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From Delaware Speedway
The Great Canadian Race Weekend kicked off with the ignition of one of the hottest rivalries to hit Delaware Speedway this season. No love was lost between Jeff Shower (No. 44) of Mt. Elgin and Darrell Lake (No. 77) of London as the pair found themselves in an aggressive competition for the lead in the Coca-Cola Super Stocks.
The V8 Stock Muscle Cars were also in action where Derek McCullough (No. 38) of Glencoe took the victory. Devon Bloemendal (No. 01) of Delaware raced hard against the drivers of the Demar Aggregates Trucks to win in their 25-lap feature. The night was sponsored by Krown Rust Control and featured a King of the Hill Spectator's race.
Jeff Showler (No. 44) of Mt. Elgin won the controversial Coca-Cola Super Stocks feature, his third win of the season in championship competition. Kathleen Hosang (No. 16) of London led the first two laps of the race until she was passed by Darrell Lake (No. 77) of London.
Lake and Showler battled early in the event making strong contact in turns three and four cutting one of Darrell Lake's tires and sending him to pit road. In a controversial move with a handful of laps to go in the 35-lap race Lake waited for Showler to approach in hopes of slowing him down enough to allow the second and third positions to catch up.
"Showler had a bit of a run down the back straightaway but he was nowhere near my door so I ran my line. He overdrive the corner and door slammed me," accused Lake in a post-race interview. "At that point there was no way I was going to just let that crap fly. That's absolute nonsense. Way too aggressive. He's supposed to be the championship guy: he should be more worried about saving his car than going for one position in a race. I was going to do everything I could to make sure Showler didn't win this race. Unfortunately I failed but if it was up to me and I was allowed back out there that wouldn't have been the case tonight."
Second and third-place drivers Matt Robblee (No. 51) of Dorchester and Kenny McNicol Jr. (No. 17) of Exeter did make it around Showler as Lake forced him high but ultimately tangled together with four laps to go handing the lead back to Showler.
Jamie Grover (No. 33) of Glencoe then entered the fray attempting to bump Showler out of the way. When the caution came out a final time for a green-white-checker finish Grover was unable to mount another charge sending Showler to victory lane. Grover placed second and rookie driver Branden Verhoeven (No. 7) of Kerwood placed third.
Showler measured his comments in victory lane over the incident with Lake:
"I don't know [what happened], I had a good line off of two and had the inside coming into three and tried on the bottom of three. I don't know why he chose to go to the bottom and got tangled in it," he explained. "He gave me a shot, so I think [he was waiting for me]. I got to thank everyone for coming out whether they're a fan of us or not."
The victory was a key one for Showler. Overcoming the challenges of the night and claiming the victory while many of his challengers faced issues on the track has solidified his points lead over second-place challenger Matt Robblee (No. 51) of Dorchester.
Derek McCullough (No. 38) of Glencoe was thrilled to win the 35-lap V8 Stocks feature. He started the race in the lead and although other drivers challenged him for position he pushed through traffic and refused to allow a pass. Steve Arrand (No. 37) of Ailsa Craig challenged McCullough early in the event and placed second Gary Zwygers (No. 93) of Cambridge finished third. In an unbelievable twist the V8 Stock point championship has swapped one tie for another. Entering the night Steve Arrand was tied with Steve Book (No. 64) of Brantford for the lead. Now, Arrand finds himself tied with McCullough for the lead.
Devon Bloemendal (No. 01) of Delaware won the 25-lap Demar Aggregates Trucks feature with an unprecedented pass over the King of the Trucks Gary Adriaensen (No. 55) of Belmont. Trevor Collver (No. 51) of Lucan led the first nine laps of the feature until he was passed by Adriaensen, who despite winning his heat earlier in the evening, was only able to hold position until lap eleven. Bloemendal pushed past Adriaensen and held position until he saw the checkers. Adriaensen placed second and Brady Smith (No. 39) of Coldstream placed third. There were two cautions; the first caution on lap four was a result of a spin and the second in lap twenty-two for mechanical issues on Collver's truck.
The King of the Hill Spectator's race, in which race fans could enter their street legal cars in support of Jesse's Journey, proved to be a thrilling crowd favourite. One race was even too close to call and it was necessary to stage a rematch. Ultimately a driver of a black Eagle Talon from London won the competition.
Great Canadian Race Weekend continues on Saturday for the Keystone 200. Spectator gates open at 11a.m, with time trials beginning at noon. The green flag is scheduled to fly on the historic race at 2:30 p.m. with autograph sessions taking place earlier in the afternoon.
The Great Canadian Race Weekend kicked off with the ignition of one of the hottest rivalries to hit Delaware Speedway this season. No love was lost between Jeff Shower (No. 44) of Mt. Elgin and Darrell Lake (No. 77) of London as the pair found themselves in an aggressive competition for the lead in the Coca-Cola Super Stocks.
The V8 Stock Muscle Cars were also in action where Derek McCullough (No. 38) of Glencoe took the victory. Devon Bloemendal (No. 01) of Delaware raced hard against the drivers of the Demar Aggregates Trucks to win in their 25-lap feature. The night was sponsored by Krown Rust Control and featured a King of the Hill Spectator's race.
Jeff Showler (No. 44) of Mt. Elgin won the controversial Coca-Cola Super Stocks feature, his third win of the season in championship competition. Kathleen Hosang (No. 16) of London led the first two laps of the race until she was passed by Darrell Lake (No. 77) of London.
Lake and Showler battled early in the event making strong contact in turns three and four cutting one of Darrell Lake's tires and sending him to pit road. In a controversial move with a handful of laps to go in the 35-lap race Lake waited for Showler to approach in hopes of slowing him down enough to allow the second and third positions to catch up.
"Showler had a bit of a run down the back straightaway but he was nowhere near my door so I ran my line. He overdrive the corner and door slammed me," accused Lake in a post-race interview. "At that point there was no way I was going to just let that crap fly. That's absolute nonsense. Way too aggressive. He's supposed to be the championship guy: he should be more worried about saving his car than going for one position in a race. I was going to do everything I could to make sure Showler didn't win this race. Unfortunately I failed but if it was up to me and I was allowed back out there that wouldn't have been the case tonight."
Second and third-place drivers Matt Robblee (No. 51) of Dorchester and Kenny McNicol Jr. (No. 17) of Exeter did make it around Showler as Lake forced him high but ultimately tangled together with four laps to go handing the lead back to Showler.
Jamie Grover (No. 33) of Glencoe then entered the fray attempting to bump Showler out of the way. When the caution came out a final time for a green-white-checker finish Grover was unable to mount another charge sending Showler to victory lane. Grover placed second and rookie driver Branden Verhoeven (No. 7) of Kerwood placed third.
Showler measured his comments in victory lane over the incident with Lake:
"I don't know [what happened], I had a good line off of two and had the inside coming into three and tried on the bottom of three. I don't know why he chose to go to the bottom and got tangled in it," he explained. "He gave me a shot, so I think [he was waiting for me]. I got to thank everyone for coming out whether they're a fan of us or not."
The victory was a key one for Showler. Overcoming the challenges of the night and claiming the victory while many of his challengers faced issues on the track has solidified his points lead over second-place challenger Matt Robblee (No. 51) of Dorchester.
Derek McCullough (No. 38) of Glencoe was thrilled to win the 35-lap V8 Stocks feature. He started the race in the lead and although other drivers challenged him for position he pushed through traffic and refused to allow a pass. Steve Arrand (No. 37) of Ailsa Craig challenged McCullough early in the event and placed second Gary Zwygers (No. 93) of Cambridge finished third. In an unbelievable twist the V8 Stock point championship has swapped one tie for another. Entering the night Steve Arrand was tied with Steve Book (No. 64) of Brantford for the lead. Now, Arrand finds himself tied with McCullough for the lead.
Devon Bloemendal (No. 01) of Delaware won the 25-lap Demar Aggregates Trucks feature with an unprecedented pass over the King of the Trucks Gary Adriaensen (No. 55) of Belmont. Trevor Collver (No. 51) of Lucan led the first nine laps of the feature until he was passed by Adriaensen, who despite winning his heat earlier in the evening, was only able to hold position until lap eleven. Bloemendal pushed past Adriaensen and held position until he saw the checkers. Adriaensen placed second and Brady Smith (No. 39) of Coldstream placed third. There were two cautions; the first caution on lap four was a result of a spin and the second in lap twenty-two for mechanical issues on Collver's truck.
The King of the Hill Spectator's race, in which race fans could enter their street legal cars in support of Jesse's Journey, proved to be a thrilling crowd favourite. One race was even too close to call and it was necessary to stage a rematch. Ultimately a driver of a black Eagle Talon from London won the competition.
Great Canadian Race Weekend continues on Saturday for the Keystone 200. Spectator gates open at 11a.m, with time trials beginning at noon. The green flag is scheduled to fly on the historic race at 2:30 p.m. with autograph sessions taking place earlier in the afternoon.