Stafford Springs, CT :: Doug Coby made a shocking move in the off-season in the eyes of those who follow of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour. He backed up his 2012 championship by finishing second in 2013 with the Wayne Darling operation and then promptly departed for Mike Smeriglio III Racing.
Coby announced the move during the winter after Smeriglio III parted ways with Todd Szegedy. At time, Coby explained that he was “realistically confident” in regards to his expectations for 2014 and said he knew they had the potential to be strong right from the start.
He also reasoned why they could have started off slow, something that ultimately didn’t happen. The pairing went down to Daytona International Speedway in February and won the exhibition race. They finished third at the Icebreaker at Thompson Speedway and posted a runner-up in the Spring Sizzler at Stafford Motor Speedway.
Lastly, they came back to Stafford and posted their first victory of the season.
“It was kind of a lateral move,” Coby said. “I don’t think I upgraded from the 52. We won championships together. And I don’t think they upgraded from Todd. It’s just how people work together. It’s a good thing for me. It’s a good thing for them.”
Coby has proven to be one of the strongest drivers in this series over the past few seasons. He’s been at or near the top of the standings during that time and now finds himself with the points lead entering the June 21 race at the Waterford Speedbowl. He leads Justin Bonsignore by four points.
“It could all go away. We could be awful from here on out,” Coby said. “With this 14-race schedule you need to win when you can win. It’s certainly a championship caliber team and they think of me as a championship caliber driver.”
The updated NASCAR Modified Tour standings can be found below:
- Doug Coby Ldr.
- Justin Bonsignore -4
- Woody Pitkat -9
- Bobby Santos III -16
- Ted Christopher -22
- Ronnie Silk -23
- Timmy Solomito -25
- Rowan Pennink -26
- Eric Goodale -30
- Matt Hirschman -34
