Cornelius Claims Victory by Record Margin

Spencer Lewis 2012-08-04

.018 seconds is all that separated defending champion Kevin Cornelius (No. 17 Halton Crushed Stone/Lee Sand & Gravel Chevrolet) from streaking upstart Mike ‘Lights Out’ Bentley (No. 51 Bentley Motorsports Chevrolet) on August 4th.

The margin, the closest in modern Sunset Speedway history, was magnified by the fact that Bentley controlled the later stages of the race until lap-28.

Multi-time Canadian Vintage Modified champion Gary Elliott (No. 36 Quaker State/JDS Insurance Chevrolet) impressed early on, leading 12 of the opening 15 circuits after opening up a lead of over a half-straightaway.

An incident involving Scott Beatty, Sean Grosman and Stompin’ Tom Walters at lap-15 would change the race’s complexion significantly. Battling for the second position, the trio entered turn-3 3-wide with at least two of the cars making contact. The end result would have all three front runners sent to the rear as involved cars, clearing a path to the front of the field for Bentley and Cornelius who were running 5th and 6th at the time of the caution.

The lap 15 restart would see Bentley clear Elliott on the outside – a move that has been his trademark as of late – and begin to pull away from the rest of the field.

It would appear as though Bentley was destined for victory, until Bruce Rankin made contact with the front-stretch retaining wall for a lap-28 caution.

Kevin Cornelius would seize his opportunity on the ensuing restart, drag-racing alongside Bentley in a battle for the lead spanning the final two laps. With the pair rocketing through turns 3 & 4 in a virtual dead heat, Cornelius would find the bite necessary to pull ahead on the outside to capture his 3rd feature victory of the season. The trip to victory lane would mark Cornelius’ first since May 26th.

“I knew I had him by inches. I was pretty sure I had him” beamed Cornelius in victory lane after squeaking out the decision.

“The end of last week’s racing, the guys were so frustrated and [car owner] Dick [Launspach] had spent so much money, we really didn’t know if we were coming back”, explained the Orangeville, ON veteran. “We had decided to park this car, but come Friday night the guys got antsy and worked their butts off into late-Friday night to get it back together and ready”

“This win is for my guys” stressed the defending track champion “and all the work they’ve done for me this year”

“We’ve got to run these last 5 races and just have fun. We’re not coming back fulltime next season, so we need to enjoy this while we can. Of course, if we win [the track championship] we’ll have to come back and defend it” added Cornelius.

In Super Stock action, Randy ‘The Rocket’ Rusnell won his 3rd feature in a row, the victory marking his 5th in his last 6 Sunset Speedway starts. The successful points outing allowed Rusnell to pull within 31 markers of division leader Nick Roth, as the Cambridge, ON veteran pursues his first career Sunset Speedway championship.

Acton, ON teenager Brandon McFerran would go to war with Sunset mainstay Warren Paxton in the evening’s 25-lap Mini Stock event. The 13-year old, dubbed ‘The Astronaut’, would slip past Paxton and hold off the former Sunset Rookie-of-the-Year for his first career Mini Stock triumph.

Bentley Captures Division-Leading 4th Victory of 2012

Spencer Lewis 2012-07-28

Guelph, ON’s Mike Bentley set the new standard for Limited Late Model competitors at Sunset on July 28th, capturing his division-leading 4th A-Main win of the season. Bentley, having won twice in his last four Saturday night starts, would roll of 7th in the 18-car field.

A pair of early cautions would send championship contenders Kevin Cornelius and Stompin’ Tom Walters to the rear of the field, opening the door for a fresh face to step into the role of front runner. Veteran Bruce Rankin and Sean Grosman would both spend time at the front of the field, before Taylor Holdaway slipped into the lead on lap-9.

All the while, Bentley would methodically make his way to the front, utilizing the outside groove of the racetrack.

‘Lights Out’ would seize his opportunity on a lap-14 restart, blasting past Holdaway on the top-side as the pair headed into turn-1. From there, Bentley would hold off a late-race charge from Scott Beatty for the victory. Stompin’ Tom Walters would climb from the tail end of the field to finish second, but would run out of laps before making a serious bid for the lead.

Upon climbing from his winning ride, Bentley was quick to point out his affinity for the second groove, “I love the outside of this track. I can’t thank Mark [Dilley] and his crew for building a speedway where a driver can really show what he’s about”

“Going on the outside here, I’m able to drive it in and the car sticks”, he continued. “It seems to work”.

“This is the first time I’ve been in the points chase. Believe me, I was cheering when Walters and Cornelius were put to the back”, Bentley grinned when asked about his fellow championship contenders’ troubles.

Though despite his recent hot streak, Bentley maintains he’s not putting too much thought into the points race. “I try not to [think about it]. My dad raced for years and always tells me not to think about it too much or it will get to you”

In the Super Stock division, familiar face Randy ‘The Rocket’ Rusnell returned to victory lane for the fourth time in five starts, maintaining his firm grip over second position in the division’s point standings.

Much like Bentley, Rusnell would start from deep in the field, and was forced to take his time working his way through to the front.

Defending champion Lane Zardo would lead for over 20 laps, finally succumbing to Rusnell with only 4 laps remaining.

“This is simply amazing, isn’t it?” marvelled Rusnell in victory lane. “I’m blessed”.

“I didn’t think I was going to catch Lane [Zardo]” admitted the Cambridge, ON veteran “the car was working good”

With Rusnell’s pair of heat race victories earlier in the evening, the feature would mark ‘The Rocket’s first career Sunset Speedway hat-trick.

“I have to take my hat off to Lane Zardo. The guy gave me an excellent race. We didn’t touch and you can’t say that about every racer” closed Rusnell, “He’s up on the wheel just as much as I am. He’s a phenomenal racer”.

Rory Collett would win the Mini Stock feature on track, after surviving a number of late-race restarts. However, his Honda Civic would fail post-race technical inspection due to a compression violation, handing the victory to title contender Rob Krystal, marking Krystal’s second feature win in as many weeks.

July 28th Event Report

2012-07-28 #51 Mike Bentley Limited Late Model Victory Lane Interview	2012-07-28 #72 Randy 'The Rocket' Rusnell Super Stock Victory Lane Interview	2012-07-21 #99 Rob Krystal Mini Stock Victory Lane Interview
#51 Mike Bentley Limited Late Model Class Results and Standings	#72 Randy Rusnel Super Stock 1987 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Class Results and Standings	#99 Rob Krystal Mini Stock 1991 Ford Mustang Class Results and Standings

Walters’ Starts Deep, Completes First Saturday Night Win of 2012

Spencer Lewis 2012-07-21

28-time champion Stompin’ Tom Walters captured the Limited Late Model feature at Sunset Speedway on July 21st. The win would mark Walters’ first in 30-lap competition this season, after a pair of 75-lap trumphs as part of the McColl Racing Enterprises Pro Series.

Walters’ would wage war with early leader Ernie Fumerton mid-way through the race, finally clearing the former Super Stock champion on lap-17.

3-time feature winner Mike Bentley would follow Walters’ to the line, with Walters’ teammate Sean Grosman completing the top-3.

“I think we’ve got it figured out” beamed Walters upon climbing from his winning ride, “we were trying to figure out why it was so good in the 75-lappers and not as good on a normal Saturday night”

“The left rear spring wasn’t getting any weight put on it – because we have to move it all back to the right side – so we moved a bunch of weight from the center of the frame rail to behind the left spring and what a difference”

Walters went on to explain that much of his success has come thanks to his car’s ability to corner, “it’s great when you don’t have to use a lot of break. Just enough to coast through [the ends]. When it turns the way this car does, it makes all the difference in the world”

Walters’ victory, along with points leader Kevin Cornelius suffering a DNF as a result of a parts failure, has vaulted the Stompin Tom Motorsports #47 into the points lead.

“I hate to see that happen to Kevin [Cornelius]. I love to race the guy, he always runs you clean. I don’t look at the points. I’ve won enough championships. I race for every win and let everything take care of itself”

In Super Stock competition, 16-year old defending champion Lane Zardo managed his second victory of 2012. The Brampton, ON high-school student’s trip to victory lane would be his first since the month of May, and would come on the heels of suffering blown engine only a week before.

“That was kinda cool when we blew up”, grinned Zardo in victory lane, tongue firmly planted in cheek “the new engine set us back some money, but we’ve got more power at the end of the straightaways. She’s a rocket!”

“I saw Randy [Rusnell] beside me late in the race. He had me second guessing myself, because I knew how good he’s been on restarts. I was able to just keep my cool and take off”

Rob Krystal would open up the night’s feature competition with his first career Mini Stock win.

July 21st Event Report

2012-07-21 #47 Stompin' Tom Walters Limited Late Model Victory Lane Interview	2012-07-21 #46 Lane Zardo Super Stock Victory Lane Interview	2012-07-21 #99 Rob Krystal Mini Stock Victory Lane Interview
#47 Tom Walters Limited Late Model 2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Class Results and Standings	#46 Lane Zardo Super Stock 1987 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Class Results and Standings	#99 Rob Krystal Mini Stock 1991 Ford Mustang Class Results and Standings
#66 Josh Nicholson Pro-Challenge Class Results and Standings	2012-07-21 Sunset Speedway Ontario Pro Challenge Series Josh Nicholson Victory Lane Interview