NHMS Wreck Forces Ted Christopher To New Mod Tour Team At Stafford And Knocks Keith Rocco Out

A last lap wreck during the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour F.W. Webb 100 Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway will send a ripple effect through the division’s lineup this coming weekend at Stafford Motor Speedway and for the season finale at Thompson International Speedway.

Ted Christopher (3) hits the wall on the final lap Saturday at NHMS (Getty Images for NASCAR)

Boehler Racing Enterprises president Mike Boehler confirmed Monday that the team will not be able to field their primary car for Ted Christopher for this weekend’s Whelen Modified Tour CarQuest Fall Final at Stafford.

Boehler said the team was also forced to scrap plans to field Keith Rocco in a backup car at Stafford and in the season finale for the division on Oct. 14 at Thompson.

Christopher, of Plainville, will drive a Wayne Anderson provided car this weekend in the Modified Tour event at Stafford. Christopher drove for Anderson in weekly events this year at Riverhead (N.Y.) Raceway.

The Boehler Racing Enterprises primary car was destroyed on the last lap of the F.W. Webb 100 when Christopher was hit from behind by Donny Lia in a battle for second place. After the contact from Lia, Christopher’s car jerked hard into the outside wall at and then came back across the track for a nearly equally massive hit against the inside wall.

The BRE backup car, which the team had planned to field for Rocco, was still in the process of being repaired from an August wreck when Steve Masse was filling in for the team for a race at Stafford.

“We’re beat up pretty bad,” Boehler said. “We were hoping that if we came out of Loudon OK we’d be good with a car for Teddy and then we were trying to put something together for a second car for Keith to run for the Rookie of the Year deal because he needed two more races.

“Now pretty much nothing is going to happen. Just one of those circumstances. Wrong place, wrong time and some bad luck. We’re in pretty tough shape and pretty beat up, but we’ll try and piece things back together, just not sure when we’ll do that. Luckily Wayne is going to help so we can at least finish out the year.”

Christopher was making his fourth start of the season with the BRE team Saturday at NHMS. Rocco, of Wallingford, started the season as the team’s primary driver before sustaining a dislocated left wrist in an SK Modified practice crash in late July at Thompson. BRE officials had decided that Christopher would finish the season as the team’s primary driver.

Christopher ran the Sept. 15 Modified Tour event at Riverhead in an Anderson owned car renumbered to the BRE No. 3 with BRE listed as the owner of record for the event. It’s expected that the same thing will happen this weekend at Stafford. Boehler said he’s unclear whether the team will have their primary car ready for a possible return at the season finale at Thompson.

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