The American Canadian Tour tested at New Hampshire Motor Speedway on Wednesday in preparation for the upcoming ACT Invitational on September 23rd. The open test allows drivers and teams to experiment with car setup and examine the tire wear as they ready themselves for their annual trip to Loudon.
The event is a combined ACT Tour and Série ACT Tour non-points race and provides the respective series with the largest crowd of the season. Among the favorites to win the race is 26-year-old Dillon Moltz, driver of the No. 5 RB Performance Chevrolet from Waterford, Conn., who has high expectations after finishing fourth in the 2016 Bond Auto Parts ACT Invitational.
"I think we have a really good car," Moltz said during the test session Wednesday. "Today has gone great and we're really happy with it. Last year, I feel like coming with the adjustments we had made, we hurt ourselves, so I think this year we're going to be good come September."
Moltz is coming off a win at White Mountain Motorsports Park on August 19, his second victory of 2017. Despite the ACT Invitational not counting in the points standings, it could still be a make or break race for him, as he is currently second in points for the ACT Tour, just 28 points behind leader Scott Payea.
Moltz clinched his first win of the year at the season-opening race at Lee USA Speedway on April 23, before winning again last Saturday. In his last two starts at NHMS, he has walked away with two top-ten finishes. He knows a win at New Hampshire could maintain the momentum the team needs to capture the series championship.
"I think it really gets the momentum for the rest of the year," Moltz said of the ACT Invitational and the remaining schedule. "We're really excited about getting back to Thunder Road (on September 3), we did really good there in the spring and then Thompson (on October 14) is one of my home tracks so we always do good there. So, just have some racing luck on our side and I think we'll be good the rest of the season."
Moltz was among 25 drivers to test at NHMS on Wednesday, a field which included five-time event winner Eddie MacDonald. The ACT Invitational will serve as the third race in a tripleheader Saturday with the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series UNOH 175 and NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour F.W. Webb 100. The race is scheduled to go green immediately following the modified race, which is estimated to be at 5 p.m. ET.
Tickets for the tripleheader on September 23 are good for the day. Adult tickets start at $35 for advance purchase and $45 at the gate. Children ages 12-and-under get in free.
