BONIFERRO WINS PMRA - GRAND BEND
Thu, 2007-09-06 07:28
The Pro Modified Racing Association has provided exciting action on the track
throughout its existence, and the 2007 PMRA final at the Grand Bend Motorplex
over the Labor Day weekend certainly provided a dramatic finish to the
season.
With the running of this final
event, the PMRA finally has a repeat winner, as a different team won each of the
previous 13 events.
Joe Boniferro of Niagara Falls, Ontario, beat Bruce Boland
of Hamilton, Ontario in the final round to become the PMRA’s first repeat
winner. Boniferro, driving the Smokin’ Joe’s 1999 Dodge Avenger, ran a
6.625-sec, 216.86-mph pass over Boland’s 6.780-sec, 213.06 effort.
“I’m just ecstatic to become the first two-time winner of
this series,” said a pleased Boniferro after the race. “All my four sons are
here today, along with the whole crew”, he went on. “We came here with a whole
new combination, and I would have been content just to have qualified. But
everything went our way, and I’m very happy.”
Boniferro won the 2006 PMRA event at the Grand Bend
Motorplex. If Boland had won the race, he also would have been the first
two-time PMRA winner, as he won at Lancaster Raceway Park in 2005.
However, Boland was all smiles after the final, knowing he
had won the 2007 PMRA Points Championship sponsored by Wix Filtration Products,
Valvoline, Uni-Select, and Moen Incorporated. Driving the B & B Racing 1953
Corvette Pro Modified entry, Boland’s consistency, and attendance paid off for
the 52-year old automotive shop owner.
“This title is for Kevin,” explained Boland. “This one’s
for him. He was my biggest fan and came to all our races.” Kevin, 12-year old
son of crewmember Brad Short, passed away earlier this year.
With so many variables in the championship points race,
each round shook up the points between the top four leaders. Going into the
final, leader Matt Guenther of Livonia, New York, and Ike Maier of Tottenham,
Ontario, who was in second place, both failed to qualify for the eight-car show,
but held a slim lead going into round one.
That disappeared in first-round action, when Boland pulled
the upset of the weekend on number one qualifier Gary Irving of Toronto,
Ontario. Irving, in his 1937 Chevy, paced the field with a 6.267-second, 228.94
mph benchmark, but Boland eliminated him with a 6.296-sec, 216.76-mph pass over
Irving’s round-losing 6.343-sec, 226.58 run.
Boniferro took out number two qualifier Terry Brown of
Caledonia, Ontario, in an-all Mopar round, Scott Wildgust ran a straight and
true first round to eliminate Larry Sinke of Welland, Ontario and number three
qualifier Sam Andreacchi of Toronto, Ontario fell victim to a red light, giving
the round to Dave Earhart.
In the semi-final, Earhart was not settled in the grove
before his pass, succumbing to tire shake and losing to Boniferro as the Smokin’
Joe’s team ran 6.486-sec, 218.18-mph over Earhart’s 13.419-sec, 72.03 mph pass.
In the other semi, Wildgust had Boland off the line, but broke a blower belt
midway down the track in the NitroMoose/Ajax Engines 1957 Chevy as Boland
powered to a 6.311-sec, 216.19-mph win.
The top five in the 2007 PMRA points race place Bruce
Boland number one with 1228 points. Matt Guenther and Scott Wildgust tied, each
with 1211 points, Ike Maier was next with 1202 points, and Sam Andreacchi rounds
out the top-five with 1124 points.
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