After a great season opener at Flamboro Speedway, the OSCAAR Modifieds will be back in action on Friday night at Kawartha Speedway for their first trip back to the Fraserville, Ontario oval since 2014.
Out of the drivers on the entry docket, only two have raced a modified previously at Kawartha Speedway. Gary Elliott posted a runner-up to Chad Strawn in the series’ last trip to the oval, with John Harper finishing sixth. Both drivers will enter this weekend with momentum as Harper finished third at Flamboro following a heat victory, while Elliott was sixth.
Dan Price is another who has raced at the oval, with that experience coming behind the wheel of a thunder car. He will make his 2017 debut following a solid season last year that saw him post five top-10’s.
AJ Emms has visited the oval previously, picking up a go-karting championship, but has yet to race the big oval in a full size car. He enters the weekend with momentum following a runner-up at Flamboro to start this year after a solid sophomore campaign in 2016 that saw him score seven top-five finishes with a victory in the Autumn Colours Classic.
The rest of the field, though, will be hoping to adapt quickly through the allotted practice time if they want to have a shot at challenging for the victory this weekend.
Chris Milwain will hope to score his second straight victory following his first trip to victory lane in the series at Flamboro Speedway as he led flag-to-flag in the feature.
If there’s a driver that could score his first career feature victory next, look no further than Luke Gignac as he came close on a couple occasions last year, including a pair of podium results last year at Flamboro. He started off this season solidly, picking up a fifth-place finish last weekend.
David Balych continues to work towards his first career victory, as well, kicking off this season with a 10th-place finish at Flamboro. He showed he could run up front last year with a third place finish in May.
Dale Reinhart hopes to build upon his seventh-place finish in the season opener after posting a top-10 finish in each of his starts last year except for one.
Cory Horner knows how to get the job done, having contended for victories in the past across the tour highlighted by a runner-up finish last year.
Matt Barton ended his hiatus away from OSCAAR this past weekend at Flamboro, running up front en route to a solid eighth-place finish. He’ll hope to return to his familiar ground inside the top-five this Friday night.
Mike Hearty is set for the long haul from Sault St. Marie to be part of the action, marking his first OSCAAR start since 2015. That year, he was solid with eight top-10’s, highlighted by a fourth-place finish at Sunset Speedway in September. Notably, his car ran one race last year, with Super Late Model veteran George Wilson taking the victory at Flamboro.
Tim Tolton used the opening weekend on the schedule at Flamboro as a learning experience, continuing to educate himself about the team’s new car with a ninth-place finish.
Wally Wilson took his first ever laps behind the wheel of a modified at Flamboro, posting a solid 12th-place finish. He’ll hope to continue getting used to the team’s new ride this weekend.
Dave Hodgkinson will hope to have the mechanical issues that plagued his OSCAAR debut at Flamboro behind him so he can contend for his first series top-10 finish.
Jase Cornell was another driver who ran into mechanical issues at Flamboro, resulting in him failing to start the feature. This weekend could mark a way to start working in the right direction.
Aaron McLean will hope to have a smoother weekend at Kawartha, following mechanical issues plaguing his series debut at Flamboro.
Fresh off an Ontario Modified Racing Series victory at Peterborough Speedway, Brad Stevenson will hope to spoil the party on Friday night at Kawartha Speedway. He has ran with the OSCAARs previously, posting a third-place finish last July at Peterborough.
Connor James will be making his OSCAAR debut this weekend as he tackles his rookie campaign behind the wheel of a modified.
There is always a possibility for more than the drivers listed here to be in the field at Kawartha Speedway on Friday, June 2. Be sure to be in attendance to take in this great show in person. Also, reminder that a $5 off general admission coupon can be printed off either the OSCAAR website or facebook page.
Details on the event this weekend can be found at http://www.oscaar.ca.
By: Ashley McCubbin