SpeedWeekend 2018 Ready to Roll at Speedway 660

One of the biggest motorsports events in Atlantic Canada is finally here. SpeedWeekend 2018 at Speedway 660 will bring thousands to Geary, New Brunswick for two days of thrilling short track racing in seven different divisions. The weekend begins on Friday, August 31st at 7 pm with the annual SpeedWeekend infield corn boil, bonfire, and concert from The Walking Contradictions. Saturday, September 1st kicks off the racing action headlined by the $7,500 to win Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman 150 and continues Sunday, September 2nd with the 18th Annual McLaughlin Roof Trusses Pro Stock 250. Post time for Saturday’s racing action is 6 pm with Sunday’s qualifying kicking into high gear at 2 pm.

A full field of Pro Stock/Super Late Model competitors will compete for their share of over $75,000 in the 18th Annual McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250. The field is diverse, featuring a healthy mix of Speedway 660 RE/MAX East Coast Elite Realty Pro Stock regulars, a number of Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour drivers and a number of Southern invaders all looking for the big trophy and payday on Sunday evening.

Cassius Clark (Farmington, ME) leads a list of 27 drivers pre-registered for the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250. Clark is the defending champion and looks to become the first four time winner of the event with another checkered flag on Sunday evening. Johnny Clark (Hallowell, ME) and Lonnie Sommerville (Barnesville, NB) each have two McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 titles and will look to tie the mark of three wins in the race set by “C$” in 2017. Craig Slaunwhite (Terence Bay, NS), Kirk Thibeau (Presque Isle, ME) and Dave O’Blenis (Boundary Creek, NB) have each won the race once in their career and are pre-entered to run for the 2018 crown on Sunday.

John Flemming (Halifax, NS) will look to become the first driver to complete the Maritime Triple Crown. Flemming, a five time Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour champion, has wins in the Toromont Cat 250 at Scotia Speedworld and the IWK 250 at Riverside Speedway but is missing the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 from his accomplished racing resume. No driver in the history of the three events has won each event and Flemming will look to change that on Sunday.

Speedway 660 has produced some great up and coming talents that are sure to contend for the victory on Sunday evening. Ryan Messer (Harvey, NB) led the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 to green last year and finished in a tie for the 2018 track championship, losing out to O’Blenis on a tiebreaker. Ashton Tucker (Lyttleton, NB) dug deep in the late laps last year to podium in the big dance last September. The pair of Bandolero graduates will look to join an exclusive club of McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 champions after 250-laps on Sunday.

Former Speedway 660 track champions including Greg Fahey (St. Stephen, NB), Brent Roy (Hanwell, NB), Matt Harris (Fredericton Junction, NB) and Chris Duncan (Hampton, NB) are looking to add their name to the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 hardware to go alongside their track championships. The 2017 Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman champion John Rankin (St. Martin’s, NB) is expected to do double duty this weekend and hopes to come out of Labour Day weekend with two big trophies.

Steve Halpin (Saint John, NB) is the most recent Pro Stock winner at the track, taking home the win during Night of Champions last Saturday. Halpin, a part-time driver on the Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour, will join the likes of Dylan Gosbee (Cornwall, PE), Nicholas Naugle (Dartmouth, NS) and Chris Hughes (Brackley Beach, PE) in search of their first win in the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 on Sunday.

Five drivers will look to make their first start in the Labour Day Weekend classic. Cal Hatfield (Saint John, NB), Cory Hall (Jolicure, NB), Austin Teras (Gray, ME), Andrew Rodgers (Smithtown, NB) and George Jamieson (Fredericton, NB) each have several major accomplishments on their resumes but have yet to make a start in the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250.

The talent pool for the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 also includes the likes of Devin Snell (Saint John, NB), Shawn Warren (Waasis, NB), Robert Tomlinson (Arthurette, NB) and Ian Rasmussen (New Denmark, NB). The roster for the event is deep in talent and the quality of drivers and teams in the field is sure to provide a thrilling 250-lap feature on Sunday evening.

The McLaughlin Roof Trusses Pro Stock 250 will have support on Sunday afternoon from the Atlantic Modified Tour, DMR Auto Street Stocks, Fredericton Gun Shop Sharp Shooters and Tim’s Corner Motorsports Bandolero Blast finale. Qualifying on Sunday in all divisions begins at 2pmwith Opening Ceremonies for the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 slated for 6:30pm on Sunday evening.

EXPECTED ENTRY LIST – McLAUGHLIN ROOF TRUSSES 250

As of August 29th, 2018

Richard Martin and Martin’s Home Heating have raised the stakes to a level never seen before at Speedway 660. Martin has slapped $7,500 down for the winner of the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman 150 on Saturday night. The winner’s purse makes it the richest of its kind at Speedway 660.

The story locally in the Late Model Sportsman division has been the battle back and forth between two Lonnie Sommerville Racing cars in Drew Greenlaw (Eastport, ME) and Curtis Collins (Saint John, NB). Greenlaw was able to edge out Collins for his first Late Model track championship and will look for his second straight extended distance victory after winning the Firecracker 150 in August.

Alexandra O’Blenis (Boundary Creek, NB) enters as the winningest driver in the division in 2018 with four feature victories on the year. Not to be outdone, her younger sister Courtney has a pair of feature wins of her own. The fan favorites will need to be on their game to beat the “big money chasers” on Saturday night at their home track.

Jacob Logan (Harvey, NB) is a former Atlantic Champion but is still searching for that first major extended distance Sportsman victory at Speedway 660. Hudson Weston and Clark Moore have both showed vast improvements this season and the youngsters will be on many radars on Saturday. Ryan Raynes and 2018 Rookie of the Year Destiny Enkel are also looking to ride the youth movement wave into victory lane on Saturday evening.

While the youth movement has been the story in the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman division in recent years, Richard Atkinson (Geary, NB), Rob Raynes (Saint John, NB) and Jamieson continue to rack up top finishes as veterans of the Late Model Sportsman class.

Brady Creamer (Miramichi, NB) was the winner of the Martin’s Home Heating 125 earlier in 2018 and will look to translate success in that race into a $7,500 payday on Saturday night. Creamer, the point leader at Petty International Raceway in their A.E. McKay Builders Sportsman division and Jordan Veinotte (Porter’s Lake, NS), the point leader in the Affordable Fuels Sportsman division at Scotia Speedworld, will both look for their first Sportsman SpeedWeekend victory on Saturday. Laurie Cormier (Riverview, NB) always brings a bullet to Speedway 660 and will be one to keep eyes on during 150-laps on Saturday. Matt Maillet (Burton, NB) and Kyle Campbell (Salisbury, NB) are sure to be in the hunt for the top prize on Saturday night while  Fred Schofield (Windsor, NS) will look to make the haul from Nova Scotia pay off this SpeedWeekend.

Colby Smith (Cape Sable Island, NS) and Dave O’Blenis are sure to have targets on their backs as former SpeedWeekend winners. O’Blenis is the most recent SpeedWeekend Sportsman winner, taking $5,000 out of the track one year ago on this weekend. Smith is a former champion at Scotia Speedworld and Riverside International Speedway and will look to add a $7,500 cheque to his shop wall after Saturday evening. O’Blenis, John Rankin, and Devin Snell are all registered to compete in both Late Model events this weekend.

It is a full card of racing to kick off SpeedWeekend 2018 on Saturday evening. In addition to the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman 150, action will include the Tim’s Corner Motorsports Bandolero Blast INEX National Qualifier, the MJS and Prime Lift East Coast Mini Stock Tour Pub’s Drive Thru Bottle Exchange 50 and the Maritime League of Legends King Freight Line 50 INEX National Qualifier. Post time is 6 pm on Saturday.

Registrations are still rolling in for both the McLaughlin Roof Trusses 250 and Martin’s Home Heating 150. Any further updates on entry lists for these two races can be found at Speedway660.com.

The annual SpeedWeekend 2018 corn boil, bonfire and pre-race concert kicks off festivities in the infield of Speedway 660 on Friday, August 31st. DJ Dale Case will be spinning tunes in between sets by The Walking Contradictions. Admission to the event is FREE and will run from 7 pm to 12 am on Friday.

Fans are reminded that SpeedWeekend 2018 tickets and campsites are now available. An order form for both can be found on the front page of Speedway660.com or on the SpeedWeekend page on the website. Those that would like to order in person can order at the Speedway 660 office when they visit the race track this Saturday night for the races. Registration is now open for teams that are intending to compete in both the McLaughlin Roof Trusses Pro Stock 250 and the Martin’s Home Heating Sportsman 150 by heading online or visiting the Speedway 660 office.

For more information about Speedway 660, visit Speedway660.com, like @Speedway660 on Facebook or call the Speedway 660 Raceline at (506) 454-7223.

About Speedway 660:
Speedway 660 is one of Canada’s premier stock car racing facilities. Located in New Brunswick’s Fredericton region, it attracts race teams and fans from the Maritimes, New England, and Quebec. The Speedway 660 racing season runs from mid-May until Labour Day Weekend. SpeedWeekend, one of the most prestigious short track events in eastern North America, wraps up Speedway 660’s racing season.

source – track communications