BRIGHTON, ON – After a long off-season, fans eagerly packed the stands at Brighton Speedway for an action-packed 58th season opener on Saturday night. Following several days of rain, the weather finally cooperated, allowing 99 race cars to hit the track for a full night of racing that included the Northeast Late Model Alliance, Canadian Modifieds, Thunder Stocks, and 4-Cylinders. The evening also supported the Canadian National Autism Foundation and the Brighton Care and Share Food Bank.
Pangrazio Parks It
Reigning Late Model division champion Steve Baldwin, in the No. 5 car, led a full field of 20 cars to green in the 40-lap feature. Baldwin shot off the line and looked poised to take the first win of the season, leading the first 14 laps as David Pangrazio (No. 136), James Seymour (No. 05), Ryan Lambert (No. 41), and Charlie Sandercock (No. 57) chased him down. Anthony Barrett (No. 4) lost control near the flag stand, jumped the berm, and came to rest in the fence on turn one, drawing the night’s first red flag. Thankfully, Barrett exited the car to applause from the crowd. On the restart, Pangrazio seized the lead, hugging the inside and pulling away to a dominant win. Baldwin finished second, followed by Sandercock in third, defending NLMA champion Nathan Rinaldi in fourth, and Brandon Mowat rounding out the top five.
Wadforth Wins Season Opener
Seventeen cars lined up for the Modified main event, which saw five different leaders in a thrilling 25-lap race. Phil Potts (No. 29) took the early lead from polesitter Bob Green (No. 26), but was quickly overtaken by Dylan Boyle (No. 50), who charged hard from the inside. Boyle faced heavy pressure from Ron Wadforth (No. 40), who finally took the lead on lap seven. A three-way battle ensued with Shawn Gregory (No. 1) joining the fray. Lapped traffic complicated the race, and Gregory briefly grabbed the lead before heading to the pits, leaving Wadforth to regain control and cruise to victory. Doug O’Blenis (No. 32) finished second, followed by Mike Freeman (No. 51), Boyle in fourth, and Brittany Moon (No. 85) in fifth.
Gregory Guns It to Victory Lane
Brock Gregory (No. 26) led the Thunder Stocks to green in the 20-lap main event and quickly established himself as the car to beat. Behind him, Tyler French (No. 0) and Ethan Humphry (No. 17) fought hard for second, with Doug Anderson (No. 72) and Justin Ramsay (No. 03) in close pursuit. As the laps wound down, French closed in on Gregory and briefly took the lead, only for Gregory to snatch it back and power to the checkered flag. French finished second, Ramsay third, Anderson fourth, and Carter Rhodes (No. 10) completed the top five.
Lammle Waves the Checkered Flag
Shane Vale (No. 12) led the 15-car Stinger field to green in the 12-lap feature. But it was Chris Lammle (No. 95c) who charged to the front by lap three, making a decisive move on the outside down the backstretch. Lammle never looked back, securing the win ahead of Billy O’Hara (No. 31), Jorden Pickell (No. 93), Brian Cross (No. 18), and Dillon Barker (No. 03).
The final event of the night—the 4-Cylinder feature—was postponed due to a wild wreck involving Evan Minnie (No. 17E), who took a hard hit entering turn two and rolled, bringing out the second red flag of the night. Fortunately, he emerged uninjured, but officials opted to postpone the remainder of the race to next Saturday.
