 Ryan
Preece recorded his first NASCAR Whelen Southern
Modified Tour victory in style, leading every lap in
the Kevin Powell Motorsports 199 at the historic
Bowman Gray Stadium on Saturday.
The 22-year-old from Berlin, Conn., became the
seventh driver in series history to win at the
track. It was the second Modified event in as many
nights for Preece, who finished 16th in the CARQUEST
150 at Stafford (Conn.) Motor Speedway on Friday
evening in NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour action.
“This win means so much to me,” Preece said. “This
is definitely at the top of my wins list. All of the
history here and the drivers that have won here –
it’s just an honor to have my name on that list.”
It was his first Southern Modified Tour win in five
starts to go along with his eight career victories
in the northern tour, where he is the points leader.
Preece, a NASCAR Next program participant, won the
Coors Light Pole Award earlier in the day and led
from start to finish, but it was not without its
drama. Beyond the eight cautions and subsequent
restarts, the engine on his No. 41 East West Marine/Mizzy
Construction Chevrolet started to go sour in the
final stages of the race.
“I didn’t want to say anything over the radio, but
on Lap 190 I must have dropped a cylinder because
the tone of the motor completely changed,” he
confessed. “Overall the car was great. Lots of work
goes into these cars and my guys are the best. My
family pours its heart and soul into this one and I
can’t thank them enough for the support.”
NASCAR Next is an industry initiative to spotlight
young, talented drivers who will shape the sport in
the years to come.
Five-time Bowman Gray track champion Burt Myers
crossed the finish line in second for his 50th top
five in 98 tour starts. It was the fourth runner-up
finish for Myers in nine tour starts at his home
track.
“The car was really good early and it got bad on me
– it just went real tight on me,” said Myers. “At
the end there and hindsight is 20-20, but I believe
that if we had gotten a long green run we maybe
could have run him down. My hat’s off to them,
though, they had a great car tonight.”
Cole Powell finished in third, the same position he
finished in at this event a season ago.
“I don’t know what we have to do to get out of this
third spot. Well, I do know, but really happy with
the finish here tonight,” said Powell. “Last year we
kind of lucked into it after guys wrecked in front
of us, but this year we were in it all race long.”
Danny Bohn and Tim Brown completed the top five
while John Smith, Jeremy Gerstner, Luke Fleming,
Gary Putnam and Andy Seuss brought home the top 10.
Series points leader and the defending race winner
George Brunnhoelzl III encountered panhard bar
troubles during the second half of the race and
finished 14th, snapping his three race winning
streak. Despite the troubles, Brunnhoelzl still
holds a 21-point lead on Kyle Ebersole in the season
standings and has a 27-point advantage on Myers.
The NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour next
travels to the legendary Bristol (Tenn.) Motor
Speedway on Wednesday, Aug. 21 for its annual clash
with the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour in the Titan
Roof 150. The race will be telecast live by FS2 with
coverage beginning at 6 p.m. ET. |
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UNOFFICIAL
NASCAR WHELEN SOUTHERN MODIFIED TOUR - Kevin Powell Motorsports 199
Results Saturday At Bowman Gray Stadium, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Lap length: 0.25 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (1) Ryan Preece, Berlin, Conn., Chevrolet, 199 laps,
44.310 mph.
2. (3) Burt Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C., Ford, 199.
3. (4) Cole Powell, Mount Brydges, Ontario, Canada,
Chevrolet, 199.
4. (10) Danny Bohn, Freehold, N.J., Chevrolet, 199.
5. (8) Tim Brown, Rural Hall, N.C., Chevrolet, 199.
6. (9) John Smith, Mount Airy, N.C., Chevrolet, 199.
7. (17) Jeremy Gerstner, Wesley Chapel, Fla., Chevrolet, 199.
8. (13) Luke Fleming, Mount Airy, N.C., Ford, 199.
9. (19) Gary Putnam, Concord, N.C., Chevrolet, 198.
10. (2) Andy Seuss, Hampstead, N.H., Chevrolet, 195.
11. (12) Kyle Ebersole, Hummelstown, Pa., Ford, 173, accident.
12. (11) Jason Myers, Walnut Cove, N.C., Ford, 172.
13. (7) Cody Ware, Greensboro, N.C., Chevrolet, 163, accident.
14. (6) George Brunnhoelzl, III, West Babylon, N.Y., Chevrolet,
157.
15. (15) Mike Norman, Lewisville, N.C., Chevrolet, 156.
16. (18) JR Bertuccio, Centereach, N.Y., Chevrolet, 152, accident.
17. (20) Bryan Dauzat, Alexandria, La., Chevrolet, 149.
18. (16) David Calabrese, Toms River, N.J., Chevrolet, 118, brakes.
19. (5) Woody Pitkat, Stafford, Conn., Pontiac, 118, accident.
20. (14) Brian Loftin, Lexington, N.C., Chevrolet, 57, accident.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 7 minutes 22 seconds
Margin of Victory: 1.040 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: R. Preece (67.603 mph, 13.313 seconds)
Caution Flags: 8 for 49 laps.
Lead Changes: 0 among 1 drivers.
Lap Leaders: R. Preece 1-199.
Standings: 1. G. Brunnhoelzl,III, 256; 2. K. Ebersole, 235; 3. B.
Myers, 229; 4. T. Brown, 223; 5. A. Seuss, 221; 6. J. Myers, 213; 7. G.
Putnam, 208; 8. D. Bohn, 207; 9. L. Fleming, 204; 10. J. Smith, 201. |
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