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DOUG COBY
LOOKING TO RECAPTURE STAFFORD MAGIC
IN NAPA FALL FINAL 150 |
Whenever
the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour visits Stafford
Motor Speedway, Doug Coby is usually among the
favorites as to who will take the checkered flag. Of
his 14 career NWMT wins, 6 of them have come at
Stafford, including his very first win in the NAPA
Spring Sizzler in 2006. But the 2015 season has been
a bit of a mixed bag for Coby and the #2 Dunleavy’s
Truck & Trailer Repair team with finishes of third
in the NAPA Spring Sizzler back in April, thirteenth
in the June TSI Harley-Davidson 125, and second in
the August CBYD 150. As he sits 25 points behind
Ryan Preece and 24 points behind Woody Pitkat in the
chase for the championship, Coby knows he needs to
win and get the maximum number of bonus points if he
wants to eliminate that deficit.
“The last 2 races at Stafford I felt like we had a
car that was capable of winning the race,” said
Coby. “The penalty in the June race came as a result
of me trying to get back through traffic with fresh
tires and making a mistake and I thought we were
going to win that race before the caution came out.
I’m excited to come back to Stafford. We’re fast at
Stafford, it’s just a matter of getting the job done
and that’s what this year has been all about. We all
know we have fast cars each week but I’ve been the
one who has screwed up twice and put us in a little
bit of a hole. I think we’ve had a good enough car
to win every week and to win the championship, we’re
just still trying to dig out of the hole my two bad
finishes have put us in.”
In 2012, Coby began a streak of winning at least one
NWMT race at Stafford each season, and he nearly
collected the Stafford sweep by winning three of the
four races. While he is still one of the favorites
for the NAPA Fall Final, Coby says that he is no
longer the prohibitive favorite he once was when the
NWMT rolled into Stafford.
“If you were to ask me last year or the year before,
I would say that maybe I had an advantage at
Stafford, but this year, Woody [Pitkat] has been the
most consistent and Ryan [Preece] is winning the
races, so I’d say the three of us are pretty equal,”
said Coby. “Stafford is one of those places that I
wouldn’t be surprised if someone like Teddy
[Christopher], Bobby Santos, or Donny Lia put
something together and won the race. We won’t be the
only 3 cars that are fast, there’s probably about 10
to 12 cars that will all be really quick. There’s so
many teams who are good at Stafford and hopefully it
can be us putting something together and winning the
race and we can put some pressure on Ryan and Woody
for the championship.”
In addition to being the track where he has the most
wins, Stafford is also Coby’s best track for
qualifying on the pole. Of his 7 career pole
positions, 3 of them have come at Stafford,
including a pole in the June TSI Harley-Davidson
125. A good qualifying effort will go a long way
towards getting a good finish in the race and with
the 2-day race procedure, Coby feels like he has an
edge with his crew chief Phil Moran.
“Everybody has the opportunity to really try to put
together a good qualifying run on Saturday and then
do whatever they need to do for the race on Sunday,”
said Coby. “The 2-day show will allow Phil [Moran]
to do what he wants with the car for qualifying and
then come back the next day with what he wants in it
for the race. Phil is so experienced with what he
wants I would say the 2-day show is an advantage for
us but at the same time, it’s easier for all the
crew chiefs because they don’t have to worry about
qualifying with the race setup in the car.”
The Whelen Modified Tour cars will qualify for the
NAPA Fall Final 150 on Saturday, Oct. 3rd before
hitting the track for 150 laps on Sunday, Oct. 4th.
Saturday’s racing card will also feature heat and
consolation races for Stafford’s weekly divisions
along with feature events for the SK Light, Limited
Late Model, DARE Stock, and Legend Cars divisions.
Sunday’s action kicks off with the NAPA Pit Party
from 11am-12noon with the SK Modifieds® taking the
green flag at 1pm followed by the Late Model and
Whelen Modified Tour feature events. Tickets for the
43rd Annual NAPA Auto Parts Fall Final Weekend are
priced at $38.50 for adult general admission
tickets, $5.00 for children ages 6-14, and children
ages 5 and under are admitted free of charge when
accompanied by an adult. Reserved seating is priced
at $42.00 for all ages. All NAPA Fall Final tickets
are good for admission on both Saturday and Sunday
and ticket prices include 10% CT Admission Tax.
Visit your local participating NAPA Auto Parts Store
for discount ticket offers.
For more information on the 43rd Annual NAPA Auto
Parts Fall Final Weekend, or to order tickets,
contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at
860-684-2783 or visit us on the web at
www.staffordspeedway.com.
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Source:
Scott Running
/
Stafford
Motor Speedway
Posted:
September 17, 2015 |
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