No Last Lap Heroics Needed As Watson Nets His 2nd Win of 2010
Spencer Lewis
17-year old phenom Brandon Watson looked much more dominant in his 30-lap feature win on Saturday night than he had 7 days prior. Gone were the scrambles to create opportunities in the dyeing stages of the race, the last lap heroics and the shocked looks on the faces of the Sunset faithful. Instead, there was Watson, in clean air, swatting off challengers like hornets in a Tim Hortons drive-thru.
The evening’s A-Mains began, as usual, with the Owens Corning Mini Stock division. The packed entry-level class was set for a 25-lap affair, and right from the word “go”, it was apparent the evening belonged to rookie Kevin Van Der Beek (No. 51 Custom Steering/Highland Collision Centre Nissan).
After capturing wins in both of his qualifying heats, the Aurora, ON resident appeared both confident and collected heading into the A-Main. Van Der Beek would take the lead on lap 1, and hold the top position to the checkered flag, surviving a pair of restarts before the first lap was completed.
Upon collecting his first ever feature victory, Van Der Beek appeared happy, yet unsatisfied. “I guess the car was alright tonight”, shrugged the Donaldson Racing stablemate.“We’re definitely hoping to make a run for the championship this season, so long as things keep going our way”
Van Der Beek would go on to thank his sponsors, as well as his crew, including defending Kawartha Speedway Thunder Car champion Kyle Donaldson, Kyle’s father Ken and team engineer Stickman Pariseau.
The Tim-Br Mart Super Stocks were next to take over the 3/8 mile oval, with an A-Main set for 30-laps of green flag racing. The previous week’s winner, Kyle Donaldson (No. 53 Custom Steering/Planet Recovery Chevrolet) entered the tilt on a 5 race (4 heats, 1 feature) winning streak.
Similar to the class’ first race of the 2010 season, Donaldson and new rival Jason Elliott (No. 22 Great Canadian Wiring Co/Woodward Service Centre Chevrolet) wasted little time in breaking away from the rest of the 21 car field.
In no time, the surging leaders were met with a volley of lapped traffic, sending both cars scrambling to find a lane sans obstruction.
As the leaders bobbed and weaved around the slower cars, the rest of the top-5 were waging all-out war for the third spot. Rookie ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald (No. 07 Weld It Creations/Steve’s Towing Chevrolet) and veterans “The Deuce” Dave Doucette (No. 44 Superior Machining & Repairs Ltd/D.B. Mobile Sandblasting & Spray Painting Chrysler) and Paul Maltese (No. 28 Presto Appliance & Repair/Graham Contracting & Landscaping Chevrolet) brought the fans to their feet, utilizing every useable groove on the racetrack in search of an advantage.
Up front, Elliott would not be able to pull closer than a car length from Donaldson’s bumper, before the flag-to-flag affair came to a close...handing Donaldson his 2nd victory of the young season.
Wheely’ was officially followed across the line by Elliott, Archibald, Maltese and Doucette.
In victory lane, Donaldson was quick to deny that his second victory came any smoother than his first. “I don’t know if it looked easy, but I can tell you that anytime you have Jason Elliott chasing you down, it’s far from easy.”
This was really fun” added the former Sunset champion. When asked about the multitude of lapped cars, ‘Wheely’ made it clear that slower traffic is simply part of the game, “It wasn’t all that different dealing with the lapped cars. You just have to choose the right line, and guide the car through”
When the topic turned to Donaldson’s readiness to accept defeat should his winning streak come to an end, the young veteran deadpanned, “Absolutely. You’d be a fool to not be prepared to lose when the competition is this fierce.
As Donaldson cleared the track, on his way to post-race technical inspection, it was time for the main event of the evening.
One week earlier, young phenom Brandon Watson (No. 9 Shear Metal Products/Huronia Landscaping Chevrolet) brought the fans to their feet with an incredible last lap pass around leader Jason Witty. For his second act, Watson was intent to control the race long before the final circuit.
The 17-year old would find himself starting inside the front row of the 23 car field. It took no more than a single lap for Watson to assume sole control of the race lead.
The Stayner, ON driver would find himself pressured early on by veteran Al Inglis (No. 69 Innovative General Contracting/Byers Hobby & Welding Dodge) but would use his smooth hands and top notch cornering to sail away from his grizzled counterpart.
As Watson settled into traffic, shortly before the halfway mark, Inglis would see his spot inside the top-3 evaporate, as a freight train of cars made up of ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker (No. 48 St. Onge Recreation/B&B Towing Chevrolet), ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow (Morrow Electric/Robert Ford Collision Centre Chevrolet) and Stompin’ Tom Walters (No. 47 McColl Racing Enterprises Chevrolet) would catch Inglis out of the groove, and knock him back to 4th place in a quest to track down the young leader.
The race would find it’s flow marred by a trio of cautions only laps past the halfway point. It was on these restarts that Watson would find himself challenged more than at any other time in the race. On the final 2 restarts, Morrow, a 7-time Sunset champion in his own right, would pull to within a car length and a half of Watson’s bumper, only to have Watson pull away by a half straightaway after the first corner, much like he did on lap 1.
After the final green flag of the night, Watson would go unchallenged for the remaining 9 laps, clinching his 2nd checkered flag of the season – along with the Sunset Limited Late Model points lead. The remainder of the top-5 would be filled by Morrow, Walters, Baker and week-1 runner up Jason ‘Bam Bam’ Witty (No. 19 Matco Tools/Larue’s Haulage Chevrolet).
In victory lane, surrounded by family and crew, Watson admitted the second trip to victory lane was a tad easier than the first. “The car was handling really well tonight. I think the extra seat time absolutely helped me learn the best way around the new configuration”.
Although, the teenager admitted the late-race restarts had him prepared for the worst, “I knew Chris [Morrow] was coming. I could see he was right there, I just didn’t know how fast he was. But, we were able to get a good restart and that let us hold on to the lead.”
Watson would go on to thank the fans, his sponsors and crew before reminding the packed house he would return with his OSCAAR Super Late Model for Sunday’s 50-lap tour race.
QUICK RESULTS
MINI STOCKS
HEAT 1: Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON
HEAT 2: Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
HEAT 3: Rob Krystal Holland Landing, ON
HEAT 4: Mike ‘Speedy’ Smith Port Elgin, ON
HEAT 5: Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
HEAT 6: Doug Butler New Lowell, ON
B-Main: Pookie Brown Stroud, ON
A-Main:
1) Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
2) Mike ‘Speedy’ Smith Port Elgin, ON
3) Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON
SUPER STOCKS
HEAT 1: Jason Elliott Angus, ON
HEAT 2: Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
HEAT 3: ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald Barrie, ON
HEAT 4: Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
A-Main:
1) Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
2) Jason Elliott Angus, ON
3) ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald Barrie, ON
LIMITED LATE MODELS
HEAT 1: ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow Anten Mills, ON
HEAT 2: Brandon Watson Stayner, ON
HEAT 3: Keith McLeod Barrie, ON
HEAT 4: Al Inglis Orillia, ON
A-MAIN:
1) Brandon Watson Stayner, ON
2) ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow Anten Mills, ON
3) Stompin’ Tom Walters Bradford, ON
Spencer Lewis
17-year old phenom Brandon Watson looked much more dominant in his 30-lap feature win on Saturday night than he had 7 days prior. Gone were the scrambles to create opportunities in the dyeing stages of the race, the last lap heroics and the shocked looks on the faces of the Sunset faithful. Instead, there was Watson, in clean air, swatting off challengers like hornets in a Tim Hortons drive-thru.
The evening’s A-Mains began, as usual, with the Owens Corning Mini Stock division. The packed entry-level class was set for a 25-lap affair, and right from the word “go”, it was apparent the evening belonged to rookie Kevin Van Der Beek (No. 51 Custom Steering/Highland Collision Centre Nissan).
After capturing wins in both of his qualifying heats, the Aurora, ON resident appeared both confident and collected heading into the A-Main. Van Der Beek would take the lead on lap 1, and hold the top position to the checkered flag, surviving a pair of restarts before the first lap was completed.
Upon collecting his first ever feature victory, Van Der Beek appeared happy, yet unsatisfied. “I guess the car was alright tonight”, shrugged the Donaldson Racing stablemate.“We’re definitely hoping to make a run for the championship this season, so long as things keep going our way”
Van Der Beek would go on to thank his sponsors, as well as his crew, including defending Kawartha Speedway Thunder Car champion Kyle Donaldson, Kyle’s father Ken and team engineer Stickman Pariseau.
The Tim-Br Mart Super Stocks were next to take over the 3/8 mile oval, with an A-Main set for 30-laps of green flag racing. The previous week’s winner, Kyle Donaldson (No. 53 Custom Steering/Planet Recovery Chevrolet) entered the tilt on a 5 race (4 heats, 1 feature) winning streak.
Similar to the class’ first race of the 2010 season, Donaldson and new rival Jason Elliott (No. 22 Great Canadian Wiring Co/Woodward Service Centre Chevrolet) wasted little time in breaking away from the rest of the 21 car field.
In no time, the surging leaders were met with a volley of lapped traffic, sending both cars scrambling to find a lane sans obstruction.
As the leaders bobbed and weaved around the slower cars, the rest of the top-5 were waging all-out war for the third spot. Rookie ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald (No. 07 Weld It Creations/Steve’s Towing Chevrolet) and veterans “The Deuce” Dave Doucette (No. 44 Superior Machining & Repairs Ltd/D.B. Mobile Sandblasting & Spray Painting Chrysler) and Paul Maltese (No. 28 Presto Appliance & Repair/Graham Contracting & Landscaping Chevrolet) brought the fans to their feet, utilizing every useable groove on the racetrack in search of an advantage.
Up front, Elliott would not be able to pull closer than a car length from Donaldson’s bumper, before the flag-to-flag affair came to a close...handing Donaldson his 2nd victory of the young season.
Wheely’ was officially followed across the line by Elliott, Archibald, Maltese and Doucette.
In victory lane, Donaldson was quick to deny that his second victory came any smoother than his first. “I don’t know if it looked easy, but I can tell you that anytime you have Jason Elliott chasing you down, it’s far from easy.”
This was really fun” added the former Sunset champion. When asked about the multitude of lapped cars, ‘Wheely’ made it clear that slower traffic is simply part of the game, “It wasn’t all that different dealing with the lapped cars. You just have to choose the right line, and guide the car through”
When the topic turned to Donaldson’s readiness to accept defeat should his winning streak come to an end, the young veteran deadpanned, “Absolutely. You’d be a fool to not be prepared to lose when the competition is this fierce.
As Donaldson cleared the track, on his way to post-race technical inspection, it was time for the main event of the evening.
One week earlier, young phenom Brandon Watson (No. 9 Shear Metal Products/Huronia Landscaping Chevrolet) brought the fans to their feet with an incredible last lap pass around leader Jason Witty. For his second act, Watson was intent to control the race long before the final circuit.
The 17-year old would find himself starting inside the front row of the 23 car field. It took no more than a single lap for Watson to assume sole control of the race lead.
The Stayner, ON driver would find himself pressured early on by veteran Al Inglis (No. 69 Innovative General Contracting/Byers Hobby & Welding Dodge) but would use his smooth hands and top notch cornering to sail away from his grizzled counterpart.
As Watson settled into traffic, shortly before the halfway mark, Inglis would see his spot inside the top-3 evaporate, as a freight train of cars made up of ‘The Bully’ Dwayne Baker (No. 48 St. Onge Recreation/B&B Towing Chevrolet), ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow (Morrow Electric/Robert Ford Collision Centre Chevrolet) and Stompin’ Tom Walters (No. 47 McColl Racing Enterprises Chevrolet) would catch Inglis out of the groove, and knock him back to 4th place in a quest to track down the young leader.
The race would find it’s flow marred by a trio of cautions only laps past the halfway point. It was on these restarts that Watson would find himself challenged more than at any other time in the race. On the final 2 restarts, Morrow, a 7-time Sunset champion in his own right, would pull to within a car length and a half of Watson’s bumper, only to have Watson pull away by a half straightaway after the first corner, much like he did on lap 1.
After the final green flag of the night, Watson would go unchallenged for the remaining 9 laps, clinching his 2nd checkered flag of the season – along with the Sunset Limited Late Model points lead. The remainder of the top-5 would be filled by Morrow, Walters, Baker and week-1 runner up Jason ‘Bam Bam’ Witty (No. 19 Matco Tools/Larue’s Haulage Chevrolet).
In victory lane, surrounded by family and crew, Watson admitted the second trip to victory lane was a tad easier than the first. “The car was handling really well tonight. I think the extra seat time absolutely helped me learn the best way around the new configuration”.
Although, the teenager admitted the late-race restarts had him prepared for the worst, “I knew Chris [Morrow] was coming. I could see he was right there, I just didn’t know how fast he was. But, we were able to get a good restart and that let us hold on to the lead.”
Watson would go on to thank the fans, his sponsors and crew before reminding the packed house he would return with his OSCAAR Super Late Model for Sunday’s 50-lap tour race.
QUICK RESULTS
MINI STOCKS
HEAT 1: Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON
HEAT 2: Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
HEAT 3: Rob Krystal Holland Landing, ON
HEAT 4: Mike ‘Speedy’ Smith Port Elgin, ON
HEAT 5: Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
HEAT 6: Doug Butler New Lowell, ON
B-Main: Pookie Brown Stroud, ON
A-Main:
1) Kevin Van Der Beek Aurora, ON
2) Mike ‘Speedy’ Smith Port Elgin, ON
3) Warren Paxton Holland Landing, ON
SUPER STOCKS
HEAT 1: Jason Elliott Angus, ON
HEAT 2: Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
HEAT 3: ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald Barrie, ON
HEAT 4: Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
A-Main:
1) Kyle ‘Wheely’ Donaldson Queensville, ON
2) Jason Elliott Angus, ON
3) ‘Doomsday’ Danny Archibald Barrie, ON
LIMITED LATE MODELS
HEAT 1: ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow Anten Mills, ON
HEAT 2: Brandon Watson Stayner, ON
HEAT 3: Keith McLeod Barrie, ON
HEAT 4: Al Inglis Orillia, ON
A-MAIN:
1) Brandon Watson Stayner, ON
2) ‘Mr. Excitement’ Chris Morrow Anten Mills, ON
3) Stompin’ Tom Walters Bradford, ON
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