By: Tim Baltz
The temperatures were hot outside and the racing this past Saturday at the Brockville Ontario Speedway was even hotter. Point chases are heating up and drivers needing wins is becoming priority, which is a recipe for some intense action, which fans got to see on this night.
Josh Powers was out front early at the start of the 25 lap DIRTcar Sportsman feature over Tyler Stewart and Michael Dillon. Several early race cautions slowed the start of the event, one of which involved points leader Bobby Herrington and three time feature winner Jessica Power. When the race finally got going and laps started to click off, Powers and Stewart were putting on a fantastic show for the fans as they had a great battle for the race lead. On the charge was Bobby Herrington, who went to the pits and was on a mission to get to the front. While Powers and Stewart continued their back and forth battle, Herrington got by for third and set sail after the top 2. With five laps left Stewart would make his move to take the lead while Herrington was able to get by for second. On lap 23 Herrington would make his move in turn three to take control of the race. From there the defending champion denied Stewart his first ever win, by scoring his fourth of the season and second in a row. Stewart would once again cross in second over Shane Stearns, Josh Powers and Dan Ferguson.
Madison Mulder has won DIRTcar 358 Modified races in his career, but has yet to win at Brockville. Mulder led the early laps of the DIRTcar 358 Modified feature over Kalen Draper, Jeremy LaSalle, Chris Herbison and Kyle Dingwall. The track was fast on this night as Mulder stabilized the lead at around 4 car lengths but Draper was on the move as he closed in on the leader. After the half way mark of the event, defending track champion Ryan Arbuthnot had moved to the third spot as the field entered into lapped traffic. Arbuthnot was able to clear Draper after a great battle, then set sail after the leader. On lap 20 Arbuthnot would tangle with a lapped car and make contact with an infield tire, breaking the front end, which forced him to the pits. The green would fly and this time Kalen Draper would take the top spot over Mulder, with Chris Raabe getting into the mix, over Kyle Dingwall and Johnathon Ferguson. Draper held a slight lead and found himself under attack from Dingwall and Raabe with five laps to go. Dingwall tried a move on the high lane in turn four, which did not work, however one lap later Raabe would drive by for second and go to work for the lead. Coming to the white flag Chris Raabe would drive by the rookie driver and take the lead. From there Chris Raabe would pull away to score his third win of the season in dramatic fashion. Draper would finish a career best second over Kyle Dingwall, Johnathon Ferguson and Lance Willix.
When you stick with something, even though it has been frustrating, usually the pay off is pretty big. That’s exactly what happened to Holly Denard in the Novice Sportsman division this past Saturday night, as she led early over Shawn Hodge and Jordan Wood. Denard had a great car and was able to drive away from the field while Hodge and Wood battled for second and third. With 3 laps to go it looked like Denard was cruising to her first career win but the caution would fly, which forced a restart. When the final green flag flew, Denard would once again charge to the lead as Shaw Hodge, Jordan Wood challenged from second and third. After several early season struggles, the three year wait paid off as Holly Denard would score a popular first career win in the 12 lap feature. Shawn Hodge would come across in second over Jordan Wood, Paul Donnelly and Sandy MacFarlane.
Todd Raabe took the lead on lap 5 of the 15 lap Street Stock feature from early pace setter Christian Beaucheme. Raabe would start to pull away slightly while behind him, Brighton Speedway regular Kraig Handley was making just his third start of the season and was looking for his first ever Brockville win. Handley would take over the lead once the race reached the half way point, as the fans were treated to a great three car battle, with Todd Raabe and Peter Raabel. Several late cautions slowed the event, but it would not stop Handley’s pursuit of victory lane as Kraig Handley, would drive away in the final laps, to score his first Street Stock win at “The BOS”. Todd Raabe, Peter Raabe, Brett Horner and Sylvain Gauthier completed the top 5.
The 15 lap 1000 Islands RV Crate Sprint Cars saw a great battle between Matt Billings and Lee Ladouceur on this night. Billings would pull away in the early laps and appeared to be the driver to beat. However Ladouceur, who had 30 laps on the speedway in the DIRTcar 358 Modified event, would close the gap on the Brockville native and tried to get by for the lead. Despite the effort and the race going 15 laps caution free, Matt Billings would make it three wins in three starts in 2022. Ladouceur settled for second over Ryan Poole, Tim Bailey and Luke Stewart.
Next week the DIRTcar 358 Modified and DIRTcar Sportsman will be ready to go along with the Novice Sportsman, 1000 Islands RV Crate Sprints and the return of the Supernant Truck Shop Mini Stocks. Racing gets underway at 7pm. For the latest news visit our website at brockvillespeedway.com and for instant updates, give us a follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
DIRTcar 358 Modified (30 laps)
CHRIS RAABE, Kalen Draper, Kyle Dingwall, Johnathon Ferguson, Lance Willix, Jordan McCreadie, Chris Herbison, Joe Banks, Jeremy LaSalle, Jeff Sykes, Ryan Scott, Terry McClelland, Lee Ladouceur, Steve Bilow, Madison Mulder, Ryan Arbuthnot, Jarrett Herbison, (DNS) Tristan Draper
Heat Winners: Jeremy LaSalle and Kalen Draper
DIRTcar Sportsman (25 laps)
BOBBY HERRINGTON, Tyler Stewart, Shane Stearns, Josh Powers, Dan Ferguson, Greg Brinklow, Dylan Kirkland, Josh Jock, Jessica Power, Andrew Young, Brennan Moore, Xavier Andrews, Chris Ferguson, Michael Dillon, Xavier Perrin, Ricky Thompson, Tammy Jalbert, Evan Reynolds, Dominick Merkley, Trent Wallace
Heat Winners: Josh Powers and Michael Dillon
Novice Sportsman (15 laps)
HOLLY DENARD, Shawn Hodge, Jordan Wood, Paul Donnelly, Sandy MacFarlane, Matt Pruner, Keira Turner, Hayden Brown, Cory Lambert, Stephane Fournier, Mario Dupuis, Derek Cryderman, Gavin MacFarlane, (DNS) Guillaume Foster
Heat Winners: Holly Denard and Gavin MacFarlane
Street Stock (15 laps)
KRAIG HANDLEY, Todd Raabe, Peter Raabe, Brett Horner, Sylvain Gauthier, Christian Beaucheme, Curtis Merkley, Claude Gatien. Francis Gauthier, (DNS) Nick Merkley, Daniel Gemme, Patrice Foster and Guy Amese
Heat Winners: Kraig Handley and Francis Gauthier
1000 Islands RV Crate Sprint Cars (15 laps)
MATT BILLINGS, Lee Ladouceur, Ryan Poole, Tim Bailey, Luke Stewart, (DNS) Mathieu Bardier
Heat Winner: Matt Billings
