(Stafford Springs, CT)---With the 2011 Stafford Motor Speedway season concluded, the speedway will honor its track champions at the 42nd Annual Stafford Motor Speedway Champions Awards Ceremony on Friday, November 18th at the La Renaissance Banquet Facility in East Windsor. A crowd of over 500 guests is expected to be on hand as the Connecticut half-mile hands out its post-season awards.

In addition to recognizing the 2011 track champions, other prestigious awards, including Most Improved Driver, Most Popular Driver, the Reliable Welding & Speed Rookie of the Year Awards, and the Craftsman Mechanic of the Year Award will also be presented. Stafford Motor Speedway will also recognize the top-20 finishers from the 2011 SK Modified®, Late Model, SK Light, Limited Late Model, and DARE Stock points standings.

Headlining the night's festivities, Ryan Preece will be recognized as the 2011 SK Modified® Champion, which is his first career championship; Ryan Posocco will be honored as the 2011 Late Model track champion for a record sixth time in Stafford's Late Model division; Matt Galko will be honored as the SK Light Modified championship for the second consecutive season; Kevin Gambacorta will be honored as the 2011 Limited Late Model track champion, his second Limited Late Model championship and third overall track championship; and Don Wood will be honored for the second time as the DARE Stock track champion.

Stafford Motor Speedway Most Popular Driver candidates include Heather DesRochers, Sean Foster, and Woody Pitkat from the SK Modified® division, J.J. Hill, Woody Pitkat, and Ryan Posocco from the Late Model division, Joey Cipriano, III, Matt Galko, and Shayne Prucker from the SK Light division, Carla Botticello, Cory Casagrande, and Dan Flannery from the Limited Late Model division, and David Arute, Katlyn Brice, and Kyle Casagrande from the DARE Stock division. The Most Popular Driver winners were voted upon by the fans, who submitted Most Popular Driver Ballots from the PitStopper Magazine to the Speedway Office throughout the 2011 season.

Reliable Welding and Speed Rookie of the Year honors will go to Heather DesRochers from the SK Modified® division, Peter Thickett from the Late Model division, Cody Gneiting from the SK Light division, and D.J. Burnham from the Limited Late Model division.

The Most Improved Driver Award will be presented to one driver each from the SK Modified®, Late Model, SK Light Modified, and Limited Late Model divisions who exhibits the greatest degree of improvement in on-track performance over the past season. Most Improved Driver winners are selected and voted upon by a committee of Stafford Motor Speedway management and track officials.

The Craftsman Mechanic of the Year award will be presented to the Stafford mechanic who received the most votes from NASCAR licensed members, who were able to vote online or by submitting a ballot to NASCAR.

Tickets to the 42nd Annual Stafford Motor Speedway Champions Awards Ceremony are $45 per person and can be ordered by calling the Stafford Motor Speedway track office at (860) 684-2783, or by downloading an order form by CLICKING HERE and mailing the form to the track office.

Hotel room reservations are available by calling the Clarion Inn in East Windsor, phone 860-623-9411. Shuttle service to and from LaRenaissance is available. Reservations made after November 11, 2011 for the Clarion Inn will be subject to space availability. Please call early if you plan on making room reservations and refer to the group name, Stafford Motor Speedway.

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