WISCASSET — Andy Saunders made it look easy Saturday night.
The defending Wiscasset Speedway champion and current point leader used the high side of the high banks to make up track position in bunches in the first half of the race and saved enough car for the end, pulling away to win the 40-lap Pro Stock feature. The win was Saunders’ third of the season.
“I like it out there. The car goes well, but it’s intimidating, though,” said Saunders, of Ellsworth, who started 13th in the 14-car field. “It works for us. We just take advantage when we can.”
Wyatt Alexander, also of Ellsworth, finished second with Richmond’s Nate Tribbett chasing him all the way to the checkered flag in third. James Osmond of Wiscasset and Ajay Picard of Palmyra rounded out the top five.
Saunders got away for good on the race’s final restart on lap 21, cutting out quickly to a half straightaway lead and leaving Alexander to battle with Osmond for second. By the time Alexander cleared Osmond two laps later, Saunders was gone.
“It’s a fast race track. Myself, you don’t realize how fast it is until you step outside,” Saunders said. “I like it.”
“He was a little bit quicker than we were. I got hung up a little bit trying to get around (Osmond),” Alexander said. “The car went away a little bit. It wasn’t great at the end, but it was good enough.”
While Saunders helped himself by using the outside groove to move from 13th to 3rd in just 12 laps, he was aided further by mid-race trouble for other contenders.
The first caution flew on lap 16, when Alexander pulled off a three-wide move on the backstretch that set off a chain reaction ending with the wrecked machines of Thomas True and Brandon Sprague. Alexander dove under Kevin Morse heading into turn three, but Morse wiggled and touched Mike Orr’s No. 91. The cars behind Morse had nowhere to go.
Three laps later, following a restart, Scott Chubbuck nearly had Osmond cleared in the second groove, but Osmond bobbled and clipped the left rear of Chubbuck’s No. 15. The five-time track champion Chubbuck saw his night end when he was hit by Morse, who had nowhere to go.
All the wrecking set the tone for the final restart, when Saunders went unchallenged.
“The last third or quarter of the race, I kind of slowed down a little bit just in case I needed something for Wyatt later on,” Saunders said. “Every time I slow down, the car looks horrible and feels horrible and I can’t hit my marks. That’s usually why I don’t slow down.”
In other feature racing, Madison’s Cody Buzzell won the caution-free 25-lap Super Street feature over Josh Bailey and Mark Lucas, snapping Lucas’ three-race winning streak.
“I’m really excited. I’m beyond happy,” Buzzell said. “I don’t even know what to say. I’m wound for sound.”
The win was Buzzell’s first at Wiscasset this season.
“We’ve put some countless hours in it the last couple of weeks,” he said. “I think we’ve got it figured out now. We should be good from here.”
Kamren Knowles, of Readfield, took the lead for the third and final time on lap 35, driving away to win the 50-lap 4-cylinder Pro Stock feature to begin the night’s racing. Hallowell’s R.J. Pinkham finished second, with Spencer Vaughn of Canton third.
The win was the fifth of the season for Knowles, the 16-year-old two-time champion in the division comprised of former Allison Legacy Series cars. Knowles won the first four events of the season before suffering a blown engine in his most recent start on June 18.
Michael Golding, of Pownal, won the 20-lap Thunder 4 Mini Stock feature for his first career victory.
Travis Barrett — 621-5621
tbarrett@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TBarrettGWC
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