Stafford Motor Speedway - 6/8/07 - The WIN


 

EDDIE WINS THE TSI HARLEY DAVIDSON 150

On lap 70 Eddie passed the #40 car then out-powered the rest of the field over the final 80 laps to win the 17th annual TSI Harley Davidson 150 on the challenging half-mile oval of Stafford Motor Speedway. In only his first start of the season in the NASCAR Grand National Division, Busch East Series, Eddie qualified fifth then went on to score the impressive victory.

“It feels good to win again,” said the happy driver in victory lane. “We were hoping to get a top ten finish and bring the car home in one piece for Loudon in a few weeks. This win is just awesome and I owe a lot of credit to Rollie (LaChance). The car was tight when we unloaded and we kept freeing it up by changing everything in it for qualifying. We qualified fifth so there were a lot of the right changes and it ended up working perfect throughout the race.

When the green flag waved, Eddie was satisfied to hold his position early, waiting for an opportunity to make a move. That chance came on a lap 39 restart when Eddie made an incredible inside pass entering turn three on the #99 and the #83 form his fourth spot. This put him on the tail of the #40 car.

“That was really a tight pass and I wasn’t sure if I was going to hang on to it but it worked out, I don’t know how, but it put me in position to go after the #40 car. If I had not made that pass I never would have been able to contend for the lead,” reflected Eddie afterward.

The New England Mechanical Overlay Chevy just kept getting better on the long runs and was able to reel in the #40 car and by lap 65 Eddie was on his bumper. Five laps later, the Rowley, Mass driver made the pass in turn two. Eddie was able to maintain a two to three car length lead most of the way but some late race cautions gave him some concerns.

“I was real worried about the restarts because it took a good strong three laps for the car to come in and in the corner I’d just wash up in the middle and as soon as I got on the throttle the back would come around,” Eddie explained. “I was trying to ease it in and get on it hard to get a good run down the straightaway. After about a good three laps we could walk away a little bit.”

Eddie’s strategy worked perfectly as he took the checkers 1.236 seconds ahead of the #61 to notch his third career win in the BES. “This win was because of all the hard work the crew put in. We did not get the motor in until this week and everyone kept plugging along to get everything done and we didn’t finish until six o’clock this morning. The crew did an awesome job getting things together.” Eddie went on to say, ”I can’t thank my sponsors enough, NEMO, Tri-State roofing, Hancock Electric, and Hanover Place.”

Crew chief Rollie LaChance was thrilled with the win saying, “This is incredible. I would have been happy with a top five finish and be in one piece so this is beyond my wildest dreams.”

NEMO owner Ron Bennett, his wife Becky and daughter Nikole were on hand to enjoy their first win as a sponsor saying the victory is, “Absolutely awesome.”

The MacDonald Motorsports team will run a limited schedule this season but will now set its sights on a good run at New Hampshire International Speedway on July 29.

 NASCAR  RACE RESULTS AND STORY HERE


All-Nighters Pay Off For MacDonald With Stafford Victory by Penny Aicardi
After Some Time Off, He Wins Busch East Series Race

NASCAR GRAND NATIONAL DIVISION, BUSCH EAST SERIES

TSI Harley-Davidson 150

Stafford Springs, Conn. — Former series regular Eddie MacDonald made his first NASCAR Grand National Division, Busch East Series start of the season Friday night. And he came away with his first victory since 2005.

MacDonald led the final 81 laps of the TSI Harley Davidson 150 at Stafford Motor Speedway. His win also earned him a secured starting spot in the postseason Toyota All-Star Challenge.

Defending Busch East champion Mike Olsen passed Matt Kobyluck with three laps to go take second, while Marc Davis and Bryon Chew were fourth and fifth respectively.

It was MacDonald’s third career Busch East win, with his most recent coming Oct. 30, 2005 at Thompson (Conn.) International Speedway. He ran 82 races from 2001-06, making seven starts last season.

Jesus Hernandez, Mike Johnson, Chase Austin, John Salemi and John Freeman rounded out the top 10. Point leader Joey Logano was 11th. Pole sitter Sean Caisse led the first 30 laps before being sidelined by mechanical problems and finished 24th.

Logano leads Olsen by 40 points (794-754) and Rogelio Lopez (737) by 57.

The next Busch East Series race is Friday, June 29 at New Hampshire International Speedway.


NASCAR Grand National Division, Busch East Series-TSI Harley Davidson 150 Results
Friday June 8th - Stafford Motor Speedway - Stafford Springs, CT - Lap length: 0.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)

1. (5) Eddie MacDonald, Rowley, Mass., Chevrolet,
150 laps, 61.983 mph, $7,000.
2. (8) Mike Olsen, North Haverhill, N.H., Chevrolet, 150, $3,050.
3. (2) Matt Kobyluck, Uncasville, Conn., Chevrolet, 150, $2,250.
4. (9) Marc Davis, Mitchelville, Md., Chevrolet, 150, $2,100.
5. (4) Bryon Chew, Mattituck, N.Y., Chevrolet, 150, $1,600.
6. (13) Jesus Hernandez, Fresno, Calif., Chevrolet, 150, $1,400.
7. (11) Mike Johnson, Salisbury, Mass., Ford, 150, $1,200.
8. (10) Chase Austin, Eudora, Kan., Dodge, 150, $1,100.
9. (22) John Salemi, Nashua, N.H., Chevrolet, 150, $1,000.
10. (15) John Freeman, Huntersville, N.C., Chevrolet, 150, $925.
11. (6) Joey Logano, Middletown, Conn., Chevrolet, 150, $875.
12. (20) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Mooresville, N.C., Chevrolet, 150, $850.
13. (25) Scott Bouley, Wolcott, Conn., Chevrolet, 150, $825.
14. (3) Peyton Sellers, Danville, Va., Chevrolet, 150, $800.
15. (16) Ruben Pardo, Mexico City, Mex., Dodge, 150, $775.
16. (12) Jamie Hayes, Norlina, N.C., Chevrolet, 149, $750.
17. (27) Rogelio Lopez, Mexico City, Mexico, Chevrolet, 149, $725.
18. (18) Jeff Anton, Russell, Mass., Chevrolet, 149, $700.
19. (7) Eric Holmes, Salida, Calif., Chevrolet, 149, $675.
20. (24) Dion Ciccarelli, Severn, Md., Chevrolet, 149, $675.
21. (26) Max Dumarey, Gent, Belgium, Chevrolet, 148, $675.
22. (19) Jonathan Smith, Beacon Falls, Conn., Chevrolet, 146, $675.
23. (14) Richard Jarvis, Jr., Ocean City, Md., Chevrolet, 132, fuel pump, $675.
24. (1) Sean Caisse, Pelham, N.H., Chevrolet, 132, $675.
25. (17) Michelle Theriault, Bristol, Conn., Chevrolet, 115, $650.
26. (21) Tim Schendel, Sparta, Wisc., Dodge, 109, brakes, $650.
27. (29) Glenn Sullivan, Westbury, NY, Chevrolet, 90, brakes, $650.
28. (23) German Quiroga, Mexico City, Mex., Chevrolet, 78, rear end, $650.
29. (28) James Pritchard, Jr., Wharton, NJ, Chevrolet, 71, $650.
30. (30) Robert Humphreys, Elbridge, NY, Chevrolet, 53, overheating, $650.

Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 12 minutes 36 seconds
Margin of Victory: 1.236 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: Sean Caisse (91.963 mph, 19.573 seconds)
Caution Flags: 5 for 31 laps.
Lead Changes: 4 among 4 drivers.
Lap Leaders: S.Caisse 1-30; M.Kobyluck 31-37; P.Sellers 38; M.Kobyluck 39-69;
E.MacDonald 70-150.
Standings: 1. J. Logano, 794; 2. M. Olsen, 754; 3. R. Lopez, 737; 4. P. Sellers, 721; 5. B. Chew, 717; 6. M. Kobyluck, 705; 7. M. Davis, 677; 8. J. Hernandez, 670; 9. S. Caisse, 662; 10. J. Hayes, 661

Media Contact: Jennifer MacDonald - jennymac29@hotmail.com