Joey Doiron is back where it all began, both this season and over the long haul.

The Pro All Stars Series North division pays the second of three 2012 visits to Beech Ridge Motor Speedway in Scarborough on Saturday. Doiron, a 21-year-old racer from the Maine-New Hampshire border town of Berwick, probably couldn’t be happier.

Beech Ridge was the site of Doiron’s first PASS victory in May after many years of trying. It’s also where he started steering stock cars in 2005 after a successful childhood stint in go-karts.

If he’s not the favorite in the SouthernMaineMotors.com, he’s on a short list.

“The first race this year, we were absolutely on rails. I think if we have half the car we had there in May, we’ll be the car to beat,” Doiron said in his weekly press release. “Nobody was in the same zip code as us. We’ll go back with the same thing.”

Beech Ridge is the site of Doiron’s only two super late model wins. He also captured a NASCAR Pro Series weekly event last August.

Doiron led 63 laps on his way to the breakthrough PASS victory.

“It’s going to be a little bit different with the hot temperatures compared to what he had (in the spring), but it’s still Beech Ridge,” said Doiron. “Everybody else seems to think it changes every week, but for us the same setup seems to work pretty good. So, we’ll keep going back with the same stuff.”

The season is off to an exceptional start for Doiron with three top-five finishes and five top-10s in six races, placing him third in PASS North points.

Those numbers represent a major leap from 2011, when the small operation based out of his family’s machine shop finished the season 10th.

“It’s been a phenomenal year so far. We can’t really complain. We said all along our goal was to win a race, so everything else from here on out is a bonus,” Doiron said.

Other good bets to go to victory lane Saturday night are Johnny Clark of Hallowell, Cassius Clark of Farmington, Ben Rowe of Turner, PASS North point leader Travis Benjamin of Morrill and D.J. Shaw of Center Conway, N.H.

Qualifying starts at 6 p.m.

THERIAULT GOES NATIONAL

Maine teenager Austin Theriault continues to impress in his occasional starts on the national scene for car owner and NASCAR Sprint Cup star Brad Keselowski.

Theriault, 18, finished fourth Wednesday night in the 29th annual World Crown 300. The super late model event was held at Gresham Motorsports Park in Jefferson, Ga.

It was the best career finish in a super late model for Theriault, a recent graduate of Fort Kent Community High School.

The race was split into three segments of 150, 100 and 50 laps.

Theriault took third in the opening round. After the top half of the field was inverted, relegating Theriault to 14th position, he raced to the runner-up spot in the middle chapter.

Chase Elliott, teenage son of NASCAR champion Bill Elliott, took the overall victory ahead of Bubba Pollard and Sprint Cup driver David Ragan.

Theriault has been driving for Keselowski for two years. They have teamed up for six super late model races in 2012, posting top-five results in four of those.

Closer to home, Theriault is the only driver to finish in the top-10 in all five American-Canadian Tour late model races this season.

His next race is the July 22 TD Bank 250 at Oxford Plains Speedway, where a third-place effort a year ago made Theriault the youngest podium finisher in the history of the race that began in 1974.

BREAKTHROUGH FOR BUBAR

Windham’s Corey Bubar held off a pack of Beech Ridge Motor Speedway’s best to win the Miller Lite 50 NASCAR Pro Series holiday special Tuesday night.

It was the first victory in the top division for the 20-year-old, who had David Oliver, Dan McKeage, Bobby Babb Jr., Larry Gelinas and Steve Berry Jr. in tow.

“It feels good to get one out of the way and takes a lot of the pressure off,” Bubar said.

HOLIDAY SPIRIT

Oxford Plains Speedway heats up its championship race Saturday night with a Christmas in July promotion.

The fun is for a good cause. Fans who bring a new toy to donate to Santa Visits Oxford will be eligible for a half-price ticket. In addition to Santa’s scheduled visit, the track plans an ugly Christmas sweater contest.

With or without the festivities, it promises to be a wild night: The three championship series divisions will be competing in their second points race in a 48-hour span. Heats get the green flag at 6:30 p.m.

koakes@sunjournal.com