WINCHESTER, N.H. – Second-generation Street Stocker Kenny Thompson scored his first career Monadnock Speedway feature win Saturday at the storied quarter-mile oval.
By Gary Dutton
The Alstead hot shoe, whose previous best run had been a second to division strong man Tommy O’Sullivan last July 24 on the high banks, led all the way in Saturday’s 25-lapper to score the win in a blanket finish over Tim Wenzel and two-time 2022 winner Keith Johnson.
On an unseasonably hot and sticky May night, only three cautions slowed six feature events. Two drivers won for the first time, Thompson, and Star Speedway regular Joe Fraser, who topped the Six Shooter 25-lapper, as the affordable division made its first stop of the summer on the high banks.
For the third event in a row, NHSTRA Modified hot shoe Tyler Leary led every lap of the open-wheel main event. Late Model Sportsman star Cole Littlewood won his third Monadnock feature of the season, his second in as many weeks, and third main event in a row, including a victory the previous Sunday at Hudson.
Pure Stock sizzler Kyle Robinson Newell also won his third of the year Saturday at Monadnock and, like Littlewood, his third feature in a row, following a May 7 victory on the high banks, and a Friday nighter May 20 at Lee. Young Gun Zach Zilinski earned his second victory Saturday, later doing himself proud with a seventh-place run in the Pure Stock main event
Thompson edged Green Mountain State star Hillary Renaud in his heat race Saturday and then started up front alongside Keith Johnson in the night’s main event, holding first Johnson – a blanket second the first 18 go –rounds – and then Wenzel in his shadow to score the impressive win.
Dan Comeau set a fast pace over the first three laps of the LMS feature, with Cole Littlewood then taking charge and never looking back. Littlewood held a comfortable lead over previous winner Ryan Currier until a lap-21 caution closed the field, with Chase Curtis using the inside lane to wrest second from Currier on the restart and twin brother Jaret Curtis then moving up for third on the final go-round.
The NHSTRA Modified main was a Tyler Leary clinic for the third week in a row. Leading Nate Wenzel by less than six inches on lap one, the Hatfield, Mass. rocketman led potent Ben Byrne under the checkers to notch his career-best third win in a row. Byrne and Wenzel followed him under the checkers to complete Saturday’s Bay
State top three.
Only one quick caution slowed Kyle Robinson Newell’s trip to victory lane in the Pure Stock feature. Teen star JD Stockwell kept him in sight all 25 laps but, on this night, had to settle for second. Defending track champ Chris Davis was strong in third, with 60-something Bruce Jaycox, hauling all the way from Clarksville, coming home strong in fourth.
Zach Zilinski led all the way in the Young Gun feature, scoring his second win of the summer just ahead of Dominick Stafford. Colton Martin, victorious a week earlier, came home third.
Like the Young Guns, the Six Shooters ran caution-free. Joe Fraser held the point from green to checkers, with John Voorhees second under the checkers and four-time Claremont winner Steve Miller Sr. third on the night.
Monadnock Speedway returns to action Saturday, May 28, when the exciting Pro 4 Modifieds join four divisions of NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Racing Series competition. Post time is 6:00 p.m.
MONADNOCK SPEEDWAY MAY 21 TOP PERFORMERS
LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN: Cole Littlewood, Chase Curtis, Jaret Curtis, Ryan Currier, Justin Littlewood, Kevin Vaudrien, Dan Comeau, Nancy Muni Ruot, Sammy Silva, DNS: Rocky Smith.
STREET STOCK: Kenny Thompson, Tim Wenzel, Keith Johnson, Brandon Gray, Hillary Renaud, Dan Robinson, Isabella Michella, DNS: Nathan Nunez, Michael Robinson.
NHSTRA MODIFIED: Tyler Leary, Ben Byrne, Nate Wenzel, JT Cloutier, Eric LeClair, Cameron Houle.
PURE STOCK: Kyle Robinson Newell, JD Stockwell, Chris Davis, Bruce Jaycox, Billy Graham, Amy Jaycox, Zach Zilinsky, Zach Phillips, Damien Houle, Jimmy Zellman.
SIX SHOOTER: Joe Fraser, John Voorhees, Steve Millar Sr, Zacary Fraser, Lucas Bernatchy, Eric Lanou, DNS:Steve Miller Jr, Garrett Barry.
YOUNG GUN: Zach Zilinski, Dominick Stafford, Colton Martin, Owen Zilinski.
