Kyle Busch, the Sprint Cup driver, will be there.

So will Brian Hoar, the seven-time American Canadian Tour champion.

So will Eddie MacDonald, the two-time TD Bank 250 champion.

And so will Joey Polewarczyk Jr., a rising ACT star.

Today’s 37th running of the TD Bank 250 has drawn some of the nation’s top young drivers to Oxford Plains Speedway, but that doesn’t mean a driver has to have a big name to win it.

A number of local drivers could be ready to challenge for the championship of one of the nation’s top short-track events and the $25,000 that goes with winning it.

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“The majority of the Oxford drivers are ready,” said Shawn Martin, an Oxford Plains regular who has finished among the top five in two of the last three 250s. “They’ve run it before. They know what it is all about.”

It’s all about preparation.

“You just spend a lot more time going through things you wouldn’t worry about ordinarily,” said Corey Morgan, an Oxford Plains regular who finished third in last year’s 250. “You just keep working on (the car) and hope you can make it better.”

Sometimes it comes down to luck.

“There’s no question, you can’t predict who is going to win the 250,” said Tommy Ricker, who has raced at the speedway for more than 25 years. “Last year, Brad Leighton led most of the race. He had a tire problem, and Eddie MacDonald snuck in there.”

“I personally haven’t done real well in the 250,” said Ricker, whose best finish in five starts was 21st among 41 cars last year. “I’ve run real good, but we always break something.” 

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Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 791-6424 or at:

pbetit@pressherald.com

Twitter: PaulBetitPPH

 


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