RGeeProductions
11-18-2011, 10:46 PM
RYAN PREECE, RYAN POSOCCO, MATT GALKO, KEVIN GAMBACORTA, AND DON WOOD
HONORED AS 2011 STAFFORD SPEEDWAY TRACK CHAMPIONS
Stafford Motor Speedway welcomed a guest list of
nearly 500 people consisting of teams, drivers, sponsors, and employees this
past Friday night, November 18 at the La Renaissance Banquet Facility in
East Windsor to officially honor Ryan Preece, Ryan Posocco, Matt Galko,
Kevin Gambacorta, and Don Wood as the 2011 Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR
Whelen All-American Series track champions.
With Stafford Motor Speedway broadcasters Matt Buckler and Joe Coss serving
as the Masters of Ceremony, the 42nd annual Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR
Champions Awards Ceremony not only honored the five track champions, it also
honored the top-20 points finishers from the SK Modified®, Late Model, SK
Light, Limited Late Model, and DARE Stock divisions. Other awards that were
presented during the evening’s festivities were Most Popular Driver Awards,
Most Improved Driver Awards, Reliable Welding & Speed Rookie of the Year
awards, and the Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award.
The 2011 SK Modified® season saw Ryan Preece outduel Keith Rocco in a
thrilling season-long fight for the championship. Rocco, who was the
defending SK Modified® track champion at Stafford, led the division with 8
wins this season, but Preece won 5 times and collected more top-5 and top-10
finishes than Rocco to capture his first career track championship. In 18
starts this season, Preece collected 14 top-5, and 17 top-10 finishes along
with his 5 wins for an amazing average finish of 3.8, which allowed him to
win the championship by a 78-point margin over Rocco.
The 2011 Late Model championship chase saw Ryan Posocco collect his second
consecutive and record sixth Late Model track championship at Stafford.
Just as it was during the 2010 season, the Late Model points fight was a
tight race all season long between Posocco and Woody Pitkat that came down
to the last race of the season. At the end of the season, Posocco took the
title by a 24 point margin over Pitkat. Posocco posted 2 wins, 13 top-5 and
17 top-10 finishes in 18 starts this season. The championship was also
Posocco’s third in the past 4 years driving the #48 Kretschman Motorsports
car.
In the SK Light Modified division, Matt Galko moved into the points lead
after the second race of the season and he stayed there for the remainder of
the season to capture his second consecutive track championship. Joey
Cipriano was Galko’s closest pursuer for the championship with 6 victories
this season, but Galko and his team had the better overall consistency
throughout the season and they won the championship by a 22 point margin
over Cipriano. For the season, Galko posted 4 wins, 14 top-5, and 17 top-10
finishes in 19 starts.
In the Limited Late Model division, the championship race was a three-man
race for much of the year between Kevin Gambacorta, Shawn Thibeault, and
George Nocera, Jr. For Gambacorta, he and Nocera took the championship race
down to the wire during the 2006 season, and the championship race once
again came down to the final race. Gambacorta finished 7th in the CARQUEST
Fall Final, which was enough to make him the champion by a slim 4 point
margin over Nocera. Gambacorta was a model of consistency this season,
never finishing lower than 7th all season long. For the year, Gambacorta
posted 1 win, 16 top-5 and 19 top-10 finishes in 19 starts.
The DARE Stock division saw Don Wood take a roller coaster ride to his
second track championship. Originally scheduled to race only half the
season, Wood was asked to drive the full season by his car owner John
Berardi when they found themselves in championship contention at the halfway
point of the year. Wood began the year strong, then a couple of subpar
finishes knocked him out of the points lead. But Wood posted 10 podium
finishes in the final 13 races of the year to lay claim to the championship
by 26 points over Cliff Saunders. Wood was tied for the division lead with
5 wins and he posted 14 top-5, and 16 top-10 finishes in 19 starts this
sason.
Receiving awards for Most Improved Driver were Michael Gervais, Jr. in the
SK Modified® division, Patrick Townsend in the Late Model division, Steve
Greer in the SK Light division, and Duane Provost in the Limited Late Model
division. The Most Improved Driver award is given to a driver who exhibits
the greatest degree of improvement in on-track performance over the past
season. Nominees are selected and voted upon by a committee of select
Stafford Motor Speedway management and track officials.
The Reliable Welding & Speed Rookie of the Year awards were presented by
Brad and Linda Hietala of Reliable Welding and Speed to Heather DesRochers
from the SK Modified® division, Peter Thickett from the Late Model division,
Cody Gneiting from the SK Light division, and D.J. Burnham from the Limited
Late Model division. The awards will be worth a $700.00 bonus to
DesRochers, and $500.00 bonuses to Thickett, Gneiting, and Burnham from
Reliable Welding and Speed. Each Rookie of the Year bonus will be paid out
in $100.00 weekly increments to each driver as they attend events during the
2012 season.
The winners of the Most Popular Driver Awards were Woody Pitkat in the SK
Modified® and Late Model divisions, Joey Cipriano from the SK Light
division, Cory Casagrande from the Limited Late Model division, and David
Arute from the DARE Stock division. The Most Popular Driver Awards are
voted on by the fans who attend Stafford Motor Speedway race events and fill
out the ballots found weekly in the track’s PitStopper Magazine.
The Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award was awarded to Rick Casagrande.
Casagrande prepared and maintained cars for his two sons, Cory and Kyle
Casagrande. Cory won three races and narrowly missed out on winning Rookie
of the Year honors in the Limited Late Model division, while Kyle tied for
the DARE Stock division lead with 5 feature wins. The Craftsman Mechanic
of the Year Award is voted on by Stafford crew members who possess a valid
2011 NASCAR License.
For more information about the 2011 Stafford Motor Speedway Champions Awards
Ceremony, or to order a video of the night’s festivities, contact the
Stafford Motor Speedway’s track office at (860) 684-2783 or visit us on the
web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Scott Running
HONORED AS 2011 STAFFORD SPEEDWAY TRACK CHAMPIONS
Stafford Motor Speedway welcomed a guest list of
nearly 500 people consisting of teams, drivers, sponsors, and employees this
past Friday night, November 18 at the La Renaissance Banquet Facility in
East Windsor to officially honor Ryan Preece, Ryan Posocco, Matt Galko,
Kevin Gambacorta, and Don Wood as the 2011 Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR
Whelen All-American Series track champions.
With Stafford Motor Speedway broadcasters Matt Buckler and Joe Coss serving
as the Masters of Ceremony, the 42nd annual Stafford Motor Speedway NASCAR
Champions Awards Ceremony not only honored the five track champions, it also
honored the top-20 points finishers from the SK Modified®, Late Model, SK
Light, Limited Late Model, and DARE Stock divisions. Other awards that were
presented during the evening’s festivities were Most Popular Driver Awards,
Most Improved Driver Awards, Reliable Welding & Speed Rookie of the Year
awards, and the Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award.
The 2011 SK Modified® season saw Ryan Preece outduel Keith Rocco in a
thrilling season-long fight for the championship. Rocco, who was the
defending SK Modified® track champion at Stafford, led the division with 8
wins this season, but Preece won 5 times and collected more top-5 and top-10
finishes than Rocco to capture his first career track championship. In 18
starts this season, Preece collected 14 top-5, and 17 top-10 finishes along
with his 5 wins for an amazing average finish of 3.8, which allowed him to
win the championship by a 78-point margin over Rocco.
The 2011 Late Model championship chase saw Ryan Posocco collect his second
consecutive and record sixth Late Model track championship at Stafford.
Just as it was during the 2010 season, the Late Model points fight was a
tight race all season long between Posocco and Woody Pitkat that came down
to the last race of the season. At the end of the season, Posocco took the
title by a 24 point margin over Pitkat. Posocco posted 2 wins, 13 top-5 and
17 top-10 finishes in 18 starts this season. The championship was also
Posocco’s third in the past 4 years driving the #48 Kretschman Motorsports
car.
In the SK Light Modified division, Matt Galko moved into the points lead
after the second race of the season and he stayed there for the remainder of
the season to capture his second consecutive track championship. Joey
Cipriano was Galko’s closest pursuer for the championship with 6 victories
this season, but Galko and his team had the better overall consistency
throughout the season and they won the championship by a 22 point margin
over Cipriano. For the season, Galko posted 4 wins, 14 top-5, and 17 top-10
finishes in 19 starts.
In the Limited Late Model division, the championship race was a three-man
race for much of the year between Kevin Gambacorta, Shawn Thibeault, and
George Nocera, Jr. For Gambacorta, he and Nocera took the championship race
down to the wire during the 2006 season, and the championship race once
again came down to the final race. Gambacorta finished 7th in the CARQUEST
Fall Final, which was enough to make him the champion by a slim 4 point
margin over Nocera. Gambacorta was a model of consistency this season,
never finishing lower than 7th all season long. For the year, Gambacorta
posted 1 win, 16 top-5 and 19 top-10 finishes in 19 starts.
The DARE Stock division saw Don Wood take a roller coaster ride to his
second track championship. Originally scheduled to race only half the
season, Wood was asked to drive the full season by his car owner John
Berardi when they found themselves in championship contention at the halfway
point of the year. Wood began the year strong, then a couple of subpar
finishes knocked him out of the points lead. But Wood posted 10 podium
finishes in the final 13 races of the year to lay claim to the championship
by 26 points over Cliff Saunders. Wood was tied for the division lead with
5 wins and he posted 14 top-5, and 16 top-10 finishes in 19 starts this
sason.
Receiving awards for Most Improved Driver were Michael Gervais, Jr. in the
SK Modified® division, Patrick Townsend in the Late Model division, Steve
Greer in the SK Light division, and Duane Provost in the Limited Late Model
division. The Most Improved Driver award is given to a driver who exhibits
the greatest degree of improvement in on-track performance over the past
season. Nominees are selected and voted upon by a committee of select
Stafford Motor Speedway management and track officials.
The Reliable Welding & Speed Rookie of the Year awards were presented by
Brad and Linda Hietala of Reliable Welding and Speed to Heather DesRochers
from the SK Modified® division, Peter Thickett from the Late Model division,
Cody Gneiting from the SK Light division, and D.J. Burnham from the Limited
Late Model division. The awards will be worth a $700.00 bonus to
DesRochers, and $500.00 bonuses to Thickett, Gneiting, and Burnham from
Reliable Welding and Speed. Each Rookie of the Year bonus will be paid out
in $100.00 weekly increments to each driver as they attend events during the
2012 season.
The winners of the Most Popular Driver Awards were Woody Pitkat in the SK
Modified® and Late Model divisions, Joey Cipriano from the SK Light
division, Cory Casagrande from the Limited Late Model division, and David
Arute from the DARE Stock division. The Most Popular Driver Awards are
voted on by the fans who attend Stafford Motor Speedway race events and fill
out the ballots found weekly in the track’s PitStopper Magazine.
The Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award was awarded to Rick Casagrande.
Casagrande prepared and maintained cars for his two sons, Cory and Kyle
Casagrande. Cory won three races and narrowly missed out on winning Rookie
of the Year honors in the Limited Late Model division, while Kyle tied for
the DARE Stock division lead with 5 feature wins. The Craftsman Mechanic
of the Year Award is voted on by Stafford crew members who possess a valid
2011 NASCAR License.
For more information about the 2011 Stafford Motor Speedway Champions Awards
Ceremony, or to order a video of the night’s festivities, contact the
Stafford Motor Speedway’s track office at (860) 684-2783 or visit us on the
web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
Scott Running