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Weedsport, NY – April 18, 2008 - By Tom Skibinski,
DIRTcar Racing NorthEast PR Director
Temperatures
continue to rise as the Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified
Championship Series kicks off at Merrittville (Ont.)
Speedway on Saturday, April 26 with the Baron Roofing
Windows and Doors ‘Spring Sizzler 100’ serving as the
headline attraction.
A top
prize of $4,000 awaits the winner of the 26th tour
lid-lifter, with a star-studded field of DIRTcar
NorthEast’s top Small-Block teams set to challenge the
hometown heroes in Merrittville’s own 57th
season-opener. Gates are scheduled to open at 4
o’clock with hot laps starting at 5:30 and qualifying
leading off the trackside action at 6:30 p.m.
“We’re on
the right track with the Small-Block tour and its
growing stronger,” said
358-Modified Series
Competition Director Gaston Salvas, as he noted a
number of first-time Series followers from his
neighborhood north of the border in Quebec. “I
think more teams are motivated now having the feeling
they stand more of a chance to win with a solid rule
book in place. We set the standard last year with
consistent enforcement, something that has definitely
carried over to this season. And having Bob (Dini,
Director of Technical Operations for DIRTcar
Racing NorthEast) back on board certainly adds
credibility to the 358 class and what we’re trying to
accomplish.”
The Mr.
DIRTcar 358-Modified Championship Series gets underway
next weekend in Ontario --- the same time many top
Small-Block teams will start accumulating points at
their weekly home tracks. In 2008, each
driver will now be taking the best five (5) finishes
from a designated track to collect bonus points which
will then be added to actual Series points to
determine the newest champion. Using the standard
DIRTcar NE weekly points format, a driver winning five
features could carry up to 300 extra points (60 per
win) into the Mr. DIRTcar Championship when track
points are officially tallied after Labor Day.
Leading
off the 358-Modified Series in April for the first
time since 2003-04, Merrittville’s earliest date ever
in its own 2008 lid-lifter will mark a return to the
Mr. DIRTcar Series after a two-year layoff. The
Johnson Brothers from Central New York have enjoyed
the best exchange rate, with ’05 victor Alan (6 wins)
and Danny (4) claiming all but one tour race triumph
since 1996; track owner Pete Bicknell interrupted the
streak in 2002.
Reigning
overall Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified points king Mario
Clair is set to return aboard his potent no. 22
Batiments JDL-Bert Transmission-backed Bicknell
machine equipped with a potent Pat Morrison-prepared
powerplant. “If everything goes as planned we’ll
follow the whole series once again,” said Clair, 35,
through a translator. Last season the talented driver
from St-Edmond, Quebec became the first
French-speaking driver in DIRTcar’s 32-year history to
climb the podium. Clair will once again compete
regularly during the summer at autodromes Granby and
Drummond, where he is the defending track points
champion.
Hoping to
match Clair’s success on DIRTcar NorthEast’s premier
Small-Block circuit will be fellow Frenchmen David
Hebert, Martin Gagne, Eric Gauvreau, Sportsman
graduate Alex Boisvert and Drummond racing promoter
Yan Bussiere. 2007
Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified runner-up Danny O’Brien,
Carey Terrance (3rd) and Roy Tarbell (5th) are also
expected to sign in Saturday as are opening round
entries Todd Burley, Kyle Jacobs and Lance Willix II.
Defending the homefront will be top Merrittville point
earners from a year ago champion Bicknell, Scott Wood,
Chad Brachmann, Kenny Cosgrove and Larry Lampman Jr.
along with Rick Richner, who plans to chase tour
points as well.
For additional
information, please contact 358-Modified Series
Director Gaston Salvas (450/655-5022 or 514/817-2270;
e-mail
gastonsalvas@hotmail.com)
or DIRTcar NE Director Cory Reed at the Weedsport
office (315/834-6606) during normal business hours. In
the meantime, log into the homepage at
www.dirtcar.com to
find out more about the Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified
Series as well as the entire circuit.
Track information can
be found at
www.merrittvillespeedway.com
or by contacting Public Relations Director Jim Irvine
at 905/892-8266. Merrittville Speedway can be reached
from any direction in the U.S., taking the Peace
Bridge in the Buffalo, NY/South Niagara Region,
Rainbow Bridge and Queenston-Lewiston Bridge in
Niagara Falls, or in Canada following the Queen
Elizabeth Way (QEW) south to Niagara from the Hamilton
or Toronto areas.
2008 Mr. DIRTcar
358-Modified Championship Series Schedule
*All events subject to
change.
DAY-DATE LAPS
TRACK LOCATION
Sat-Apr 26 100
Merrittville Speedway Thorold, ONT
Fri-Aug 1
68 Ransomville Speedway Ransomville, NY
($6,800 to win)
Thr-Aug 21 100
Mohawk Int’l Raceway Akwesasne, NY
Sun-Aug 31 100
Cornwall Motor Speedway Cornwall, ONT
Sat-Sep
6 75 Brockville Ont Speedway
Brockville, ONT
Sat-Sep 13 150
Autodrome Drummond Drummondville, QUE ($15,000
to win)
Fri-Sep 19
75 Canandaigua Speedway Canandaigua, NY
Fri-Sep 26
75 Rolling Wheels Raceway Elbridge,NY
Wed-Oct 8
75 Can-Am Motorsports Park LaFargeville, NY
Thr-Oct 9
75 Brewerton Speedway Brewerton, NY
Fri-Oct 10
100 Rolling Wheels Raceway Elbridge, NY
Sat-Oct 11 150
New York State Fairgrnds Syracuse,NY ($20,000 to
win)
Sat-Oct 18 100
Orange Co Fair Speedway Middletown,NY ($7,500 to win)
The
Advance Auto Parts Super DIRTcar Series for Big-Block
Modifieds is brought to fans across the Northeast by
several sponsors and partners, including series
sponsors Advance Auto Parts and Hoosier Racing Tire.
Rite Aid Corporation is a promotional partner and the
contingency sponsors are Bars Leaks, Bert
Transmission, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein
Shocks, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Crane Cams, Dig Safely
New York, Holley HP Carburetors, Integra Shocks,
Intercomp, KSE Racing Products, Motorsports Safety
Systems, Penske Shocks, Rislone Oil Stabilizer and
Wrisco Industries. |
