Rouse leads the pack
Klager, Dinning, Rothwell, Tomaski also record victories at Humberstone Speedway races
Defending track champion Brad Rouse of St. Catharines took command after a restart for the win in the PC Works DIRTcar Sportsman on CAA Niagara Night at Humberstone Speedway Sunday.
Tom Richau Jr. led the opening laps in the 25-lap Sportsman main event with Cody McPherson and Rouse racing in second and third. After a Lap 3 restart, Rouse would take command of the field with Richau holding off Adam Leslie challenge for second place.
Luke Carleton passed Leslie and Richau to take over second on Lap 9 with Richau, and Jordan Cosco racing inside the top four.
Cosco passeds Richau to take over third on Lap 10 and set his sights on second-place running Luke Carleton.
Cody McPherson slowed in Turn 4 to bring out the caution on Lap 14, erasing Rouse’s lead over the field. Off the restart, Jordan Cosco hit a Ute tire in Turn 1 and spun to bring out the caution.
On the restart, Rouse took command of the field for his first win at Humberstone in 2017.
Mod Lites
Paul “The Beamsville Bullet” Klager scored the win in the TUSA Mod Lites feature event.
He showed the way early on in the 15-lap main event.
Josh Sliter, Steven Beckett, and R.J. Pietz came together to bring out the caution on Lap 9, erasing the lead that Klager had over the field. Klager took off back into the lead on the restart as Tyler Winger battled with Jeff May for second place.
Josh Sliter flipped in Turn 2 after contact with Rob Misener on Lap 11 to bring the red flag out.
Sliter drove his Niagara Falls Nissan sponsored machine to the pits under his own power. Klager went on to score the win.
Late Mods
Sam Pennacchio of Niagara Falls won his first career Maple Leaf Foods RUSH Late Models feature event.
Tim Gillespie and Rob Pietz sat on the front row for the second race of the season for the Late Models with Pietz showing the way at the end of Lap 1.
Sam Pennacchio took second away from Gillespie on Lap 3 and began his chase of race leader Rob Pietz. Chad Homan took fourth place away from Mike Greene at the halfway mark as Pietz continued to show the way over Gillespie and Pennacchio.
Rob Pietz’s lead came to an end on Lap 11 as Pietz’s No. 69 ride went up in a puff of smoke, giving the lead to Sam Pennacchio with Paul Grigsby in second after Chad Homan went to the pits with issues.
On the restart, Pennacchio led over Grigsby, Jeff Dayman, Mike Greene and Ken Winfield and scored his first career RUSH Late Model victory.
Street Stocks
Ryan Dinning from Hagersville was declared the winner in the JC Auto Street Stock feature, sweeping the weekend action.
Jim Lampman and Jason Fontaine shared the front row for tStreet Stocks Fontaine showing the way.
Fontaine and Lampman made contact in Turn 1 and collected Derek VanMil to bring out the first caution of the event. On the restart, it was Ken Sargent, and Billy Bleich Jr. with Bleich showing the way. Dave Bailey worked his way through the field took the lead away from Bleich on Lap 10.
Bleich and Bailey made contact coming to the checkered flag, and it was Bleich crossing the start-finish line first.
Bleich, however, was put two positions down in the final results for rough riding, giving the win to Dinning. Dinning ’s victory was his third on the weekend, to go with his victories at Ohsweken and Merrittville.
Mini Stocks
Kyle Rothwell of Welland won his first main event of the season for the Cosco Haulage Mini Stocks.
Brandon Iudiciani and Jason Coutu led the field of Mini Stocks to the green flag for their 15-lap feature event with three different leaders in the first three circuits. Iudiciani, Coutu and Kyle Rothwell took turns leading a lap with Rothwell taking command of the field on Lap 3.
Defending track champion Kyle Haynes worked his way into the top four after passing Iudiciani on Lap 10 with Rothwell going on to score the win, his first of the season.
Trucks
Kyle “The Rose City Rocket” Tomaski of Dain City took home the checkered flag for his first win of the season in the Mike Knapp Ford Pro 4 Trucks.
Andy Imbeault and Mitch Dumont brought the trucks to the green flag for their 15-lap feature event with Imbeault showing the way. Kyle Tomaski took the lead away from Imbeault on Lap 3 with Imbeault, Dumont, Hillary Haegens and Danny Wurster running in the top five.
Wurster cleared Haegens and then went after Dumont for third, and the veteran racer would take the spot away at the halfway mark. Tomaski dominated the final 12 circuits in route to the victory.
UTV Races
Humberstone Speedway put on the first ever side-by-side UTV races presented by Performance ATV
In the end it was Darren and Jorden Peters getting the win in the exhibition event.
The UTVs took to the course that included a ramp on the front straightaway. They also launched themselves into the infield from outside the banking of Turn 3.
Junior race fans Clayton and Chris were named the Leslie Motorsports Junior Race Fans of the Week. Both received checkered flags for the drivers to autograph as well as a ride in the pace car and other prizes.
Humberstone will be back in action on Sunday for the annual Father’s Day Special. Super Mario’s Pizza presents a full card of racing plus the first visit of the season by the Vintage Cars. Pit gates will open at 4:30 p.m. Grandstands at 5 p.m. with race time scheduled for 6:30 p.m.