Ted Christopher, the dominant car for the first half of
Sunday’s 200-lap NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race, survived a
cut tire and an accident in the second 100 to earn his second
trip in a row to Victory Lane in the Tech-Net Spring Sizzler
presented by CARQUEST at Stafford Motor Speedway.
Christopher, of Plainville, Conn. , piloted the No. 36 Al-Lee
Installations Chevrolet from mid-pack with 70 laps to go to earn
his 33rd career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory. The Coors
Light Pole Award winner on Saturday, Christopher led 82 of the
first 100 laps and appeared early to be the dominant car for the
second week in a row. While under caution, Christopher had to
come to pit road on Lap 121 with a cut tire and surrendered the
lead on to Mike Stefanik. After rejoining the field, seven laps
later he was skidding through the grass on the backstretch after
getting caught up in an accident and a second-consecutive
victory seemed unlikely.
All that didn’t deter the defending series champion from
returning to Victory Lane, however, as he quickly moved up
through the field and finally got by Todd Szegedy on Lap 182.
The result was his fourth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Spring
Sizzler win and his ninth career tour triumph at the Connecticut
half mile.
Szegedy (No. 2 Wisk/Snuggle Ford) finished as the runner-up and
led three-different times for 33 laps in the race. Ryan Preece
(No. 3 Mizzy Construction/Logan Steel Chevrolet) posted a
third-place finish while Stefanik (No. 16 Diversified
Metals/Sanderson-MacLeod Pontiac) and Chris Pasteryak (No. 52
Furnace & Duct Supply Chevrolet) rounded out the top five.
The rest of the top 10 finishers on Sunday included Donny Lia,
Woody Pitkat, Ron Silk, Jimmy Blewett and Ed Flemke Jr.
The third race on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour schedule will
also take place at Stafford Motor Speedway. The TSI
Harley-Davidson Classic, the first race under the lights in
2009, is schedule for Friday, May 22.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour-Tech-Net Spring Sizzler pres. by
CARQUEST Unofficial Results
Sunday At Stafford Motor Speedway, Stafford, CT
Lap length: 0.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (3) Ted Christopher, Plainville , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200
laps, 59.416 mph, $9,200.
2. (6) Todd Szegedy, Ridgefield , Conn. , Ford, 200, $4,500.
3. (1) Ryan Preece, Kensington , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200, $3,500.
4. (2) Mike Stefanik, Coventry , R.I. , Pontiac , 200, $3,000.
5. (7) Chris Pasteryak, Lisbon , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200, $2,750.
6. (8) Donny Lia, Jericho , N.Y. , Dodge, 200, $2,400.
7. (16) Woody Pitkat, Stafford , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200, $2,200.
8. (15) Ron Silk, Norwalk , Conn. , Pontiac , 200, $2,100.
9. (10) Jimmy Blewett, Howell , N.J. , Chevrolet, 200, $1,900.
10. (20) Ed Flemke, Jr., Southington , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200,
$1,700.
11. (29) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 200, $2,650.
12. (24) Jamie Tomaino, Howell , N.J. , Chevrolet, 200, $1,575.
13. (4) Eric Berndt, Cromwell , Conn. , Chevrolet, 200, $1,150.
14. (33) Kevin Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 200, $1,079.
15. (25) Bobby Grigas, III, Marshfield , Mass. , Chevrolet, 200,
$1,450.
16. (17) Eric Beers, Northampton , Pa. , Chevrolet, 200, $1,540.
17. (28) Glenn Tyler, Hampton Bays , N.Y. , Chevrolet, 200,
$1,425.
18. (11) Glen Reen, Wilbraham , Mass. , Chevrolet, 200, $1,575.
19. (21) Ken Heagy, Calverton , N.Y. , Chevrolet, 200, $950.
20. (27) Tommy Farrell, III, Neptune , N.J. , Chevrolet, 200,
$925.
21. (12) Matt Hirschman, Northampton , Pa. , Chevrolet, 200,
$900.
22. (30) Wade Cole, Riverton , Conn. , Chevrolet, 198, $1,275.
23. (9) Carl Pasteryak, Lisbon , Conn. , Pontiac , 197, $850.
24. (22) Richard Savary, Canton , Mass. , Chevrolet, 195,
$1,225.
25. (32) Jake Marosz, Middletown , Conn. , Chevrolet, 193,
$1,200.
26. (5) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley , Pa. , Chevrolet, 176,
accident, $1,300.
27. (26) Joe Hartmann, Calverton , N.Y. , Chevrolet, 164,
engine, $1,200.
28. (13) Doug Coby, Milford , Conn. , Chevrolet, 160, engine,
$800.
29. (18) Rob Summers, Vernon , Conn. , Chevrolet, 103,
overheating, $1,200.
30. (14) Erick Rudolph, Ransomville , N.Y. , Chevrolet, 38,
suspension, $1,300.
31. (31) Tom Abele, Jr., Norwich , Conn. , Chevrolet, 31,
suspension, $1,200.
32. (23) Renee Dupuis, Glastonbury , Conn. , Chevrolet, 22,
accident, $1,200.
33. (19) Reggie Ruggiero, Rocky Hill , Conn. , Ford, 2,
accident, $1,200.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 40 minutes 59 seconds
Margin of Victory: 1.120 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: T. Christopher (99.174 mph, 18.15 seconds)
Caution Flags: 10 for 63 laps.
Lead Changes: 10 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: R. Preece 1-9; T. Christopher 10-92; R. Pennink
93-99; T. Christopher 100-122; M. Stefanik 123-133; T. Szegedy
134; M. Stefanik 135-148; T. Szegedy 149-174; M. Stefanik 175;
T. Szegedy 176-181; T. Christopher 182-200.
Standings: 1. T. Christopher, 360; 2. T. Szegedy, 325; 3. R.
Preece, 325; 4. D. Lia, 315; 5. J. Blewett, 308; 6. M. Stefanik,
306; 7. R. Silk, 292; 8. W. Pitkat , 252; 9. B. Grigas,III, 252;
10. J. Tomaino, 251
Source: Jason
Cunningham / Team NASCAR
Posted:
April 29, 2009
