Anybody who examines the history of Whelen Engineering will see how safety and racing run through the company’s veins.
Pilot and engineer George W. Whelen III founded the operation more than 70 years ago in his garage. Today, Whelen Engineering manufactures lights, sirens and other warning systems globally for a variety of industries, including motorsports. The name can be found on caution and safety lights at most race tracks across the United States; it sponsors teams and drivers, as well.
Perhaps Whelen’s paramount connection to racing — its partnership with NASCAR’s Modified Tour — won’t fracture anytime soon.
NASCAR on Saturday announced an extension of its original division’s entitlement sponsorship. Whelen Engineering not only returns to the Modified Tour through 2029; the deal guarantees increased payouts starting with the 2025 season.
MORE: Complete Whelen extension details
“This is close to us,” said Peter Tiezzi, the General Manager of Motorsports for Whelen Engineering. “The Modifieds just hold a special place for us at Whelen. … We’re extending the contract, and we’re going to put a big boost into the prize fund and hopefully attract more drivers to come to the Modified Tour and make it their home for racing.”
Tiezzi’s sentiment is supported by the fact that Whelen’s extension with NASCAR continues the longest active series entitlement partnership in NASCAR and the longest such sponsorship in Modified Tour history.
The commitment is not lost on those who compete on the Tour. Defending series champion Ron Silk inadvertently spoke for the entire Mods community with one quick comment.
“Whelen’s support of our series has been unwavering for about 20 years,” he said. “We hope they know how much it means to us.”
The extension includes a 250 percent increase to the season-ending championship purse and increased raced purses throughout the field. In short, drivers and teams will earn more throughout the year.
Jimmy Wilson, who has served as the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Series Director since 2013, knows better than anyone the power of such a financial boost.
“Whelen’s involvement in NASCAR and the entire racing industry has been huge,” Wilson said. “Since they announced they were coming on board as the title sponsor back in 2005, over the last 20 years, everything they’ve done to increase their presence in the sport has not only done that for them as a company, but has made our sport safer.
“That includes the iconic caution lights you see around the race track, the lights on the safety vehicles to make the drivers aware of where they are on the race track, and the top-notch products made here in America. The fact that they are doubling down and reinvesting in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour to continue to make it the strongest Modified series in the country I think speaks for itself.”
Doug Coby has witnessed everything Whelen has done to bolster the Modified Tour since Day 1. The six-time series champion who began his career in 2002 sees this extension as yet another example of how Whelen remains dedicated to making sure the Modified Tour is the best regional series in the United States.
For him, the reinvestment is more than just a welcome development.
“Continuous growth requires continuous support,” Coby said. “It starts with an idea and getting key players to commit. Having a sponsor like Whelen to do that, and to bring in additional support and exposure, it helps with everything across the board.”
Silk echoed Coby’s sentiments and added that, for many teams, the extra money being infused into the Modified Tour race and championship purses will go a long way toward attracting more competitors to the series.
“I race for a pretty well funded team, but more money is certainly always a good thing,” Silk said. “There are some teams that aren’t nearly as fortunate as we are, so hopefully we can get some more people interested in this and we can get the car counts back up to where we should be.”
The partnership between NASCAR and Whelen was initially spearheaded by longtime Whelen executive Phil Kurze, a proponent for grassroots racing. Kurze passed away in 2018 at the age of 69, but his influence remains impactful.
Coby believes Whelen’s continued support of the Modified Tour is the perfect way to honor Kurze, who never missed an opportunity shine a positive light on the series.
“Their commitment to the Modifieds and short-track racing in general started with Phil Kurze’s vision of how Whelen could fit into working with working class people who raced short tracks, and especially the Modifieds,” Coby said. “Phil loved our series and was an advocate for our series across the board.
“With his passing and Peter taking over and Whelen keeping the commitment going, it takes Phil’s legacy further. I know he is smiling. I know this is what he would want to see for the Modifieds.”
Proof of Whelen’s continued support of motorsports following Kurze’s passing lies beyond its connection to the Modified Tour.
Whelen sponsors drivers, like part-time ARCA Menards Series and Modified Tour competitor Andy Jankowiak. The company sponsors other series, like the Whelen Mazda MX-5 Cup. Whelen even supports specific events, such as the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup.
“It’s kind of like you’re Saturday-night racing, more or less,” Tiezzi said of the grassroots racing vibe. “It’s local guys who have regular jobs. Blue-collar workers who come out and they race with the Modified Tour.”
And that’s exactly the point. Whelen Engineering builds products for blue-collar men and women, the kind of people who show up to work at 6 in the morning and don’t get home until 8 at night. The company is built by grassroots people for grassroots people.
The Modified Tour garage is filled with the same type of people. They work all week just to get to Saturday so they can go racing against the best Modified drivers in the country.
“I feel like Whelen is almost a perfect fit for the Modified Tour; the cars are very robust, and their products are very robust,” said Ken Massa, the owner of Ken Massa Motorsports and the No. 51 Modified driven by three-time champion Justin Bonsignore. “I’ve been to their facility. It’s a beautiful place. The way they manufacturer their products, they still have a lot of hands on. It’s an American-made company. I love their products; I think their products are perfect for what we are as the Modified Tour.”
Bonsignore, who entered the 2024 season finale as the points leader in search of his fourth title, is one of the top Modified stars of his generation. His victory at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Oct. 20 moved him into a tie with Reggie Ruggiero for second on the all-time wins list.
All of Bonsignore’s wins have come under the Whelen entitlement, a fact that is not lost on the 36-year-old New Yorker.
“Whelen has been with the series for nearly 20 years and is still looking to improve and make the series better financially … it’s amazing,” Bonsignore said. “We’re really appreciative of Whelen, and in particular Peter Tiezzi, for everything they do for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. They’re just so dedicated to motorsports.
“We’re just really, really fortunate they continue to support the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, because that’s where I love to race and want to be. Having them re-sign gives more stability to the series.”
Perhaps no Modified team embodies the blue-collar work ethic quite like Boehler Racing Enterprises. Founded by the late Len Boehler in the 1950s, Boehler Racing Enterprises has fielded the famous Ole Blue No. 3 for decades starting with the original NASCAR National Modified Championship before the series was rebranded as the Modified Tour in 1985.
Now led by Len’s son Michael Boehler, the five-time NASCAR Modified championship-winning team continues to race with a mostly volunteer team full of blue-collar workers who simply want to be part of NASCAR’s oldest division.
Without Whelen’s support, those workers’ involvement wouldn’t be possible.
“Having a series title sponsor like Whelen is awesome,” Boehler said. “To have people dedicated to the series and what they’ve given back to us, the Modified community, is second to none. At the end of the day in racing, we’re a community. As team owners and crew members and drivers, we want to showcase our series. To have Whelen right here in the Northeast supporting us, it’s beneficial to us and the brand name.
“We feel proud to be involved, and obviously the partnership goes both ways. They must feel the same way if they keep renewing the contract.”
Tyler Haydt, who co-owns the No. 16 Modified driven by Silk with business partner Joe Yannone, has a unique perspective on Whelen’s relationship with the series.
He started his Modified Tour career as a driver, competing in 15 events in 2005 before transitioning to team ownership. He’s thrilled Whelen is returning and even more thrilled to see the company continuing to up the ante.
“They’ve been in the series a long time. It’s nice to have a tenured sponsor like that who wants to keep upping the payouts,” Haydt said. “We’re all working people. This isn’t backed by sponsorship. This is about guys who like to race. Getting some more money back in the door is going to be beneficial.”
Simply put: The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour would not be what it is without the support of Whelen Engineering. With Whelen’s reinvestment in the series now official, all parties can focus on deepening the history of NASCAR’s oldest division.
“We’re honored to work with Sonny Whelen, Peter Tiezzi and Geoff Marsh and everyone at Whelen,” Wilson said. “We know how important the relationship with the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour is to them, and we really do appreciate and value that partnership. With this reinvestment in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, we look forward to growing this sector of the sport and their presence in it together.”