HUPPUNEN HAULS IN $3000 NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS VICTORY AT OHSWEKEN; DISHER, BROWN, AND SAULT ALSO WIN FEATURES

by Tommy Goudge (July 3, 2009) – Tom Huppunen continued to hold a hot hand at Ohsweken Speedway on Friday night, claiming the $3000 winner’s share of the second annual Northern Summer Nationals for sprint cars presented by Corr/Pak Merchandising. In Thunder Stock action, Rob Disher scored a popular victory, while Mitchell Brown nosed out Abel Castelein for the Mini Stock win, and Karl Sault claimed Bomber feature win honours. The races were completed despite a rain delay of over an hour after the heat races were completed, but the wait was worth it for both fans and drivers as a great night of racing ensued.

The twenty-five lap Northern Summer Nationals feature began with Ryan Grubaugh and Bobby Breen on the front row, and it was Breen jumping out to the early lead. Before a lap could be completed, Bubba Broderick flipped in turn two to bring out the red flag. Broderick emerged uninjured and in fact came close to making repairs and getting back in the race, but was a few moments too late.

With the green flag back out, the action quickly heated up, and the driver on the move early on was Dustin Daggett. After receiving the eighth starting position in the “outlaw style” redraw in which drivers chose each other’s starting spots, Daggett wasted no time getting to the front and was in second behind Breen by the time the third lap was completed.

Huppunen, meanwhile, had been given the seventh starting spot, and worked his way through the field at a more methodical pace, taking over the fourth spot by the time another red flag waved, this time for a hard crash between Derek Jonathon and Brad Malloy in turn two. Both drivers climbed from their damaged machines, but were done for the night.

Back under green again, Bryan Howland began to make his presence known, and got by Daggett for the runner-up spot on lap nine. Howland then went to work on race-long leader Breen, passing him on the twelfth lap and setting sail out front, while Breen, Daggett, and Huppunen jockeyed for position behind him. On lap eighteen, Breen spun in turn two, but somehow managed to keep his car under power and stayed in the top ten.

As the race began to wind down, Huppunen was finally able to get clear of Daggett, but looked to be too far behind Howland to do anything in the remaining handful of laps. Misfortune struck for Howland during lap twenty-two, however, as his front wing mounts came loose, allowing the wing to flip up and obscure his vision. Howland was forced to pull to the infield, while Huppunen inherited the lead and held on for the victory. Daggett followed in second, while Glenn Styres, Dain Naida, and Jared Zimbardi completed the top five. Heat race wins for the thirty-seven Sprint Cars in action were claimed by Kevin Job, Bobby Breen, Styres, and Jared Zimbardi, while Dave Dykstra, Howland, Daggett, and Grubaugh claimed qualifying race victories, and James Evans was the Consi winner.

Friday Night Thunder resumes on Friday, July 10 when Wiseco Pistons presents Mid-Season Championships night, featuring the Corr/Pak Merchandising Sprint Cars, ESSO Thunder Stocks, ESSO Mini-Stocks presented by Evers Financial, Bombers, and Vintage Cars! Friday Night Thunder at Ohsweken Speedway offers affordable family entertainment just a short drive away from most mid-western Ontario locations. Friday Night Thunder Adult General Admission is just $10, while Seniors and Students are $8, and kids 12 and under are FREE! Please visit www.OhswekenSpeedway.com for more information. On Friday night, gates open at 6:00p.m., with the first race at 7:45p.m.

FRIDAY NIGHT THUNDER 2009
ROUND 8 RACE REPORT – JULY 3, 2009
OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY
OHSWEKEN, ONTARIO
EVENT SPONSOR – CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING

HEAT RACES (8 laps):
BS&B RADIATOR Heat Race #1
1. 21x Kevin Job (Campbellville), 2. 71 Travis Cunningham (Grimsby), 3. 6n Dain Naida (Bellville, MI), 4. 5d Dave Dykstra (Port Colborne), 5. 5m Brad Malloy (Niagara Falls), 6. 52 Scott Kreutter (Alden, NY), 7. 01 Mikey Kruchka (Hamilton), 8. 57 Doug Bowman (London), 9. f37 Jim Porter (Grand Island, NY), 10. 21j John Burbridge, Jr. (Simcoe). No Time

BEST WESTERN CAIRN CROFT HOTEL Heat Race #2
1. 9 Bobby Breen (Savannah, NY), 2. 14h Jim Huppunen (Fenwick), 3. 7 Kyle Moffit (South Dayton, NY), 4. 5x Bubba Broderick (Brookfield, CT), 5. 77x Ryan Hunsinger (Brantford), 6. 81 Derek Jonathon (Lewiston, NY), 7. 38 Brad Knab (Delevan, NY), 8. 67 Chris Durand (Port Stanley), 9. 24k Devin Caron (Cornwall). No Time

GRISDALE RACING PRODUCTS Heat Race #3
1. 0 Glenn Styres (Ohsweken), 2. 36 Mike Stelter (Ontario, NY), 3. 94 Stan Zanchin (Fort Erie), 4. 18 Kevin Loveys (Hamilton), 5. 0x Brett Mann (Goshen, IN), 6. 8 Blake Breen (Savannah, NY), 7. 21 Don Adamczyk (Williamsville, NY), 8. 9jr Tim Zack (Dain City), 9. 3 Wayne Ashton (Kitchener). No Time

AWESOME RACEWEAR Heat Race #4
1. 35 Jared Zimbardi (Salamanca, NY), 2. 12c Tom Huppunen (Fenwick), 3. 51 Bryan Howland (Auburn, NY), 4. 5 Keith Dempster (Alton), 5. 2m Dustin Daggett (Grand Ledge, MI), 6. 47x Louie Carufel (Port Huron, MI), 7. 90 James Evans (Beamsville), 8. 27 Jamie Collard (Burford), 9. 00 Ryan Grubaugh (St. Johns, MI). Time – 1:56.553

QUALIFYING RACES
(10 laps - Top 24 in combined heat/qualifier passing points transfer to A-Main, Top 8 redraw for feature starting spots)
Qualifier #1
1. 5d Dave Dykstra, 2. 9 Bobby Breen, 3. 0 Glenn Styres, 4. 7 Kyle Moffit, 5. 0x Brett Mann, 6. 47x Louie Carufel, 7. 38 Brad Knab, 8. 3 Wayne Ashton. Time – 2:17.335 NEW TRACK RECORD

Qualifier #2
1. 51 Bryan Howland, 2. 12c Tom Huppunen, 3. 8 Blake Breen, 4. 5x Bubba Broderick, 5. 5 Keith Dempster, 6. 27 Jamie Collard, 7. 90 James Evans, 8. 94 Stan Zanchin, 9. 9jr Tim Zack. No Time

Qualifier #3
1. 2m Dustin Daggett, 2. 6n Dain Naida, 3. 36 Mike Stelter, 4. 71 Travis Cunningham, 5. 81 Derek Jonathon, 6. 18 Kevin Loveys, 7. f37 Jim Porter, 8. 67 Chris Durand, 9. 24k Devin Caron. Time - 2:18.524

Qualifier #4
1. 00 Ryan Grubaugh, 2. 35 Jared Zimbardi, 3. 77x Ryan Hunsinger, 4. 21x Kevin Job, 5. 5m Brad Malloy, 6. 52 Scott Kreutter, 7. 14h Jim Huppunen, 8. 57 Doug Bowman, 9. 01 Mikey Kruchka. No Time

CONSI
(Top 2 Transfer To A-Feature)
1. 90 James Evans, 2. 52 Scott Kreutter, 3. 3 Wayne Ashton, 4. 27 Jamie Collard, 5. 57 Doug Bowman, 6. 38 Brad Knab, 7. 24k Devin Caron, 8. 67 Chris Durand, 9. f37 Jim Porter DNS, 10. 01 Mikey Kruchka DNS, 11. 9jr Tim Zack DNS, 12. 21 Don Adamczyk DNS, 13. 21j John Burbridge, Jr. DNS. No Time

CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING
“NORTHERN SUMMER NATIONALS” A-FEATURE (25 laps)
Position. # Name (Starting Position)
1. 12c Tom Huppunen (7)
2. 2m Dustin Daggett (8)
3. 0 Glenn Styres (6)
4. 6n Dain Naida (4)
5. 35 Jared Zimbardi (10)
6. 9 Bobby Breen (2)
7. 5d Dave Dykstra (3)
8. 8 Blake Breen (13)
9. 0x Brett Mann (20)
10. 71 Travis Cunningham (12)
11. 7 Kyle Moffit (14)
12. 36 Mike Stelter (9)
13. 21x Kevin Job (11)
14. 94 Stan Zanchin (17)
15. 5 Keith Dempster (18)
16. 90 James Evans (25)
17. 77x Ryan Hunsinger (15)
18. 52 Scott Kreutter (26)
19. 51 Bryan Howland (5)
20. 14h Jim Huppunen (22)
21. 47x Louie Carufel (21)
22. 00 Ryan Grubaugh (1)
23. 81 Derek Jonathon (23)
24. 5m Brad Malloy (19)
25. 18 Kevin Loveys (24)
26. 5x Bubba Broderick (16)
No Time

UP NEXT @ OHSWEKEN SPEEDWAY:
FRIDAY, JULY 10, 2009
WISECO PISTONS PRESENTS:
"MID SEASON CHAMPIONSHIPS"
CORR/PAK MERCHANDISING SPRINT CARS, ESSO THUNDER STOCKS, BOMBERS AND VINTAGE CARS
PLUS EVERS FINANCIAL PRESENTS "MID SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP" FOR ESSO MINI STOCKS
ADULTS $10, SENIORS AND STUDENTS $8, KIDS 12 AND UNDER FREE!
SPECTATOR GATES OPEN @ 6:00 P.M., RACING @ 7:45 P.M.