Driver Rouse races to flag-to-flag victory

Murray is awarded win after illegal carburetor ends in disqualification of Bleich Jr.

Brad Rouse appreciated the view from behind the steering wheel of the No. 18 in the Sportsman feature Sunday night at New Humberstone Speedway in Port Colborne.

What co-pole sitter wouldn’t? After starting the 25-lap Bob St. Amand Sr. Memorial alongside Emily Puchalski in the front row, the St. Catharines driver needed only one circuit to become the front-runner.

Seeing nothing but lapped traffic ahead of him and despite a restart with five laps to go, the former track champions set the pace the rest of the way for his third win of the 2019 season at Humberstone.

Also treating fans to a flag-to-flag win was Chad Homan in Late Models. The reigning points king from Macedon, N.Y., near Rochester, dominated the 20-lapper after taking the green flag alongside Tim Gillespie.

The victory was Homan’s second of the season on the 3/8-mile clay oval.

Appearances were deceiving when the 20-lap main event in Thunder Stocks ended dramatically with a last-lap pass. At first glance, it appeared that Billy Bleich Jr. of from Port Robinson had edged Rob Murray from St. Catharines for the checkered flag.

Upon further review — specifically, in the post-race tech inspection — Bleich was disqualified when his carburetor couldn’t pass muster.

The win was awarded to Murray, his second of the year, and in as many weeks, at Humberstone.

Bleich took the disappointment in stride.

“Last-lap pass for the win, carb didn’t pass tech. Change ’er and go back, and do it again,” he wrote in a post on his Facebook page.

The Thunder Stocks main event featured a family affair finish with Jim Lampman edging son Donny for fourth in the top five.

Jay Moulton, the co-pole sitter along with Cole Hardy in the Mini Stocks feature, set the pace until Craig Vlasic overtook him with five laps remaining. It was the Welland racer’s third win of the season.

Mitch Dumont, also from Welland, overtook Danny Wurster with six circuits to go in the 15lap Pro 4 Trucks feature and pulled away from the field for to take his second checkered flag of the season.

Late Models have the night off Sunday when a visit by the Action Sprint Tour and a motorcycle-burnout contest round out a lineup featuring racing in the Pro 4 Trucks, Mini Stocks, Thunder Stocks and Sportsman classes.

Following are the top five and heat winners from Sunday night’s program at New Humberstone Speedway. Sixty-seven racing vehicles were signed in pitside:

Sportsman, 25 laps: 1. Brad Rouse, 2. Jordan Cosco, 3. Adam

Leslie, 4. Darrell Farraway, 5. Emily Puchalski. Heat winners: Greg Panunte, Rouse, James Michael Friesen.

Late Models, 20 laps: 1. Chad Homan, 2. Adam Ferri, 3. Tim Gillespie, 4. Stan Zanchin, 5. T.J. Downs. Heat winners: Rob Pietz, Homan.

Thunder Stocks: 1. Billy Bleich Jr., disqualified; 2. Rob Murray, 3. Dave Bailey, 4. Jim Lampman, 5. Donny Lampman. Heat winners: Bailey, Donny Lampman.

Mini Stocks, 15 laps: 1. Craig Vlasic, 2. Jay Moulton, 3. Evan Curtis, 4. Jeremy Cooper, 5. Leroy Buscumb. Heat winner: Curtis, Buscumb.

Pro 4 Trucks, 15 laps: 1. Mitch Dumont, 2. Frank Perry, 3. Brian Aube, 4. Jay Dupuis, 5. Justin Towers. Heat winner: Perry.