@PtboSpeedway • @OSCAARracing •Peterborough, ON (August 2, 2016)- Another month of Peterborough Speedway’s 2016 campaign came to an end on Saturday, July 30 as the OSCAAR Super Late Models, Modifieds, Midgets and Pro Midgets joined the home track Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun and Jiffy Lube Mini Stock divisions for a thrilling night of action at Canada’s Toughest 1/3-Mile Paved Oval.
The first feature race to hit the track was a 20 lapper for the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, with Griffin Powell and Jeremy Kelly leading the pack. Kelly wanted the top spot and pushed Powell for the position, but the former Autumn Colours Classic champion was up for the challenge. A slow car in the second turn brought out the race’s only yellow flag with four laps on the scoreboard and within a few laps of the restart, defending track champion Ryan Oosterholt had joined the battle at the front of the pack, using the outside line to gain positions. With Powell and Kelly staging their own battle in front of him, Oosterholt moved into a lead he wouldn’t give up. Jeremy Kelly was second, with Powell, Jake Kelly and Dave Feeney finishing out the top five.
The OSCAAR Super Late Models were originally scheduled for a 50 lap main event, but track and series officials revised that plan to a pair of 20 lappers and both were run with quick, military precision. Former Peterborough Speedway regular Kelly Balson took the opener over Glenn Watson, J.R. Fitzpatrick, Tyler Hawn, Roy Passer, Gary Passer and Charlie Gallant. Roy Passer was victorious in round two, over his son in-law Fitzpatrick, Watson, Balson, Hawn, Gallant and Gary Passer.
With 20 laps on the agenda, the Jiffy Lube Mini Stocks rolled from the staging area for their main event with Tiffany Vanderbelt and Kevin Strutt on the front row. On the drop of the green flag, Strutt took control, with defending track champion Tyler Junkin moving into second before there was a single circuit on the scoreboard. The leaders moved-in on lapped traffic with nine laps complete, allowing current point leader James Townsend to close ground. Strutt would lead the caution-free feature from start to finish. Junkin would thwart Townsend’s charge, with Vanderbelt and Donovan Price completing the top five.
James Stanley and Wayne McKibbon brought the starting field to the stripe for the 25 lap OSCAAR Midget feature, but it was Owen Elliott who played the starring role, with an advantage of nearly half a track at different stages of the event. Shawn Stanley would close ranks as the leader struggled with lapped traffic, but the eventual outcome was never in doubt. Not even a late yellow flag with 23 laps complete would keep him from the win. Stanley’s charge would come-up one position short, with Brian McDonald, McKibbon and Ryan Brown following the lead duo across the line.
Brad Stevenson and Gary McLean would bring the OSCAAR Modified pack to the Great Canadian RV green flag to kick-off their 30 lap feature tilt. Stevenson led the early stages, before surrendering the top spot to McLean just before a yellow flag waved with 17 complete. A.J. Emms would wrestle second spot away from Stevenson on the restart that followed a mid-race red flag, but McLean – the most dominant driver in series history – would add another win to his resume. Cory Horner and John Harper would complete the top five.
The night’s action would conclude with a 15 lapper for the upstart Pro Midget division, as Kelly Summers would take the checkered flag.
Earlier in the show, Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun heats were shared by Ryan Oosterholt with a pair and one each to Brandon and Dave Feeney. James Townsend, Brandon Hannah, Tyler Junkin and Kevin Strutt each took a Jiffy Lube Mini Stock preliminary round. OSCAAR Midget heats went to Owen Elliott with a pair, Shawn Stanley and Wally Wilson. A.J. Emms, Cory Horner, John Harper and Luc Gignac each won an OSCAAR Modified qualifier. Ted Greenwood scored a pair of Pro Midget opening rounds.
Bullring Bullet Points: Several cars were plagued by loose wheels throughout the night. Ray Schroer lost a right rear during a qualifying heat, while fellow 4Fun pilot Mitch Cook suffered the same fate later in the night. In one of the scariest incidents of the evening, OSCAAR Modified rookie Rob DiVenanzo caught his right front on the base of the back stretch wall and flipped; sliding on the car’s roof along the track.
Action at the tight, tricky bullring on Mount Pleasant Road, west of the Liftlock City continues Saturday, August 6 with the return of the Lucas Oil Sportsman Cup Series. The Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock, Paul Davis Systems Thunder Car and Ontario Modifieds Racing Series classes will also be in competition; with kid’s rides at intermission. Pit gates open at 2:00, with the spectator areas unlocked at 5:00 and the first green flag of the night at 6:00.
Full schedule details – along with up to the minute news and results are always available at www.peterboroughspeedway.com, by liking the track on Facebook or following it on Twitter. You can also download the free Peterborough Speedway app on your Smartphone.
Prepared by: Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications/First Draft Media
clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, www.facebook.com/clarkemotorsports
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