THOMPSON,CT – Taking advantage of the only restart, Bobby Santos III captured the 25-lap Northeastern Midget Association feature Thursday night at Thompson Speedway. The victory, his second of the season, was especially sweet considering a disappointment at Thompson earlier in the year.

Santos took the green on a lap 17 restart behind Mike Roselli Jr. and Kyle Carpenter. He needed just two turns to take the lead following a lap 17 restart. “I saw Kyle make a move [on Roselli] on the bottom. They got together a little bit and mad a hole,” Santos explained. “It was enough to get through.”

Roselli remained two car lengths behind until heading into one on the final circuit when the power steering broke. Veterans Drew Fornoro and Joey Payne Jr., who battled for third over the final laps, got by to finish second and third, Payne coming from the 17th starting spot. Roselli was fourth and Tim Heath fifth.

“Mike was all over the kid,” said Fornoro. “He has got to be heartbroken.” The Fornoro-Payne duel was the highlight in the latter stages of the race. Payne was the hard charger for the second straight race.

The heartbreak award, however, belonged to Mark Buonomo. Driving Tim Bertrand’s #47, Buonomo was leading when the right rear tire came off and sent him violently into the wall between one and two. Buonomo had taken the lead nine laps in and was running five lengths ahead of a battle for second between Roselli and Ryan Dolan.

“It was Mark’s race,” said Santos. “We were not that quick, a fourth or fifth place car. The yellow was the key for us. The car came back after that.” The heralded teenager was actually running fifth when Buonomo crashed.

Hard luck hit Ryan Dolan as well. Running with the leaders over the first 15 laps (“nobody was faster” said father/car owner Jay), he again fell victim to over heating problems and left when yellow showed.

Santos dominated at the season-opening Thompson Icebreaker only to be DQed for being too wide. “That makes this win all the better,” admitted Santos who also won this season at the Waterford Speedbowl. “The fact that it is Thompson puts this win right up there.”