By Tommy Goudge
BRIGHTON, Ont. (June 10, 2023) – Dylan Westbrook’s journey to Brighton Speedway was an adventure on Saturday night, but once he got there his route to victory lane became straightforward.
Westbrook’s hauler was damaged when a tire blew out on the highway on Saturday afternoon, but the team was able to get some much-needed roadside assistance and get to the track. Westbrook was quickest in timed hot laps, won his heat race, and led all 25 laps of the A-Main to claim $2,598 as the winner of the Paul Pekkonen Memorial.
Darren Dryden got past Mitch Brown for the second position early in the race while Westbrook pulled away. A yellow flag just before the halfway mark erased Westbrook’s lead, but Dryden was unable to mount a challenge. A red flag quickly followed after contact between Ryan Turner and Jordan Poirier sent Poirier flipping. Turner was able to finish the race, but current Empire Super Sprints points leader Poirier was done for the night.
Westbrook cruised to the win, followed by Dryden, Brown, Shone Evans, and Cory Turner. Liam Martin, Josh Hansen, and Tyeller Powless were the next three across the finish line, while four drivers – Kyle Phillips, Chris Jones, Rick Wilson, and Ryan Turner – were eventually paid and awarded ninth place prize money and points.
Westbrook earned $100 from Ackland Insurance for posting the quickest lap in timed hot laps, while Jones took home $150 from Trailer Pros Canada for gaining the most positions in the A-Main.
Southern Ontario Motor Speedway is next up for the SOS series on Saturday, June 17. Visit www.southernontariomotorspeedway.com and www.southernontariosprints.ca for more information.
Southern Ontario Sprints Race Report
Saturday, June 10, 2023
Brighton Speedway
Brighton, Ontario, Canada
A-Main [Started] 25 laps – NT
47X-Dylan Westbrook[1]; 2. 12DD-Darren Dryden[4]; 3. 10-Mitch Brown[2]; 4. 87X-Shone Evans[3]; 5. 17-Cory Turner[7]; 6. 9-Liam Martin[5]; 7. 88H-Josh Hansen[11]; 8. 77T-Tyeller Powless[9]; 9. 21-Kyle Phillips[8]; 9. 11-Chris Jones[17]; 9. 42W-Rick Wilson[13]; 9. 15-Ryan Turner[6]; 13. 84-Tyler Rand[10]; 14. 68-Aaron Turkey[19]; 15. 12-Alex Bergeron[18]; 16. 98-Evan Reynolds[16]; 17. 19D-Allan Downey[14]; 18. (DNF) 28-Jordan Poirier[15]; 19. (DNF) 90-Travis Cunningham[12]
Awards:
Trailer Pros Canada Hard Charger ($150) – Chris Jones
Ackland Insurance Quick Time ($100) – Dylan Westbrook (12.017 seconds)
Heat Race 1 [Started] 8 laps – 1:55.731
47X-Dylan Westbrook[4]; 2. 21-Kyle Phillips[5]; 3. 19D-Allan Downey[1]; 4. 90-Travis Cunningham[7]; 5. 88H-Josh Hansen[6]; 6. 12-Alex Bergeron[2]; 7. (DNS) 11-Chris Jones
Heat Race 2 [Started] 8 laps – NT
9-Liam Martin[1]; 2. 15-Ryan Turner[2]; 3. 10-Mitch Brown[4]; 4. 84-Tyler Rand[5]; 5. 42W-Rick Wilson[6]; 6. 28-Jordan Poirier[3]
Heat Race 3 [Started] 8 laps – NT
87X-Shone Evans[2]; 2. 12DD-Darren Dryden[3]; 3. 77T-Tyeller Powless[5]; 4. 17-Cory Turner[4]; 5. 68-Aaron Turkey[1]; 6. 98-Evan Reynolds[6]