8/6/2007

DONNY LIA GOES FROM RACE WHERE HE WAS LUCKY TO
TRACK WHERE HE HAS BEEN REALLY GOOD
Mod Racer Heads to Stafford on Heels of Riverhead Victory

    It’s always been said that it is better for a racecar driver to be lucky than good. Even better still is to be both.
    On Saturday, Donny Lia was lucky on his way to winning at Riverhead Raceway (NY) when the two leaders wrecked in front of him with only a handful of laps remaining in the race. Later this week, he’ll head to a track where he has been exceptionally good this year – Stafford Motor Speedway. Lia enters the Friday night NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race there having swept both events at the Connecticut track so far this season.
    “I was confident heading into Riverhead and it turned out that we didn’t quite have the best car,” said Lia. “I’m confident heading into Stafford because we’ve run so well there.
    At Riverhead, Lia was the benefactor when Ted Christopher and Mike Stefanik tangled while running first and second late in the event.
    “I wish that we could have won Riverhead by our performance, but we won by attrition,” said Lia. “I’ve lost a few that way, so this makes up for that a little bit. Every now and then, I can take one like that. The bottom line is that we had a third-place car, maybe not even a third-place car, but we were going to finish in the top three. We struggled a little bit and I was focused on finishing third, protecting a top three finish and coming out of the race with all three wheels still on the car. Anything more than that was going to be a gift and as it turned out, we got a big gift.
    “We were in position to capitalize on something happening and we took advantage of that. Anything can happen in racing and it did.”
    The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour had a mid-season break of nearly one whole month leading up to the Riverhead race. However, the Riverhead race starts a stretch run where seven straight weeks will feature racing at tracks from New Hampshire to Virginia . Lia is up for the challenge of a busy schedule.
    “We have a lot of momentum right now,” said Lia. “We’re happy that we have consecutive races from week to week. Going a long span between races can really take you off your game. We just have to keep going one race at a time and not look any further down the road than that. Every week, there’s another race and we’ll be ready for them.”
    So far this season, Lia has won five of the right scheduled Modified Tour events. Even he didn’t dream that he have won more races than he didn’t as the summer winds down.
    “Did I ever think that? No. Anyone who would go into a season thinking that would need a reality check. It’s so hard to win one race. At the end of the year, if you can finish with one win, two wins or three wins, that’s a good year. To win five at the halfway point? That’s just insane. I can’t believe it. It won’t set in for a long time.”
    The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will race at Stafford Motor Speedway on Friday night, August 10th.

Source:  Mike Twist/Lia Motorsports PR
Posted:  August 6, 2007