Pit Box: Patrick Emerling, Matt Hirschman And Others To Settle Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup At Monadnock

RaceDayCT Insider Page Exclusive: NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Winchester Fair Entry List

(Press Release from NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will make its third and final stop at Monadnock Speedway this season with Saturday night’s running of the Winchester Fair presented by USNE.

Having been a part of the Modified Tour schedule for different stretches in the 1980s and 2010s, Monadnock became a staple of the series during the 2020s. The 2024 season marks the first time the facility has three races on the calendar after previously hosting two in 2023.

As part of the track’s increased number of events, JDV Productions founder and Monadnock track promoter Josh Vanada moved the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup to the facility. More than $20,000 in bonus money has been available to Modified Tour drivers at Monadnock this year, with $6,000 being distributed to the top three in points.

With one race remaining, the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup championship is still up for grabs. The top seven in the point standings are separated by single digits, which primarily consists of seasoned Modified competitors looking for crucial momentum to close out 2024.

Below is everything to know ahead of the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup finale.

Winchester Fair presented by USNE

Although he trails Justin Bonsignore and Ron Silk in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship standings, Patrick Emerling sits atop the Whelen Granite State Short Track cup points by a narrow margin.

A two-time winner on the Modified Tour this year, consecutive third-place finishes at the prior Monadnock Speedway events enabled Emerling to secure the points lead in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup. Those performances are Emerling’s best across 10 career starts at Monadnock.

Emerling will have to fend off several other talented drivers to close out the Whelen Granite State Short Track cup title. This includes Matt Hirschman, who only trails Emerling by three points and is still searching for his first Modified Tour victory at Monadnock despite never finishing outside the top 10 at the New Hampshire track.

Silk (-4) and Bonsignore (-8) also remain within striking distance of Emerling’s advantage. Silk himself has never visited Monadnock’s Victory Lane, but Bonsignore boasts the best track record of any Modified Tour competitor at the complex with five victories on his resume.

A potential underdog contender for the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup is Trevor Catalano, who picked up his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory during the most recent trip to Monadnock. The triumph put Catalano nine points back from Emerling, but he has not recorded another top-five since then.

Austin Beers (-6) and Craig Lutz (-8) are also in contention for the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup title. They will be joined in the field by Jon McKennedy, Woody Pitkat, Stephen Kopcik, Anthony Nocella and Matt Kimball, among others.

The complete entry list for the Winchester Fair presented by USNE will be released later this week.

RACING REFERENCE:

• Previous NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races at Monadnock
• NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour drivers at Monadnock

RACE FACTS

SCHEDULE: Saturday, September 21… Final practice from 1:15 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 4:15 p.m. ET … Winchester Fair presented by USNE at 6 p.m. ET (FloRacing).

RE-DRAW PROCEDURE: The fastest qualifier will draw a pill to determine the number of drivers that will re-draw for their starting positions: 4, 6, 8 or 10 positions will re-draw. Once the fastest qualifier draws the initial pill, NASCAR will have the various buckets ready to immediately start the re-draw procedure. Drivers will re-draw in their qualifying order after qualifying has been completed (1 through 10, or however many are applicable). The pole position and/or any bonus point(s), if applicable, will be awarded to the fastest qualifier and will be the pole of record.

QUALIFYING: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the 2^nd Annual Winchester Fair presented by USNE Power is limited to 28 starters including Provisional Positions.

TIRE ALLOTMENT: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is nine (9) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track andscanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event. The tire change rule is one (1) tire per caution.