Posted on by Brandon White

RIVERHEAD, New York — One week ago, Doug Coby had no idea that he would be racing in Saturday’s NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Miller Lite 200 at Riverhead Raceway.

Tommy Baldwin Jr.’s decision to put the six-time Tour champion in the famed No. 7NY as a substitute for Jimmy Blewett paid off for both parties, as Coby took control of the race early to claim his 32nd career victory.

Being able to win in a car as famous as the No. 7NY was a tremendous honor for Coby, but he dedicated Saturday’s victory at Riverhead to Blewett’s family as they take care of his sick daughter, Kayla.

“More important than anything, Kayla Blewett is home with her family,” Coby said. “I guess I was kind of the pseudo-Riverhead guy tonight driving the No. 7NY. Tommy gave me a great car and I want to thank him and all his guys for the hard work. It was an unfortunate circumstance, but you’ve got to make the most of it.”

RELATED: Complete results from Riverhead

Saturday’s victory marked the first time Coby had taken part in a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event this season.

A longtime staple of the division, Coby elected to scale back his own operation for 2022 to focus on obligations away from the track. His plan was to compete in four races with the Tour as part of a limited schedule.

Coby immediately jumped at the opportunity to drive for Baldwin when he got the phone call on Tuesday and promptly reminded the rest of the Tour field why he was so efficient in the series for a decade.

After passing polesitter Timmy Solomito, Coby was nearly uncontested for the rest of the evening at Riverhead as he perfectly executed multiple restarts and methodically carved his way through the ever-prevalent lapped traffic around the quarter-mile bullring.

The closest challenge Coby received came during a green-white-checkered attempt, where he was tasked with holding off the hard-charging Patrick Emerling, who had climbed his way up from the 15th starting position.

Emerling believed he was faster than Coby’s during the second half of the race, but admitted that the tires on his car were too exhausted to mount a challenge on the restart, forcing him to settle for second.

“My tires were just marbled up and I could not quite get it going,” Emerling said. “[Coby] started early and he did get me a little bit. When I got on it, the car was standing still, but I’m proud of what the team did today. We were able to drive ourselves up to the front and we had an awesome car tonight.”

For Coby, his three wins in the last four Riverhead races are the only times that he has visited Victory Lane at Riverhead during his career, which he attests to how taxing it can be to navigate the quarter-mile bullring’s tight turns.

Coby knows that no win on the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour is easy to come by and considers himself grateful for the diligent work Baldwin and his crew put into the No. 7NY to make it so efficient Saturday evening.

“A lot of people like to think that I need to drive certain cars with certain setups to do well,” Coby said. “This is a team that I’ve never really talked with that much, but they put great cars together. There are so many Whelen Modified Tour teams that have great equipment and I’m happy to showcase that for Tommy and his team.”

Ron Silk maintained track position up front all evening to secure a third-place finish. Riverhead regular Dylan Slepian finished fourth while Solomito completed the top-five.

A replay of Saturday’s Miller Lite 200 at Riverhead Raceway will be broadcast on USA Network on Friday, May 20 at 1 p.m. ET.

The Whelen Modified Tour returns to action next Saturday, May 21 at Lee USA Speedway for the Granite State Derby, which will be broadcast live on FloRacing.

Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

Ty Majeski was optimistic heading into Kansas Speedway this weekend.

He proved why on Saturday night, posting a career-best second-place finish at the 1.5-mile oval in Kansas City in the No. 66 Toyota for ThorSport Racing.

After qualifying third, Majeski led one lap and scored points in each of the race’s opening stages — second in Stage 1 and fourth in Stage 2.

RELATED: Official results | Photos from the race

Majeski, the Midwestern late model ace, took advantage of John Hunter Nemechek’s poor restart with nine laps to go. Majeski lined up behind Smith on the inside lane and pounced to second place after Nemechek spun his tires on the front row, settling in for his career-best NASCAR finish.

“We kept easing on the balance all night. I was a little bit free,” Majeski said. “We kept making good adjustments, just didn’t make a big enough swing on that last run. The sun went down and I think it freed up a little bit. Just a little bit too free to be able to attack the way I needed to to get by the 38 (Zane Smith).

“He was class of the field all night. I really struggled on restarts, but once we got going, I could pick up the spots. Really good truck. Hats off to Joe Shear Jr., my crew chief.”

Majeski is posting impressive numbers in his first full-time Truck Series season. Two years ago, Majeski was slated to run the full schedule with Niece Motorsports, but the deal collapsed after 15 races as the team went a different direction.

Majeski joined ThorSport as an engineer at the shop in 2021 and piloted the No. 66 truck in four races with a best finish of seventh at Charlotte. The Wisconsin native has already posted a career-high three top fives and five top 10s this season, including Saturday night’s stellar result.

“It’s been a fun season so far,” Majeski said. “Just a huge relief to run good consistently. I had a really fast American Racing Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. I think our day is coming.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Miller Lite 200

Riverhead Raceway

Miller Lite 200

  • Race results
Pos. Car No. Driver Team Laps Difference
1 7 Doug Coby John Blewett, Inc. 213  —
2 07 Patrick Emerling Captain Pip Marina 213 0.593
3 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine and Future Homes 213 0.866
4 10 Dylan Slepian* Eastport Foods 213 1.281
5 66 Timmy  Solomito Natural Designs/Highmark 213 1.343
6 87 John Baker Staria Automotive/Elite Towing 213 1.636
7 15 Kyle Soper Eastport Foods 213 1.896
8 5 John Beatty, Jr. Elite Sound Studios 213 2.311
9 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 213 2.469
10 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chalew Performance/nn’s Auto 213 5.594
11 49 Chris Young* J&H Homestead 212 1 Lap
12 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 212 1 Lap
13 64 Austin Beers* Dell Electric/Lumiere Electrical 212 1 Lap
14 50 Ronnie Williams, Jr. Empower Financial Advisory & RB Enterprise 212 1 Lap
15 34 John Fortin Red Camel Racing/Johns Fuel/John Tree Removal 211 2 Laps
16 81 Chris Turbush* Cromers Market 211 2 Laps
17 79 Jon McKennedy Middlesex Interiors 208 5 Laps
18 36 Dave Sapienza SAP Enterprises 207 6 Laps
19 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood Market & Restaurant 206 7 Laps
20 03 Tom Rogers, Jr. Licensed to Chill/Stakey’s Pumpkin Farm 206 7 Laps
21 78 Walter Sutcliffe, Jr. Last Minute Racing 206 7 Laps
22 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Landscape/TRC Electrict 202 11 Laps
23 2 J.R. Bertuccio, Jr. Gershow Recycling 144 69 Laps
24 3 Jake Johnson* Propane Plus/LIN’s Propane Trucks 143 70 Laps
25 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communication Inc. 143 70 Laps
26 82 Craig Lutz Danny’s Cesspool Service/Riverhead Building Supply 124 89 Laps
27 96 Matthew Brode* Peter Clark Motorsports 123 90 Laps
28 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 87 126 Laps
29 02 Joey Coulter IV SRI Performance/Air Shok/Race-Fan 83 130 Laps
30 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 9 204 Laps
  • Race statistics

Time of race: 56 minutes, 2 seconds

Average speed: 57.020 mph

Margin of victory: 0.593 seconds

Caution flags: Laps 59-66 (Car #51 turn 3 no contact, FP #88); 69-72 (Car #78 turn 4 no contact, FP #96); 76-79 (Car #5 turn 4 no contact, FP #64); 125-130 (Car #82 and #96 turn 1 contact, FP #64); 199-210 (Car #03 spun no contact, FP #22). 5 for 34 laps.

Lap Leaders: Timmy Solomito 1-10, Doug Coby 11-66, Timmy Solomito 67-73, Doug Coby 74-213.

Total Laps Led: Doug Coby 196, Timmy Solomito 17. 3 changes involving 2 drivers.

Posted on by Reid Spencer

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Leading 108 of 134 laps, Zane Smith dominated Saturday night’s Heart of America 200 and staved off a late charge from Ty Majeski at Kansas Speedway to record his NASCAR Camping World Series-leading third victory of the season.

After a restart with eight laps left, Smith pulled away from Majeski and crossed the finish line with a comfortable 1.653 seconds to spare. The runner-up finish was a career-best for Majeski.

RELATED: Official results | At-track photos

“It was really just an unbelievable truck,” said Smith, who won for the first time at Kansas and the sixth time in his career. “So dang cool. That was one of my easier ones I’ve ever had to win, but that late-race restart scared me a little bit.

“It’s a good thing I didn’t have another one there, because I’m stuck in fourth (gear), so sorry for no burnout.”

Smith’s No. 38 Ford appeared headed for an even easier victory before Dean Thompson spun on the backstretch to cause the fourth caution of the evening on Lap 121.

That gave Majeski a shot at his first series victory, but Smith’s F-150 was simply too strong.

“We were really close,” Majeski said. “We kept easing on the adjustments all night, getting the balance better on every run. The track was freeing up, and we were just a little too free, so we kept making small changes.

“The sun went down, and I think we over-adjusted a little on that last stop — couldn’t attack it, just a little bit too free.”

RELATED: Ty Majeski’s full post-race interview

Grant Enfinger ran third after charging from seventh in the final eight laps. Chandler Smith finished fourth after running out of fuel at the end of Stage 1 and losing a lap. Christian Eckes came home fifth, followed by pole winner John Hunter Nemechek, Matt DiBenedetto, Derek Kraus, Matt Crafton and Ben Rhodes.

Corey Heim led 18 laps and won Stage 1, but his No. 51 Kyle Busch Motorsports Toyota scraped the outside wall on Lap 100, eventually leading to a cut right-front tire and a 33rd-place result.

Stewart Friesen started from the rear in the No. 52 Chevrolet after Bubba Wallace practiced and qualified his truck. Scheduled to arrive in Kansas City on Friday, Friesen instead spent the night in New York’s LaGuardia Airport after his flight was canceled.

Another delay with his connection in Chicago prevented him from arriving at the track in time to qualify the truck. Friesen ran as high as fourth before finishing 14th.

Hailie Deegan came home 17th, matching her best result of the season.

The Truck Series’ next race is May 20 at Texas Motor Speedway at 8:30 p.m. ET (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM).

Note: Inspection in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series garage is complete with no issues, confirming the No. 38 truck of Zane Smith as the winner.

Posted on by Staff Report

The Nos. 22 and 31 cars of Joey Logano and Justin Haley, respectively, failed pre-qualifying inspection multiple times Saturday at Kansas Speedway.

Both teams will lose a crew member and pit selection following qualifying, but will retain their qualifying positions after each car passed on the third time through the inspection station. No. 22 Team Penske car chief Jerry Kelley and No. 31 Kaulig Racing car chief Jaron Antley were chosen by the teams for ejection from the 1.5-mile speedway.

RELATED: No. 3 crew chief out at Kansas | Kansas schedule

UPDATE: The No. 17 of Chris Buescher and No. 22 of Logano will start from the rear for Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, Sirius XM) because of going to a backup car. The No. 11 of Denny Hamlin, No. 38 of Todd Gilliland and No. 47 of Ricky Stenhouse Jr. will start from the rear because of unapproved adjustments.

Posted on by Staff Report

Christopher Bell sped to his third Busch Light Pole of 2022 with a blistering lap in qualifying on Saturday at Kansas Speedway.

The No. 20 Toyota laid a lap of 179.575 mph around the 1.5-mile speedway to claim the No. 1 starting spot for Sunday’s race (3 p.m. ET, FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio). Tyler Reddick will start second with a lap of 178.855 mph ahead of Kyle Larson (178.772 mph), Austin Cindric (178.448 mph) and Kurt Busch (178.359 mph).

“We have everything we need to win the races, that is for sure,” Bell said. “Our cars are super-fast. I feel like I’ve been driving pretty well, especially the last couple of weeks specifically. We just have to maintain our track position.”

Rounding out the top 10 on the starting grid are Kyle Busch, Aric Almirola, Alex Bowman, Martin Truex Jr. and Ryan Blaney.

RELATED: Starting lineup | Full Kansas schedule | Kansas at-track photos

Practice featured multiple on-track incidents, with the most frequent culprit being the left-rear tire. Chris Buescher, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Joey Logano each spun and crashed into the wall. Buescher and Logano will go to backup cars while Stenhouse’s primary car will undergo repairs.

“I lost the left rear going down the frontstretch,” said Buescher, whose team rolled out a backup car. “I guess, on corner entry, I started feeling a vibration, tried to slow down and didn’t get it knocked down in time.

“…It’s going to be a long night.”

Logano, who won last week’s race at Darlington Raceway, remained confident despite wrecking his primary car.

VIDEO: Logano smacks wall | Buescher wreck forces backup

“As soon as I turned down off into the corner, I could feel the shaking, and I knew it was bad,” said Logano, who will start from the rear in a backup car on Sunday. “We’ll be all right. We’ll fight through it. I think we were pretty decent in lap times before that, I believe, on long hauls, at least.”

Other drivers who suffered flat tires were Denny Hamlin and Blaney. Hamlin incurred damage to his rear diffuser, forcing his No. 11 team to change the part and meaning he will start Sunday’s race from the rear of the field. Cody Ware also spun in the session.

Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire Service, contributed to this story.

Posted on by Staff Report

Miller Lite 200

Riverhead Raceway

Miller Lite 200

  • Starting lineup
Pos. Car No. Driver Sponsor Best Time Best Speed
1 66 Timmy Solomito Natural Designs/Highmark 11.427 78.761
2 58 Eric Goodale GAF Roofing 11.453 78.582
3 7 Doug Coby John Blewett, Inc. 11.490 78.329
4 82 Craig Lutz Danny’s Cesspool Service/Riverhead Building Supply 11.522 78.111
5 51 Justin Bonsignore Phoenix Communications Inc. 11.553 77.902
6 22 Kyle Bonsignore Chateau Performance/Munn’s Auto 11.572 77.774
7 16 Ron Silk Blue Mountain Machine and Future Homes 11.596 77.613
8 96 Matt Brode Peter Clark Motorsports 11.621 77.446
9 18 Ken Heagy Buoy One Seafood 11.624 77.426
10 50 Ronnie Williams Empower Financial Advisory/RB Enterprises 11.631 77.379
11 34 John Fortin John’s Fuel Oil Inc/John’s Tree Removal 11.632 77.373
12 10 Dylan Slepian Eastport Feeds 11.639 77.326
13 64 Austin Beers Dell Elect/Lumierre Elect/Andrew James Interior 11.641 77.313
14 02 Joey Coulter SRI Performance/Air Shok/Race-Fan/Molecule 11.646 77.280
15 07 Patrick Emerling Captain Pip Marina & Hideaway 11.650 77.253
16 5 John Beatty Jr. Elite Sound Studios 11.694 76.963
17 49 Chris Young J&H Homestead 11.699 76.930
18 54 Tommy Catalano FX Caprara 11.716 76.818
19 2 J.R. Bertuccio Gershow Recycling 11.737 76.681
20 87 John Baker Staria Automotive/Elite Towing 11.795 76.304
21 36 Dave Sapienza Sapienza Enterprise 11.820 76.142
22 81 Chris Turbush Cromer’s Market 11.856 75.911
23 88 Roger Turbush Rheem 11.876 75.783
24 03 Tom Rogers Jr. License to Chill/Stakey’s Pumpkin Farm 11.954 75.289
25 78 Walter Sutcliffe Jr. Last Minute Racing 12.178 Provisional
26 01 Melissa Fifield Pine Knoll Auto Sales 13.057 Provisional
27 79 Jon McKennedy Middlesex Interiors 11.961 Provisional
28 15 Kyle Soper Eastport Feeds 11.977 Provisional
29 26 Gary McDonald Lakeland Landscape /TRC Electric 12.422 Provisional
30 3 Jake Johnson Propane Plus/LIN’s Propane Trucks 12.324 Provisional
Posted on by Zach Sturniolo

Six days removed from the late-race contact he laid on William Byron to win at Darlington, Joey Logano’s views haven’t changed a bit.

Logano said Saturday his perspective remains the same after laying the bumper to Byron’s No. 24 Chevrolet with two laps to go in a fight for the lead, multiple laps after Logano felt he was squeezed into the Turn 2 wall. The late shove bumped Byron into the wall and sent him to a 13th-place finish while Logano took home the victory.

“What happened last week happened, right? I got fenced,” Logano said ahead of Kansas practice and qualifying. “I stand by the same stuff I said last week. I got fenced, I retaliated and won the race. Like I said last week, that’s just kind of how it works. I won’t get pushed around. So in my book, we’re back to even. You reset and go again.”

MORE: Logano says the ‘gloves are off’ | Byron calls Logano ‘an idiot’

Byron, unsurprisingly, sees it differently. A two-time winner this year, Byron said he watched the incidents multiple times and from different angles “to figure out what we can do to control our situation and then also what was done to us that was out of our control,” he said in an interview with NBC Sports reporter Dustin Long. “So there was definitely some things that definitely caught my interest.”

Nothing on the videos changed Byron’s mind.

“Nope. Same as what I felt in the race car,” Byron said. “He (Logano) made a choice in the middle of the corner, got down on my door, and what do you do? You either spin out or it gets close. So it got close.”

Byron was blunt when asked if he believes things are even between him and Logano: “No. Nope.”

Logano, the 2018 champion, made it clear that whether this feud with Byron continues, he’s ready to defend himself however he sees fit.

“Honestly, if he wants to keep going back and forth, I’ll keep swinging,” Logano said. “I don’t think that’s a good play for him in the long run. Like I said, I feel like we’re even. He was willing to take the lead that way. I was willing to take the lead back the same way.”

“He can keep going, but I can promise you I’ll keep going and I’ll go bigger every time.”

Posted on by Staff Report

Richard Childress Racing No. 3 Chevrolet crew chief Justin Alexander will miss Sunday’s AdventHealth 400 at Kansas Speedway (3 p.m. ET, FS1) per NASCAR’s COVID protocols, the sanctioning body confirmed on Saturday.

No. 3 driver Austin Dillon will instead work with Jim Pohlman atop the box as he looks for his first NASCAR Cup Series win of 2022. Pohlman was listed as a mechanic on the No. 8 Chevrolet on the team roster for Bristol Motor Speedway.

MORE: Full Kansas schedule | Kansas at-track photos

Pohlman has 18 races of crew chief experience at the Cup level, with 17 coming alongside Juan Pablo Montoya in 2011 and one with Ross Chastain in 2020. He led RCR driver Sheldon Creed in three Xfinity Series races earlier this year, notching one top 10.