DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Aug. 2, 2005) -- The 2005 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season get the “crossed flags” signal this weekend at Riverhead Raceway in Riverhead, N. Y. on Saturday Aug 5. The Riverhead 200 will be the 10th race of the 19 race schedule for NASCAR’s oldest open wheeled touring series.Ted Christopher of Plainville, Conn. leads the series point standings by just 60 points over defending series champion Tony Hirschman of Northampton, Pa. Christopher has won four of the nine events in 2005 including the series first visit of the year to Riverhead in June. “I’m glad to be leading the point chase now,” said Christopher. “But it’s the end of the season that counts. I hope to be in the same position in October.” Christopher believes Riverhead can be a key element to a championship season. “I’ve always believed doing well at Riverhead is important if you want to win the championship,” explains Christopher. “We’ve had some success at Riverhead and I want to continue that. It’s very easy to have a bad night, it’s a tough place.” Hirschman has won twice in 2005, the only other driver with multiple victories. The four time series champion started the season with an 11th place finish and has worked his way up to second in the standings. Chuck Hossfeld of Buffalo N.Y. sits third in the standings. Hossfeld is just 84 points behind Christopher. Jerry Marquis of Broad Brook Conn. is fourth 172 markers behind Christopher. Donny Lia rounds out the standings just 16 points behind Marquis. Both drivers have scored one victory in 2005.
The Riverhead 200 is scheduled to get the green at 8:30 p.m.