Statistical Advance: Whelen Modified Tour Eastern Propane & Oil 100 At NHMS

(Press Release from NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)

Ted Christopher (Photo: Michael Ivins/NASCAR)

The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will continue the 2017 season on Saturday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway with the running of the Eastern Propane & Oil 100. Below is a statistical look at the race, along with some notes on select participants:

Eastern Propane & Oil 100 Race Setup
• The 100 lap race on Saturday marks the first of two appearances at NHMS this season. The second race will be on September 23.
• Timmy Solomito, who is the most recent series winner, comes into the race with a 13-point lead in the point standings over Rowan Pennink.
• Ryan Preece and Timmy Solomito are the only multi-time winners thus far this season. Solomito has three and Preece has two. Rowan Pennink also scored a win.

History at New Hampshire Motor Speedway

• The track opened in 1990 on the site of the old Briar Motorsports Park road course and immediately became New England’s largest sports facility of any kind. Measuring 1.058 miles in length, it is the largest speedway in the region, and with seating for nearly 100,00 people, it has the largest capacity of any venue.
• Tommy Ellis won the first NASCAR-sanctioned race held at New Hampshire, winning a 300-lap combination event involving both the NASCAR XFINITY Series and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East.
• NHMS has hosted 65 previous NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events. The track hosts Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series races each year as well as NASCAR XFINITY Series events.

Notebook
• Mike McLaughlin scored the victory in the first ever Whelen Modified Tour race at NHMS in 1990.
• There have been 21 different winners at NHMS, led by Mike Stefanik who has eight career Modified wins at the track.
• There have been 26 different pole winners at NHMS, led by Jan Leaty with six.
• NHMS has been known for producing some of the closest finishes in series history. Last season, Doug Coby beat Donny Lia to the line by just 0.037 seconds. In 2008, Chuck Hossfeld beat Ted Christopher by just 0.001 seconds at the finish.

NHMS Data
Race: #7 of 16 overall
Race Date: Saturday, July 14 at 2 p.m.
Track Layout: 1.058-mile slightly banked asphalt oval
Race Length: 100 laps (105.8 miles)

Qualifying/Race Data
2016 Winner: Doug Coby
2016 Pole Sitter: Ron Silk
1-lap Qualifying Record: 132.743 mph (Tony Hirschman, July 2001)
100-lap Race Record: 112.987 mph (Todd Szegedy, July 2011)

Active Wins Leader at New Hampshire

Wins
1. Ted Christopher … 5
2. Doug Coby … 4
Todd Szegedy … 4

Poles
1. Ryan Newman … 5
2. Ted Christopher … 5
3. Doug Coby… 4

Laps Led
1. Ted Christopher … 851
2. Ron Silk … 320
3. Todd Szegedy … 277

Top Fives
1. Ted Christopher … 21
2. Todd Szegedy … 13
3. Ron Silk … 13

Top 10s
1. Ted Christopher … 29
2. Todd Szegedy … 18
3. Ron Silk … 17

Starts
1. Jamie Tomaino … 65
2. Wade Cole … 58
3. Ted Christopher … 53

Selected Driver Notes

Justin Bonsignore (No. 51 Phoenix Communications Chevrolet)
• Enters NHMS fourth in the championship standings, but is still searching his first victory of the season.
• In six races this season, Bonsignore has finished inside the top 10 five times and also finished inside the top five twice.
• Has 111 career series starts, with 12 wins, 50 top fives and 70 top 10s.
• Has one win, four top fives and six top 10s in 15 career New Hampshire starts.
• Has finished inside the top 10 in his last three NHMS starts, including a victory last fall.

Doug Coby (No. 2 Mayhew Tools Chevrolet)
• The four-time Whelen Modified Tour champion enters New Hampshire sixth in the championship standings, 54 from the top.
• Is the defending winner of the Nor’easter 100 and also finished third there in the September event last season.
• in 27 career NHMS starts, Coby has four wins, 11 top fives and 16 top 10s, along with four Coors Light Pole Awards.
• Has failed to finish five races at NHMS, but has finished inside the top three in five of his last six Loudon starts.

Chase Dowling (No. 15 15-40 Connection Chevrolet)
• Has run three races this season with a best finish of third in the Spring Sizzler at Stafford.
• in 35 career Whelen Modified Tour starts, Dowling has five top five and 16 top 10 finishes.
• At New Hampshire, Dowling has finished inside the top 11 in all four of his career starts at the ‘Magic Mile’.
• Last season, Dowling finished 11th in both races at NHMS.

Eric Goodale (No. 58 GAF Roofing Chevrolet)
• Enters NHMS third in the championship standings, just 29 points from the lead.
• Has two wins, 18 top fives, and 59 top 10s in 124 career Whelen Modified Tour starts.
• In 17 NHMS starts, Goodale has failed to finish inside the top five, but has six career top-10 runs.
• In six races this season, Goodale has five top 10 finishes, along with three top fives. His best finish is second at Langley.

Ryan Newman (No. 77 Curb Records Chevrolet )
• The Monster Energy Cup Series driver has one victory this season at Phoenix and is in position to make the playoffs.
• Won the inaugural NASCAR Whelen All-Star Modified Shootout at New Hampshire in 2014.
• Has five career poles at New Hampshire, along with two victories in 16 career starts.
• In 23 career Whelen Modified Tour starts, Newman has four wins, 13 top fives and 14 top 10s.

Rowan Pennink (No. 3 Cape Cod Copper/USNE/Logic Automation Chevrolet)
• Enters NHMS second in the point standings just 13 points from the lead.
• Has one win this season (Thompson), along with six top 10 finishes in the six races.
• In 21 career NHMS starts, Pennink has four top fives and six top 10s.
• His most recent top-10 finish at NHMS came in 2014.

Ryan Preece (No. 6 Simoniz Wax Chevrolet)
• The 2013 NWMT champion is eighth in points, despite missing a race, thanks to two wins.
• In addition to his wins at Stafford and Thompson, he has two other top five finishes in three races.
• Has 17 wins and 62 tiop 5s in 136 NWMT starts, and three wins and 10 top fives in 16 NWSMT starts.
• Has one pole, five top fives and 10 top 10s in 20 starts at NHMS with a best finish of third (four times).
• Will also compete in the NASCAR XFINITY Series race at NHMS for JGR.

Andy Seuss (No. 11 Rockingham Boat Chevrolet)
• Is 20th in points with one top five and one top 10 in four races.
• The two-time NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour champion had 22 wins and 13 poles in 115 NWSMT starts.
• In 16 career NHMS starts, Seuss has a top five and four top 10s.
• Will also make his NASCAR K&N Pro Series East debut Saturday at NHMS.

Timmy Solomito (No. 16 Starrett Tools Ford)
• Leads the Whelen Modified Tour point standings by 13 points entering NHMS, after winning the most recent event at Riverhead on June 24.
• Solomito has three wins this season, along with two Coors Light Pole Awards.
• Last season, Solomito finished ninth in the fall race at NHMS, which was his best career finish at the track. He has just one top 10 in six career starts.
• Although he has only led one career lap at NHMS, the Starrett Tools driver has led 590 laps so far this season.

Todd Szegedy (No. 85 Stuart’s Automotive/J&R Precast Chevrolet)
• Enters NHMS 18th in the point standings after running five of six races to this point.
• In 210 career Whelen Modified Tour starts, Szegedy has 19 career wins, along with 86 top five finishes.
• In 28 NHMS starts, Szegedy has four wins, 13 top fives and 19 top 10s.
• His most recent win came at NHMS in 2015 driving for Bob Garbarino.

Jamie Tomaino (No. 99 Dunleavy Truck Repair/Atlantic Sprinkler Chevrolet)
• Will compete in just his second race of the season at NHMS, with the only other coming at Myrtle Beach.
• In 615 career Whelen Modified Tour starts, Tomaino has three cars victories.
• In 65 career NHMS starts, Tomaino has one top five and 12 top 10 finishes.
• Only driver in Whelen Modified Tour history to have more than 600 starts in the series.

Max Zachem (No. 20 MPZ Motorsports/Lu Mac’s Chevrolet)
• Enters NHMS fifth in the championship standings 43 points from the lead.
• In 41 career Whelen Modified Tour starts, Zachem has six top fives and 19 top 10s.
• This season, the Preston, Conn. driver has five top 10s and three top fives in six races.
• In four career NHMS starts, Zachem has one top-10 finish, which came last September.

Up To Speed

• This is the 33rd season of NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour action. The first race was in 1985 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.
• The 2017 schedule includes 16 points races at nine different tracks, across seven different states. It also includes two non-points events at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway.
• Timmy Solomito won the most recent series event at Riverhead Raceway on June 24.
• Following the Eastern Propane & Oil 100, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour returns to Stafford Motor Speedway on Friday, August 4.

Comments

  1. I just hope that the sticky agent that there putting down in the upper grove in the turns doesn’t mess up the modified race. great field of cars with about half that can win. Only two top guys missing would be Matt hirshman and Jon mckenny.

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