Verne Jr., Gregory, Hawn, and August Nostalgia Night winners

By: Nicole Kleinsteuber

The Crate Sprints, Nostalgia Dirt Modified Tour and OSCAAR appearances at Brighton Speedway were busy with six divisions featured on the race card Saturday night.

The sizzling action presented by the Belleville Senators did not disappoint with 85 cars including the Canadian Modifieds, 4-Cylinders and Stingers.

Verne Jr. Victorious

No. 15 Dan Deyo and No. 777A Tyler Willard led a field of 15 Crate Sprints to green in the 25-lap main event. Willard snapped up the early lead and held the point for nine laps, but he was no match for No. 92 Adam Turner. Fresh off a heat win, Turner slid into the lead on the inside and took off. Turner was hooked up and looked like he might take the W. No. 1V Josh Verne Jr had other plans as he scooped up the lead on lap 18 on the outside coming down the front stretch. Verne Jr. was unstoppable as he sailed to Empey Tire victory lane with No. 87 Andrew Hennessy powering from eighth to finish in second. No. Z28 Tucker Donath was third, Willard fourth and No. 44 Connor Ross fifth.

Gregory Grabs 3 in a row

No. 32 Doug O’Blenis and No. 40 Ron Wadforth took a field of 14 Bainer’s OilGARD Anti-Rust Canadian Modifieds to the green flag in the 25-lap affair. Wadforth took the top position on lap 2 and held it for nine laps until No. 1 Shawn Gregory charged past on the outside coming down the front stretch on lap 11. The heat winners went door handle to door handle. In the end, Gregory parked it for the third time in a row, leaving Wadforth to settle for second. No. 50 Dylan Boyle took home third, No. 2 Leslie Mowat fourth and No. 20 Adam Whaley fifth.

Hawn Hauls to VL

No. 47 Steve Book in a 1960 Studebaker Hawk and No. 47T Thomas Wunsch wheeling a 1962 Chevy led nine OSCAAR Hot-rods to green in the 20-lap feature. Points leader and heat winner No. 2 Tyler muscled into the lead in his ‘66 Beaumont on lap 2 and never looked back. He was flawless through every turn and finished with a half-track lead on the rest of the field. Book earned runner-up, No. 16 Brad Lavelle was third in his ‘82 Monte Carlo, No. 4 Rob Wark wheeled his ‘74 Camaro to fourth and No. 88 Brandon Crumbie finished fifth in his ‘71 Chevy SS.

August Takes Checkers

Polesitter No. B7 Brian Comeau led the first nine laps of the 20-lap Dirt Modified Nostalgia Tour race. Following his heat win, Comeau was a force to be reckoned with as No. 9 Joe August and fellow heat winner No. 2 Aaron Pugh tried to reel him in. A caution forced Pugh and Comeau to the pits. On the restart, August took off and rode to victory lane with No. 3ZS Stan Zanchin in second. No. 40 Ryan Hegarty was third, No. 07 Mark Shadwell fourth and No. 9M Scott McPhail fifth.

Tyson Gregory Reels in Another Win

Heat winner No. 22 Tyson Gregory led all 15 laps in the Bill’s Johns main event. Gregory rode his machine on a rail all the way to checkers as No. 42 Aidan Fletcher, No. 20 Cody Sager and No. 3K Shawn Knowlton battled off in the distance. Sager crossed the line next with Fletcher, No. 63C Brandon Crumbie and Knowlton.

Lord Lands First Stinger Victory

Polesitter No. 357 Ethan Lord was unstoppable for all 12 laps of the Quinte Septic Stinger feature. He muscled through every turn on a mission to score his first Stinger career win. With No. 93 Jorden Pickell in his rearview, Lord crossed the finish line first. Pickell picked up second, No. 18 Brian Cross third, No. 66 Ray Davies fourth and No. 12 Shane Vale fifth.

NEXT UP!

The wait is over, and the Cool 100 20^th Anniversary Applefest Shootout is upon us. Friday, September 26^th Apples Eve kicks off the weekend with the DIRTcar Sportsman event 1, the Vanderlaan Building Products Northeast Late Model Alliance heat races, the Bainer’s OilGARD Anti Rust Canadian Modifieds heat races, Bill’s Johns 4 Cylinders APC Duel on the Dirt Combined Event, and hot laps for the 358 DIRTcar Modifieds. Front Gates on Friday open at 5:00 PM and action begins at 6:00 PM.

The race card on Saturday, September 27^th kicks off early at 3:00 pm with timed hot laps and heat races. After a short break feature racing will start at 7:00 pm with the DIRTcar 358 Modifieds Applefest Shootout, the DIRTcar Sportsman, the NLMA Great Crate Race, the Canadian Modifieds, the Brighton Automotive Thunder Stocks APC Duel on the Dirt Combined Event and a 4 Cylinder Open.  Don’t miss out on the two day event with an after party hosted by local band, Little Lake on Friday night and DJ Pogie VanBlaricum on Saturday night.   

ABOUT US

Racing at Brighton Speedway continues every Saturday until October. Race fans can find a complete schedule and more information by visiting our website at brightonspeedway.ca or by following us on our socials. A 1/3rd mile clay oval, Brighton Speedway is in the municipality of Brighton on the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1967, the Speedway hosts five divisions on a weekly basis, beginning on the first weekend in May and ending on the first weekend in October. With two travelling series, the Lawns We 360 Sprint Cars and the Vanderlaan Building Products Northeast Late Model Division calling Brighton home, other series visit the track each season to impress the fans and challenge the tight turns on the dirt track.

Photos by Rod Henderson, CandianRacer.com

1. Josh Verne Jr. was unstoppable as he sailed to Empey Tire victory lane in the Crate Sprint Car feature event at Brighton Speedway on Saturday night.

Media Results for 9/20/2025 at Brighton Speedway – Brighton, ON

Bainer’s OilGARD Anti Rust Canadian Modified 14 Entries

A Feature 1 25 Laps | 00:19:47.827

1. 1-Shawn Gregory[7]; 2. 40-Ron Wadforth[2]; 3. 50-Dylan Boyle[5]; 4. 2-Leslie Mowat[10]; 5. 20-Adam Whaley[8]; 6. 09-Dan Price[4]; 7. 32-Doug O’Blenis[1]; 8. 14-Matthew Moore[9]; 9. 91-Jaiden Miller[6]; 10. 26-Bob Green[11]; 11. 08-Angie Kirby[14]; 12. 12-Caleb Severin[3]; 13. 51-Mike Freeman[13]; 14. 7-Rick Phillips[12]

Heat 1 8 Laps | 00:08:27.278

1. 40-Ron Wadforth[3]; 2. 50-Dylan Boyle[1]; 3. 32-Doug O’Blenis[5]; 4. 91-Jaiden Miller[6]; 5. 14-Matthew Moore[7]; 6. (DNF) 26-Bob Green[4]; 7. (DNF) 51-Mike Freeman[2]

Heat 2 8 Laps | 00:03:37.860

1. 1-Shawn Gregory[7]; 2. 20-Adam Whaley[3]; 3. 12-Caleb Severin[5]; 4. 09-Dan Price[6]; 5. 2-Leslie Mowat[4]; 6. 7-Rick Phillips[2]; 7. 08-Angie Kirby[1]

Bill’s Johns 4 Cylinder 19 Entries

A Feature 1 15 Laps | 00:08:33.394

1. 22-Tyson Gregory[1]; 2. 20-Cody Sager[3]; 3. 42-Aidan Fletcher[2]; 4. 63C-Brandon Crumbie[6]; 5. 3K-Shawn Knowlton[4]; 6. 2-Trevyn McCrillis[8]; 7. 91-Jack Veenstra[5]; 8. 71-Alesha Gerrard[18]; 9. 75-Owen Chilvers[9]; 10. 27-Mike Fletcher[11]; 11. 18K-Matt Knowlton[13]; 12. 8-Devon O’Brien[12]; 13. 3X-Ethan Lord[17]; 14. 24-Travis Fox Connor[7]; 15. 04-Owen Chamberlain[16]; 16. 54A-Tim Moore[15]; 17. 25-Lawrence Evenden[10]; 18. 83-Carlee Gilkes[14]; 19. 45-James Nisbet[19]

Heat 1 8 Laps | 00:05:15.466

1. 3K-Shawn Knowlton[6]; 2. 20-Cody Sager[5]; 3. 75-Owen Chilvers[1]; 4. 25-Lawrence Evenden[4]; 5. 8-Devon O’Brien[3]; 6. 45-James Nisbet[7]; 7. 3X-Ethan Lord[2]

Heat 2 8 Laps | 00:04:23.428

1. 24-Travis Fox Connor[2]; 2. 42-Aidan Fletcher[4]; 3. 2-Trevyn McCrillis[5]; 4. 27-Mike Fletcher[1]; 5. 18K-Matt Knowlton[3]; 6. 54A-Tim Moore[6]

Heat 3 8 Laps | 00:02:22.493

1. 22-Tyson Gregory[2]; 2. 63C-Brandon Crumbie[1]; 3. 91-Jack Veenstra[5]; 4. 71-Alesha Gerrard[6]; 5. 83-Carlee Gilkes[3]; 6. 04-Owen Chamberlain[4]

Quinte Septic Stingers 15 Entries

A Feature 1 12 Laps

1. 35-Ethan Lord[1]; 2. 93-Jorden Pickell[3]; 3. 18-Brian Cross[8]; 4. 66-Ray Davies[11]; 5. 12-Shane Vale[5]; 6. 07-Megan Golden[9]; 7. 74-RJ Punchard[14]; 8. 7-Sammy Sargent[15]; 9. 6-Tom Cole[10]; 10. 9-Cooper McKeown[4]; 11. (BF) 41C-Bob Cooney[6]; 12. (BF) 95C-Chris Lammle[7]; 13. (BF) 17-Ryder Punchard[2]; 14. (DNS) 31-Billy O’Hara; 15. (DNS) 45-Matt Schonauer

Heat 1 6 Laps

1. 18-Brian Cross[2]; 2. 9-Cooper McKeown[4]; 3. 95C-Chris Lammle[7]; 4. 93-Jorden Pickell[6]; 5. 07-Megan Golden[5]; 6. 66-Ray Davies[1]; 7. 7-Sammy Sargent[8]; 8. 31-Billy O’Hara[3]

Heat 2 6 Laps

1. 12-Shane Vale[6]; 2. 35-Ethan Lord[4]; 3. 41C-Bob Cooney[2]; 4. 17-Ryder Punchard[5]; 5. 6-Tom Cole[1]; 6. 74-RJ Punchard[7]; 7. 45-Matt Schonauer[3]

Winged Crate Sprints 15 Entries

A Feature 1 25 Laps | 00:06:22.948

1. 1V-Josh Verne Jr[6]; 2. 87-Andrew Hennessy[8]; 3. Z28-Tucker Donath[5]; 4. 777A-Tyler Willard[2]; 5. 44-Connor Ross[9]; 6. 88-Lance Erskine[7]; 7. 15-Dan Deyo[1]; 8. 14W-Rick Wilson[15]; 9. 9C-Brian Nanticoke[4]; 10. 4K-Jamie Kay[10]; 11. 00-Ryan Poole[11]; 12. 8-Kurtis Connell[12]; 13. M52-Marc Surprenant[13]; 14. 22-Tyson Gregory[14]; 15. 92-Adam Turner[3]

Heat 1 8 Laps | 00:06:30.970

1. 92-Adam Turner[1]; 2. 87-Andrew Hennessy[2]; 3. 777A-Tyler Willard[3]; 4. 88-Lance Erskine[5]; 5. 44-Connor Ross[7]; 6. 00-Ryan Poole[8]; 7. (DNF) M52-Marc Surprenant[6]; 8. (DNF) 14W-Rick Wilson[4]

Heat 2 8 Laps | 00:01:56.902

1. Z28-Tucker Donath[1]; 2. 1V-Josh Verne Jr[7]; 3. 15-Dan Deyo[2]; 4. 9C-Brian Nanticoke[3]; 5. 4K-Jamie Kay[4]; 6. 8-Kurtis Connell[5]; 7. 22-Tyson Gregory[6]