Keith Rocco
WATERFORD – There was a time a few weeks ago when some around the Waterford Speedbowl were wondering if Keith Rocco could win every Late Model event at the track this season.
Rocco won the first five Late Model events of the season. Bruce Thomas Jr. snapped that streak on May 17. Then it was Vin Esposito moving to victory lane in the division the next week, followed by Jason Palmer winning the last two races.
Saturday Rocco, of Wallingford, climbed back in his throne.
Rocco inherited the lead on a restart with 14 laps remaining and then went unchallenged the rest of the way to win the 30-lap Late Model feature.
Palmer, of Berlin, was second, and Jeff Smith of Old Lyme third.
Rocco was running second to Bruce Thomas Jr. on the restart with 14 laps remaining when he avoided getting caught up in a frontstrech mess started because Thomas had a tire going flat coming to the green flag.
“He had me pretty high there,” Rocco said. “I don’t think he meant to do it. I gathered it back up and luckily the caution came out.”
A wreck at Thompson Speedway on May 29 cost Rocco the car that had won the first five events at the Speedbowl. On May 31 Rocco drove a borrowed car from Chris Garside to a second place finish and on June 7 he raced a Scott Fearn owned backup to a third place.
“We cut and moved a lot of points last night in this car,” Rocco said. “Endless hours of welding and grinding and cutting to get this car like the other one. I think this backup car is pretty good now.”
Here we go again! Now he has TWO cars that can dominate the field and destroys the competition. Read the article though it sounds like he spent Friday night working on the car when Stafford rained out… Hum, interesting idea.
Let’s here it all you haters why that is cheating and unfair!
Just wait till he gets the Crazyhorse back… The haterade will be flowing like a river to the masses! I love how angry and jealous so many keyboard heroes get over one man’s hard work and success… Maybe if they applied themselves to more than complaining on a website, they could have similar success in whatever they do in life…
Brue Thomas has a flat??? I was sitting in the fourt turn and no flat, jus
All Bruce tried to do was to fake the restart and catch Rocco, in his attaempt he caused the wreck of four cars and all the speakers can just say what a issue Bruce had…….
Doesn’t have to look flat, to be flat. If he got a small puncture with just a small leak instead of a blowout, that tire could have very easily been way down on air and when he hit the gas to go, the car will jump sideways just as it did because only 1 tire is really trying to grip and the other is either spinning on the rim from being low, or spinning in general.