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Rinaldi, Wadforth, French, Brown and Galway score season opener wins

The force was strong at Brighton Speedway for the season opener on Saturday night.

Following days of rain, Mother Nature was in it to win it, providing perfect weather for 78 cars to harness the power of mystical energy in an action-packed May the Fourth Be With You race card presented by Vanderlaan Building Products.

Checkers rain for Rinaldi

No. 11 Kyle Sopaz led a full field of 17 Jedi knights to green in the caution-riddled Northeast Late Model Alliance Lid Lifter. Sopaz's patience was put to the test as multiple yellow flags slowed the pace in the 40-lap affair. After picking up a heat win, No. 3 Nathan Rinaldi proved to be Sopaz's biggest contender and snapped up the lead on lap 7. Rinaldi put the hammer down as 2023 NLMA champ No. 57 Charlie Sandercock hunted him from behind picking off each challenger one by one. But it was Rinaldi who was one with the force as he rode to the winner's circle scoring his first NLMA career victory and a $2,024 payday leaving Sandercock to settle for runner-up. No. 5 Steve Baldwin placed third, No. 05 James Seymour was fourth and Sopaz fifth.

Wadforth wins opening night battle

On the heels of a heat win, Canadian Modified champion No. 40 Ron Wadforth wasted no time clinching the top spot on the lead lap of the thrilling Bainer’s OilGARD AntiRust 25-lap race. Wadforth and No. 1 Shawn Gregory rattled their lightsabers, treating fans to a back-and-forth chase for checkers that mirrored an exhilarating 2023 season for the pair. The top two modified competitors battled hard as veterans No. 2 Leslie Turcotte-Mowat, No. 32 Doug O'Blenis and No. 41 Corey Halbert chased them down in the rearview. Wadforth was flawless as he held the inside line and flew to victory lane with Gregory securing second, Mowat in third, O'Blenis fourth and Halbert fifth.

French flies to victory lane

No. 0 Tyler French stomped on the gas at the drop of the green flag as he led a packed field of 22 Brighton Automotive Thunder Stocks in the 20-lap contest. Fresh of a heat win, French was unstoppable as No. 26 Brock Gregory and champion No. 03 Justin Ramsay performed a riveting door-to-door dash in his rearview. Riding the high side Ramsay moved up and went wheel to wheel with the leader, but French was determined to wave the checkered flag as he crossed the finish line first. Ramsay took second place with Gregory in third, No. 72 Doug Anderson in fourth and No. 01 Kyle Gregory in fifth.

Brown brings home opening night win

No. 46 Hayden Brown was quick to clinch the lead from polesitter No. 91 Jaiden Miller in the Bill’s Johns Comp 4 15-lap race. On the lead lap, Brown muscled his way from fourth to the top spot and straight to the finish line first. No. 15 Josh Bogaard was Brown's biggest contender on the night and placed second. No. 42jr Aiden Fletcher picked up third, No. 61 Ryan Branscombe was fourth and Miller fifth.

Galway grabs season opener

No. 06J Jarrod Galway was fast and furious as he scored the lead from returning champion and polesitter No. 4 Chris Tufford in the Bill’s Johns Mini Stock 15-lap race. Galway, No. 22 Tyson Gregory and hard charger No. 12 Caleb Severin left it all out on the track as they tussled for triumph. But victory was Galway's as he flew to victory lane with Gregory in second, Severn third, No. 2 Trevyn McCrillis in fourth and Tufford fifth.

Next up, May 11th features a complete race programmed featuring Late Models, Canadian Modifieds, Thunder Stocks, Mini Stock and Stingers. Adult admission is only $15, and you can purchase your tickets for this Saturday’s event at the gate or online at brightonspeedway.ca. Front Gates open each Saturday at 5:00 pm.

Brighton Speedway Social Media: Follow Brighton Speedway’s Official Social Media Accounts Facebook: www.facebook.com/BrightonSpdwy Twitter: @BrightonSpdwy Instagram: @BrightonSpdwy

About Brighton Speedway: Brighton Speedway is a 1/3-mile clay stock car racing oval located on the shores of Lake Ontario in Brighton, Ont. The speedway hosts five weekly stock car divisions on Saturday nights from May to September. Brighton Speedway mailing address: 775 County Road 64, Brighton, ON, K0K 1H0

Photos by Rod Henderson, CanadianRacer.com

1. The Vanderlaan Building Products Northeast Late Model Alliance $2024.00 to win feature winner #3 Nate Rinaldi in the Brighton Recycling Rocket XR1.
2. Bainer’s OilGARD Anti Rust Canadian Modified feature winner #40 Ron Wadforth in the Excess Storage Lethal Chassis.

Finishes
A Feature 1 40 Laps | Vanderlaan Building Products

1. 3-Nathan Rinaldi[6]; 2. 57-Charlie Sandercock[7]; 3. 5-Steve Baldwin[5]; 4. 05-James Seymour[8]; 5. 11-Kyle Sopaz[1]; 6. 33-David Vandertoorn[10]; 7. 92-Adam Turner[3]; 8. 46-Brandon Mowat[4]; 9. 89-Austin King[9]; 10. 41-Ryan Lambert[11]; 11. 77-Caley Weese[2]; 12. 21-Rich Sanders[13]; 13. 151-Brian McDonald[12]; 14. 97-Dave Barrett[17]; 15. 4-Anthony Barrett[15]; 16. 0-Tyler French[16]; 17. 7-Anthony Rinaldi[14]
   Heat 1 8 Laps | Deerhaven Powersports
2. 5-Steve Baldwin[1]; 2. 11-Kyle Sopaz[4]; 3. 92-Adam Turner[6]; 4. 57-Charlie Sandercock[7]; 5. 89-Austin King[5]; 6. 41-Ryan Lambert[3]; 7. 21-Rich Sanders[2]; 8. 4-Anthony Barrett[8]; 9. 97-Dave Barrett[9]
   Heat 2 8 Laps | Deerhaven Powersports
3. 3-Nathan Rinaldi[4]; 2. 77-Caley Weese[3]; 3. 46-Brandon Mowat[5]; 4. 05-James Seymour[2]; 5. 33-David Vandertoorn[6]; 6. 151-Brian McDonald[7]; 7. 0-Tyler French[8]; 8. 7-Anthony Rinaldi[1]
   Canadian Modified 13 Entries
   A Feature 1 25 Laps | Bainer's OilGARD AntiRust
4. 40-Ronald Wadforth[2]; 2. 1-Shawn Gregory[6]; 3. 2-Leslie Mowat[4]; 4. 32-Doug O'Blenis[7]; 5. 41-Corey Halbert[12]; 6. 09-Dan Price[8]; 7. 26-Bob Green[3]; 8. 08-Angie Kirby[10]; 9. 10-Elmer Stevenson[1]; 10. 14-Matthew Moore[13]; 11. 85-Brittany Golden[5]; 12. 7-Josh Toon[11]; 13. 5-Wally Alderdice[9]
   Heat 1 8 Laps | Deerhaven Farm & Garden
5. 40-Ronald Wadforth[2]; 2. 2-Leslie Mowat[4]; 3. 26-Bob Green[7]; 4. 85-Brittany Golden[6]; 5. 09-Dan Price[1]; 6. 08-Angie Kirby[5]; 7. 41-Corey Halbert[3]
   Heat 2 8 Laps | Deerhaven Farm & Garden
6. 32-Doug O'Blenis[3]; 2. 1-Shawn Gregory[1]; 3. 10-Elmer Stevenson[2]; 4. 14-Matthew Moore[5]; 5. (DNS) 5-Wally Alderdice; 6. (DNS) 7-Josh Toon
   Thunder Stocks 22 Entries
   A Feature 1 20 Laps | Brighton Automotive
7. 0-Tyler French[1]; 2. 03-Justin Ramsay[6]; 3. 26-Brock Gregory[4]; 4. 72-Doug Anderson[8]; 5. 01-Kyle Gregory[16]; 6. 18-Kyle Anderson[5]; 7. 17-Ethan Humphry[12]; 8. 16-Kaitlyn Oblenis[3]; 9. 97-Dave Barrett[2]; 10. 79-Chris Hale[7]; 11. 10-Carter Rhodes[11]; 12. 45-Dylan Riley[13]; 13. 7-Rick Phillips[9]; 14. 11-Cole McKeown[10]; 15. 23-Doug May[14]; 16. 09-Garren Taylor[17]; 17. 06-Chris Hackett[19]; 18. 82-Brad Brooking[21]; 19. 6-Bill O'Hara[15]; 20. (DNS) 5-Jake Hadley; 21. (DNS) 54-Tim Moore
   Heat 1 8 Laps | Vanderlaan Building Products
8. 0-Tyler French[2]; 2. 79-Chris Hale[3]; 3. 16-Kaitlyn Oblenis[1]; 4. 11-Cole McKeown[5]; 5. 45-Dylan Riley[4]; 6. 82-Brad Brooking[7]; 7. 54-Tim Moore[8]; 8. (DNS) 27-Torri Pope
   Heat 2 8 Laps | Vanderlaan Building Products
9. 03-Justin Ramsay[3]; 2. 72-Doug Anderson[6]; 3. 7-Rick Phillips[2]; 4. 10-Carter Rhodes[7]; 5. 23-Doug May[1]; 6. 01-Kyle Gregory[4]; 7. 06-Chris Hackett[5]
   Heat 3 8 Laps | Vanderlaan Building Products
10. 26-Brock Gregory[3]; 2. 18-Kyle Anderson[2]; 3. 97-Dave Barrett[5]; 4. 17-Ethan Humphry[7]; 5. 6-Bill O'Hara[1]; 6. 09-Garren Taylor[4]; 7. (DNS) 5-Jake Hadley

Mini Stock 13 Entries
A Feature 1 15 Laps | Bill's John

1. 06J-Jarrod Galway[2]; 2. 22-Tyson Gregory[6]; 3. 12-Caleb Severin[12]; 4. 2-Trevyn McCrillis[8]; 5. 4-Chris Tufford[1]; 6. 5-Eric Conlin[9]; 7. 75-Owen Chilvers[13]; 8. 17E-Evan Minnie[3]; 9. 72-John South[11]; 10. 04-Dave Chamberlain[10]; 11. 8-Devon O'Brien[4]; 12. 41-Landon Mutch[7]; 13. (DNS) 71-Alesha Gerrard
   Heat 1 8 Laps | Gord's Water
2. 22-Tyson Gregory[2]; 2. 41-Landon Mutch[5]; 3. 71-Alesha Gerrard[1]; 4. 8-Devon O'Brien[3]; 5. 5-Eric Conlin[6]; 6. 75-Owen Chilvers[7]; 7. 12-Caleb Severin[4]

Heat 2 8 Laps | Gord's Water

1. 06J-Jarrod Galway[2]; 2. 2-Trevyn McCrillis[3]; 3. 4-Chris Tufford[1]; 4. 17E-Evan Minnie[6]; 5. 04-Dave Chamberlain[5]; 6. 72-John South[4]
   Comp 4 14 Entries
   A Feature 1 15 Laps | Bill's Johns
2. 46-Hayden Brown[3]; 2. 15-Josh Bogaard[5]; 3. 42JR-Aidan Fletcher[12]; 4. 61-Ryan Branscombe[8]; 5. 91-Jaiden Miller[1]; 6. 3-Shawn Knowlton[9]; 7. 67-Maxx Steele[7]; 8. 55-Zachary Humphry[6]; 9. 57-Braedon Bergeron[2]; 10. 19-Tara Dunkley[14]; 11. 44-Tommy Bailey[4]; 12. 24-Travis Fox Connor[11]; 13. (DNS) 01-Noah Sagriff; 14. (DNS) 77-Travis Chamberlain
   Heat 1 8 Laps | Gord's Water
3. 44-Tommy Bailey[3]; 2. 67-Maxx Steele[1]; 3. 55-Zachary Humphry[2]; 4. 57-Braedon Bergeron[6]; 5. 3-Shawn Knowlton[7]; 6. 24-Travis Fox Connor[5]; 7. 77-Travis Chamberlain[4]
   Heat 2 8 Laps | Gord's Water
4. 15-Josh Bogaard[3]; 2. 46-Hayden Brown[4]; 3. 91-Jaiden Miller[2]; 4. 61-Ryan Branscombe[7]; 5. 01-Noah Sagriff[5]; 6. 42JR-Aidan Fletcher[1]; 7. 19-Tara Dunkley[6]

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