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NEW
PERSPECTIVE FOR SOLOMITO AT ICEBREAKER
Defending Winner Already Has '17 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour
Victory
Heading To Thompson |
Weather
may have delayed the Icebreaker a week, but it
hasn't slowed Timmy Solomito's momentum.
Heading to Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, he
has firmly positioned himself as the driver to beat
Sunday. The Islip, N.Y. driver captured the victory
in the season-opening race at Myrtle Beach Speedway
on March 18 and is heading to Thompson as the
defending Icebreaker winner.
http://hometracks.nascar.com/files/ib-2017-logo_0.jpgLast
year, he wheeled the No. 16 Flamingo Motorsports
entry into Victory Lane for his first career series
win. The victory began what was a breakout season
for the 25-year-old driver, including four checkered
flags.
“Winning at the Icebreaker last season was
unbelievable,” Solomito said. “If you just think
back about the history of Thompson itself and the
Icebreaker, it’s just an awesome feeling. It’s by
far my favorite win that I’ve had so far on the
tour.”
Solomito followed his Thompson win with victories on
a trio of bullrings: his home track of New York's
Riverhead Raceway, Monadnock Speedway in New
Hampshire, and Massachusett's Seekonk Speedway. He
pointed to that first win as the catalyst that
helped him close the deal on the subsequent
victories.
Inclement weather postponed the Icebreaker last
weekend. Thompson's card for the 43rd annual
Icebreaker weekend will include 11 divisions of
racing. For the first time since 1988, the teams of
the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will hold their
second race of the 2017 season on the .625-mile
high-banked oval.
Teams will be fighting to get a grip on the surface
because they will hit Thompson three more times
before the season ends, including for the finale. As
Solomito mentions, a victory at the beginning of the
season can help gain momentum.
"Winning the Icebreaker really got everything off in
the right direction for us last year,” said
Solomito, who finished a career-best third in the
final 2016 championship standings. “It’s always nice
to get a win early in the season. I feel like it
helped our momentum and really got us rolling.”
At Myrtle Beach, Solomito charged to the front late
in the race and held off Coors Light Pole Award
winner Rob Summers in the final laps to take down
the checkered flag. As the winner of the first
unified Whelen Modified Tour main event on the
half-mile oval in South Carolina, Solomito is
confident heading back to New England behind the
wheel of his No. 16 Starrett Tools Ford.
“I think we have a good shot at being in the thick
of things at the end of it,” Solomito said. “As long
as all the pieces come together, I know the team
will give me a great car to hopefully put it where
we need to be in the closing laps.”
Solomito and the rest of his top challengers will
hit the high-banks for the Icebreaker 150 on Sunday,
just after 3:30 p.m. Fans can watch live on
FansChoice.tv or catch live updates on
NASCARHomeTracks.com Race Central Live. |
Source:
Jason Christley /NASCAR
Posted:
April 5, 2017 |
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