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(Stafford Springs, CT)—Stafford Speedway hosted Weekly Racing on Friday, May 16th with SK Lights taking part in a special 30-lap extra distance feature. The night saw Keith Rocco win the 40-lap SK Modified® feature in a thrilling finish between himself, Jon Puleo, and Michael Christopher, Jr. that saw several lead changes and a 3-wide move in the final laps before Rocco came away with the checkered flag. Other winners on the night were Paul Varricchio, Jr. in the Late Model feature, Nickolas Hovey in the SK Light feature, Matt Clement in the Limited Late Model feature, and Aaron Plemons in the Street Stock feature. Varricchio, Hovey, and Clement were all repeat winners from NAPA Spring Sizzler® Weekend.
In the 40-lap SK Modified® feature event, Troy Talman streaked into the lead from the second starting position at the drop of the green flag to set the early pace. Anthony Flannery was second in line with Todd Owen and Michael Gervais, Jr. wheel to wheel for third and Michael Christopher, Jr. fifth. Flannery worked his way to the inside of Talman on lap-7 to move into the lead but Talman made a crossover move and had the lead at the line to complete lap-7 by a nose. Talman got clear into the lead on lap-8 with Owen taking second. Christopher and Flannery were now side by side for third with Gervais in fifth place.
Owen charged his way by Talman on lap-12 to take over the lead. Owen’s move allowed Christopher to follow him past Talman to take second and drop Talman back to third. Gervais was now fourth behind Talman with Jon Puleo up to fifth. Alex Pearl spun in turn 4 to bring the caution flag out with 14 laps complete.
Owen took the lead on the restart with Christopher glued to his back bumper. Gervais was third in line with Puleo fourth and Keith Rocco taking fifth from Talman on lap-17. Christopher took the lead from Owen on lap-18 and Gervais followed Christopher to the inside of Owen and he took second on lap-18. Puleo followed Christopher by Owen on lap-19 while Keith Rocco took fourth to drop Owen back to fifth as Christopher continued to lead.
Puleo was working Christopher over and looked to have a pass made for the lead but that was negated by the caution flag with 24 laps complete as Flannery spun in turn 2.
Christopher took the lead back under green with Rocco working his way into second. Puleo was third in line with Owen fourth and Tyler Chapman up to fifth. Chapman took fourth from Owen on lap-28 while Rocco took the lead from Christopher on lap-29. Christopher went right back by Rocco on lap-30 to retake the lead. Puleo followed Christopher by Rocco to take second and drop Rocco back to third. Chapman was now fourth with Mikey Flynn up to fifth. John Sandberg’s car looked to lose an engine with a puff of smoke and his car starting to leak fluid on the track with 32 laps complete to bring the caution flag out.
Puleo took the lead on the restart while Rocco went 3-wide with Christopher and Flynn to take second. Christopher settled into third with Flynn fourth and Owen side by side with Chapman for fifth. Rocco continued his charge as he took the lead from Christopher on lap-35. With 3 laps to go it was Rocco in front with Christopher and Puleo side by side for second. Christopher took second as they completed lap-37 and was right on Rocco’s bumper as they completed lap-38. Going into turn 3 on the final lap, Christopher gave Rocco a slight tap and both cars went up the track, opening the low groove up for Puleo. As they came out of turn 4, Rocco was in the lead with Puleo to his inside and Rocco beat Puleo to the line in a drag race by less than a car length in a thrilling finish to score his first win of the 2025 season. Christopher finished third with Flynn and Wesley Prucker rounding out the top-5.
In the 30-lap Late Model feature event, Scott Foster, Jr. and Chris Buffone brought the field to the green and they went door to door for the lead on the opening 2 laps before Chris Meyer went 3-wide on lap-3 to pass them both and emerge with the lead. Foster and Buffone were now still door to door for second with Alexandra Fearn in fourth and Wayne Coury, Jr. in fifth. Meyer began to stretch out his advantage over Foster in second and Fearn up to third. Buffone spun in turn 3 to bring the caution flag out with 6 laps complete.
Meyer took the lead back under green but the field was only able to complete one lap before the caution came back out for Coury, who came to a stop on the track just before the pit road entrance.
Andrew Durand took the lead from Meyer on the restart with Meyer settling into second. Kevin Gambacorta took third with Foster fourth and Fearn fifth. Just behind Fearn was Darrell Keane, Bobby Stirk, III, Adam Gray, Paul Varricchio, Jr., Tom Fearn, and Buffone. Meyer made a move to the inside of Durand for the lead on lap-13 but got sideways after the 2 cars touched briefly with Meyer holding onto second. The caution came back out with 13 laps complete for an incident in turn 3 that saw Gambacorta lose a right front tire and get into the turn 3 wall, which collected the car of Foster. Meyer was sent to the rear of the field for making contact with Gambacorta.
Durand took the lead on the restart with Keane taking second. Varricchio was up to third with Tom Fearn fourth and Alexandra Fearn fifth. Adam Gray spun into the turn 3 wall to bring the caution back out with 16 laps complete. Gambacorta was sent to the rear of the field for making contact with Gray.
Durand again took the elad back under green with Varricchio hot on his bumper in second. Alexandra Fearn moved into third with Keane fourth and Tom Fearn back to fifth. Buffone was now back up to sixth followed by Meyer, Stirk, Adon Burrell, Gambacorta, and Gray. Varricchio was hounding Durand for the lead but Durand was able to fend off his challenges. Varricchio worked his way to the inside of Durand on lap-23 and he was finally able to make a pass on lap-24 to move into the lead. Durand was able to stay in second place just in front of Alexandra Fearn and Keane, who were waging a battle for third place.
Varricchio pulled away from Durand over the final laps to secure his second consecutive Late Model feature win of the 2025 season. Alexandra Fearn held off Keane for third with Meyer rounding out the top-5.
In the 30-lap SK Light feature event, Meghan Fuller took the lead at the drop of the green flag with Nick Anglace and Casey Vogt going wheel to wheel for second with Joey Ferrigno and Paul Arute lined up behind them. Nickolas Hovey took fifth from Arute on lap-5 while Fuller was starting to stretch out her lead. Anglace took second ahead of Vogt before the caution flew with 6 laps complete for a spin by Sophya Papp at the end of the frontstretch.
Anglace and Fuller went wheel to wheel for the lead with Vogt third, Hovey fourth, and Joey Ferrigno fifth. Anglace got clear into the lead while Fuller slipped back several spots to fourth on lap-10 after getting loose in turn 4. Vogt held off a strong challenge from Hovey on lap-12 to maintain second place behind Anglace. Fuller was still fourth with Ferrigno fifth, just in front of Brian Sullivan and Amanda West.
Vogt made a move to the inside of Anglace on lap-15 to take over the race lead. That move allowed Hovey to get by Anglace on lap-16 to move into second and Fuller took third on lap-17 to drop Anglace back to fourth. Sullivan got around Ferrigno and was now in fifth place. Hovey took the lead from Vogt on lap-18 with a move in turn 2 with Vogt slotting into second with Fuller right behind him in third. Austin Goff and Steve Midford both spun coming out of turn 2 to bring the caution flag back out with 20 laps complete.
The restart saw Joey Ferrigno spin in turn 1 with several others spinning to avoid him including Papp and Arute to bring the caution flag immediately back out before a lap could be completed.
Hovey took the lead back under green with Fuller taking second. Sullivan was side by side with Vogt for third with Anglace and West side by side for fifth. Anglace won the duel with West while Sullivan finally got clear from Vogt on lap-25 to take third. West came back to the inside of Anglace and took fifth on lap-26 while Fuller was still trying to chase down Hovey at the front of the field.
Fuller couldn’t get close enough to Hovey as Hovey took down his second win of the 2025 season. Sullivan finished third with Vogt and West rounding out the top-5.
In the 20-lap Limited Late Model feature event, Matt Winter moved from third to the lead at the drop of the green flag before the caution came out with 1 lap complete for a spin in turn 2 that involved multiple cars including Darryl Vertefeuille, RJ Surdell, Gary Patnode, Rich Hammann, Jason Lafayette, and Jeremy Lavoie.
Winter took the lead back under green with Devon Jencik settling into second after taking a look at Winter for the lead. Kyle Theriault was third in line with Matt Clement up to fourth and Adrian Paradis, III in fifth. Travis Hydar took fifth from Paradis on lap-4 and that move brought Kevin Cormier up to sixth and Lafayette seventh while dropping Paradis back to eighth place.
Theriault spun coming out of turn 2 on lap-8 but he was able to keep moving and the race stayed green with Winter still leading Jencik. Clement was now third behind the two leaders with Hydar fourth and Cormier fifth. Debris on the track brought the caution flag back out with 10 laps complete.
Winter took the lead on the restart with Clement moving into second after nearly taking the lead from Winter. Cormier was up to third with Lafayette and Hydar dueling door to door for fourth place. Lafayette won that battle on lap-13 and his move brought Paradis up to fifth which dropped Hydar back to sixth.
With 5 laps to go, Clement was still searching for a way to get around Winter for the lead and he made his move on lap-16 to take over the lead. Cormier got loose in turn 2 on lap-17 and slipped back to sixth as Lafayette took third, Paradis fourth, and Jencik fifth.
Clement led Winter to the checkered flag to pick up his second consecutive win to start the 2025 season. Jencik came home third with Paradis nipping Cormier at the line for fourth.
In the 20-lap Street Stock feature event, Aaron Plemons led the field to the green flag and he took the early lead with Jeff Asselin, Brandon Warren, Sean Petlock, and Bill Cote lined up behind him. The caution flew with 2 laps complete for a spin in turn 2 by Brennan Murdza.
Plemons took the lead back under green with Warren slotting into second. Cote moved into third with Asselin fourth and Petlock fifth. Marvin Minkler was sixth followed by Tyler Trott, Bert Ouellette, Travis Downey, and Johnny Walker. Warren made a bid for the lead in turns 3+4 on lap-5 but Plemons was able to hold him off. Walker spun in turn 2 as did Garrett Pease and Matt Martel to avoid the Walker car to bring the caution flag back out with 5 laps complete.
Plemons again took the lead on the restart with Cote moving into second. Warren was third in line with Asselin fourth and Minkler fifth. At the halfway point of the race it was still Plemons out front followed by Cote, Warren, Asselin, and Ouellette, who got around Minkler for fifth place. The caution came back out with 12 laps complete for David Dorosh, who got into the turn 4 wall.
Plemons took the lead on the restart while behind him the cars of Cote Warren touched in turn 4 with Cote going around in front of the field which collected the cars of Alex Spinnato, David Macha, Sr., Ouellette, and Petlock and brought the caution flag back out before a lap could be completed.
Plemons again took the lead as the race resumed with Asselin taking second. Minkler settled into third with Trott moving into fourth and Downey taking fifth. Jason Raymond was sixth followed by Kolton Gambacorta, Isabella Minchella, David Ciastko, and Walker was back up to 10th after his earlier spin. Trott got by Minkler to move into third on lap-19, but Minchella spun in turn 3 to bring the caution to negate that pass and set up a green white checkered finish. Ciastko was sent to the rear of the field by Stafford officials for making contact with Minchella.
Plemons took the lead with Asselin, Minkler, Trott, and Raymond lined up behind him. Plemons led Asselin to the checkered flag to pick up his first win of the season and his first Street Stock victory at Stafford. Trott finished third with Minkler and Raymond rounding out the top-5.
For more information contact the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at (860) 684-2783, or visit us on the web at www.staffordspeedway.com.
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SK MODIFIED® (40)
1) Keith Rocco, Berlin
2) Jon Puleo, Branford
3) Michael Christopher, Jr., Wolcott
4) Mikey Flynn, Hampden, MA
5) Wesley Prucker, Stafford Springs
6) Todd Owen, Somers
7) Tyler Chapman, Ellington
8) Cory DiMatteo, Farmington
9) Dylan Izzo, Monroe
10) Steven Chapman, Ellington
11) Michael Gervais, Jr., Wolcott
12) Dylan Kopec, East Longmeadow, MA
13) Marcello Rufrano, North Haven
14) Troy Talman, Oxford, MA
15) David Arute, Tolland
16) Andrew Molleur, Shelton
17) Alexander Pearl, Salem
18) Dan Avery, Somers
19) Anthony Flannery, East Hampton
20) Curt Brainard, Canton
21) John Sandberg, South Windsor
22) Art Caruso, Windsor
LATE MODEL (30)
1) Paul Varricchio, Jr., Berlin
2) Andrew Durand, Chicopee, MA
3) Alexandra Fearn, Hampden, MA
4) Darrell Keane, Enfield
5) Chris Meyer, Franklin
6) Bobby Stirk, III, Naugatuck
7) Tom Fearn, East Longmeadow, MA
8) Chris Buffone, Belchertown, MA
9) Kevin Gambacorta, Ellington
10) Adon Burrell, Barkhamsted
11) Adam Gray, Granby, MA
12) Scott Foster, Jr., Enfield
13) Wayne Coury, Jr., Milford
SK LIGHT MODIFIED (30)
1) Nickolas Hovey, Chaplin
2) Meghan Fuller, Auburn, MA
3) Brian Sullivan, Tolland
4) Casey Vogt, Windsor Locks
5) Amanda West, Colchester
6) Daltin McCarthy, Oxford, MA
7) Dean Lambros, Northport, NY
8) Peter Bennett, Windsor
9) Nick Anglace, Seymour
10) Zach Aszklar, Newtown
11) Robert Bloxsom, III, Milford
12) Ron Midford, Jr., Ellington
13) Chris Matthews, Stafford
14) Frank L’Etoile, Jr., Wethersfield
15) Paul Arcari, Somers
16) Carsten Cole, Westbrook
17) Norm Sears, Coventry
18) Matt Brewer, Norwich
19) Joey Ferrigno, East Hartford
20) Wade Gagner, East Longmeadow, MA
21) Josh Morrison, Ashford
22) Sami Anderson, Wolcott
23) Paul Arute, Tolland
24) David Webb, Nashville, TN
25) Sophya Papp, Goshen
26) Jake Hines, North Haven
27) Steve Midford, Ellington
28) Austin Goff, Stafford Springs
SK Light DNQ’s
Cassandra Cole, Westbrook
Bob Charland, Stafford Springs
Aiden D’Agata, Willington
Ben Morrison, Ashford
Kyle Pinkham, Enfield
Stephen Kalogiannis, New Hartford
Anthony Forino, Waterbury
Jason Finkbein, Manchester
Dylan Houghton, Springfield, MA
LIMITED LATE MODEL (20)
1) Matt Clement, Wethersfield
2) Matthew Winter, II, Springfield, VT
3) Devon Jencik, Canton
4) Adrien Paradis, III, Plainville
5) Kevin Cormier, Springfield, VT
6) Jason Lafayette, Somers
7) Travis Hydar, Woodbury
8) Ari Jencik, Canton
9) Kyle Theriault, Three Rivers, MA
10) Darryl Vertefeuille, Willington
11) Samantha Dell, Pascoag, RI
12) Scott Clement, Wethersfield
13) Connor Jencik, Canton
14) RJ Surdell, Willington
15) Gary Patnode, Barkhamsted
16) Rich Hammann, Tolland
17) Jeremy Lavoie, Windsor Locks
STREET STOCK (20)
1) Aaron Plemons, Uncasville
2) Jeff Asselin, Granby, MA
3) Tyler Trott, East Hartford
4) Marvin Minkler, Stamford
5) Jason Raymond, Somers
6) Bert Ouellette, Ellington
7) Travis Downey, Barkhamsted
8) Brandon Warren, Chicopee, MA
9) Kolton Gambacorta, Ellington, CT Bill Cote, Belchertown, MA
10) Johnny Walker, Agawam, MA
11) Pete Cayer, Bristol
12) Sean Petlock, Ware, MA David Macha, Sr., Columbia
13) Kyle Johnson, Manchester
14) Rob Sears, Stafford Springs
15) David Dorosh
16) Isabella Minchella, Somers
17) Matt Martel, Stafford Springs
18) Garrett Pease, Enfield
19) Andras Bogi, Macungie, PA
20) Roger Mahieu, Goshen
21) David Ciastko, Madison
22) James Devoe, Naugatuck
23) Bill Cote, Belchertown, MA
24) David Macha, Sr., Columbia
25) Alex Spinnato, Wallingford
26) Brent Gleason, Griswold
27) Brennan Murdza, Chicopee, MA
