap 76 restart. A car failed to go and the No. 55 Irving Oil Chevrolet got collected.

            “I had a good run going at that time and the 36 got jacked up, he turned right, came right back and caught me. I was wide open trying to get through it, but it didn’t happen,” Leighton said. “Our day was done when we pitted. We had a big right rear tire and it couldn’t handle the car, but after that wreck, it was definitely done.”

            Leighton returned to the track the next day to compete in the inaugural ACT Invitational. The Center Harbor, NH driver earned his way into the race via a win in the ACT Tour earlier in the year. No qualifying was held and Leighton drew a 22^nd place starting position in the 50-lap race.

            Leighton dropped back early in the race and remained in the top-15 for most of the event. He turned up the heat following a lap 41 caution and was able to gain six positions in the closing laps of the race to finish seventh.

            “I would have liked to win that race, but you have to work with what you’ve got,” said Leighton. “We didn’t have the car to win today that’s all there was too it. Congratulations to Eddie MacDonald on his win. He worked hard for it.”

 

Kobyluck Posts Fourth Place Finish

At NHMS After Leading Most Laps

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): It seemed that Matt Kobyluck would author another successful chapter in his career Friday night at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after leading the most laps in the Heluva Good Fall 125, but late-race cautions rewrote the story and left the Uncasville, Connecticut-native with an alternate ending. Kobyluck lost the lead to Kevin Swindell on a late-race caution and was relegated to a fourth place finish when the race was shortened to 99 laps for darkness.

            “If we would have had some green flag racing there I would have gotten the positions back,” said Kobyluck, driver of the No. 40 Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet. “We had the best car we’ve ever had here and we had the best car out of everybody so to not come home with the win was very disappointing. I can’t take away that we led a whole bunch of laps and I’m very proud of the guys and what we brought here this weekend. We’ve been working hard all season, and we finally figured some things out.”

            The Mohegan Sun race team set the fastest practice times on Thursday afternoon and backed it up with a qualifying effort of 125.587 mph to earn a fifth place starting position. He jumped up to fourth at the drop of the green and remained there until pitting at lap 15 for fuel.

            Kobyluck re-entered the race in the eighth position for the restart at lap 18 and was pressuring Derek Ramstrom for the third spot by the 22^nd circuit. Kobyluck took the position at lap 24, but the leaders had pulled away by nearly four seconds.

            An accident at lap 30 tightened the field up with Kobyluck on the outside of David Mayhew for the restart at lap 35. At the drop of the green, the duo battled it out side-by-side through turns one and two. Mayhew got the advantage going down the straightaway, but Kobyluck would reel him in again heading into the corners. A caution slowed the pace at 43.

            Mayhew came down on pit road during the caution to fuel up while Kobyluck took over the lead. Kevin Swindell would take the green on the outside of the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet at lap 46, but it was all Kobyluck when the green dropped.

            A long green flag run developed, which was optimal conditions for Kobyluck’s set-up. Despite only a carlength separating each of the top-three cars, the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet was never in danger of losing the lead.

            At lap 71 NASCAR threw the caution once again. It was not what the team wanted to see.

            “On the restarts I needed a half-a-lap or three-quarters of a lap to get heat back in the tires so that I had good grip. My car was much free’r than everybody else’s and they were much tighter. They were able to get going much better on the restarts and as soon as I could drive a lap, I could drive away from everybody,” explained Kobyluck. “The cautions were the last thing I wanted to see.”

            Kobyluck and Swindell were side-by-side through turns one and two on the restart, but an accident right behind them brought the caution out again. On the second attempt, Swindell was able to get by the Mohegan Sun Casino Chevrolet as Kobyluck fell back to fifth. Because of the darkness that fell upon the track, NASCAR decided to shorten the race to 99 laps after they had already shortened it to 100 laps earlier for rain.

            “We played the cards we were dealt and made the best of it,” said Kobyluck.

            And that meant gaining one more position on the final two-lap run before taking the checkers. The top-five finish was enough to solidify the fourth place point position as the series heads into the season-ending race at Dover International Speedway next week.

 

 

Fadden Racing Torn Up

With Pair Of Top-30 Finishes At NHMS

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): Fadden Racing had a great start when the NASCAR Camping World Series East arrived at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the running of the Heluva Good Fall 125. With Jonathan Smith behind the wheel of the No. 16 Jack’s Auto Service Chevrolet and Joey “Pole” Polewarczyk piloting the No. 61 KDD Auto Parts/Pole’s Automotive Chevrolet, the team was optimistic for a solid run. Two top-10 starting positions confirmed that confidence. Still, circumstances beyond the teams control reared its ugly head and left the team with a pair of disappointing finishes.

            Smith, who started 10^th in Friday’s 35-car field, finished 19^th after getting turned around early in the race. He hit the outside retaining wall and sustained significant damage to the No. 16 Jack’s Auto Service Chevrolet – forcing him to make up two laps that he lost in the pits.

            “I was riding on the outside and (Steve Park) was on the inside and all of a sudden he just turned right into me,” explained Smith. “We were going to have to pit to catch the set-up a little bit, but we had a good car prior to that. After the accident, the car was just junk. We were out there riding around. We picked up our two laps through the beneficiary rule, but we were just toast.”

            Smith now sits 11^th in the point standings – 68 markers out of 10^th – with just one race remaining.

            Polewarczyk appeared to be well on his way to a top-10 finish after posting the fourth fastest time in qualifying Friday afternoon. In the early laps, he was a solid top-10 contender, but was sent to the rear for a pit-stop penalty at lap 15. Polewarczyk made his way back up and just outside the top-10 when he, too, got spun and hit the outside retaining wall at lap 92.

            “The 19 car blew up on the restart. I went high to avoid him because he pulled down low. When he went down low someone ran into him and sent him into me. I just tried to hold on. I hit the wall pretty good. These guys put a great racecar underneath me. We had a great run and we were positioning ourselves for a top-10 finish. I guess that’s racing.”

            Polewarczyk’s night was done and he finished the race with a 28^th place finish.

            For more information on Fadden Racing or driver Jonathan Smith, visit www.faddenracing.net.

 

 

Moffitt Charges To Runner-Up Finish At NHMS

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): Brett Moffitt was quiet and unassuming following the Heluva Good! Fall 125 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Friday evening, but his smile said it all.

            Moffitt drove the No. 44 Brettmoffitt.com Chevrolet to a convincing runner-up finish in the second to last NASCAR Camping World Series East race of the 2009 season, and heads into the finale at Dover International Speedway fifth in the point standings.

            “The 71 had a good car. We were a little bit better, and I think if that last caution hadn’t come out we would have won,” Moffitt said. “We had a really good car today so I have to thank all the guys on the crew and at ASM for that. We came in (to pit) before most people so that put us pretty far back in the field. We just had to stay out of trouble coming up through. Those last few laps were pretty wild from my vantage point so I’m sure it was a good show for the fans.”

            Rain delayed the start of the race, and forced NASCAR to cut back on its scheduled distance due to time constraints, but Moffitt was strong right out of the box. Moffitt moved up from his third starting position to second and remained there until lap 15 when he pitted for fuel.

            Moffitt lined up tenth for the restart at lap 18 and quickly moved through the field. He reached eighth by lap 22 and was challenging Derek Ramstrom for fourth by the 29^th circuit. A caution slowed his pace and gave him an opportunity to come back down pit road for an adjustment.

            Moffitt lined up ninth for the restart at lap 35, but the Grimes, Iowa-native didn’t have any chance to advance when caution slowed the pace of the event once again. He lined up ninth for the restart at lap 46. Moffitt had the chance to advance once again and moved up to sixth by lap 63, and was back in the top-five by lap 70.

            The racing got intense around lap 85 when the leaders were three wide heading into the corners – fighting for every bit of real estate. On lap 86, Moffitt used the battles to his advantage and moved up to third just before the caution came out.

            The drivers paced one more caution period when NASCAR announced that the final restart would be the only chance at a green-white-checker finish. They would have to shorten the race again to 99 laps because of the darkness that was descending over the track. Moffitt could not stop eventual race-winner Eddie MacDonald from taking the lead and settled for a second place finish at the checkers.

            “We’re definitely happy with this finish,” said Moffitt. “We would have liked to win tonight, but Eddie (MacDonald) has been running really well lately so we can't be too down about finishing second to him.”

            Moffitt heads to Dover International Speedway for the Sunoco 150, the series season-ending finale, on Friday, September 25^th.

 

 

Seventh Place Finish Tightens Up Point Race For Tardiff

 

            Loudon, NH (September 20, 2009): Despite a vibration in the No. 38 Bestway Disposal/Renton Coil Spring Chevrolet, Alan Tardiff was able to rally to a seventh place finish in Friday night’s Heluva Good Fall 125 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, a NASCAR Camping World Series East event, and put together a lucky seven combination that tightened up his point race heading into the series’ finale at Dover next weekend.

            Tardiff’s finish marked his seventh top-10 finish of the season and moved him up to seventh in the point standings, just seven points out of sixth place.

            “It’s a mirror finish of June: we had a seventh place in both races. We’re pretty happy with it,” said Tardiff.

            Tardiff started nineteenth after posting a qualifying speed of 122.762 mph Thursday afternoon, and moved up to 15^th at the drop of the green where he remained until pitting at lap 15. He returned to the track to take the green at lap 18 in the top-20.

            Tardiff picked up a vibration early in the race, but worked through it and continued to soldier on.

            “The car had a lot of grip up on top and it was really comfortable. We picked off quite a few cars pretty quick. The car picked up a major vibration – again. We had one the last time we were here and the brake pads crystallized on us. This time, I don’t know what happened, but I breathed on the brake pedal and it was just shaking the whole car around going around the corners,” he said.

            A caution flew at lap 30 with Tardiff in the 14^th position for the restart. In less than 10 laps, Tardiff had wheeled the No. 38 Bestway Disposal/Renton Coil Spring Chevrolet up to ninth before the caution slowed the pace once again. Pit stops allowed Tardiff to gain two spots under the yellow and the team would restart the race from the seventh position.

            The Lyman, Maine native maintained the seventh place position despite developing a throttle-loose condition in the latter stages of the race. He dropped back to tenth by lap 70. When the race went green at lap 92, Tardiff had dropped all the way back to 12^th. He gained two more spots before caution came out yet again.

            NASCAR shortened the race to 100 laps after rain delayed the start by 40 minutes, and decided to shorten it up to 99 laps because of darkness. The final restart came at lap 97 where Tardiff rallied in a two-lap dash to the checkers to cross the line in seventh place.

            “I just held on to it. It got wild at the end, but I was able to gain a few spots,” said Tardiff. “It was hard to make a run going down the straightaway with the car getting throttle loose, but we just held on to it. It was a good points day for us and good effort by everybody on this team. We’ll take it and move on to Dover.”

            The Bestway Disposal/Renton Coil Spring Chevrolet and driver Alan Tardiff will return to action on Friday, September 25^th for the Sunoco 150 at Dover International Speedway. The event marks the season finale for the NASCAR Camping World Series East 2009 season.

 

   MACDONALD WINS TWO RACES AT NHMS

 

 

     Weeks before the big NASCAR Cup weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, the Grimm Racing Team set three goals. Taking the pole in the Camping World Series East Heluva Good! Fall 125 was the first. Defending the title earned last September in the race was another, and winning the first-ever ACT Invitational was the third. By Saturday night, each goal was realized.

     On the biggest stage, Eddie MacDonald captured the pole position on Thursday afternoon with a fast lap of 29.972 sec. (127.079mph) with the Rowley, Mass driver saying, “We have wanted this for a long time. Rollie (LaChance) really has this place figured out. We were second fasted in practice but I was in the Modified when the crew was working on the car so I really didn’t know what they did but it sure was fast. I was able to drive it in really deep and get on the gas early. It was amazing.” 

     After a forty-minute rain delay on Friday NASCAR officials shortened the race from 125 laps to 100 laps due to time constraints. MacDonald took the green flag and quickly opened up a five-car lead on the field. The NEMO sponsored Chevy did not pit on the lap 13 caution with most of the leaders, choosing to pit on the next caution. MacDonald battled West Series driver David Mayhew for several laps before giving up the lead on lap 18, then pitting for gas, then tires on lap 30. The #71 restarted in the 27^th position but began marching back to the front.

      MacDonald charged from 19^th on a lap 46 restart with a three-wide pass and into eighth and into fifth at the halfway mark but couldn’t find a groove saying, “I was searching but I couldn’t find a great line. I moved up a little on the track and that got me a little free and the car felt super.”

     Running in fifth on a lap 81 restart with darkness beginning to be an issue, MacDonald made the move of the race with an incredible three-wide pass through turns three and four to move into the second spot to set up a pass for the lead on lap 92. Another caution on lap 92 forced officials to try one green white checker finish on a lap 97 restart due to darkness and ending on the 99^th circuit. MacDonald jumped out to the front and held off Brent Moffitt and Ryan Truex for the win. When the day started Truex held a fifty point lead in the championship battle but with the win and bonus points the lead now stands at thirty with the final race of the season this Friday at Dover.

     MacDonald was thrilled with the win saying, “ I can’t thank Rollie and the crew for the work they have done throughout the season. As I said, Rollie has this place figured out and winning the pole and the race shows how good he is. The car was perfect. I knew I could drive the car three-wide and it would grip the track. It’s awesome to know you can do that. We moved up in the points and now we need to go to Dover and do the same thing and see what happens. All I can say is this was a lot of fun for everyone. NEMO has been a great sponsor and I know the Daymark people really enjoyed the race. Thanks to all the fans that have been so supportive.”

     The win guarantees a spot in the Toyota All-Star Showdown at Irwindale Speedway in California in January pitting the top competitors from the East and West series.

     With two of the teams goals achieved, the team set its sights on the first-ever ACT Invitational run at NHMS. Thirty-six teams were invited to compete in the 50-lap shootout that ran Saturday after the NASCAR Truck race. MacDonald and LaChance’s #17 Late Model received the invitation after winning the prestigious Banknorth 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway earlier this season.

     With NEMO, New England Mechanical Overlay from Pembroke, N.H. as the main sponsor, MacDonald started from the 19^th position and charged into the third spot by the first caution of the race on lap 31 using his patented tree-wide move. After taking the lead on lap 35, MacDonald battled youngster Brandon Watson, swapping the lead a couple of times before taking it for good on lap 45 to take the checkers.

     MacDonald said of the victory, “This is really special to win the first one here. These guys raced hard and clean and it was a lot of fun. I knew there would be some serious competition but I didn’t expect it to be Watson and Sweet. They put on a great show. That is why this series is so much fun, you never know who is going to run good. My thanks go to Tom Curley and NHMS for giving us this opportunity to race here. There was a big crowd still in the stands after the Truck race and I hope they really enjoyed the show. This hopefully will be the first of many ACT races here and it feels great to win the first one.”

     After three days of winning, emotions ran high in the pits for the team. NEMO sponsor Ron Bennett said of the two wins, “I really don’t know what to make of it, it is absolutely unbelievable. I am so happy for Eddie, his family, and the crew, they all work hard and deserve the win. I am just happy to be part of it. When I first got involved with the team it was simply to help out a friend but it turned into something much more than that.”

     When asked which win Bennett thought was more impressive he quickly stated, “Next week at Dover!”

     Team owner Rob Grimm said of the wins, “It is just amazing what these guys can do. Winning like this never gets old.”

     Crew chief Rollie LaChance said, ”Any win at Loudon is absolutely huge. I don’t care what it’s in. In the Northeast, this is the place. So to win any show here is huge. To win two of these shows like this is, I don’t know. I don’t know what to think of it. To accomplish our goals in what we set up to do in the Camping World car, that was big. The gain on Truex, we would have liked to gain more, but it gives us a shot at Dover. That’s what I wanted out of the weekend. I wanted a shot at Dover. We’ll do our best. If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. So be it.”