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03/09/2011 |
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STATISTICAL
ADVANCE: SPRING CLASSIC 150
Analyzing the
NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour at Caraway |
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 The
seventh season of the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour will begin at
Caraway Speedway with the Spring Classic 150 on Sunday, March 13. The race
will be contested on the historic .455-mile track located in the Piedmont
Triad region near Asheboro, N.C.
Caraway Speedway Data
Race: #1 of 14 (3-13-11)
Track Layout: .455-mile paved oval
Banking: variable
Race Length: 150 laps/68.25 miles
Qualifying/Race Data
2010 pole winner: Burt Myers (16.005 seconds, 102.343 mph)
2010 race winner: Andy Seuss (78.876 mph, 51:55)
Track qualifying record: George Brunnhoelzl III (102.844 mph, 15.752
seconds, 4/11/09)
Track race record (150 L): Tim Brown (90.977 mph, 44:31 min., 9-9-06)
NWSMT All -Time Win Leaders
At Caraway Speedway
1. Brian Loftin................................... 7
1. L.W. Miller..................................... 6
3. Junior Miller.................................. 5
4. Andy Seuss.................................. 4
5. George Brunnhoelzl III.................... 3
6. Ted Christopher............................. 3
7. Tim Brown..................................... 2
9. Burt Myers.................................... 1
10. John Smith.................................. 1
NWSMT All-Time Win Leaders Overall
1. Brian Loftin................................. 11
1. L.W. Miller................................... 11
3. Junior Miller................................. 10
4. Andy Seuss.................................. 8
5. Burt Myers.................................... 7
6. George Brunnhoelzl III.................... 6
6. Tim Brown..................................... 6
8. Ted Christopher............................. 4
9. James Civali................................. 2
10. John Smith, Jason Myers and three others tied 1
At Caraway Speedway:
This will be the 33rd NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour race at Caraway
Speedway, the unofficial home track of the tour, and the first of six visits
to the track this season. Caraway will also host the NWSMT on March 26,
April 23, July 1, Aug. 26 and Sept. 27.
The track was built in 1966, initially with a dirt surface, and was later
paved and configured to its current size of .455-miles in length.
The track has been owned and operated by Russell & Valastra Hackett and
their family since 1977, however this season, Russells son Darren and his
wife Renee will take over day-to-day operations.
A total of four drivers who have visited Victory Lane in the NWSMT races
at Caraway will compete this weekend. Leading the group will be Brian Loftin,
who holds the record for most wins at the track with seven.
Burt Myers holds the career record for the most Coors Light Pole awards at
the track with 12 and won the pole for this race at Caraway last spring.
A total of eight drivers who have visited Victory Lane in the NWSMT will
compete this weekend. Leading the group will be Loftin and Miller, who share
the record for most wins with 11.
Up To Speed:
Since the NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour formed in 2005, there have
been 72 races in the history of the series.
Burt Myers is the reigning NWSMT champion while Andy Seuss is the
defending winner of the Spring Classic 150.
The NWSMT has crowned five different champions: Junior Miller (2005,
2006), L.W. Miller (2007), Brian Loftin (2008), George Brunnhoelzl III
(2009) and Myers (2010) during its previous six years of competition.
Selected Driver Highlights:
Zach Brewer (No. 11 Chevrolet)
Has 13 career starts at Caraway Speedway with a career-best finish of
fifth on March 14, 2010.
Made 10 starts in 2010 with four top-five and seven top-10 finishes.
Won his first career Coors Light Pole Award at South Boston on April 4,
2010 and picked up his second pole at Bowman Gray Stadium on Aug. 7, 2010.
Recorded career-best finish of third at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Oct.
14, 2010.
Will be a teammate with 2009 NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour Champion
George Brunnhoelzl III this season.
Tim Brown (No. 02 Chevrolet)
Brown finished second in the season-ending points standings a record three
times from 2006-2008.
Has 59 career NWSMT starts, ranks second in top-five finishes with 36 and
has 50 top-10 finishes.
Has six wins, the most recent came on Sept. 4, 2010 at Langley Speedway,
his first since 2008.
George Brunnhoelzl III (No. 09) Chevrolet
The 2009 NWSMT champion returns in 2011 after competing full-time on the
NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour last season.
Will drive for veteran car owner Howard Harvey as a teammate to Zach
Brewer.
Owner of six wins, eight poles and 28 top 10s in 42 career NWSMT starts.
Has three career wins at Caraway, the last on Oct. 24, 2009.
Also has three career Coors Light Pole Awards at Caraway.
Greg Butcher (No. 0 Chevrolet)
Is the defending NWSMT Sunoco Rookie of the Year.
Has 15 career starts on the tour with one top-10 finish at Myrtle Beach
Speedway on Sept. 5, 2009.
Is coming off of best career points finish on the tour with a respectable
13th-place showing last year.
Competes out of Mocksville, N.C.
Ted Christopher (No. 00 Chevrolet)
Has four career wins in NWSMT events and three of those have come at
Caraway, including the inaugural event for the tour in 2005.
Has made 12 career NWSMT starts with 10 top-10 finishes.
Has 293 career NWMT starts and ranks third on that tours all-time wins
list with 38. His most recent win came in the 2010 finale at Thompson
International Speedway.
James Civali (No. 79 Pontiac)
Finished third in the 2010 NWSMT point standings.
Has 12 career NWSMT starts. His first win came at South Boston Speedway on
April 3, 2010 and his second was at Bristol Motor Speedway on Aug. 18, 2010
as the highest-finishing NWMST competitor.
Was the 2006 NWMT Sunoco Rookie of the Year.
Has four wins and 30 top 10s in 57 career NWMT starts.
Drives for Roger and Sandra Hill of Hillbilly Racing.
Bryan Dauzat (No. 97 Chevrolet)
Has 22 career starts with a best finish of fifth at Bowman Gray Stadium on
Aug. 1, 2009.
Picked up a pair of top-10 finishes in 2010.
Lone full-time competitor from the state of Louisiana.
Frank Fleming (No. 40 Ford)
Is tied for first for most career NWSMT starts with 71 and has only missed
one race since 2005.
Has finished second seven times, the most recent runner-up finish was at
Caraway on July 3, 2009.
Has more than 50 wins at his home track, Bowman Gray.
Brother, Chris Fleming, serves as his crew chief.
Jonathan Kievman (No. 8 Chevrolet)
Collected his first top-10 finish at Caraway on Aug. 28, 2010.
Lone full-time competitor from the state of Florida.
Brian Loftin (No. 23 Chevrolet)
The 2008 NWSMT Champion. Won by 30 points over Tim Brown (1,780-1,750).
Shares the career wins with L.W. Miller (11), and holds the record for
consecutive races won (3).
Has 41 top-10 finishes is 62 career starts since 2005.
Is tied for second on the career Coors Light Pole Award list with eight.
Seven of his 11 wins have come at Caraway, the most recent on Aug. 29,
2009.
L.W. Miller (No. 36 Pontiac)
The 2007 NWSMT Champion. Won by 25 points over Tim Brown (1,930-1,905).
Finished second in the 2010 final standings, 31 points behind Burt Myers.
Is tied with Brian Loftin for the most career NWSMT wins with 11, in just
55 starts.
Won his first race since April 11, 2008 when he won at Bowman Gray Stadium
on Aug. 7, 2010.
Has a win (Martinsville) and 10 top 10s in 75 career NWMT career starts.
Has also made 13 NASCAR Nationwide Series and six NASCAR Camping World
Truck Series starts during his racing career.
Burt Myers (No. 1 Ford)
Defending NWSMT champion.
Holds NWSMT career records for poles (22), top-fives (39) and top-10s
(58).
Is the active leader for consecutive starts with 48.
Has raced with his brother, Jason, in the NWSMT since 2005.
Picked up his most recent win at Charlotte on Oct. 14, 2010.
Jason Myers (No. 4 Ford)
Is tied with Frank Fleming for most career NWSMT starts with 71.
Picked up his lone win at Bowman Gray on Aug. 5, 2006.
Has 51 top-10 finishes since 2005.
Holds the record for consecutive NWSMT starts with 66 and has started
every race since missing Martinsville on Sept. 5, 2005.
Mike Norman (No. 12 Ford)
Switched teams this season and will be a teammate of veteran competitor
Gene Pack.
Won the Sunoco Rookie of the Race Award in the 2010 season opener at
Atlanta Motor Speedway, and again at Bowman Gray.
Austin Pack (No. 31 Chevrolet)
Will compete for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors this season.
Is the grandson of NWSMT veteran Gene Pack, and son of the late Brian
Pack, who made 38 career starts.
A highly-coveted high school football prospect who is a senior at
Winston-Salem Carver High School.
Gene Pack (No. 31 Chevrolet)
Recorded career-best finish of second at Martinsville Speedway in 2006 as
the second-highest finishing NWSMT competitor in the combination event.
Fourth on the all-time starts list with 64.
Enjoyed most successful season in 2009 with seven top-10s and two
top-fives in 13 starts.
Gary Putnam (No. 77 Chevrolet)
Made six starts in 2010.
Works full-time as car chief for Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing with Jamie
McMurray.
Picked up his first career top-10 finish at Caraway on July 2, 2010.
Andy Seuss
(No. 47 Dodge)
Won last season at Caraway on March 14 and Aug. 28, and lead all 150 laps
both times.
Hampstead, N.H., native has won eight times with his best season coming in
2009 picking up four wins that season.
Led more laps last season than any other driver with 318.
Has 31 top-10 finishes in 48 career NWSMT starts.
Has picked up wins at Ace, Caraway (three times), Lanier, Myrtle Beach,
Nashville and South Boston Speedways.
Also has three top-10 finishes in 21 career NWMT starts.
John Smith (No. 25 Chevrolet)
Picked up his first NWSMT win on July 3, 2010 at Caraway.
Has 34 top-10 finishes in 50 career NWSMT starts.
Finished in the top 10 in the final points standings three years in a row
(2008-2010), with a career-best fifth last year.
Works full-time at Richard Childress Racing.
Todd Szegedy (No. 22 Ford)
Full-time NWMT competitor that will attempt to make his first NWSMT start.
Has made 137 NWMT starts with 14 wins and 86 top-10 finishes. His most
recent NWMT win was at Stafford on Aug. 6, 2010.
Has made 75-consecutive NWMT starts.
Upcoming Milestones/Benchmarks:
This will be the 73rd overall race in NWSMT history.
This will be one of two two-day shows on the schedule this season. The
other will be at Bowman Gray Stadium in August.
The NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour will kick off the 2011 season with
the Spring Fling 150
on Sunday, March 13 at Caraway Speedway in Sophia, N.C. |
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Source: Tim Southers /
NASCAR
Posted: March
9, 2011 |
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