Johnny Benson Enters Auto Value 250 at Speedway
660
Truck Champion is Latest American to
Go After Canadian Glory
Last year’s Auto Value 250 at Speedway 660 Speedway
attracted one of the best fields of pro stock cars
ever seen in the region. This year’s field has already
broken that standard and today veteran NASCAR driver
Johnny Benson has thrown his hat into the ring for the
2010 Auto Value 250. The 2008 Craftsman Truck Series
Champion and former Nextel/Winston Cup regular
announced that he has teamed with Martins Home Heating
and Sommerville Racing to make the trek north to
Fredericton, NB for the Labour Day event.
The Auto Value 250 is now celebrating its 10th
Anniversary, and the region’s top pro stock drivers
regard the race as the premier stock car event of the
season. Benson is no stranger to the event as he led
the charge of high profile drivers to compete with his
entry in the 2005 and 2006 event.
“I’ve been looking to get back up here since my last
run in 2006. It’s an awesome weekend and the folks
are a blast. We’ve had some scheduling conflicts over
the past few years but I’m excited to be able to come
for the 10th Anniversary event” said Benson.
Benson has had some great success since his last visit
to Speedway 660 as he won the 2008 Craftsman Truck
Series Championship. “2008 was a great year in the
trucks and I remember people from New Brunswick
sending email and notes along congratulating me. That
was pretty neat that they took the time to keep up on
what I was doing down south” said Benson.
Benson will be supported in his bid for the Auto Value
250 title by local sponsors Martin’s Home Heating and
Venmar. “We are thrilled to have Johnny Benson back
at Speedway 660” said Richard Martin of Martin’s Home
Heating. “We were completely impressed with Johnny
when he was here in 2005 and 2006. You couldn’t ask
for a better representative and on top of that the guy
can certainly wheel a race car”.
He has competed in 274 Spring Cup races over 11 years
and was the Rookie of the Year in 1996. He has also
competed in 91 Busch Series races over 10 years and
was the 1994 Rookie of the Year. He followed his
Rookie of the Year Award with a Busch Series
Championship in 1995.
“Johnny is a class act and we are really excited to
have him back for the 10th Anniversary Auto Value 250”
said track co-owner Chris Johnston, “Johnny was the
first NASCAR driver to make his way north and compete
in our race and I must say he set the standard pretty
high for everyone following behind him”.
The Auto Value 250
The 2010 Auto Value 250 will take place on Sunday,
September 5th, 2010 and will be the highlight of the
9th Annual SPEEDWEEKEND. The event will showcase the
Speedway 660 Coastal Blending & Packaging Pro Stocks
against the best of the Eastern Canada and New
England. The purse for 2010 will be over $70,000 with
a guaranteed $15,000 to the event winner and possible
winner’s cheque of $28,000. Seven years ago, the late
Scott Fraser took home a record $25,400 including lap
money. Only ten years old, the event as grown in
crowd, atmosphere, and car count every year since its
inception. Over 8,000 people attended the 2009 event
to break attendance records at Speedway 660. Forty
plus pro stock cars will be attempting to qualify for
28 spots on the starting grid.
SPEEDWEEKEND
Just like the Auto Value 250, SPEEDWEEKEND continues
to grow every year. Over 14,000 people attended last
year’s four-day stock car fest that includes a corn
boil on Friday night, O’Leary Buick GMC Sportsman 150
race on Saturday night, the Auto Value 250 on Sunday,
and finishes up with an Enduro 200 on Monday. While
the Auto Value 250 is the highlight of the racing
event, the weekend has developed into an event on its
own with over 650 campers turning Speedway 660 into a
small town over the weekend. It has become the
destination of choice for the region’s stock car fans.
Speedway 660
Speedway 660 is WicKID Family Fun! The
1/3 of a mile high-banked paved oval features three
classes of racing on a weekly basis: Coastal Blending
& Packaging Pro Stocks, Martin’s Home Heating, and
Leisure Family Rv.com Street Stocks. Over 70,000
people are expected to attend over 18 events during
the 2010 season. Speedway 660 is located off Highway 7
on Route 660 in Geary, NB, and is within minutes of
Saint John and Fredericton. Speedway 660 can be found
online at www.speedway660.com.
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