welcome race fans to krazyaboutracing.com the leader in motor sports coverage on the world wide web we are now in our 24th year

WE MAY NOT HAVE ALL THE WHISTLES & BELLS OF OTHER SITES , hOWEVER  krazyaboutracing.com has THE most complete MOTOR SPORTS COVERAGE on the web !

(HOME)  (CONTACT US)  ( THE PIT )  (LOCAL RACING)   (PREVIOUS NEWS)  (PREVIOUS RACING)   (SITE NEWS)  (MEET THE STAFF)   (HALL OF FAME)  (MULTIMEDIA)   (SPECIAL EVENTS) (ANNUAL AWARDS)  (DRIVER & TEAM RELEASES) (LOCAL TRACK NEWS) (MISC RELEASES)

 

  

     

for more coverage on the series click on the series lOgo

  SUMMER NATIONALS LATE MODEL SERIES SUMMIt RACING MODIFIED NATIONALS The Super DIRTcar Series 

SUMMER NATIONALS LATE MODEL SERIES

   

www.dirtcarsummernationals.com

DIRTcar Summer Nationals is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners. Official partners include,Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Racing Electronics (Official Radio Supplier), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), Summit Racing Equipment, VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel).  Also supported by : AMKUS, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Beyea Custom Headers, COMP Cams, FIREBULL, Fox Factory, Indiana Decal Company, Intercomp, Mark Martin Automotive, MD3, MSD, Quarter Master, Swift Springs, WELD Racing, Wieland (Exclusive Racing Aluminum), and Xceldyne.

Carpenter Gets First Career Summer Nationals Win, English Clinches 2026 Championship

ORRVILE, OH (July 12, 2026) — Tyler Carpenter added to his growing resume Sunday night at Wayne County Speedway with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals, but Tanner English claimed the biggest prize of the summer as Hell Tour champion.

English, of Benton, KY, officially clinched the 2026 Summer Nationals championship after a dominant run of consistency that netted him four wins, 17 podium finishes, 19 top-fives and 21 top-10s in 23 starts. Among all the accolades he collected, English also broke through and made Summer Nationals history as the first driver from the state of Kentucky to win the season-long points title.

“It’s pretty cool just to be that consistent, and that says a lot about our equipment and everything we’ve got going on — our maintenance, everything, it’s just amazing to be able to accomplish that,” English said. “And at all these different racetracks, too. That’s what a lot of people don’t realize — no two of these tracks are the same. Some of them you don’t want to race at, some of them you do. It’s just pretty cool to be that consistent.”

In the final main event of the summer, Carpenter, of Parkersburg, WV, took his No. 28 machine to the front and scored his first career Summer Nationals win after nearly six years of trying, leading the final 21 laps around the 3/8-mile oval to secure the big check.

“This win definitely ranks toward the top, and the biggest thing is it’s just for the fact that it’s such an established deal,” Carpenter said. “The Hell Tour is well known and there are a lot of eyes on it. It’s just so cool for my team and I to come out here. We’ve been trying to come win this race for two or three years and we’ve always had speed, but it just never panned out.”

The finale of the Summer Nationals’ 40th anniversary season kicked off with Ohio natives Eric Wilson and Lincoln Smith leading the field to green. The No. 217 of Wilson rocketed around Smith in Turns 1 and 2 and led the opening lap.

A Lap 7 caution for a slowing Todd Brennan bunched the field up and allowed for a showcase of speed and precision to commence around the Ohio oval.

The restart saw Ryan Montgomery throw a slide job on Wilson for the lead in Turn 2, but the No. 217 machine crossed back underneath to retain the top spot. Behind the two leaders was Carpenter, waiting for an opportunity. That opportunity soon presented itself, as he went for a slider in Turns 3 and 4, clearing both Wilson and Montgomery.

The lead trio went three wide exiting Turn 4 with race-long leader Wilson taking the point at the stripe once again. The three-car show continued as Montgomery led Lap 9 but Carpenter rolled to the inside of both again, clearing and taking the lead at the exit of Turn 2, but a caution for Montgomery slowing negated the pass.

Carpenter took the lead for good on the Lap 9 restart and led the final 21 laps unchallenged to bank his first career Summer Nationals victory.

“This kind of style of racetrack I was raised on,” Carpenter said. “I was trying to focus hard on where I needed to be or where would be the best spot before we ever took the initial green. Once I took the lead, I felt I was really confident then because I could just try and enter above the rough in Turns 1 and 2. There really wasn’t room so you had to enter straight, get your right front on the guardrail and then you could just lay the hammer down all the way across.”

Wilson finished second, J.R. Gentry rebounded from flipping in Qualifying to finish third, Montgomery was fourth, and Kyle Moore rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

While the DIRTcar Summer Nationals’ 40th anniversary campaign has concluded, the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals wrap up their season at Fairbury Speedway during the Prairie Dirt Classic alongside the World of Outlaws Late Models presented by DIRTVision — Friday-Saturday, July 24-25.

Tickets for the event are on sale now at WorldofOutlaws.com. If you can’t be there, stream every lap live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 28-Tyler Carpenter[4]; 2. 217-Eric Wilson[1]; 3. 14-JR Gentry[16]; 4. 12-Ryan Montgomery[3]; 5. 1*-Kyle Moore[10]; 6. 79-Doug Drown[7]; 7. 5M-Ryan Markham[8]; 8. 74-Mitch McGrath[14]; 9. 21B-Rich Bell[9]; 10. 7-Nick Cox[18]; 11. 17-Tyler Evans[15]; 12. (DNF) 20B-Todd Brennan[6]; 13. (DNF) 31-Lincoln Smith[2]; 14. (DNF) 14C-Corey Conley[11]; 15. (DNF) 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[5]; 16. (DNF) B52-Delbert Crum Jr[12]; 17. (DNF) 59-Tanner McLoughlin[17]; 18. (DNF) 30-Mark Voigt[20]; 19. (DNF) 96-Tanner English[19]; 20. (DNF) 32-Chad Roush[22]; 21. (DNS) 1Z-Logan Zarin; 22. (DNS) 57-Caiden Black

 

Dalton Lane Returns to Summit Modified Victory Lane at Wayne County

He’s waited nearly three years, but Dalton Lane is back in Victory Lane with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals.

Lane scored the win with the Summit Modifieds Sunday night at Wayne County Speedway for the second time in his career and the first since breaking through at Oakshade Raceway in 2023.

The Feature began with Matthew Baker taking the early lead over Kyle Moore. A caution for a slowing Jason King restacked the field for a restart on Lap 2.

The restart was where Baker began to take fire from Moore as the local favorite went for a slide job maneuver in Turns 3–4 that ended with both drivers scrubbing the outside wall. While both drivers were able to straighten out, Baker came away with damage to the nose of his No. B5 car and began to fall back. This opened the door for Lane to move into second and set his sights on Moore, still leading the race.

A Lap 7 caution for Ryan Markham slowing created another opportunity for a restart. Moore pulled away while Lane found himself in a battle for second as Nathan Loney made a bid for that position to his inside.

The race then turned on its head as Moore’s No. 21D slowed on the backstretch on Lap 13, turning what was the battle for second between Lane and Loney into the battle for the win. Over the next 10 laps, the two ran neck-and-neck for the top spot — Lane ripping the top side around the track and Loney riding the bottom.

Their battle reached a boiling point on Lap 22, crossing the stripe in a dead-heat tie. But with momentum from a great run off the top side in Turn 2, Lane charged ahead of Loney and led the field back around to the checkers.

“We put together a great night, we started off a little slow in Qualifying and we made that up all night,” Lane said. “A place like this, right around the wall like that where you can just get after it, really fits my driving style. So, it just came to us tonight. There really was nothing left on the bottom so all I had left was just to get up there and pound the cushion for 25 laps.”

Loney finished second, Dusty Swecker was third, Andre Layfield finished fourth, and Jimmy Lennex Jr finished in fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals heads to Fairbury Speedway to crown a champion at the Prairie Dirt Classic on July 24-25.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 14-Dalton Lane[3]; 2. 10-Nathan Loney[6]; 3. 21-Dusty Swecker[22]; 4. 11L-Andre Layfield[8]; 5. 21CZ-Jimmy Lennex Jr[9]; 6. B5-Matthew Baker[1]; 7. 89-Jason King[16]; 8. 22G-Jesse Griffitts[12]; 9. (DNF) 01-Denny Benjamin[21]; 10. (DNF) 21D-Kyle Moore[2]; 11. (DNF) 5-Ryan Markham[7]; 12. (DNF) 42JR-Chaz Dawson Jr[11]; 13. (DNF) 68-Andrew Hammond[13]; 14. (DNF) 185-Ron Miller[17]; 15. (DNF) T23-John Toppozini[10]; 16. (DNF) 16-Caden Alexander[19]; 17. (DNF) 60-Jimmy Humphrey[4]; 18. (DNF) 16H-Ron Hamlin[20]; 19. (DNF) 75-Tristen Bickford[18]; 20. (DNF) 18-Michael Amick[15]; 21. (DNS) 11-Jason Brennan; 22. (DNS) S25-Pete Caplinger; 23. (DNS) 41-Brad Goff; 24. (DNS) 76JD-Darrick Hubbard Jr.

 

Heckenast Jr. Gets Third Summer Nationals Win of 2026 at Oakshade

WAUSEON, OH (July 11, 2026) — Two days after celebrating a birthday of his own, Frank Heckenast Jr. got one of his biggest presents of the summer — a $10,000 check as victor of the 29th annual Birthday Race.

The Frankfort, IL-native led all 50 laps around Oakshade Raceway Saturday night, garnering his third DIRTcar Summer Nationals victory of the season and eighth of his career. After struggling early during the Hell Tour, Heckenast is closing the tour with momentum, earning all three of his wins in a span of 11 days.

“We’ve been fortunate. I won an Outlaw race on my birthday probably five years ago, so that was cool, but this means a lot,” Heckenast said. “This was so emotional for me. It was hard. I’ve tried for so long to win this race, and I’ve gotten beat so many times at this place. I’ve started up front before, and they went by me on both sides. I was in my head tonight. I don’t usually talk to myself when I’m racing, but tonight I did. I told myself, ‘Just make the best lap you can.’ I tried to build speed, and it worked out.”

Heckenast capitalized on his pole starting position and took control early. After starting fourth, Ryan Unzicker moved into third before a Lap 3 caution allowed his No. 24 to pull alongside Sam Seawright for second on the restart.

Seawright and Unzicker battled hard for second, giving Heckenast room to extend his lead. Unzicker found traction through the middle and drove around Seawright in Turns 1 and 2, moving the El Paso, IL-driver into the runner-up spot.

As the race neared halfway, lapped traffic became a factor. Unzicker closed to within a car length of Heckenast before a Lap 23 caution for a spun Mark Voigt paused the battle for the lead and gave Heckenast a clear track ahead for the restart.

Over the final 27 laps, Heckenast ran consistent laps and maintained a comfortable lead to secure his first Birthday Race win at Oakshade.

“Today was just 100% us, I got a little sideways in my head about stuff. It’s not major but the crew got me straightened out and gave me the confidence to go win the race,” Heckenast said. “I hate to admit it, but I’ve let so many people get in my head. Other racers, people and just things like that. They try every night and, you know, shout out to Logan, my crew guy, he pulled me aside and told me to just do my own thing and stop listening to these people. I want to tell my boys that you don’t quit, you don’t give up, don’t let other people bully you around.”

Unzicker finished second, Seawright was third, Rusty Schlenk finished fourth, and Luke Morey rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models wraps up its 40th anniversary celebration with a visit to Wayne County Speedway in Orrville, OH, on Sunday, July 12. Tickets will be available at the track on race day.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS

Feature (50 Laps): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[1]; 2. 24-Ryan Unzicker[4]; 3. 16S-Sam Seawright[3]; 4. 91-Rusty Schlenk[7]; 5. 49-Luke Morey[8]; 6. 96-Tanner English[5]; 7. LIL91-Carter Schlenk[11]; 8. 6M-Dona Marcoullier[10]; 9. 4-Travis Stemler[13]; 10. 74-Mitch McGrath[2]; 11. 21B-Rich Bell[17]; 12. 77-Steve Kester[12]; 13. 51-Devin Shiels[20]; 14. 46-Colin Shipley[16]; 15. 15B-Mike Bores[9]; 16. 63-Terry Rushlow[21]; 17. 06-Jake Rendel[22]; 18. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 19. 1N-Casey Noonan[14]; 20. 50-Ryan Missler[6]; 21. 75M-Dusty Moore[18]; 22. 42-Chad Finley[15]

 

Zeke McKenzie Gets Third Career Summit Modifieds Win at Oakshade

While others have flashed speed on occasion, Zeke McKenzie has been a model of consistency with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals this summer.

On Saturday night, that consistency turned into a win at Oakshade Raceway.

McKenzie has been a familiar face with the Summit Modifieds in 2026, logging 17 starts — most of any competitor. Now in the final full week of competition, the Claypool, IN-driver has yet to finish outside the top ten. That consistency has put him in position for wins and the season points championship.

“When you run in the top five and get podiums, the wins are going to come,” McKenzie said. “I know we don’t have the wins but they’re definitely coming the rest of the year, and I feel our cars are good enough to win almost every night, we just have to put more nights together.”

The beginning of the main event kicked off with the front row of Jerry Bowersock and Drew Charlson tangling in Turn 3, ending both their chances for victory. This moved McKenzie and Mathew Baker to the front row in a brand-new race up front for the restart.

Baker led the field into Turn 1 on the restart, but McKenzie found traction in the middle of Turns 1 and 2, got around the Baker No. B5 and began to pull away.

A Lap 14 caution bunched the field up and took McKenzie out of lap traffic, allowing him to set sail out front for the rest of the race. He crossed under the checkered flag unchallenged to secure his third career Summit Modified victory, continuing a dream season for the No. 24 team.

“We started out planning on only doing the first week to help some customers and we ran really good,” McKenzie said. “We actually had to go find a little help to do the whole thing because it just wasn’t on our schedule. Tonight, we saw guys not be forgiving and I was just fortunate enough to not get into them.”

Matthew Baker was second, Dillon Nusbaum was third, John McClure finished fourth, and Dylan Woodling finished fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals heads to Wayne County Speedway in Orrville, OH, on Sunday, July 12.

If you can’t be there, stream every lap live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 24-Zeke McKenzie[4]; 2. B5-Matthew Baker[3]; 3. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum[5]; 4. 12M-John McClure[7]; 5. 3W-Dylan Woodling[14]; 6. 14-Dalton Lane[12]; 7. 22T-Tony Anderson[10]; 8. 60-Shannon Fisk[6]; 9. 13M-Mitchell Opatik[9]; 10. 25L-Josh Lolmaugh[16]; 11. 52-Weasel Phlipot[18]; 12. 9R-Garrett Rons[20]; 13. 8C-Corey Bevard[21]; 14. 17J-Jarrod Klay[17]; 15. 87Z-George Zieman[13]; 16. 4-Logan Beckwith IV[11]; 17. 25M-Brian Mcfeeters[22]; 18. 1A-Andrew Hollister[19]; 19. T23-John Toppozini[15]; 20. (DNF) 5X-Jerry Bowersock[1]; 21. (DNF) 21C-Drew Charlson[2]; 22. (DNF) 16-Jeff Koz[8]

 
Ryan Unzicker Returns to Summer Nationals Victory Lane at Crystal
By Dawson Elliott

CRYSTAL, MI (July 11, 2026) – A two-year winless drought is tough on anyone, but for Ryan Unzicker, it felt like an eternity.

The El Paso, IL native put that to an end Friday night at Crystal Motor Speedway with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals, leading all 40 laps to pick up the $10,000 check and his first Series win since Spoon River Speedway in 2024.

“I’m pumped to be back in Victory Lane; it has been way too long,” Unzicker said. “Momentum is huge; you have to have confidence in racing. We had great momentum up until two weeks ago, and then I decided to park the equipment and regroup. I was scared to have the momentum lost, but we picked right back up where we left off, and just having that little bit of a break felt good.”

The main event kicked off with Unzicker launching to the lead from the pole, leaving outside polesitter Devin Shiels to battle with points leader Tanner English for second.

English took second rolling the bottom in Turns 1 and 2 and then tried to put pressure on Unzicker, but the No. 24 machine was stronger around the middle lane in Turns 3 and 4.

Lap traffic became a factor on Lap 8, giving English an opportunity to chip into Unzicker’s 1.3-second advantage. But a caution one lap later for a spun Mitch McGrath helped put Unzicker back in clean air once the race resumed.

The No. 24 built another impressive lead until lap traffic returned on Lap 21, giving English another opportunity to close. However, Unzicker never allowed him the opportunity. He led every lap to the checkered flag, becoming the third different winner in the Series’ three appearances at the Crystal, MI oval.

He is also now tied with Jeep Van Wormer for 13th on the overall wins list.

“Starting on the front row is a big point of it. Last night, I felt like if we started on the front row, we had a good shot for the win,” Unzicker said. “The track was definitely challenging tonight, and just finding a smooth line was difficult. I feel like my car all year long has been accepting to a little bit of choppy and a little bit of rough, and it just feels really good right now when it’s like that.

“I knew we had a good car; I knew we had a chance, and it’s just one of those deals where you hope you make the right decisions. We put on a hard tire, and a lot of them went on with threes (NLMT tire). I don’t know if that hurt them, but mine felt really good after we fired after five laps.”

English maintained second, extending his Week 5 points lead – currently 50 points ahead of Luke Morey – Frank Heckenast Jr. finished third, Shiels finished fourth, and Morey rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals head to Ohio’s Oakshade Raceway for the Birthday Race on Saturday, July 11.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals if you’re not at the track? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS
Feature (40 Laps): 1. 24-Ryan Unzicker[1]; 2. 96-Tanner English[3]; 3. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[5]; 4. 51-Devin Shiels[2]; 5. 49-Luke Morey[6]; 6. 4-Travis Stemler[11]; 7. 42-Chad Finley[7]; 8. 16S-Sam Seawright[9]; 9. 6M-Dona Marcoullier[15]; 10. 07-Rylee Knoll[13]; 11. 74-Mitch McGrath[8]; 12. 27-Eric Spangler[12]; 13. 21B-Rich Bell[14]; 14. 18-Brenten Deyoung[18]; 15. 18B-Chase Burda[16]; 16. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 17. 06-Jake Rendel[22]; 18. 32-Chad Roush[20]; 19. 57V-Mason VanderVeen[17]; 20. M14-Brandon Thirlby[4]; 21. 21N-Logan Nickerson[10]; 22. 41-Mike Vandermark Jr[21]

ARTICLE: https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/recaps/ryan-unzicker-returns-to-summer-nationals-victory-lane-at-crystal/

Nusbaum Outduels McKenzie For First Career Summit Modified Triumph at Crystal

By Dawson Elliott

Dillon Nusbaum has been on the verge of his first DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals victory all week. On Friday night at Crystal Motor Speedway, he finally scored.

After finishing third, fourth, and second, respectively, in the first three races of Week 5 of the Hell Tour, the Warsaw, IN driver won a 25-lap brawl against his neighbor and current Series points leader Zeke McKenzie to earn his first Series win.

“There’s a lot of prestige that comes with winning a Summer Nationals race, and we’ve been trying for several years now,” Nusbaum said. “We don’t get to travel a whole lot or run a whole lot of the schedule, but we try and hit at least this swing that’s up here by us.”

The beginning stages of the main event saw front-row starters, Nusbaum and McKenzie, exchange the lead multiple times, trading sliders around the 3/8-mile dirt track. Nusbaum led the opening lap before McKenzie led Lap 2 as he drove around an attempted slider by the No. 17N of Nusbaum.

Nusbaum threw another slider in Turn 4, clearing McKenzie’s No. 24 car, giving him the lead back on Lap 3. McKenzie abandoned the top and ran the bottom in an attempt to get around Nusbaum, but it wasn’t enough as Nusbaum led the final 24 laps to become the newest first-time winner with the Series.

“I knew I had to get out in front of him there and kind of set the pace myself,” Nusbaum said. “Honestly, once I got out in front of him, I almost backed the pace down a little but just to kind save equipment. I didn’t want to catch lap cars any quicker than I had too. It was a lot of fun throwing haymakers back and forth with Zeke (McKenzie) there at the beginning. It’s a lot of fun when you can race with somebody that close and that hard, I don’t think we touched a single time.”

McKenzie finished second, John Toppozini finished third, his first career Series podium, Todd Sherman was fourth, and Brennan Sherman was fifth.

UP NEXT
The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals head to Oakshade Speedway in Wauseon, OH for the Birthday Race on Saturday, July 11.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS
Feature (25 Laps): 1. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum[1]; 2. 24-Zeke McKenzie[2]; 3. T23-John Toppozini[3]; 4. 65-Todd Sherman[4]; 5. 82-Brennan Sherman[10]; 6. 60-Shannon Fisk[14]; 7. 87Z-George Zieman[9]; 8. B5-Matthew Baker[15]; 9. 25L-Josh Lolmaugh[11]; 10. 1A-Andrew Hollister[13]; 11. (DNF) 8C-Corey Bevard[8]; 12. (DNF) 12M-John McClure[12]; 13. (DNF) 14-Dalton Lane[6]; 14. (DNF) 18B-Bradley Inman[17]; 15. (DNF) 7L-Matt Leland[16]; 16. (DNF) 9R-Garrett Rons[7]; 17. (DNS) 17J-Jarrod Klay

 

Tanner English Dominates Butler for Fourth Hell Tour Win of 2026

QUINCY, MI (July 9, 2026) — As the DIRTcar Summer Nationals begins to wind down in the home stretch, Tanner English is still bringing the heat.

The Benton, KY-racer led the final 28 laps of the main event Thursday night at Butler Motor Speedway to get his tenth career Hell Tour triumph and his fourth win of the summer. 2026 has been a summer that has seen him finish in the top 10 every start he's made thus far except one, showing just how dominant a force English has been in 2026.

“It’s just amazing when things start falling your way, they just fall your way. It’s been a great year, and I can’t thank everybody enough,” English said. “I think we pretty much got the national deal wrapped up since Jason (Feger) is gone, which is a big weight off my shoulders. We still got work to do and we’re just going to try to win every race from here on it, that’s the goal. Now I feel like we can try some stuff and get out of our comfort zone to get even better.”

Michigan native Chad Finley led the field to green in the 30-lap main event with points leader English on the outside of the front row. Finley got a good start on the initial green flag and led the opening lap of the Summer Nationals’ seventh appearance at Butler.

English found the bottom lane was clear and showed the nose to Finley as the No. 42 washed high exiting Turn 4. Finley and English drag raced to the line and English led by only .012 seconds over Finley on Lap 2.

English nailed the bottom once more as Finley struggled to find traction on the top in Turns 1 and 2, which allowed English to pull away on Lap 3. Finley began to backtrack a bit as Ryan Unzicker found some traction on the top side of the speedway and moved around Finley down the back stretch to take second place.

Unzicker began to close English’s gap in lap traffic on Lap 10 as he continued to make the top work around Butler. But English was consistent on the bottom, maintaining space between himself and Unzicker over the next 20 laps as he drove the field back around to collect his fourth checkered flag in the last nine races on the Hell Tour.

“I dreaded every car I got to because it was pretty bottom dominant, but I kind of surprised myself a few times when I’d go to the outside and I’d get right around them,” English said. “The slower cars were keeping a really good pace and were hard to pass. It was just really dirty and there was nothing much outside the bottom. I was counting laps and looking for that white flag.”

Unzicker finished second, Finley finished third, Frank Heckenast Jr. rebounded after a broken rear end last night to finish fourth, and Luke Morey rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals heads to Crystal Motor Speedway in Crystal, MI, on Thursday, July 9. Tickets will be sold at the track on race day.

How can you watch every DIRTcar Summer Nationals race if you can’t be at the track? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 96-Tanner English[2]; 2. 24-Ryan Unzicker[6]; 3. 42-Chad Finley[1]; 4. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[3]; 5. 49-Luke Morey[5]; 6. 16S-Sam Seawright[12]; 7. 89-Mike Spatola[9]; 8. LIL91-Carter Schlenk[4]; 9. 6M-Dona Marcoullier[8]; 10. 41-Mike Vandermark Jr[11]; 11. 27-Eric Spangler[7]; 12. 19M-Carter Murday[10]; 13. 21B-Rich Bell[14]; 14. 18-Chase Burda[16]; 15. 32-Chad Roush[13]; 16. 4-Travis Stemler[17]; 17. 74-Mitch McGrath[19]; 18. 07-Rylee Knoll[15]; 19. 30-Mark Voigt[22]; 20. 46-Colin Shipley[18]; 21. 15-Austin Harnick[21]; 22. 1*-Kyle Moore[20]

 

David Stremme Goes Back-to-Back with Summit Modifieds at Butler

David Stremme had gone his whole career without winning with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals before this week. After 25 laps around Butler Motor Speedway, he’s now won two-in-a-row.

Stremme, of Mifflintown, PA, made it back-to-back victories with the Summit Modifieds Friday night after first going to Victory Lane Thursday at I-96 Speedway. The 49-year-old led every circuit around the 3/8-mile oval of Butler, continuing to spearhead his self-built Lethal Chassis company and carry the brand’s name into Victory Lane.

“We just keep working, I mean everyone. All of our customers, our partners, we all just keep working at it,” Stremme said. “Probably a month ago, we started on a new package and this all has to do with everyone involved. The guys at the shop, our friends, everybody that plays a part in it. They’re not easy, so we’ll keep after it.”

Stremme and Indiana native Dillon Nusbaum led the field to green, and it was Stremme who got the jump on the outside lane of the speedway in Turn 4 to lead the opening lap.

Stremme then hit lap traffic on Lap 8 and vacated the bottom lane that was working so well for him. However, a restart on Lap 10 gave the No. 35 a clear track and his preferred bottom lane back.

Stremme continued to be patient over the final 15 laps, surviving an additional restart and leading the field back around to the checkered flag unchallenged to seal the victory.

“I knew I had to be aggressive with Dillon (Nusbaum) — this is his home track and he runs good here. I knew I had to give it everything right at the beginning. It was a way different mentality because last night you didn’t know where they were running and tonight you knew if you carried speed on the bottom, everything was good. We’ve had a lot of fun the last couple days.”

Nusbaum finished second, Tyler Spalding was third, Zeke McKenzie was fourth, and Mike McKinnney finished fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds head to Crystal Motor Speedway in Crystal, MI, on Friday, July 9.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 35-David Stremme[2]; 2. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum[1]; 3. 1TS-Tyler Spalding[5]; 4. 24-Zeke McKenzie[3]; 5. 96M-Mike McKinney[4]; 6. 14-Dalton Lane[7]; 7. 5CS-Curt Spalding[6]; 8. B5-Matthew Baker[8]; 9. 45-Robby Henderson[9]; 10. 65-Todd Sherman[10]; 11. 8C-Corey Bevard[11]; 12. 9R-Garrett Rons[13]; 13. 5D-David VanGuilder[15]; 14. 82-Brennan Sherman[18]; 15. T23-John Toppozini[12]; 16. 17J-Jarrod Klay[16]; 17. 1A-Andrew Hollister[14]; 18. 18B-Bradley Inman[17]; 19. 84-Brandon Beeching[22]; 20. 11-Tyler Morehouse[19]; 21. 14S-Terry Sroufe[20]; 22. 41-Connor Stetler[21]

 

Rusty Schlenk Returns to Summer Nationals Victory Lane at I-96

LAKE ODESSA, MI (July 8, 2026) — July 17, 2010. A date that stood as a reminder of Rusty Schlenk’s last Feature win with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. That was, until Wednesday.

July 8, 2026. The 2018 DIRTcar Late Model national points champion from Jackson, MI, returned to Victory Lane on the Hell Tour for the first time in nearly 16 years in front of a packed home-state crowd at I-96 Speedway to celebrate his third career series victory.

“I’m a sore loser, man. I hate losing and I know it’d be different if I knew we couldn’t win them,” Schlenk said. “We’re competitive with these guys; we always run good with them. I knew we could do it, so I kept trying. I love the Hell Tour. We’re always in contention; we just could never pull off another one. We’ve had stuff break, crashes, you name it. So, thank goodness we got it done tonight.”

The 30-lap main event in the Hell Tour’s return to Lake Odessa for the first time in five years started with a three-car battle for the lead in the opening laps between Sam Seawright, Frank Heckenast Jr. and Tanner English.

Seawright took the lead on Lap 1, but behind them, Schlenk was on the move as he charged to the front of the field from fifth on the starting grid. On Lap 6, Schlenk found momentum off the exit of Turn 2 and crossed under Heckenast to take third as he set his sights on the lead duo of Seawright and English.

Schlenk continued to work his way around the 3/8-mile oval on the top side in pursuit of the leaders, and by Lap 13 had closed the gap to their rear bumpers. When Seawright and English both went low in Turns 1 and 2, Schlenk powered by both on the top, getting both cars in one corner to take the lead on Lap 14.

Schlenk hit lap traffic just after the halfway point, but a caution on Lap 17 for a slowing Heckenast in Turn 1 paused the action gave him a clear track for the restart.

English was strong on the bottom as the field went back to green, but Schlenk was too strong on the cushion, pulling away over the final 13 laps and leading the field back around to the checkers.

“Winning is cool but winning in front of your home state crowd is even cooler,” Schenk said. “We moved back to Michigan this year, so I consider this one of our home tracks. I’ve won a lot of races around this place, and it’s always been one of my favorites. I got a whole bunch of fans up in the stands, so to do it in front of them, it’s absolutely huge.”

English finished second, Feger was third, Travis Stemler charged from 12th to finish fourth, and Luke Morey rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals heads to Butler Motor Speedway in Quincy, MI, on Thursday, July 9 for the tour’s second of three stops in the state of Michigan. Tickets for the event will be sold at the track on race day.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 91-Rusty Schlenk[5]; 2. 96-Tanner English[4]; 3. 25-Jason Feger[3]; 4. 4-Travis Stemler[12]; 5. 49-Luke Morey[6]; 6. 42-Chad Finley[11]; 7. 21B-Rich Bell[9]; 8. 51-Devin Shiels[10]; 9. 41-Mike Vandermark Jr[7]; 10. 74-Mitch McGrath[18]; 11. 87-Rich Neiser[17]; 12. 07-Rylee Knoll[22]; 13. 46-Colin Shipley[20]; 14. 27-Eric Spangler[21]; 15. 94-Bill Bray[16]; 16. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 17. 23-Brian Ruhlman[13]; 18. 16S-Sam Seawright[2]; 19. M14-Brandon Thirlby[8]; 20. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[1]; 21. 1*-Kyle Moore[14]; 22. 21N-Logan Nickerson[15]

 

David Stremme Wins First Career Summit Modified Feature at I-96

David Stremme has accomplished a lot in his motorsports career. But never had he won with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals, until now.

Since the days of his career in the top divisions of NASCAR, Stremme has made the commitment to Dirt Modified racing as both a driver and co-owner/founder of popular UMP Modified brand, Lethal Chassis. From Volusia Speedway Park to the high banks of a dirt-covered Bristol Motor Speedway, Stremme has tasted victory on some of the sport’s biggest stages.

Wednesday night at I-96 Speedway, the native of Mifflintown, PA, punched through to win for the first time in his career with UMP Modified racing’s most prestigious touring series.

“It just feels good to run good,” Stremme said. “We’ve had a good car; we just had engine problems last night and didn’t get to run. We still got some work to do, but it is cool to win a Summit Modified race, finally. We’ve had some get away from us, so it’s neat.”

Stremme and Curt Spalding led the 22-car field to green from the front row. Spalding took the lead on Lap 1 and continued to work the top, but Stremme was consistent and fast on the low side of the speedway. On Lap 10, the leaders hit lap traffic, giving Stremme the opportunity he needed as he worked the low side underneath Spalding.

The lead duo went side-by-side around the 3/8-mile oval, and it was Stremme who led by a nose at the line on Lap 11. Spalding refused to go away quietly as the No. 5CS machine worked the middle lane, finding speed and traction to maintain the battle for the lead.

A slip-up off Turn 4 cost Spalding and allowed Stremme to sneak away and build a half-second lead on the field. However, Spalding was persistent in the middle lane and caught Stremme in lap traffic, but the caution flag waved on Lap 22, extinguishing the momentum Spalding had built.

“I just ran my own race and Curt (Spalding) is really good,” Stremme said. “But we’ve been really good in our own stuff, so I just needed to run my own race, my own pace, and I knew I’d be fine.”

The green flag dropped once more and Stremme pulled away from the field, leading the rest of the way to seal the win over Curt Spalding, Tyler Spalding, Dillon Nusbaum in fourth and Mike McKinney rounding out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals head to Butler Motor Speedway in Quincy, MI, on Thursday, July 9.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds if you’re not at the track? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 35-David Stremme[1]; 2. 5CS-Curt Spalding[2]; 3. 1TS-Tyler Spalding[9]; 4. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum[3]; 5. 96M-Mike McKinney[4]; 6. 3W-Dylan Woodling[8]; 7. 49-Brian Ruhlman[6]; 8. 24-Zeke McKenzie[14]; 9. T23-John Toppozini[13]; 10. 60-Shannon Fisk[11]; 11. B5-Matthew Baker[7]; 12. 9R-Garrett Rons[17]; 13. 43-Mark Anderson[5]; 14. 84-Brandon Beeching[15]; 15. 1A-Andrew Hollister[20]; 16. 14T-Mario Toniolo[22]; 17. 87Z-George Zieman[19]; 18. 17J-Jarrod Klay[12]; 19. 12M-John McClure[18]; 20. 14-Dalton Lane[10]; 21. 74M-Manix Furqueron[16]; 22. (DNS) 32H-Dan Hubbell

 

Heckenast Jr. Dominates Montpelier for Seventh Career Summer Nationals Win

MONTPELIER, IN (July 7, 2026) — Frank Heckenast Jr. is turning up the heat on his 2026 DIRTcar Summer Nationals campaign.

Heckenast, of Frankfort, IL, led 27 of 30 laps Tuesday night at Montpelier Speedway for his second win in the last five races. His seventh career Hell Tour triumph solidified a turnaround after starting the season winless in the first 13 events and winless in six consecutive years competing in various Summer Nationals events.

“I didn’t put it in perspective how good everyone I was racing with was at the beginning of the tour,” Heckenast said. “Tanner (English) and Jason (Feger) were extremely good, and then I kind of got off of what I was doing a little. We have always been close, just not really in the hunt. So then the other night at [Red Hill Raceway], I just went right back to where we were the first night and tonight, the same thing and it’s like ‘Okay, I don’t think we slowed down at all here.’ I feel like I slowed us down a little bit there.”

Sam Seawright led the field to green with Heckenast to his outside. Early on, Seawright charged ahead and led the opening lap with Heckenast following close behind.

Heckenast was relentless on the top of the track and worked by Seawright to lead Lap 3. A caution on Lap 5 for a slow car on the front stretch gave Heckenast a clear track on the restart, and he took advantage of it over the next 25 laps.

Heckenast worked the middle of the speedway and found the speed to extend his lead to over three seconds as the laps wound down. In the end, nobody was able to challenge the driver of the No. 99JR and Heckenast cruised to the win in front of a big Indiana crowd.

“I’ve raced a while now, so I’ve seen a lot better and I’ve seen a lot worse,” Heckenast said. “It was alright in the middle there, as far as my opinion, you could have ran around the whole track and never hit a hole. You were just going to be a little bit slower.

“I was shocked going down the front stretch that the white flag was waving, I couldn’t believe it was that quick.”

Kyle Moore charged to second from eighth, Tristan Chamberlain finished third, Rich Bell was fourth, and Mitch McGrath rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals heads to Michigan and Lake Odessa’s I-96 Speedway on Wednesday, July 8.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals if you can’t be at the track? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[2]; 2. 1*-Kyle Moore[8]; 3. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[4]; 4. 21B-Rich Bell[5]; 5. 74-Mitch McGrath[7]; 6. 46-Colin Shipley[18]; 7. 20B-Todd Brennan[16]; 8. 95J-Jerry Bowersock[15]; 9. 18B-Chase Burda[9]; 10. 49-Luke Morey[17]; 11. 51B-Brayden Shiels[20]; 12. 25-Jason Feger[12]; 13. 1-Wayne Chinn[21]; 14. 51-Devin Shiels[10]; 15. 07-Rylee Knoll[11]; 16. 20-Tyler Neal[14]; 17. 16S-Sam Seawright[1]; 18. 91-Rusty Schlenk[3]; 19. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 20. 42-Chad Finley[13]; 21. LIL91-Carter Schlenk[22]; 22. 96-Tanner English[6]

 

Trevor Neville Earns Seventh Career Summit Modifieds Win at Montpelier

Trevor Neville continues to make the most of his momentum with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals, capturing his second win in the last six races.

Neville, of Mackinaw, IL, led the final 23 laps of Tuesday night’s main event Montpelier Speedway, garnering his second victory of the season and seventh of his career.

“We’ve been working hard, we put in 12 or 13 hours yesterday just making sure everything was right, the body, just everything was on point,” Neville said. “Last year we were really grinding and this year we took a little step back and just kind of looked at what was worth it. We’ve come out the gate really good here. We should have had one the other night but that was driver error, so we’ll go on from there.”

Tyler Spalding and Neville started out the 25-lap main event side-by-side around the 1/4-mile oval with Spalding leading the opening lap.

Neville continued his persistence on the outside, finding some momentum to drive around Spalding to lead on Lap 2. Neville washed high exiting Turn 4, opening the door for Spalding to get underneath Neville’s No. 777 to take the lead on Lap 3.

The first five laps saw three lead changes as Neville continued to work the cushion and drove back around Spalding to lead Lap 5.

Over the next 20 laps, Neville continued to build his advantage, pulling away from the field unchallenged enroute to career win No. 7 with the Summit Modifieds.

Spalding finished second, Dillon Nusbaum was third, Dylan Woodling was fourth, and Dalton Smith finished fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals return to action at I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, MI on Wednesday, July 8.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 777-Trevor Neville[2]; 2. 1TS-Tyler Spalding[1]; 3. 17N-Dillon Nusbaum[3]; 4. 3W-Dylan Woodling[7]; 5. 05-Dalton Smith[10]; 6. 24H-Steven Hogue[5]; 7. B5-Matthew Baker[22]; 8. T23-John Toppozini[15]; 9. 4M-Dustin Moore[8]; 10. 9R-Garrett Rons[13]; 11. 22T-Tony Anderson[21]; 12. T5X-Bub Roberts[20]; 13. 14-Dalton Lane[12]; 14. 21C-Drew Charlson[4]; 15. 82-Brennan Sherman[18]; 16. 5CS-Curt Spalding[9]; 17. 2-Garrett Bradley[17]; 18. 166-Travis Shoulders[14]; 19. 25L-Josh Lolmaugh[6]; 20. (DNS) 10-Brody Davis; 21. (DNS) 65-Todd Sherman; 22. (DNS) 24-Zeke McKenzie

 

Tanner English Wins at Kankakee for Third Victory in Last Six Races

KANKAKEE, IL (July 6, 2026) — Over the past four weeks, Tanner English has gone from searching relentlessly for a win to now making a habit of it.

English, of Benton, KY, went winless through the first 11 races of the 2026 DIRTcar Summer Nationals before breaking through at Farmington Empire Speedway one week ago and Highland Speedway three nights later. On Monday night at Kankakee County Speedway, English parked it in Victory Lane for the third time in the last six races, asserting his dominance as the hottest driver currently on the Hell Tour.

“I think we all get in our heads a little bit and think, well, that won’t work because it didn’t work one time,” English said. “Now I am getting more like ‘now that I won that first one, I feel alright, I don’t care if I lose the rest of them if I need to.’ I am just trying to learn and do what needs to be done.”

English and Sam Seawright led the field to green from the front row for the 30-lap main event. Seawright led the opening lap, using the outside lane to propel himself to the lead with English and third-place Carson Ferguson battling directly behind him.

Seawright looked to be in control early on before lap traffic began to play a factor on Lap 12, bringing English and Ferguson right back to the No. 16S in the battle for the lead. English soon found a moisture strip on the bottom of the 1/4-mile oval and used it to pull even with the Coltman Farms Racing machine, briefly taking the lead as they raced down the backstretch.

Seawright battled back with a strong run on the top side through Turns 3 and 4, retaking the lead by a nose at the line on Lap 13. The battled continued on Lap 14 with more side-by-side action; Seawright still holding the top spot. Lap traffic began to thicken over the next few laps as the top three of Seawright, English, and Ferguson now made up the battle for the top spot.

English soon took advantage of Seawright’s struggles in lap traffic and shot by Seawright out of Turn 4 to lead Lap 17. From there, it was all English’s No. 96 out front as he led the final 13 laps unchallenged to pick up his ninth career Summer Nationals Feature win and extend his points lead to 123 over second-place Jason Feger.

“Early on, I found that little traction strip on the bottom and I knew it was probably going to be there the whole race,” English said. “When we got to the lappers, I started following Sam (Seawright), just trying to buy time and keep my tires cool. When he hit lap cars, I made my moves there and it was just the right time. Everything worked out just right, he got hung up by a car on the back stretch and I shot by him and took his line away.”

Ferguson got by for second in the closing laps, Seawright finished third, Feger finished fourth, and Brenden Smith rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals makes its only stop in Indiana at Montpelier Speedway on Tuesday, July 7. Tickets for the event will be sold at the track on race day.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals if you are not at the track? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 96-Tanner English[1]; 2. 93-Carson Ferguson[3]; 3. 16S-Sam Seawright[2]; 4. 25-Jason Feger[5]; 5. 17SS-Brenden Smith[4]; 6. 89-Mike Spatola[7]; 7. 91-Rusty Schlenk[9]; 8. 49-Luke Morey[6]; 9. 130-Chase Osterhoff[8]; 10. 07-Rylee Knoll[14]; 11. 32S-Chris Simpson[11]; 12. 4G-Bob Gardner[13]; 13. 17SR-Brody Smith[10]; 14. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[20]; 15. LIL91-Carter Schlenk[12]; 16. 30-Mark Voigt[22]; 17. M27-Mike Provenzano[18]; 18. 12-Jack Franklin[16]; 19. 21K-Jacob Kolwyck[15]; 20. BK3-Billy Knippenberg III[17]; 21. 729-Mike Winn[23]; 22. Z61-Alex Wilson[19]; 23. 74D-Dan DeYoung[21]; 24. (DNS) 74-Mitch McGrath

 

Steven Brooks Returns to Victory Lane with the Summit Modifieds at Kankakee

It’s been nine years in the making for Steven Brooks, but the hometown favorite has found his way back to DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Victory Lane.

Brooks, of Bourbonnais, IL, first broke through with the UMP Modified series on July 6, 2017. Fast forward to Monday night — almost nine years to-the-day — and he’s done it again, leading the final 15 laps of the main event at his home track of Kankakee County Speedway for his second career series triumph.

“I am on Cloud 9 right now,” Brooks said. “We’ve done this thing for a long time. We’ve chased these wins for a while, and I can’t believe it’s been nine years since we got a Summer Nationals win. To get one here at Kankakee, it’s in our backyard, it’s our home track. I always say I am going to defend the home turf and we got it done, this is so awesome.”

At the start, Mike McKinney and Brooks showed shades of their weekly battles at the Illinois 1/4-mile oval, racing side-by-side for the top spot.

McKinney led the opening lap by a nose as he worked the low lane while Brooks used the top and began to find some momentum. Michael Ledford soon became a factor, taking advantage of Brooks slipping on the top to go by for second.

On Lap 10, lap traffic was in play, and just as Ledford made a move around the outside of McKinney, the caution flew for a car spun in Turns 3 and 4. Brooks found the middle lane on the restart and used it to propel himself to second off Turn 2. Brooks used that momentum to drive to the outside of McKinney, leading Lap 11 by a nose at the line.

A caution on Lap 11 for a three-car pileup saw McKinney head off the racetrack under the yellow with a flat tire. On the restart, Ledford found new life as he worked the bottom and pulled even with Brooks. As the battle for the lead intensified, a new challenger approached as Zeke McKenzie railed the top to make it a three-car duel for the lead.

McKenzie washed high exiting Turn 2, allowing both Brooks and Ledford to get by. As the race continued, Brooks continued to get faster, and he pulled away to over a one-second advantage and crossed the start/finish line to secure the victory.

Ledford finished second, McKenzie extends his points lead with a third-place finish, Curt Spalding was fourth, and Tyler Spalding was fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals returns to action at Montpelier Speedway in Montpelier, IN on Tuesday, July 7.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTViison.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 5-Steven Brooks[2]; 2. 09-Michael Ledford[3]; 3. 24-Zeke McKenzie[5]; 4. 5CS-Curt Spalding[4]; 5. 1TS-Tyler Spalding[15]; 6. 27D-Beau DeYoung[9]; 7. B5-Matthew Baker[6]; 8. 0-Travis Kohler[11]; 9. T23-John Toppozini[14]; 10. 7-Brad DeYoung[10]; 11. 01K-Billy Knippenberg[12]; 12. 77-Ray Bollinger[8]; 13. 48-Adam Pockrus[7]; 14. 310-Guy Sutton[13]; 15. 68W-Damion Wilmoth[16]; 16. 96M-Mike McKinney[1]; 17. 94-Nick Pasek[18]; 18. 40F-Tyler Fengya[20]; 19. (DNS) 25B-Braiden Bohlmann; 20. (DNS) 23B-Ethan Boomsma

 

Brandon Sheppard Dominates Macon to Win Second Herald & Review 100

MACON, IL (July 5, 2026) — One year after coming up short in the quest for his second career Herald & Review 100 victory, Brandon Sheppard returned to Macon Speedway Sunday night and avenged his past defeat.

Sheppard, the 2012 DIRTcar Summer Nationals champion from New Berlin, IL, finished runner-up in the 2025 edition of the historic event after a flat tire ruined his advantage out front and forced him to charge from the tail. This time around, all four tires stayed up through the distance as he dominated the 46th running of the Hell Tour’s crown jewel, becoming the third driver in race history to lead all 100 laps around the 1/5-mile bullring.

“It’s hard to forget the ones that you come so close at, and unfortunately, there are a lot more of those than there are wins in anybody’s career,” Sheppard said. “I think there’s a lot of them that could have been. Our car has just been phenomenal all year, night-in and night-out. Whether it’s in the Rocket 1 or the B5, we were on kill, that’s for sure.

“And then I lost power steering and I am pretty much dead right now; my arms are done. It was all I could do to hang onto it.”

Despite the mechanical malfunction in the home stretch of the race, Sheppard showed the field no mercy from the drop of the green. Starting on the outside pole, he went straight to the cushion around Turns 1 and 2 on the opening lap and drove by Mike Spatola to secure the top spot.

Lap traffic quickly became a factor as Sheppard encountered the tail of the field only nine laps in and began working his way through the slower cars.

The first caution flag waved on Lap 23 for debris, erasing Sheppard’s lead and bringing him back in sight of Spatola and Summer Nationals points leader Tanner English, who were both locked in an intense battle for the runner-up spot.

The ensuing restart marked the beginning of a long green flag run that saw Sheppard extend his lead to over seven seconds at its largest and lap the field up to sixth place.

Even when Sheppard’s power steering system went kaput with under 20 laps remaining, the top five were unable to deplete the B5’s gap. His advantage held until a caution flag on Lap 99 for a slowing Ryan Miller in Turn 3 erased it one final time and put Luke Morey and English on his tail for the restart.

But again, Sheppard was unfazed, driving away under the green, the white, and the checkered flag to collect the $7,500 check and career win No. 29 with the Hell Tour — tying him with the late Scott Bloomquist for seventh on the all-time wins list.

“We come support these races because we love these tracks and our local dirt tracks,” Sheppard said. “These places are close to my heart; I grew up racing here [Macon]. I can remember sitting in the stands and watching the scoreboard during the day because I wasn’t old enough to go into the pits. I’d watch all the winners, and I’d see my uncle Ed come across there.”

Luke Morey crossed in second, English in third, Kyle Hardy in fourth, and Mitch McGrath rounding out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals begins the final week of competition for the 2026 campaign Monday, July 6 at Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, IL. Tickets for the event will be sold at the track on race day.

If you can’t be at the track, how can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

Herald & Review 100 pres. by Pepsi (100 Laps): 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard[2]; 2. 49-Luke Morey[6]; 3. 96-Tanner English[3]; 4. 99-Kyle Hardy[5]; 5. 74-Mitch McGrath[9]; 6. 89-Mike Spatola[1]; 7. 31M-Tyler Millwood[10]; 8. 42W-Mckay Wenger[13]; 9. 15-Clay Stuckey[19]; 10. 25-Jason Feger[7]; 11. 91-Rusty Schlenk[20]; 12. 16-Rusty Griffaw[14]; 13. 17SR-Brody Smith[11]; 14. 30-Mark Voigt[22]; 15. 11M-Ryan Miller[16]; 16. 16S-Sam Seawright[8]; 17. ZT1-Zach Taylor[18]; 18. 17SS-Brenden Smith[4]; 19. 38J-Jake Little[21]; 20. 51B-Brandon Carpenter[17]; 21. 12-Jack Franklin[12]; 22. (DQ) 45-Kyle Hammer[15]

 

Michael Ledford Passes Trevor Neville Late for Macon Win

Trevor Neville was a 1/5-mile away from a second DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals triumph of the season Sunday night at Macon Speedway. And then, one bobble, hop, and a push later, and Michael Ledford was standing in Victory Lane.

Ledford, of Pontiac, IL, stole the win in dramatic fashion as leader Neville stumbled on the cushion in Turn 4 coming to the white flag, opening the door for Ledford’s No. 09 to race on by for the lead and his fifth career Summit Modified Feature win.

“I was pretty committed to running the bottom, it’s where I felt the most comfortable with my car,” Ledford said. “I got fortunate with [Neville] messing up over in turn four, it just worked out.

“This place is really cool, and I really enjoy coming here. Track was great, you could run almost anywhere you wanted to.”

The opening lap was led by polesitter Mike Harrison with Ledford and Neville in tow behind him. On Lap 3, Neville began to make his bid for the lead on Harrison before a caution halted his progress. The restart saw things get exciting as the lead trio went three wide off the exit of Turn 4 after Harrison stumbled on the cushion.

Neville saw the door open and ran through it, coming out on top of the three-car battle as they raced back into Turn 1 on Lap 5. Harrison battled back on the cushion before Neville pulled a slide job to block the charge.

Harrison crossed back under and the two went side-by-side entering Turn 1, making contact and allowing Ledford to reel them back in. Harrison was able to clear Neville again as they went down the backstretch, leading Lap 8.

Right as Neville retook the lead on Lap 9, a caution flag flew, halting the incredible battle for the lead. On the restart, Neville pulled away and looked well on his way to victory before coming to the white flag.

Neville hopped and stumbled on the top side of Turn 3, causing him to wash high in Turn 4 as the white flag waved. Ledford was waiting for any mistake from the leader and got it, sneaking by for the lead on the bottom as he drove across the start/finish line. Neville got his car pointed straight again and charged down the backstretch with speed in an attempt to get the top spot back, but it was too late as Ledford crossed under the checkers.

Neville finished second, Zeke McKenzie finished third, Beau DeYoung was fourth, and Ray Bollinger rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals head to Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, IL on Monday, July 6.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 09-Michael Ledford[3]; 2. 777-Trevor Neville[2]; 3. 24-Zeke McKenzie[5]; 4. 27D-Beau DeYoung[6]; 5. 77-Ray Bollinger[9]; 6. 72A-Austin Lynn[4]; 7. 27E-Dalton Ewing[10]; 8. 27B-Kyle Barker[12]; 9. 0-Damian Kiefer[11]; 10. T23-John Toppozini[14]; 11. 81C-Christopher Cole[16]; 12. 11D-Brian Diveley[7]; 13. 14S-Carter Standerfer[17]; 14. 78-Maxx Emerson[20]; 15. 71-Jeff Graham[13]; 16. 24H-Mike Harrison[1]; 17. 14-Dalton Lane[15]; 18. 21-Lyndon Whitfill[8]; 19. 01-Jeremy Nichols[19]; 20. 24M-Matt Milner[18]; 21. (DNS) 10-Todd O'Neill; 22. (DNS) X75-Dylan Turpin

 

Tanner English Wins Eighth Career Summer Nationals Feature at Highland

HIGHLAND, IL (July 4, 2026) — After fighting race-after-race to break through to Victory Lane once in the first half of the summer, Tanner English only needed three days to do it again.

English, of Benton, KY, endured the first 11 rounds of the 2026 DIRTcar Summer Nationals with 10 top-five finishes and eight podiums, but no wins. He finally broke through Wednesday night in Missouri and did it again Saturday night at Highland Speedway to bank his eighth career Hell Tour victory.

“I made a couple moves there about halfway through the race that was probably the game changer,” English said. “I’ve been pretty conservative; I’m trying to wrap this points deal up. Trying not to make any stupid moves, so I could’ve ran harder but I didn’t have to.”

Early in the 40-lap Feature it was Sam Seawright and Jordan Bauer who battled for the lead. Bauer edged ahead as they entered Turn 3, but Seawright threw a slide job in Turn 4 that cleared Bauer’s No. 10J and gave him the lead on Lap 1 by a nose.

Bauer battled back to the inside of Seawright as they drove back into Turn 1, but the No. 16S maintained the top spot with a great run off Turn 2. For the next 30 laps, Seawright paced the field through lapped traffic until disaster struck for the Fort Payne, AL-driver on Lap 32 as he made contact with a slower car and spun to a stop in Turns 1 and 2, ending his hopes at a second Summer Nationals triumph.

Before the caution flag was thrown, English had worked his way past Bauer and into the runner-up spot and was beginning to trim Seawright’s gap of over four seconds at its largest. When Seawright retired to the pits after his incident, English inherited the lead with eight circuits remaining.

The green flag dropped and English pulled away from the field, leading the rest of the distance and driving off with a $10,000 check.

“I hate that for [Seawright], I have lost them like that before too. It sucks, but I am glad I was there to capitalize,” English said. “Sam had a four [NLMT tire], I think he was the only one so that might’ve sent him off; he really took off. When that four fired, he was going, so I guess I was the best car with a three on. I felt like at the beginning of the night, I made a few wrong moves on setup, it slicked off a lot better than I thought it would.”

Tyler Millwood was second, Rusty Schlenk was third, Daryn Klein was fourth, and Bauer finished fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals wrap up Week 4 at Macon Speedway on Sunday, July 5 in the 46th annual Herald & Review 100.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (40 Laps): 1. 96-Tanner English[4]; 2. 31M-Tyler Millwood[3]; 3. 91-Rusty Schlenk[8]; 4. 10-Daryn Klein[6]; 5. 10J-Jordan Bauer[2]; 6. 25-Jason Feger[16]; 7. 49-Luke Morey[12]; 8. 15-Clay Stuckey[11]; 9. 89-Mike Spatola[9]; 10. 74-Mitch McGrath[15]; 11. 26-Jordan Suhre[17]; 12. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 13. (DNF) 52-Matt Bailey[7]; 14. (DNF) 51B-Brandon Carpenter[5]; 15. (DNF) 17SR-Brody Smith[14]; 16. (DNF) 16S-Sam Seawright[1]; 17. (DNF) T4-Adam Tischhauser[13]; 18. (DNF) LIL91-Carter Schlenk[18]; 19. (DNF) 99-Kyle Hardy[22]; 20. (DNF) 51-Dean Carpenter[10]; 21. (DNF) 35-Claude Walker[21]; 22. (DNF) 6K-Michael Kloos[20]

 

Mike Harrison Dominates Highland for Summit Modified Career Win No. 64

There are few things that are as automatic as Mike Harrison is at Highland Speedway.

Harrison, the six-time DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals champion from Highland, IL, led all 25 laps of Saturday’s main event to bank his ninth career Summit Modified triumph at Highland and his 64th career series victory.

“I’ve got more laps around this place than anybody in the Modifieds here,” Harrison said. “This is like home to me. I literally live right here in town, I made my first start here and I’ll probably make my last start here. It’s always fun coming back home and especially when you’re racing in front of a Summer Nationals crowd. It’s always fun winning in front of the hometown.”

Harrison shot to the lead at the drop of the green flag, turning away a challenge from Ray Bollinger to lead the opening lap. A multi-car stack-up in Turn 1 forced a restart on Lap 2, which Harrison swiftly handled as Zeke McKenzie took the runner-up spot from Bollinger behind him.

For the next 23 laps, Harrison put on a clinic, extending his gap on the field up to over three seconds at its largest before crossing under the checkered flag nearly two-and-a-half seconds over McKenzie in second, Bollinger in third, Jacob Steinkoenig in fourth, and Damian Kiefer, who rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals returns to action Sunday, July 5 at Macon Speedway.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 24H-Mike Harrison[1]; 2. 24-Zeke McKenzie[3]; 3. 77-Ray Bollinger[2]; 4. 24S-Jacob Steinkoenig[6]; 5. 0-Damian Kiefer[5]; 6. 14C-Rick Conoyer[18]; 7. 5S-Owen Steinkoenig[8]; 8. 95S-Rick Salter[4]; 9. 87Z-Zeb Moake[7]; 10. 51-Timmy Hill[11]; 11. 94-Mark Clary[10]; 12. 787-Cody Zobrist[15]; 13. T23-John Toppozini[14]; 14. 21T-Talen Beard[16]; 15. 88L-Christian Lee[22]; 16. 19S-Nathan Schmitt[20]; 17. (DNF) 52-Billy Knebel[17]; 18. (DNF) 25X-Kyle Helmick[9]; 19. (DNF) 29-Chris Spalding[13]; 20. (DNF) E55-Chad Sellers[12]; 21. (DNF) 816-Travis Raterman[19]; 22. (DNF) 45S-Chandler Smith[21]

 

Frank Heckenast Jr. Ends Six-Year Summer Nationals Dry Spell at Red Hill

SUMNER, IL (July 3, 2026) — It’s been nearly six years since Frank Heckenast Jr. tasted victory with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. Friday night at Red Hill Raceway, the drought finally came to an end.

Heckenast, of Frankfort, IL, took the lead on Lap 12 of the main event and never looked back, winning by over five seconds at the big, 4/10-mile oval for career win No. 6 during the 40th anniversary season of the Hell Tour.

“Six years, sixth win — that’s a long time,” Heckenast said. “I’ve had a lot of seconds and a lot of thirds; these are just hard to win. People think if they just show up, they’re gonna win one because they’re out on the road or something. It’s not that easy.”

Heckenast took the green flag from the pole with two-time series champion Jason Feger starting to his outside. Feger got the jump on the initial start of the race but a caution for two cars tangling brought a complete restart with no laps completed.

Feger got another good launch on the second try at the start and looked to be in control until things got dicey in lap traffic on Lap 11. Series points leader, Tanner English, had worked his way into second and was challenging for the lead before a caution slowed that charge.

While Feger maintained the lead on the Lap 11 restart, Heckenast made the move on English for second down the backstretch. As the top three crossed the start/finish line to complete Lap 12, Feger slowed dramatically, revealing a flat right-rear tire as the caution was thrown once again.

With Feger in the pits for repairs, Heckenast inherited the lead for the restart with 26 laps left. What came next was domination from the No. 99JR, leading the rest of the distance unchallenged for his first Summer Nationals win since August 2020.

“I got into a little argument with my dad because I thought we needed two or three tenths in the heat there because Babb and Feger showed three more tenths than we did,” Heckenast said. “But the car felt good, steered good. Not sure what tires everyone put on; we didn’t even look. It was one of those nights where we had the phones down and the heads down and went with the feel of our ass and it worked out.”

English finished second, Sam Seawright finished third, Kyle Hardy was fourth, and Clay Stuckey finished sixth. Feger rebounded from the flat tire to finish sixth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals celebrates July 4 at Highland Speedway in Highland, IL on Saturday.

How can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (40 Laps): 1. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[1]; 2. 96-Tanner English[4]; 3. 16S-Sam Seawright[9]; 4. 99-Kyle Hardy[8]; 5. 15-Clay Stuckey[5]; 6. 25-Jason Feger[2]; 7. 51B-Brandon Carpenter[10]; 8. 74-Mitch McGrath[13]; 9. 31M-Tyler Millwood[6]; 10. 17SR-Brody Smith[18]; 11. 82B-Jason Milam[16]; 12. (DNF) 49-Luke Morey[15]; 13. (DNF) K67-Braiden Keller[12]; 14. (DNF) 17W-Lee Williams[11]; 15. (DNF) 81-Logan Mounce[20]; 16. (DNF) 51-Dean Carpenter[7]; 17. (DNF) 17-Jarrett Jones[14]; 18. (DNF) 80-Tucker Chastain[19]; 19. (DNF) 18-Shannon Babb[3]; 20. (DNF) 67-Gregory Carrico[23]; 21. (DNF) LIL91-Carter Schlenk[22]; 22. (DNF) 91-Rusty Schlenk[17]; 23. (DNF) 30-Mark Voigt[21]

 

Cole Falloway Scores First Summit Modified Win of 2026 at Red Hill

Kentucky native Cole Falloway stormed into Illinois’ Red Hill Raceway Friday night and emerged a Feature winner with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals for the first time in 2026.

Falloway, of Owensboro, KY, made the pass for the lead slightly before the halfway point of the main event and never looked back, banking his fourth career Summit Modified Feature win.

Ray Bollinger led the field into Turn 1 before a two-car tangle in Turns 1 and 2 restacked the field for a complete restart.

Bollinger again took control of the race on the second attempt at the start until a Lap 9 red flag for a Christopher Cole tip over brought the race to a stop.

On the restart, Bollinger pulled away once more before slowing briefly in Turn 2, allowing Falloway drive by for the lead down the back stretch on Lap 11.

Falloway extended the advantage out to over five seconds over the remainder of the distance and crossed under the checkered flag for his second DIRTcar UMP Modified win at Red Hill in 2026.

“That red was good because my stuff was running a little hot before that, so it gave it a chance to come back down,” Falloway said. “I was kind of just biding my time behind [Bollinger], seeing where I could make a little bit more speed than he was. I don’t know what happened, he went off the pace, and I got into him a little bit. And then he got back going.”

Bollinger finished second, Zeke McKenzie was third, Levi Kissinger was fourth, and Matthew Baker rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals return to action on July 4 at Highland Speedway in Highland, IL.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 66-Cole Falloway[3]; 2. 77-Ray Bollinger[1]; 3. 24-Zeke McKenzie[4]; 4. 95K-Levi Kissinger[2]; 5. B5-Matthew Baker[6]; 6. 27G-Jason Garver[5]; 7. 37-Everett Bradham[7]; 8. 744-Justin Jones[11]; 9. 91K-Cody Kibby[8]; 10. (DNF) 2X-Wes Harms[15]; 11. (DNF) 7815-Brandon Justus[10]; 12. (DNF) 81C-Christopher Cole[9]; 13. (DNF) 43A-Larry Anderson[14]; 14. (DNF) 81K-Kyle Cole[13]; 15. (DNF) 22-Jordan Borgmann[16]; 16. (DNS) 118-Dustin Atchison

 

Jason Feger Earns Milestone Summer Nationals Win No. 40 at Lincoln

LINCOLN, IL (July 2, 2026) — Milestone moments rarely come easy. Jason Feger had to work for a big one Thursday night at Lincoln Speedway, topping a thrilling, three-car battle for the lead and going on to his 40th career DIRTcar Summer Nationals Feature win.

Feger, the two-time Hell Tour champion from Bloomington, IL, made the most of a restart just past the halfway point to get by Sam Seawright and race-long Tanner English in a race that had the crowd on their feet before driving off with his fifth Feature win of the summer.

“When it’s right, Lincoln puts on a heck of a show,” Feger said. “I feel like a lot of times it can get a little top dominant, but usually when you can keep the bottom around and run the top like that, it’s a lot of fun. The top is just skinny and technical, so it’s not like anyone can get up there and do really good.”

A Lap 18 debris caution was the catalyst for a thrilling battle for the lead that started with current points leader English leading the opening 18 laps.

What happened next was nothing short of spectacular as the field restarted with just 12-to-go. Seawright dove under English entering Turn 3 and threw a big slide job on the No. 96 before making contact with the outside wall in Turn 4 and allowing English to slip back by to his inside.

As English and Seawright continued their battle, Feger soon reeled-in both drivers to make it a three-car duel for the top spot.

Feger rolled the bottom and attempted to pick off both as the exited Turn 2 with just 10 laps to go. The lead trio went three wide down the backstretch, splitting Seawright and leaving the top two in points side-by-side as they entered Turn 3.

Feger then executed a slide job of his own on English, bouncing off the Turn 4 wall and speeding down the front stretch to take the lead on Lap 21. From there, it was all Feger and his No. 25 out front as he went on to lead the final 10 laps and pick up the win in front of his home-state crowd.

“I didn’t think my car was that good; I was just trying to be really patient, and I knew there was a few different tire combinations there, and I wasn’t sure what was going to play out,” Feger said. “I was really struggling to get off the bottom like I wanted to, I didn’t think we had anything for [English]. I raced Sam (Seawright) hard because I wanted that row on the restart. I got to the bottom on the restart and everything I needed to happen, happened.”

English finished second, Jake Little rallied for third, Luke Morey was fourth, and Trey Mills rounded out the top five.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models head to Red Hill Raceway in Sumner, IL, on Friday, July 3. Tickets for the event will be sold at the track on race day.

How else can you watch the DIRTcar Summer Nationals? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 25-Jason Feger[5]; 2. 96-Tanner English[1]; 3. 38J-Jake Little[9]; 4. 49-Luke Morey[8]; 5. 14JR-Trey Mills[4]; 6. 16S-Sam Seawright[2]; 7. 91-Rusty Schlenk[3]; 8. 45-Kyle Hammer[10]; 9. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[15]; 10. 99-Kyle Hardy[12]; 11. 21B-Rich Bell[16]; 12. 74-Mitch McGrath[11]; 13. 17SR-Brody Smith[21]; 14. 37L-Michael Ledford[13]; 15. 31M-Tyler Millwood[14]; 16. 15-Clay Stuckey[18]; 17. 09-Michael Leach[19]; 18. 89-Mike Spatola[6]; 19. 30-Mark Voigt[20]; 20. 74X-Ethan Dotson[7]; 21. 51B-Brandon Carpenter[17]; 22. 75-Daniel Adam[22]

 

Trevor Neville Wins at Lincoln for Sixth Career Summit Modified Win

Trevor Neville came into Lincoln Speedway hungry for the taste of victory. After 25 laps around the Illinois bullring, consider his hunger satisfied.

Neville, of Mackinaw, IL, hadn’t won in DIRTcar Modified competition since May. But on Thursday night, the 25-year-old capitalized on his pole starting position to end the drought in a big way with his first Feature win with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals in over a year.

“We’re just doing this for fun this year,” Neville said. “We decided to catch the back half of this, we were working on stuff and decided to have some fun. This tour is what makes or breaks people on this whole deal because the back-to-back racing makes you a better driver.”

The green flag dropped on the main event and into the lead went polesitter Austin Friedman, leading the opening lap with Neville in tow.

Neville quickly battled back and pulled even down the backstretch as the lead duo went side-by-side around the 1/4-mile oval. Friedman tried to slide up as they exited Turn 4, but Neville had the outside lane momentum and cleared Friedman before crossing the start/finish line to lead Lap 2.

Multiple cautions throughout the race forced Neville’s No. 777 to maintain the lead through multiple restarts, but he stood tall each time and kept the field behind him.

Neville went the rest of the way uncontested, leading the final 23 laps for his first win with the series since June 2025 at Peoria Speedway.

Steven Brooks finished second, Zeke McKenzie third, Ray Bollinger fourth, and Carson Friedman was fifth.

UP NEXT

The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals head to Red Hill Raceway in Sumner, IL on Friday, July 3.

How can you watch the Summit Modifieds? Every race is live on DIRTVision.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 777-Trevor Neville[1]; 2. 5-Steven Brooks[4]; 3. 24-Zeke McKenzie[7]; 4. 77-Ray Bollinger[12]; 5. 389-Carson Friedman[3]; 6. 10K-Kelly Kovski[10]; 7. 150-Collin Alexander[6]; 8. 21-Lyndon Whitfill[5]; 9. 2-Brayden Doyle[8]; 10. 01-Jeremy Nichols[13]; 11. 25W-Allen Weisser[9]; 12. 96M-Mike McKinney[14]; 13. B5-Matthew Baker[20]; 14. 27G-Jason Garver[21]; 15. 01K-Billy Knippenberg[19]; 16. 11D-Brian Diveley[23]; 17. 14L-Brian Lynn[15]; 18. 89-Austin Friedman[2]; 19. 110-Landen Miller[17]; 20. 97-Charles Hess[16]; 21. 35-Brandon Roberts[11]; 22. 9S-Ken Schrader[18]; 23. (DNS) 19C-Carter Sinkhorn; 24. (DNS) 14-Dalton Lane

 

 

 SUMMIt RACING MODIFIED NATIONALS

   

www.dirtcarsummernationals.com

Summit Modified Nationals is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners. Official partners include,Summit Racing Equipment, Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Racing Electronics (Official Radio Supplier), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel).  Also supported by : AMKUS, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Bassett Racing Wheel, Bell Helmets, Beyea Custom Headers, COMP Cams, Fast Shafts, FIREBULL,Fox Factory, Indiana Decal Company, Intercomp, Jerovetz Motorsports Shock Service, KSE Racing Products, Mark Martin Automotive, MSD, Multi Fire X, Schoenfeld Headers, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Velocita USA, WELD Racing, Wieland (Exclusive Racing Aluminum), and Xceldyne.

 

 

The Super DIRTcar Series 

http://www.superdirtweek.com

The Super DIRTcar Series is brought to fans by many important sponsors and partners. Official partners include, DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Racing Electronics (Official Radio Supplier), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider), Toyota (Official Vehicle), and VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel).  Also supported by : AMKUS, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), ASI Race Wear, Behrent's Performance Warehouse, Bicknell Racing Products, Billy Whittaker Cars & Trux, Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, DIG Race, ESI Equipment - FIREBULL, Fox Factory, Intercomp, JAM Performance, MD3, Milton Hershey School, MSD, SRI / SCAS, Swift Springs, Wieland (Exclusive Racing Aluminum), and WIX Filters.

 

 

ADDED PRESSURE: All Roads Lead to Oswego in DIRTcar Pro Stock Championship Chase
The 2026 edition of the I Love NY 50 will be on Friday, Oct. 9 at Oswego Speedway

joe Grabianowski

OSWEGO, NY (July 15, 2026) – The prestige that comes with winning at Super DIRT Week is a major accomplishment for any driver. But for the DIRTcar Pro Stock Series competitors, it’s not the only milestone they’ll chase during “Racing’s Biggest Party.”

The Series champion will be crowned after the DIRTcar Pro Stock I Love NY 50 at Oswego Speedway on Friday, Oct. 9, adding to the pressure of racing on the Northeast’s biggest stage.

Jason Casey, who’s currently second in the Series standings, hasn’t had to worry about points at Oswego in the past few seasons. However, the Canaan, CT driver said he knows exactly how he’ll approach it if he’s in contention in October.

“It means we can’t hold anything back,” Casey said. “You have to get to the front. And especially after a rough night, things will be tight. You just have to go for it.

“There’s a lot of good guys and a lot of competition, and that’s why we like to travel with everybody.”

Last year’s title fight came down to the final laps at Oswego, with five guys mathematically eligible to hoist the championship trophy. In the end, Pete Stefanski emerged at the top, using a second-place finish to beat Tyler Bushey by 10 points.

Despite being on the losing end of the battle, Bushey said he knows what to expect if he gets another chance in 2026.

“There was a lot of pressure that day,” Bushey said. “And then Lap 1, we get a flat tire, and it got out of control after that. We made it back up to eighth, but wasn’t quite good enough. It was quite the experience.

“To get back in that position is always tough. You don’t want to take it for granted. We just need to work hard and hope that we can get there.”

Even with Bushey’s misfortune, Stefanski still almost lost the 2026 title by mere inches. The North Tonawanda, NY driver had to avoid a spinning Kyle Hoard and narrowly missed being caught in a multi-car pile-up. 

“It’s a lot of pressure,” Stefanski said. “We’ve been doing it a long time, so we’re not too intimidated by too much pressure. But you still have to run good at every race, so putting it into one race is tough to do.”

While eyes were focused on the battle for the 2026 championship, last year’s I Love NY 50 winner, Devon Camenga led every lap to earn his first career Super DIRT Week win and first DIRTcar Pro Stock Series victory.

Now that he’s got the victory on his resume, the Troy, NY driver, who’s currently third in points, said he hopes it comes down to the wire again.

“I think it’s better for the fans,” Camenga said. “I think it’s better for the drivers to make sure everyone crosses their t’s, dots their I’s, and their lower-case j’s. I don’t know if I want five guys racing for a title, but it’d be cool to have a couple of guys who are all battling it out until the end.”

The DIRTcar Pro Stock Series has nine races remaining in the 2026 season, culminating at Super DIRT Week 54 with the DIRTcar Pro Stock I Love NY 50 on Friday, Oct. 9.

GET SUPER DIRT WEEK TICKETS HERE

Where can you watch Super DIRT Week 54? Live on DIRTVision.

2026 DIRTcar Pro Stock Series Schedule

Sunday, April 26/Utica-Rome Speedway/Vernon, NY- A.J. Walters
Saturday, May 30/Autodrome Drummond/Drummondville, QC- Sid Harmer Jr.
Tuesday, July 7/Cornwall Motor Speedway/Long Sault, ON- Bastien Caron
Wednesday, July 8/Mohawk International Raceway/Akwesasne, ON- Zack Daniels
Monday, Aug. 17/Brewerton Speedway/Central Square, NY
Saturday, Aug. 22/Lebanon Valley Speedway/West Lebanon, NY
Sunday, Aug. 23/Glen Ridge Motorsports Park/Fultonville, NY
Saturday, Sept. 19/Mohawk International Raceway/Akwesasne, NY
Saturday, Sept. 26/Albany-Saratoga Speedway/Malta, NY

For a look at the DIRTcar Pro Stock Series points standings, CLICK HERE. 

ARTICLE: https://superdirtweek.com/dirtcar-ne/pro-stocks/added-pressure-all-roads-lead-to-oswego-in-dirtcar-pro-stock-championship-chase/

EVENT INFO: https://superdirtweek.com
 

FAN 101: https://about.dirtcar.com/

 

 

  SUMMER NATIONALS LATE MODEL SERIES SUMMIt RACING MODIFIED NATIONALS  The Super DIRTcar Series 

Week #1
Tuesday, June 9 | Brownstown Bullring | Brownstown, IL
Wednesday, June 10 | Kankakee County Speedway | Kankakee, IL
Thursday, June 11 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, IL
Friday, June 12 | Tri-City Speedway | Granite City, IL
Saturday, June 13 | Fairbury Speedway | Fairbury, IL
Sunday, June 14 | Sycamore Speedway | Maple Park, IL (Late Models only)

Week #2
Monday, June 15 | Wilmot Raceway | Wilmot, WI (Late Models only)
Tuesday, June 16 | West Liberty Raceway | West Liberty, IA (Late Models only)
Wednesday, June 17 | Davenport Speedway | Davenport, IA (Late Models only)
Thursday, June 18 | Dubuque Fairgrounds Speedway | Dubuque, IA (Late Models only)
Friday, June 19 | Farmer City Raceway | Farmer City, IL
Saturday, June 20 | I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park | Pevely, MO
Sunday, June 21 | Lincoln Speedway | Lincoln, IL

Week #3
Monday, June 22 | Poplar Bluff Motorsports Park | Poplar Bluff, MO
Tuesday, June 23 | Benton Speedway | Benton, MO
Wednesday, June 24 | Quincy Raceways | Quincy, IL
Thursday, June 25 | Springfield Raceway | Springfield, MO (Late Models only)
Friday, June 26 | Paducah International Raceway | Paducah, KY
Saturday, June 27 | Tri-State Speedway | Haubstadt, IN
Sunday, June 28 | Windy Hollow Speedway | Owensboro, KY

Week #4
Monday, June 29 | Camden Speedway | Camden, TN
Tuesday, June 30 | TBA
Wednesday, July 1 | TBA
Thursday, July 2 | LaSalle Speedway | LaSalle, IL
Friday, July 3 | Red Hill Raceway | Sumner, IL
Saturday, July 4 | Highland Speedway | Highland, IL
Sunday, July 5 | Macon Speedway | Macon, IL

Week #5
Monday, July 6 | TBA
Tuesday, July 7 | Montpelier Speedway | Montpelier, IN
Wednesday, July 8 | I-96 Speedway | Lake Odessa, MI
Thursday, July 9 | Butler Motor Speedway | Quincy, MI
Friday, July 10 | Crystal Motor Speedway | Crystal, MI
Saturday, July 11 | Oakshade Raceway | Wauseon, OH
Sunday, July 12 | Wayne County Speedway | Orrville, OH (Late Model Championship Finale)

36th Annual Prairie Dirt Classic (Modified Championship Finale)
Friday-Saturday, July 24-25 | Fairbury Speedway | Fairbury, IL

 

 Copyright 2002- 2026 Motorsportsgarage productions

no part of site site can be copied or duplicated without written permission from Motorsportsgarage productions

all logos and images are copyrighted to the racing series and used for editorial purposes only

   

              

follow up on

This site is dedicated to my father " hoot " who introduced me to the Great sport of auto racing when I was a very young child

Thru the years I have befriended several people Thru Racing that have passed on and I honor them here

Larrt Criss. Charlie Patterson. Carrol Horton, Todd shaffer, gary lee and Judy Morris