By kyohnson 
In Canandaigua, New York, on a crisp and clear evening, racers and fans were greeted as Canandaigua Motorsports Park opened the 2017 racing season with the first of two nights of action during the VP Racing Fuels Opening Weekend. And for Matt Guerierri, the opening night result was nothing short of perfect, as he secured his third career Sportsman victory in the thrilling 25-lap Sportsman feature.
Guererri started from the 5th position in the 26-car field, with pole sitter Kyle Inman taking the lead at the very start. However, the first yellow flag flew on lap 7 when Karl Comfort came to a stop on the backstretch. On the subsequent restart, defending track champion David Marcucilli spun on the backstretch and had to retire to the pits with damage to his car. Once again, Inman grabbed the lead, but Guerierri made a solid move to move up to second place.
The rest of the event was free from caution flags, and a remarkable battle for the lead ensued between Inman and Guerierri as they swapped the lead multiple times, racing side by side. Inman was able to break away at lap 17 and opened up a 3-car length advantage. Meanwhile, James Henry was locked in a fierce battle with Kevin Root and Rocky Warner, who had worked their way into the top five.
As the leaders approached the final laps, they encountered lapped traffic, which gave Guerierri the opportunity to close the gap on Inman. It all came down to the final lap, with the duo nose to tail as they passed under the white flag. As they entered turn three, Inman stayed on the top lane, while Guerierri drove to the bottom, managing to even up with him. In the drag race off turn four, Guerierri just edged out Inman by a mere.05 seconds to claim the glorious win. Inman was followed by Warner, Root, and Henry across the finish line. Rich Newton, Shawn Leslie, Tyler Trump, Greg Martin, and Kane Bristol completed the top ten.
The heat races were won by Inman, Rich Newton, and Ray Bliss. Andrew Smith emerged victorious in the consolation event.
In the wingless 360 Sprint car feature, Joey Biasi from Pennsylvania withstood a challenge from Matt Billings during the first two laps before ultimately pulling away to claim the victory. Billings and Robbie Shuttleworth finished behind Biasi. Biasi had earlier won the heat race of the evening.
The 305 Sprint car feature was won by Lee Sanders, who outdistanced Jason Whipple to the finish.
The Big Block Modifieds were also present for practice sessions for the 50-lap Modified event on Saturday, and Justin Haers set the fastest time of the night with a lap time of 17.407 seconds.
The racing action continues on Saturday, April 15th, during the second half of the VP Racing Fuels Opening Weekend at Canandaigua Motorsports Park. The Big Block Modifieds will be running a 50-lap feature, along with the ‘Cabin Fever’ 40-lap feature for the GRIT Sportsman Series. Street Stocks and New Legends Sportsman will also be part of the card. Gates will open at 4 pm, and racing will commence at 6 pm.
For the latest raceday updates and information, check out www.canandaiguamotorsportspark.com. Canandaigua Motorsports Park can also be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @CMPAutoRacing.
RESULTS – VP RACING FUELS OPENING WEEKEND – CANANDAIGUA MOTORSPORTS PARK – APRIL 14, 2017
SPORTSMAN FEATURE (25 laps) – MATT GUERIERRI, Kyle Inman, Rocky Warner, Kevin Root, James Henry, Rich Newtown, Shawn Leslie, Tyler Trump, Greg Martin, Kane Bristol, Ray Bliss, Dave Marcucilli, Corey Cormier, Austyn Fugle, Nick Guerierri, Paul Guerierri, Anthony Kimball, Kevin Ridley, Tim Baker, Jessica Power, Eric Williams, Doug Smith, Pat LaPage, Dave DiPiertro, Karl Comfort, Andrew Smith.
WINGLESS 360 SPRINT FEATURE – JOEY BIASI, Matt Billings, Robbie Shuttleworth.
305 SPRINT FEATURE – LEE SANDERS, Jason Whipple.