2021 Sunset Speedway

The COVID-19 virus continued to impact the Ontario motorsports scene and delayed the start of the 2021 season. However, Track Management at Sunset Speedway, Flamboro Speedway, Peterborough Speedway and Sauble Speedway, along with APC Series Officials, was able to work with all levels of government to make events possible.

The 2021 APC United Late Model championship for Pro Late Models kicks off in early July at Delaware Speedway with the Spectra Premium 100. The next race, called Interstate Batteries 100, will be conducted at Flamboro Speedway. Round three is hosted by Sauble Speedway. The race will be sponsored by AP Emissions. Then the championship makes the first of two visits to Sunset Speedway for the Dayco 100. The series returns to Sauble for the Stewarts 100. Then it is back to Flamboro, where drivers compete in the London Recreational Racing 100. The penultimate event of 2021 is the APC 100 at Sunset. Titles are determined during the Qwick Wick Championship Weekend at Delaware.

The series rules remained unchanged from last season, with the cars constructed to specifications and controls common to most stock car series. The chassis is a tube frame covered with fiberglass bodies. Depending on the engine choice, a car can weigh as much as 2800-lbs. Crate motors from General Motors (GM 604 & GM 602) and Ford (347) are used in the series. To regulate expenses, competitors use a spec tire from American Racer and Bilstein A2 shock absorbers. There are also rules which restrict the options available for transmissions, ignition components, body material, brakes, etc.

To determine the starting order of the race, drivers participate in a qualifying session. Positions one to ten are inverted according to points and season attendance is used to establish the final grid. Before each race, the cars are fitted with a new set of American Racer tires, receive a technical inspection and are impounded until the start of the event.

Round seven of the 2021 APC United Late Model championship was held at Sunset Speedway. Drivers would compete in a one-hundred-lap contest in an event called the Stewart’s Equipment & Kubota 100.

The field of twenty-two APC Series Late Model competitors sits on Sunset Speedway’s front straight in anticipation of the start of the Stewart’s Equipment and Kubota 100. On the pole is the seventh-fastest qualifier, Danny Benedict, in the No. 54 Mobil 1/GTA Racing Design Chevrolet Camaro. Alongside Benedict is the No. 4 SSG Gloves sponsored Toyota Camry driven by Connor James, who qualified ninth fastest.

After a series of disappoints during the 2021 season, the 2018 APC series champion, JR Fitzpatrick, scored his first victory of the year. The weekend began far from perfect as the engine in the No. 84 Chevrolet Camaro failed during practice. A replacement was located, but not before qualifying, forcing Fitzpatrick to start at the rear of the field. He charged through the pack and took the lead on lap-98 for the victory.

The inaugural APC United Late Model champion, Dale Shaw, has experienced his fair share of back luck this season. In the series second 2021 visit to Sunset Speedway, Shaw was the fastest qualifier and started fifth in the No. 83 Shaw Motorsports prepared Chevrolet SS. He moved through the field and to the top spot on lap-73. A bump from JR Fitzpatrick with just two laps remaining resulted in a second-place finish for Shaw.

In the series last visit to Sunset Speedway, Jordan Howse surprised the regulars by earning his first APC United Late Model championship win. Howse returned with the No. 8 Chevrolet SS hoping to repeat this feat. He qualified and started in the thirteenth position. During the race, Howse used the same strategy he employed early in the year. He saved the car for a late charge and was rewarded with a third-place result.

Josh Stade is another frontrunner having a difficult season, which is often not of his own making. During time trials, Stade recorded the fifth quickest time and was gridded third for the one-hundred-lap contest. The driver of the No. 17 Toyota Camry moved into the lead on lap-5 of the race and held the position until the seventy-third circuit. On lap-79, the Toyota’s left front suspension failed and Stade retired.

Pete Shepherd III didn’t have a spectacular event. However, the other championship contenders, Brandon Watson and Treyten Lapcevich encountered mechanical issues, which allowed Shepherd to move from third to second in the title chase. He qualified tenth fastest in the No. 22 Chevrolet Camaro and started eighth. A sixth-place finish allowed Shepherd to move to within ten points of the leader, Watson.

The APC United Late Model points leader Brandon Watson had a difficult weekend at Sunset Speedway but left the event still on top of the standings. Watson was gridded ninth for the start of the Stewart’s Equipment and Kubota 100. He was in fourth-place when a bracket used to connect the chassis and suspension broke. Watson pitted and the crew fixed what they could, allowing him to finish in the sixteenth spot.

The other championship contender having problems was Treyten Lapcevich. Lapcevich missed the setup during qualifying and started outside the top-ten in twelfth-place. On lap-52, the No. 32 ACE Services Toyota Camry stopped in turn four. It required several visits to the pits to diagnose and replace a faulty ignition wire. Lapcevich crossed the finish line in nineteenth-place and fell to third in the standings.

The top-three finishers for the Stewart’s Equipment and Kubota 100 at Sunset Speedway. In the center, is the winner JR Fitzpatrick, who came from the twenty-second starting position to collect the victory. On the left side is the driver of the No. 83 Shaw Motorsports Chevrolet SS Dale Shaw, who finished in the runner-up position. Completing the podium is the winner from round three in August, Jordan Howse.

FINISH	START	DRIVER	SPONSOR / CAR	LAPS
1	22	JR Fitzpatrick	Cambridge Rigging/ATV Depot / Chevrolet Camaro	100
2	5	Dale Shaw	Shaw Motorsports / Chevrolet SS	100
3	13	Jordan Howse	Glenn Windrem Trucking / Chevrolet SS	100
4	4	Ryan Kimball	SMG Motorsports/Nova Engines / Chevrolet Camaro	100
5	7	Jo Lawrence	CANUSA Automotive Warehousing / Chevrolet Camaro	100
6	8	Pete Shepherd III	APC Auto Parts Centres / Chevrolet Camaro	100
7	2	Connor James	SSG Gloves / Toyota Camry	100
8	18	Shae Gemmell	North Country Property Maintenance / Ford Mustang	100
9	10	Matt Pritiko	Global Warranty/Axalta / Toyota Camry	100
10	6	Jake Sheridan	Cameron Crane & Riggers / Ford Fusion	100
11	15	Mat Box	Maple City Tire / Chevrolet	100
12	19	Jordan Sims	Sims Countertops / Ford	100
13	16	Tyler Di Venanzo	Retail Design Group/MRC Wireless / Chevrolet Camaro	100
14	11	Tom Gibbons	Tom Gibbons Concrete Finishing / Chevrolet SS	100
15	1	Danny Benedict	Mobil 1/GTA Racing Design / Chevrolet Camaro	99
16	9	Brandon Watson	Shear Metal Products / Chevrolet Camaro	98
17	20	Dustin Jackson	Bata Fluid Power / Chevrolet	97
18	17	Travis Hallyburton	Hillsdale Service Centre / Ford Mustang	83
19	12	Treyten Lapcevich	ACE Services/PFC Brakes / Toyota Camry	81
20	3	Josh Stade	Nicol Insurance / Toyota Camry	79
21	21	James Horner	Custom Forming Walls / Chevrolet Camaro	68
22	14	Gord Shepherd	Locking Business Machines / Ford	26

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