CHOUINARD LEADS MINI CUPS FROM GREEN TO CHECKERS
Ava Chouinard leapt off the outside pole, outdistanced Tommy Harris and ran the entire 12 feature laps at the front of the Minicup race. Hugh Bowser went to second and also ran in position for the entire race as did Harris and Michael Cooper. It was a green-to-checkered experience as the 12 laps ran caution free.
The start, however, was called back and redone. Chouinard again jumped to the lead out of the box. Bowser got past Harris at the outset into second and Harris settled to third. A three-wide developed between Michael Cooper, Maddie “Mad Dog” Harkin and Zachary Martinez. Cooper came out ahead, in fourth (where he continued to the finish) followed by Martinez and then Harkin. By lap two, the field was running single file and continued throughout, save for a couple confrontations over position.
Lap four saw Zachary Levesque and Martinez loose in turn four but able to gather it back up and continue.
Another circuit and Nikolas Frechette looked to take sixth from Martinez with an outside pass. They were wheel-to-wheel down the back but Martinez defended his position.
Meanwhile, Bowser had closed to within a half-car of Chouinard and continued to chase her for position.
However, the finishing order had been established and they circled the track in a pace line. Bowser could stay with Chouinard but did not have the revolutions to make the pass. At the line he was just a quarter-second back. Third went to Harris, followed by Cooper and Levesque. Martinez was sixth, followed by Frechette and Harkin.
MINI CUPS