By Lou Modestino
Twice before, Ryan Newman drove the venerable 7NY Modified to Victory Lane in a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver did it again Friday. This time, the win came in the non-points inaugural Whelen All-Star Shootout. The latest victory came with the familiar frantic swapping of the lead synonymous with the open-wheeled cars on the 1.058-mile.
Newman lost the lead to Justin Bonsignore into Turn 1 of the white-flag lap, but got it back in Turn 3 and won the drag-race to the checkered flag. Bonsignore held on for second, followed by Mike Stefanik, Ron Silk and Bobby Santos.
Newman has run 14 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races for the 7NY Modified team put together by Gary Putnam and NASCAR Sprint Cup crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion. He also has a pair of wins at Bristol Motor Speedway. Ryan Preece, Chuck Hossfeld, Todd Szegedy, Ted Christopher and JR Bertuccio rounded out the top 10.
Silk held the lead over Patrick Emerling and Ryan Preece into the halfway break at Lap 20. A random draw determined a 10-car invert and put Doug Coby and Bonsignore on the front row, with Newman restarting fifth. The race featured six official lead changes and Newman was credited with leading the final 16 laps.The event was called after 37 laps when it reached its 30-minute time limit.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will be back on track Saturday with its championship points race. Qualifying for the Sunoco 100 will be at 8 a.m., with the green-flag of the race at 1 p.m.
The Whelen All-Star Shootout will air on FOX Sports 1 on Sunday, July 20 at 2 p.m. The Sunoco 100 will air on FOX Sports 1 on Friday, July 18 at noon.
NASCAR Whelen Modified – Whelen All-Star Shootout Results
Friday
At New Hampshire International Speedway
Loudon, N.H.
Lap length: 1.058 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (14) Ryan Newman, South Bend, In., Chevrolet, 37 laps, 74.712 mph.
2. (12) Justin Bonsignore, Holtsville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 37.
3. (17) Mike Stefanik, Coventry, R.I., Ford, 37.
4. (8) Ron Silk, Norwalk, Conn., Chevrolet, 37.
5. (2) Bobby Santos, Franklin, Mass., Chevrolet, 37.
6. (6) Ryan Preece, Berlin, Conn., Ford, 37.
7. (7) Chuck Hossfeld, Ransomville, N.Y., Chevrolet, 37.
8. (18) Todd Szegedy, Ridgefield, Conn., Chevrolet, 37.
9. (19) Ted Christopher, Plainville, Conn., Chevrolet, 37.
10. (1) JR Bertuccio, Centerreach, N.Y., Chevrolet, 37.
11. (13) Cole Powell, Mount Brydges, Ont., Chevrolet, 37.
12. (20) Doug Coby, Milford, Conn., Chevrolet, 36.
13. (10) Andy Seuss, Hampstead, N.H., Chevrolet, 36.
14. (9) Rowan Pennink, Huntingdon Valley, Pa., Chevrolet, 36.
15. (11) Matt Hirschman, Northampton, Pa., Chevrolet, 29, engine.
16. (15) Patrick Emerling, Orchard Park, N.Y., Chevrolet, 27, accident.
17. (4) Donny Lia, Jericho, N.Y., Dodge, 26, accident.
18. (3) Ken Heagy, Calverton, N.Y., Ford, 11, handling.
19. (5) Glen Reen, Wilbraham, Mass., Chevrolet, 8, handling.
20. (16) Jamie Tomaino, Howell, N.J., Chevrolet, 6, electrical.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 31 minutes 12 seconds
Margin of Victory: 0.151 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: . ( mph, seconds)
Caution Flags: 1 for 8 laps.
Lead Changes: 6 among 5 drivers.
Lap Leaders: J. Bertuccio 1; R. Preece 2-3; R. Silk 4-16; R. Preece 17; R. Silk 18-20; M. Stefanik 21; R. Newman 22-37.