Shawn Monahan

Shawn Monahan has one of the most unique associations with the Waterford Speedbowl. On the track, Shawn got started in the Enduro divisions of the 1990’s. His first-ever checkered flag actually came during a pick-up truck demolition derby in 1996. He had a brief early stint in the Mini Stocks, but it was in the Street Stocks (called Strictly Stocks, and then Sportsman at the time) where he began winning races. His first came on May 30, 1998. From 1998-2003, he won 7 races and the 2001 Sportsman Championship. He won the 50 lap portions of the Pepsi 300 in both 2000 and 2001.

A Late Model win came in 2002 and by the mid-2000’s Shawn went SK Modified racing, most notably for car owner John Mahoney, with his older brother Diego as his teammate. Shawn won 7 SK Modified races from 2004-2008. After he took a few Speedbowl seasons off, he returned in his own car to win a memorable battle with Keith Rocco in 2012.

Off the track, when Bruce Bemer won the Speedbowl property in a foreclosure auction in October of 2014, Monahan was involved in making sure the agreement with all the creditors was finalized without any interruptions to the next race season. He became the track operator from 2015-2016. His tenure was short, but tried new things like moving Wild N’ Wacky Wednesdays to Thursday and getting rid of the traditional 2-day season opener.

Shawn returned to the Street Stocks as a driver in 2018, winning once that season, then 6 more times in the shortened 2020 season to earn his 2nd Street Stock Championship at the Speedbowl. 18 seasons after his first time, it’s the longest span between Speedbowl championships for any competitor.

An aggressive driver who earned the nickname “The Hammer”, Monahan is also a versatile competitor, winning in a record 8 different divisions. He won a Mini Stock race in 2017, a Truck race in 2022, Enduro wins in both Full and Compact classes and 3 straight Open Street Stock races from 2018-2021. Shawn was also the spotter for his niece Emma Monahan when she won the 2022 Truck Championship, and won Owner Championships with his son Brody driving to the 2022 Saturday Legend Car and 2023 Truck championships.

Off the track Monahan was the original announcer for Wild N’ Wacky Wednesday, a long time track sponsor, trophy supplier, hosted a radio show about the Speedbowl’s events in the early 2000’s, designed dozens of competitors’ race cars, and also created one of the track’s logos used from 2015-2022. It would be hard for anyone to match the number of ways Shawn Monahan has contributed to the Speedbowl over the years.

STATISTICAL SNAPSHOT

All stats through 2025 season. Shawn Monahan is considered an active competitor – his stats will be updated after each season he competes at the Speedbowl

SHAWN MONAHAN
SPEEDBOWL PHOTO ALBUM