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By Brandon White NASCAR.com
A return to Monadnock Speedway for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour this weekend means the fight for the Granite State Short Track Cup is back on.
Created by JDV Productions founder Josh Vanada, the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup encompasses the three NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour events at Monandnock this season. More than $20,000 in bonus money is up for grabs throughout the three-race race program, including $6,000 that will be distributed to the top-three finishers in the final standings.
The most recent NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event at Monadnock on May 4 showed that the Granite State Short Track Cup is still wide open. Defending champion Ron Silk and Anthony Sesely led a combined 96 laps in the Granite State Derby, but it was Jake Johnson who emerged victorious in the famous No. 3 Ole Blue Modified.
Johnson will have to deal with the usual sturdy contingent of NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour stalwarts and Monadnock regulars in Saturday’s Duel at the Dog 250 if he wishes to maintain his chance of joining Matt Hirschman and Doug Coby as a Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup champion.
Tickets to the Duel at the Dog 250 are available here. Below is everything to know about the second leg of the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup.
Duel at the Dog 250 at Monadnock Speedway
Of the drivers entered in Saturday’s Duel at the Dog 250, none have been more successful at Monadnock Speedway than Justin Bonsignore.
The three-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion has visited Victory Lane at Monadnock Speedway on five different occasions during his career. During the Winchester Fair event one season ago, nobody in the field passed Bonsignore as he put together a wire-to-wire performance from the pole.
Bonsignore’s historic Monadnock efficiency made it a surprise when he failed to lead a lap in the Granite State Derby in May. Settling for an atypical, quiet sixth-place finish, Bonsignore is seeking to re-establish his dominance at Monadnock less than a month after claiming his third victory at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
A sixth Monadnock trophy would provide Bonsignore some crucial momentum towards usurping rival Ron Silk in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour standings. Silk finds himself in the middle of another championship-caliber campaign, yet enters Saturday’s Duel at the Dog 250 having never visited Victory Lane at Monadnock.
Both Silk and Bonsignore will have to deal with the most recent NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Monadnock winner in Jake Johnson. That victory served as Johnson’s breakthrough triumph in the series, which also contributed to him building a comfortable advantage over Bonsignore and Silk in the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup.
Other notable names set to compete at Monadnock on Saturday include 2022 Granite State Short Track Cup champion Matt Hirschman, May Monadnock winner Jake Johnson, the returning Woody Pitkat, Matt Kimball, Stephen Kopcik, and Kyle Ebersole, among others.
The complete entry list for the Duel at the Dog 250 is available here.
RACE FACTS:
| Race | Duel at the Dog 250 |
| Date | Saturday, July 20, 2024 |
| Track | Monadnock Speedway |
| Layout | 0.25-mile asphalt oval |
| Location | Winchester, New Hampshire |
| Start time | 8 p.m. ET |
| Laps | 250 |
| Posted awards | $85,234 |
| Tickets | Here |
| How to watch | FloRacing |
Schedule: Saturday, July 20 … Final practice from 3:15 to 4 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 6:15 p.m. ET … Duel at the Dog 250 at 8 p.m. ET (FloRacing).
Qualifying: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the Duel at the Dog 250 is limited to 28 starters including Provisional Positions.
Re-draw procedure: The fastest qualifier will draw a pill to determine the number of drivers that will re-draw for their starting positions: 4, 6, 8 or 10 positions will re-draw. Once the fastest qualifier draws the initial pill, NASCAR will have the various buckets ready to immediately start the re-draw procedure. Drivers will re-draw in their qualifying order after qualifying has been completed (1 through 10, or however many are applicable). The pole position and/or any bonus point(s), if applicable, will be awarded to the fastest qualifier and will be the pole of record.
Tire allotment: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is nine (9) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event. The tire change rule is one (1) tire per caution period.
