Danny O'Brien Bags 2nd Straight Mr. DIRTcar 358 Win At BOS
Posted Sunday, Sep 16, 2007
Brockville, ONT — September 15, 2007 – By Steve Young, Brockville PR
It's been quite a couple of weeks for six-time and recently crowned Brockville Ontario Speedway points champion Danny O’Brien. The Kingston, Ontario driver suddenly is the man to beat in DIRTcar 358-Modified competition as the ‘Pocket Rocket’ took his third Mr. DIRTcar Series win in eight days on Saturday night leading from start to finish aboard the potent no. 17D 1000 Islands RV Centre/Bicknell entry to capture the BOB FM-Jack May Pontiac 100 at the BOS.
“We really weren’t planning to run the Series but now we’re trying to scrape up the money to do it,” said O’Brien, following his third career Mr. DIRTcar 358 tour triumph at Brockville to bring his career total to nine extra distance wins. “It really been an incredible month of September so far.”
O’Brien started on the outside-pole alongside DIRTcar superstar Danny Johnson as the 30-car field took the initial green flag. O’Brien won the drag race into turn one and then survived a wacky 17 restarts including a final one with two laps to go that sent the race into overtime.
Older brother Pat O’Brien quickly moved through the field from his 11th starting position to grab the second spot in the first half of the race but never could get close enough to track down his brother who just kept running the upper groove of the high-banked quarter-mile oval to perfection.
The only two tense moments came when the 2007 BOS track champ had a hard time passing the lapped car of Eric Landry and when brother Pat made a bold inside move in turn two on a restart with 25 laps to go, but both times Danny was able to prevail.
“I really thought the bottom would come in but it never did,” said runner-up Pat O’Brien, who finished third the night before in the rain-shortened Mr. DIRTcar Small-Block event at Can-Am behind his victorious brother and Danny Johnson. “Some guys I could get around down there, but not the 17D.”
Danny O’Brien admitted in victory lane that he wasn't planning to follow the 358 tour this season but after recent wins at Autodrome Edelweiss, last night at Can-Am Motorsports Park and now Brockville in the last week, the team is trying to drum up the financial support to do the rest of the races.
Johnson held off a fast closing Mark Hitchcock for the third spot with overall Mr. DIRTcar points leader Mario Clair rounding out the top five. Roy Tarbell turned the fast time in time trails for the 100 clocking in at 14.009 seconds (63.834 mph) while Hitchcock garnered a guaranteed starting spot in the 358-Modified Championship on Oct. 6 of Super DIRT Week XXXVI at the NYS Fairgrounds.
Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified Series race action returns to the states with Rolling Wheels Raceway Park hosting the World Series 75 on September 21. Along with valuable points towards the overall Hoosier-Sunoco Mr. DIRTcar Championship for 358-Modifieds, also up for grabs will be a guaranteed starting berth in the 358-Modified Championship during Super DIRT Week in Syracuse.
Hoosier Tire-Sunoco Race Fuels Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified Championship Series Race #7 – Brockville Ontario Speedway, September 15, 2007 ‘BOB FM Radio presents the ‘Battle at the Border 100’ Event Summary
FIN STR CAR# DRIVER
1 2 17d Danny O'Brien/Kingston,ONT($4,000)
2 11 6 Pat O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
3 1 1t Danny Johnson/Rochester,NY
4 4 95 Mark Hitchcock/Kingston,ONT
5 3 22 Mario Clair/St-Edmond,QUE
6 8 21 Yan Bussiere/Drummondville,QUE
7 13 1 David Hebert/St. Damase,QUE
8 18 37 Kyle Jacobs/Hogansburg,NY
9 15 60 Bill Gill/Plessis,NY
10 23 39 Clement Therrien/Victoriaville,QUE
11 12 42 Pete Bicknell/St.Catharines,ONT
12 7 66x Carey Terrance/Hogansburg,NY
13 9 44 Sebastien Gougeon/Drummondville,QUE
14 5 007 Roy Tarbell/Hogansburg,NY
15 25 124 Pierre DagenaisGatineau,QUE
16 16 23 Dany Bilodeau/Victoriaville,QUE
17 10 25 Bobby Herrington/Kingston,ONT
18 28 9 Mark Smoke/Akwesasne,NY
19 6 99 Mike Adderley/Watertown,NY
20 26 00 Ryan Poole/Mallorytown,ONT
21 17 16 Lance Willix II/Theresa,NY
22 27 81 Eric Landry/Trois-Rivieres,QUE
23 20 95a Alex Boisvert/Point-Claire,QUE
24 19 96 Kyle Dingwall/Morrisburg,ONT
25 30 86 Chris King/Seeleys Bay,ONT
26 24 77g Robbie Grant/Malone,NY
27 22 x31 Andy Lloyd/Kingston,ONT
28 21 66w Wallace Stacey/Kahnawake,QUE
29 29 3 Bill Mullin/Iroquois,ONT
30 14 98 Paul Pekkonen/Brockville,ONT
GATER NEWS LAP LEADER: D.O'Brien (1-101).
CAUTIONS: 17.
SYRACUSE 150 QUALIFIER: Mark Hitchcock.
QUALIFYING
FAST AVE
TIME MPH CAR# DRIVER
1 14.099 63.834 007 Roy Tarbell/Hogansburg,NY
2 14.120 63.739 25 Bobby Herrington/Kingston,ONT
3 14.142 63.640 6 Pat O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
4 14.148 63.613 17d Danny O'Brien/Kingston,ONT
5 14.175 63.492 21 Yan Bussiere/Drummondville,QUE
6 14.193 63.412 42 Pete Bicknell/St.Catharines,ONT
7 14.210 63.336 1t Danny Johnson/Rochester,NY
8 14.235 63.224 44 Sebastien Gougeon/Drummond,QUE
9 14.255 63.136 1 David Hebert/St. Damase,QUE
10 14.269 63.074 98 Paul Pekkonen/Brockville,ONT
11 14.301 62.933 99 Mike Adderley/Watertown,NY
12 14.390 62.543 124 Pierre DagenaisGatineau,QUE
13 14.403 62.487 66x Carey Terrance/Hogansburg,NY
14 14.432 62.361 95 Mark Hitchcock/Kingston,ONT
15 14.445 62.305 96 Kyle Dingwall/Morrisburg,ONT
16 14.505 62.048 22 Mario Clair/St-Edmond,QUE
17 14.541 61.894 39 Clement Therrien/Victoriaville,QUE
18 14.551 61.851 35 Adam Moore/Elgin,ONT
19 14.635 61.496 60 Bill Gill/Plessis,NY
20 14.714 61.166 16 Lance Willix II/Theresa,NY
14.714 61.166 23 Dany Bilodeau/Victoriaville,QUE
22 14.775 60.914 37 Kyle Jacobs/Hogansburg,NY
*23 14.805 60.790 9 Mark Smoke/Akwesasne,NY
24 14.902 60.395 00 Ryan Poole/Mallorytown,ONT
25 14.935 60.261 66w Wallace Stacey/Kahnawake,QUE
26 14.948 60.209 81 Eric Landry/Trois-Rivieres,QUE
27 15.021 59.916 x31 Andy Lloyd/Kingston,ONT
28 15.022 59.912 37p Francisco Perera/Etobicoke,ONT
29 15.183 59.277 12 Joey Ladouceur/Alexandria,ONT
30 15.567 57.815 3 Bill Mullin/Iroquois,ONT
31 15.591 57.726 86 Chris King/Seeleys Bay,ONT
32 15.707 57.299 77g Robbie Grant/Malone,NY
33 -NT- ----- 49 Francois Bernier/St-Hyacinthe,QUE
34 -NT- ----- 95a Alex Boisvert/Point-Claire,QUE
*Time Disallowed due to weight infraction.
Heat Races (5 Qualify)
#1: Bussiere, Tarbell, Terrance, Hebert, Willix, Therrien, Landry, Mullin, Smoke.
#2: Bicknell, Herrington, Hitchcock, Pekkonen, Jacobs, Lloyd, Bernier, King, Moore.
#3: Johnson, P.O’Brien, Adderley, Gill, Dingwall, Poole, Perera, Grant.
#4: Gougeon, D.O’Brien, Clair, Bilodeau, Boisvert, Stacey, Dagenais, Ladouceur.
Consolation Round
#1: Stacey, Lloyd, Therrien, Grant, Dagenais, Poole, Landry, Mullin, King, Smoke, Perera, Bernier, Ladouceur, Moore.
2007 Mr. DIRTcar 358-Modified Championship Series Schedule
DAY-DATE LAPS TRACK LOCATION/WINNER
Mon-Aug 20 100 Autodrome Drummond Brett Hearn
Tue-Aug 21 100 Autodrome Granby Kayle Robidoux
Sun-Sep 2 100 Cornwall Motor Speedway David Hebert
Fri-Sep 7 100 Autodrome Edelweiss Danny O’Brien
Sat-Sep 8 50 Lebanon Valley Speedway Kenny Tremont
Fri-Sep 14 52 Can-Am Motorsports Park Danny O’Brien
Sat-Sep 15 101 Brockville Ont Speedway Danny O’Brien
Fri-Sep 21 75 Rolling Wheels Raceway Elbridge,NY
Wed-Oct 3 75 Can-Am Motorsports Park LaFargeville, NY
Thr-Oct 4 75 Brewerton Speedway Brewerton, NY
Fri-Oct 5 100 Rolling Wheels Raceway Elbridge, NY
Sat-Oct 6 150 New York State Fairgrnds Syracuse,NY
Fri-Oct 12 50 New Egypt Speedway New Egypt, NJ
Sat-Oct 20 100 Orange Co Fair Speedway Middletown,NY
*All events subject to change.
The Advance Auto Parts Super DIRTcar Series for Big-Block Modifieds is brought to fans across the Northeast by several sponsors and partners, including series sponsors Advance Auto Parts, Hoosier Racing Tire and Sunoco Race Fuels. Promotional partners include AMB i.t., F.X. Caprara Car Companies, Rite Aid Corporation and the University of Northwestern Ohio and the contingency sponsors are Bert Transmission, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Integra Shocks, MSD Ignitions, Miller Electric Manufacturing Company, Motorsports Safety Systems, Penske Shocks and Wrisco Industries.