Twice is Nice in 2014 for Pitkat
Woody Pitkat held off Todd Szegedy on a green-white-checkered finish to earn his second NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory in Saturday’s F.W. Webb 100 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
It was Pitkat’s first trip to Victory Lane in 16 starts at the Loudon, New Hampshire oval.
Szegedy crossed the line second and championship points leader Doug Coby finished third. Ted Christopher and Rowan Pennink completed the top five.
Patrick Emerling, Donny Lia, Bobby Santos, Tommy Barrett Jr. and Mike Stefanik brought home the top 10.
Coby’s podium finish, combined with a mid-race engine failure for Justin Bonsignore, resulted in a big points swing. Coby entered New Hampshire four tallies up on Bonsignore, but leaves with a 448-422 advantage.
The action started as soon as the green flag dropped with the lead up for grabs throughout the first half of the race. There were a total of 15 lead changes among four drivers throughout the event.
Pitkat proved to be the class of the field, however. The Stafford, Connecticut, native posted his fifth top-five finish in 11 races this year after grabbing the checkered flag ahead of 18-time race winner Szegedy.
The F.W. Webb 100 ran relatively clean in the first half of the race, but the final half was not without incident with eight cautions and one red flag lasting 20 minutes. The red flag was caused by a six-car accident coming out of turn two on Lap 99.
The F.W. Webb 100 will be telecast on FOX Sports 1 on Sept. 27 at 10 a.m. EDT.
The Whelen Modified Tour has just two races remaining on the 2014 schedule starting with the NAPA Fall Final 150 on Sunday, Sept. 28 at Stafford.
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour-F.W. Webb 100
Unofficial Results
Saturday
At New Hampshire Motor Speedway
Loudon, N.H.
Lap length: 1.058 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (6) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Chevrolet, 105 laps, 79.539 mph.
2. (5) Todd Szegedy, Ridgefield, Conn., Chevrolet, 105.
3. (7) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 105.
4. (4) Ted Christopher, Plainville, Conn., Chevrolet, 105.
5. (9) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, Pa., Chevrolet, 105.
6. (16) Patrick Emerling, Orchard Park, N.Y., Chevrolet, 105.
7. (8) Donny Lia, Jericho, N.Y., Dodge, 105.
8. (3) Bobby Santos, Franklin, Mass., Chevrolet, 105.
9. (14) Tommy Barrett, Jr., Millis, Mass., Chevrolet, 105.
10. (11) Mike Stefanik, Coventry, R.I., Chevrolet, 105.
11. (2) Ron Silk, Norwalk, Conn., Chevrolet, 105.
12. (13) Ryan Preece, Berlin, Conn., Ford, 105.
13. (15) Eric Goodale, Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 105.
14. (27) Gary McDonald, Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Pontiac, 105.
15. (24) Dave Salzarulo, Monson, Mass., Chevrolet, 104.
16. (19) Danny Watts, Jr., Riverhead, N.Y., Chevrolet, 99, accident.
17. (12) Timmy Solomito, Islip, N.Y., Chevrolet, 99, accident.
18. (17) Ron Yuhas, Jr., Groton, Conn., Chevrolet, 99, accident.
19. (26) Melissa Fifield, Wakefield, N.H., Chevrolet, 98, accident.
20. (1) Ryan Newman, South Bend, Ind., Chevrolet, 97, steering.
21. (21) Glen Reen, Wilbraham, Mass., Chevrolet, 79, accident.
22. (22) Jamie Tomaino, Howell, N.J., Chevrolet, 77, engine.
23. (20) Wade Cole, Hartland, Conn., Chevrolet, 71, overheating.
24. (18) Cole Powell, Mt. Brydges, Ont., Chevrolet, 70, rear end.
25. (10) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 52, engine.
26. (23) Matt Hirschman, Northampton, Pa., Chevrolet, 24, accident.
27. (25) Ken Heagy, Calverton, N.Y., Chevrolet, 8, handling.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 23 minutes 48 seconds
Margin of Victory: 0.298 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: R.Newman (131.035 mph, 29.067 seconds)
Caution Flags: 8 for 30 laps.
Lead Changes: 15 among 4 drivers.
Lap Leaders: R. Silk 1-8; W. Pitkat 9-11; R. Silk 12-14; W. Pitkat 15-31; R. Silk 32-33; T. Solomito 34; R. Silk 35-37; W. Pitkat 38-47; T. Szegedy 48-52; W. Pitkat 53-61; T. Szegedy 62-63; W. Pitkat 64-67; T. Szegedy 68; W. Pitkat 69-72; T. Szegedy 73; W. Pitkat 74-105.
Standings: 1. D. Coby, 448; 2. J. Bonsignore, 422; 3. T. Christopher, 414; 4. B. Santos, 409; 5. R. Silk, 402; 6. R. Preece, 393; 7. W. Pitkat, 381; 8. T. Solomito, 368; 9. E. Goodale, 367; 10. M. Hirschman, 350.