Six-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion Doug Coby will be extending his Modified racing season in Connecticut beyond this weekend’s Sunoco World Series at Thompson Speedway.
Coby announced Thursday morning that he will drive in the Inaugural Tri-Track Open Modified Series CBYD Modified Classic 81 at Stafford Speedway on Oct. 24.
Coby will drive for longtime Modified team owner Gary Casella in the event.
“I’ve been texting Gary for years,” Coby told RaceDayCT. “Back to when Rowan [Pennink] was driving the car, I was always like “Hey, when do I get to drive it?’” … We had talked about doing some other stuff that just didn’t work out. But it was just a lot of joking. So then he has Matt [Swanson] and Ronnie [Williams] driving [for other teams at Stafford], so I was like ‘You know what, put up or shut up.’ And here we are.”
Coby won Whelen Modified Tour titles in 2012, ’14, ’15, ’16, ’17 and ’19. He will complete his first season as an owner/driver on the Whelen Modified Tour on Sunday at Thompson with the running of the Sunoco World Series 150.
Coby goes into the season ending Whelen Modified Tour event second in the series standings, 27 points behind 2018 series champion Justin Bonsignore.
Coby has one win, six top-five’s, eight top-10’s and one pole in eight Whelen Modified Tour events this season. Bonsignore has three wins, eight top-five’s and two poles in 2020 Whelen Modified Tour action.
Editor’s note: Late Thursday Justin Bonsignore confirmed that he will race as a teammate to Coby in the Casella stable in the event at Stafford.
SIGNED UP
Tour Mod/MRS rules
Hinckley 06, Mertz/ Pitkat 6, Izzo 13, Medeiros 50, Horn/Silk 50s, Hirschman 60, Kochenash 66, Savary 99, Robie 25NH, , Doucette 55, Zachem/Sechrist 23, Casella/Coby 25, Paige/Dowling 00, DiMatteo 176, McDermitt 8, McKennedy 21, Kochenash 66, Alexander 76
Stafford Home Boys
Cipriano 1, Galko 3, Vasser 11, Moeller 35, Rufrano 48, Williams/Skowyra 50, Rocco 57,
NWMT cars/teams
Swanson/ BRE 3, Carroll 25, Lutz 46, Goodale 58, Pasteryak 75, Sutcliffe 78.
Wild Cards
Anderson/Myers 11nc, Tommy Membrino 00, Barney 14, Horn/Korner 50h
POTENTIAL ADDITIONS
Likely
Owen 81, Gallup 4, Gervais 33, Etheridge 34,
Possible
Willis 83, Kopcik 179, Kopec M6, Flannery 25ct, Sapienza 36, Jankowiak 12, Barrett 9/5, Sesely 27, Hersey 88, Mucciaccaro 47, Rameau 06, Sontag 13, Nocella 82/92, Vigeant 7, Narducci 07, O’Connell 0,
Long Shot
Wylie 14, Kimball 50k, Solomito 66, The Catalano’s.
Really long shot.
Any SK that doesn’t want to see season end and takes a shot with a four barrel.
It’s around 34, over two weeks away and a lot of highly probable teams still not signed up.
Cassella’s 25 can compete on any track and Coby is the ideal choice sans Williams and Swanson.
Phase 3 today. Infections and hospitalization on the rise but not unexpectedly so fingers crossed.
Are we there yet? Is this field shaping up to be the something different many had hoped for?
So the usual TT guys with the usual 25 car (with a different driver) plus some Stafford regulars. No surprises yet.
Hope he finishes in front of Williams and Swanson , seems like they dump Gary when there other teams decide to run and Cassella has to find someone else , probably the agreement they had before season started , just to bad for Gary
Elect, I don’t think Swanson “dumped” the #25. He made an agreement at the beginning of the year to run the “open” Boehler #3 at TriTrack events. I guess defending TriTrack champion driver Williams decided to stick with his Stafford Open #50 instead of the defending TriTrack champion team #25.
Fast car, good wheelman, this could get interesting.
The “open Boehler #3” isn’t owned by Boehler. Just an FYI.
JD, you’re right, but the Boehler crew keeps it and maintains it.
It’s an older BRE car with an older BRE engine not owned any longer by BRE but is clearly under the BRE Ole Blue umbrella of expertise and driven by BRE’s driver. Much like the William’s own a car or
cars that operate and are guided within the Skowyra stable of 50’s. It’s an extension of the “team” concept based on economic realities.
It’s just too far in the weeds to separate team components based on who has the bill of sale. As long as they are flying the same team colors they are for all intents and purposes a team unit sharing resources, knowledge and to a greater of lesser degree common goals.