2019 NWMT Schedule Announced; South Boston & Wall Stadium Added
2019 NWMT Schedule Announced; South Boston & Wall Stadium Added
Story By: NASCAR Home Tracks
Photos By: Dave Dalesandro/RacersGuide.com
The 35th season of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will feature a mix of historic short tracks on the eastern seaboard as well as the second running of the 250-lap showcase event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
For the third straight season, the Whelen Modified Tour will kick off at South Carolina’s Myrtle Beach Speedway. The race on Saturday, March 16, will precede the return of the tour to Virginia’s South Boston Speedway.
Following the southern swing, the tour will kickoff the New England racing season as the headliner for a pair of landmark Connecticut race weekends: the 46th annual Icebreaker weekend at Thompson Motorsports Park on Sunday, April 7, and the 48th annual NAPA Auto Parts Spring Sizzler on Sunday, April 28.
The 16-race tour calendar visits seven states and features the return to Wall Stadium Speedway in Wall Township, New Jersey. The tour has run three events at the high-banked third-mile oval, most recently in 2007.
“The NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour schedule celebrates some of most iconic eastern short tracks,” said Brandon Thompson, NASCAR managing director for regional racing. “It’s a nod to the old school NASCAR Modified division racing from Connecticut to Virginia competing for championship points and bragging rights. After a tremendous 2018 season, we are even more excited about what 2019 will bring.”
This past year, Long Island’s Justin Bonsignore rolled off eight wins en route to his first NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship. He out-distanced rising young star Chase Dowling and dethroned five-time tour champion Doug Coby to claim the top spot in the premier Modified series.
One of the highlights of 2018 was the inaugural Musket 250, a $25,000-to-win extra-distance championship event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Dowling took advantage of a clash between Bonsignore and former tour champion – and 2019 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver – Ryan Preece in the final turns of the final lap to score his first win and claim the biggest winner’s purse in tour history.
The 2019 race at New Hampshire will be held on Saturday, Sept. 21.
The Whelen Modified Tour will also be part of the Monster Energy Series weekend at the “Magic Mile” with its championship points event on Saturday, July 21. The annual all-star race for the tour will be held on the 1.053-mile speedway on Friday, July 20.
Other schedule highlights include:
• Two premier northeastern tracks remain in place on the calendar: Massachusetts’ Seekonk Speedway will host the tour on Saturday, June 1. The tour’s trip to upstate New York and Oswego Raceway will be part of the track’s 63rd Annual Classic Week with the Toyota Mod Classic 150 presented by McDonald’s.
• Riverhead Raceway will host a pair of races: Saturday, July 6, and Saturday, Sept. 7. Bonsignore swept the two events at his home track in 2018.
• The championship will conclude with the traditional races at Stafford and Thompson. First will be the 47th Annual NAPA Fall Final weekend at Stafford on Sunday, Sept. 29, followed by the crowning of the 2019 champion at the 57th Annual Sunoco World Series of Speedway Racing on Sunday, Oct. 13.
