CARSTAR Weekly Racing Series
Race Wrap & Full Results

August 10th: Affordable Fuels 100 Night

Affordable Fuels Sportsman
“Man, we just won the 100!”

After climbing from the No. 08 Aerotec Engines Chevrolet, it hit Matt Vaughan (Bedford) that he had just won the biggest race of his young Late Model career.

Vaughan drove from 15th on the starting grid to win the Affordable Fuels Sportsman 100 on Friday night. After driving a car “that sucked” in the heat race, the reigning track champion did not know what to expect. Staying out of trouble, Vaughan inherited the lead with 45 to go when leaders Colby Smith (Cape Sable Island) and Dylan Blenkhorn (Truro) made contact while racing for the top spot.

It wasn’t easy to fend off the competition for a driver who grew up watching the drivers he raced with in the late stages.

“I’m restarting with 15 to go with Pete Miller, Frankie Fraser and Phil Barkhouse Jr behind me. You can’t get much better than that!”

The 2016 track champion in Miller (Kennetcook) finished second with multi-time Affordable Fuels 100 winner Fraser (Shubenacadie) in third. Russell Smith Jr (Lakeside), who entered looking for an unprecedented sixth straight Affordable Fuels 100 title, finished fourth after an incredible side by side battle with Fraser in the waning laps. Barkhouse Jr (Hammonds Plains) was fifth.

Jordan Veinotte (Porter’s Lake), Darren Wallage (Oakfield) and Miller won heat races in the 27 car field. Veinotte and fourth place starter Blenkhorn were both penalized during driver introductions and sent to the rear for the start. Veinotte was disqualified from the event for speeding on pit road under a Lap Two. Blenkhorn drove through the field twice before an incident with 15 laps to go ended his night.

The Affordable Fuels 100 featured nine cautions and took one hour, ten minutes to complete.

TOURSEC LIGHTNING
It took him a bit to get back, but Steve Matthews (Bedford) found victory lane on Toromont Cat 250 weekend for his third win of 2018.

Matthews battled with the most recent feature winner Marshall Bezanson (Oldham) for the lead at the halfway point and would pull away with the lead for the big win. Bezanson would hold on for second over reigning champion Scott Thibodeau (Williamswood) for his second straight podium finish. “Rational” Richard Drake (Halifax) and Chevy MacDonald (Stewiacke) completed the top five in the 15-car field.

The Jollimores battled for the win in heat one with David edging Mike by inches in a photo finish. MacDonald took the second heat race win.

The race saw the return of former Toursec Lightning driver Marc MacMillan (Glenholme) and Jeff Turple (Stewiacke) made his return for the first time in years driving his original number, No. 122, for Greg Snelgrove.

TOURSEC THUNDER
While most drivers in the Toursec Thunder division don’t like the traction compound that is typically laid on Pro Stock weekends, Jesse Deveau (Greenwood) would be okay if it was put down fresh every weekend.

Deveau scored his second win of the Toursec Thunder season by being able to get his car to stick on the outside line “tack.” Deveau would pass Neil Miousse (Kentville) and battle with the fellow Valley boy on the final restart with five laps to go in the 25-lap feature. Miousse fell back in the final five circuits, allowing reigning champion Dave Matthews (Kennetcook) to race to second ahead of a hard charging Drew MacEachern (Dartmouth). Jason Pickles (Meaghers Grant) scored his best finish in his comeback year with a fourth place run with Darren Flemming (Belnan) fifth in the 13 car field.

Brad Hayes (Head of Jeddore), driving for Mark Williams, and Miousse took heat race victories.

STRICTLY HYDRAULICS LEGENDS
Tylor Hawes (Porter’s Lake) returned to victory lane on the biggest weekend of the season at Scotia Speedworld.

Hawes scored his second win of the 2018 season in the 25-lap Strictly Hydraulics Legends feature. Hawes started fifth and quickly worked his way up to the front to battle with Jeff Cruickshank (Hantsport) for the lead and had to hold off Parts for Trucks Pro Stock Tour sophomore Nicholas Naugle (Dartmouth) for the win over the final six laps to the finish.

Naugle would finish second in his third Friday night trip to Scotia Speedworld for 2018 with reigning champion Paul Goulden (Shelburne) completing the podium. Point leaders Emily Meehan (Rawdon) and Shelby Baker (Fall River) just missed out on a podium finish by coming home fourth and fifth, respectively, in the 16 car field.

Nathan Blackburn (Timberlea) and Cruickshank won heat races. For Cruickshank, it was his CARSTAR Weekly Racing Series leading fifth heat race win on the season in eight meets.