Connect with us

Supermodifieds

Seitz stellar in NESS World Series shootout, Timmons claims championship

The Supermodified veteran won his second race of 2024 in the third-year tour, but came up short in the points to fan favorite Timmons.

Ben Seitz takes his fourth career New England Supermodified Series win at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, but it was not enough to close the gap on Bobby Timmons, who claimed the season-long title. (STS/Jeff Brown)

The New England Supermodified Series’ third season drew to a close as part of Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park’s 62nd Sunoco World Series of Speedway Racing. And in the thirteenth and final round of action in 2024, two drivers closed their respective seasons on a high note.

Big-block veteran Ben Seitz waved the checkered flag after nearly lapping the field en route to a quality win on the big Connecticut track.

And somewhere in the distance, Bobby Timmons III crossed the line fifth to secure his first championship in a winged Supermodified, and the first official championship of his motorsports career.

Third-generation Supermodified racer Bobby Timmons III only needed to take the green flag Saturday to become NESS’ third-ever champion. (STS/Jeff Brown)

Timmons needed only to start the day’s 40-lap feature to clinch the NESS crown. And with perennial favorite Jon McKennedy focused on his Tour-type Modified rides for the weekend, the door was open for any of the series’ top stars to take home the final winner’s trophy of the season.

Enter Seitz, the 2014 International Supermodified Association champion and multi-time NESS feature winner. The Bourne, Mass. ace was quick out of the gate, charging to the point and overtaking rookie Ryan Battle. Subbing for older brother Jeffrey, who like McKennedy opted to focus on his Modified ride, Ryan started out front but was no match for the blazing-fast Seitz.

Seitz lays down a trail of sparks diving into turn one. (STS/Jeff Brown)

A winner earlier in the season at Star Speedway, Seitz whipped around New England’s fastest short track, leaving Battle, veteran Russ Wood and everyone else in his wake. Only Wood was able to cling to the lead lap, finishing over 11 seconds back as Seitz crossed the line.

Matt Swanson, victorious in the season’s third-to-last race at White Mountain Motorsports Park, was the first car a lap back in third. Jim Storace was fourth in a car purchased from Howie Lane, Swanson’s car owner and a New England Supermodified fixture. Timmons was fifth at the finish.

Vern Romanowski, swapping rides with teammate Dave Duggan after a grinding crash at Thunder Road International Speedbowl last week, was sixth with Battle coming home seventh. Mark “Sparky” McIver was eighth, with Duggan and Thunder Road winner Rob Summers rounding out the top ten.

New Hampshire Supermodified all-star Russ Wood finished second to Seitz, also clinching second in the year-long standings. (STS/Jeff Brown)

Seitz’ fast lap in race trim around the ⅝-mile oval was 17.185 seconds, a quarter of a second faster than runner-up Wood’s fastest lap in the feature.

Saturday’s win was Seitz’ second of the season, his second NESS win at Thompson, and his fourth NESS win overall, all driving for legendary car owner Vic Miller. But two wins and nine top-five finishes in 13 starts was only enough for third in the season-long standings.

Instead, the championship honors went to Timmons, a third-generation racer who turned his back on Super Late Model racing after 2017 to focus on the model set by his father and grandfather in Supermodified racing.

Matt Swanson duels with Jim Storace en route to a third-place finish. (STS/Jeff Brown)

Establishing his own path in 350 Supermodified racing at Star Speedway in Epping, N.H., Timmons made his big-block debut in 2020. With his father at the helm of his self-professed “band of idiots from Maine,” Timmons put a tidy bow on a not-so-tidy 2024 season.

Misfortune in Timmons’ 350 Supermodified season struck out of the gate, with early wrecks and a viral incident with a push truck burying his hopes of success early in the year. Timmons found similar frustration in NESS, losing a race due to an accidental caution flag. But while his 350 Supermodified hole grew deeper, his NESS performances were consistent, handing him the points lead as Seitz and Wood struggled with reliability.

Modified dual-threat Swanson and winged veterans Seitz and Wood share the podium in the season’s final NESS showdown. (STS/Jeff Brown)

After three runner-up finishes, Timmons got his first win of the year on Oxford 250 weekend, solidifying his place atop the standings. A couple weeks later at Thunder Road, though, Timmons blew an engine while chasing down the leaders, the one thing his low-buck team could not afford. The season appeared to be over.

Long-time supporter Scott Martel found an engine for Timmons, though, and the family team rallied. The following weekend at the Star Classic, Timmons drove his 350 Supermodified to the biggest win of his career, then wheeled his reassembled big-block ride to a third-place finish, nipping Wood at the line to land on the podium.

With a third-place finish at WMMP and a runner-up at Thunder Road in the next two races, Timmons only had to nurse his car to the green flag at Thompson, a track where his budget powertrain would be low on power.

Timmons’ concerns that no one wanted to hear from the fifth-place finisher were dashed by a crowd of supporters, from family and teammates to listeners and followers of Timmons’ Black Flagged Podcast, that mobbed the frontstretch to share in the championship glory. (STS/Jeff Brown)

Timmons joins inaugural NESS champ Summers and reigning titlist Dan Bowes as series champions, while becoming the first NESS champion from the series’ native Pine Tree State.

Among the NESS regulars, Seitz and Timmons are on seemingly opposite ends of the Supermodified spectrum. Seitz, the decorated veteran, took the reins of the No. 11 in early 2022, continuing a tradition of success forged by car owner Miller and longtime pilot Christopher Perley, the “Rowley Rocket.” Standouts on their own merit, the pairing of Seitz with Miller is a potent combination at any track on the schedule.

And while the third-generation Timmons has shown plenty of ability on the track, finances are the limiting factor in what the racer and podcaster calls “flea market racing.” Timmons and his father build their own cars from scratch, at times relying on parts that were rebuilt before the younger Timmons was born. The team’s final four races this year were run on an engine that cost $5,000 that the team simply did not have to spend. Even a crate big-block is well out of reach for the Timmons family. Fortunately, while passion is far from free, at least it comes without a dollar figure attached.

Some call it persistence. Timmons has called it not knowing when to quit.

Either way, for the Timmons family and his loyal legion of followers, it resulted in a championship.

Unofficial Results
New England Supermodified Series | Sunoco World Series 40
Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park, Thompson, Conn.

1. (11) Ben Seitz
2. (41) Russ Wood
3. (97) Matt Swanson
4. (47) Jim Storace
5. (13) Bobby Timmons III
6. (51) Vern Romanowski
7. (14) Ryan Battle
8. (22) Mark “Sparky” McIver
9. (5) Rob Summers
10. (53) Dave Duggan
DNS (45) Mike Mayberry

If you like what you read here, become a Short Track Scene Patreon and support short track journalism!

Read more Short Track Scene:

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.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Facebook

Archive

Advertisement

More in Supermodifieds