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Doiron Wins $10,000 In Lee’s Second Freedom 300 Open

The Maine veteran outlasted the field without a pit stop to claim a $10,000 jackpot in the second running of Lee USA Speedway’s 9/11 memorial event.

Joey Doiron, seen here racing to a runner-up finish in the GSPSS Governor's 100 at Hudson Speedway, came on late in the running to win Sunday's Lin Propane Trucks 150, part of Lee USA Speedway's second Freedom 300 event. (STS/Jeff Brown)

Joey Doiron has had a strong season, with only a few days to go before he officially hoists the championship trophy for his second Granite State Pro Stock Series title.

But that’s no reason not to sweeten the pot a bit.

Doiron left early leader Bryan Kruczek in the dust Sunday afternoon en route to victory in the Lin’s Propane Trucks 150, the Pro Stock/Pro Late Model main event of Lee USA Speedway’s second-ever Freedom 300.

And while Sunday’s race paid no points to Doiron, the $10,000 check awaiting in victory lane was well worth the effort.

Honoring the anniversary of the September 11th attacks in 2001, the inaugural Freedom 300 was announced in the summer of 2020, amid a rush of high-stakes races booked as tracks sought to recover from a delayed opening due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The inaugural event was an ambitious undertaking that anchored a full weekly schedule with a $10,000-to-win Pro Stock/Pro Late Model open-competition feature and a $5,000-to-win Street Stock open.

Run on Lee’s traditional Friday night, the jam-packed program tested the town’s curfew, with officials cutting the Street Stock feature short and calling the Pro Stock open official after only 100 laps. Derek Griffith played a no-pit strategy to win the shortened feature, while Doiron finished fourth after pitting early on.

This time, Doiron played the no-pit strategy, but out of necessity. A lap-three yellow flag was the only caution flag thrown in the feature, forcing teams to manage their cars for the full 150-lap distance.

Outside polesitter Garrett Hall beat Angelo Belsito to lead the opening laps, but Belsito took command after the lap-three restart. After 25 laps, the Auburn, Mass. racer held the lead over Bryan Kruczek, Brandon Barker and Doiron, who had moved up from eighth at the start. Hall had slipped all the way to seventh.

Belsito’s afternoon came to an early end, though, as he pulled into the infield with only 34 laps complete. Kruczek assumed the lead, with Wayne Helliwell, Jr. slipping past Doiron into third. Fifty laps in, Kruczek had built a two-second advantage over Barker as he lapped into the top twenty.

As the race went caution-free, Doiron and Helliwell worked past Barker and chipped away at Kruczek’s lead, with Doiron catching Kruczek in traffic. Doiron patiently worked by the lapped car of Bobby Baillargeon, then set off after Kruczek for the top spot. It only took Doiron a lap to set up Kruczek, making a quick move to the inside in turn one and driving by for the lead with 37 laps remaining.

Once he was out front, Doiron drove away from the field, cruising to the win by just over four seconds.

Kruczek, who sustained damage to his exhaust while battling traffic, held on for second. For the Lee veteran, the race was a frustrating repeat of May’s GSPSS-sanctioned Granite State Derby, when Doiron again bested Kruczek down the stretch.

Barker, racing for car owner Archie St. Hilaire, came back to finish third. In the process, Barker wrapped up Lee’s Rodfather Pro Stock track championship. Once a staple of weekly racing throughout the state, Pro Stocks returned to Lee’s home divisions in 2022 for a six-race schedule after a long absence.

GSPSS Hudson Speedway winner Jimmy Renfrew, Jr. finished fourth. Wiscasset Speedway Boss Hogg 150 winner Mike Hopkins, the runner-up in the inaugural Freedom 300, was fifth.

Chassis builder Jeremy Davis was sixth, while Wayne Helliwell, Jr. faded to seventh at the finish. Ryan Green crossed the line eighth, while July GSPSS winner Casey Call and Maine standout Dave Farrington, Jr. rounded out the top ten.

Sunday’s feature program was no repeat of the inaugural, a night that track management later admitted was overbooked. But after last year’s event was called off due to a race tire shortage, the track was determined to bring the event back for 2022. Three weekly features, plus the EXIT Realty Pro Truck Challenge, bolstered the special Sunday event.

And despite running against a Pro All Stars Series points race in Maine, the 28-car field featured big names from throughout New England. Joey Polewarczyk was 11th, with fellow PASS regular and polesitter Hall falling to 14th. Max Cookson, fresh off a top-five finish in his first Oxford 250 and a night after clinching the Oxford Plains Speedway track championship, was 17th. Kate Re was forced to the pits with tire issues, relegating the Kulwicki Driver Development Program finalist to 21st. Three-time Oxford 250 winner Travis Benjamin and former Seekonk Speedway track champ Dylan Estrella peeled off early with ill-handling cars.

But without a caution to reset the field, no one had anything for Doiron, who is among New England’s best in playing long-distance strategy. Doiron played patient in the early laps in May’s GSPSS showdown at Lee, letting Kruczek dominate until it was time to go. Early wrecks started Doiron in the hole in July’s GSPSS Keen Parts 150, but the veteran was in contention for the win on a late restart before settling for fourth.

August’s GSPSS feature at Claremont showed a different side of Doiron, as he raced hard for the early lead and then played defense to win the $7,500 prize. Two weeks ago in the Oxford 250, Doiron was again in contention late in the race. In the final laps, Oxford’s treacherous outside groove relegated the hopeful winner to a sixth-place finish.

Friday night closes out the GSPSS season at Star Speedway, where Doiron is the defending race winner. Having already clinched the championship, Doiron would still love to close out his title season with a third victory.

But his championship week is certainly starting off on the right foot.

Unofficial Results, Lin’s Propane Trucks Pro Stock Open at Lee USA Speedway:
1. (73) Joey Doiron
2. (19) Bryan Kruczek
3. (32) Brandon Barker
4. (00NH) Jimmy Renfrew, Jr.
5. (15) Mike Hopkins
6. (09) Jeremy Davis
7. (27NH) Wayne Helliwell, Jr.
8. (93) Ryan Green
9. (90NH) Casey Call
10. (23) Dave Farrington, Jr.
11. (4) Joey Polewarczyk
12. (1VT) Evan Hallstrom
13. (04X) TJ Watson
14. (94) Garrett Hall
15. (82) Bobby Baillargeon
16. (40) Mike Mitchell
17. (39) Max Cookson
18. (09ME) Ryan Ripley
19. (75) Gary Smith
20. (77) Bill Helliwell
21. (10) Kate Re
22. (66C) Bobby Cabral
23. (05) Bobby Frappier
24. (7B) Travis Benjamin
25. (46) Dylan Estrella
26. (04) Zachary Bowie
27. (29) Adam Gray
28. (8) Angelo Belsito

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Jeff Brown is a contributor to Short Track Scene. A native of New Hampshire and a long-time fan of New England racing, Brown provides a fan's perspective as he follows New England's regional Late Model touring series.

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