To kick off a season-long
celebration of 60 years of Modified champions, NASCAR is
recognizing a trio of NASCAR Modified titlists in the 2008
opener April 6 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway.
NASCAR plans to recognize each of
its past Modified champions throughout the season. The
celebration will begin with the honoring of Frankie Schneider,
Donny Lia and the late Richie Evans at the season-opening
Icebreaker.
Schneider, who captured the
NASCAR Modified division title in 1952, is the oldest living
champion. Lia became the 60th Modified champion in NASCAR
history when he won his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour title
in 2007. Both champions will be in attendance and will be
honored during the pre-race festivities.
In addition, NASCAR will
recognize the accomplishments of Evans, one of the greatest
champions in Modified history. Evans will be represented at the
Icebreaker by family members, and one of his restored cars will
be on hand for the event.
New Jersey’s Schneider began
racing in 1947, one year before the formation of NASCAR. A
driver of modified, stock, sprint and midget cars, Schneider is
believed to have won more than 750 races in his long and
distinguished career. In the days where there were no limits to
how many events a driver could participate, Schneider’s Modified
win total during his 1952 championship season is said to have
reached 100.
Lia captured the 2007 NASCAR
Whelen Modified Tour championship in a storybook season. With
five career wins entering 2007 driving his own equipment, Lia
teamed up with longtime Modified owner Bob Garbarino to run the
No. 4 “Mystic Missile.” With the new partnership, Lia and
Garbarino visited Victory Lane six times en route to the first
NASCAR championship for both. A New York native, Lia parlayed
his Modified success into a ride this year in the NASCAR
Craftsman Truck Series.
The king of Modified racing,
Evans’ accomplishments are nearly immeasurable. The Rome, N.Y.,
native captured nine Modified titles in a 13-year span,
including a remarkable eight in a row from 1978-85. Evans ranked
No. 1 in the 2003 voting of the “NASCAR All-Time Modified Top 10
Drivers,” and he was included in “The 50 Greatest NASCAR Drivers
of All Time” list in 1998. In the first year of the current
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour format in 1985, Evans won 12 races,
including all four events at Thompson. Evans had already
clinched his ninth career title heading into the season’s final
race at Martinsville, but tragically perished in an accident
during a practice session, cutting short a career that is
unmatched still today.
Activities at the Icebreaker, the
annual season-opener for NASCAR racing in New England, will
commence on Saturday, April 5 with practice and qualifying.
Pre-race ceremonies for the 150-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour
event on Sunday will start at approximately 2:45 p.m., with the
green flag tentatively set to wave at 3:15 p.m. The grandstand
open each day at 9:30 a.m., and one ticket will cover admission
for both days. For a complete weekend schedule and ticket
information, please visit Thompson’s official Web Site (thompsonspeedway.com),
and for more on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour visit
www.NASCARHomeTracks.com.
Source: Jason
Cunningham/NASCAR WMT PR
Posted:
March 25, 2008
