THOROLD, ON- With prestige on the line and a possible move up in the points, everything came up roses for the Williamson Racing Team, as Mat took the measure of Pete Bicknell to win the 50 lap John Spencer Memorial, a day after his dramatic victory in the final Lernerville feature of the season. As things played out after the heats and the redraw, Bicknell sat on the pole, with Mat outside him on the front row. Everyone expected a barn burner, and the two didn’t disappoint.
Mat was able to out run Pete to the first turn at the drop of the green and immediately establish a good lead, as the Terry Vince power plant performed flawlessly. The two set a blistering pace that had them in lap traffic by the ninth circuit. A caution on lap 13 cost him his big lead, but he picked it back up on the restart, while Bicknell tried to keep pace. He was gaining perceptibly when the again caught lap traffic on lap 25.
On lap 25, things got dicey, and Pete was able to wiggle past Mat for the lead on lap 27 in the heavy going. Mat didn’t panic and was able to regain the point one lap later. He opened a big gap from there, only to see it evaporate on lap 46 when Mark D’Ilario suffered a flat tire, which brought out the caution.
The single file restart showed Mat, Pete, Robbie Krull, and Mike Bowman, who had streaked up from the rear after going to his back-up car, following a wreck in his heat. Mat got a great jump and immediately put some distance between himself and Pete, while Bowman engaged Krull for third. At the line, it was Mat comfortably in front, followed by Pete, and Bowman, who squeezed past Krull on lap 49.
It was a great ending to a see-saw season, giving the team a lot of momentum going into the post season, which starts on Sunday night at Cornwall.
On the race with Bicknell and the swap of the lead, Mat commented, “I was running the top in one and two, and I know it’s faster to go across some nights. He showed his nose and got by me. I was taking it easy on the motor before it happened. He kind of snuck up on me, so I had to change my lane and turn the pedal up.”
Of the night overall, Mat declared, “Pete’s great to race with. You know he’ll never run you wrong. It’s always good to beat him at this track because he’s the master here. I can’t say enough about him.”
Pete gave Mat his due, noting, “Mat had a little better car than I did tonight. Hats off to him. He’s been running really well lately. He’s doing a great job.”
Unofficially, the team should finish in third in the standings, something that was unthinkable when the team went into its mid-season Merrittville slump, which is now, thankfully, in their rear view mirror.
Now, it’s on to Cornwall, with hopes of a good finish to what has been a perfect weekend so far. Time will tell.
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