CASCAR Super Series - Weekend Preview
23 June 1999
CASCAR Castrol Super Series Weekend Preview Back in action on both fronts KOMOKA, ON - The CASCAR Castrol Super Series East makes its first of two summer appearances at the 5/8-mile Cayuga Speedway this weekend (June 26-27) for the Cayuga 250. The Nelles Corners, ON track is one of the favourites for many series drivers and will be the first CASCAR Super Series race held in southwestern Ontario since the May 23 opener at Delaware Speedway Park. Entering the fifth Eastern series race of the season, Home Hardware Chevrolet Monte Carlo racer Don Thomson Jr. holds a solid lead in the points, over Skoal Inc. Chevy driver Neil Fair. Thomson, who hails from Hamilton, ON, has a pair of wins to his credit in '99 and has been a contender in each race so far. His other finishes include a second and an eighth. Thomson has a history of success at Cayuga. The points leader's lone win of '98 came at the track, so he'll no doubt be a threat again this weekend. For his part, Fair has also been very solid in '99. Since winning his first ever Super Series main, at Delaware last month, the Ancaster, ON racer has impressed with consistent finishes. The Cayuga 250 will be a two-day event, with qualifying and heat races on Saturday. They commence at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m., respectively. Sunday's 250 lap feature race will receive the green flag at 2:15 p.m. Thunder Cars will also be on track during the weekend. Out west... HYTHE, AB - Turning to Alberta, the CASCAR Castrol Super Series West takes to the track for its third race of the season, on Saturday night, with the Bumper to Bumper 150 at Hythe Motor Speedway. Following two events, Saskatoon, SK's Dan Shirley appears intent on recapturing the Western championship he earned in '97. Driving the NTN Bearings Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Shirley has a win and a second to show for his first two outings of the season and is focussed on continuing his hot streak. He will be challenged on the 3/8-mile, high-banked Hythe oval by a host of drivers, including Prince George, BC's Steve Jefferson, who sits second in the standings in his Mopar Batteries Dodge. Also, Kevin Dowler (Ford Quality Care Taurus) is encouraged after his winning run at Saskatoon's Bridge City Speedway on June 5. The Edmonton, AB racer had a discouraging finish in the season opener but has clawed back to third in the points heading to this weekend's race at Hythe. The Bumper to Bumper 150 will also signal the return of Trevor Seibert to CASCAR Castrol Super Series action. The Williams Lake, BC driver stunned everyone with a third-place run in the Race City opener on May 30. It was the first ever stock car race for the former road racer, who didn't compete in the Saskatoon event because of scheduling conflicts. The ex-Formula Atlantic and Indy Lights driver has teamed with fellow former road racer Kevin Dowler to form a western-based Taurus 'superteam'. Finally, another driver to watch at Hythe will be last year's Bumper to Bumper 150 race winner, Don Sales, of Quesnel, BC. The Skoal Inc. Chevy driver broke through to CASCAR's winner's circle in this event last summer after several years of close encounters with victory lane. Time trials start at 4 p.m., with racing at 5 p.m. CASCAR Notes: With less than a month to go before the CASCAR East race at the Toronto Molson Indy, excitement is building for the Miller Lite 100 on July 16-17 at the Toronto lakeshore circuit. It will be the first Castrol Super Series appearance at what is one of Canada's biggest motorsports weekends of the season. The Toronto Molson Indy venue will put Canada's top stock car series in front of its biggest ever audience. Eastern points leader Don Thomson Jr. describes the importance of the event. "The race offers a great chance to do something for our sponsors. The sport is getting expensive. Everyone knows that what happens on the track is just part of the racing game." As for the race itself, Thomson is confident in his road racing skills but says the Toronto race will be a balancing act. "We won the CASCAR race on road course at Mosport in '91 and ran well there and in Edmonton last year. But the walled Toronto course will be different. The goal in Toronto will be to keep it off the fence." *** CASCAR still has tickets available for the 'CASCAR Chalet' for the Miller Lite 100 at the Toronto Molson Indy. For $399.95, ticket holders get: Start/Finish Line Grandstand seating, meals on all three days of the Molson Indy, paddock passes and a guided tour, souvenirs as well as a chance to take a ride in one of the PPG Pace Cars.