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New Smyrna Speedway Mid Season Report
Super Late Models:
The Super Late Models have only run 4 races so far this year after rain forced the Clyde Hart Memorial to be postponed after just 10 laps a few weeks ago. David Rogers opened the season with a victory on opening day and has finished in the top 5 in all the races run this season. Jeff Choquette won the first race in the Bright House Challenge Series back in May. Speaking of May, Brad May has also been strong this season with 1 win and 4 top 5's and currently leads the point standings by just 2 over David Rogers. Look for May and Rogers to battle it out for the title as the season winds down as they are the only two drivers to start all four races. The most recent completed race for the Supers was won by Jeff Scofield, who was leading the Clyde Hart Memorial, when the rains came and put an end to the action. In 4 events this season we have had 4 different winners and the competition on the track has been pretty exciting. The Super Late Models will not race again until Aug. 27th for the conclusion of the Clyde Hart Memorial and only have 4 races left this season (including 3 100 lappers). Neither David Rogers nor Brad May can afford a bad race if they hope to take home the track championship at the end of the season.
Pro Late Models:
The Pro Late Models have shown a lot of growth this season as early season car counts have been impressive . In four races this season the fields have been in double digits most ever week. On the track Super Late Model point leader Brad May finds himself also atop the Pro Late Model Point standings, as he leads Matt Montineri by 10 points. May has visited victory lane twice so far this season and has developed a nice little rivalry with Richard Childress developmental driver, Carter Stokes. Stokes picked up his first victory at NSS earlier in the season and has been to victory lane a total of two times already this season. Due to missing the first race of the season, Stokes finds himself 48 points out of the lead and 5th in the overall standings. Each week the story has been who can beat May or Stokes and no one has been able to do so all year. I have a feeling that will changes as the Pros have a couple of 50 lappers coming up later in the season and that should draw a few new drivers who could compete for a victory. The Pros are scheduled to race 6 more times this season and if Brad May slips up in any of those events, he will have Matt Montineri and Robert Strader breathing down his neck for the track title.
Modifieds:
Mother Nature has not been kind to the Modifieds as they have only been able to race 3 times so far this season. Jerry Symons won the first Modified race of the season after a classic duel with Tank Tucker. Tucker missed the next two races (was back in the pits during the Clyde Hart Mem, but the Mods never hit the track), allowing Symons to pick up a total of 2 wins and 3 tops fives. Robert Deal won the big Modified 50 lapper back in June in convincing fashion and he's been the only driver who's had anything for Symons. Alan Bruns had a shot to beat Symons early in the year but had to settle for a seasons best 2nd place and finds himself 10 points behind Symons in the standings. Matt Wheeler is 3rd just 14 points behind. The modified's season feels like it's barely started, but the good news is there are still 6 more races left on their schedule, including a 50 lapper on August 20th!
American Auto Sportsman:
The Sportsman division has been exciting each and every week they have hit the track, with great action and car counts week in and week out. Patrick Thomas started the season off with 3 consecutive victories before a disqualification (and having his engine claimed) tried to uproot his season. Derrick Wood was awarded the win on the 4th race of the year after Thomas was DQed. One week after the turmoil, Thomas came back with a vengeance to pick up his 4th win in 5 races. However, we have seen some new faces up front over the past few weeks with Kody Jett taking home a victory and Earl Beckner winning in his brand new car just before the break. So far we have had 4 different winners this year and there are quite a few different drivers who have emerged as contenders this year. Daniel Conlin has been close to victory, as has Shyanne Mathers and Andy Nicholls. With nine races still remaining for the sportsman don't be surprised to see some new faces in victory lane! The sportsman Points race is the best battle in all the divisions so far this year. Point leader Richard Goodrich had issues last time out and that has allowed Ron Gustafson to close within 3 points. Sitting in 3rd is Patrick Thomas who is now just 12 points back, even with the disqualification earlier in the year. And sitting 4th is Ron Lufcy only 16 points back. That puts 4 drivers within 16 points of each other and it will be fun to see which driver can hold on to the top spot at season's end. With the large fields in the sportsman class this year anything can happen and every time they are on the track it is must see racing. The sportsman are back in action on July 23rd!
Speedway Flooring Super Stocks:
The Super Stocks have had some rough and tumble races, but they have been a lot of fun to watch. Lets not forget the racing have been really competitive as well. Bobby Holley started the season out strong with a win on opening day and youngster Preston hunt won a 50 lapper a couple of weeks later. In race number 3, David Gould found victory lane after returning to the Super Stocks this year. Jeff Cuddy finally found the handle on his XL machine and was able to pull off the win in race number 4. After claiming his first victory of the season, Cuddy has been un beatable and has won 3 consecutive races heading into the mid season break. Cuddy had a rough start to the season after missing a few races and getting DQed early in the season but that team has turned it around and is a force to be reckoned with in the super stock class. By virtue of his early season win and 6 top 5 finishes in 6 starts, Bobby Holley has a comfortable 17 point lead over Dale Howard. Last year's champion Preston Hunt missed a race and has had a couple of on track issues finds himself 5th in the standings, 58 points behind. The Super Stocks will return to action this Saturday and have 8 more races left on the schedule including anothher50 lapper on August 20th!
Mod Minis:
The Mod minis have had an interesting start to the 2016 season, even though they have only raced 3 times. Robbie Yoakam in his only start, beat Ted Vulpius in a thrilling race to open the season. Vulpius got back to his winning ways, pulling off the victory in race number 2. Things got really interesting during the 3rd race of the season when Jamie Dixson and Mark Broat crashed hard on the initial start of the race. Then Ted Vulpius had issues with his number 71 machine, opening the door for veteran David Russell to claim the checkered flag. Thus giving us 3 winners in 3 races so far. Despite trouble last time out defending champ Ted Vulpius leads the standing by just 2 points over David Russell, while Bobby Dooley sits in 3rd just 9 points back. The points battle could get very interesting down the stretch and we will see if anyone can dethrone defending champ, "Mr. Mini Stock " Ted Vulpius. The Mod Minis also return to action this Saturday and have just 5 more races before their season comes to a close.
Bombers:
The Bombers have quickly become an extremely exciting division and they have actually gotten some much deserved love this year. Jeff Matheny and Old School Racing put up some big money for a special 50 lap Bomber race that drew 25 cars to the track. This is just one of the many highlights in this division this season. The season started out with the Tim Cordel Memorial race which was won by Megan Matheny after apparent winner Wes Railing was DQed. The races were very competitive the first few weeks as Greg Bruce, Richard Tyner, Joe Hamilton and Zach Curtis all claimed victories making it nearly impossible to predict the who win on any given week. Lately Zach Curtis has been the man to beat however, collecting 3 wins in just 3 starts this season. Curtis came home the winner of the Old School Bomber 50 and collected $700 for his efforts. One of the wildest finishes of the entire season at New Smyrna Speedway came on June 4th, When Aaron Overman and Matt Thornton made contact coming out of turn 4 on the final lap. Thornton spun out of the lead and Overman made it to the line first, the apparent winner. However, Race control deemed that Overman caused the crash and Eric Hodge, making his first start of the year, was deemed the official winner. The Bomber class races each and every Saturday and they have had pretty decent car counts this season and if you haven't stayed to watch the bombers yet this year you have been missing out. They have raced a total of 10 times already this season and only 2 drivers have started all 10 race. Defending champion Aaron Overman has a 27 point lead over rookie Michael Scannell at the midpoint of the season. Neither driver has collected a victory but showing up every week has paid off for these drivers as they are the only two drivers in contention for the championship at this point. There are still 14 events left on the schedule and anything can happen in the bomber division. Remember, if you're looking to get into racing and want to have fun the Bomber division is a great place to start!
Things started off a bit rough this year with a bunch of rain outs to start the season, but things have really picked up. There has been decent growth in most of the divisions recently. The action on the track has been just as hot on the track as the summer temperatures. Hopefully this momentum continues as we progress into the second half of the season. There are still a lot of big events coming up this season too. There are 3 100 lap Super Late Model Bright house Challenge races still on tap. The Southern Sprintcar Shootout Series returns once again on August 13th.There are two Sportsman and two Pro Late Model 50 lappers and some other 50 lappers sprinkled throughout the schedule for our support classes as well. It should be a ton of fun over the next few months and it all starts back up Saturday, July 23rd at 7:30. The Pro Late Models, Sportsman, Super Stocks, Mini Stocks and Bombers will all be in action and you won't want to miss it!
***Also if anyone is interested in division statistics, I have put together spreadsheets for each division. The stats include Starts, Wins, Top5, Top 10, DNS and DQ. If you're interested in these documents shoot me a PM!***
Super Late Models:
The Super Late Models have only run 4 races so far this year after rain forced the Clyde Hart Memorial to be postponed after just 10 laps a few weeks ago. David Rogers opened the season with a victory on opening day and has finished in the top 5 in all the races run this season. Jeff Choquette won the first race in the Bright House Challenge Series back in May. Speaking of May, Brad May has also been strong this season with 1 win and 4 top 5's and currently leads the point standings by just 2 over David Rogers. Look for May and Rogers to battle it out for the title as the season winds down as they are the only two drivers to start all four races. The most recent completed race for the Supers was won by Jeff Scofield, who was leading the Clyde Hart Memorial, when the rains came and put an end to the action. In 4 events this season we have had 4 different winners and the competition on the track has been pretty exciting. The Super Late Models will not race again until Aug. 27th for the conclusion of the Clyde Hart Memorial and only have 4 races left this season (including 3 100 lappers). Neither David Rogers nor Brad May can afford a bad race if they hope to take home the track championship at the end of the season.
Pro Late Models:
The Pro Late Models have shown a lot of growth this season as early season car counts have been impressive . In four races this season the fields have been in double digits most ever week. On the track Super Late Model point leader Brad May finds himself also atop the Pro Late Model Point standings, as he leads Matt Montineri by 10 points. May has visited victory lane twice so far this season and has developed a nice little rivalry with Richard Childress developmental driver, Carter Stokes. Stokes picked up his first victory at NSS earlier in the season and has been to victory lane a total of two times already this season. Due to missing the first race of the season, Stokes finds himself 48 points out of the lead and 5th in the overall standings. Each week the story has been who can beat May or Stokes and no one has been able to do so all year. I have a feeling that will changes as the Pros have a couple of 50 lappers coming up later in the season and that should draw a few new drivers who could compete for a victory. The Pros are scheduled to race 6 more times this season and if Brad May slips up in any of those events, he will have Matt Montineri and Robert Strader breathing down his neck for the track title.
Modifieds:
Mother Nature has not been kind to the Modifieds as they have only been able to race 3 times so far this season. Jerry Symons won the first Modified race of the season after a classic duel with Tank Tucker. Tucker missed the next two races (was back in the pits during the Clyde Hart Mem, but the Mods never hit the track), allowing Symons to pick up a total of 2 wins and 3 tops fives. Robert Deal won the big Modified 50 lapper back in June in convincing fashion and he's been the only driver who's had anything for Symons. Alan Bruns had a shot to beat Symons early in the year but had to settle for a seasons best 2nd place and finds himself 10 points behind Symons in the standings. Matt Wheeler is 3rd just 14 points behind. The modified's season feels like it's barely started, but the good news is there are still 6 more races left on their schedule, including a 50 lapper on August 20th!
American Auto Sportsman:
The Sportsman division has been exciting each and every week they have hit the track, with great action and car counts week in and week out. Patrick Thomas started the season off with 3 consecutive victories before a disqualification (and having his engine claimed) tried to uproot his season. Derrick Wood was awarded the win on the 4th race of the year after Thomas was DQed. One week after the turmoil, Thomas came back with a vengeance to pick up his 4th win in 5 races. However, we have seen some new faces up front over the past few weeks with Kody Jett taking home a victory and Earl Beckner winning in his brand new car just before the break. So far we have had 4 different winners this year and there are quite a few different drivers who have emerged as contenders this year. Daniel Conlin has been close to victory, as has Shyanne Mathers and Andy Nicholls. With nine races still remaining for the sportsman don't be surprised to see some new faces in victory lane! The sportsman Points race is the best battle in all the divisions so far this year. Point leader Richard Goodrich had issues last time out and that has allowed Ron Gustafson to close within 3 points. Sitting in 3rd is Patrick Thomas who is now just 12 points back, even with the disqualification earlier in the year. And sitting 4th is Ron Lufcy only 16 points back. That puts 4 drivers within 16 points of each other and it will be fun to see which driver can hold on to the top spot at season's end. With the large fields in the sportsman class this year anything can happen and every time they are on the track it is must see racing. The sportsman are back in action on July 23rd!
Speedway Flooring Super Stocks:
The Super Stocks have had some rough and tumble races, but they have been a lot of fun to watch. Lets not forget the racing have been really competitive as well. Bobby Holley started the season out strong with a win on opening day and youngster Preston hunt won a 50 lapper a couple of weeks later. In race number 3, David Gould found victory lane after returning to the Super Stocks this year. Jeff Cuddy finally found the handle on his XL machine and was able to pull off the win in race number 4. After claiming his first victory of the season, Cuddy has been un beatable and has won 3 consecutive races heading into the mid season break. Cuddy had a rough start to the season after missing a few races and getting DQed early in the season but that team has turned it around and is a force to be reckoned with in the super stock class. By virtue of his early season win and 6 top 5 finishes in 6 starts, Bobby Holley has a comfortable 17 point lead over Dale Howard. Last year's champion Preston Hunt missed a race and has had a couple of on track issues finds himself 5th in the standings, 58 points behind. The Super Stocks will return to action this Saturday and have 8 more races left on the schedule including anothher50 lapper on August 20th!
Mod Minis:
The Mod minis have had an interesting start to the 2016 season, even though they have only raced 3 times. Robbie Yoakam in his only start, beat Ted Vulpius in a thrilling race to open the season. Vulpius got back to his winning ways, pulling off the victory in race number 2. Things got really interesting during the 3rd race of the season when Jamie Dixson and Mark Broat crashed hard on the initial start of the race. Then Ted Vulpius had issues with his number 71 machine, opening the door for veteran David Russell to claim the checkered flag. Thus giving us 3 winners in 3 races so far. Despite trouble last time out defending champ Ted Vulpius leads the standing by just 2 points over David Russell, while Bobby Dooley sits in 3rd just 9 points back. The points battle could get very interesting down the stretch and we will see if anyone can dethrone defending champ, "Mr. Mini Stock " Ted Vulpius. The Mod Minis also return to action this Saturday and have just 5 more races before their season comes to a close.
Bombers:
The Bombers have quickly become an extremely exciting division and they have actually gotten some much deserved love this year. Jeff Matheny and Old School Racing put up some big money for a special 50 lap Bomber race that drew 25 cars to the track. This is just one of the many highlights in this division this season. The season started out with the Tim Cordel Memorial race which was won by Megan Matheny after apparent winner Wes Railing was DQed. The races were very competitive the first few weeks as Greg Bruce, Richard Tyner, Joe Hamilton and Zach Curtis all claimed victories making it nearly impossible to predict the who win on any given week. Lately Zach Curtis has been the man to beat however, collecting 3 wins in just 3 starts this season. Curtis came home the winner of the Old School Bomber 50 and collected $700 for his efforts. One of the wildest finishes of the entire season at New Smyrna Speedway came on June 4th, When Aaron Overman and Matt Thornton made contact coming out of turn 4 on the final lap. Thornton spun out of the lead and Overman made it to the line first, the apparent winner. However, Race control deemed that Overman caused the crash and Eric Hodge, making his first start of the year, was deemed the official winner. The Bomber class races each and every Saturday and they have had pretty decent car counts this season and if you haven't stayed to watch the bombers yet this year you have been missing out. They have raced a total of 10 times already this season and only 2 drivers have started all 10 race. Defending champion Aaron Overman has a 27 point lead over rookie Michael Scannell at the midpoint of the season. Neither driver has collected a victory but showing up every week has paid off for these drivers as they are the only two drivers in contention for the championship at this point. There are still 14 events left on the schedule and anything can happen in the bomber division. Remember, if you're looking to get into racing and want to have fun the Bomber division is a great place to start!
Things started off a bit rough this year with a bunch of rain outs to start the season, but things have really picked up. There has been decent growth in most of the divisions recently. The action on the track has been just as hot on the track as the summer temperatures. Hopefully this momentum continues as we progress into the second half of the season. There are still a lot of big events coming up this season too. There are 3 100 lap Super Late Model Bright house Challenge races still on tap. The Southern Sprintcar Shootout Series returns once again on August 13th.There are two Sportsman and two Pro Late Model 50 lappers and some other 50 lappers sprinkled throughout the schedule for our support classes as well. It should be a ton of fun over the next few months and it all starts back up Saturday, July 23rd at 7:30. The Pro Late Models, Sportsman, Super Stocks, Mini Stocks and Bombers will all be in action and you won't want to miss it!
***Also if anyone is interested in division statistics, I have put together spreadsheets for each division. The stats include Starts, Wins, Top5, Top 10, DNS and DQ. If you're interested in these documents shoot me a PM!***
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