WINCHESTER, N.H. – Rookie Modified ace Nate Wenzel won for the second time this summer, while Gordon Farnum wrapped up a championship and Ricky Bly won a ring Saturday at Monadnock Speedway.
Wenzel, who will finish third in Modified points for his rookie campaign, won back on August 6 and wired Saturday night’s 40-lap main event, while Tyler Leary, who entered Saturday’s event four up in the points parade, added four more to that and will enter next week’s championship event eight markers ahead of Ben Byrne.
Gordon Farnum stormed to his 11th win of the season in the Mini Stocks and, with the win, has clinched his division’s 2022 championship. His track-high 11th victory equaled his 2021 total and he’ll have one more chance next Saturday to make it a dozen.
Teen blaster JD Stockwell and cagey veteran Chris Davis entered Saturday’s Mini Stock feature tied atop the leader board. But when Stockwell had won his fourth feature event of the season, he moved to the top spot on the charts and will now carry a two-point advantage over Davis into Saturday’s season finale.
Cole Littlewood, not far behind Farnum’s pace, won his ninth Late Model Sportsman feature of the year Saturday, but it was Ricky Bly doing the biggest frontstretch smoke show at race’s end, his third-place run earning him the 2022 NHSTRA Late Model Sportsman Race for The Ring title.
Aliyah Tacy won Saturday’s Young Gun feature, her second victory in a row, and third this season on the high banks, and Steve Miller Sr. again shared Six Shooter victory lane with his son, Steve Miller Jr. in a repeat of their performance a night earlier at Claremont.
Former track champ Brian Robie set fast time in Modified qualifying Saturday but it was Nate Wenzel – from the pole – leading all the way in the caution-free 40-lapper to win the second race of his rookie season. Tyler Leary got up for second on lap three, with Robie taking it away on lap 23 but having to content himself with the silver medal finish 17 laps later.
With only Saturday’s season finale still ahead, Leary leads Byrne 630-622 in their dogfight for the 2022 track championship.
Cole Littlewood ran his LMS winning streak to six in a row and nine on the year after taking charge on lap ten of Saturday’s main event and never looking back. Slowed by nine cautions – two backmarkers scored yellow flag hat tricks each – there was plenty of shuffling behind the dominant winner.
Quiet but potent Craig Smith avoided much of the drama behind him to power into second, with Bly shifting into defensive mode with a half-dozen laps to go to win the NHSTRA 2022 LMS Ring over fellow Claremont Friday nighter Ben Poland.
Justin Littlewood was the night’s big loser. Entering Saturday’s 50-lapper, he trailed brother Cole by only ten points but, after being snuffed out on lap 42, lost another 20 markers in his championship bid. At press time, the Late Model Results were not official.
Gordon Farnum took the lead from Kevin McKnight on lap four of the Mini Stock feature and never looked back. Last year’s champ Louie Maher moved up to second on lap eight, and Kevin Clayton held third for the final 11 laps.
JD Stockwell passed Chris Davis for the lead on lap 15 of the Pure Stock feature and then held him in his shadow the rest of the way to claim sole possession of the top spot on the leader board entering Saturday’s season finale. Keene rookie Billie Graham was strong in third.
Aaliyah Tacy inched ahead of Hunter Duquette on lap ten of the Young Guns feature and then pulled away to win for the second week in a row. With Duquette’s ride pulling up lame on the final turn, Markus O’Neil moved up to second, and Addison Brooks was impressive in third.
Monadnock Speedway will conclude its 2022 oval track racing season next Saturday, September 17, with the running of its annual Championship Day races. All of the high-banked oval’s weekly racing series divisions will conclude their 2022 championship points seasons, with a very special 125-lap Whitcomb 5 Series NHSTRA Modified main event highlighting the day’s action.
The Whitcomb 5 125-lapper is also the final race of the five-event 2022 Whitcomb series, with its overall champion being crowned at the conclusion of Saturday’s main event. There will also be a 50-lap Enduro race at the end of Saturday’s full card of events. Post time for the season finale is 2 p.m.
MONADNOCK SPEEDWAY SEPTEMBER 10 TOP PERFORMERS
NHSTRA MODIFIED: Nate Wenzel, Brian Robie, Tyler Leary, Todd Patnode, Ben Byrne, Aaron Fellows, Andy Major, Alyssa Rivera, Joel Belanger, Cole Littlewood.
LATE MODEL SPORTSMAN 50-lap NHSTRA Race For The Ring Championship (UNOFFICIAL): Cole Littlewood, Craig Smith, Ricky Bly, Ben Poland, Cam Curtis, Kevin Vaudrien, Mark Hudson, Dan Comeau, Jeff Champagne, Nancy Muni Ruot.
MINI STOCK: Gordon Farnum, Louie Maher, Kevin Clayton, Chris Sontag, Kevin McKnight, Ricky Whipple, Tim Griffin, Tommy McGowan, Bill Chaffee, Cameron Sontag.
PURE STOCK: JD Stockwell, Chris Davis, Billie Graham, Zach Zilinski, Jim Rhodes, Eddie Petruskevicius, Matt Croteau, Teagan Edson, Chris Higbee, Ryan Lawliss
YOUNG GUN: Aaliyah Tacy, Markus O’Neil, Addison Brooks, Traver Michaud, Jaylan Harris, Hunter Duquette, Jamielynn Flannery, Emma Blake, Owen Zilinski.
SIX SHOOTER: Steve Miller Sr., Steve Miller Jr., Michael Yeaton, Garrett Barry.
Photo – Nathan Wenzel (Photo Credit – Emily Miller)
