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HHP/Jacy Norgaard photo
NORTH WILKESBORO, N.C. (Oct. 20, 2024) – Justin Bonsignore was at it again on Sunday at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Bonsignore and his No. 51 team followed a victory in Saturday’s SMART Modified Tour 99 with a triumph in Sunday’s Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race. Bonsignore took the lead of the Sunday afternoon tilt on Lap 10, relinquishing it one time for a pit stop during the race’s only caution on Lap 27, ultimately leading 130 of the 150 laps to take his second elevator ride to Victory Lane.
“This car is two for two this year. We brought it out at the best part of the year,” Bonsignore said. “Great job to everybody. My buddy Ryan Stone (crew chief) has been working his guts out and these cars have been lights out. We won last week up at Thompson and won last night here. It’s just really special. Can’t thank (team owners) Ken and Janine Massa enough.
“This is 15 years and 44 wins, and it’s really special to do it in that fashion like we did today. I don’t think we’ve had a car that dominant. This series is really tough. Just waiting for Matt (Hirschman) to turn it on and start running us down. Gotta thank all my sponsors and the entire pit crew. This is a tough three-week stretch to get these cars turned around and go try to win this deal in Martinsville.”
“Big Money” Matt Hirschman jumped to the lead over pole sitter Austin Beers on Lap 1, but was overtaken by Bonsignore shortly after. Hirschman held off all challengers to finish second, also repeating his SMART Modified Tour finish from Saturday night. Beers finished third over a hard-charging Patrick Emerling in fourth and Tyler Rypkema completed the top five.
“You just don’t know if your car is going to fall off a cliff or not,” continued Bonsignore. “Our car maintained those 18.0s (laps) basically the entire race and my spotter did a great job of telling me where other guys were running and making time, and that helped a lot. Just want to thank everyone and especially the fans for coming out. We know it’s tough with everything that’s gone on in this region of the country the last couple of weeks and we really appreciate your support. On to Martinsville, and I am sure it’s going to be a battle.”
Bonsignore came in to the weekend trailing Ron Silk in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour’s championship battle, but leaves 10 points ahead of Silk after the driver of the No. 16 finished 11th. The series’ crown will be decided next weekend at Martinsville Speedway. The win is Bonsignore’s 44th series victory, tying him with modified racing legend Reggie Ruggiero for second on the all-time wins list.
The race capped off a jam-packed weekend of racing at the historic venue, also featuring the CARS Tour and SMART Modified Tour races on Saturday night.
Racing will return to the .625-mile facility in 2025 with the NASCAR All-Star Race on May 18.
MORE INFO: Fans can connect with North Wilkesboro Speedway and get the latest news regarding the 2025 NASCAR All-Star Race and all events at North Wilkesboro by following on X and Instagram, or becoming a Facebook fan.
