@CanAmMidgets • @LucasOil • @Sunset_Speedway • The Lucas Oil Can-Am Midgets held their Practice / Tech Day at Sunset International Speedway last weekend, in preparation for the beginning of their 50th Anniversary Year. Excitement among the drivers and owners is building as everyone wants to capture the crown for this very special year.
Defending Champion Mack DeMan in TQ #40 will be bringing out his ‘A’ game to try to make this his third Championship in a row. Car owner and former champion Andy Mackereth was at the track to help DeMan get the right setup and also stepped into the backup TQ #43 and ran some quick times with DeMan. Mackereth was the Champion for the 25th anniversary year and knows the importance of being part of the history of this long running club.
However a number of other drivers have set their goal to winning this championship and putting their name in the record book. Always in the hunt, Rob Neely, driving for Cindy Lorenz, has finished second to DeMan in 2014 and 2013 and was the Champion in 2012 and 2010. He finished second to Darren McLennan in 2011.
For the 50th anniversary year Neely was surprised when Ken Lorenz and Billy Pippard unloaded a new Lafler Chassis with special graphics by E-Man Ink for 2015.
“The car looks awesome, a tribute to our 50th year. A Championship this year with Kenny and Billy and all their support would be great,” said Neely. “I know I will give 110% just to try to keep up with their efforts.”
Also on the list of top contenders will be Darren McLennan in the hard charging TQ #48. In the past five seasons McLennan has one championship, a second place finish and two third places. McLennan can never be counted out by his competitors, always looking for that opening to move up in the field. With the support of his mom and dad, brother Darcy, and his fiancé’ Lindsay, McLennan hopes to repeat his success in 2011.
Adrian Stahle, also wanted to highlight this special year by picking TQ #50 for his ride, the former TQ #94 of Ryan Fraser. Stahle, “Rookie of the Year” in 2012, finished fifth in 2014 and third in 2013. Always a top runner, this could be the year that TQ #50 would be the 50th champion for the Lucas Oil Can-Am Midgets. Veteran racer Todd Cresswell, 2007 Champion, driving TQ #3 is a determined competitor that gets stronger as the race goes on. Look for Cresswell to be a points leader in 2015. Lucas Smith, driving for Cliff Walsh in TQ #49, had two wins in 2014 and promises to be at the front this year.
Ryan Fraser, in a new TQ #94, built by his dad and long time friend and racer Jeff Hanley, could be one of the ‘young lions’ headed to victory lane and maybe a championship in 2015. Another young driver with lots of talent is Tyler Turnbull driving TQ #84. You can watch that yellow TQ move up the field as Turnbull makes smart decisions passing his competitors.
One of the ‘veterans’ in the field but always a contender, is Barry Dunn in TQ #63, driving for Jim Hickson. This year Dunn will be hard to miss in his yellow and black hard charging TQ. Maybe ‘age and experience’ will put this car in Victory Lane and a championship for 2015.
Rookies that took practice included Jerrid Morphy, in the former #74 that Neely drove in 2014, ran times with the top runners and should be a factor this season. James Marche has stepped into TQ #24, and improved every lap he ran. Steve Murdock, youngest of the rookies, was smooth and followed the lines of the top runners to gain confidence in the laps he ran.
The Lucas Oil Can-Am Midgets begin their 50th Anniversary year at Sunset Speedway at their ‘Spring Velocity Show’ on Saturday, May 16. Three Special ‘Twin 25’ races will be run this year. The first will be at Grand Bend Speedway for the ‘Bash at the Beach’ in honor of the ’50th Anniversary’ on July 4. Sunset Speedway will host the second ‘Lucas Oil Can-Am Midget 50th Anniversary Twin 25’s, sponsored by Hoosier Tires’ on July 11 and the final one at Flamboro Speedway on August 8. Mark your calendars and plan on seeing some of the best open-wheel racing in Ontario and cheer on the drivers for this very special ‘Lucas Oil Can-Am Midget 50th Anniversary Year’.
For more information, contact Cindy Lorenz at clorenz74@yahoo.com
From: Lucas Oil Can Am Midgets
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