NASCAR Busch North Series Heads for Stafford Motor Speedway
24 July 1997
NASCAR Busch North Series Round Two Set For Stafford FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE GARDINER, Me. -- In the case of NASCAR Busch North Series racing at Stafford, you can honestly say that nobody has dominated Stafford Motor Speedway. As a matter of fact, until Jerry Marquis' win there in June, no state could claim more than one winner among its residents. Now, Marquis, who is unbeaten in his home state, is headed into the Seventh Annual Stafford 150 set for July 25 with hopes of becoming the first two-time NASCAR Busch North Series winner there, but there are others hoping to spoil his parade. Mike Stefanik of Coventry, R.I. is currently one of the hottest drivers in New England, and he picked up his first NASCAR Busch North Series win at Stafford in 1991. It was Stefanik's third career start on the NASCAR Busch North Series. Tommy Bolles of nearby Ellington, Conn. picked up his first career NASCAR Busch North Series win at Stafford in 1996, and he would like to go into the record books as the first repeat NASCAR Busch North Series winner at Stafford as would Andy Santerre of Cherryfield, Me. the 1996 event winner. All of these past NASCAR Busch North Series Stafford winners are still active drivers, and all are certainly capable of carving another Stafford notch in their steering wheels, but there is a plethora of driving talent that is just as likely to score a win at Stafford. Start with 1996 NASCAR Busch North Series champion Dave Dion of Hudson, N.H. who has a history of racing for the win everywhere he goes. Add in 1995 NASCAR Busch North Series champion Kelly Moore of Scarborough, Me. who leads the series in race wins, and Brad Leighton of Center Harbor, N.H., the 1996 Raybestos Rookie of the Year who has already scored a pair of victories this year, and you have a list of drivers who are capable. The above three drivers finished in the second through fourth positions behind Santerre last year, so they are knocking at the door. It was Bolles, Santerre, Moore and Stefanik who chased Marquis across the stripe last June at Stafford, and you can rest assured that they would all like to see the same top-five in the Stafford 150, only in a slightly different order. But, given Stafford's history and its tendency to showcase driving talent, it is just as likely that there will be a fresh face in victory lane on July 25. -30- by:NASCAR Public Relations