Doug Coby celebrates victory in the Whelen Modified Tour Mr. Rooter 125 Wednesday at Thompson Speedway (Photo: Tim Bradbury/Getty Images for NASCAR)
THOMPSON – Even a curveball thrown at him by the racetrack wasn’t enough to keep Doug Coby from a second consecutive grand slam type result in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour action at Thompson Speedway.
Coby opened defense of his 2014 Whelen Modified Tour title with a victory in the season opening Icebreaker 150 on April 12 at Thompson.
Wednesday Coby returned to Thompson for more domination.
The Milford driver led all but one lap on the way to victory in the Whelen Modified Tour Mr. Rooter 125 Wednesday at Thompson Speedway.
Coby had one series victory in 42 starts at Thompson before this season.
“We had the same exact setup in that car that we ran the Icebreaker with, then they just tweaked little things today to make me more comfortable with what the track was giving us [in the afternoon in practice],” Coby said. “Obviously we’ve found something. I’ve never been known to be a winner at Thompson. … It always seems like I’m a third to sixth place kind of guy up here. But we found something that works for me and that’s awesome.”
Justin Bonsignore of Holtsville, N.Y. was second and Todd Szegedy of Ridgefield third.
Coby went by pole winner Woody Pitkat on the second lap and never trailed again. The race went caution free for the first 82 laps.
“The racetrack threw us all a curveball today,” Coby said. “It was lockdown tight all day [in practice] and not so much in the race. It was the freest this track has ever been that I’ve ever raced here. It was fun. I found a little line that worked for me and waited for the caution. We all had to pit. … We were running 20.2 [second laps], two seconds slower than we normally do.”
All the leaders pitted on the first caution and Coby edged Pitkat out off pit road for the restart. Bonsignore went from fourth to second on the restart, but Coby was easily able to check out over the closing laps. The second and final caution of the race flew on lap 101, but Bonsignore had no answer for Coby.
Bonsignore had finished 20th or worse in the first four events of the season coming into Wednesday.
“We just over adjusted a little bit on the pit stop a little bit tonight,” Bonsignore. “We’ll happily take second that’s for sure. We were just a little too tight at the end to run with [Coby]. He’s got this place figured out this year, kind of like we did last year.”
After coming from the rear of the field at the start, Szegedy was running 13th just ahead of Coby – and close to being put down a lap – just before the first caution flew. He came off pit road in eighth after his pit stop.
“For once, luck’s going my way,” Szegedy said. “I got lucky that caution came out. But I guarantee you this. Doug would have had a hell of a time getting by me. I wasn’t going to let him go. Luckily for us – because he was faster than us – that caution did come out. You just pray a little bit and it’s funny how things can happen. On both restarts I had were on the outside and I drove my butt off. I got used by a couple guys, I let them know I wasn’t happy about it. But this is how racing is. Guys use you up and you’ve got to let them know you’re not happy and life goes on.”
Ryan Preece of Berlin rallied from starting at the back of the field to finish seventh and keep hold of the series points lead. Pitkat, who finished fifth, sits second in the standings, five points behind Preece with 210. Coby is six points off the lead with 209.
Way to go Doug!
That was one of the worst races I have ever seen. Single file, follow the leader all the way. The only part I liked was when the 6 was put down a lap on lap 72, but he is so good he still ends up 7th. That was total domination by the 2. When that 1st caution came out on lap 82 there were only 10 or 11 cars on the lead lap… yawn.
Tough to say last night was worth $44…much better show at the bowl and stafford!
Ch ris, did you miss how the 6 got back to 7th? After the first caution the 6 got his lap back but was not making much headway to the front, the next caution 6 decides to pit when the lights were out and field was ready to go to green, then a miracle happened, the lights came back on and the field went another lap under yellow waiting for the 6 to change tires. The 6 restarted 13th with about 20 to go with help from NASCAR and Jimmy Wilson. I read complaints about the MRS and it’s leader all the time, it appears Mod Tour and it’s leader not any different, lets make the rules up as we go along! No the 6 is not that good, he had an off night that turned out okay because of the help he got from the powers that be at NASCAR! Lets hope they plan on doing that for ALL the drivers, I guess they have forgotten Preece WAS a member of the NASCAR Next Program, that ship has sailed.
This is what happens when the track is garbage and someone does their homework to figure it out. Shows a great effort in the #2 team. Congrats to Bonsignore as well. Shakin that monkey off his back.
How did post race tech go?
Anything interesting or unusual?
Darealgoodgella,
Heard that motors from the top three were taken for a inspection at the NASCAR R&D Center.
Just my thoughts… yeah, I was wondering as he went a lap down how “they” were gonna fix this. I didn’t see all of his stops, but I know there were a lot of them and it seemed strange that he had such good track position at the end. Good news is I think Coby will beat them for the championship, it’s between those two. I was being sarcastic when I said he was so good he finished 7th, it sure seemed like he must of had some help, or real good luck. He came from last to win the sunoco mod race too, not bad eh?
Hey Just my thoughts… , they only had pit road open for one lap, they need it open for at least two to allow anyone to pit. Race control clearly jumped the gun on crossing them up. Would of been pretty unfair if they opened the pits and then went right to green.
The race wasn’t all that bad. Pitkat kept Coby honest most of the way, watching the 6 and 4 work through the squirrels was interesting, the 3,44,13 put on thirty laps or more of good racing. Everyone should have had a pretty good idea going in that the 2 would be real strong. Sometimes I have to wonder what some of you are watching. There was no bs with officials and the 6. The 6 came in the first lap that the pit flag went green. The pits were closed for three laps because the safety trucks were still crossing the end of pit lane. If you were asleep and didn’t notice this ask yourself why the 6 would wait so long to pit. They had to take a wave around and were lucky to get another caution to give them an opportunity to pit. The pits opened and they came down.
Just my thoughts… they put the lights back on because they opened up the pits as the lights were going out. Miscommunication on the officials’ part.
Chris what was the guys name, can you recognize him?
WHAT???? Three motors were pulled for inspection? WOW!!!! I wonder what’s going on.
Shawn, I hope you are all over this. Pulling three motors sounds rather serious.
What cars had the motors pulled?
Chris, Yes he came from last to first in Sunoco Mod race, but don’t forget he sent two cars to the pits on double hooks to get the penalty, which made a lean field even leaner. About 10 cars left at end of the race. Preece claims he is going to bring one of the cars $500.00 to help fix the car, what about the other car involved that went off on double hook? I think he better add another zero to his 500. Adam, Let’s see if when some other driver is clearly having an off night if they get a miscommunication on officials part call, sorry, I don’t buy that one, if it was just about anyone else heading to pit road the race would have went green!
Darealgoodfella,
I was told the top three finishers after the race and that it’s just a routine deal of wanting to take a look at them with some time between events.
Sect.D what are you talking about? What guy?
They should hav taken Preece’s too after they way he dominated the other two races in this three race span.
Chris, The guy that hit you in the head and knocked all the sense out. I am willing to help you if you think you would recognize him. In one statement you complain there was only ten on the lead lap, then caution comes out and three cars take the wave including Preece. 15 laps or so later caution again, now Preece is back on the lead lap, but you can’t figure how he restarts p13 without Nascar’s help. You state you didn’t see all of his stops but you know there was a lot of them, well here is one time you didn’t miss anything even though you are convinced you did. The 6 made one stop not several, many or even two. How are “they” going to fix this and he must have had some help. Man you crack me up. How can you expect to carry any credibility with statements like these? Everything you said is again wrong. May I suggest that instead of being a fan of one and hater of another try watching the entire show as just a race fan and the bulb may finally begin to illuminate for you.
Shawn,
Could you please tell us who told you it’s just a routine deal?
Darealgoodfella,
No.
Shawn,
It wasn’t the top three finishers that had the engines pulled.
The #1, #3 and #5 finishers had the engines yanked. A most interesting selection.
And this is not routine.
Darealgoodfella,
I heard that one too yes, from another official. That they wanted two spec motors and a built motor.
$44 bucks to get in ,we got screwed out of about $40 the show sucked
LM,
The 6 is so glad they finished outside the top 5, or their engine would probably be on the way to NC right now. Along with a couple other cars.
Gee, glad the 2 had such a hard time dealing with the track, or it would have lapped the whole field, maybe more than once. Those SPEC motors are so good they can deal with crazy track conditions.
Chis D., I concur with your view. The cars strung out pretty quick and there was next to no racing most of the 48 minutes and 48 seconds. The restarts were about the only thing close to excitement. There may have been a cluster of cars running like positions 8-13 for a while that had some hope, but otherwise it was train watching. How the 6 got up there is sort of a mystery.
You people up here are unbelievable… There is an epidemic of race tracks closing and car counts dwindling across the United States because of escalating costs, and you guys sit here and complain about the most ridiculous stuff. There was outstanding action through the whole field. Woody stayed with Coby real well, even ran him down after the idiot in the 46 that doesn’t even belong in an SK Light almost wrecked daddy’s silver spoon princess trying to lap her with the leaders coming causing Woody to have to really get on the brakes and lose a lot of ground.
Enjoy what you have while it’s still here. Circle track is dying a slow and painful death across this entire country.
darealdumbfella, another one with no credibility. How the 6 got there is sort of a mystery? Three people have already explained it and its still a mystery to you. Here we go nice and slow for you, ten cars on the lead lap, three take a wave and then pit. That means they will restart 11th,12th or 13th. Where is the freak’n mystery? Now the 6 has tires maybe 15 laps fresher and he drove it into 1 very deep on the bottom lap after lap using some others up a bit on the way. I guess I never realized this sport was too complicated for some of you to grasp. The next time your at the races ask someone to spin you 180 degrees because you must have been watching the cars in the parking lot last night. Luckily we have a couple weeks til the next statistical advance article comes out and you do four days of crying carb,carb,carb.
Glad I stayed home and watched from the computer because it sounds like a stink show .
Sect. 8, we get it, you’re a big fan of the 6.
NASCAR doesn’t want Coby to win the title. Its that simple. They black flag Doug at Stafford and send him not to the last car on the lead lap, but the last car in line with 7 laps to go. Then the 6 car gets stuck on pit road and they throw a caution so he wont lose ANOTHER lap! NASCAR wants their golden child Generation Next driver to win, that simple. Its a JOKE! Doug was lapping the 4 car and he finishes 3rd and they are talking about how good they ran!? Come on! If you weren’t working on the 2, 88 or 15 car go back to work cause you got SPANKED!
Just wondering, is Sect.D Row 25 also known as the cow bell ringer section?
PLEASE, owner of the 64 get a new driver. That kid sucks.
There is just no parity anymore. Just as at Stafford where 4 SPEC motors checked out and left the field behind. The reason there is freight train running is because there is no parity. The broad range in performance of the SPEC motor cars is damning. There is no way that all that expertise can miss a chassis set up like that. That is one thing all those teams are very good at and have control over. If the SPEC engines were all equal, AS THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO BE, the racing should be intense, almost like pack racing. But it just isn’t happening.
Sect.D, I don’t know what your problem is with me but I have a feeling it goes back to the Tommy Barrett Jr. arrest and the fact I was outspoken about it. You apparently think you are the only one who is allowed an opinion on a particular subject. You also think you are an expert who knows everthing about everything and anyone who disagrees with you is beneath you. The reason I didn’t see Preece’s stops is because I was in the infield and couldn’t see every stop by every car. If you thought that was a good race, more power to ya…I think the race sucked, sometimes that happens. And by the way, I have been hearing about the impending demise of the mod tour since 1985. And look, it’s still here. If you don’t want to believe certain teams get some help when they need it, then good for
you. And Dingus, if you really believe that was a good race, with outstanding action through the whole field, maybe you should be the WMT publicist. It ‘s fine for you to criticise the 46 and the 01, yet you are the one so worried there won’t be enough cars. And finally Sect. D, your resorting to name calling shows exactly what type of person you really are. But don’t worry cuz you have lots of credibility.
Knuckles, the kid is a good driver and just had no luck this year. Several issues at Thompson and none of them where due to lack of effort on anyone’s part.
Glad I stayed home too… I’m still protesting the 10% ticket tax that we had stuck on us without any protest from the racetracks!
There’s just no parity anymore. The SPEC motor car, even virgin, has significant advantages over the built motor. But of course, teams are going turn deaf ears and blind eyes to whatever the their builder does to get a little more out of it. There is no parity even amongst the SPEC engine cars. So until all the SPEC engines go through several refreshes and get a little more massaged every time, there will be freight train events, with the same cars checking out, maybe joined by the latest to get their SPEC motor goosed.
Funny how a lot of you complain on here and apparently are very affiliated with teams. Why don’t you stand behind your words with your real name and I will show mine. I’ve always wanted to know who “darealgoodfella” is. I’m guessing your involved in the plainville area, associated with canal st.
For those on the spec motors. cars rolling through the corner make motors look good. If you are stopping in the corner, no motor will ever look good
Showyourself,
I love Plainville!!!
But I don’t care who you are.
In the know: Sorry I can’t buy that one at all. Good driver, yeah ok. 26,26,31,24,26 place finishes. Wreck in the wall in qualifying. another wreck in another race. Didn’t do squat on the MRS. Yeah I know he had a win, big deal. I predicted this at the pre-season and was beat up here by a few people. I stand by my words. With a lot of good shoes sitting on the sides they pick him??? Apparently the owner of the 64 doesn’t care about running up front or the money needed to fix the car after he wrecks it.
And I don’t get Garbarinos argument about the whole spec motor issue. Yes it is clear they have an advantage. So if you wanna win you go buy one and save yourself some money in the meantime. Be damned your loyalty to Hutter. I would wanna win, period.
knuckles mahoney says: “And I don’t get Garbarinos argument about the whole spec motor issue. Yes it is clear they have an advantage. So if you wanna win you go buy one and save yourself some money in the meantime. Be damned your loyalty to Hutter. I would wanna win, period.”
And when NASCAR changes the rules again, go buy it, and again, and again, and again. You don’t get it. The joke is that the owner’s can’t afford NASCAR’s cost improvements. Unfortunately, it’s not a joke!
The SPEC engine was and still is supposed to be a low cost engine option to get all those mothballed cars back on the track, and get car counts up. It has turned into the high performance engine option that you must have if you want a chance to win. The program was supposed to have performance parity with the built engines.
And in case you missed it, the SPEC might have a slightly lower purchase price, the cost to maintain it is higher.
Do you understand that this SPEC engine can only be purchased from the NASCAR appointed supplier and all parts must be bought from the NASCAR approved supplier, and critical machining can only be done by the NASCAR approved supplier. That supplier is Robert Yates Racing Engines.
There is nothing fancy about the SPEC engine, and it should be nothing more than a common crate motor that should cost about ¼ to a ⅓ of what NASCAR is charging for it. And then all the massaging that is going on to squeeze out a few more ponies. Yep, the built motor is turning into the low cost engine option.
A couple years ago there was all sorts of talk about the cost of running the Tour, so NASCAR came up with this engine. doh?
Shawn,
Any idea when NASCAR will get around to test/disassemble/inspect those engines?
Can you get any more info from NASCAR as to what they plan to do and when we can expect some sort of results?
Darealgoodfella,
I don’t think so. They’re typically not very forthcoming publicly with results from situations like this. I have a feeling though that they’ve already looked at what they want to look at with the pieces they took.
Shawn,
Give Tony Glover a call.
Shawn ,
Give President Obama a call after you talk to Tony Glover
Just my thoughts …
The fact Ryan chalked up to taking Thibeault out and offering $500 to help some of the repairs. Most racers would never do that. He had the heart to do that because he felt bad. Sometimes racing happens so fast your not even sure what happened. Also Ryan knows Thibeault is just him and his wife funding the racecar, and would like to see the driver get back. Puleo will have no problem getting back to the track with Mr. rooter as the car owner and sponsor. :-0
Knuckles, The kid has finished 5th at Seekonk and 6th at Monadnock the last 2 weeks. Qualifying wreck wasn’t his fault and can’t help when others squeeze you into the wall. Kid has alot of talent and now just needs some luck on his side.
It is my understanding that all three of the teams that had their engines taken to NASCAR R/D in NC all have the engines back in their own race shops.
Concerned Fan and “In the know”… you two are in the wrong thread.
smh
Mod Tour Fan, any idea when we’ll see a release with all the results?
darealgoodfella, No I do not have any details on that, I would assume on Tuesday when they make the race finish official you will at least know if anything was wrong with the 3 engines that the took. All I know is they are no longer in NC, and should be back in their race shops by now.
Well the race aired. I hope that was enough for the three guys commenting above that can’t figure out how it happened. There is a RE-air at 11pm if it is all still somehow a mystery. I’m certain it is.
I bet the race was just as lousy on tv as it was in person. I hope you enjoyed watching it.
Chris D, is there anything you don’t whine and complain about? With as miserable as you come across on here, I feel terrible for whoever has to live with you.
Chris D. , You did not watch the telecast of the race huh? Why am I not surprised you would pass on the opportunity to educate yourself? It seems you are more then content to go on making uninformed comments filled with speculation, innuendo and imaginary happenings. With each posting you fortify your stranglehold on the title of “Group Fool” amongst commenters.
Dear Mr. Dingus. Aren’t you the one who said in the Woody Pitkat suspended thread that Stafford Speedway is a three ring circus and that you wouldn’t piss on it if it were on fire? I guess coming from an expert on everything such as yourself that is considered constructive criticism and not whining, complaining negativity. Enjoy those adult beverages at the races tonight…and you can piss in the bathroom and let the fire department handle the rest. If I bring over a couple of cases of Budweiser, can I watch the re-air of the Thompson Tour race with you? It was such a good race I want to watch it over and over again. It will be a pleasure to watch it with a smart, fun guy like you who never complains or says anything negative. I like you because you are not a hypocrite.
Sorry Sect.d, didn’t mean to upset you, golly gee, what was I thinking? I promise to like the next crappy tour race…scouts’ honor. And if I do like it I promise to be a good commenter like you. LOL, no, just kidding big guy, the real reason I didn’t watch the telecast is I got drunk and fell asleep. Did Coby win it again?
Ya know Sect,D, since you have the most good comments and you are the best commenter all time, I guess that makes you the Ted Christopher of commenters! I’ll get you a Ted Christopher T-shirt so everyone will know you are Da Champ!
Chris D., Sect D, Row 25 is a Preece fan, a SPEC motor car. He does not want anything to pose threat to the disparity in parity that the 6 car has as a result of the SPEC motor. He’s simply being a fan.
I’m sitting in that section/row now… He’s right, you can see everything perfectly from here.
LOL!!!
You are at the wrong track Ace. This article is about a race at Thompson. You wouldn’t have seen a damn thing from Sect. D Row25.
Sect.D, do you ever get it?