Terry Guest
Special to the Record
Fans at Saratoga Speedway were treated to a great showing of drifting and drag racing Saturday as six drift cars and 12 drag racers put on a great show under a beautiful, clear, September night.
The final round of drifting featured some new faces. After early eliminations, #22 Torry Slater and #23 Dustin Taylor found themselves in the finals. Slater and Taylor drifted bumper to bumper, but Slater in his '89 Nissan 240sx from Victoria took home his first-ever drifting event. #4 Andrew Otteson beat out #21 Reece Lucas for third place.
The final round of drag racing also took place Saturday with cars ranging from small Honda Civics, to pro drag bikes and old Chevy trucks. All vehicles went through a heads-uUp format, eliminating cars early from contention. Gord Fraser in his 1969 Ford pickup and Bruce Moran on his Suzuki bike battled it out for the win, with Moran taking home his first drag event win of the year.
Championship Weekend
This weekend, six champions will be crowned while two titles are all wrapped up.
#73 Sheldon Hopp holds a commanding 470-point lead over second place #40 Cam Edward, making it mathematically impossible for Edward to catch Hopp and giving Hopp his first-ever Crash to Pass title.
#91 Chris Beaulieu also has the I.M.C.A Modified division wrapped up, holding a 351-point lead over second place #72 Travis Stevenson, crowning him with his fourth championship at Saratoga.
The Bomber car class is still mathematically up for grabs, but #5 Darren Larson holds a strong 256-point lead over his brother #9 Darrel Larson. The other three championships are still up for grabs.
In the Roadrunner division, #66 Nick Leavitt will be looking to claim his first-ever championship at Saratoga, holding a 95-point lead over #8 Ryan Guest. The Hornet A championship will come down to two young talented drivers; #98 Nigel Neufeld and #12 Raymond Fortier go into the weekend with only 17 points separating them and Neufeld in first.
In the Hornet Bs, four drivers are still in the running. Only 161 points separate #87 Boston Larson, #86 Luke Dixon, #53 Rowland Westra and #16 Ashley White, with Larson holding the lead.
"With all these championships being so close, this weekend will be one you won't want to miss, with it all being capped off by yet another amazing firework extravaganza," a speedway spokesperson said.
– Saratoga Speedway