St. Kitts racer goes 3-for-3
Mat Williamson wraps up three-win weekend with home-track victory worth $2,666.66
Mat Williamson enjoyed a winning weekend behind the wheel of his race car, on both sides of the border.
It was a profitable weekend, too, with the St. Catharines driver pocketing $2,666.66 for leading the pack across the finish line in the third annual Brian Stevens Memorial Monday night at Merrittville Speedway in Thorold.
Williamson, who took the checkered flag Friday night at Lernerville Speedway in western Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh, and the 358 Modified feature the following night at Merrittville, denied Erick Rudolph of Ransomville, N.Y., a third straight win in the six-lap memorial race.
“This car was hooked up again tonight, we beat one heck of a race car driver tonight,” Williamson said in victory lane.
“I’ve never went three-for-three and it is a huge accomplishment and really cool to do that.”
Port Robinson’s Tim Jones and Rudolph, his co-pole sitter, were locked into a battle for first with Williamson the entire race.
Rudoph set the pace with 40 laps remaining, with Williamson overtaking Jones for second place on Lap 62.
Williamson, who used the inside to beat fellow St. Catharines racer Mike Bowman on Saturday night, benefited from the same strategy two nights later. Hugging the inside lane, Williamson passed Rudolph for the lead on the final lap to score a victory by 0.257 seconds.
Jones, 1.165 seconds behind Williamson; Chad Brachmann, Sanborn, N.Y., 2.128 seconds off the pace; and Ryan Susice, Ransomville, N.Y., 2.431 seconds back; rounded out the top five.
Jones and Susice were the heat winners.
Stevens was inducted into the L. St. Amand Enterprises Wall of Fame at Merrittville Speedway in 2014 in recognition of a racing career spanning nearly four decades in which he took more than 150 checkered flags.
The St. Catharines native was 61 when he died of cancer in February 2015.
Monday night’s special program featured action in two classes — Late Model, 4-cylinder Trucks — that don’t race regularly at the Thorold track.
Charlie Sanderock of Belleville led a top five of Bryce Davis, Mike Pegher Jr., Russell King and Jason Knowles across the finish line for the first RUSH Late Model Touring Series feature win of his racing career.
Sanderock, who took home $2,000, also registered the fastest lap in the 30-lap feature clocking in with a time of 16:504 seconds.
In the 15-lap truck feature, Mitch Dumont of Welland held off a challenge from Dylan Llord, the defending New Humberstone Speedway points champion, for the first victory of his racing career.
Rounding out the top five were Dain City’s Kyle Tomaski, Niagara Falls’ Danny Wurster and Welland’s Craig Vlasic. Dumont also won the lone heat.
Alex Riley of Thorold, a graduate of Merrittville Speedway, finished 0.461 seconds ahead of Jason Coutu to win the 15-lap main event in the Mini Stock class.
Olivier Larocque, Port Colborne; Leroy Buscum, Port Colborne; and Tyler Lafantaisie, Welland; also raced to top-five finishes.
Buscumb, Clinton Nicholls, Hamilton; and Coutu won the qualifiers.
Racing at Merrittville returns Saturday night, weather permitting, with Round 1 in the David Chevrolet King of the Crates Series for drivers in the Sportsman class.
Pits open at 5 p.m., grandstands at 5:30 and the first heats going to the green at 7.