Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin
Set to celebrate 25 years of OSCAAR racing with the fourth season of modified competition under the OSCAAR banner, the modifieds are set to kick off the 2015 campaign this weekend at Sunset Speedway in style as part of the Spring Velocity.
Three-time Champion Gary McLean leads the crop into the weekend after winning the Velocity 250 last September. McLean leads the modified drivers in victories at Sunset with eight victories in 13 races. Expect McLean to be fast as he begins the quest for his fourth championship.
Coming off an incredible rookie season, Max Beyore is hoping to pick up his third career victory this weekend. Beyore has been strong at Sunset in the past, scoring three runner-up finishes. However, his last outing at Sunset did not go as hoped as he was unable to race due to issues in practice. Still, Beyore has momentum on his side as he finished second to Brent McLean in the season finale at Peterborough Speedway last year.
In each appearance at Sunset, Ryan Dick continues to improve as a driver behind the wheel. He’ll be looking for a solid run after finishing ninth in August and sixth in September of last year.
Matt Barton is hoping for a top-five finish this weekend and it’s very well possible as he has done it before, posting four top-six finishes in the races at Sunset last year. He also ended the year on a high, finishing fourth at Autumn Colors.
Sophomore Tommy Robb hasn’t had the luck that he would’ve hoped for this year with incidents taking him out of contention. Robb will hope to score his fourth Sunset Speedway top-10 on Saturday night.
Going into the weekend, Gary Elliott is one of the drivers to watch as he has been posting solid finishes with each passing week, getting closer to his first Modified victory. Sunset Speedway marks a good spot for it to happen as he has tons of laps around Sunset in the Late Model division, and has ran upfront at Sunset Speedway. The last event ran at Sunset last year, by the way, Elliott posted a second place finish to McLean.
Chad Strawn is set to run the full OSCAAR schedule this year and is a driver to keep an eye on this year. He scored the victory in last year’s season opener at Sunset Speedway, before going on to score a victory later in the season at Kawartha Speedway.
Though well all these drivers have modified experience at Sunset Speedway, there is going to be a slew of rookies in the field, as well.
Rob Divenanzo leads the list of rookie drivers as he makes the jump up to the Modified division following success in the TQ Midget ranks. He will be driving a car previously driven by Brent McLean. Divenanzo will be joined by a fellow TQ Midget graduate in the form of David Balych. Balych has spent the past 27 years traveling with the Midgets.
Duane Cinnamon will also have an experienced car under his belt, driving the car previously piloted by Branden Bullen. Cinnamon spent the past couple of seasons in the Legends ranks, having some success.
After driving a wide-range of open-wheel cars over the years, highlighted by a championship in the four-cylinder Outlaw Modified Series last year, A.J. Emms will make the jump up to the OSCAAR Modified division. He will be driving the No. 99 for Allen Adams, which was campaigned by rookie Drew Stieler last year to a solid 11th place finish in points. With adjustments made to the car over the off-season to make it faster and Emms’ experience in open-wheel through the years, the team hopes to break into the top-10 this season.
Sault St. Marie native Mike Hearty will make the jump from the super stock ranks to the modified ranks in 2015. Hearty made his debut in the final event of the season, unfortunately suffering a hard crash. Though before he got caught up in the wreck, he had a solid top-five run going in his heat. Hearty will hope that sign of success transfers to season-long success this year.
Thunder car veterans Dan Price and John Baker Jr. will both make the jump up to the Modified ranks in 2015 after both having success, respectively. Baker is a past thunder car champion, while Price secured his first career victory mid-summer last year at Peterborough. Both drivers will be looking to learn quickly at the beginning of the season in hopes of season-long success. One thing for sure, though, is keep an eye on both when the series goes to Peterborough Speedway due to their past experience there.
Cory Horner enters his first full season on the tour after running the final two events of the season. Horner had success, finishing seventh at the Autumn Colors Classic at Peterborough Speedway. The driver of the No. 79H has ran at Peterborough for the past couple of seasons in other divisions, giving him a handle on the track entering that weekend. Depending how he adjusts to the other tracks on the schedule will depend on how well the season goes for him.
Beyond those mentioned here, there are other drivers that may show their face on Saturday night so be sure to be in attendance to see these cars in action. Details about the event can be found at http://www.oscaar.ca or http://www.sunsetspeedway.ca.
