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The Professional -- Dominates En Route To First Win of 2011

‘The Professional’ Dominates En Route To First Win of 2011

Spencer Lewis - June 18, 2011

3-time Super Stock champion Rob Poole (No. 45 VisserFarms.ca/AGNAV GPS Systems Chevrolet) earned the first win of his 2011 campaign, with a commanding performance that highlighted the most positive aspects of Poole’s meticulously smooth driving style.

‘The Professional’ would roll off from inside the 5^th row, showing flashes of brilliance early on as he danced his way through the field.

The first 9 laps of the 30-lap A Main would see veteran Bruce Rankin (No. 55 Rankin’s Automotive/B&B Decals Chevrolet) enjoy his best run of the early 2011 season, taking the lead from the drop of the green flag and fending off a multitude of challengers through the first third of the race.

Poole would complete his pass on Rankin for the lead on a lap 13 restart, after Chris Morrow (No. 11 Morrow Electric/Utopia Towing Chevrolet) spun in turn-4 to bring out the event’s first caution.

Once clear of Rankin, Poole would open up a sizeable lead on the rest of the field, but would twice be brought back to the pack with late-race restarts on laps 21 and 25.

Despite very game efforts from both Taylor Holdaway (No. 41 Holdaway Automotive/ImageFactor.ca Ford) and ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker (No. 48 Zancor Custom Homes/Clearview Heating Chevrolet), Poole was a picture of consistency right to the finish, taking the checkered flag with a 6-car length lead. Baker, Holdaway, Kevin Cornelius and Billy ‘Z3’ Zardo completed the top-5.

Poole would confirm in victory lane that the team battled an ill-handling race car through practice, adding “I just have to thank these guys behind me. They worked their tails off to make the adjustments and changes necessary to give me the car I had tonight”

When asked about the late-race restarts, Poole smiled “I would much sooner it have stayed green right to the end, but after taking a look at the damage done to some of these other cars I’m just happy we were at the front for them”

‘The Professional’ would close out his victory lane ceremonies by reminding the crowd that sponsor Visser Farms have just kick-started their strawberry picking season, with more information available at www.VisserFarms.ca

Not to be upstaged, the Super Stock division put on another classic 30-lap A Main of their own, a feat that’s become a repeat occurrence through the first 6 weeks of the 2011 season.

This time around, Matt Bentley (No. 21 Gary Bentley Motorsports/Eramosa Autobody Nova) would snatch his second win in as many starts after having won a 50-lap affair in the first round of the McColl/Sunset Shootout Invitational Series on June 12^th.

The Acton, ON youngster waged war with former Autumn Colours Classic titlist ‘The Deuce’ Dave Doucette (No. 44 Superior Machining & Repairs/Simcoe Auto Recyclers 300C) as well as 6-time Flamboro Speedway track champion Randy ‘The Rocket’ Rusnell (No. 72 Travis Industrial Maintenance Ltd/McCordick Glove & Safety LeMans) in a battle that brought the Sunset faithful to their feet numerous times before the wave of the checkered flag.

Doucette would strike first amongst the trio, dispatching early leader Bob Mercer on lap 2, opening up a healthy lead until Rusnell was able to briefly muscle his way to the front on lap 12. ‘The Rocket’ would pace the field for 3 circuits, until a pressuring Doucette recaptured the top spot 1-lap past the halfway point.

As the championship pair drag raced and swapped paint, Bentley had methodically made his way from deep in the 20-car field, finding himself directly behind the battle for the lead by lap 18. Bentley would originally attempt a pass on the inside of Doucette, though after the veteran wisely took away the bottom of the racetrack as a viable option, Bentley made his pass for the lead on the outside.

What followed was one of the most intense games of cat and mouse the speedway has seen all season, with Bentley working overtime to keep Doucette at bay amidst a volley of bumper tag and paint trading. For several laps, Doucette would make contact with Bentley in an attempt to rattle the cage of the third year driver, always backing off and allowing Bentley to collect his ride if the leader’s Nova found itself out of shape.

Doucette’s pressure would prove unsuccessful, and after a final shot at the lead on a lap 23 restart was denied by Bentley, Doucette would turn his attention to holding on to the runner-up position in a late-race battle with rising star ‘Too Quick’ Kenny Britt (No. 21 Matco Tools/Race2Way.ca Mustang).

At the stripe, Bentley captured his third victory of the 2011 season, followed by Doucette, Britt, Rusnell and Stan Coe (No. 58 SCC Construction/Stayner Tim-BR Mart Camaro).

In victory lane, Bentley made it clear just how much he enjoyed racing with Doucette, “Man, that battle with Dave was awesome!”

“[The contact] definitely gets in your head. It shoots the car up the track and you have to be real careful of what’s going on around you to collect yourself. In the end, even when we got loose, we just hung on and put the pedal right to the boards”

When asked if his hot streak brings any additional pressure, Bentley assured “There’s no pressure at all. I’m just going to come in here and drive my race every week”

“I just want to thank all the fans that have been supporting me, my sponsors and of course my uncle for letting me drive this race car”

To close out the victory lane festivities, Bentley Motorsports announced its Limited Late Model venture would make its 2011 debut in July, with Matt’s older brother Mike behind the wheel.

In Mini Stock action, Nicole Podewils (No. 79 Fox’s Bakery & Deli/Central Appliance & Repair Ford) earned her second straight Saturday night victory, after a mid-race pass on 2-time defending track champion Doug Butler (No. 10 Iconz Computers/Homeworks Certified Home Inspections Nissan).

After climbing from her winning ride, Podewils made sure to thank her crew chief father, wishing him a happy father’s day, adding “He made the car even faster this week”

When asked about any strategy when faced with racing in the ultra-competitive Mini Stock class, Podewils explained “Smooth is fast. It’s important not to keep looking in your mirror when you’re out front because all it does is psyche you out”

QUICK RESULTS

LIMITED LATE MODEL

Heat 1: ‘The Professional’ Rob Poole Innisfil, ON

Heat 2: ‘Hollywood’ Taylor Holdaway Orillia, ON

Heat 3: Kevin Cornelius Orangeville, ON

Heat 4: Stompin’ Tom Walters Bradford, ON

A Main:

1) ‘The Professional’ Rob Poole Innisfil, ON

2) ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker Stayner, ON

3) ‘Hollywood’ Taylor Holdaway Orillia, ON

4) Kevin Cornelius Orangeville, ON

5) Billy ‘Z3’ Zardo Brampton, ON

SUPER STOCK

Heat 1: ‘Too Quick’ Kenny Britt Midhurst, ON

Heat 2: Jason Elliott Angus, ON

Heat 3: Flyin’ Frank Davey River Drive Park, ON

Heat 4: ‘The Deuce’ Dave Doucette Angus, ON

A Main:

1) Matt Bentley Acton, ON

2) ‘The Deuce’ Dave Doucette Angus, ON

3) ‘Too Quick’ Kenny Britt Midhurst, ON

4) Randy ‘The Rocket’ Rusnell Cambridge, ON

5) Stan Coe

MINI STOCK

Heat 1: Nicole Podewils Barrie, ON

Heat 2: Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON

Heat 3: Terry Clodd Holland Landing, ON

Heat 4: Doug Butler New Lowell, ON

A Main:

1) Nicole Podewils Barrie, ON

2) Doug Butler New Lowell, ON

3) Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON

4) Rory Collett Holland Landing, ON

5) Rob Krystal Holland Landing, ON

Walters Misfortune Leads To Cornelius Win Number 3

Walters’ Misfortune Leads To Cornelius’ Win Number 3

Spencer Lewis - June 12, 2011

The first round of the McColl Racing Enterprise/Sunset Speedway Summer Shootout Series saw champions from across the province converge on the Innisfil, ON 1/3 mile oval in search of both a healthy payout and a generous amount of early season bragging rights.

The 75-lap A Main saw a pair of home-track racers that have been in contention every Saturday from the dawn of the 2011 season push one another to the limit in one of the most exciting finishes Sunset has seen all year.

Defending track champion Stompin’ Tom Walters (No. 47 McColl Racing Enterprises/Pro Floor Hardwood Sanding & Refinishing Chevrolet) entered the event as one of the favourites, given his noted experience and expertise in extended distance races. Kevin Cornelius (No. 17 Sandbox Tech Childcare/Halton Crushed Stone Chevrolet), on the other hand, entered the evening with perhaps the most momentum of any other driver in the division, having already visited victory lane twice in 2011.

Walters would strike first, dominating the race after climbing from his 8^th place starting position to snatch the lead on a lap 14 restart. Upon taking the top spot, Walters would guide the field through a lap 16 restart, before embarking on a 46-lap green flag run that saw the Bradford, ON veteran lead by as much as 3/4s of a track, with Cornelius working overtime to navigate lapped traffic and remain on the same straightaway as the leader.

With his runner up occupied with a barrage of traffic, Walters was free to lap up to the 6^th place car before a lap 62 tangle changed the landscape of the event entirely. With Walters looking to expand his lead, he arrived at the back bumper of Sean Cronan (No. 84 Spira Fire Protection/Sturdy Power Lines Chevrolet) who was running in the 6^th position, mere car lengths outside of the top-5. With Stompin’ Tom eager to put another car down a circuit, and Cronan fighting to remain on the same lap, the two vehicles made contact in turn-1. The result of the contact was Cronan looping his car on exit of turn-2, while Walters was removed from the lead, deemed an involved car and sent to the tail end of the lead lap cars – which, at this point, consisted of only 5 other drivers.

Walters’ misfortune would hand control of the lead over to Cornelius, who was tasked with holding off a very game Dwayne Baker (No. 48 Clearview Heating/Baker Performance Chevrolet) running in the second position as well as Saturday night winner Jason Witty (No. 19 Jason Witty Remax Realty/Toronto Bearing Chevrolet) in the third spot.

Cornelius would prove up to the task of keeping his two foes in his rearview mirror, while Walters methodically made his way back through the lead lap pack, clearing both Witty and Baker by lap 68.

Unfortunately for Walters, his time spent battling to slip inside the top-3 allowed Cornelius to build up a near half-straightaway lead, that would ultimately prove insurmountable for the 28-time champion.

At the line, Kevin Cornelius clinched his third victory of the young 2011 campaign, with Walters, Baker, 2010 Barrie Speedway champion Al Inglis (No. 69 Georgian Waste Services Dodge) and 2010 Sauble Speedway champion Jason Parker (No. 8 Great Lakes Concrete/Prestige Contracting Chevrolet) completing the top-5.

A humble Cornelius was more than keen to give credit to Walters in victory lane, “This was Tom’s race to lose. I mean, who am I kidding?”

“Tom’s an absolute legend, you could say that about half the field that was here today, this race was full of the absolute best of the best”

When asked if his early success comes with any added pressure, Cornelius admitted, “Absolutely it does. It’s tough to top 3 wins this early in a season. We, I should say I, put alot of pressure on myself to perform. And we definitely want to keep winning”

A dejected Walters was uncharacteristically quiet after his podium finish, drawing inspiration from NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Johnny Sauter in quipping “God bless Canada” when asked to expand on his incident with Cronan.

“I just want to thank all the fans that come out to watch us race and support this speedway, all the staff that make it possible, and all the racers that come out and compete – it’s a real good atmosphere at Sunset [Speedway] nowadays” offered the future Hall of Famer

When asked to compare his 7^th place finish on Saturday to his dominant performance Sunday afternoon, Walters shrugged “We changed absolutely nothing overnight. It’s tough to compare last night to today, we got all bunched up last night and alot of us knew we were going to be racing this afternoon and weren’t real interested in tearing our stuff up”

Third place finisher ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker was even quieter than Walters in post-race celebrations when asked about his performance.

“Not bad for a car that was junk. We should have done more to it”

Bam Bam Leads Trio of First Time Winners Into Victory Lane

‘Bam Bam’ Leads Trio of First Time Winners Into Victory Lane

Spencer Lewis - June 11, 2011

From the drop of the first green flag that kick-started the 2011 campaign on May 7^th, the most oft-repeated comment heard throughout both the pit area as well as the grandstands has been that each of Sunset’s 3 divisions are as competitive as they have ever been.

So it was no surprise when, on June 11^th, each division welcomed a driver into victory lane for their first win of 2011.

The 30-lap Limited Late Model affair saw fan favourite Jason ‘Bam Bam’ Witty (No. 19 Jason Witty Remax Realty/LaRue’s Haulage Chevrolet) work his way from a 4^th row starting position to end his evening with the checkered flag in hand.

Early portions of the event saw both Ernie Fumerton (No. 10 JFS Hydroseeding & Sodding Chevrolet) and 2011 Rookie of the Year contender Billy ‘Z3’ Zardo (No. 46 National Exhaust/Better Contracting Chevrolet) spend time at the front of the field, before June 4^th victor ‘Hollywood’ Taylor Holdaway (No. 41 ImageFactor.ca/Holdaway Automotive Ford) usurped the top spot shortly before the halfway mark.

As Holdaway cleared Zardo to assume sole control of the point position, Witty made sure to follow in his tire tracks, not allowing the Orillia, ON driver more than a car length as the pair began to distance themselves from the rest of the field.

Witty would remain glued to Holdaway’s back bumper until a Bruce Rankin (No. 55 Rankin’s Automotive/B&B Decals Chevrolet) spin brought out the second caution of the evening on lap 18, tightening up the field for a dramatic dash to the finish.

The ensuing restart would see Witty make a convincing challenge for the lead on Holdaway’s outside, and by the time lap 20 was shown on the board, ‘Bam Bam’ was enjoying a widening 2-car length lead.

Witty would complete the remaining 10-laps unchallenged, cruising to his first win of the young 2011 season. Holdaway would hang on for the runner-up spot, while Sean Cronan (No. 84 Spira Fire Protection/Locker Room Sports Bar Chevrolet), ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker (Four Valley’s Excavating/St. Onge Recreation Chevrolet) and Kevin Cornelius completed the top-5.

“We’ve got the new sponsor [Jason Witty Remax Realty] on the hood this week, that must be what brought us the luck” laughed Witty in victory lane.

“I have to thank my crew first and foremost. All these guys do is make adjustments to this car to get us faster, they do an awesome job and I can’t thank them enough”

When asked if he felt Holdaway was a threat through the final 10-laps, Witty explained “I felt Holdaway was fast. But after we made that pass, I knew that we were in control”

“We’ll be back tomorrow for the [MRE/Sunset Speedway Summer Shootout] event, and we’ll definitely look to make it 2 in a row!”

Witty certainly wasn’t the only crowd favourite to celebrate in victory lane on Saturday, as perennial contender Jason Elliott (No. 22 Denley’s Sports Bar/Simcoe Auto Recyclers Monte Carlo) was met with a chorus of cheers as he exited his winning ride after winning a late-race tilt with former divisional champion Flyin’ Frank Davey (No. 49 Grass Pro Plus/HWY 400 Transmission & Driveline Service Camaro).

It was Davey, the River Drive Park, ON veteran, that appeared poised for victory after snatching the lead from early pace-setter Stan Coe (No. 58 SCC Construction/Stayner Tim-Br Mart Camaro) on lap-7.

Flyin’ Frank would appear dominant for 19 laps before Elliott was able to complete his pass for the lead with only a handful of laps remaining.

After clearing Davey, Elliott would then have to survive a strong late-race challenge from June 4^th winner Matt Bentley (Bev Thring Race Car Fabrication/Gary Bentley Motorsports Nova), keeping the youngster from enjoying back-to-back victories by mere inches.

A visibly exhausted Elliott relented in victory lane, “Man, it is so incredibly hard to win around here when you’re competing with guys like Matt Bentley and Mr. Davey”

“We’ve all just put so much work into this car, and it seems as though its really starting to pay off”

The Angus, ON driver closed out his celebrations by thanking his dedicated crew as well as his girlfriend and sponsors.

Not to be outdone, the Mini Stocks closed out the evening with another phenomenally competitive – and clean – 25-lap A Main.

Barrie, ON’s Nicole Podewils (No. 79 Fox’s Bakery & Deli/Central Appliance & Repair Ford) utilized a last lap-last corner pass on two-time defending track champion Doug Butler (No. 10 Homeworks Certified Home Inspections/Iconz Computers Nissan) to eek out the victory.

The event was contested in just over 11-minutes, with the 25-car field racing green to checkered to the delight of the Sunset Speedway faithful.

Sophomore driver Brandon Bullen (No. 67 Alliston Transmission/Ploder’s Collision Honda) controlled much of the race, taking the lead on lap 4 before losing the top spot to a hard-pressuring Butler on lap 23. Even more impressive than a driver with limited experience spending such an extended period of time at the front of the field is the fact that Bullen did so with his back-up car, after experiencing engine problems with his primary car in practice.

Bullen`s gutsy performance would reward him with a 3^rd place finish, unfortunately the Bond Head, ON driver`s Honda Civic would fail post-race technical inspection, handing Bullen a 25^th place finish.

QUICK RESULTS

Limited Late Model

Heat 1: `The Professional` Rob Poole Innisfil, ON

Heat 2: Keith Maiato Caledon, ON

Heat 3: Sean Cronan Barrie, ON

Heat 4: Stompin`Tom Walters Bradford, ON

A Main:

1) Jason `Bam Bam` Witty Queensville, ON

2) `Hollywood` Taylor Holdaway Orillia, ON

3) Sean Cronan Barrie, ON

4) `The Bully` Dwayne Baker Stayner, ON

5) Kevin Cornelius Orangeville, ON

Super Stock

Heat 1: Matt Bentley Acton, ON

Heat 2: `Too Quick` Kenny Britt Midhurst, ON

Heat 3: Matt Bentley Acton, ON

Heat 4: Marty Monette Hamilton, ON

A Main:

1) Jason Elliott Angus, ON

2) Matt Bentley Acton, ON

3) Flyin` Frank Davey River Drive Park, ON

4) Marty Monette Hamilton, ON

5) Lane Zardo Brampton, ON

Mini Stock

Heat 1: `The King of Hearts` Brian Love Barrie, ON

Heat 2: Nicole Podewils Barrie, ON

Heat 3: Doug Butler New Lowell, ON

Heat 4: `Mr. White Walls` Nick Brown Keswick, ON

Heat 5: Branden Bullen Bond Head, ON

Heat 6: Rob Krystal Holland Landing, ON

B Main: Rob Gibson Jr. Barrie, ON

A Main:

1) Nicole Podewils Barrie, ON

2) Doug Butler New Lowell, ON

3) Branden Bullen DISQUALIFIED Bond Head, ON

4) Dan `The Bandit` Britt Midhurst, ON

5) Terry Clodd Holland Landing, ON