Posted on by Staff Report

Despite Riverhead Raceway being in his own backyard, Ken Massa didn‘t know about modified cars or the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. That all changed in the summer of 2009.

“To be honest, I didn‘t know what the modifieds were,” said Ken Massa, owner of Kenneth Massa Motorsports. “After the race ended I went to the pits and talked with everyone. I took it all in and thought that it was a great family sport and really enjoyed seeing the camaraderie between the drivers and crews.”

By the end of 2009, Massa would own a car, truck, trailer and had hired driver Justin Bonsignore, signaling the birth of Kenneth Massa Motorsports.

“It was something I wanted to see if I could actually pull it off and win,” he said.

Before Massa and Bonsignore could become the current longest car owner/ driver pairing on the Whelen Modified Tour with a decade spent together, Massa recalled his first interaction with the 2018 champion.

RACING-REFERENCE: Justin Bonsignore Career Statistics

“I think he finished fourth at Riverhead,” Massa said. “I went to the pits and introduced myself and told him I was thinking about starting my own team and if he was interested in talking about it.”

Bonsignore, accompanied by his father and along with a few crewmembers, met with Massa.

“They were upfront from the beginning and they had some of the equipment,” the 45-year-old said. “I thought it was a good matching because I didn‘t even have a screwdriver.”

As a brand new owner, Massa‘s biggest battle came with learning the business.

“It was a lot of learning,” the Long Island native said. “We went through three different car manufacturers. We tried everything. We had some success early, but there were some personnel changes along the way. There were some ‘bad eggs‘ on the team and we had to sift through, but more than half the team has been with me since day one.”

According to Massa, it‘s not spending the most money or having the best equipment, driver or crew; it‘s the relationship you build with your team.

“The relationship with the entire team makes the difference,” he said. “It‘s a team sport.”

During the summer, Massa said he holds a ‘Sunday Fun Day‘ at his house where he invites his crew over to swim in his pool and enjoy a barbeque.

Despite being a “car guy,” Massa along with his wife founded M3 Technology, LLC in 1998.

“The Aerospace & Defense Solutions Company” supplies various parts to airplane companies used for commercial and military use.

Massa said his business, based in Bellport, New York, is a supplier to companies that are tasked with building Black Hawk, C-130 and “Huey” helicopters.

THOMPSON, MA - OCTOBER 12: Pit crew members for Justin Bonsignore, driver of the #51 Phoenix Communications Chevrolet, work during practice for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Sunoco World Series 150 on October 12, 2019 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in Thompson, Connecticut. (Adam Glanzman/NASCAR)

 

Posted on by Jonathan Merryman

In 1999, Tony Stewart put up incredible numbers for a rookie at NASCAR’s highest level. “Smoke” finished the season with 21 top 10s, 12 top fives and three wins that all came inside of the last 10 weeks of the season.

Tony Stewart Richmond 1999 graphic
NASCAR Creative Design

That first win came in the fall at Richmond Raceway. Stewart started the night on the outside pole and for a good part of the night battled Jeff Gordon, who at one point during the race radioed his crew and said “look at him go” after Stewart drove around him.

RELATED: Full race results | Classic Race Replays | See all of Stewart’s wins 

At the end of the night, it was Stewart’s teammate, Bobby Labonte, who would try to lead the charge to keep the rookie out of Victory Lane, but his efforts weren’t enough. Stewart went on to win the 1999 Exide NASCAR Select Batteries 400, the first of 49 Hall-of-Fame-quality career wins that led to Stewart’s induction into the Class of 2020.

Relive all of action during Tony Stewart’s first career victory in the 1999 Exide NASCAR Select Batteries 400 at Richmond Raceway in the latest NASCAR Classic Race Replay.

Posted on by Staff Report

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on April 14, 2020 but was updated on April 22, 2020.

Denny Hamlin was the first NASCAR driver to join the ALL IN Challenge, which has pegged itself as the largest digital fundraiser ever, but Kyle and Kurt Busch have also hopped onboard.

Fanatics’ ALL IN challenges athletes across all sports to help raise $100 million for COVID-19 crisis relief. The money will provide food to those in need, specifically kids, elderly and frontline workers. The official statement says, “We challenge every athlete, sports owner, team, league, celebrity and artist to go ALL IN and donate one of their most prized possessions or create a once-in-a-lifetime fan experience.”

How it works: Fans bid on prizes and experiences of their choice through an auction. Those bids then double as the fundraiser’s donations.

RELATED: How the industry is lending a hand

Hamlin was first nominated by former New York Giants running back Tiki Barber. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver and three-time Daytona 500 winner announced last Tuesday he’s offering up the opportunity to play Michael Jordan’s new exclusive golf club in Florida alongside himself and PGA Tour’s Bubba Watson. That’s not all. In addition to the round of golf, the package will feature a private flight and VIP access to the 2021 Daytona 500.

Hamlin’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammate and the reigning Cup Series champion, Kyle Busch, followed up Monday with his participation in the challenge, offering a VIP experience to a future NASCAR race for the winner and a guest.

Kurt Busch then shared his new Wednesday. The Chip Ganassi Racing driver is offering a “dream race weekend” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, highlighted by a helicopter ride and VIP passes.

Many non-racing sports names have also accepted the challenged. Peyton and Eli Manning, Magic Johnson, Aaron Rodgers, Alex Rodriguez and Joel Embiid are just a few of the athletes. Leagues and teams are involved, too.

All of the money raised will benefit the following organizations: Meals on Wheels, No Kid Hungry, America’s Food Fund, Feeding America and World Central Kitchen.

Posted on by Jason Christley

The iRacing platform has always had a heavy influence of short-track racing — from the variety of cars it offers, to the tracks in the game, to the competitors who wheel the sims.

Truex Management Group is teaming with Burton Kligerman eSports to bring that short-track racing to TrackPass on NBC Gold in a four-race series that will stream on Wednesday evenings.

RELATED: More on TrackPass

The 2020 Grand National Tour, which will utilize the ARCA Menards Series cars, will take its initial green flag on Wednesday, April 15. The series will visit four renown short tracks: Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway, Virginia’s South Boston Speedway, California’s Irwindale Speedway and Florida’s 5 Flags Speedway.

The field of drivers will be made up of NASCAR celebrities and short-track heroes. All proceeds from the presenting and primary partners will benefit each participating short track.

The series is supported by Eneos, NAPA AUTO PARTS, Bill McAnally Racing, Marquis Spas, Valvoline and LIUNA.

Posted on by Staff Report

It was a race that perfectly encapsulated what a unique and crazy season the 2017 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour campaign truly was.

Eric Goodale got the win, Ryan Preece was left with nothing to show for a dominating performance, and Doug Coby checked off another top-10 performance en route to another championship.

Goodale used a lapped car to steal away the lead from Preece with three laps remaining in the NAPA Fall Final 150 on Sunday, Oct. 1, 2017. It wasn’t a lucky break – the Riverhead, New York, driver was the faster of the two and very may well have gotten around Preece anyway.

RESULTS: NAPA Fall Final 150 | 2017 Schedule & Results

Goodale started 18th after inspection issues in qualifying. He quickly charged to the front and the No. 58 GAF Roofing Chevrolet was in contention all day.

It marked Goodale’s third career win. His first came at his home track, Riverhead Raceway, on Long Island in 2014. His big breakthrough win came in 2016 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Goodale finished a career-best fifth in points in 2017, part of a six-year run where he’s finished eighth or better in the championship standings.

RACING-REFERENCE: Eric Goodale Career Stats

Preece was dominate all day, winning the pole and looking for a season sweep of the three events that season at Stafford. That he came up short was also fitting.

The then 27-year-old from Berlin, Connecticut, tied for the tour-lead with five wins. His average finish of 5.9 was marketably better than eventual champion Doug Coby (7.4).

But Preece missed a pair of races: The first was a makeup date for a rained out event at Virginia’s Langley Speedway that conflicted with his wedding. He erased that deficit and held the championship points lead with four races remaining. Then he missed the Fall race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway to run the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Kentucky Speedway for Joe Gibbs Racing.

While Preece did not win at Kentucky, his performance in a limited slate (a win and four top fives in four starts) in the series helped lead to an expanded schedule in 2018 and eventually led to a full-time NASCAR Cup Series ride in 2019.

RACING-REFERENCE: Ryan Preece Career Stats

Preece’s performance, coupled with the substitution efforts of George Brunnhoelzl III (Langley) and Jon McKennedy (NHMS) helped give Ed Partridge the owner;s championship as the tour saw the first split title in its history.

Championship contenders Timmy Solomito (fifth) and Justin Bonsignore (sixth) both finished ahead of Coby. But Coby’s eighth-place run helped eventually seal his fourth straight title. While Coby won just once in 2017, he had 10 top fives and 11 top 10s to carry him to the crown.

RACING-REFERENCE: 2017 Championship Standings

It was the second time Coby won the championship with just a solo victory. His other four titles (2012, 2015-16 and 2019) have all come in years where he’s won four or more races – accounting for a quarter of the wins in those given years.

RACING-REFERENCE: Doug Coby Career Stats | Timmy Solomito Career Stats | Justin Bonsignore Career Stats

Rowan Pennink entered the penultimate race as one of the six drivers in the championship hunt, but an early accident left him ultimately finishing 23rd and knocking him out of contention.

Solomito would go on to win the Sunoco World Series 150 two weeks later, leading to a unique triple Victory Lane: one for the race winner, one for the owners championship and the final one for the driver championship.

Posted on by Staff Report

Chip Ganassi Racing officials announced Tuesday that the organization has parted ways with NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson after Larson’s use of a racial slur on a live stream during an iRacing event April 12.

Chip Ganassi Racing had initially announced a suspension without pay for Larson on Monday before deciding to sever its ties with the driver, who has been with the team since 2013. That Monday announcement was swiftly followed by Larson’s indefinite suspension from NASCAR.

“After much consideration, Chip Ganassi Racing has determined that it will end its relationship with driver Kyle Larson,” read the organization’s statement. “As we said before, the comments that Kyle made were both offensive and unacceptable especially given the values of our organization. As we continued to evaluate the situation with all the relevant parties, it became obvious that this was the only appropriate course of action to take.”

The sanctioning body issued a behavioral penalty April 13, citing Sections 12.1 (General Procedures) and 12.8 (NASCAR Member Conduct Guidelines) of the official Rule Book. Larson must also attend sensitivity training as directed by NASCAR should he wish to be reinstated.

Earlier Monday afternoon, Larson posted a video on his social media handles, apologizing for his actions.

The full text of Larson’s statement: “Hey, I just want to say I’m sorry. Last night I made a mistake and said the word that should never, ever be said. There’s no excuse for that. I wasn’t raised that way. It’s just an awful thing to say. I feel very sorry for my family, my friends, my partners, the NASCAR community and especially the African-American community. I understand the damage is probably unrepairable, and I own up to that. But I just want to let you all know how sorry I am, and I hope everybody is staying safe during these crazy times. Thank you.”

Larson has earned six victories, 56 top fives, 101 top 10s and eight Busch Pole Awards in his NASCAR Cup Series career. All but four of his 223 Cup Series starts have come in the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing Chevrolet.

Larson registered one top-five finish and three top 10s in four starts this year before the COVID-19 pandemic placed the NASCAR season on hold. His contract with Ganassi was set to expire at the end of the year, making him a free agent.

Posted on by Jonathan Merryman

It’s one of the best finishes at Richmond Raceway in recent memory. Carl Edwards puts the perfect amount of pressure on Kyle Busch’s back bumper in Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap of the 2016 Toyota Owners 400. Kyle shoots up the track, and Carl was able to power by and make off with the checkered flag and the bigger check. 

This battle was an intense one for the final 10 laps of the race. Edwards steadily chipped away at Busch’s lead and on the final lap tried to make a move in the first two turns. Edwards dove inside of Busch but couldn’t make it stick. Option two in the final set of corners was clear: Use the bumper.

RELATED: Full race results | Classic Race Replays | Every Edwards win in the NASCAR Cup Series

Edwards executed a textbook example of moving a guy without wrecking him, timing it perfectly as well. See, when you move a guy in the final set of corners, he’s got no shot at catching you and paying you back — well, at least not until the next week.

The added layer of intrigue to this incident? Busch and Edwards were Joe Gibbs Racing teammates. That sort of last-lap incident makes for an interesting set of meetings the following week even as JGR scored a 1-2 finish.

In the end, it was Edwards who thrilled the crowd with the last-lap move and his signature backflip as he went on to win the 27th NASCAR Cup Series race of his career — the second to last win of his Cup tenure (it was also his second straight win as he won at Bristol the year before).

Last week, Edwards was one of 10 named to the Modern Era Ballot as part of the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2021 nominees that will be voted on later this year. 

Relive every lap of the 2016 Toyota Owners 400 in today’s NASCAR Classic Race Replay.

Posted on by Staff Report

Two races remained in the 2017 season when the NASCAR Whelen Modifeid Tour arrived at Stafford Motor Speedway on Sunday, October 1 for the NAPA Fall Final 150.

It was shaping up to be one of the closest championships in the history of the tour.

Six drivers arrived at Stafford within 35 points of the leader, Doug Coby.

RACING-REFERENCE: 2017 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Results 

Coming off his third straight Whelen Modified title, the Milford, Connecticut, driver led Justin Bonsignore by 11 points and Timmy Solomito by 14. Rowan Pennink and Ryan Preece, each SK Modified champions at Stafford, were 17 and 26 points back, respectively. Long Island’s Eric Goodale was sixth, 35 out of the lead, but still in the hunt with two races remaining.

The tour was coming off a race at New Hampshire that was won by Bobby Santos III and featured a shakeup in the standings.

Pennink finished second, Bonsignore fifth and Goodale sixth, while Coby wound up 14th. He was still able to take the points lead from Preece, though, as the Berlin, Connecticut, driver missed his second race of the season.

Preece missed the New Hampshire event to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Kentucky Speedway the same same. Jon McKennedy piloted the No. 6 T.S. Haulers Chevrolet to an 11th-place finish at New Hampshire, to keep car owner Ed Partridge in the hunt for the tour’s owners championship. In May, Preece missed the rescheduled race at Langley Speedway in Hampton, Virginia, when the makeup date conflicted with his wedding.

He arrived at Stafford looking for as season sweep of the historic half-mile, having already won the Spring Sizzler in April and the August race. He also had picked up wins at Connecticut’s Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park and New York’s Oswego Speedway. Meanwhile, Solomito had won four times, Pennink went to Victory Lane in April’s Icebreaker at Thompson, and Coby extended his streak of seasons with at least one win with a victory at Massachusetts’ Seekonk Speedway.

The only contender without a win heading into the race? Goodale, who had picked up his second career victory in 2016 with a breakthrough performance at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Posted on by Staff Report

Chip Ganassi Racing driver Kyle Larson has been indefinitely suspended from NASCAR following his use of a racial slur on a live stream during an iRacing event Sunday night.

UPDATE: Ganassi parts ways with Larson

The behavioral penalty NASCAR issued Monday cited Sections 12.1 (General Procedures) and 12.8 (NASCAR Member Conduct Guidelines) of the official Rule Book. Larson must also attend sensitivity training as directed by NASCAR.

“NASCAR has made diversity and inclusion a priority and will not tolerate the type of language used by Kyle Larson during Sunday’s iRacing event,” a NASCAR statement read. “Our Member Conduct Guidelines are clear in this regard, and we will enforce these guidelines to maintain an inclusive environment for our entire industry and fan base.”

Larson later posted a video on his social media handles, apologizing for his actions.

The full text: “Hey, I just want to say I’m sorry. Last night I made a mistake and said the word that should never, ever be said. There’s no excuse for that. I wasn’t raised that way. It’s just an awful thing to say. I feel very sorry for my family, my friends, my partners, the NASCAR community and especially the African-American community. I understand the damage is probably unrepairable, and I own up to that. But I just want to let you all know how sorry I am, and I hope everybody is staying safe during these crazy times. Thank you.”

Earlier Monday, Chip Ganassi Racing officials said in a statement that Larson had been suspended without pay.

“We are extremely disappointed by what Kyle said last night during an iRacing Event,” a statement from Chip Ganassi Racing read. “The words that he chose to use are offensive and unacceptable. As of this moment we are suspending Kyle without pay while we work through this situation with all appropriate parties.”

iRacing also released a statement and it read that Larson was suspended indefinitely from the iRacing service.

Section 12.8.1.e in the NASCAR Rule Book states:

“Member actions that could result in a fine and/or indefinite suspension, or termination:

  • Public statement and/or communication that criticizes, ridicules, or otherwise disparages another person based upon that person’s race, color, creed, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, age, or handicapping condition.”
Posted on by Jonathan Merryman

Harry Gant has a few nicknames in and around the NASCAR garage. “Handsome Harry” is one, and another is “Mr. September.”

The latter was earned in the fall of 1991 when the then 51-year-old drove his No. 33 Skoal Bandit Oldsmobile to four straight wins in the NASCAR Cup Series. Gant kicked things off with a victory on Sept. 1 at Darlington Raceway. He then won at Richmond Raceway, Dover International Speedway and Martinsville Speedway.

RELATED: Full race results | Classic Race Replays | Where have you gone ‘Mr. September?’

Up until the race at Richmond, Gant had never won back-to-back races in his career. Gant led only 27 laps that day, but he led for the final 19 circuits after passing Davey Allison on Lap 382. Allison led a race-high 150 laps but finished second with Rusty Wallace, who led 124 laps, coming in third at the .75-mile track.

Last week, NASCAR named Gant as one of 10 nominees on the Modern Era Ballot for the NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2021.

Today at noon ET, relive part of Gant’s amazing run in this Classic Full Race Replay of the 1991 Miller Genuine Draft 400 from Richmond.