This past weekend, Oxford Plains Speedway hosted the Super Late Model division two days in a row. Nick Sweet dominated Saturday night’s action, but Dave Farrington, Jr., Joey Doiron and Curt Gerry also had an impressive outing. Saturday’s racing action was followed up by 150 laps of Pro All Star Series competition, where 31 drivers came out to play.
The day’s competition kicked off with three 15-lap qualifying heats. Logan Melcher started on the front row of the first heat, but faced troubles early as he took a spin on the initial start, resulting in an early-race caution.
Joey Doiron powered away with the lead on the restart. Jake Johnson was also on the move early, going wide on lap 4 as he took over the runner-up spot. Curt Gerry and Johnny Clark went head-to-head for third on lap 6, with Gerry taking over the spot just two laps later. He then set his sights on Jake Johnson, pulling to his door on lap 10 and taking over the spot the following lap. Nick Sweet was all over Jake Johnson for third in the closing laps of the heat, but Johnson was able to hold him off. Joey Doiron took home the heat victory, followed by Curt Gerry.
Shane Clark went around on the initial start of the second qualifying heat, but the field remained green. Rowland Robinson, Jr. and Travis Benjamin battled it out for the early lead, with Benjamin taking over on lap 4. Alan Wilson was also on the move early, making his way to the outside of Anthony Constantino for third on lap 8. He took sole possession of the spot the following lap and later made a last-lap dash for the runner-up spot with Roland Robinson, Jr., but Robinson was able to hold him off as Travis Benjamin captured the heat victory.
Scott McDaniel took off with the early lead in the third and final qualifying heat. Dave Farrington, Jr. was quickly coming through the field, knocking off Justin Larsen for the runner-up spot on lap 4. Farrington began challenging Scott McDaniel for the lead on lap 5, taking over the top spot the following lap. Farrington took home the heat victory, followed by Scott McDaniel and Ryan Robbins.
Once the field was set, Joey Doiron and Travis Benjamin squared off for the early lead in the 150-lap main feature. The two stayed deadlocked for the lead as Nick Sweet began making moves behind the leaders, breaking the top 5 on lap 9 and later joining the front pack on lap 15.
Chaos ensued on lap 25 as Dennis Spencer, Jr. took a spin on the front stretch on lap 24, resulting in the first caution of the feature. The incident was followed up by Justin Larsen taking a spin on the restart. This resulted in a chain reaction as Jake Johnson, Dennis Spencer, Jr., Dan Winter and Jeff Clark also got caught up.
The leaders went 3-wide for the top spot on the restart as 2020 Oxford 250 champion, Johnny Clark, joined the mix. Joey Doiron took over the lead as Johnny Clark filed in behind him. Travis Benjamin was at Johnny Clark’s door on lap 32, challenging him for the runner-up spot. He took over the spot the following lap and found himself at Joey Doiron’s door on lap 35, battling it out for the lead. Garrett Hall had a right front tire go down on lap 38, resulting in another caution.
Joey Doiron took off with a slight lead on the restart, but Travis Benjamin was heavy on his heels. The two battled it out for a handful of laps before Travis Benjamin powered into the lead on lap 61 as Joey Doiron and Dave Farrington, Jr. battled it out for the runner-up spot behind him. Farrington won the battle, later taking away the top spot from Travis Benjamin.
Anthony Constantino took a big spin on lap 77 in turn 3, but the field remained green. Nick Sweet was on the move in the closing laps of the race, challenging Joey Doiron for third on lap 120. Doiron briefly pulled away, but Sweet was back at his door on lap 130, hungry for a spot on the podium. Joey Pastore took a spin while in the mix with the leaders on lap 131, collecting Nick Sweet in the aftermath. The incident completely changed the game and knocked Nick Sweet out of the top ten with less than 20 laps to go.
Joey Doiron lost a handful of spots on the restart as Ben Rowe also got stoved up. Doiron quickly collected himself, powering back into the top 4 on lap 137. Farrington was off and away once again as Curt Gerry gained on Joey Doiron in the closing laps, at his door for fourth with just 3 laps to go. He continued the charge, taking the spot away from Doiron on the following lap.
Dave Farrington, Jr. scored the big victory as Johnny Clark, Trevor Sanborn (an impressive run from the back!), Curt Gerry and Joey Doiron rounded out the top five.
Dave Farrington, Jr. and the #23 team had a solid outing for both events at Oxford this past weekend, giving them momentum to keep em’ coming throughout the 2021 season.
Support your local short tracks and touring series’ by attending the next PASS SLM event on Sunday, May 16th at Lee USA Speedway. The racing action kicks off at 2:00pm.
Keep chasing the checkered & I hope to see you soon!
