Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin
Following a great season of competition that saw a great battle all the way down to the final laps of the final night, the Signs of Innovation Mighty Minis are set to take to the track for their season opener on Saturday night. With a bunch of new faces looking to add their name to the winner’s circle list, it promises to be another exciting year.
It’ll be interesting to see how quickly Johnny Paradzinki adapts to being behind the wheel as he has a quick car underneath him, having bought a previous proven piece.
Ken Townsend is hoping for a much stronger, mechanical-issue free season. If he can get the bugs worked out, he should be quick given that he had a top-five finish last year.
Melissa Bullen makes her return to the track after a crash last season. Prior to the season-ending incident, she had shown speed behind the wheel of her mustang, posting a fifth place finish on June 13.
Chris Allard proved last year that he can be fast, as he made two trips to victory lane. Given how strong he was in the later half of the season, he should be considered an early championship favourite.
Another driver to consider has to be Jeremy McLean, as he also showed a ton of speed last year with a trip to feature victory lane. With two top-fives to close out the year, he’ll be one to watch.
Robert Toope has continued to get stronger behind the wheel of his Mustang, and was able to break into the top-10 during the second half of the season. If the trend continues, he could very well post a top-five finish early this year.
Second generation racer could be the theme of the rookie class as Adam Bourque and Daniel Montanari will each be following their father’s footsteps by getting involved in racing. It’ll be interesting to see if either, or both, are quick this year.
Speaking of second generation, Chandler Bos showed some speed last year and if he can have a cleaner season, he could very well post some strong results.
Josh Inglis found himself in more wrecks than he wanted to be involved in last year. If he can keep his mustang clean, he could very well be a consistent top-10 contender.
Wendy Adams is looking to run stronger this year with the debut of her brand new car. It’ll be interesting to see if she can find some more speed after posting a 10th place finish in her season opener.
Lisa DeLeeuw should also be one to watch, as she continued to get stronger in speed during the season with some strong runs.
Doug Wilman has continued to get stronger with each season, and even broke into the top-10 in the later half of the year. Look for some strong runs out of Wilman this season.
Harold Noseworthy is making his return to racing after taking some time off. How quickly can he shake the rust off? We’ll see as he has been known to be a victory lane visitor.
Billy McLeod got the label of being one of the first mini stocks to flip over on his lid. In seriousness, though, he wants to keep all four tires on the ground as he looks to continue improving behind the wheel.
Morgan Robson Jr. is set to make his return to Sunset Speedway this season after spending some time at Sauble Speedway. With more experience under his belt, he looks to run stronger this time around.
Beyond those mentioned, there are a slew of other drivers that will be in the field, looking for success this season. So without a shadow of doubt, make sure you are at Sunset Speedway this Saturday night on April 30 for the season opener. Late models will time trial at 2:30pm EST, followed by Mini Stock and Mighty Mini heats. The Super Stocks will then take to the track for their heats at 4pm EST. Details and tickets can be found at http://www.sunsetspeedway.ca.
