Bruno takes third win; Mahoney is fifth first-time Mini Stock winner
WEST HAVEN, Vt. – Tim Fuller secured $1,500 and bragging rights at Devil’s Bowl Speedway on Saturday, July 25, taking the “Saturday Night Special” for Small Block 358 Modifieds – and, more importantly, building momentum for the upcoming “Battle at the Bowl” event on August 9. Johnny Bruno and rookie Griff Mahoney also grabbed big wins at the event.
Fuller made the long, four-hour haul from Edwards, N.Y., pay off as he dominated the 35-lap special event. Fuller benefitted from a random invert draw to start on the pole position and then bested a field of 27 cars for the first win of his storied career at the Vermont track. The race was stalled by several caution periods for backmarkers, but Fuller was rock-solid at every restart despite the challenges of Rocky Warner and Neil Stratton.
Warner ran in second place for most of the race, briefly giving up the spot to Stratton late in the going. Warner engaged in an entertaining multi-car battle, dicing with Stratton, Adam Pierson, and eventually Mike Maresca, often in lapped traffic. Maresca was the star of the show after rebounding from an early crash; he was running in the top five in the early laps, but made a pit stop after hitting the wall hard. Maresca drove from outside the top 20 to steal third from Pierson in the final lap.
Pierson finished fourth and Stratton was fifth. Jessey Mueller was next in line, followed by Randy Green and Frank Hoard III. Justin Comes had an impressive run to finish ninth with a Crate Sportsman car. Hector Stratton rounded out the top 10 in his first race since September 2019. Qualifying heats were won by Demetrios Drellos, Maresca, and Pierson, and Michael Horton won the last-chance consolation qualifier.
Point leader Johnny Bruno grabbed his third win of the season in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Limited Sportsman division after an entertaining 25-lap run. Kevin Groff and Scott FitzGerald set the pace for most of the event, with Groff leading the first 16 laps while under pressure. FitzGerald completed the pass to take over on lap 17, but Bruno and Anthony Warren pounced at the same time, making it a three-wide fight up front.
FitzGerald held the lead when a caution flag flew at the end of lap 17, and he was able to lead four laps after the restart, but Castleton, Vt.’s Bruno took command for the final four circuits and drove away. Warren, charging hard on the outside lane, finished second with FitzGerald third. Lacey Hanson finished fourth and Groff held on for fifth. Austin Comes was sixth, followed by Matt Bilodeau, Randy Ryan, Gary English, and Garrett Given. Heats were won by Groff, Jeff White, and Warren.
Rookie Griff Mahoney became the fifth consecutive driver to earn his first-ever win in the Mini Stock division. The Bristol, Vt., racer led the first half of the race, but had a bad restart just after the halfway mark of the 20-lap feature and fell back to fifth place. Chris Sumner and Michael Daniels each took turns leading, but Mahoney drove back around both to retake command at lap 18.
Daniels took the runner-up finish with point leader Chris Conroy taking third; it was Conroy’s eighth podium finish in as many races in 2020. Brian Blake was fourth for his best finish. Tim Simonds crossed the finish line fifth, but was disqualified for an engine infraction; T.J. Knight was moved up into fifth place as a result. Mahoney and Daniels won the qualifying heats. Katrina Bean and Justin Allen both walked away uninjured after violent rollovers; Bean’s crash happened before the first lap was completed, and Allen’s happened moments after the race ended.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is back in action on Sunday, July 26, at 7:00 p.m. All five of the track’s weekly divisions will be in action, along with the first race for Pro Stocks in two years. Limited grandstand seating and infield drive-in spectator parking is available. Grandstand tickets are $15 and infield tickets are $20. Tickets will be for sale online at https://buytickets.at/devilsbowlspeedway (online processing fees apply), or at the speedway on race night.
Devil’s Bowl Speedway is located on Route 22A in West Haven, Vt., four miles north of U.S. Route 4, Exit 2, and just 20 minutes from Rutland, Vt. For more information, visit www.DevilsBowlSpeedwayVT.com or call (802) 265-3112. Devil’s Bowl Speedway is on Facebook at facebook.com/DevilsBowlSpeedway, and on Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat at @DevilsBowlSpeed; follow the action using the #DevilsBowl hashtag.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS – “Saturday Night Special”
Devil’s Bowl Speedway – West Haven, Vt.
Saturday, July 25, 2020
Small Block 358 Modified Feature (35 laps)
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
# – denotes rookie
1. (1) Tim Fuller, Edwards, N.Y.
2. (4) Ricky Warner, Gloversville, N.Y.
3. (8) Mike Maresca, Potsdam, N.Y.
4. (7) Adam Pierson, East Corinth, Vt.
5. (6) Neil Stratton, Bennington, Vt.
6. (10) Jessey Mueller, Chestertown, N.Y.
7. (5) Randy Green, Wallkill, N.Y.
8. (11) Frank Hoard III, Manchester Center, Vt.
9. (2) Justin Comes, Middlebury, Vt.
10. (12) Hector Stratton, Bennington, Vt.
11. (17) Roger Henion Jr., Montgomery, N.Y.
12. (16) Matt Depew, Argyle, N.Y.
13. (14) Elmo Reckner, Ballston Lake, N.Y.
14. (20) Matt Woodruff, Bloomingdale, N.Y.
15. (19) Michael Horton, Lackawaxen, Penn.
16. (18) Vince Quenneville, Brandon, Vt.
17. (3) Mike Palmer, Salisbury, Vt.
18. (15) Brian Whittemore, Pittsford, Vt.
19. (24) Dylan Scribner, East Greenbush, N.Y.
20. (23) Billy Lussier, Fair Haven, Vt.
21. (22) Jim Introne Jr., Hartford, N.Y.
22. (13) Todd Morey, Castleton, Vt.
23. (9) Demetrios Drellos, Queensbury, N.Y.
24. (26) Tyler Atkins, Au Sable Forks, N.Y.
25. (25) Ryan McLean, Au Sable Forks, N.Y.
26. (21) Don Mattison, Wells, Vt.
Did Not Start: Alex Bell, Cambridge, N.Y.
Heat Winners: Demetrios Drellos, Mike Maresca, Adam Pierson
Consi Winner: Michael Horton
O’Reilly Auto Parts Limited Sportsman Feature (25 laps)
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
1. (5) Johnny Bruno, Castleton, Vt.
2. (11) Anthony Warren, Shoreham, Vt.
3. (1) Scott FitzGerald, West Rutland, Vt.
4. (6) Lacey Hanson, Orwell, Vt.
5. (2) Kevin Groff, Wynantskill, N.Y.
6. (10) Austin Comes, Middlebury, Vt.
7. (9) Matt Bilodeau, Brandon, Vt.
8. (15) Randy Ryan, Orwell, Vt.
9. (4) Gary English, Salisbury, Vt.
10. (13) Garrett Given, Orwell, Vt.
11. (14) Josh Bussino, Mount Holly, Vt.
12. (17) Mike McGinn, Elizabethtown, N.Y.
13. (18) Shawn McPhee, Rutland, Vt.
14. (8) Evan Roberts, Fletcher, Vt.
15. (16) Montgomery Tremont, West Sand Lake, N.Y.
16. (7) Anthony Ryan, Benson, Vt.
17. (12) D.J. Gonyo, Chazy, N.Y.
18. (19) Dakota Green, Cambridge, N.Y.
19. (3) Jeff White, Rutland, Vt.
Heat Winners: Kevin Groff, Jeff White, Anthony Warren
Mini Stock Feature (20 laps)
Pos.-(Start)-Driver-Hometown
# – denotes rookie
1. (4) # Griff Mahoney, Brandon, Vt.
2. (5) Michael Daniels, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
3. (16) Chris Conroy, Newport, N.H.
4. (10) Brian Blake, Cornwall, Vt.
5. (13) T.J. Knight, Wells, Vt.
6. (11) Craig Kirby, St. Albans, Vt.
7. (14) Jake Barrows, Middlebury, Vt.
8. (8) Jarrod Colburn, Rutland, Vt.
9. (24) Justin Allen, Forest Dale, Vt.
10. (20) Chuck Mooney, Plattsburgh, N.Y.
11. (23) Adam Mahoney, Rutland, Vt.
12. (2) # Tom Severance, Fair Haven, Vt.
13. (21) Caleb Tourville, Grand Isle, Vt.
14. (18) Mary Gardner, Middle Granville, N.Y.
15. (19) Josh LaPorte, Peru, N.Y.
16. (1) # Freddy Burch, Middle Granville, N.Y.
17. (12) # Chris Sumner, Ripton, Vt.
18. (23) Dick Stone, Rutland, Vt.
19. (3) # Adam Stewart, Benson, Vt.
20. (17) Willie Rice, Poultney, Vt.
21. (9) Kyle Davis Jr., Cornish, N.H.
22. (15) Shawn Moquin, Milton, Vt.
23. (7) Katrina Bean, Benson, Vt.
Disqualified: (6) Tim Simonds, Clarendon, Vt. (engine)
Did Not Start: Andrea Noble, Wells, Vt.
Heat Winners: Griff Mahoney, Michael Daniels
(Photos by Bill McGaffin)
