Connor James' return to the Ontario Sportsman Series yielded the result he had been looking for with a trip to Victory Lane.
After a battle with Cory McAllister, the young man from Hamilton dominated the back half of the race, lapping all but three cars before the end.
“I hope this is a start and we have opened the flood gates. You go through some rough stretches over a few years and you doubt you can still do it, but the people behind me never stopped supporting me and we never gave up,” James said post-race from Victory Lane.
The Ontario Sportsman Series return to the Innisfil track Aug. 26.
The No. 47 car cruised into Victory Lane for the second time this season in the LUDUH Designated Driver Hot Rod Series, but it was the first time in 2023 with ‘Stompin’ Tom Walters behind the wheel. After a spirited battle with Amanda Balson, the Canadian Motorsports Hall of Famer utilized a mid-race restart to take the lead and cruise to the win.
“It feels good to get to Victory Lane. Dwayne Baker was able to get the win to start the year and I have had my struggles,” Walters admitted after the race. “I took time this week and went back through my notes on this car and found something wasn’t right in the rear end and correcting it has brought the car to life for me.”
The LUDUH Designated Driver Hot Rods return to action on July 8 as part of the Junior Hanley Classic for the Pro Late Models.
The Trailers Plus Ontario Legend Series made their second stop of the year at Sunset and the second verse was the same as the first as Parker Traves found his way to Victory Lane. Traves, the reigning series champion, had a busy week after running at Charlotte Motor Speedway last Monday and Tuesday with the same car he would race Saturday night.
“It’s been a busy week and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without our sponsors to make it possible to go down south. Going down there you are racing against 10 cars all the same speed that can win so it really sharpens your skills and is a big help when coming back to race here in Ontario,” Parker said after the race.
The Legend Cars return again on Carload Night July 15.
The last lap contained both excitement and heartbreak as Jeff Blackburn made the pass on James Stanley off of Turn 2 to take the win. Stanley, who had led the majority of the race, slipped up on entry to Turn 1 and Blackburn dove to the inside of Stanley to take the win and deny Stanley his first Sunset win in a Can Am Midget.
“I had to go to the back after spinning the No. 5 and I apologize for that. I wasn’t sure I would be able to run James down, but once I got there I just worked on setting him up,” Blackburn explained of his winning strategy. “James was running a defensive line and taking the lane away where I wanted to go, he slipped up the one time and I was able to get by him when it counted.”
The Can Am Midgets return on July 8 as the under-card to the inaugural Junior Hanley Classic for the Pro Late Models.
A wild feature for the Sunset Bone Stocks took several title contenders out of the race early and allowed Brandon Steele to take his third victory of the year, although it wasn’t without its adversity.
“We got hit in the right front trying to avoid an accident that started ahead of me. The wheel has a bit more camber to it than it did to start the race,” Steele said as he pointed to the car's front end in Victory Lane. “The car felt a little off on the restart, but as we kept going the car got better and I’m just happy we got the win again. I hate it for my competitors that got wrecked tonight. I am glad they are all OK and hopefully they can return soon.”
The Bone Stocks return as part of our Canada Day Giveaway Card where we will give away $500 to one lucky fan and a pair of Kids Bikes.
This Saturday is Summer Vacation Night at the track, which means half-price kids grandstand admission as well as half-price hot dogs all night long. The G.D. Coates Used Car Superstore Late Models return to action with past track champion Rick Spencer-Walt filing his registration to race full time at Sunset for the remainder of 2023 as well the popular King of the Hill Spectator Races return for the second time this year.
