MONUMENTAL WINS AND HISTORIC CHAMPIONSHIPS CAPTURED AT RIVERVIEW HONDA WEEKEND OF CHAMPIONS!
(September 23rd, 2024) – Speedway 660 capped off the stock car racing season with the Riverview Honda Weekend of Champions Saturday at Speedway 660 – with hotly contested competition in five divisions, and four track champions being crowned.
The Re/Max East Coast Elite Realty Pro Stock division produced a thrilling race – one which had many storylines. Ian Rasmussen (#81) entered with the points lead chasing his first career championship, while Kevin Moore (#88) was hoping to overcome a large deficit to finally get his elusive title. However, two hungry drivers were stealing the show up front. Ryan Messer (#1) – who was winless all season and was looking to take advantage of one final opportunity to extend his consecutive years of Pro Stock feature wins to eight – and Greg Fahey (#20) – hungry after nearly winning the Yard Gear 250 a few weeks ago – put on a battle up front all race long.
It would come down to a late restart, but Messer kept Fahey at bay on the final stint to finally crack back into victory lane. Fahey would be second, while Andrew Rodgers (#14) drove to the final podium position. Kevin Moore (#88) crossed the line in fourth, but it would not be enough to take the title as Ian Rasmussen (#81) rounded out the top five to secure the division championship.
Ten (10) Re/Max East Coast Elite Realty Pro Stock drivers were in attendance, with Calvin Rankin (#45) earning the heat win before failing to finish the feature event. For Messer, it was career win number fifteen (15) in the Speedway 660 Pro Stock division across several sanctions, and his third consecutive win during the Riverview Honda Weekend of Champions.
Rasmussen earns his first career Speedway 660 championship with the division title, after previously finishing third in points on three occasions in the Re/Max East Coast Elite Realty Pro Stock division. The crowning achievement for the young driver places him alongside his father – the legendary Glenn Rasmussen – as champions of the tracks top division. The elder Rasmussen earned four titles, coming in 2000, 2003, 2005, and 2007.
The big night for multi-generational racing families didn’t stop there. For the first time in his career, Kenny MacKenzie Jr (#85) is a Summit Dodge Sportsman winner at Speedway 660! A multi-time winner in the Street Stock class – and a dominant driver down the road at Petty International Raceway – MacKenzie Jr led wire-to-wire and raced Jacob Logan (#37) across the line. Both MacKenzie Jr and Logan are the sons of multi-time Speedway 660 Sportsman champions – a fitting result for the Riverview Honda Weekend of Champions. In third was Koven Lewis (#46), while Richard Atkinson (#40) and Charles Mercer (#19) rounded out the top five.
MacKenzie Jr also won the heat race. These five drivers are locked into an intense duel for the Petty – Speedway 660 joint Sportsman series championship, which is set to wrap up on Saturday October 5th at Petty International Raceway.
Race fans were treated to a great battle for the lead and a wild finish from the Atlantic Modified Tour. After dominating to win the most recent Speedway 660 on Lyle Bongard’s RV Sales SpeedWeekend, Tristin Harris (#7) would win his second consecutive feature – but in completely different fashion. Harris would sit in third through the final laps as a battle between Chris Wilson (#2W) and Braxton Stafford (#91) thundered on up front. As the age old saying goes about being in the right place at the right time, Harris would be sitting in prime position when contact between Wilson and Stafford on the final corner sent Wilson spinning as the drivers took the checkers. Stafford utilized the “tap rule” and would be the only driver penalized for the incident, but timing and scoring placed Harris ahead at the checkers by less than a thousandth of a second! With Stafford tapping, Wilson would be scored as he crossed the line in second, while Zean Dutcher (#55) would sneak away with a podium finish in third after the dust settled.
Doug Matchett (#75) and Kevin Bailey (#4) would round out the top five – but for Matchett that would be enough to secure the Speedway 660 Modified championship for 2024. This marked the first ever Modified champion being crowned at Speedway 660, putting Matchett – who also earned the first ever Speedway Miramichi Modified championship in 2018 – in the record books.
Nine (9) Atlantic Modified Tour drivers were in attendance. Harris also won the heat race to start the day. His feature win was his second career AMT feature win – with both coming in the last two races in the Geary Woods – and made him the only two-time winner at Speedway 660 in 2024. His strong day vaulted him up to second in the Speedway 660 points, narrowly edging out Wilson for the runner-up spot.
The Shur-Fit Automotive, Bumper to Bumper Street Stock division entered with one of the closest points battles, but the action on track from the race was just as intense. Contesting a special 54-lap feature to honor six-time track champion Rick Cashol (#54) as he retires from competition, all eyes were on Riley Goodwin (#77) and Justin Cole (#38) as they raced each other for their second track championships.
For some of the race, it had the potential to be a storybook ending for Cashol – but fittingly his close ally Ron Enkel (#52) would cross the line first to score the victory in the final feature of the season. Enkel bested runner-up Luc McLaughlin (#11) and third-place Riley Goodwin (#77). Goodwin’s third place finish was one spot ahead of Justin Cole (#38), which was enough for Goodwin to take down his second Street Stock championship. Kyle MacKinnon (#22) rounded out the top five, while Cashol crossed the line seventh to wrap up his career.
Earlier in the day, Cashol did find Riverview Ford victory lane in heat race action along with the 2024 Rookie of the Year Dan Gillespie (#83). Eleven (11) Shur-Fit Automotive, Bumper to Bumper Street Stocks were in attendance. While Goodwin achieved his second championship, Enkel’s victory was his second of the season – and second of his career.
After chasing BJ Gillespie (#69) all season long and being his most formidable threat many weeks, Tyler Collett (#21) finally found Riverview Ford victory lane after a Changing Hands Thrift Shop Sharp Shooter feature. The top rookie for 2024 who also finished second in points, Collet improved all throughout the season but the Riverview Honda Weekend of Champions would finally be his day – while making him an early favorite for the 2025 title.
It would take a late restart for Collett to capitalize for the win – for parts of the race it looked like it would first be Robert Kamphuis (#99), and later Curtis Tremblay’s (#00) days to get their first victories. But Collett managed to capitalize and hold off BJ Gillespie (#69), who charged up to second, to score the win while Tremblay rounded out the podium in third. Defending champion Darren Wilcox (#32) and Matt Martin (#33) rounded out the top five.
Wilcox and Jason Duffield (#91) earned heat race victories earlier in the day out of the fourteen (14) cars in attendance. By starting the feature, BJ Gillespie clinched the 2024 Changing Hands Thrift Shop Sharp Shooter championship – the third of his career after previously triumphing in 2021 and 2022. Gillespie becomes the first three-time champion of the class.
While the stock car portion of the 2024 season is now complete at Speedway 660, things are not entirely wrapped up quite yet! Saturday September 28th the final event of the year will be contested with the Enduro Smash Day – a day full of destruction which will also feature side by side races and the highly anticipated Van Prix. Action will begin at 2pm!
Re/Max East Coast Elite Realty Pro Stock Division 75-Lap Feature Results
- Ryan Messer #1
- Greg Fahey #20
- Andrew Rodgers #14
- Kevin Moore #88
- Ian Rasmussen #81
- Clark Moore #54
- Cal Hatfield #11
- Marcel Leblanc #30
- Calvin Rankin #45
- Jonathan Gahan #16
Heat Winner – Calvin Rankin #45
Summit Dodge Sportsman 75-Lap Feature Results
- Kenny MacKenzie Jr #85
- Jacob Logan #37
- Koven Lewis #46
- Richard Atkinson #40
- Charles Mercer #19
Heat Winner – Kenny MacKenzie Jr #85
Shur-Fit Automotive, Bumper to Bumper Street Stock Division 54-Lap Feature Results
- Ron Enkel #52
- Luc McLaughlin #11
- Riley Goodwin #77
- Justin Cole #38
- Kyle MacKinnon #22
- Dan Gillespie #83
- Rick Cashol #54
- Jonathan Hanley #71
- Brody Levesque #05
- Karl Schaefer #00
DNS – Jimmy Sommerville #5
Heat Winners – Dan Gillespie #83, Rick Cashol #54
Changing Hands Thrift Shop Sharp Shooter 35-Lap Feature Results
- Tyler Collett #21
- BJ Gillespie #69
- Curtis Tremblay #00
- Darren Wilcox #32
- Matt Martin #33
- Jason Duffield #91
- Robert Kamphuis #99
- Austin Harnish #13
- Todd Day #4
- Torin Mitchell #88
- Terry Lawson #14
- Brian Maillet #83
- Randy Storey #81
- Stephen Rose #44
Heat Winners – Jason Duffield #91, Darren Wilcox #32
Atlantic Modified Tour 35-Lap Feature Results
- Tristin Harris #7
- Chris Wilson #2W
- Zean Dutcher #55
- Doug Matchett #75
- Kevin Bailey #4
- TJ Leighton #29
- Braxton Stafford #91
- Joe Hoyt #17
- Robert Miner #84
Heat Winner – Tristin Harris #7
