OHSWEKEN, ON – The first special event of the Ohsweken Speedway season hits the track this Friday when Jones Brown Insurance presents the first of four races in the Northern Summer Nationals Sprint Car series. The Lighthouse Tattoos Thunder Stocks, HRW Automotive Mini Stocks, and Pierced Parts Bombers will also be in action this Friday night, June 22 for round four of Friday Night Thunder.
The first two rounds of the Northern Summer Nationals Sprint Car series will take place this weekend, with Friday racing at Ohsweken Speedway, and Saturday at South Buxton Raceway. Three affiliated sanctioning bodies have officially signed up for the series, including Ohsweken’s Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Car division, along with the Southern Ontario Sprints club, and Patriot Sprint Tour. NHRA drag racing star Cruz Pedregon will pilot a Glenn Styres-owned car on Friday night as well.
Ohsweken’s own Glenn Styres currently leads the Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Car standings, and won the opening night feature. “Fenwick Flyer.”
Tom Huppunen is currently second in the standings, and has a feature win already this season. Burford’s Jamie Collard is third, followed by Vineland driver Chris Steele, and Dain Naida of Tecumseh, Michigan.
Steele claimed his first career Sprint Car feature win last Friday, and is one of many competitive drivers in the Corr/Pak division, which has averaged more than 30 cars per event so far in 2012.
Defending Southern Ontario Sprints champion Lee Ladouceur of Alexandria, Ontario took over the SOS points lead with a run to 3rd place from row 5 last weekend at Brighton Speedway. He leads the SOS brigade into this weekend’s events, with other tour regulars such as Ridgetown’s Adam West, Newmarket driver Dick Mahoney, Lefroy’s Warren Mahoney, Jim Munsie of Pickering, Stouffville’s Brad Lodge, and Mike Ferrell of London. Port Stanley driver Chris Durand, and Sutton’s Bob Crawford have been in competition at Ohsweken already this season, and are also expected to attend both events this weekend.
Bryan Howland of Auburn, New York leads the Patriot Sprint Tour standings heading into this weekend’s events, with Alden, New York’s Scott Kreutter just 18 points behind. Both those drivers have competed at Ohsweken already this year, along with Jared Zimbardi of Salamanca, New York, and Cheektowaga, New York driver Todd Hoddick. Other PST regulars expected to race in Ontario this weekend include Williamsville, New York driver Don Adamczyk, and Belfast, New York’s Steve Collins.
Any 360 Sprint Car which meets the Northern Summer Nationals rulebook will be allowed to compete, and the overall points champion of the 4 race Northern Summer Nationals miniseries will be guaranteed a spot in September’s Canadian Sprint Car Nationals. The Empire Super Sprints series and ASCS Sprints on Dirt series do not have races scheduled this weekend, allowing Michigan’s Dustin Daggett, and Quebec drivers Alain Bergeron and Michael Parent to join the large contingent of Sprint Car drivers making the trip to southern Ontario.
Last year’s Northern Summer Nationals title was claimed by Bryan Howland. Keith Dempster claimed a feature win at South Buxton, and finished just 2 points behind Howland. Jamie Collard won in spectacular fashion at Ohsweken in August, while rain claimed the other two events last year.
Cambridge’s Wyatt Van Wart won two of the three features run last Friday night for the Thunder Stocks, and leads the championship chase as a result. Caistor Centre driver Cory Turner is second in the standings, followed by Port Robinson’s Devin Habiuk, Brad Herron of Waterford, and Caledonia driver Lee Winger. Herron and Habiuk also have feature wins to their credit this season.
Caledonia driver Mike Evers is atop the Mini Stock standings heading into this Friday’s event, followed by Hamilton’s Brittani Myers, Steve Hess of Ohsweken, Paris driver Steve Miller, and the Burlington team of Mike Taylor and Mark Czuba. Evers, Jeremy Hughes, Jason Lungaro, and Czuba have won the four features run so far this year.
Hamilton’s Max Chechalk is the points leader in the Bombers division by just one point over Caledonia driver Jesse McDonald, despite two feature wins already this year. Davey Boughton of Carlisle has also won a feature this year, and is currently third in the standings, followed by Hagersville driver Dusty DeBoer, and a fifth place tie between Hamilton’s Jeremy May, and Burlington driver Ian Myerscough.
For ticket and schedule info, visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com.
From Tommy Goudge
Discussion about this post