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(Stafford Springs, CT)—For Stafford Speedway Late Model driver Chris Meyer, the 2024 season is shaping up to be a season full of promise. Meyer and his #87 Mayday Oil / JSP / Casella Waste notched their first Late Model victory in the season ending NAPA Championship Night feature event and with a winter full of improvements, Meyer is looking forward to getting back on track.
“I think our win gives us a ton of momentum,” said Meyer. “We had the car stripped apart, the engine up to the machine shop, and the chassis ready to go to the chassis shop within a week of the last race finishing. We’ve shored up some things that we were weak on last season like our crew being inexperienced on pit road and stuff with tires, we’re building our spares up, and we got some new setup tools that will help us up our game in the shop. We’re working really hard this winter to try to end up as a contender. My Dad and I talk about the season every single day and this is probably the most excited we’ve been for a season in a long time or maybe even ever. We’re coming off a win and everything on the car is fresh. The rear has been done, the motor is fresh, the transmission is new, and we just got the car back from Bob Fill and everything looks perfect. We’ve never been more prepared and we’re all very excited.”
Meyer began racing at Stafford in the Street Stock division for the 2020 season and in two seasons of competition, he scored 7 wins and finished second in the points in both years. 2022 saw Meyer move up to the Late Model division driving for Scott Cook where he posted 6 top-10 finishes in 10 races before he moved back to his family owned #87 car for the 2023 season. Meyer put together 4 top-5 and 11 top-10 finishes leading up to his first feature win in the final race of his rookie season.
“Making the move into the Late Models was a lot tougher than I thought it was going to be,” said Meyer. “We moved up and went racing with Scott Cook for about half a season and I’m very appreciative of my time working with Scott. I learned a lot about driving the car and really got my feet wet in the Late Model division. For sure just having experience was a big thing for me. I had never driven a Late Model style car before and I learned a lot about the suspension, working with a 3-link rear, and what kind of shocks and springs to run. Having that experience allowed me to know what kind of feel I was looking for in the car versus just showing up to the track with no idea. I definitely think we wouldn’t have had as good of a season as we did if it wasn’t for the time working together with Scott.”
With Meyer’s first Late Model victory helping to propel him to fifth place in the final 2023 Late Model standings, he has his eyes set on multiple feature wins in 2024 and running consistently among the top contenders every Friday night.
“It’s really tough to win races in the Late Model division,” said Meyer. “Our first goal is to compete for podium finishes and it might be a tall task, but I want to win at least 3 races this season. I feel like we’re getting things figured out and my driving has improved substantially throughout last year, and we have really good equipment. I don’t really have any excuses that I can use anymore. When you look at the Late Model division, there’s guys like Kevin Gambacorta, Adam Gray, Tom Fearn, and Wayne Coury, Jr. who are at the top of the standings and they’re all usually right around that 3 win mark every season. I’d like to be able to compete with those guys and if we can beat a few of them, then I know I did my job. I think with a lot of hard work, we could be there with those guys.”
Meyer’s first opportunity to add another win to his total will be the 52nd Annual NAPA Spring Sizzler®, set for April 27-28. The NAPA Spring Sizzler® kicks off on Saturday, April 27th and will consist of two 40-lap NAPA Duel qualifying races for the Open Modified division. The 40-lap races will each pay $3,500 to win and will set the field for Sunday’s NAPA Spring Sizzler®. Stafford’s Late Model, Limited Late Model, and Street Stock divisions will complete Saturday’s racing program with qualifying and feature racing.
Order 52nd NAPA Spring Sizzler® Tickets
Sponsor a NAPA Spring Sizzler® Lap
Sunday, April 28th will play host to the $20,000 to win 52nd NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler®. Filling out Sunday’s racing card will be qualifying and feature racing for the SK Modified® and SK Light Modified divisions along with last chance qualifiers for the NAPA Spring Sizzler®.
For more information, visit staffordspeedway.com, follow Stafford Speedway on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or contact the track office at 860-684-2783.
