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10/27/2016 12:00 AMMadison’s Devin O’Connell claimed the 2016 American Canadian Tour (ACT) Rookie of the Year title following his eighth-place finish at the Thompson Speedway Sunoco World Series on Oct. 15. Heading into the final ACT Tour race of the season, O’Connell trailed rookie leader Ryan Olsen by two points and the two rookies swapped the lead several times throughout the 13-race ACT Tour season.
The World Series event was the first time O’Connell and his Hallstrom Motorsports team visited the 5/8-mile track. Concerned about hitting the correct setup, the team was able to dial in the car during the early afternoon one-hour test session. O’Connell started his respective heat race in sixth place and drove his No. 1 late model to the front, claiming his first heat race win of the 2016 season.
The qualifying efforts landed O’Connell a fourth-place start among the 31 car entries for the 75-lap feature event. O’Connell drove a clean and steady race, battling New England’s best late model drivers. At the conclusion of the race, O’Connell finished eighth overall and first among the rookie contenders. The result was a two-point lead in the rookie point standings and ACT Tour Rookie of the Year honors.
“It’s just unbelievable,” said O’Connell. “With a team that’s new to the tour and with myself being brand new to late models this year, after graduating from Legend Cars, to be able to come out here and win Rookie of the Year in one of the most prestigious late model tours in North America, I’m stoked right now and I can’t believe we were able to pull it off.”
O’Connell is a 2016 graduate of Daniel Hand High school who lives in Madison. He’s aiming to race the Myrtle Beach 400 on Thursday, Nov. 17. The race is one of the biggest NASCAR late model stock car races in the country. To learn more about O’Connell, visit www.DevinOConnellRacing.com.