(Stafford Springs, CT)—For Stafford Speedway Limited Late Model driver Rich Hammann, the 2022 season has picked up right where he left off in 2021. Hammann enjoyed a breakout year in 2021, scoring his first 2 career Stafford feature victories along with a career best 3rd place finish in the point standings. Through the first 6 races of the 2022 season, Hammann and the #28 NAPA of Tolland team have already matched their 2 wins from last season and they currently occupy the top spot in the race for the Limited Late Model track championship heading into the division’s only extra distance feature event this Friday, June 17.
“I’ve been pleasantly surprised with the season so far,” said Hamman. “I wasn’t sure what to expect at the beginning of the season but we’ve been able to be very consistent. Rob Russell and the guys at RRC have really helped take care of me. They’ve given me all the tools I need every week to be consistent and I’ve done pretty well at managing my tires and I’d like to thank NAPA of Tolland, Mobile Welding Industries, DMW Graphics, and Rob Russell Chassis for all their support.”
Hammann has already matched his 2 wins from a year ago but he is not content with just matching last year’s win total. Hammann is looking for more wins and he feels like he should already have surpassed his win total from 2021.
“We’ve got 2 wins so far but I feel like I should have had a couple more already,” said Hammann. “There was one race where the guy in front of me missed a shift on a restart and then another night I ran through the grass and that broke the coil and rotor on the car. I’m certainly hoping for more wins this season, that’s what we go for every time we go out on the track. I’d at least like to get one more win than I had last season.”
Hammann has recorded a total of four podium efforts to go along with a 5th and 6th place finish in his 6 starts thus far this season and he credits the assistance of Rob Russell Chassis in addition to a good notebook as the secrets to his consistency.
“We have really good notes from last year and the key is to be able to stay up on the tires with things like stagger,” said Hammann. “When Stafford has the open modified races, there’s different rubber down on the track so it’s a good thing to have some good notes to work off of to adjust your car. Also RRC has been a huge help to me this season.”
Hammann is looking forward to adding the 25-lap extra distance feature to his resume this Friday night as he has a car that is good on long green flag runs, but he knows it’s a tough road to get into NAPA Victory Lane.
“My car is a good long run car so I’m feeling pretty good about this Friday night,” said Hammann. “But you don’t know until you actually get out there on the track. I think we’ll be keeping the car setup pretty similar to what we’ve been running so far this season. It’s pretty tough to win races. If you have to start in the back, you need to be patient so you don’t’ smash the car up. You race with the same group of guys and girls every week so you need to have a mutual respect with everyone. If someone sees that I have a faster car, they let me go and if I see someone coming up behind me who is faster, I let them go. Patience has been a big key for me with having to start in the back due to the handicapping.”
Stafford’s SK Modified®, Late Model, SK Light, and Street Stock divisions will join the Limited Late Models in feature action. Tickets for the June 17 Weekly Racing program are available now online at StaffordSpeedway.com/tickets and tickets will also be available for purchase at the admission gates. Tickets are $20.00 for adults, $5.00 for kids 6-14, and free for kids 5 & under. Reserved seating is priced at $25.00 for all ages and pit passes are $35.00 with a valid 2022 Stafford Competition License and $40.00 without a Stafford license. If you are unable to attend the event, tune into the live stream on FloRacing, the official streaming partner of Stafford Speedway.
For more information, visit www.staffordspeedway.com, checkout Stafford Speedway on Facebook or Twitter, or contact the track office at 860-684-2783.
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