Drivers and teams returned to Beech Ridge Motor Speedway this past Thursday for the second to last week of Thursday Night Thunder competition.
The Beetle Bugs kicked off the night with their 20-lap feature. Notably absent from the field was Ed Johnson, who did not compete due to mechanical issues that were discovered in practice. Josh Knoll took off with the early lead in the feature. Adam Warnock and Alex Parechanian made contact on lap 2 in turn 2, causing Warnock to spin as the field remained green. Parechanian headed to the pits following the incident as Warnock fell to the back of the pack.
Chris Case made his way to Darryl Quinlan’s outside on lap 6, challenging him for the runner-up spot. He finally cleared him just three laps later, then setting his sights on Josh Knoll at the front of the pack. Knoll got loose on lap 17 in turn 4, allowing Chris Case to gain some ground on the leader. He was inching in on Knoll over the last couple of laps, but Knoll was able to hold him off, scoring his first feature victory of the 2019 season. Darryl Quinlan, Derek McKeen and Gerard Cote.
With the runner-up driver in points, Alex Parechanian, having a less-than-stellar night in the feature race, Chris Case extended his points lead to 32 points and will be our 2019 Beetle Bugs champion as long as he starts the race this upcoming Thursday.
Josh Hodgdon took off with the early lead in the 25-lap Mad Bomber JV feature. The #28 of Jimmy Burnham took a spin on lap 1 in turn 1, but the field remained green. Dan Collins was on the move early in the feature, breaking the top 5 on lap 2 and advancing to fourth on lap 8. Jimmy Burnham and Justin Gailloux made contact on lap 10 in turn 3, leaving Burnham parked in the dirt in turn 3. The incident led to the first caution of the feature.
The #5 of Richard Maynard took a spin on the backstretch on the restart, but the field remained green. The leader, Josh Hodgdon, took a spin on lap 14, making hard contact with the turn 3 wall. The incident led to another yellow and sent Joey Israelson into the lead.
Tom Lovejoy, Jr. was on the move following the restart, all over Michael DeKoning for the runner-up spot. Brandon Williams had a right front tire go down on lap 15, causing him to make hard contact with Scott Eck in turn 4. The incident led to another caution and the lap count was advanced to lap 20 under yellow.
David Bouchard, Richard Maynard and Chad Moreside tangled on the backstretch following the restart, resulting in another yellow. The lap count then advanced to lap 23.
Joey Israelson and Tom Lovejoy, Jr. were head-to-head on the restart and battled it out to the finish, with Israelson beating Lovejoy to the finish by a nose. Michael DeKoning, Dan Collins and Marc Beaulieu rounded out the top five.
With his victory, Joey Israelson extended his point lead to 14 points over Cam Jones. The top five point battle still remains VERY close as Dan Collins and Michael DeKoning are tied for third, just four points behind Cam Jones. Justin Gailloux and Tom Lovejoy, Jr. are tied for fifth, just 8 points behind them. Things are bound to get wild in the final week as these drivers battle it out for a top five trophy.
Colby Meserve powered to the early lead in the 25-lap Legends feature, but Chris Burgess was on the move, stealing the lead on lap 4 with Tylar Braunschweig in tow. Young gun, Austin Teras, was on the move early, breaking the top five on lap 5. He later advanced to fourth over Colby Meserve on lap 8. The #33 of Alan Smith took a spin and came to a slow on lap 11, leading to a caution.
Austin Teras was hungry for the top spot following the restart, quickly advancing into the runner-up spot. He was unable to catch Chris Burgess, as Burgess took home another feature victory. Tylar Braunschweig, Parker Varney and Colby Meserve rounded out the top five.
Dan Schaffer jumped to the early lead in the 15-lap Street Devils feature as Rob Flaherty quickly advanced into the runner-up spot. Flaherty was all over Schaffer for the top spot on lap 4, advancing into the lead the following lap. Trevor Dore took a spin on lap 7 in turn 2, resulting in a caution.
There was hard contact between Trevor Dore and Ashley Nicholson on the backstretch following the restart, leading to another caution. There was madness on the restart as a handgul of drivers made contact, which was an incident that caused Rob Schaffer to lose his rear bumper.
Paul Goodrich came to a slow on lap 9, making the dreaded right-hand turn into the pits. Tony Gibbons and Shalene Gailloux made hard contact while battling it out for position on lap 12, which resulted in Gibbons taking over third place and later advanced into second over Todd Sargent. Nobody was any match for Rob Flaherty as he collected yet another feature victory. Tony Gibbons, Todd Sargent, Shalene Gailloux and Dan Schaffer rounded out the top five.
With his victory, Rob Flaherty extended the point lead to 6 points over Todd Sargent. Paul Goodrich is just 8 points behind Sargent, Ashley Nicholson is just four points behind him and Tony Gibbons is just 8 points behind Ashley, leaving just 26 points separating the top five drivers in points. Flaherty and Sargent are sure to go head-to-head this upcoming Thursday and it’ll be interesting seeing who ends up on top of the podium.
Jimmy Dean powered away with the early lead in the 25-lap Mad Bomber Varsity feature. Mike Sanford was on the move early, navigating from mid-pack to fourth by lap 5. David Wildes was shuffled to the outside line, losing a handful of spots on lap 5. Kris Knox was hungry for the top spot, tracking down Jimmy Dean for the lead on lap 7. He was at Dean’s door on lap 9, later advancing into the lead on lap 11. Jason Gammon was also powering through the field, breaking the top five on lap 10. Mike Sanford still wanted more, making his way to Jimmy Dean’s back bumper on lap 16, challenging him for the runner-up spot. A competition caution came out on lap 18, bringing the field back together.
Kris Knox pulled away with the lead once again on the restart. Mike Sanford kept at it with Jimmy Dean, finally advancing into the runner-up spot on lap 22. Kris Knox held off his competitors, picking up the feature victory. Mike Sanford, Tom Lovejoy, Sr., Jason Gammon and Jimmy Dean rounded out the (unofficial) top five.
Kris Knox was disqualified following post-race technical inspection and Mike Sanford was awarded with the (official) victory. Tom Lovejoy, Sr., Jason Gammon, Jimmy Dean and Betty Nelson rounded out the top five.
Johnny Wolfe dropped to fourth in the points following the race and Jason Gammon now holds the points lead, leading by 8 points over Tom Lovejoy, Sr. Mike Sanford and Johnny Wolfe linger closely behind them and Betty Nelson and Brandon Johnson are currently tied for fifth in points. Eight points isn’t a comfortable safety net, so finale week is sure to get crazy in the division.
As John Curtis pulled away with the early lead in the 25-lap Mighty Trucks feature, drivers were 5-wide for position back in the middle of the pack. There was a 3-way battle for the lead on lap 4, with Jeff Gillette powering into the lead with Will Potter and Keith Petrin in tow. Keith Petrin wanted more, advancing into the runner-up spot over Will Potter on lap 6. Scott Pingree cut a left front tire down on lap 7 and retired to the pits. After being black flagged for a fluid leak for a handful of laps, John Curtis took a spin on lap 10 in turn 2, resulting in a caution. Curtis rejoined the field following the spin and a red flag was called as race control forced Curtis down to the pits.
Jeff Gillette pulled away with the lead once again on the restart as Jared Kimball powered into the runner-up spot over Keith Petrin. Gillette took home the victory, which was his fourth feature victory of the 2019 season. Jared Kimball, Keith Petrin, Dave Lamson and Will Potter followed, rounding out the top five.
With the victory, Jeff Gillette was able to cut into Keith Petrin’s point lead slightly, as Petrin now leads by 10 points. Jared Kimball is also in the points mix, just four points behind Gillette. With just one more week remaining in the season, anything can happen points-wise in the division.
The Ladies League finished out the night with their 20-lap feature. Holly Gain took a spin on lap 1 in turn 2 as the field remained green. The incident powered former Ladies League champion, Betty Nelson, into the lead. Sara Libby and Taylor Graffam were head-to-head for the runner-up spot on lap 8, with Sara Libby finally clearing Graffam on lap 14. There was a competition caution on lap 15, bringing the field back together.
There was a 3-way battle for the lead between Betty Nelson, Sara Libby and Kaitlynn Leavitt on the restart, with Betty Nelson pulling away with the lead once again. Holly Gain advanced into fourth on the restart, recovering from her incident earlier in the race. Nobody was any match for Betty Nelson as she took home her (surprisingly) first feature victory of the 2019 season. Sara Libby, Kaitlynn Leavitt, Holly Gain and Taylor Graffam rounded out the top five.
Sara Libby’s point lead is now just 4 points over Betty Nelson. Holly Gain sits just two points behind Betty and Kaitlynn Leavitt is just four points behind her. Taylor Graffam is also still in the mix, just two points back from Kaitlynn. With just one week remaining in the season, the Ladies League points battle is one of the closest of all of the divisions. Things are sure to get crazy in the closing week of the season!
With points battles still happening across all divisions, the final week of the 2019 Thursday Thunder season is sure to be wild!
You can watch it all unfold this coming Thursday, August 29th. It is also the season’s second (and final) Autograph Night. Racing begins at 7:00 pm, adult admission is only $7 and children 12 and under get in for free.
See you there!
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