LOUDON, N.H. — It doesn’t seem to matter what car Bobby Santos III is in, he finds a way to park it in victory lane at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
The 34-year-old from Franklin, Mass., put on a command performance at New Hampshire Motor Speedway Saturday to win the Musket 200 presented by Whelen for the second straight year.
It is the sixth NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour championship points win at the 1.058-mile track — seventh overall when you throw in the 2016 Whelen All-Star Shootout — and the third different car he’s won with.
After success in the No. 44 for Tinio Racing, when he won four times plus the all-star race since 2014, he won last year’s extra-distance race during New Hampshire’s Full Throttle Fall Weekend driving the No. 36 substituting for injured driver Dave Sapienza.
This year, Sapienza is back, and he fielded the No. 63 Sapienza Enterprises Chevrolet for Santos, who was making his first tour start of the season.
And Santos made it look easy.
In its third running, this year’s race was 200 laps, compared to 250 in the first two editions.
After trading the lead back-and-forth in the closing laps with Justin Bonsignore, Santos took advantage of Bonsignore and Ron Silk’s battle for second to pull away and win by .301 seconds.
Bonsignore settled for second, followed by Silk. Anthony Nocell was fourth and Craig Lutz fifth.
Andy Seuss, who won his first Mayhew Tools Dominator Pole Award in qualifying Friday, finished sixth. Matt Swanson, Jon McKennedy, Doug Coby and Tyler Rypkema rounded out the top 10.
The finish:
Bobby Santos III, Justin Bonsignore, Ron Silk, Anthony Nocella, Craig Lutz, Andy Seuss, Matt Swanson, Jon McKennedy, Doug Coby, Tyler Rypkema, Patrick Emerling, Timmy Solomito, Chris Pasteryak, Gary Putnam, Chase Dowling, J.B. Fortin, Calvin Carroll, Chuck Hossfeld, Eric Goodale, Dave Sapienza, Bryan Dauzat, Timmy Catalano, Walter Sutcliffe Jr., Tommy Catalano, Joey Cipriano III, Rob Summers, Amy Catalano, Ronnie Williams, Woody Pitkat, Melissa Fifield.