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Riverhead, NY Aug. 2nd
By Bob Finan
Throw in some midweek mayhem featuring a School Bus Demolition Derby, grassroots stock car racing on a beautiful summer evening and the result is a packed house Wednesday night at Riverhead Raceway. Among the Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series winner during the midweek special were Rhett Fogg of Westhampton in the Street Stocks, Reid Halpin of Wading River in the Bock Auto Bandolero Bandits and Ben Morabito of Miller Place in the Bock Auto Bandolero Outlaws.
Last time the Street Stocks saw action, Rhett Fogg was unable to start the race due to engine issues, Wednesday he atoned for the DNS by leading all 20-laps to score his first win of 2023, 3rd of his career. Starting from the front row Fogg zipped to the early race lead over Alyssa Paprocky after they ran side by side for nearly the first two circuits. Championship leader Brian McCormack poked his nose into the fight for the win when he passed Paprocky for second on lap 4. However, shortly after arriving in second McCormack surrendered the spot to Brian Brown who charged his way from a mid-pack starting berth. Once to second Brown was all over Fogg in an attempt to wrestle the lead away. Lap after lap Brown would try and gain a run to the inside exiting the corners but to no avail. At the conclusion Rhett Fogg sat in victory lane with his reinvigorated McBetts Racing Engine under the hood. Brian Brown of Calverton was runner-up in the Eastport Feeds Chevy, with defending champion Dave Antos of Lindenhurst third in the EP Milling & Sweeping Monte Carlo. Antos made his presence known from third in the waning laps of the race waiting for the two leaders to make an error.
In the 15-lap Bock Auto INEX Bandolero main event Reid Halpin knew starting in 9th he’d have to make some fancy early race moves to get to the front. Nobody, including Reid himself could have predicted what happened next. On the recent advice of his crew chief Chevy Rommeny, Halpin has learned how to roll the outside, which he did Wednesday. When the green flag dropped, Halpin, after passing a car or two low swung to the outside and exiting turn two made it four wide with the right side of his car up against the concrete wall. By the time the 12-car field came to complete the first lap Halpin was the race leader with Mason Goodale, making some bold moves of his own quickly coming to second. With no caution flags displayed during the event Reid Halpin in the Couch Racer entry drove off to a convincing win, his second in a row and third of 2023.In just his fourth start Mason Goodale continues to impress with a runner-up tally in the Terra Vite Winery & Vineyards entry while Emmett Grattan of Southold placed third in the IGA Food Markets racer.
Less than 24 hours after winning the Cook Out Summer Shootout Summer Series Bandolero championship, Ben Morabito was back in the cockpit of the Benimax Trucking Outlaw at Riverhead trying to pad his local championship lead in a 15-lap affair. Gavin Romano moved to the race lead at the throw of the green with Morabito quickly darting to second. For the first dozen laps of the tilt Romano looked as though he might earn his first career win, but Morabito had other plans. With just three laps left in the contest Morabito dove to the inside of Romano in the third and fourth corner coming away with the race lead, a lead he’d keep until the checker earning his 4th win of 2023, 7th of his career. After losing the lead Romano’s night went south falling off the podium as Cillian Tennant of Riverhead crossed the line second in the Miller & Caggiano Attorney At Law machine. Will Sipala of Manorville was third in the JD Posillico Contracting racer.
Another driver racing their way to a second consecutive win was Jarrett Campbell of Yaphank in the ROC Financial Chevy. Tested tough veteran Gary Voight showed the way for the first 10-laps of the race before Campbell came calling for the lead. Once out-front Jarrett, who also races part-time in the Blundebust division never looked back. Gary Voight of Medford was second in the A. Voight Towing truck, Phil LaManna of Smithtown came from deep in the field to finish third in the EP Milling & Sweeping S-10.
For the second 8-Cylinder Enduro in a row, Woot Lawrence of Southampton was in the right place, at the right time late in the 40-lap contest. For the second race in a row, Greg Harris of Riverhead was snake bitten, losing a lead with three laps to go, again. Harris had taken the lead away from Richie Carman on lap 26 in lapped traffic in turn four. Once again as the laps clicked off, Harris looked like a winner. Last time out a flat tire snagged defeat from the jaws of victory for Harris. This time a lapped car turned Harris around in turn four. Woot Lawrence who methodically made his way towards the front after a bad pill draw was ready to pounce moving his Gregor Well Drilling Camaro into the lead with two laps remaining. Following Woot at the finish were, Anthony Pizzo of Lake Ronkonkoma in the Fleming Landscapes Chevy and Kevin Feeney of East Quogue in the Ham Racing machine.
The luck of the pill draw was clearly on the side of 4/6-Cylinder Gut & Go Enduro driver Zach Tyler of Cutchogue who drew the outside pole for their 40-lap feature. At the throw of the green Tyler drove away from pole sitter Ray Stulz, an INEX Legend Race Car competitor who returned to his racing roots for the midweek special. Once in command Tyler in the Miller & Caggiano Attorney at Law mount led the entire distance for his first win of the season. John Palmeri of Lindenhurst was runner-up in the J&J Towing racer with Chris Olivari of Coram third in the Middle Country Automotive machine.
The School Bus Demolition Derby saw Jon Calfa of Mastic Beach score an upset win over Michael “Cheesebox” Rommeney of Bohemia. Calfa, in his Mercedes Meat Market bus made the last hit on Rommeney who had just lost the entire front axle of his bus. It was Calfa’s first career win.
Street Stocks: 1. Rhett Fogg 2. Brian Brown 3. Dave Antos 4. Brian McCormack 5. Danny Pizzo 6. Dennis Kurras 7. Alysasa Paprocky 8. Kyle Curtis 9. Ricky Carman 10. Kyle Halpin 11. Kim Hyde 12. PJ McGay 13. James DiPietro 14. Gerard Lawrence 15. Jake Curran
Bock Auto Bandolero Bandits: 1. Reid Halpin 2. Mason Goodale 3. Emmett Grattan 4. Kix Bock 5. Aria Ligon 6. Blake Grattan 7. Antonio D’Alonzo 8. Christian Ryan 9. Aiden Pelis 10. Brooke Meyer 11. Jordan Ryan 12. Layla Quilliam
Bock Auto Bandolero Outlaws: 1. Ben Morabito 2. Cillian Tennant 3. Will Sipala 4. Phillip Alaimo 5. Gavin Romano 6. Jayden Owens-Bader 7. Giavanna Agugliaro 8. Madison Tomaszeski 9. Nick Hodge 10. Tucker Bock
Truck Enduro: 1. Jarrett Campbell 2. Gary Voight 3. Phil LaManna 4. Bobby Pease Jr. 5. Don Nelson Jr. 6. Justin McGrady 7. Whitney Williams 8. Mariah Lawrence 9. Bobby Pease 10. Kerry Botts 11. William Kennedy 12. Emily Hubbard 13. Steve Reisert 14. Jackie Germuth 15. Ryan Warren 16. Brandon LaManna 17. Kayla Kelly 18. Chloe Phillips 19. James Kelly 20. Rob Bader 21, Danielle Creegan
8-Cylinder Enduro: 1. Woot Lawrence 2. Anthony Pizzo 3. Kevin Feeney 4. Greg Harris 5. Pat Collins 6. Richie Carman 7. Jimmy Muench 8. Kevin Coyle 9. Roger Tramm 10. Jack McCarthy Jr. 11. Steve Jones 12. Dave Sandel 13. Christian Kalbfleisch 14. Jeremy Rand 15. Ricky Carman 16. Jess Martines Jr. 17. Pat Collins Jr. 18. Tim Healy 19. James Heym 20. Dwayne Sipila 21. Cutter Gera 22. Anthony Copbianco 23. Carmine Ragus 24. Justin Squires 25. David Verbeek 26. Moody Enaya 27. Kale Buckley 28. Joe Boccia 29. Chris Smith 30. Eric Germuth 31. Will Ebert
4/6-Cylinder Gut & Go Enduro: 1. Zach Tyler 2. John Palmeri 3. Chris Olivari 4. Kevin Coyle 5. Frank Raynor 6. Dave Olivari 7. Franky Abbatiello 8. Rob Izzo 9. Vinny Abbatiello 10. Jeremy Rand 11. Will Raynor 12. Tyler Farrell 13. Jese Bichsel 14. Eoughan Heyward 15. Anthony Fioiglio 16. Ray Stulz 17. Sean Neenan 18. David Duran 19. Bob Dalke 20. Jack Tessa 21. AJ DeSantis 22. Joe Brodman 23. John Handley 24. Ryan T. Warren 25. Michael Fragola 26. Will Burns 27. Anthony Paretta 28. Tallen Rusell 29. Mike Mujsce III 30. Alex Schewire 31. Joey Palmeri 32. Will Farrell 33. Jake Rivera 34. Liam Macwhinne 35. Hans Kiessing 36. Joe Warren Jr. 37. Jacob Hartard 38. Joseph Rodriquez
School Bus Demolition Derby: Winner- Joh Calfa
