After winning the Southeast Limited Late Model Pro Division Championship one weekend and then qualifying second and running in the top five until the motor blew in the Myrtle Beach 400 for NASCAR Late Models the next, Anthony Alfredo now makes his Super Late Model debut in the Southern National Motorsports Park Thanksgiving Classic this weekend.
The 17-year-old Connecticut racer will compete once again out of the Lee Faulk Racing stables. He reflected on the past two weekends at Myrtle Beach Speedway that have led to this point.
“After winning the championship the weekend before, we went back to the track last weekend with only minor changes to the setup to put the car in NASCAR late model trim from the limited late model setup. We were fast from the time we got there. We went out second for qualifying and ran a 20.586 lap which we were really happy with. It ended up being second fastest out of 61 cars! I was thrilled, considering how many of the top drivers in the region we were competing against. That gave the team and I confidence we could run up front in the race.”
Of the race itself, the youngster smiled through a story that was not what they hoped for.
“Under the pre-race pace laps I noticed something going on with the oil pressure. The needle was bouncing around instead of staying steady. That’s not a good sign. We knew at that point there was little sense in pitting because if it turned out to be just something with the gauge then we’d start at the back for no reason. So, we decided to just go racing and see what happens.”
” Starting the race second was a good place to be and I was able to drop behind the leader (Tommy Lemons Jr.) coming out of two after the green flag waved. We began to save our tires and conserve at that time since it was 125 laps until the break for 4 new tires and adjustments before running the last 100 laps. We were running the outside and let a couple cars go by that wanted to jump to the lead right away.”
“While running fourth on lap 24, the motor blew up going down the back stretch. We were lucky to not get run over from behind when that happened, but it was such an unfortunate turn of events. There is no doubt that we turned some heads by qualifying on the front row and barely being beat off the pole, but I really believe that we had a shot to win the race. I cannot thank my team, my family and all of our supports enough for what was a really amazing weekend until the motor blew up. That’s part of racing, though.”
The high school senior got a bonus as the team decided they would compete in this weekend’s Thanksgiving Classic at Southern National Motorsports Park in Lacoma, North Carolina, It would be Anthony’s debut in a “super late model”, which is a different style of chassis and higher horsepower engine than the NASCAR style late models he was used to racing.
“I took some laps in the super at Hickory a month or so ago when our team was there testing for the CARS race there,” the driver explained. “Those cars are definitely different to drive but they’re a lot of fun. I am anxious to get to Southern National Motorsports Park, a track I’ve raced at a few times already with the late model, and see what I can do with the super. Lee Faulk’s son Michael will be racing also as my teammate, so I’m sure that we’ll have a great time. Lee, Michael and the team have treated my family and I like their own family and they’ve done so much for me this year. I really enjoy racing with them.”
For more information about the Thanksgiving Classic, visit the track’s website at www.snmpark.com.
