STAFFORD – A week ago Tyler Chapman left Stafford Speedway with a wrecked primary race car after a heat race crash.
Friday the Ellington driver went from wrecked to celebration.
Chapman used a lap 15 restart pass of Amanda West to go to the lead and went on to win the 20-lap SK Light Modified feature Friday at Stafford.
It was the eighth victory of the season for Chapman.
“[Last week] we wrecked this car in the heat race pretty bad,” Chapman said. “I think we finished the car up at 9 o’clock yesterday to get in the trailer for today. After wrenching on it all week it definitely feels good to be back in victory lane.”
Amanda West of Colchester was second and Nick Anglace of Ansonia third.
“This car was really good. It’s been good the past four or five weeks. I’m happy to be up here. I don’t know, I felt like I had that race to myself. … Driver mistake, something you never want to do. I sort of missed my shift a little bit there. I’m really disappointed in myself for that.”
Said Anglace: “I don’t know what we had going on today. The engine was breaking up the first 10 laps or so. I honestly think it was something as stupid as not having enough heat in it because it’s cold out. … We really didn’t have a winning car. The Chapman’s are the class of the field and you have to be on your game to beat them and we just didn’t have that today. But after the last few weeks, I’ll take a third.”
Division points leader Tyler Trott scored his third victory of the season in the 20-lap Street Stock feature.
Bill Cote of Belchertown, Mass. was second and Brandon Warren of Chicopee, Mass. third.
Trott now holds an 18-point advantage over second place Travis Downey at the top of the Street Stock division standings with two events remaining for the division. Downey was fourth Friday.
R.J. Surdell of Willington got his second win of the season in the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature. Kyle Theriault of Three Rivers, Mass. was second and Travis Hydar of Woodbury – making his second start in the division – was third.
Great racing last night – both Modified divisions- I thought Beers had the Sk race and West in the SKL.