THOROLD, Ontario – Merrittville Speedway celebrated its 70th anniversary with CAA of Niagara and Auto FX Graphics and Signs presenting Bobcat of Hamilton Weekly Racing Saturday evening.
The Night began with Tim Breadman, Glenn Baker, Gary Moreash and Pete Bicknell being inducted onto the Wall of Fame at the speedway, while Chris Long of RCM Racing Equipment was honored with the CAA Niagara Dedication to Racing Award.
It was a special night in the S&W Service Centre 358 Modifieds as the field ran for 50 laps to see who would claim the Jerry Winger Memorial Trophy. Fred Carleton started on pole, but had mechanical issues as the field went green, quickly bringing out the yellow. This set up a duel between Gary Lindberg and Mat Williamson.
The two top contenders drove away from the field and battled for multiple laps before Williamson, the defending race winner, would clear Lindberg and begin to drive away. Soon it was Wall of Fame inductee Bicknell who would bring his No 42 towards the front after starting ninth. Bicknell took a few laps and exercised veteran patience before making his way to second.
Meanwhile, Williamson was driving away, putting multiple cars between himself and Bicknell. As Williamson encountered more traffic, Bicknell began to close, but the gap would be too much and Williamson would hold on to win the 50-lap event for the third time in a row. Bicknell was second, with Lindberg third, Mike Bowman fourth and Austin Wood finishing fifth.
Other winners on the evening included Cody McPherson (sportsman), Tyler Lafantasie (4 cylinders) and Matt Harbourer (vintage modifieds).