APC UNITED LATE MODEL SERIES

Steckly, Lawrence and Fitzpatrick Earn Wins at Sauble and Sunset Speedways

By Bryce Turner with files from Ashley McCubbin

The second half of the APC Series season began with the late models visiting Sauble Speedway, on August 5. Junior Farrelly started on pole, following the re-draw, and held the top spot in the early running. On a Lap 19 restart, Kyle Steckly took the lead. Steckly controlled the point until the final third of the 150-lap race, when Josh Stade made the pass on a restart. Stade stayed ahead for 14 laps before Steckly returned to the lead. The battle went down to the wire, where Stade stayed side-by-side on a late restart before settling into second; contact with Danny Benedict then sent him spinning, collecting others.

The race was ultimately shortened, due to track curfew, with Steckly winning; J.R. Fitzpatrick, Andrew Gresel, Chase Pinsonneault, and Shawn Chenoweth rounded out the top-five. Steckly’s first victory at Sauble made him the first driver with multiple wins this season.

“We had a really good car that night,” said Steckly. “It’s a tight little bullring, it creates some really great racing…it’s hard to pass there so it creates some aggressive racing but I think it puts on a great show for the fans.”

The Milverton, ON driver followed his win with a pair of third-place finishes, coming at Sunset and Sauble speedways. As the only driver with a top-five finish in each of the last three races, Steckly is finding momentum at the right time.

“The crew’s been great, we’ve been really consistent, which was a big struggle for us last year, in our rookie season, we were really up and down,” said Steckly. “I’m proud of our team bringing a fast car to every track we go to and a lot of solid results. We’ve been kind of starting to points race here, getting closer to the end of the year.”

The Sauble swing is a place where the championship battle comes into focus, with the track hosting two of the final four races. Last season, a penalty against Steckly in the penultimate race helped increase the lead of eventual champion Fitzpatrick. This season, the Sauble races helped give Steckly the points advantage.

“Last year, in the second-last race, we were really close to J.R. and I ended up getting sent to the back with about 20 to go in the race and it hurt my points battle a lot,” said Steckly. “Anything could happen and every point matters for sure…a lot more comfortable this year, being in the lead instead of chasing, so we can be a bit smarter and not take as many risks.”

Steckly holds a slim five-point advantage over Jo Lawrence entering the finale at Delaware Speedway, with Jake Sheridan (-10), Fitzpatrick (-12), and Stade (-16) close behind.

Sunset Speedway

Making the late-race pass following a restart, Jo Lawrence scored his first APC Series victory of 2023 at Sunset Speedway, on August 12.

After missing out on the pole by a mere 0.004 seconds to Josh Stade, it was clear that Lawrence had speed in the No. 78. That showed in the event as he climbed his way forward, after starting just outside of the top-five with the invert, breaking into the top-five at the quarter mark of the event. He kept the top-two within striking distance over the long run, making his move when the action broke out, taking over the runner-up spot with 27 to go.

It looked as though Lawrence was going to come up short on his bid for the win before the yellow flag waved for Chase Pinsonneault going around in turn four, following contact from Erik Della Riva. The restart was all Lawrence needed, taking the lead with four laps to go en route to the victory.

The finish marked heartbreak for Stade, as the polesitter led 86 laps but finished runner-up, with Kyle Steckly rounding out the podium. Jake Sheridan rebounded for fourth, after not being able to post a lap in time trials due to mechanical woes. Blair Wickett finished fifth after starting on the front row.

Sauble Speedway

Next up was a return to Sauble Speedway, on August 26. Following the handicapping system, Cory Luciano and Pinsonneault started the 100-lap feature on the front row. Pinsonneault was able to take the lead from Luciano on the break and set sail for the first 17 laps of the race.

Fitzpatrick made some early moves before gaining the runner-up spot; on Lap 18, he was able to poke his nose out front during a restart, clearing Chase the next lap. The defending champ started to show just how dominant his car was, as he set sail and opened up a lead of well over two seconds before the second and final caution of the night, on Lap 54.

Fitzpatrick took the outside on the restart, giving up the bottom to Shae Gemmell, while Steckly and Lawrence filled spots on the outside row as well.

When the green dropped, it was more of the same for Fitzpatrick; he would lead the remainder of the affair to become just the second multi-time winner of the season. Gemmell held off a furious charge from Steckly to claim the runner-up position, with Lawrence and Stade rounding out the top-five. IT