MILLGROVE, Ontario (July 20, 2021)— In a day filled with a lot of action and some torn up racecars, it’d be Brandon Watson coming out on top at the end of the APC United Late Model Series event at Flamboro Speedway on Sunday afternoon.
Brandon Watson started upfront and ran solidly inside the top-five through the first half of the event. However, the No. 9 would not emerge as a serious contender until the late stages of the event with 30 laps to go. It also would not be a cake walk for him, either, with several challengers going toe-to-toe with the past series champion for the top spot.
After watching Jake Sheridan dominate the first half, Watson staked his claim for the top spot on a restart with about 30 laps to go. The pair would trade blows back and forth, with Watson grabbing the advantage. Unfortunately, Sheridan would not be as lucky, going around following contact with Josh Stade.
Andrew Gresel would be next to plate to challenge Watson, and the battle between the division heavyweights would not disappoint. They’d both push each other to their limits in the final laps, with Watson getting sideways and in the backstretch wall, while Gresel got sideways down the shoot the next lap. A trade of blows would see Gresel get real sideways with three laps to go, going into turn three full bore on an odd angle, resulting in the No. 81 going around in the corner.
Pete Shepherd III and Treyten Lapcevich would each take up the challenge next, with Watson going around in turn three. The driver of the No. 9 caught a lucky break, though, as the caution had been called just prior to the spin for Gresel’s hood lying on the race track.
Brandon Watson was given back his spot ahead of the field, getting a good restart and snagging his second straight series victory in a row. Pete Shepherd III out-battled Lapcevich for second, with Jordan Sims and Jo Lawrence rounding out the top-five.
Shawn Chenoweth ran a quiet race to place sixth, with Jake Sheridan rebounding for a seventh. Tyler Di Venanzo finished eighth despite a spin, ahead of Andrew Gresel and Josh Stade. Notably, Stade ran inside the top-five all day long until he had a tire going down in the final stages of the event. Dustin Jackson rounded out the top-11 in the cars left running on-track.
Dale Shaw and J.R. Fitzpatrick were the first cars to not finish in 12th and 13th following heavy contact with the outside turn one and two wall after the pair got together on the frontstretch. Notably, both drivers climbed out of their cars uninjured despite significant damage.
Shawn McGlynn finished 14th, followed by Shae Gemmell, Ryan Kimball, Wally Wilson, Connor James, Mat Box, and Brandon McFerran. James Horner, Danny Benedict and Tom Gibbons rounded out the field.
T.Q. Can-Am Midgets
After a pair of qualifying heats to set the starting grid, the T.Q. Can-Am Midgets lined up for their first feature – following their impressive four-wide salute to the crowd in attendance.
Virtue of a heat victory, Daniel Hawn started up front and was able to get by Brody Rickwood for the top spot, leading the rest of the way en route to the victory. Adam Racine finished third, followed by Jeff Blackburn and Dominique Smith. Darren McLennan placed sixth, followed by Cory Whittam, David Millar, Luc Munsie, and Paul Jorgensen.
Craig Pitchell finished 11th, followed by Paul Harrison, Mike Coleman, and Bob Bailey. Cassidy March failed to complete all the laps, while David Mather and David Bidlake did not take the green flag.
Mini Stocks
After showing the speed was still there in the No. 17, Dylan Sharpe put on another great driving display with a sweep of the twin 20-lap features.
Dylan Sharpe made his way to the front quickly in the first feature, putting the car on cruise control en route to the checkered. Will Gibbons was not to be outdone, though, driving through the field after starting 11th to be on Sharpe’s bumper coming to the checkered flag. Jeff Laflamme placed third followed by Karl Sault and Gillian Hils.
Dale Millard finished sixth, followed by Brian Wilson, Tyler Lewis, Cole Quinton, and Shawn Taylor. Mike Gilmour placed 11th, followed by Fabio Olivieri, Matt Young, and Mike Hooper. Dave Goodacre would fail to finish.
The invert put the challenge in Dylan Sharpe’s lap, but he did not back down. He would drive through the field, making the clean pass on Shawn Taylor after the halfway mark to lead the rest of the way for the victory. Will Gibbons rebounded from early race contact for a third, followed by Gillian Hils and Tyler Lewis.
Karl Sault finished sixth, followed by Mike Gilmour, Brian Wilson, Cole Quinton, and Mike Hooper. Matt Young placed 11th, followed by Fabio Olivieri. Jeff Laflamme failed to finish following contact early race, with Dale Millard and Dave Goodacre failing to take the green flag.
Flamboro Speedway would like to thank GForce TV Network for carrying the event for those fans who could not be at the track. You can re-watch the entire event at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A4JPP_wf50.
Also, thanks to Ingrid Hartman for filming each week. Be sure to check out her videos at https://www.youtube.com/user/petalpower51/videos. She has posted the T.Q. Can-Am Midget and second Mini Stock feature from her vantage point in turn one for this week.
The next event at Flamboro Speedway is scheduled for July 24, featuring the Pro Late Models, Canadian Vintage Modifieds, Super Stocks, Mini Stocks, and Pure Stocks.
With the province moving into stage three of the COVID re-opening government plan, Flamboro Speedway is allowed to host 75% capacity in the grandstands. No tickets will be sold online, but rather available at the gate on a first come, first serve basis. The spectator gates will open at 5 pm with racing kicking off at 6:30 pm sharp.
Be sure to keep up with the latest by checking out Flamboro Speedway’s website at http://www.flamborospeedway.ca. You can also keep up via your favorite social networking website by following the speedway on Twitter at https://twitter.com/FlamboroSpdwy and Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/flamborospeedway. Fans are encouraged to like the speedway’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Flamboro-Speedway-Authorized-Page-102328664646735/.
By: Ashley McCubbin
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