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The 2025 Sunset Speedway season opened with the Steve Slaughter Classic.
The featured event was round one of the GD Coates Pro Late Model series.
Eleven additional events are on the Sunset schedule to determine the GD Coates Pro Late Model class champion.
Pro Late Models are constructed according to specifications and controls standard to most stock car series. The chassis is a tube frame covered with a fiberglass body. Popular body styles include the Chevrolet Camaro, Chevrolet SS, Ford Mustang, Ford Fusion and Toyota Camry. Depending on the engine choice, a car can weigh as much as 2800 lbs. Unlike the popular APC series, this event allows teams to compete with crate engines or built motors. There are also rules restricting the options for transmissions, ignition components, body material, brakes, etc. The Junior Hanley Classic was held on July 26 at Sunset Speedway. The event honoured Canadian Motorsport Hall of Famer Junior Hanley, with $5,000 going to the race winner. Drivers competed in a 172-lap contest around the 0.333-mile banked asphalt oval. The contest also included a lap-100 competition caution period, where teams had the option to use the five-minute break to make adjustments. Drivers who chose not to pit maintained their track position. During the race, some light rain caused officials to run laps under the caution. However, after the restart, the rain returned. The radar indicated that a heavier band was approaching. A decision was made to checker the race on lap-137. |
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The pace lap for the Junior Hanley Classic at Sunset Speedway. The top six qualifiers participated in a redraw. Dwayne Baker, driving the No. 48 Zancor Homes Ford Fusion, was third fastest during the time trials but drew the number one to start on the pole. Next to Baker is the No. 41 Holdaway Automotive Chevrolet SS of Taylor Holdaway. In row two is the fastest qualifier, Treyten Lapcevich and Josh Stade. Fourteen competitors started the race. |
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After many disappointments at Sunset Speedway, it appears that Josh Stade's luck has changed. Stade has been on a roll since he was victorious in round seven of last year's APC championship. He opened 2025 with a win in Sunset's Steve Slaughter Classic, followed by a victory in round one of the APC series. Stade qualified second fastest for the Junior Hanley Classic and started in the third spot. He dropped to fifth early but was in first place when the race ended. |
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Finishing in the runner-up position at the Junior Classic Hanley was Treyten Lapcevich. Lapcevich drove the No. 0 Glenn Styres Racing Toyota Camry and was the fastest during the qualifying session. After the redraw, Lapcevich was gridded third. However, by lap-5, he was in the lead and didn't surrender the position until after the mid-race break. With the weather ending the race early, there wasn't an opportunity to challenge for the lead. |
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Local racer Dwayne Baker had Junior Hanley helping him during the event. Baker started on the pole after qualifying third fastest. He led early before being passed by Treyten Lapcevich, but remained in second place until the lap 100 competition caution. Baker chose to pit during the five-minute break, allowing Hanley and the crew to make adjustments. When the race resumed, he passed Dustyn Mombourquette and Jordan Howse to finish third. |
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Jordan Howse was Sunset Speedway's 2024 GD Coates Pro Late Model track champion. He also won last year's Steve Slaughter Classic and Junior Hanley Classic. However, at this year's edition of the Junior Hanley Classic, Howse struggled with the No. 8 Paul Howse & Associates Chevrolet SS and qualified eleventh fastest in the fourteen-car field. Changes were made to the car before the race and he advanced seven positions to finish in the fourth spot. |
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Dale Shaw is the 2015 APC United Late Model Champion and is currently fourth in this year's standings, with three top-five finishes. Shaw qualified sixth, driving the No. 83 Wellington Systems Inc. Chevrolet SS. After the redraw, he was gridded in the fifth position. For much of the race, Shaw was in fourth. He elected to pit during the competition caution for adjustments. He was eighth on the restart but fought back to a fifth-place result. |
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This weekend, the No. 38 Muskoka Aircraft Refinishing sponsored Ford Fusion, usually driven by Michael Goudie, was piloted by Rick Spencer-Walt. Spencer-Walt was one of many competitors in the Junior Hanley Classic, with numerous laps around Sunset Speedway. During qualifying, he recorded the ninth fastest time. Like many teams, they took advantage of the competition caution to make changes to the car. Spencer-Walt was in the sixth position at the checkered flag. |
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The top three finishers for the 2025 Junior Hanley Classic at Sunset Speedway. Standing in the center is the winner, Josh Stade, who collected $5,000. As of late, Stade is proving to be unbeatable at Sunset. On the left is the runner—up, Treyten Lapcevich. Lapcevich led most laps in Glenn Styres' Toyota Camry. Completing the top three is local competitor Dwayne Baker. Baker had Junior Hanley's help this weekend. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | SPONSOR / CAR | LAPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Josh Stade | Canadian Flat Roof Systems / Toyota Camry | 137 |
| 2 | 3 | Treyten Lapcevich | Glenn Styres Racing / Toyota Camry | 137 |
| 3 | 1 | Dwayne Baker | Zancor Homes / Ford Fusion | 137 |
| 4 | 11 | Jordan Howse | Paul Howse & Associates / Chevrolet SS | 137 |
| 5 | 5 | Dale Shaw | Shaw Motorsports / Chevrolet SS | 137 |
| 6 | 9 | Rick Spencer-Walt | Muskoka Aircraft Refinishing / Ford Fusion | 137 |
| 7 | 12 | Gord Shepherd | HWY 400 Transmission / Chevrolet SS | 137 |
| 8 | 2 | Taylor Holdaway | Holdaway Automotive / Chevrolet SS | 137 |
| 9 | 7 | Travis Hallyburton | Quaker State / Toyota Camry | 137 |
| 10 | 13 | Paul Maltese | Ontario Steel Sales / Chevrolet Camaro | 137 |
| 11 | 6 | Dustyn Mombourquette | Paul's Auto Body/IHL / Ford Mustang | 137 |
| 12 | 14 | Gerrit Tiemersma | First Choice Roofing / Chevrolet Camaro | 135 |
| 13 | 8 | Jacob Mercer | Sine's Flooring / Chevrolet Camaro | 96 |
| 14 | 10 | Lane Zardo | KRM Medweld / Ford Fusion | 67 |
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