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(Press Release from Granite State Pro Stock Series)
Derek Griffith celebrates victory in Saturday’s Granite State Pro Stock series race at Star Speedway in Epping, N.H. (Photo: Granite State Pro Stock Series/Remember When Photography)
EPPING, NH – Derek Griffith fended off two late restarts to, and a hard charge by Mike Parks, to pick up his third victory of the season, in the Star 100 at Star Speedway.
Griffith shot out to the lead early, with Matt Frahm in tow. Frahm seemed to be the only car that could give Griffith a run for his money early, but his Alphacon/Lambert Roofing automobile shut down on lap 45, forcing the Hampstead, NH driver to retire from the race.
Griffith would continue his torrid pace, opening up a straightaway advantage over Mike Parks, who inherited second place after Frahm’s misfortune. Griffith cut through the field, putting all but four cars a lap down, but his lead would be erased by a caution, brought out by an incident between Jeremy Davis and Cory Casagrande. Griffith would jump ahead on the restart, leaving Parks in second, while a battle was brewing between Dillon Moltz and Joey Squeglia, Jr. Both drivers had fought their way through the field, and both were hungry for the victory, as the battle intensified. A spin on lap 98, setting up a green-white-checker, would see Griffith and Parks again on the front row, with Moltz and Squeglia behind the pair. Parks would have the advantage on the restart in turns one and two, and Moltz thought about taking the duo three-wide into turn three, but Griffith was too strong, and motored away to victory.
With the Star 100 being Griffith’s third victory of the season, the youngster is still quick to put the credit on other people, saying “Louie has really worked on me as a driver, and us as a team. Everything all together is finally mashing into one. I’m just happy to be able to finally win some races.”
Dillon Moltz would work around Mike Parks to grab the second position. On the closing laps, Moltz said “It was good, hard racing with me and Mike at the end. I know it was an awesome show for the fans.”
On the three-wide move, Moltz knew it was not the right time, saying “I was three-wide going down the backstretch on that last restart with Derek [Griffith] and Mike [Parks], but I saw it going bad, and I’m not in the points, and they are, so I’d hate to be the guy who takes the point leader out. That’s just not me.”
Parks would settle for third on the day, and talked about the final restart, saying “It was a win or third place deal, and we finished third. Derek was the class of the field, tonight. We had a good car, and everyone ran a good race.”
Babe Branscombe, who was a recipient of the lucky dog on a late-race restart, overtook Squeglia, Jr. for the fourth spot, with Squeglia, Jr. finishing fifth. Larry Gelinas, the last car on the lead lap, finished sixth, with Josh King, Jeremy Davis, Barry Gray, and Jeremy Harclerode, who never stopped after a lap one spin, completed the top ten. Griffith and Parks were victorious in their respective qualifying races.
The Granite State Pro Stock Series has a quick turn-around, as the tour heads to the newly-renovated Speedway 51 (NH), for the Twisted Tea Firecracker 151, July 4. For more information on the Granite State Pro Stock Series, visit www.gspss.net.
STAR 100
OFFICIAL FINISH
Star Speedway
6/27/15
Pos (Start) Driver Hometown
1. (1) Derek Griffith Hudson, NH
2. (8) Dillon Moltz Waterford, CT
3. (2) Mike Parks Walpole, NH
4. (6) Babe Branscombe Nottingham, NH
5. (10) Joey Squeglia, Jr. Derry, NH
6. (5) Larry Gelinas Buxton, ME
7. (7) Josh King Vernon, VT
8. (11) Jeremy Davis Tamworth, NH
9. (12) Barry Gray Belchertown, MA
10. (3) Jeremy Harclerode Newmarket, NH
11. (9) Cory Casagrande Stafford Springs, CT
12. (13) Nick Boivin Belchertown, MA
13. (15) John Salemi Nashua, NH
14. (14) Billy Joerres Somerset, MA
15. (4) Matt Frahm Hampstead, NH
CONTINGENCY AWARDS
AR BODIES (Hard Luck) 14M – Matt Frahm
BOND AUTO PARTS (Last Car on Lead Lap) 37ME – Larry Gelinas
BOND AUTO PARTS (Halfway Leader) 12 – Derek Griffith
DRACO SPRINGS (Most Positions Gained) 5 – Dillon Moltz
FIVE STAR AUTO BODIES (5th Place) 03 – Joey Squeglia, Jr.
MACLELLAN METAL FINISHING (Heat 1 Winner) 66 – Mike Parks
MACLELLAN METAL FINISHING (Heat 2 Winner) 12 – Derek Griffith
SEYMOUR PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS (Random) 37ME – Larry Gelinas
RB PERFORMANCE (3rd Place) 66 – Mike Parks
RB PERFORMANCE (7th Place) 21 – Josh King
SHERWOOD WHEELS (Most Laps Led) 12 – Derek Griffith
SUNOCO RACE FUELS (Heat 1 Winner) 66 – Mike Parks
SUNOCO RACE FUELS (Heat 2 Winner) 12 – Derek Griffith
VDL FUEL SYSTEMS (5th Place) 03 – Joey Squeglia, Jr.
POWERTRAIN TECHNOLOGY (4th Place) 38 – Babe Branscombe
COIL-OVER COMMANDER (Feature Winner) 12 – Derek Griffith
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