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By Jeff Brown, for Granite State Pro Stock Series
WALPOLE, N.H. — The Granite State Pro Stock Series presented by Hudson International Speedway wraps up a busy two-weekend stretch in the Pine Tree State this Sunday, with over $35,000 up for grabs for the winner alone in the biggest race of the 2026 season.
Speedway Presented by Bar Harbor Bank & Trust welcomes the GSPSS for its third race of the season and its second event in two weeks, as the third-mile oval in Hermon, Maine, closes out its first year under owner Ricky Craven with the Bar Harbor Bank & Trust 200.
While Sunday’s inaugural 200-lap tilt crowns the champion of Speedway’s revived Darling’s Pro Stock Series, it is the penultimate race of the GSPSS schedule as the series wraps up its 15th full season of competition on October 25 at Claremont Motorsports Park in New Hampshire.
The season-long championship battle takes its final form following Sunday’s checkered flag, with Massachusetts’ Jeremy Sorel leading 2020 GSPSS titlist Joey Polewarczyk by 26 markers with two races to go. “Joey Pole” has chipped away at the advantage Sorel has managed since April, but Sunday’s race represents his best opportunity to turn the tables on the hopeful first-time champ.
For everyone else in the field, there are literally thousands of reasons to vie for victory. With a series-record $15,000 winner’s share bolstered by $21,000 in lap leader earnings, Sunday’s winner could take home over $35,000 in winnings—but a driver coming up short could still pocket a purse rivaling the winner’s take.
Setting the field for Sunday’s 200 green flag laps begins with time trials Saturday, with 2026 Speedway feature winners guaranteed a top-ten starting berth. The top ten qualifiers will face off in a heat race Sunday to set their lineup, while additional heats will set positions 11 through 24 on the grid. A consi will lock in the final eight slots for a 32-car starting lineup.
Atop the short list of favorites is Stan Meserve Classic winner and Darling’s Pro Stock Series points leader D.J. Shaw, the all-time winningest driver in GSPSS history. Shaw’s last scheduled series start of 2026 takes him to a track where he has won three times this season already.
Austin Teras drove to victory at Speedway in June, and is joined by fellow former GSPSS Speedway feature winners Mike Hopkins, Josh St. Clair, and points challenger Evan Beaulieu, who swept last year’s Speedway races.
Sorel, Polewarczyk and Beaulieu are accompanied by a handful of GSPSS regulars striving to end their seasons on a high note: Maine’s Jamie Wright, 2024 GSPSS champ Casey Call, fellow Granite Stater Dan Winter, rookie Matt Beers, and Bay Stater Alex Quarterley.
Reigning champion Cole Robie returns in search of another win this year, while two-time former champ Joey Doiron is set to make his first GSPSS start since winning last season’s finale. Angelo Belsito is a multi-time GSPSS feature winner with a long winless streak to snap.
Sylas Ripley, the rising star from Maine’s Mid-Coast region, finished second to Shaw last week and wants to do one better before the year is out. Ripley tops a list of rising Pine Tree State talent that includes Matt Bourgoine and Tiger Colby.
Offsetting the youth movement are decorated veterans Cassius Clark and Hall of Famer Mike Rowe, who made his GSPSS debut last weekend at the tender age of 76. Brandon Barker, second in GSPSS points in 2023, and Dave Farrington, Jr., would love to pick up another GSPSS win this weekend.
Ryan Messer, who made his American Pro Stock debut last week with a seventh-place finish, has company from the Canadian Maritimes this week, as veteran racer Lonnie Sommerville also plans a trek from New Brunswick.
And while Shaw became the first driver since 2016 to bring a Maine GSPSS trophy out of state, a throng of Maine challengers will be gunning for victory. Ryan Deane, Phil Richardson, Bryson Parritt, Nick Jenkins, Bryan Lancaster, and Morgan Call round out a deep field of entries all looking to take one of the biggest Pro Stock races in Maine to close out the year.
Speedway Presented by Bar Harbor Bank & Trust welcomes the Granite State Pro Stock Series presented by Hudson International Speedway for the inaugural Bar Harbor Bank & Trust 200. Qualifying kicks off at 2:00pm on Saturday, with heats opening Sunday’s action-packed program at 2:00pm. Grandstands open at 11:00am both days. Tickets for Saturday’s qualifying program are $20 for adults, with seniors and veterans only $15 and kids over six just $5 each. General admission is $30 on Sunday.
For more information on the Granite State Pro Stock Series presented by Hudson International Speedway, visit www.gspss.net or find us on Facebook.
