The Southern Ontario Sprints made their first of six appearances at Brighton Speedway Saturday May 20,2017. Dylan Westbrook 47x led the field of 15 cars to victory lane. (Photo: Rod Henderson/Brighton Speedway)
BRIGHTON, Ont – Brighton Speedway held its first special event of the 50th Anniversary Saturday night. The Southern Ontario Sprints opened their 22nd season while the Pro Late Models competed in their first Triple Crown event.
Westbrook Wins SOS Opener
The Southern Ontario Sprints made their first of six appearances at Brighton Speedway. A total of 15 cars were on hand for the opening round of the tour schedule. Kyle Fraser (No. 01) and Mitch Brown (No. 10) started on the front row of the 25 lap main event. Brown grabbed the top position on the opening lap and put distance between he and the field.
2016 series champion Dylan Westbrook (No. 47x) along with teammate Glenn Styres (No. 0) and Rick Wilson (No. 42w) worked by pole sitter Fraser in the early stages and battled for the second position. Westbrook eventually solidified the runner-up spot and set his sights on race leader Brown.
By lap 12 Westbrook had caught the leader and was able to slip by to take the lead with 10 laps remaining. Brown was unable to keep pace as Westbrook pulled away and drove to his first win of the season. Brown held on to finish second while Wilson, Styres and Lee Ladouceur (No. 51) completed the top five.
Pro Late Model driver #57 Charlie Sandercock snagged his frist checkered flag in the 2017 season at Brighton Speedway on Saturday May 20, 2017. (Photo: Rod Henderson / Brighton Speedway)
Sandercock Strikes In Triple Crown Opener
The Pro Late Model division competed in race one of the Triple Crown events. Caley Weese (No. 77) started on the pole of the 35 lap special event alongside Austin King (No. 89). Weese took control of the race from the drop of the green flag and commanded the race for the first 23 circuits. Brandon Mowat (No. 46) kept pace with Weese, but was forced to the pit area for a cut right rear tire during a lap 23 caution.
The yellow flag was just what Charlie Sandercock (No. 57) needed as the former champion lined up in third on the restart and quickly moved into the second spot when the race went back to green. One lap later he powered by Weese to take the lead and the eventual race win.
Phil Potts (No. 29) patiently worked his way through the field and drove to a second place finish while Brandon Mowat recovered to finish third. Opening night winner and point leader Adam Turner crossed the finish line fourth while Steve Baldwin (No. 5) finished fifth.
Hennessy Snags Second Win
Defending Canadian Modified point leader Andrew Hennessy (No. 87) found himself in familiar territory in the 25-lap feature when the checkers flew. The Picton driver started in the fifth position and made short work of the top four cars in the opening laps.
Shawn Gregory (No. 1) and Shelby Mills (No. 78) led the field to the green, but were unable to hold off the reigning champion. By lap 6 Hennessy drove past Gregory and cruised to the easy win. Craig Handley (No. 91) drove a solid race and was able to get past Gregory on lap 17 to capture the runner-up position. Curtis King (No. 07) continued his strong 2017 campaign with a third place finished while Gregory and Mills completed the top five.
Humphry Gets Over the Hump
Jeff Humphry (No. 17) had a night to remember in the Comp 4 division Saturday night. The driver out of Trenton started on the pole in the 15 lap feature and drove to an impressive win. The victory didn’t come easy though as defending division champion Tyler French (No. 0) jumped to the early lead over Humphry and Adam Flieler (No. 11).
On this night though Humphry had the stronger car and got back by leader French on lap 3. He cruised through the final 12 laps on the way to his first win of the season. French finished second while Flieler held on for third. Point leader Matthew Moore (No. 14) drove to a fourth place finished ahead of Josh French (No. 08)
Next Saturday night is Fan Appreciation night along with a complete race program featuring Pro Late Models, Pro Stocks, Bill’s Johns Comp 4, Stings and the first Canadian Modified Triple Crown race of the season. Adult admission is $10 while a family pass is just $25. Race time is 7:00pm. For more information visit www.brightonspeedway.com.
