CAPTAIN FUN HAS THE MOST FUN OF ALL: PIANKA WINS ON OPENING DAY

Craig Pianka, nicknamed “Captain Fun”, was having all the fun he wanted at Seekonk Speedway on Sunday afternoon, May 1. Pianka rocketed to the front early in the 25-lap Helger’s South Coast Power Equipment Sportsman feature, and held off defending division champion Chad Baxter to take down the first victory of the season. 


Pianka, who had the speed to win multiple races last year, carried the setup over to the new year, with a few adjustments to make it even better. On opening day, he made sure that he was going to square things away early, and get to Victory Lane right from race one. He posted the fastest lap of the race, and held the checkered flag at the end of 25 laps.


Baxter put together a solid start to his title defense, driving the No. 0 machine to a second-place run and showing he wasn’t going anywhere. The team may have only showed up the day before opening day for a few laps, but the speed was right there with a shot to win. Ed Perry finished third, continuing his streak of success dating back to last year, while former champion Steve Axon was fourth and Scott Serydysnki Jr. fifth. 


Tyler Almeida finished sixth, followed by Kyle Casper, Chris Rioux, Vinny Pangelinan and Doug Benoit.


The Helger’s South Coast Power Equipment Sportsman will return to the track for the first NASCAR Saturday night of the season on Saturday, May 7 at 6 p.m. Tickets are available in advance today at SeekonkSpeedway.com.