WINCHESTER, N.H. — With just a few laps to go, Justin Bonsignore was in the right place to make a move in Sunday’s Duel at the Dog 200 at Monadnock Speedway. Bonsignore, a three-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion, pounced when Matt Hirschman got together with lapped traffic and scored his 33rd career Whelen Modified Tour win and fourth on the high-banks of Monadnock.
Bonsignore started from the Mayhew Tools pole position, after posting the fastest laps in practice on Saturday before Mother Nature dampened the Saturday parade and forced the postponement of the race to Sunday. Bonsignore led early at the green, but dropped to the middle of the top-five during the race, holding ground with the leaders and keeping them in sight. On the final restart, he passed Ron Silk for second, then chased Hirschman — and when Hirschman got collected with a lap car — Bonsignore took advantage, making the pass and heading to Victory Lane.
“We were in position and that's the biggest thing,” Bonsignore said. “I’m just happy to get back to Victory Lane. We were able to get back to the white flag and not have to deal with a restart. We’ve been struggling - but we went back to some normal setups and it paid off today. These races are so tough to win. Everyone is still learning being our first race here with a different tire — but fortunately we were able to squeak one out today with a little bit of luck.”
Hirschman crossed the line second after 200 laps, but was clearly frustrated with the way the finish shook out. The Pennsylvania native now has top-five finishes in all three of his 2022 starts on the Whelen Modified Tour, including a victory to open the season in Florida. Ron Silk, who led the most laps in the Duel at the Dog 200, finished third in his No. 16.
Sam Rameau, making just his second Whelen Modified Tour start of the season, finished a strong fourth at his home track. Doug Coby, who entered the race with two consecutive Whelen Modified Tour wins as a driver, rounded out the top-five. Eric Goodale finished sixth, followed by Jake Johnson, Austin Beers, Tommy Catalano and Jacob Perry.
In Sunday’s house division action, Kyle Boniface captured the Monadnock Speedway Pure Stock victory, while in the NHSTRA Street Stock special, Tommy O’Sullivan rolled to Victory Lane after 50 laps. Cole Littlewood continued his hot start in the track’s Late Model Sportsman en route to a win, while Gordon Farnum went back to Victory Lane in the Mini Stocks.
The Granite State Pro Stock Series 75-lap main event went to DJ Shaw, who scored the Monadnock victory for the second straight year. Dylan Estrella led the field to green and was out front for the first 40 circuits, but Shaw took advantage of a slip by the Massachusetts racer to get out front and drive away in commanding fashion. Joey Doiron, the current Granite State Pro Stock Series points leader, was second in the feature race.
The Duel at the Dog 200 aired live on FloRacing.TV, and will air on USA Network on Saturday, June 25 at 11 a.m.
The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will return to the track at Riverhead Raceway on Saturday, June 25, for 200 laps. The fourth and final JDV Productions event of the season will take place at Claremont Motorsports Park on Friday, July 29, for the Clash at Claremont. The event will also serve as the champion race for the inaugural Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup. Advance tickets for the Claremont event are available now at JDVProductions.com.
For more information on Monadnock Speedway, visit MonadnockSpeedway.com. For more information on JDV Productions, visit JDVProductions.com and follow on Facebook for the latest information.
-Story by: Kyle Souza/Souza Media