WHAT TO WATCH FOR: American Sprint Car Series Points Battles Intensify Ahead of Arkansas Doubleheader

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

BATESVILLE, AR (July 7, 2026) — The home state of the American Sprint Car Series returns to stir the championship hunt with a two-day swing in the heart of Summer.

The ASCS National Tour visit to Arkansas will begin at Batesville Motor Speedway on Friday, July 10, to make up for a postponement from the previous month. After the battle at the 3/8-mile dirt oval, the Series heads to the state line on Saturday as Texarkana 67 Speedway hosts the Ralph Henson Memorial on July 11.

Tickets for Batesville will be available at the track on Friday, while you can purchase tickets for Texarkana online. Hot Laps at Batesville will begin at 7:30 p.m CT, and Texarkana will start at 7 p.m on Saturday.

BATESVILLE INFO

TEXARKANA TICKETS

WATCH ON DIRTVISION

Here are the top storylines to look for:

Razorback Heritage – The American Sprint Car Series owes much of its history to “The Natural State” by helping Emmett Hahn’s vision come to life at Little Rock, AR’s I-30 Speedway on May 15, 1993.

In the 35th season of ASCS racing, Arkansas will see the National Tour visit twice in 2026 with the Batesville and Texarkana doubleheader, then Riverside International Speedway is slated for racing with King of the Ditch II on August 22.

On Saturday, Texarkana will honor the life of Ralph Henson, a Little Rock native who raced motorcycles and Sprint Cars around the state until his passing in 2007. Originally held on the same weekend as the Short Track Nationals at I-30 Speedway beginning in 2008, the event was moved to Texarkana after I-30 closed in 2022 and has remained an ASCS staple event.

Sweeping Belleville – Sam Hafertepe Jr. silenced the questions about when his first American Sprint Car Series Feature win was going to arrive in 2026 with a dominating weekend in The Big One at Belleville High Banks.

The Sunnyvale, TX native had a perfect run on both Friday and Saturday by leading a combined 40 laps between the night’s Features to leave the month of June with a $14,000 deposit and an even score of 90 in career Series wins.

The pilot of the Hill’s Racing Team No. 15H extended the points lead to 52 over Matt Covington as he seeks a first win at Batesville with previous National Tour finishes of second and fifth. At Texarkana, he’s gunning for a third-straight National Tour win with victories the past two years.

Knocking Podiums – Matt Covington is looking for his second win of the season since he last parked in Victory Lane at Central Arizona Raceway.

That hasn’t stopped him from placing the Triple X Chassis No. 95 on the podium, finishing within the top three in four of the past five Features.

While the deficit to Hafertepe has widened, the Glenpool, OK driver looks to the Arkansas weekend as a chance to swing momentum in his direction. He’s never finished outside of the top-10 at Batesville with a career-high of third in 2024. Covington won at Texarkana in 2012 with the former ASCS Lone Star Region and has finished on the podium at the track in the last two National Tour visits.

Making Moves – The halfway mark of the 2026 American Sprint Car Series approaches as the full-time competitors seek to improve their place inside the championship’s top-10.

While Whit Gastineau finished seventh on Friday and a runner-up on Saturday at Belleville, Kyler Johnson’s finishes of 12th and ninth, respectively, moved the Moore, OK native ahead by 39 points for fourth place.

Between sixth and ninth place in the rundown stands a 26-point difference that includes Ryder LaPlante, Brogan Carder, Austyn Gossel, and Terry Easum. Easum has the best finish at Batesville of the four drivers with a sixth-place run from 2025, while Gossel has the highest result at Texarkana with an eighth in 2024.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

WHEN AND WHERE

Friday, July 10, at Batesville Motor Speedway in Batesville, AR

Saturday, July 11, at Texarkana 67 Speedway in Texarkana, AR

AROUND THE CORNER

Saturday, July 25, at Dodge City Raceway Park in Dodge City, KS

CURRENT TOP-10 STANDINGS

Sam Hafertepe Jr. (1457pts)
Matt Covington (-52)
Seth Bergman (-68)
Whit Gastineau (-205)
Kyler Johnson (-244)
Ryder LaPlante (-364)
Brogan Carder (-370)
Austyn Gossel (-386)
Terry Easum (-390)
Cole Schroeder (-419)

FEATURE WINNERS (9 Drivers)

2 wins – Sam Hafertepe Jr., Seth Bergman, Justin Peck, Tyler Courtney

1 win – Blake Hahn, Chris Martin, Brady Bacon, Levi Hillier, Matt Covington

FEATURE LAPS LED (16 Drivers)

52 laps – Justin Peck

43 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr.

30 laps – Levi Hillier, Blake Hahn

22 laps – Chris Martin

21 laps – Austin McCarl

20 laps – Seth Bergman

19 laps – Matt Covington

18 laps – Brady Bacon

16 laps – Cameron Martin

13 laps – Brian Brown

10 laps – Kyler Johnson

9 laps – Whit Gastineau

7 laps – Cole Macedo

6 laps – Tyler Courtney

3 laps – Sean McClelland

QUICK TIME AWARDS (7 Drivers)

6 awards – Sam Hafertepe Jr

1 award – Seth Bergman, Howard Moore, Chris Martin, Levi Hillier, Kyler Johnson, Matt Covington

HEAT RACE WINNERS (23 Drivers)

5 wins – Matt Covington

4 wins – Seth Bergman

3 wins – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Whit Gastineau, Garrett Benson

2 wins – Chris Martin, Justin Peck

1 win – Jordan Mallett, Sean McClelland, Cam Martin, Brady Bacon, Tyler Clem, Emerson Axsom, Brian Brown, Cole Macedo, Garen Linder, Colby Copeland, Nick Parker, Hank Davis, Ryder Laplante, JJ Hickle, Kyler Johnson, Alex Hill, Jeremy Campbell, Blake Hahn, Kade Morton, Alex Sewell

DASH STARTS (34 Drivers)

11 starts – Sam Hafertepe Jr

9 starts – Matt Covington

6 starts – Kyler Johnson, Seth Bergman, Whit Gastineau

4 starts – Levi Hillier

3 starts – Chris Martin, Tyler Courtney, Brian Brown, Justin Peck

2 starts – Camerson Martin, Emerson Axsom, Austin McCarl, Brady Bacon, Davie Franek, Garrett Benson

1 start – Jordan Mallett, Howard Moore, Paul Solomon, Brock Zearfoss, Cole Macedo, Tyler Clem, Hank Davis, Ryder Laplante, Nick Parker, Colby Copeland, Garen Linder, JJ Hickle, Alex Hill, Blake Hahn, Alex Sewell, Kade Morton, Jeremy Campbell, Bryant Wiedeman

SMITH TITANIUM LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (7 Drivers)

2 wins – Braxton Weger

1 win – DJ Christie, Matt Covington, Tyler Clem, Whit Gastineau, Sterling Cling, Gage Montgomery

HARD CHARGER AWARDS (11 Drivers)

2 awards – Whit Gastineau

1 award – Seth Bergman, Ryder Laplante, Brady Bacon, Cole Macedo, Sam Hafertepe Jr., DJ Netto, Brogan Carder, Joe B. Miller, Bradley Fezard, Hayden Mabe, Jack Thomas

PODIUM FINISHES (18 Drivers)

7 podiums – Sam Hafertepe Jr.

6 podiums – Matt Covington

3 podiums – Justin Peck, Seth Bergman

2 podiums – Tyler Courtney, Brady Bacon, Austin McCarl, Levi Hillier, Whit Gastineau

1 podium – Cole Macedo, Emerson Axsom, Brock Zearfoss, Kyler Johnson, JJ Hickle, Jordan Mallett, Chris Martin, Blake Hahn, Alex Sewell, Garrett Benson

2026 AMERICAN SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE + WINNERS

Date / Track / City, State / Winner (Total Wins)

Thu, Jan. 29 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney
Fri, Jan. 30 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney (2)
Mon, Feb. 2 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Brady Bacon
Sat, Feb. 21 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Justin Peck
Sun, Feb. 21 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Matt Covington
Sat, Feb. 28 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Justin Peck (2)
Sun, Mar. 1 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Levi Hillier
Sat, Apr. 11 / Salina Highbanks Speedway / Salina, OK / Chris Martin
Fri, May 8 / Benton Speedway / Benton, MO / Seth Bergman
Fri, June 5 / Creek County Speedway / Sapulpa, OK / Blake Hahn
Sat, June 6 / 81 Speedway / Park City, KS / Seth Bergman (2)
Fri, June 26 / Belleville High Banks / Belleville, KS / Sam Hafertepe Jr.
Sat, June 27 / Belleville High Banks / Belleville, KS / Sam Hafertepe Jr. (2)

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: American Sprint Car Series Points Battles Intensify Ahead of Arkansas Doubleheader BATESVILLE, AR (July 7, 2026) — The home state of the American Sprint Car Series returns to stir the championship hunt with a two-day swing in the heart of Summer.

BATESVILLE INFO

TEXARKANA TICKETS

WATCH ON DIRTVISION

Here are the top storylines to look for:

Knocking Podiums – Matt Covington is looking for his second win of the season since he last parked in Victory Lane at Central Arizona Raceway.

That hasn’t stopped him from placing the Triple X Chassis No. 95 on the podium, finishing within the top three in four of the past five Features.

Making Moves – The halfway mark of the 2026 American Sprint Car Series approaches as the full-time competitors seek to improve their place inside the championship’s top-10.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

WHEN AND WHERE

Friday, July 10, at Batesville Motor Speedway in Batesville, AR

Saturday, July 11, at Texarkana 67 Speedway in Texarkana, AR

AROUND THE CORNER

Saturday, July 25, at Dodge City Raceway Park in Dodge City, KS

CURRENT TOP-10 STANDINGS

Sam Hafertepe Jr. (1457pts)
Matt Covington (-52)
Seth Bergman (-68)
Whit Gastineau (-205)
Kyler Johnson (-244)
Ryder LaPlante (-364)
Brogan Carder (-370)
Austyn Gossel (-386)
Terry Easum (-390)
Cole Schroeder (-419)

FEATURE WINNERS (9 Drivers)

2 wins – Sam Hafertepe Jr., Seth Bergman, Justin Peck, Tyler Courtney

1 win – Blake Hahn, Chris Martin, Brady Bacon, Levi Hillier, Matt Covington

FEATURE LAPS LED (16 Drivers)

52 laps – Justin Peck

43 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr.

30 laps – Levi Hillier, Blake Hahn

22 laps – Chris Martin

21 laps – Austin McCarl

20 laps – Seth Bergman

19 laps – Matt Covington

18 laps – Brady Bacon

16 laps – Cameron Martin

13 laps – Brian Brown

10 laps – Kyler Johnson

9 laps – Whit Gastineau

7 laps – Cole Macedo

6 laps – Tyler Courtney

3 laps – Sean McClelland

QUICK TIME AWARDS (7 Drivers)

6 awards – Sam Hafertepe Jr

1 award – Seth Bergman, Howard Moore, Chris Martin, Levi Hillier, Kyler Johnson, Matt Covington

HEAT RACE WINNERS (23 Drivers)

5 wins – Matt Covington

4 wins – Seth Bergman

3 wins – Sam Hafertepe Jr, Whit Gastineau, Garrett Benson

2 wins – Chris Martin, Justin Peck

DASH STARTS (34 Drivers)

11 starts – Sam Hafertepe Jr

9 starts – Matt Covington

6 starts – Kyler Johnson, Seth Bergman, Whit Gastineau

4 starts – Levi Hillier

3 starts – Chris Martin, Tyler Courtney, Brian Brown, Justin Peck

2 starts – Camerson Martin, Emerson Axsom, Austin McCarl, Brady Bacon, Davie Franek, Garrett Benson

SMITH TITANIUM LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (7 Drivers)

2 wins – Braxton Weger

1 win – DJ Christie, Matt Covington, Tyler Clem, Whit Gastineau, Sterling Cling, Gage Montgomery

HARD CHARGER AWARDS (11 Drivers)

2 awards – Whit Gastineau

1 award – Seth Bergman, Ryder Laplante, Brady Bacon, Cole Macedo, Sam Hafertepe Jr., DJ Netto, Brogan Carder, Joe B. Miller, Bradley Fezard, Hayden Mabe, Jack Thomas

PODIUM FINISHES (18 Drivers)

7 podiums – Sam Hafertepe Jr.

6 podiums – Matt Covington

3 podiums – Justin Peck, Seth Bergman

2 podiums – Tyler Courtney, Brady Bacon, Austin McCarl, Levi Hillier, Whit Gastineau

1 podium – Cole Macedo, Emerson Axsom, Brock Zearfoss, Kyler Johnson, JJ Hickle, Jordan Mallett, Chris Martin, Blake Hahn, Alex Sewell, Garrett Benson

2026 AMERICAN SPRINT CAR SERIES SCHEDULE + WINNERS

Date / Track / City, State / Winner (Total Wins)

Thu, Jan. 29 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney
Fri, Jan. 30 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney (2)
Mon, Feb. 2 / Volusia Speedway Park /Barberville, FL / Brady Bacon
Sat, Feb. 21 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Justin Peck
Sun, Feb. 21 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Matt Covington
Sat, Feb. 28 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Justin Peck (2)
Sun, Mar. 1 / Central Arizona Raceway / Casa Grande, AZ / Levi Hillier
Sat, Apr. 11 / Salina Highbanks Speedway / Salina, OK / Chris Martin
Fri, May 8 / Benton Speedway / Benton, MO / Seth Bergman
Fri, June 5 / Creek County Speedway / Sapulpa, OK / Blake Hahn
Sat, June 6 / 81 Speedway / Park City, KS / Seth Bergman (2)
Fri, June 26 / Belleville High Banks / Belleville, KS / Sam Hafertepe Jr.
Sat, June 27 / Belleville High Banks / Belleville, KS / Sam Hafertepe Jr. (2)

ARTICLE:https://ascsracing.com/what-to-watch-for/what-to-watch-for-american-sprint-car-series-points-battles-intensify-ahead-of-arkansas-doubleheader/

Uncategorized

Zack Mitchell Joining G.R. Smith Motorsports Full-Time With World of Outlaws

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

CONCORD, NC (July 7, 2026) – Zack Mitchell has reached a deal with G.R. Smith Motorsports to become the new driver of the No. 22* on tour with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision.

The new pairing will debut on Wednesday night at Stateline Speedway, with plans to continue through the remainder of the 2026 season and beyond.

The move comes after Drake Troutman‘s departure from the team on June 23. Smith partnered with Jake Timm for four races in Minnesota and North Dakota to continue earning owners points while the team evaluated its long-term future. G.R. Smith Motorsports sits sixth in the owners standings entering Stateline, four points behind Cooney Motorsports in fifth.

“First and foremost, I want to thank Jake Timm for stepping in and taking that role and getting us through the northern swing,” Smith said. “I got to know him a lot better over the last two weeks. Great kid, great people, I told him that I’d like to help him out in the future. Just the proximity of Minnesota to North Carolina is a long distance, and getting the equipment primarily back to North Carolina, it was important for me to run out of our shop.

“[Mitchell] is the best kept secret that the national level doesn’t know about. He’s the guy to beat in [the southeast], right? If you get Zack in the south, if you look at his stats per starts, he’s a true wheel man. To be in a situation at this time of year and to have a talent like Zack available, it got me excited to go racing again. I have a lot of respect for Zack. I’ve gotten to follow his racing career closer than most people on the national level just because of where we live. Finished second to him many a time, wishing that he was somewhere else racing when I was a driver and finishing second to him. He’s definitely a talented shoe, and I think he’s ready at this stage of his life to tackle a World of Outlaws national tour.”

One of the top regional racers in the Carolinas in recent seasons, Mitchell is getting his first chance to compete full-time at the national level as part of Smith’s operation. The Enoree, SC driver is a four-time Ultimate Super Late Model Series champion, the 2017 champion of the Carolina Clash Super Late Model Series, and he was in contention for the 2026 Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series title prior to partnering with Smith to go World of Outlaws racing.

“I gave [Smith] a call, and you know, we talked for about an hour and a half,” Mitchell said. “Kind of what he was looking for, kind of what I was looking for. We just came to an agreement that we think this would be a a pretty good deal. He put all his eggs in the basket and so did I. It came together really quick, and I’m just really thankful for this opportunity.”

Mitchell’s first week as the driver of the No. 22* will take him to Stateline Speedway (Wednesday, July 8) and Sharon Speedway (Friday-Saturday, July 10-11). To find tickets and more information for both events, click here.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

Zack Mitchell Joining G.R. Smith Motorsports Full-Time With World of Outlaws

The new pairing will debut on Wednesday night at Stateline Speedway, with plans to continue through the remainder of the 2026 season and beyond.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

ARTICLE: https://worldofoutlaws.com/latemodels/zack-mitchell-joining-g-r-smith-motorsports-full-time-with-world-of-outlaws/

Uncategorized

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Busiest Stretch of World of Outlaws Season Begins with Hartford, Wilmot Visits

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

HARTFORD, MI (July 7, 2026) – It’s a good time to be a fan of the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

After a week off to celebrate the Fourth of July, the busiest stretch of the year is about to begin and serve up 13 races in 24 days that takes the tour to eight tracks in five states and one Canadian province. Throw in the fact that the NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s follows this upcoming blitz of racing, and there’s never been a better time to have a DIRTVision subscription.

It all begins with a trio of races this week. First up is the Series’ long-awaited return to Michigan with Hartford Speedway’s Pure Michigan Showdown on Thursday, July 9. The stop will mark The Greatest Show on Dirt’s first time in the “Great Lakes State” since 2019.

Then it’s around the southern rim of Lake Michigan and up into Wisconsin for a full weekend in “America’s Dairyland”. The O’Reilly Auto Parts presents the Larry Hillerud Memorial sends the World of Outlaws to Wilmot Raceway on Friday-Saturday, July 10-11.

BUY HARTFORD TICKETS HERE
BUY FRIDAY WILMOT TICKETS HERE
BUY SATURDAY WILMOT TICKETS HERE

Let’s look at the top stories heading into the busy stretch:

MICHIGAN MAN

The latest chapters of World of Outlaws history in Michigan point to David Gravel being the man to beat on Thursday.

The last two trips to Hartford have belonged to the two-time and defending Series champion. It hasn’t mattered what car he’s been in. First was 2017 when he took the CJB Motorsports No. 5 to Victory Lane. Then came a 2019 triumph aboard the Jason Johnson Racing No. 41. He’ll look to make it three straight wins in three different cars this week as he returns in the Big Game Motorsports No. 2.

Gravel currently sits atop the standings by 86 markers during his quest for a third consecutive championship. He’s bagged seven wins and leads the Series in podiums (16), top fives (22), and top 10s (29).

ONE MORE IN WISCONSIN

The Wilmot weekend signals the last chance for Wisconsin fans to see Bill Balog on home turf this season. Two of his three podiums this seeing have come in the “Badger State,” and he’ll look to stand atop the podium for the first time in 2026 as the tour makes its final Wisconsin visit.

The numbers say Balog should be in the running for a checkered flag. He’s topped 21 Interstate Racing Association (IRA) Features at Wilmot, most recently driving from sixth to victory in 2023. The closest he’s come to beating the World of Outlaws at the 1/3 mile is a sixth-place effort last season.

Balog has 11 top 10s in 28 starts this year and sits 11th in points with Spencer Bayston 16 markers ahead in the final top 10 position.

WILMOT WINNERS

Balog won’t be the only competitor to keep an eye on at Wilmot.

Comparable to his Hartford success, David Gravel has been a force at Wilmot no matter what car he shows up in. The Watertown, CT native won there with Roth Motorsports in 2014 before topping two more (2016 and 2017) with CJB Motorsports. He made it four wins in three cars with a 2020 trip to Victory Lane in the Jason Johnson Racing No. 41. Gravel is the Series winningest driver at Wilmot through 14 visits.

Carson Macedo could tie or pass Gravel with a weekend sweep of the Larry Hillerud Memorial. He and JJR claimed a trio in a row at Wilmot from 2022 through 2024, joining Gravel as the only other driver to top three straight. The Lemoore, CA native is currently tied for the runner-up spot in points.

Donny Schatz is a two-time Wilmot winner. The 10-time World of Outlaws titlist took the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing ride to the podium’s top step in 2019 and 2024. He’s also been remarkably consistent with a 4.43 average finish in 14 tries and no results outside the top 10.

Michael “Buddy” Kofoid was the most recent to add his name to the list of Wilmot victors. He started first and finished there a year ago. Kofoid and the Roth Motorsports crew are tied with Macedo and JJR for second in the standings and looking to erase Gravel’s 86-point advantage.

CONTINUING THE CLIMB

When the World of Outlaws was last in action, Sheldon Haudenschild reached 50 career victories, but the all-time win list isn’t the only climb he aims to continue as the season resumes this week.

As recently as early June, Haudenschild was 194 points behind championship leader David Gravel. But a recent stretch of unmatched consistency has moved the KCP Racing/NOS Energy Drink No. 18 to fourth in points and slashed that gap down to 130. Haudenschild hasn’t finished worse than seventh in the last 14 Series events. He’s won three times and been in the top two in eight of those races. If this kind of speed continues, Haudenschild could be in the running for his first championship by the time the tour rolls into The Dirt Track at Charlotte for World of Outlaws World Finals (Nov. 4-7).

Looking ahead to this weekend, Haudenschild is a former Hartford winner with the All Star Circuit of Champions (2016). His three World of Outlaws tries there have yielded a pair of top 10s. He’s yet to win at Wilmot but never been outside the top 10 in 14 tries and landed on the podium four times.

WHAT BREAK?

While many World of Outlaws drivers opted to relax during the week off, a few decided to keep doing what they know best – race Sprint Cars.

Logan Schuchart was the busiest of the bunch. The Hanover, PA native returned home for a trio of PA Speedweek races. He wheeled the Shark Racing No. 1S from 13th to fourth at Lincoln Speedway, 21st to 14th at Hagerstown Speedway, and sixth to third at Williams Grove Speedway. Now, he’s ready to get back to business with The Greatest Show on Dirt, where he currently sits fifth in points.

Carson Macedo and the Jason Johnson Racing team joined Schuchart for Lincoln’s Steve Smith Tribute Race. They picked up a sixth-place finish to pocket a solid $6,519 payday. Macedo and Schuchart will both return to Pennsylvania at the end of the month for a trio of battles with the PA Posse at BAPS Motor Speedway (July 29) and Williams Grove Speedway (July 31-Aug. 1).

Garet Williamson and Fischer Motorsports opted to get another NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s (Aug. 12-15) tune-up by attending Knoxville Raceway’s weekly program. Williamson led laps before a podium finish.

The off-week track time wasn’t limited to drivers on the tour. Team owner Bill Rose got behind the wheel of a USAC Silver Crown car for Terre Haute Action Track’s Sumar Classic and finished an impressive sixth after starting 18th. Rose gets back to owner and crew chief duties for Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year presented by Five Star Bodies contender Kasey Jedrzejek this week.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

WHEN AND WHERE
Thursday, July 9 at Hartford Speedway in Hartford, MI
Friday-Saturday, July 10-11 at Wilmot Raceway in Wilmot, WI

AROUND THE TURN
Tuesday, July 14 at Attica Raceway Park in Attica, OH (TICKETS)
Friday-Saturday, July 17-18 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, OH (TICKETS)

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (34/82 Races):
1. David Gravel – Big Game Motorsports No. 2 (4540 PTS)
2. Michael Kofoid – Roth Motorsports No. 83 (-86 PTS)
3. Carson Macedo – Jason Johnson Racing No. 41 (-86 PTS)
4. Sheldon Haudenschild – KCP Racing No. 18 (-130 PTS)
5. Logan Schuchart – Shark Racing No. 1S (-246 PTS)
6. Donny Schatz – CJB Motorsports No. 15 (-260 PTS)
7. Garet Williamson – Fischer Motorsports No. 23 (-436 PTS)
8. Cole Macedo – TwoC Racing No. 2C (-474 PTS)
9. Chris Windom – Sides Motorsports No. 7S (-552 PTS)
10. Spencer Bayston – Stenhouse Jr./Marshall Racing No. 17 (-594 PTS)

NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (14 Drivers):
8 Wins – Michael Kofoid
7 Wins – David Gravel
4 Wins – Carson Macedo, Sheldon Haudenschild
2 Wins – Anthony Macri
1 Win – Spencer Bayston, Donny Schatz, Tyler Courtney, Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne, Rico Abreu, Logan Schuchart, Aaron Reutzel, Brent Marks

FEATURE LAPS LED (25 Drivers):
249 Laps Led – David Gravel
222 Laps Led – Michael Kofoid
81 Laps Led – Carson Macedo
50 Laps Led – Logan Schuchart
44 Laps Led – Bill Balog
41 Laps Led – Sheldon Haudenschild
40 Laps Led – Anthony Macri, Aaron Reutzel
37 Laps Led – Tyler Courtney
35 Laps Led – Donny Schatz
33 Laps Led – Brady Bacon, Rico Abreu
28 Laps Led – Ryan Timms, Garet Williamson
25 Laps Led – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne
21 Laps Led – Kasey Jedrzejek
17 Laps Led – Spencer Bayston
15 Laps Led – Christopher Thram
11 Laps Led – Giovanni Scelzi, Emerson Axsom
10 Laps Led – Cole Macedo
7 Laps Led – Brian Brown
6 Laps Led – Brock Zearfoss
3 Laps Led – Brent MarksPODIUM FINISHES (27 Drivers):
16 Podiums – David Gravel
15 Podiums – Michael Kofoid
12 Podiums – Carson Macedo, Sheldon Haudenschild
6 Podiums – Donny Schatz
4 Podiums – Ryan Timms
3 Podiums – Anthony Macri, Spencer Bayston, Rico Abreu, Logan Schuchart, Bill Balog, Garet Williamson
2 Podiums – Brady Bacon, Cole Macedo, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney
1 Podium – Ashton Torgerson, Scott Bogucki, Emerson Axsom, Brad Sweet, Chase Dietz, Kasey Kahne, Justin Whittall, Troy Wagaman Jr., Giovanni Scelzi, Kasey Jedrzejek, Brent Marks

SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS QUICKTIME AWARDS (15 Drivers):
13 Quick Times – David Gravel
4 Quick Times – Sheldon Haudenschild
3 Quick Times – Logan Schuchart
1 Quick Time – Ashton Torgerson, Kasey Jedrzejek, Brady Bacon, Will Armitage, Michael Kofoid, J.J. Hickle, Brian Brown, Danny Dietrich, Rico Abreu, Aaron Reutzel, Bill Balog, Justin Henderson

HEAT RACE WINNERS (42 Drivers):
20 Heat Wins – David Gravel
16 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild
9 Heat Wins – Bill Balog
8 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, Michael Kofoid
7 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart
6 Heat Wins – Donny Schatz
4 Heat Wins – Cole Macedo, Rico Abreu, Emerson Axsom
3 Heat Wins – Ashton Torgerson, Kasey Jedrzejek, Aaron Reutzel, Giovanni Scelzi
2 Heat Wins – Anthony Macri, Chase Dietz, Kasey Kahne, Spencer Bayston, Brent Marks, Austin McCarl, Jacob Hughes, Kerry Madsen, Ryan Timms
1 Heat Win – Justin Peck, Tanner Holmes, Scotty Thiel, Will Armitage, Rees Moran, Tyler Courtney, Brian Brown, Danny Dietrich, Justin Whittall, Chad Trout, Joel Myers Jr., Andy Pake, Garet Williamson, Sam Henderson, Dayne Kingshott, Christopher Thram, Daison Pursley, Terry McCarl, Kelby Watt

TOYOTA DASH APPEARANCES (56 Drivers):
24 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild
23 Dashes – David Gravel
17 Dashes – Michael Kofoid
11 Dashes – Carson Macedo, Bill Balog
9 Dashes – Garet Williamson
7 Dashes – Ashton Torgerson, Donny Schatz, Cole Macedo, Logan Schuchart, Emerson Axsom
6 Dashes – Kasey Jedrzejek
5 Dashes – Rico Abreu, Aaron Reutzel
4 Dashes – Anthony Macri, Ryan Timms, Spencer Bayston, Brent Marks
3 Dashes – Kerry Madsen, Chase Dietz, Tanner Holmes, Brian Brown, Justin Henderson, Chris Windom
2 Dashes – Scotty Thiel, Kasey Kahne, Troy Wagaman Jr., Brady Bacon, Will Armitage, J.J. Hickle, Austin McCarl, Joe B. Miller, Brenham Crouch, Kelby Watt
1 Dash – Justin Peck, Parker Price-Miller, Brock Zearfoss, Bryce Lucius, Christopher Thram, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Rees Moran, Bryce Norris, Tyler Courtney, Brad Sweet, Danny Dietrich, Logan Rumsey, Daryn Pittman, Kody Hartlaub, Freddie Rahmer, Justin Whittall, Chad Trout, Giovanni Scelzi, Joel Myers Jr., Conner Morrell, Andy Pake, Kyle Larson

MICRO-LITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (22 Drivers):
3 LCS Wins – Donny Schatz, Garet Williamson, Spencer Bayston
2 LCS Wins – Michael Kofoid, Chris Windom, Giovanni Scelzi, Emerson Axsom
1 LCS Wins – Cameron Martin, Bill Balog, Blake Hahn, Landon Crawley, Bryce Norris, Logan Schuchart, Doug Hammaker, Daryn Pittman, Kerry Madsen, Skylar Gee, Justin Henderson, Joel Myers Jr., Tyler Courtney, Daison Pursley, Cole Macedo

KSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (19 Drivers):
6 Hard Chargers – Carson Macedo
3 Hard Chargers – Donny Schatz, Spencer Bayston, Michael Kofoid
2 Hard Chargers – Garet Williamson, Chris Windom, Logan Schuchart, Cole Macedo
1 Hard Charger – Giovanni Scelzi, Ryan Timms, Brady Bacon, Sheldon Haudenschild, Tyler Ross, Cameron Smith, David Gravel, Emerson Axsom, Logan Julien, Tyler Courtney, Kasey Jedrzejek

ACME FASTEST LAP AWARDS (20 Drivers):
5 Fastest Laps – Michael Kofoid, David Gravel
2 Fastest Laps – Bill Balog, Brady Bacon, Carson Macedo, Aaron Reutzel, Kasey Jedrzejek, Garet Williamson
1 Fastest Lap – Anthony Macri, Brock Zearfoss, Sheldon Haudenschild, Cole Macedo, Ryan Timms, Brad Sweet, Kelby Watt, Kasey Kahne, Giovanni Scelzi, Rico Abreu, Christopher Thram, Logan Schuchart

RACE READY CLOTHING HOTTEST LAP OF THE NIGHT AWARDS (14 Drivers):
11 Hottest Laps – David Gravel
5 Hottest Laps – Sheldon Haudenschild
4 Hottest Laps – Michael Kofoid
3 Hottest Laps – Logan Schuchart
2 Hottest Laps – Garet Williamson
1 Hottest Lap – Austin McCarl, Brent Marks, Cole Macedo, Emerson Axsom, Tyler Courtney, Ryan Timms, Daryn Pittman, Giovanni Scelzi, Carson Macedo

2026 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner
Wed, Feb 4 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Spencer Bayston (1)
Fri, Feb 6 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Michael Kofoid (1)
Sat, Feb 7 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Anthony Macri (1)
Sun, March 1 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)
Mon, March 2 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Anthony Macri (2)
Fri, March 6 / Talladega Short Track / Eastaboga, AL / Donny Schatz (1)
Fri, March 13 / Kennedale Speedway Park / Kennedale, TX / David Gravel (1)
Fri, March 20 / Lawton Speedway / Lawton, OK / David Gravel (2)
Sat, March 21 / Creek County Speedway / Sapulpa, OK / David Gravel (3)
Fri, March 27 / US 36 Raceway / Osborn, MO / Carson Macedo (1)
Sat, March 28 / 81 Speedway / Park City, KS / Michael Kofoid (2)
Fri, April 10 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO / Michael Kofoid (3)
Sat, April 11 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO / Michael Kofoid (4)
Sun, April 19 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Tyler Courtney (1)
Fri, April 24 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brad Sweet (1)
Sat, April 25 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / David Gravel (4)
Tues, May 5 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Michael Kofoid (5)
Fri, May 8 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Kasey Kahne (1)
Sat, May 9 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / David Gravel (5)
Fri, May 15 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Rico Abreu (1)
Sat, May 16 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Logan Schuchart (1)
Tues, May 19 / Jacksonville Speedway / Jacksonville, IL / Carson Macedo (2)
Sat, May 23 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Aaron Reutzel (1)
Mon, May 25 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Michael Kofoid (6)
Fri, May 29 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Carson Macedo (3)
Sat, June 6 / Plymouth Dirt Track / Plymouth, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
Sun, June 7 / Angell Park Speedway / Sun Prairie, WI / Carson Macedo (4)
Fri, June 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brent Marks (1)
Wed, June 17 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Michael Kofoid (7)
Thurs, June 18 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Michael Kofoid (8)
Fri, June 19 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Sheldon Haudenschild (3)
Sat, June 20 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / David Gravel (6)
Fri, June 26 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / David Gravel (7)
Sat, June 27 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (4)
Thurs, July 9 / Hartford Speedway / Hartford, MI
Fri, July 10 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI
Sat, July 11 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI
Tues, July 14 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH
Fri, July 17 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
Sat, July 18 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH
Tues, July 21 / Ohsweken Speedway / Ohsweken, ON, Canada
Wed, July 22 / Ohsweken Speedway / Ohsweken, ON, Canada
Sat, July 25 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY
Sun, July 26 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY
Wed, July 29 / BAPS Motor Speedway / York Haven, PA
Fri, July 31 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
Sat, Aug 1 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
Fri, Aug 7 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO
Sat, Aug 8 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO
Wed, Aug 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA*
Thurs, Aug 13 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA*
Fri, Aug 14 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA*
Sat, Aug 15 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA
Fri, Aug 21 / Ogilvie Raceway / Ogilvie, MN
Sat, Aug 22 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN
Fri, Aug 28 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND
Sat, Aug 29 / Red River Valley Speedway / West Fargo, ND
Sun, Aug 30 / Nodak Speedway / Minot, ND
Fri, Sept 4 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
Sat, Sept 5 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
Sun, Sept 6 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD
Fri, Sept 11 / Belleville High Banks / Belleville, KS
Sat, Sept 12 / Dodge City Raceway Park / Dodge City, KS
Mon, Sept 14 / El Paso County Raceway / Calhan, CO
Fri, Sept 18 / Stockton Dirt Track / Stockton, CA
Sat, Sept 19 / Stockton Dirt Track / Stockton, CA
Tues, Sept 22 / Kings Speedway / Hanford, CA
Fri, Sept 25 / Bakersfield Speedway at Kevin Harvick’s Kern Raceway / Bakersfield, CA
Sat, Sept 26 / Ventura Raceway / Ventura, CA
Fri, Oct 2 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
Sat, Oct 3 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA
Thurs, Oct 8 / Millstream Speedway / Findlay, OH
Fri, Oct 9 / Mansfield Speedway / Mansfield, OH
Sat, Oct 10 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH
Fri, Oct 16 / Lincoln Park Speedway / Putnamville, IN
Sat, Oct 17 / TBA
Fri, Oct 23 / Texarkana 67 Speedway / Texarkana, AR
Sat, Oct 24 / Texarkana 67 Speedway / Texarkana, AR
Wed, Nov 4 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Thurs, Nov 5 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Fri, Nov 6 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Sat, Nov 7 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC

*denotes unofficial split-field prelim race.

ARTICLE: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/top-five-storylines-busiest-stretch-of-world-of-outlaws-season-begins-with-hartford-wilmot-visits/

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Busiest Stretch of World of Outlaws Season Begins with Hartford, Wilmot Visits

HARTFORD, MI (July 7, 2026) – It’s a good time to be a fan of the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

BUY HARTFORD TICKETS HERE
BUY FRIDAY WILMOT TICKETS HERE
BUY SATURDAY WILMOT TICKETS HERE

Let’s look at the top stories heading into the busy stretch:

MICHIGAN MAN

The latest chapters of World of Outlaws history in Michigan point to David Gravel being the man to beat on Thursday.

ONE MORE IN WISCONSIN

Balog has 11 top 10s in 28 starts this year and sits 11th in points with Spencer Bayston 16 markers ahead in the final top 10 position.

WILMOT WINNERS

Balog won’t be the only competitor to keep an eye on at Wilmot.

CONTINUING THE CLIMB

When the World of Outlaws was last in action, Sheldon Haudenschild reached 50 career victories, but the all-time win list isn’t the only climb he aims to continue as the season resumes this week.

WHAT BREAK?

While many World of Outlaws drivers opted to relax during the week off, a few decided to keep doing what they know best – race Sprint Cars.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

ARTICLE: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/top-five-storylines-busiest-stretch-of-world-of-outlaws-season-begins-with-hartford-wilmot-visits/

EVENT INFO: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/schedule/event-info/?event=4549543, https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/schedule/event-info/?event=4549546
TRACK INFO: https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/tracks/?track=Hartford%2BSpeedway, https://worldofoutlaws.com/sprintcars/tracks/?track=Wilmot%2BRaceway

Uncategorized

BAGGSY UNVEILS THE ULTIMATE TOYOTA GR COROLLA DRIFT CAR

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Uncategorized

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut at Epic 49 th Annual Night Under Fire

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

NORWALK, OH (July 7, 2026) — 2025 NHRA Rookie of the Year and 2026 Funny Car championship contender Spencer Hyde will make his debut appearance at the 49^th annual Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire at Summit Motorsports Park, July 31-August 1. The Stratford, Ontario, Canada native will race the Head Engineering and Construction 12,000-horsepower Funny Car against some of the fiercest Funny Car competitors in the country for the coveted Night Under Fire championship. Hyde will square off against Jordan Vandergriff, Cruz Pedregon and Ron Capps.

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut at
Epic 49^th Annual Night Under Fire

NORWALK, OH (July 7, 2026) — 2025 NHRA Rookie of the Year and 2026 Funny Car championship contender Spencer Hyde will make his debut appearance at the 49^th annual Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire at Summit Motorsports Park, July 31-August 1. The Stratford, Ontario, Canada native will race the Head Engineering and Construction 12,000-horsepower Funny Car against some of the fiercest Funny Car competitors in the country for the coveted Night Under Fire championship. Hyde will square off against Jordan Vandergriff, Cruz Pedregon and Ron Capps.

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

“The Funny Car line-up is a Who’s Who of tough drivers,” said Hyde. “You have two world champions and the newest Funny Car driver from John Force Racing. Anyone one of us could win this deal. I am excited to represent Canada, Jim Head Racing, Hyde Construction and everyone that supports our team. Next to winning an NHRA national event getting the King of Nitro title at Night Under Fire is right up there.”

In addition to a host of Nitro Funny Cars Night Under Fire will feature 60 of the fastest racers battling it out under the lights. The show will feature four Top Fuel Dragsters and four Nitro Funny Cars racing for a guaranteed $430,000 purse. The winner of the Funny Car head-to-head battle will face the Top Fuel winner for the King of Nitro title.

“The Bader family has made Night Under Fire one of the coolest drag racing events in the country,” said Hyde. “More than the Funny Cars and the Top Fuel dragster it’s the spectacle of racing and speed. I can’t wait to be a part of the show and I will be watching for sure when I am not racing. The fireworks show is worth the price of admission.”

Catch the live broadcast of the show on FloSports, the leader in sports streaming for the first time in the event’s nearly five-decade history. Beyond the racing the event will feature sky divers, an autograph session, twin-engined powered jet truck, four 300mph jet dragsters, two Top Fuel Motorcycles, wheel standers, and a $150,000 fireworks show.

Uncategorized

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Points Battles Head North

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

GTD PRO, GTD Corvette teams hope to add to program’s success at CTMP DETROIT (July 7, 2026) – It’s not exactly a home race for Corvette Racing, but Sunday’s Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) might as well be. There isn’t a track in the world where the Corvette Racing program has achieved more victories than at CTMP, or Mosport International Raceway as it was formerly known. The 2.459-mile, 10-turn circuit is the site of 13 class victories in IMSA competition dating back to 2001 and this year will see five Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs in action:

· Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports – GTD PRO: Antonio Garcia, Alexander Sims (No. 3 Corvette); Nicky Catsburg, Tommy Milner (No. 4 Corvette)· 13 Autosport – GTD: Matt Bell, Orey Fidani No. 13 Corvette)· DXDT Racing – GTD: Mason Filippi, Robert Wickens (No. 36 Corvette)· DragonSpeed – GTD: Giacomo Altoé, Casper Stevenson (No. 81 Corvette)(Factory drivers in bold)
The Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports team has accounted for all 13 class wins at CTMP when it fielded Chevrolet’s factory sports car team. As has been the case for most of the last 25 years, two yellow Corvettes from Pratt Miller will be part of the top GT class at CTMP with both in championship contention. The No. 3 Corvette of Antonio Garcia and Alexander Sims moved to second place in GTD PRO Drivers points at Watkins Glen, followed by the No. 4 duo of Tommy Milner and Nicky Catsburg. Sims and Garcia were winners two years ago at CTMP – the first IMSA win for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R – while Milner and Catsburg were second in 2025. Part of the Corvette GTD collective has strong Canadian ties, making the Chevrolet GP a true homecoming. 13 Autosport is based just outside Toronto and – as it did last year at CTMP and the last two years at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – will field its No. 13 Corvette in the popular Canadian livery. Orey Fidani and Matt Bell will team in the Corvette with Fidani leading the Bob Akin Award standings with a trip to next year’s Le Mans going to the winner. Fidani and 13 Autosport have won it the last two years. Canada’s Robert Wickens returns to the wheel of DXDT Racing’s No. 36 Corvette for the first time since Long Beach in April. After a pole-position run there set up Wickens and the team for solid momentum in the West Coast stretch, the team’s race transporter caught fire heading to Laguna Seca. After missing that round, the team returned to action at Watkins Glen with an 11th-place finish. DragonSpeed’s duo of Giacomo Altoé and Casper Stevenson will look to give the No. 81 Corvette a clean run – something that has been in short supply this year due to multiple rounds of contact that were out of their control. At Watkins Glen, teammate Henrik Hedman was part of a multi-car collision during a safety-car period that cost DragonSpeed 80 minutes in its garage to get the Corvette back on-track and eventually finish a respectable 18th in class. The DragonSpeed car had similar bad luck with contact from other cars at both Daytona and Sebring to start the year. The Chevrolet Grand Prix is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 12. It will stream live on Peacock in the U.S. starting at 2 p.m. ET and on IMSA’s YouTube channel internationally. IMSA Radio will air on-track sessions at IMSA.com along XM 206, SiriusXM Online 996.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “This isn’t a home race for us but it feels like it should be. It’s a track that everyone on the team enjoys. We as drivers do, too. It’s a short lap but mostly because the speed is very high. All that means that track position here is very important, more than you’d think for a race that’s almost three hours. We’re hoping to be fast right away so we can work toward a Corvette that’s just as good over a stint as it is on a qualifying run. We have the experience here to do well, so let’s see if we can take advantage of that.”

ALEXANDER SIMS, NO. 3 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “CTMP is a track that I’ve liked from the first time I drove it. This is the one that a lot of us as drivers look at as a fantastic circuit because of the risk/reward factor and also just being a thrilling place to drive. It’s a bit more bumpy but more high-speed than Watkins Glen, where we just were. This is an amazing track and I’m looking forward to being there for another race to see what we can do.”

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “My feelings about racing at CTMP or Mosport haven’t changed since I first drove there. I can’t think of many – if any – drivers that don’t enjoy driving around this track. It’s old-school, it’s fast, it’s high-risk. There isn’t much more you can ask for as a driver.“There are five races to go in the season, each one matters in the championship. This being the Chevrolet Grand Prix adds some incentive to perform well, but our Corvettes have been quick the last couple of years at CTMP. I’m hoping that will continue to be the case this year. We’ve generally maximized the potential of the car at each round this year. We need to continue to do that, and if we do then we can be happy from that side of things. From the 4 car side, we need to clean some things up a little bit. We’ve had two races in a row where we haven’t had the best results, which isn’t the way to win a championship. We need to buckle down, make sure that we are doing everything right on all our sides. If we do that, then good things will happen.”

NICKY CATSBURG, NO. 4 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “The last two races have not ended in the way we had hoped but the good thing about this part of the IMSA schedule is that we are back racing almost immediately. We get to do it at CTMP, which is a place that I’ve come to enjoy a lot since I raced there in the Corvette for the first time two years ago. It’s a very classic track with a lot of challenges and risk but also a lot of satisfaction when everything is working well. We need to return to going in the right direction for the championship and get back on the podium. This would be a great place to do that.”

OREY FIDANI, NO. 13 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is always a special one for me, and for 13 Autosport as a whole. It’s our home race, our home track, and coming back here under the 13 Autosport banner makes it feel like a true homecoming. We had the chance to test at CTMP ahead of the event, and the team feels like we’re in a really good place heading into the weekend. Everyone has been working hard, the car feels strong, and we’re excited to put on a good show in front of the Canadian fans. Bringing back the red Canadian livery makes it even more special. It quickly became a fan favorite, and we’re proud to have it back on home soil.”

ROBERT WICKENS, NO. 36 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “We’re feeling good. It’s been a lot of work from the team to get ready. They ran the six-hour at The Glen with a new car, a different transporter, different pit equipment and everything else that goes into making this circus work. For me, having not driven since Long Beach, I’m itching to get back at it for my home race. Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is always a special one, and especially when the title sponsor is Chevrolet and we’re driving a Corvette, it’s extra special. I think this track was my youth and my childhood. I grew up on the kart track, would ride my bike over to watch the American Le Mans Series and watch Ron Fellows and the yellow Corvette do its thing over the years. So I think hopefully we can put on a good show for the fans and finally give DXDT their first (IMSA) podium, which is well deserved especially after all the setbacks that we’ve had.”

GIACOMO ALTOÉ, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “Mosport is a special track for me as we won there last year in GTD PRO. A very technical track and not easy to get up to speed. It should be a good track for us. Last year the Corvette was looking strong there so I’m confident we can be competitive. It’s a great opportunity to race with Casper in GTD and have the chance to show what we’ve got together. Thanks a lot to all the people involved in this decision. We will give the absolute maximum to bring home the result that the team deserves.”

2026 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship PointsGTD PRO Drivers Standings1. Connor De Phillippi/Neil Verhagen – 15752. Alexander Sims/Antonio Garcia – 15153. Tommy Milner/Nicky Catsburg – 14944. Christopher Mies/Frederic Vervisch – 14615. Harry King/Nick Tandy – 1422 GTD PRO Teams Standings1. No. 1 Paul Miller Racing – 15752. No. 3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports – 15153. No. 4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports – 14944. No. 65 Ford Racing – 14615. No. 77 AO Racing – 1422 GTD PRO Manufacturers Standings1. Chevrolet – 17162. BMW – 16443. Ford – 16184. Porsche – 15585. Lamborghini – 1471 GTD Drivers Standings1. Dudu Barrichello – 15402. Aaron Telitz/Benjamin Pedersen – 13833. Patrick Gallagher/Robby Foley – 13804. Tom Gamble – 13005. Adam Adelson/Callum Ilott – 12568. Matt Bell/Orey Fidani – 115318. Giacomo Altoé/Henrik Hedman – 93122. Mason Filippi – 894 GTD Teams Standings1. No. 27 Heart of Racing – 15402. No. 12 Vasser Sullivan Racing – 13833. No. 96 Turner Motorsports – 13804. No. 120 Wright Motorsports – 12565. No. 57 Winward Racing – 12407. No. 13 13 Autosport – 115312. No. 81 DragonSpeed – 93113. No. 36 DXDT Racing – 894 GTD Manufacturers Standings1. Aston Martin – 16602. Ferrari – 16233. Mercedes-AMG – 15004. Porsche – 14875. Lexus – 14807. Chevrolet – 1399 CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP & SĀO PAULO: By the Numbers• 2: 24-hour race wins for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in the past month – 24 Hours of Le Mans (TF Sport, LMGT3) and 24 Hours of Spa (Johor Motorsports Racing, Pro-Am)• 3: Race wins for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R in the past month – 24 Hours of Le Mans (TF Sport), 24 Hours of Spa (JMR) and Four Hours of Imola (TF Sport)• 4: Generations of Corvette Racing entries at CTMP since 2000 – Corvette C5-R (2004), Corvette C6.R (2005-13) and Corvette C7.R (2016-2019). The Corvette C8.R raced at the track for the first time in 2022, and the Z06 GT3.R debuted there in 2024• 8: Pole positions for Corvette Racing drivers at CTMP. Oliver Gavin leads with three with Alexander Sims (2024) being the most recent• 8: Number of drivers who have won races at CTMP for Corvette Racing. Johnny O’Connell (six), Jan Magnussen (five), Oliver Gavin (four), Ron Fellows and Antonio Garcia (three), and Olivier Beretta (two) each have multiple wins there with the team. Alexander Sims scored his first Corvette win at the circuit in 2024• 10: Class wins for the Corvette Racing program at the 24 Hours of Le Mans following TF Sport’s LMGT3 win there this year. Nicky Catsburg (No. 4 Corvette) and Jonny Edgar (No. 99 LMP2) were part of the TF lineup and are entered for Watkins Glen. No. 4 Corvette race engineer Tyler Neff also was the lead engineer on the winning No. 33 Corvette• 13: Class victories at Corvette Racing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park – all since 2001• 15: Manufacturer Championships for Chevrolet and Corvette Racing since 2001• 18: Victories for Chevrolet in the Sahlen’s Six Hours, ranking second among all manufacturers• 34: Tracks at which Corvette Racing has won races – Baltimore, Charlotte Motor Speedway, COTA, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park/Mosport, Chang International Circuit (Thailand), Daytona, Detroit, Fuji, Houston, Imola, Indianapolis, Laguna Seca, Le Mans, Lime Rock, Long Beach, Lusail International Circuit (Qatar), Miami, Mid-Ohio, Monza, Portimão, Portland, Road America, Road Atlanta, Sebring, Sepang International Circuit (Malaysia), Sonoma, Spa-Francorchamps, St. Petersburg, Texas, Trois Rivieres, Utah, VIR, Washington DC and Watkins Glen• 42: Number of drivers to win races in Corvette Racing entries since 1999. The latest to join the list were Jordan Love and Prince Abu Bakar Ibrahim at the 2026 Spa 24 Hours• 73: Years since Corvette was introduced to the world on Jan. 17, 1953 in New York City. A total of 300 cars were produced that year• 86: Number of drivers in Corvette Racing entries since 1999. Steller Motorsports’ Lenny Ried joined the list at the 24 Hours of Spa• 158: Victories worldwide for Corvette Racing – 119 in IMSA, 10 at Le Mans, five in the FIA WEC, 13 in GT World Challenge America, three in GT World Challenge Asia, GT America and the European Le Mans Series, and one in IGTC/GT World Challenge Europe• 382: Event starts by Corvette Racing since 1999• 13,310.56: Number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing in its 22 previous trips to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. That represents 5,413 laps• 504,763.90: Total number of racing miles completed by Corvette Racing since its inception. The program went over the half-million mark at this year’s 24 Hours of Spa Corvette Racing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (wins in bold)2000 – No. 3 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Andy Pilgrim – 2nd in GTS (Fellows pole, fastest race lap) 2001 – No. 3 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 1st in GTSNo. 4 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins – 3rd in GTS 2002 – No. 3 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 1st in GTSNo. 4 Corvette C5-R: Andy Pilgrim/Kelly Collins – 2nd in GTS (Pilgrim fastest race lap) 2003 – No. 3 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 1st in GTSNo. 4 Corvette C5-R: Oliver Gavin/Kelly Collins – 7th in GTS (Gavin pole) 2004 – No. 3 Corvette C5-R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 2nd in GTSNo. 4 Corvette C5-R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 1st in GTS (Gavin pole, fastest race lap)2005 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 2nd in GT1No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 1st in GT1 2006 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Johnny O’Connell – 4th in GT1No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 2nd in GT1 2007 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O’Connell – 1st in GT1No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 2nd in GT1 (Gavin pole, fastest race lap)No. 33 Corvette C6.R: Ron Fellows/Andy Pilgrim – 3rd in GT1 2008 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Johnny O’Connell/Jan Magnussen – 1st in GT1 (O’Connell pole)No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 2nd in GT1 (Beretta fastest race lap) 2009 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Johnny O’Connell – 1st in GT2No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Oliver Gavin – 3rd in GT2 2010 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Johnny O’Connell – 5th in GT2No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 4th in GT2 2011 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Olivier Beretta/Tommy Milner – 6th in GTNo. 4 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Jan Magnussen – 1st in GT 2012 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 2nd in GT (Magnussen pole)No. 4 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 10th in GT 2013 – No. 3 Corvette C6.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 4th in GTNo. 4 Corvette C6.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 1st in GT2014 – No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 1st in GTLMNo. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 7th in GTLM 2015 – No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 3rd in GTLM (Garcia fastest race lap)No. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 5th in GTLM 2016 – No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 3rd in GTLM (Garcia pole)No. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 2nd in GTLM 2017No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 4th in GTLMNo. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 8th in GTLM 2018 – No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 2nd in GTLMNo. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Tommy Milner – 3rd in GTLM 2019 – No. 3 Corvette C7.R: Jan Magnussen/Antonio Garcia – 7th in GTLMNo. 4 Corvette C7.R: Oliver Gavin/Marcel Fässler – 8th in GTLM 2022 – No. 3 Corvette C8.R: Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 2nd in GTD PRO 2023 – No. 3 Corvette C8.R: Antonio Garcia/Jordan Taylor – 1st in GTD PRO 2024 – No. 3 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Antonio Garcia/Alexander Sims – 1st in GTD PRO (Sims pole, fastest race lap)No. 4 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Tommy Milner/Nicky Catsburg – 2nd in GTD PRONo. 13 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Matt Bell/Orey Fidani – 13th in GTD (DNF-crash) 2025 – No. 3 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Antonio Garcia/Alexander Sims – 4th in GTD PRONo. 4 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Tommy Milner/Nicky Catsburg – 2nd in GTD PRONo. 13 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Matt Bell/Orey Fidani – 9th in GTDNo. 36 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Robert Wickens/Alec Udell – 4th in GTD

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Points Battles Head NorthGTD PRO, GTD Corvette teams hope to add to program’s success at CTMP DETROIT (July 7, 2026) – It’s not exactly a home race for Corvette Racing, but Sunday’s Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) might as well be. There isn’t a track in the world where the Corvette Racing program has achieved more victories than at CTMP, or Mosport International Raceway as it was formerly known. The 2.459-mile, 10-turn circuit is the site of 13 class victories in IMSA competition dating back to 2001 and this year will see five Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs in action:

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

Uncategorized

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

July 7, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

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

ARTICLE: https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/recaps/tanner-english-wins-at-kankakee-for-third-victory-in-last-six-races/, https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/recaps/steven-brooks-returns-to-victory-lane-with-the-summit-modifieds-at-kankakee/

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

EVENT INFO: https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/schedule/event-info/?event=4549554

Uncategorized

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Set for Three-Night Midwest Swing

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Set for Three-Night Midwest Swing

BATAVIA, Ohio (July 6, 2026) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing continues one of the busiest stretches of the 2026 season this week with three consecutive nights of racing across Iowa and Missouri. The action begins on Thursday, July 9, when the nation’s premier dirt late model tour makes its only appearance of the season at 34 Raceway in West Burlington, Iowa. A strong field of the country’s top dirt late model drivers will battle in a complete Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series program highlighted by a 50-lap feature paying $15,000 to the winner. The pit gates at 34 Raceway will open at 3:00 p.m., spectator gates at 5:00 p.m., hot laps are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. with racing to follow. 34 Raceway, often referred to as Southeast Iowa’s Premier Place to Race, is in West Burlington, Iowa, and has hosted numerous prestigious national events since its inception in 1966. To learn more about 34 Raceway or to purchase tickets in advance, visit 34Raceway.com. The Series then heads to the famed Diamond of Dirt Tracks at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri, for the 20th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals weekend. Friday night’s Pitts Homes & Realty Salute to Forrest honors Lucas Oil founder Forrest Lucas and features another complete Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series program with $15,000 awaiting the winner. Both the pit area and spectator gates open at 4:00 p.m. Hot laps are slated for 6:30 p.m. The weekend concludes on Saturday, July 11 with the 20th Annual CMH Diamond Nationals, paying $25,000 to the winner. Once again, pit gates and spectator gates will open at 4:00 p.m., followed by hot laps at 6:30 p.m. Lucas Oil Speedway is located at the intersection of Highway 83 and Highway 54 in Wheatland, Missouri, about an hour North of Springfield and only about an hour and a half from Kansas City. For advance ticket purchases or more information about Lucas Oil Speedway, visit LucasOilSpeedway.com. The championship battle remains incredibly tight entering the three-race swing. Hudson O’Neal carries a 45-point lead over Brandon Sheppard, while defending series champion Devin Moran sits third, just 150 points behind the leader. Brandon Overton and Max Blair round out the top five in the standings, with Ricky Thornton Jr., Garrett Alberson, Brian Shirley, Josh Rice, and Kyle Bronson completing the top ten. For the latest news, results, and championship standings from the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, please visit LucasDirt.com. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Purses:34 Raceway: 1. $15,000, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,000, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,400, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,800, 13. $1,600, 14. $1,500, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,300, 17. $1,200, 18. $1,100, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000 = $63,400 Lucas Oil Speedway (Friday): 1. $15,000, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,000, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,400, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,800, 13. $1,600, 14. $1,500, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,300, 17. $1,200, 18. $1,100, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000 = $63,400 Lucas Oil Speedway (Saturday): 1. $25,000, 2. $10,000, 3. $6,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,500, 6. $2,700, 7. $2,500, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,900, 13. $1,800, 14. $1,700, 15. $1,600, 16. $1,500, 17. $1,500, 18. $1,500, 19. $1,500, 20. $1,500, 21. $1,500, 22. $1,500, 23. $1,500, 24. $1,500 = $82,800 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier (90) NLMT2, (90) NLMT3Right Rear – Hoosier (92) NRM NLMT3, (92) NRM NLMT4

Uncategorized

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Robert Wickens Q&A

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Canadian star on return to DXDT Racing Corvette in home race
DXDT Racing driver and Canadian ace Robert Wickens met with members of the media via Zoom on Monday afternoon to discuss this weekend’s Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. This will be Wickens’ second start in the No. 36 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R this year after a transporter fire forced the team to miss the Laguna Seca round. Wickens raced last year at CTMP for the first time in a Corvette and was the GTD pole-winner earlier this year at Long Beach.

ROBERT WICKENS, NO. 36 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.RThe team rebounded at Watkins Glen after the unfortunate incident heading to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. As we head to CTMP and a home race for you, how are you feeling about things?“We’re feeling good. It’s been a lot of work from the team to get ready. They ran the six-hour at The Glen with a new car, a different transporter, different pit equipment and everything else that goes into making this circus work. For me, having not driven since Long Beach, I’m itching to get back at it for my home race. Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is always a special one, and especially when the title sponsor is Chevrolet and we’re driving a Corvette, it’s extra special. I think this track was my youth and my childhood. I grew up on the kart track, would ride my bike over to watch the American Le Mans Series and watch Ron Fellows and the yellow Corvette do its thing over the years. So I think hopefully we can put on a good show for the fans and finally give DXDT their first (IMSA) podium, which is well deserved especially after all the setbacks that we’ve had.” Can last year’s race with the Corvette at CTMP help with setup for this year?“Last year was DXDT’s first year in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. So at all these tracks – although we have engineering support from GM and Pratt Miller – we were learning everything new for ourselves. You always want to learn yourself instead of learning from others. So already I feel like this year, the team’s been much stronger every race we’ve come back to. And I think Canadian Tire Motorsport Park is going to be no different. For me as a driver, I was learning each track with my Bosch electronic braking system in the Corvette. And so now with a year of experience at all these tracks, my first practice feels like a continuation from how I finished the race the year before, instead of kind of learning everything all through the first two practice sessions. So I’m looking forward to it. I think definitely we have more momentum now than we did last year. And like you said, it was our best finish of the year finishing fourth, but we were in podium contention the entire time. So the goal is to try and finally get that first podium for the team.”

Back in May, there was a lot of uncertainty with the situation related to having everything ready for this race. Can you tell me about your process in this?“I think the uncertainty when we spoke in May was, frankly, if we had enough time to do it all. We were all confident that DXDT could prepare another Corvette Z06 GT3.R and have it on track for Watkins Glen. But from my perspective, we also lost my entire braking system. All of my hand controls that were in the car were unusable. All the spares that were on the truck were also now deemed unusable. We weren’t sure at the time how much stuff would get manufactured. And obviously for the sake of reliability, that was always the most important thing given that it is a braking system, after all. So Bosch, Pratt Miller, DXDT Racing and Corvette Racing… everyone working together to manufacture all the bits and all the spares that we need to race at a high level. It wasn’t easy by any stretch of the imagination but we were able to get everything into the car and installed for a shakedown last week. So yeah, we’re ready to go.”
How anxious was this process for you? I know you mentioned to me that you had to do like a new seat fit and all these other different things.“I feel like the driver probably has it the easiest. It’s down to the mechanics, engineers and the team managers dealing with insurances… we’re still learning about things that were compromised in the fire. I had to overnight a new HANS device and new shoes because we didn’t realize it but my shoes had some fire damage. And it’s just little stuff like that kind of keeps popping up. From the driver’s side, yeah I lost all my driver equipment. The car is a much bigger thing, much more important thing. We can all buy generic suits and blank helmets and still drive the race cars. There was definitely a lot of communication between Laguna Seca and now, but we’re everyone’s just excited to kind of get back at it.” The magnitude of that and the emotions having all those pieces come back together for your home race?“Honestly, it’s gratitude. There was a brief period of time where I wondered if one, that was the end of my season. Then second, were we going to make it for my next race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. Until we knew for sure, I had made plans to try to do my fan experience again, like I did last year, and have a kind of viewing area. But we decided to postpone that for a year because once we kind of got the green light for everything, it was kind of too late to plan it all properly. I think everyone has worked so hard to get to where we are now and I think the work doesn’t stop. We want to win in this series. We want to prove that we’re strong enough to fight for podiums and wins every weekend. So that’s going to be the goal here, and it’s going to be even sweeter if it happens.”

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Robert Wickens Q&ACanadian star on return to DXDT Racing Corvette in home race
DXDT Racing driver and Canadian ace Robert Wickens met with members of the media via Zoom on Monday afternoon to discuss this weekend’s Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. This will be Wickens’ second start in the No. 36 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R this year after a transporter fire forced the team to miss the Laguna Seca round. Wickens raced last year at CTMP for the first time in a Corvette and was the GTD pole-winner earlier this year at Long Beach.

The track is a thrill to drive and the fans love it. They are camped on every hillside. But are there areas where you think safety could be improved at this track?“With the evolution of safety, you know, I think you can never sit still. And I think the track has done a phenomenal job with that. You know, obviously motorsport is dangerous; Tom (Dillman, LMP2 driver) showed us that last year. What they’ve done with the runoffs in Turn One and Turn Two and Turn Eight has really helped not only from a driver willing to push the limits, but also I think the team side and just creating more paved runoff for us. It has been a benefit. Extending barriers here and there and moving walls around, it’s no easy task. The track is the track and you can only deal with the real estate you have. With the forest kind of all around, at the end of the day you still want it to be Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. I think us drivers love it because of its raw form in terms of what it is. And I think that’s just the beauty of the track.” Can you talk a bit about how DXDT works within the Chevy environment, especially given that there are more customer teams this year in GTD?“I think from a DXDT standpoint, we actually repurposed the chassis that they were using in SRO in previous years. So putting it into the IMSA homologation with torque sensors and scrutineering boxes, etc., that kind of goes along with that. I’m not going to pretend to know what every little detail of that is but from the adaptation standpoint, from quality checking components and everything, Pratt Miller plays a big part with their customers on race weekends. There’s a data share across Pratt Miller and their customers, which is super beneficial for us drivers, for sure. The pro drivers are there for a reason. You want to learn from them as much as possible every step of the way. And we have that ability within the Corvette family. It’s been really a very supported program from Corvette Racing. And I think there’s no surprise that they’re gaining customers year on year because I think the support they give is pretty phenomenal.” Can you speak to just what this race means to the Canadian fans. We know Canadians have a really big motorsports passion and culture. But just what does this race weekend mean for the Canadian fan base?“I think every driver loves a home race. My career went to Europe at a young age, and I spent the better part of 12 years without having a home race. There was always a team home race, maybe, and you kind of treated that like your own home race. But to truly be with your people, with your fans, with your loved ones, friends and families that come out and camp… the motorsport community is small, but it’s very loyal and quite strong. I love being at the track and seeing former competitors that I grew up karting with, their parents, and everyone just loves motorsports so much. There is always that level of nostalgia, right? As I said before, I was that kid that in between practice sessions on the kart track, I’d be riding my bike over to the big track and then trying to sneak into the paddock and trying to get drivers’ autographs and doing all that stuff. So when I see little kids doing the same thing, it’s just cool. I love to see it. I think the Canadian fans are very passionate. You kind of see it at every Canadian venue whether it’s IMSA, IndyCar or Formula One. Maybe motorsports isn’t our top sport, but the people that love it are very passionate about it.”

Uncategorized

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Northeast Trip Features Midweek Stateline Return, Sharon Doubleheader

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

CONCORD, NC (July 6, 2026) – Following two busy weeks in the upper Midwest, the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision is heading back toward the east coast.

Three race nights are on this week’s agenda, starting with a return to Stateline Speedway after three years away. The Rick Briggs Memorial powered by Dave Warren Powersports brings the Series to Busti, NY on Wednesday, July 8, for a 40-lap, $15,000-to-win, main event.

Teams will have Thursday off before the annual midsummer visit to Sharon Speedway for the Battle at the Border on Friday and Saturday, July 10-11. Drivers will race 40 laps for $12,000 in Friday’s lid lifter before Saturday’s finale, which pays $20,000 to the winner after 60 laps.

Joining the World of Outlaws on the card will be the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and Pro Stocks at Stateline and UMP Modifieds at Sharon.

GET STATELINE TICKETS

GET SHARON TICKETS

WATCH LIVE ON DIRTVISION

Here are this week’s top storylines:

CHASING HISTORY: Bobby Pierce will have the opportunity at Stateline to do something no one has ever done in 25 seasons of World of Outlaws racing.

A victory on Wednesday would be his seventh in a row, breaking the record for the longest win streak in Series history. The mark to beat stands at six, a number first achieved by Darrell Lanigan in 2012, then by Pierce in 2024 before he did it again this season with six-straight wins in the upper Midwest.

Pierce’s remarkable run dating back to his first Dirt Late Model Dream triumph a month ago has his margin atop the World of Outlaws standings up to 76 points, leaving him in prime position in the chase for a third Series championship. The upcoming schedule features plenty of chances for Pierce to further expand his advantage by the end of summer. He finished third in his only prior start at Stateline, but the four events after that – the Battle at the Border, Prairie Dirt Classic, USA Nationals and the Hawkeye 100 – are all races Pierce has won in the past two years.

BACK WHERE IT BEGAN: Last time the World of Outlaws were at Stateline, first-year World of Outlaws driver Nick Hoffman rolled into Victory Lane for the first time on the national Late Model stage.

Since then, the Modified legend and his Tye Twarog Racing operation have become a top-five team in the country, one that can contend for wins everywhere they go and kept pace with Pierce in the points through the first half of the season. The only thing Hoffman hasn’t done in the past few weeks is win, and that will need to change soon if he wants to get back in the thick of championship contention.

In six races up north, Hoffman finished second four times and never ran worse than fourth. Those numbers will win you a championship in many cases, but not when you’re chasing Pierce when he’s at the top of his game.

Hoffman is obviously fond of Stateline, but Sharon will be the place where he’ll need to make improvements to avoid losing more ground in the standings. He’s finished fifth there three times in seven starts, but his other four starts have all ended outside the top five, including a 12th in 2024 and an 18th in 2025.

WELCOME HOME: Stateline isn’t exactly right down the street from Tim McCreadie’s hometown of Watertown, NY, but Wednesday will be the closest thing to a home game he’ll get all season.

McCreadie’s history at Stateline isn’t the best though, with results of 19th, 12th and 21st in three World of Outlaws appearances, although the most recent one came back in 2013. Aside from its location in McCreadie’s home state, Stateline will be a big night all around for Briggs Transport Racing. The race honors the late Rick Briggs, father of team owner Boom Briggs, and the team’s primary sponsor, Dave Warren Powersports, has played a key role in getting Stateline back on the World of Outlaws schedule.

Over at Sharon, he has a win to his credit from 2005 and more recently finished sixth and seventh in two starts last year.

SETTLING IN: The northern swing brought Trey Mills one of his best stretches yet as a national Late Model racer.

The 18-year-old’s 2026 campaign has featured several spectacular moments, like starting on the pole at the Dream and racing for the win at Golden Isles Speedway until he tumbled out of the ballpark, but he’s also been through his share of rough nights in between.

In his trip north, Mills strung together six-straight runs in the top 11. It wasn’t flashy or attention-grabbing, but that kind of quiet consistency is exactly what Mills has been looking for at this stage of his career to gain experience and respect from the World of Outlaws frontrunners. It also paid dividends in the points hunt, as Mills is up to eighth in the standings, 51 markers shy of Daulton Wilson in the MD3 Rookie of the Year battle.

Both World of Outlaws freshmen will be flying blind this week, as neither Mills nor Wilson have ever been to Stateline or Sharon.

TURNING HEADS: Logan Zarin may be too far back to catch the two rookies in front of him, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of finishing his first season at the national level off strong.

The Hookstown, PA driver has taken plenty of lumps on the road in 2026, but the team has remained positive and logged notes as they look toward the future. But last weekend, the No. 1Z team finally got to enjoy some fruits of their labor. The NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50 cancelation opened the door for Zarin to spend Independence Day at Muskingum County Speedway for the Freedom 50, and he was rewarded with a sixth-place finish, the best of his career in a full-field, national-touring event.

Luckily for Zarin, the schedule gives him an ideal chance to potentially improve on that run this week. After months of going to tracks for the first time, the World of Outlaws is going to two tracks Zarin knows well. He’s made two starts at Stateline in a Crate Late Model with the RUSH Series along with a Last Chance Showdown exit with the World of Outlaws in 2023. Sharon is where Zarin has made six World of Outlaws starts in nine attempts, with a best Feature finish of 14th from 2021.

WHEN AND WHERE:
Wednesday, July 8, at Stateline Speedway in Busti, NY
Friday-Saturday, July 10-11, at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, OH

CURRENT POINT STANDINGS:
1. Bobby Pierce (5074 points)
2. Nick Hoffman (-76)
3. Tyler Erb (-297)
4. Tim McCreadie (-375)
5. Ryan Gustin (-455)
6. Ethan Dotson (-509)
7. Daulton Wilson (-593)
8. Trey Mills (-644)
9. Dennis Erb Jr. (-656)
10. Dustin Sorensen (-747)

FEATURE WINNERS (11):
Bobby Pierce – 16
Nick Hoffman – 6
Tyler Erb – 2
Tim McCreadie – 2
Brandon Sheppard – 2
Hudson O’Neal – 2
Ryan Gustin – 1
Chris Madden – 1
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 1
Mason Zeigler – 1
Mike Marlar – 1

FEATURE TOP FIVES (25):
Nick Hoffman – 29
Bobby Pierce – 27
Tyler Erb – 18
Tim McCreadie – 13
Ryan Gustin – 11
Drake Troutman – 10
Brandon Sheppard – 8
Ethan Dotson – 8
Hudson O’Neal – 7
Daulton Wilson – 7
Chris Madden – 5
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 5
Dennis Erb Jr. – 5
Jonathan Davenport – 5
Mason Zeigler – 2
Dustin Sorensen – 2
Dale McDowell – 2
Brandon Overton – 2
Trey Mills – 2
Ashton Winger – 2
Mike Marlar – 1
Max Blair – 1
Brent Larson – 1
Josh Rice – 1
Garrett Alberson – 1

FEATURE LAPS LED (22):
Bobby Pierce – 476
Nick Hoffman – 202
Tyler Erb – 99
Drake Troutman – 99
Brandon Sheppard – 81
Ryan Gustin – 73
Chris Madden – 73
Hudson O’Neal – 68
Daulton Wilson – 66
Jonathan Davenport – 57
Tim McCreadie – 46
Garrett Alberson – 46
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 41
Mike Marlar – 39
Mason Zeigler – 24
Ethan Dotson – 22
Ashton Winger – 22
Brandon Overton – 12
Michael Leach – 10
Sam Seawright – 5
Dale McDowell – 4
Dallon Murty – 3

BILSTEIN POLE AWARDS (21):
Nick Hoffman – 7
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 3
Drake Troutman – 3
Bobby Pierce – 2
Chris Madden – 2
Ethan Dotson – 2
Tyler Erb – 1
Tim McCreadie – 1
Brandon Sheppard – 1
Hudson O’Neal – 1
Ryan Gustin – 1
Jonathan Davenport – 1
Dustin Sorensen – 1
Brandon Overton – 1
Ashton Winger – 1
Garrett Alberson – 1
Tristan Chamberlain – 1
Sam Seawright – 1
Michael Leach – 1
Dallon Murty – 1

SIMPSON QUICK TIME AWARDS (16):
Nick Hoffman – 8
Chris Madden – 5
Bobby Pierce – 3
Tim McCreadie – 3
Tyler Erb – 2
Brandon Sheppard – 2
Hudson O’Neal – 2
Michael Leach – 2
Jonathan Davenport – 2
Drake Troutman – 1
Ethan Dotson – 1
Brandon Overton – 1
Brent Larson – 1
Cody Overton – 1
Ross Robinson – 1
Sam Seawright – 1

HEAT RACE WINS (39):
Nick Hoffman – 20
Bobby Pierce – 18
Tyler Erb – 11
Ryan Gustin – 7
Chris Madden – 7
Drake Troutman – 7
Brandon Sheppard – 6
Hudson O’Neal – 6
Tim McCreadie – 5
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 5
Daulton Wilson – 5
Jonathan Davenport – 4
Brandon Overton – 4
Mason Zeigler – 3
Ethan Dotson – 3
Dustin Sorensen – 3
Tristan Chamberlain – 3
Dennis Erb Jr. – 2
Trey Mills – 2
Michael Leach – 2
Dallon Murty – 2
Jared Miley – 2
Mike Marlar – 1
Dale McDowell – 1
Ashton Winger – 1
Brent Larson – 1
Josh Rice – 1
Garrett Alberson – 1
Donald McIntosh – 1
Blair Nothdurft – 1
Logan Zarin – 1
Cody Overton – 1
Dan Ebert – 1
Austin Smith – 1
Sam Seawright – 1
Devin Moran – 1
Sam Mars – 1
Dylan Thornton – 1
Lane Snook – 1

LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (36):
Ethan Dotson – 4
Dennis Erb Jr. – 4
Dallon Murty – 4
Ryan Gustin – 3
Daulton Wilson – 3
Josh Rice – 3
Logan Zarin – 3
Bobby Pierce – 2
Drake Troutman – 2
Dustin Sorensen – 2
Trey Mills – 2
Tristan Chamberlain – 2
Carson Ferguson – 2
Tim McCreadie – 1
Ricky Thornton Jr. – 1
Brent Larson – 1
Cory Hedgecock – 1
Jake Timm – 1
Cody Overton – 1
Dan Ebert – 1
Michael Leach – 1
Luke Morey – 1
Chris Ferguson – 1
Dalton Cook – 1
Shane Clanton – 1
Michael Page – 1
Jason Feger – 1
Brian Shirley – 1
Derrick Stewart – 1
Chad Simpson – 1
Chris Simpson – 1
Dylan Thornton – 1
Gordy Gundaker – 1
Nick Davis – 1
Dylan Yoder – 1
Lincoln Smith – 1

2026 WORLD OF OUTLAWS LATE MODEL SERIES PRESENTED BY DIRTVISION SCHEDULE
Wednesday, Jan. 21 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL (Practice)
Thursday, Jan. 22 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Chris Madden (1)
Friday, Jan. 23 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Hudson O’Neal (1)
Saturday, Jan. 24 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Tim McCreadie (1)
Thursday, Feb. 12 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Nick Hoffman (1)
Friday, Feb. 13 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Nick Hoffman (2)
Saturday, Feb. 14 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Brandon Sheppard (1)
Thursday, Feb. 19 / Hendry County Motorsports Park / Clewiston, FL (Practice)
Friday, Feb. 20 / Hendry County Motorsports Park / Clewiston, FL / Bobby Pierce (1)
Saturday, Feb. 21 / Hendry County Motorsports Park / Clewiston, FL / Nick Hoffman (3)
Friday, March 13 / Volunteer Speedway / Bulls Gap, TN / Mike Marlar (1)
Saturday, March 14 / Smoky Mountain Speedway / Maryville, TN / Bobby Pierce (2)
Thursday, March 19 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS (Practice)
Friday, March 20 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS / Bobby Pierce (3)
Saturday, March 21 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS / Hudson O’Neal (2)
Friday, March 27 / East Alabama Motor Speedway / Phenix City, AL / Nick Hoffman (4)
Saturday, March 28 / Senoia Raceway / Senoia, GA / Bobby Pierce (4)
Thursday, April 9 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL (Practice)
Friday, April 10 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL / Brandon Sheppard (2)
Saturday, April 11 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL / Bobby Pierce (5)
Tuesday, April 28 / Independence Motor Speedway / Independence, IA / Bobby Pierce (6)
Thursday, April 30 / Mississippi Thunder Speedway / Fountain City, WI / Bobby Pierce (7)
Friday, May 1 / Mississippi Thunder Speedway / Fountain City, WI / Nick Hoffman (5)
Saturday, May 2 / Mississippi Thunder Speedway / Fountain City, WI / Ryan Gustin (1)
Wednesday, May 13 / Georgetown Speedway / Georgetown, DE / Bobby Pierce (8)
Thursday, May 14 / Selinsgrove Speedway / Selinsgrove, PA / Tim McCreadie (2)
Sunday, May 17 / Bedford Speedway / Bedford, PA / Mason Zeigler (1)
Wednesday, May 27 / Marion Center Raceway / Marion Center, PA / Bobby Pierce (9)
Thursday, May 28 / Wayne County Speedway / Orrville, OH / Ricky Thornton Jr. (1)
Friday, May 29 / Mansfield Speedway / Mansfield, OH / Tyler Erb (1)
Saturday, May 30 / Mansfield Speedway / Mansfield, OH / Nick Hoffman (6)
Friday, June 12 / West Virginia Motor Speedway / Mineral Wells, WV / Bobby Pierce (10)
Saturday, June 13 / West Virginia Motor Speedway / Mineral Wells, WV / Tyler Erb (2)
Saturday, June 20 / 141 Speedway / Maribel, WI / Bobby Pierce (11)
Monday, June 22 / Ogilvie Raceway / Ogilvie, MN / Bobby Pierce (12)
Wednesday, June 24 / I-94 emr Speedway / Fergus Falls, MN / Bobby Pierce (13)
Friday, June 26 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Bobby Pierce (14)
Sunday, June 28 / Nodak Speedway / Minot, ND / Bobby Pierce (15)
Tuesday, June 30 / Norman County Raceway / Ada, MN / Bobby Pierce (16)
Wednesday, July 8 / Stateline Speedway / Busti, NY
Friday, July 10 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH
Saturday, July 11 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH
Friday, July 24 / Fairbury Speedway / Fairbury, IL
Saturday, July 25 / Fairbury Speedway / Fairbury, IL
Thursday, July 30 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Friday, July 31 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Saturday, Aug. 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Thursday, Aug. 20 / Maquoketa Speedway / Maquoketa, IA (Practice)
Friday, Aug. 21 / Maquoketa Speedway / Maquoketa, IA
Saturday, Aug. 22 / Maquoketa Speedway / Maquoketa, IA
Wednesday, Aug. 26 / Southern Iowa Speedway / Oskaloosa, IA
Friday, Aug, 28 / Adams County Speedway / Corning, IA
Saturday, Aug. 29 / Shelby County Speedway / Harlan, IA
Friday, Sept. 25 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO
Saturday, Sept. 26 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO
Friday, Oct. 2 / Boothill Speedway / Greenwood, LA
Saturday, Oct. 3 / Boothill Speedway / Greenwood, LA
Friday, Oct. 23 / Modoc Speedway / Modoc, SC
Saturday, Oct. 24 / Modoc Speedway / Modoc, SC
Wednesday, Nov. 4 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Thursday, Nov. 5 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Friday, Nov. 6 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Saturday, Nov. 7 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Northeast Trip Features Midweek Stateline Return, Sharon Doubleheader

CONCORD, NC (July 6, 2026) – Following two busy weeks in the upper Midwest, the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision is heading back toward the east coast.

Joining the World of Outlaws on the card will be the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and Pro Stocks at Stateline and UMP Modifieds at Sharon.

GET STATELINE TICKETS

GET SHARON TICKETS

WATCH LIVE ON DIRTVISION

Here are this week’s top storylines:

CHASING HISTORY: Bobby Pierce will have the opportunity at Stateline to do something no one has ever done in 25 seasons of World of Outlaws racing.

WELCOME HOME: Stateline isn’t exactly right down the street from Tim McCreadie’s hometown of Watertown, NY, but Wednesday will be the closest thing to a home game he’ll get all season.

Over at Sharon, he has a win to his credit from 2005 and more recently finished sixth and seventh in two starts last year.

SETTLING IN: The northern swing brought Trey Mills one of his best stretches yet as a national Late Model racer.

Both World of Outlaws freshmen will be flying blind this week, as neither Mills nor Wilson have ever been to Stateline or Sharon.

TURNING HEADS: Logan Zarin may be too far back to catch the two rookies in front of him, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t capable of finishing his first season at the national level off strong.

WHEN AND WHERE:
Wednesday, July 8, at Stateline Speedway in Busti, NY
Friday-Saturday, July 10-11, at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, OH

ARTICLE: https://worldofoutlaws.com/latemodels/top-five-storylines-northeast-trip-features-midweek-stateline-return-sharon-doubleheader/

Uncategorized

CORVETTE RACING AT SĀO PAULO: A Le Mans Encore?

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

TF Sport, Corvette aiming to take back-to-back WEC wins after Le Mans victory DETROIT (July 6, 2026) – TF Sport and its Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs are back on the racetrack this weekend, less than a month after capturing a hard-fought class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. So now the question is: What to do for an encore? Another LMGT3 win in the FIA World Endurance Championship would be just fine, and the chance comes in the third visit for the team and the Corvette GT3 to Sāo Paulo, Brazil and the 2.677-mile, 15-turn Interlagos circuit for the Six Hours of Sāo Paulo.
The Le Mans victory for the No. 33 Corvette of Nicky Catsburg, Jonny Edgar and Ben Keating put TF Sport ahead in the LMGT3 Teams Championship due to 24 Hours being a double-points race. Catsburg and Edgar lead the Drivers Championship after an elbow injury kept Keating out for the first two races of the season. For Brazil, Nico Varrone will drive in place of Catsburg due to his commitments in IMSA at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. It’s a reunion of sorts between Varrone and Keating as the pair teamed with Catsburg for the 2023 WEC GTE Am title for Corvette Racing. Varrone will make his first start for TF Sport and in a WEC Corvette GT3 with the goal of helping the No. 33 Corvette score points in its fourth straight race. On the other side of the garage, the Racing Team Turkey by TF trio of Charlie Eastwood, Salih Yoluc and Peter Dempsey will look to improve on their sixth-place finish at Le Mans after coming from the rear of the field at the start. The result was the best of the season so far for the No. 34 Corvette, and Eastwood was part of a runner-up finish in a TF Sport Corvette a year ago at Sāo Paulo.
Eastwood and TF Sport also are coming off an LMGT3 victory at Imola in the European Le Mans Series on Sunday. It was the first of the season for the trio of Eastwood, Alec Udell and Blake McDonald, who claimed pole position; the No. 33 Corvette and its drivers now lead the class Teams and Drivers championships. The Six Hours of Sāo Paulo is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Brasilia Time / 10:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, July 12. Live streaming coverage of the race, qualifying and Hyperpole, plus timing and scoring is available through a subscription on FIA WEC Plus with additional live streaming on the HBO Max app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will provide live streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

NICO VARRONE, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I’m really excited to be back in the Corvette and with TF Sport in the Sāo Paulo WEC round. It’s also exciting to be back with Ben after our World Endurance Championship title in 2023 and also winning Le Mans that year. Now joining TF Sport after their Le Mans win is a big deal and a real pleasure. It’s a great opportunity for me. Now with my F2 season, I really miss endurance racing and driving GTs. It’s something I love. Sāo Paulo also is a race that is close to where I was born so I can’t wait to be there and help TF Sport on their title run. They’re a great team and I’m looking forward to meeting all of them and working with them in Sāo Paulo. I can’t thank them enough plus Ben Keating and Corvette Racing for having me for this race.”

JONNY EDGAR, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “I don’t think it will be an easy weekend for us with the success ballast that we’ll have. Any points will be good, and the goal to the end of the season is to pick up points where we can. We’re obviously in a good position with Le Mans being double-points so it’s a great spot for the championship. I’m looking forward to driving with Nico. I’ve met him before and I’m looking forward to getting to know him better. Hopefully we should have a good weekend. Nico will be very fast as he always is, and he has a good relationship with Ben. This track does suit the car quite well so hopefully we can have as good of a weekend as possible.”

BEN KEATING, NO. 33 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “What I am looking forward to most about Brazil is not having to drive five stints in a row! I don’t anticipate much pain in my elbow, but there will be some pain carrying our success ballast in this race for leading the championship and winning Le Mans. That’s a price we are glad to pay, though. I expect that we will need some luck to be in the points but I have every confidence in TF Sport to get us there. I’m also really excited to share a car with Nico again. It has been almost three years since we shared a Corvette in WEC and I couldn’t ask for a better Super Sub for Nicky than Nico!”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 34 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “We had a good race at Brazil last year. It also was on the hard tire, which helped a few other cars. So going back to the medium is only a benefit for us. It’s a good track… an awesome track, actually. It’s definitely better now that it’s had a partial repave; it was a bit tricky in the first year with crazy-high deg, which we’re always happy with. Salih and Peter have never been, so that’s not straight-forward. So we need to get them up to speed as quickly as possible. But the car is good there and we should have a good one, I think. Hopefully it’s nice and hot, which also will play into our favor. So really looking forward to it.”

2026 FIA World Endurance Championship PointsLMGT3 Drivers Standings1. Jonny Edgar/Nicky Catsburg – 722. Ben Keating – 503. Alessio Rovera/Francois Heriau/Simon Mann – 404. Hadrien David/Tom Van Rompuy – 375. Jack Hawksworth – 3617. Charlie Eastwood/Peter Dempsey/Salih Yoluc – 18 LMGT3 Teams Standings1. No. 33 TF Sport – 722. No. 21 Vista AF Corse – 403. No. 78 Akkodis ASP Team – 374. No. 10 Garage 59 – 345. No. 92 The Bend Manthey – 3413. No. 34 Racing Team Turkey by TF – 18
Corvette Racing at Sāo Paulo2024 – No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 8th in LMGT3No. 82 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Daniel Juncadella/Sebastien Baud/Hiroshi Koizumi – 17th in LMGT3 (DNF) 2025 – No. 33 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Daniel Juncadella/Jonny Edgar/Ben Keating – 7th in LMGT3No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 2nd in LMGT3

CORVETTE RACING AT SĀO PAULO: A Le Mans Encore?TF Sport, Corvette aiming to take back-to-back WEC wins after Le Mans victory DETROIT (July 6, 2026) – TF Sport and its Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs are back on the racetrack this weekend, less than a month after capturing a hard-fought class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. So now the question is: What to do for an encore? Another LMGT3 win in the FIA World Endurance Championship would be just fine, and the chance comes in the third visit for the team and the Corvette GT3 to Sāo Paulo, Brazil and the 2.677-mile, 15-turn Interlagos circuit for the Six Hours of Sāo Paulo.
The Le Mans victory for the No. 33 Corvette of Nicky Catsburg, Jonny Edgar and Ben Keating put TF Sport ahead in the LMGT3 Teams Championship due to 24 Hours being a double-points race. Catsburg and Edgar lead the Drivers Championship after an elbow injury kept Keating out for the first two races of the season. For Brazil, Nico Varrone will drive in place of Catsburg due to his commitments in IMSA at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park. It’s a reunion of sorts between Varrone and Keating as the pair teamed with Catsburg for the 2023 WEC GTE Am title for Corvette Racing. Varrone will make his first start for TF Sport and in a WEC Corvette GT3 with the goal of helping the No. 33 Corvette score points in its fourth straight race. On the other side of the garage, the Racing Team Turkey by TF trio of Charlie Eastwood, Salih Yoluc and Peter Dempsey will look to improve on their sixth-place finish at Le Mans after coming from the rear of the field at the start. The result was the best of the season so far for the No. 34 Corvette, and Eastwood was part of a runner-up finish in a TF Sport Corvette a year ago at Sāo Paulo.
Eastwood and TF Sport also are coming off an LMGT3 victory at Imola in the European Le Mans Series on Sunday. It was the first of the season for the trio of Eastwood, Alec Udell and Blake McDonald, who claimed pole position; the No. 33 Corvette and its drivers now lead the class Teams and Drivers championships. The Six Hours of Sāo Paulo is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. Brasilia Time / 10:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, July 12. Live streaming coverage of the race, qualifying and Hyperpole, plus timing and scoring is available through a subscription on FIA WEC Plus with additional live streaming on the HBO Max app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will provide live streaming audio coverage of all sessions as well.

CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

Uncategorized

Brandon Sheppard Dominates Macon to Win Second Herald & Review 100

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

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

Brandon Sheppard Dominates Macon to Win Second Herald & Review 100

“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.”

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 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.

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

UP NEXT

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

Michael Ledford Passes Trevor Neville Late for Macon Win

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

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.

ARTICLE: https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/recaps/brandon-sheppard-dominates-macon-to-win-second-herald-review-100/, https://dirtcarsummernationals.com/recaps/michael-ledford-passes-trevor-neville-late-for-macon-win/

Uncategorized

Wood Brothers Racing–Chicagoland Post race

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Uncategorized

Byron, Bowman Lead Chevrolet with Top-Five Finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series Return to Chicagoland Speedway

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

NASCAR Cup Series Chicagoland Speedway eero 400 Team Chevy Post-Race Report July 5, 2026

In the NASCAR Cup Series long-awaited return to Chicagoland Speedway, William Byron and the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet team brought home a fourth-place finish to lead Chevrolet to the checkered flag of the eero 400. The result, his fourth top-five finish of the season, was accompanied by a sweep of the stage wins and a season-high 94 laps led. Rounding out the Team Chevy top-five, Alex Bowman put together yet another strong Chicagoland campaign – driving his No. 48 Chevrolet to a top-five finish and a spot into the third round of the In-Season Challenge.

RACE RECAP:

Stage One: With the first caution of the day falling on the opening lap, a second attempt at taking the green flag saw front-row starter, Kyle Larson, drive his Chevrolet to the command position. The reigning champion was able to hold onto the lead for the first 18 laps of the opening stage, ultimately losing the position to a hard-charging Denny Hamlin. Settled into the position until the second caution fell near the halfway point of the stage, Larson’s first report from behind the wheel indicated that he was fighting a tight-handling car in Turns Three and Four. With a call for four tires, fuel and a minor adjustment by crew chief Cliff Daniels, the No. 5 pit crew kept their driver in the second position to take the green flag for the restart. A side-by-side battle with Hamlin saw Larson be able to muscle his Chevrolet past the pole-sitter to retain the lead on the exit of Turn Four. With an assist from a three-position gain in the race off pit road under the caution, it was his Hendrick Motorsports teammate, William Byron, that was able to capitalize on the track position during the restart to reach second just before the third caution of the day. A trio of early-race cautions saw the start of varying strategies along pit road. Returning to the track as the first cars on a four-tire strategy, Larson and Byron netted out in the 11th and 12th positions, respectively, to take the green flag with 27 laps to go in the stage. The advantage of fresh Goodyear rubber came to display early in the run as the teammates made their way back into the top-five in just five laps around the 1.5-mile oval. As the opening stage wound down, the speed of the No. 24 Chevrolet came to light as the driver climbed back up into the second position and quickly went to work on then race leader, Austin Cindric, in the closing laps – ultimately making the pass on Lap 69 to lead his first laps of evening. Keeping his teammate in his rearview mirror, Byron went on to cash in on the first green-white checkered flag with Larson in tow to give Chevrolet an one-two finish in Stage One.

Stage Two: Under the stage break, crew chief Rudy Fugle made the call for four tires and fuel, and with a masterful stop by the No. 24 pit crew, Byron was able to maintain the top position for the start of Stage Two. Byron was able to lead the opening lap of Stage Two, but the stint was short-lived as Bubba Wallace traded positions just a few laps later. The green conditions turned yellow shortly thereafter when the third-place runner, Larson, spun off Turn Four. Lined up on the outside lane of the front-row for the restart, Byron was able to remain on the door of Wallace through the backstretch before settling back into the second position. As the race finally settled into a long run to set-up for a green flag pit cycle, Byron reported that the previous adjustment made an improvement to the handling of his Chevrolet, but he was still experiencing overall tight conditions throughout the track. Making the call to hit pit road just past the halfway mark of Stage Two, Byron made his way back up into the eighth position just as the fifth caution of the day flew amidst the tail-end of the cycle. With the remaining cars completing their stops under the caution, Byron found his way back to a position on the front-row to lead the field to the restart. This time, it was Byron that was able to power off a strong restart to take over the lead once again with 20 laps to go in the stage. Reaching up to just over an one-second lead over Briscoe, Byron started to build two-numbers tighter late in the long run but managed to hold him off to drive to a stage win sweep.

Final Stage: With the No. 24 pit crew keeping their driver up front once again, Byron found his way back to the front-row to lead the field to the green flag for the final stage of the race. Electing the inside lane for the restart, it was no competition for the top position as Byron cleared Briscoe in Turns One and Two for the start of the run. With a two-stop strategy for the final run, Byron set the pace for the first-half of the stage as the field approached the final green flag pit cycle of the race. But with Briscoe making his stop just one lap before Byron, the No. 24 Chevrolet fell to the second position as the cycle was deemed complete. Going green to the end, the Charlotte, North Carolina, native went on to take the checkered flag with fourth-place finish.

Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 ResultsPos. Driver
4th – William Byron5th – Alex Bowman

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 19 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 6Poles: 4Top-Fives: 36Top 10s: 68Stage Wins: 15

The 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at EchoPark Speedway with the Quaker State 400 Available at Walmart on Sunday, July 12, at 7 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on TNT Sports, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

NASCAR Cup SeriesChicagoland Speedwayeero 400Team Chevy Post-Race ReportJuly 5, 2026

Byron, Bowman Lead Chevrolet with Top-Five Finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series Return to Chicagoland Speedway

MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race Advances Chevrolet Newsroom

Team Chevy Unofficial Top-10 ResultsPos. Driver
4th – William Byron5th – Alex Bowman

Chevrolet’s season statistics with 19 NASCAR Cup Series races complete:
Wins: 6Poles: 4Top-Fives: 36Top 10s: 68Stage Wins: 15

Post-Race Driver Quotes: Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletFinished: 24th“We were going in the right direction with the No. 3 Dow Salutes Veterans Aptiv Chevrolet here today at Chicagoland Speedway, but as the race progressed, especially in stage 3, I was battling wear on the right rear. It was a frustrating day, but everyone across RCR and ECR gave it their all. We’ll take what we learned and reset as we turn our attention back to speedway racing next weekend in Atlanta.” William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Anduril Finished: 4th You wanted a big points day, so you can check that box. Do you walk away happy with this finish?“We definitely reached that objective. I’m happy with the finish because we maximized what we could do. A win would have been awesome. We’ve been craving that for a long time and working really hard to get there. We could kind of taste it there with a couple runs to go. We got jumped by the No. 19 (Chase Briscoe, race winner) there on that last green flag pit cycle, but I just didn’t quite have the pace that last run to keep up with him, and then those other guys had fresher tires at the end. Just thank you to Anduril, Chevrolet and everyone at Hendrick Motorsports for working super-hard. We’ve been grinding a lot. For us on the No. 24 team, that last two ovals we’ve been to, we’ve had a shot to compete and win, so we just have to keep that going.” Austin Hill, No. 33 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletSidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage One. Finished: 37th“Not the day we should have had in the zone x 7-Eleven Chevrolet. Hate it for everyone who works at RCR, ECR, and CT Spring because they built a good car. We were making gains with the balance. Fired off a little tight but the adjustments on the first stop helped. A few laps after that stop, right past halfway of Stage 1, we got hit from behind under green which ended our day early. We will turn our attention to next week but proud to be a part of this team.” Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports ChevroletFinished: 5th “It definitely feels nice to have a good, normal, solid day for this No. 48 Ally Chevrolet team. We didn’t start the day how we wanted to. We were super-tight taking off on those first couple of restarts. But at the end of Stage Two until the end of the race, I felt pretty good about the Ally Chevrolet. Hats off to the entire No. 48 team. We just needed a good, normal day. It feels like a win with how the season has gone, but we just have to keep digging every week.”

Uncategorized

Kyle Kirkwood finishes third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

July 5, 2026 — MANSFIELD, OH

Kyle Kirkwood retakes second place in the championship with third-place result from P10 start at Mid-Ohio
Championship leader Alex Palou fifth at the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid
Honda maintains narrow advantage in the manufacturers’ championship fight

Kyle Kirkwood continues his streak of strong finishes in the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES, coming home third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid.

The podium finish moves the Andretti Global driver back into second place in the championship, 56 points behind Alex Palou. Kirkwood has scored 10 top-10 finishes in 11 races run this year, including a win at the inaugural Java House Grand Prix of Arlington.

Championship leader Alex Palou finished fifth for the second-consecutive race. The Spaniard has four wins this year as he goes for his fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship.

Kirkwood’s Andretti Global teammate, Will Power, finished sixth on the day while local Ohio boy Graham Rahal came home 12th.

2026 Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist finished 13th, just ahead of his Meyer Shank Racing teammate, Marcus Armstrong, in his Acura-sponsored Indy car.

Armstrong’s Acura Honda is the third appearance of Acura branding this season—as the automaker looks to take advantage of a new, and growing, audience in IndyCar. IndyCar viewership is up 14% on 2025. Armstrong advanced 10 positions on the day, starting 24th and finishing 14th.

Today’s Honda Indy 200 ran without a caution period, and without a single competitor dropping out, over the entire 90 laps on the two-year anniversary on the introduction of the IndyCar Hybrid System.

Honda maintains a narrow advantage in the manufacturers’ championship fight, 892-868.

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid Honda Race Results

3rd Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global Honda
5th Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
6th Will Power	Andretti Global Honda
12th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
13th Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
14th Marcus Armstrong	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
15th Kyffin Simpson	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
17th Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
18th Louis Foster	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
21st Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global Honda
23rd Romain Grosjean	Dale Coyne Racing Honda
24th Mick Schumacher-R	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
25th Dennis Hauger-R	Dale Coyne Racing Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

Kyle Kirkwood (#27 Andretti Global Honda) finished third: “I think that was the most physical race I’ve ever driven, especially with the track being faster than in the previous couple of years. Running under green for the entire race gave us no breathers at all. It was hard to even take a drink of water with it being so busy around here. But nonetheless, I’m happy to have driven this Sam’s Club Honda from 10th to 3rd. That’s a good podium finish. Big hats off to Honda and the Honda plants out here in Ohio because they gave us the power and fuel economy to do what we needed to make our strategy work. Super thrilled with my day. Big thanks to Andretti Global and the crew—they got us that podium on that last pit stop sequence. The car was phenomenal all weekend.”

Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished fifth: “Tough day for us. We just didn’t really have the pace to battle up front. But I’m still happy because our strategy was good and everything else went great with our Honda. We were able to move up from P8 to P5. It’s just difficult when you don’t have enough speed to fight for the lead. It felt more like we were surviving out there, so we were just focused on trying to gain as many positions as we could.”

Kyle Kirkwood finishes third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

July 5, 2026 — MANSFIELD, OH

Kyle Kirkwood retakes second place in the championship with third-place result from P10 start at Mid-Ohio
Championship leader Alex Palou fifth at the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid
Honda maintains narrow advantage in the manufacturers’ championship fight

Kyle Kirkwood continues his streak of strong finishes in the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES, coming home third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid.

Championship leader Alex Palou finished fifth for the second-consecutive race. The Spaniard has four wins this year as he goes for his fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship.

Kirkwood’s Andretti Global teammate, Will Power, finished sixth on the day while local Ohio boy Graham Rahal came home 12th.

2026 Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist finished 13th, just ahead of his Meyer Shank Racing teammate, Marcus Armstrong, in his Acura-sponsored Indy car.

Honda maintains a narrow advantage in the manufacturers’ championship fight, 892-868.

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid Honda Race Results

3rd Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Global Honda
5th Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
6th Will Power	Andretti Global Honda
12th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
13th Felix Rosenqvist	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
14th Marcus Armstrong	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
15th Kyffin Simpson	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
17th Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
18th Louis Foster	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
21st Marcus Ericsson	Andretti Global Honda
23rd Romain Grosjean	Dale Coyne Racing Honda
24th Mick Schumacher-R	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
25th Dennis Hauger-R	Dale Coyne Racing Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

David Salters (President, HRC US): “Congratulations to Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, and everyone at HRC US for a hard-fought and well-earned podium finish in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio. It’s always great to achieve a strong result at a venue which holds a lot of importance for us, with the facility being so close to the Honda Marysville and East Liberty Auto Plants as well as Honda Research & Development. It was wonderful to be able to welcome over ten thousand hard working Ohio-based Honda employees to the track this weekend, and even better to have been able to deliver a podium result to top it off. We have some work to do to get back on the top step but, racing mirrors life, always work to do and areas that can be improved.”

Uncategorized

CHEVROLET INDYCAR RACE REPORT – Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio – O’Ward grabs win

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Media Resources: Images | Media Advances | Chevrolet Newsroom

CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIESHonda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio2.258-Mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio road courseLexington, OhioSunday Race ReportJuly 5, 2026

LEXINGTON, Ohio (July 5, 2026) – Team Chevy celebrated July 4th and America’s 250th Birthday with a third straight NTT INDYCAR SERIES victory, when Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet crossed under the checkered flags just ahead of his teammate Christian Lundgaard in the No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet.
Rinus VeeKay in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet missed out on a podium by a half-second, his best road and street course finish of the season. Also collecting his best road and street course finish of the season was Christian Rasmussen, who brought the No. 21 Splenda Chevrolet home in 6th. David Malukas (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet) in 8th, Josef Newgarden (No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet) in 9th and Nolan Siegel (No. 6 NTT DATA Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) gave Team Chevy seven of the top ten in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio.
Pole-winner Lundgaard led the first 41 laps on the 2.258-Mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio road course, as the field approached the halfway point of the race and the second of three rounds of pit stops.
O’Ward made his move on the 42nd lap, getting a better run off The Keyhole (Turn 2), getting beside his teammate who chose to defend the inside of Turn 4, forcing the No. 5 to hang it around the outside of the right hander. Lundgaard gave his teammate room as they remained side-by-side into Turn 5. O’Ward had the preferred inside line, delivering him to Turn 6 in the lead.
The No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet was the third best on pit road on this day, and they executed flawlessly over the last two stops, allowing him to lead 45 laps, four more than his teammate. The pair of Arrow McLaren drivers led 86 of the 90 laps, and Chevrolet-powered drivers led 88 of 90 laps.
Chevrolet notable numbers
— O’Ward’s win is the 242nd all-time win for a Chevrolet-powered driver and the 132nd since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012.— O’Ward’s win is the 13th for a Chevrolet-powered driver at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and the 7th since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012. — O’Ward’s win is his 10th all-time, moving him into a tie for 43rd all-time and 10th with Team Chevy, tying him for 7th on the all-time Chevrolet-powered win list with Danny Sullivan. — O’Ward’s win is Arrow McLaren’s 30th all-time and their 12th win with Chevrolet power.— O’Ward and Lundgaard’s podiums are the 691st and 692nd all-time for Chevrolet-powered drivers and the 376th and 377th since the introduction of the 2.2L Twin-Turbo V6 in 2012.— O’Ward and Lundgaard’s podiums are the 49th and 50th for Arrow McLaren since joining Team Chevy in 2020. — O’Ward and Lundgaard’s podiums are the 35th an 36th at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for Team Chevy— O’Ward’s podium is his 33rd with Chevrolet, tying for 5th with Helio Castroneves on the Team Chevy all-time podium list. — The dozen Chevrolet-powered drivers completed 1080 of a possible 1080 laps, with O’Ward and Lundgaard keeping their streak of completing every lap this season alive.
Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio – Race Results:

What they’re saying – Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio race:
Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet won:“It’s been such a strong weekend for all of us at the team, Team Chevy, everybody at Arrow McLaren, These cars really have been a joy to drive. I think I can speak on behalf of Christian as well. They gave us everything we needed to, to fight for the win today. And we’ve been so close in pace, right? I mean, you start qualifying .02 or something separating us. So, I knew the race was going be tight as well. But I was banking on a mistake just being there that was going to give me the opportunity. I saw and I took advantage of it, and we controlled it from there. Back-to-back wins for the team. Now, all three cars in the top 10 in this race as well. For us at the No. 5 side, it’s been a consistently top five year, but it hasn’t been a consistently good year on the podium. This is our first one, so glad it’s a win, and we’re going to try and go get it in Nashville. I think we’ve got some unfinished business there from last year.”
Christian Lundgaard, No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 2nd:“I’m just trying to catch my breath, honestly. That was very long, very tough race. We were very loose. In these conditions when you’re loose, it makes the car a lot heavier to drive. I wasn’t really happy with the rear of the car all race. Congrats to the team for a one-two. He was much stronger in Turn 2 than we were, which is really the passing opportunity. I had nothing in Turn 1. I wasn’t really fast, where I needed to be fast.”
Rinus VeeKay, No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet finished 4th:“That was a good race. We race like we belonged up front. First of all, we had a great test a week ago. We showed pace, but then to really finish it off on a weekend like this. We were fighting for a podium there, unfortunately, got beaten by the No. 27 (Kirkwood) on pitlane. On the final stop, we were right there. Good strategy by the No. 76 crew, and, of course, incredible car, really good pit stops all year round by my guys, so I’m really happy. The JHR boys are incredible. They were incredible this weekend, so it’s a team effort.”
Christian Rasmussen, No. 21 Splenda Chevrolet finished 7th:“Today was definitely up there as one of the hardest, most physical NTT INDYCAR SERIES races that I’ve done. It was really tough out there, but man, I just drove my heart out at the end. I had no push-to-pass against (David) Malukas, who I think had 60 seconds or something like that. I just knew I couldn’t make any mistakes and had to maximize every single lap, and I did, so I’m very happy with this result. We really turned our weekend around. We struggled in practice, but by qualifying we got our first Fast 6 appearance and executed well in the race.”
David Malukas, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet finished 8th:“Overall, a really good weekend. We flipped this car three or four times. Back and forth, back and forth to get into a window and the car was there every single time. That race was unfortunate for us. We made some mistakes here and there. This track is all about getting as much time as you can and you slowly go backwards a little bit. Overall, with those mistakes. From the mistakes I made, to the guys, that was probably our worst. To say P8 is our worst, is really awesome. These guys are so bad-ass, and there is so much more to come from this team. We’ll learn these mistakes and go get them at the next one. Thank you to Verizon and thank you to Chevy. Incredible engine this week. Congrats to Pato, for getting Chevy up top.”
Josef Newgarden, No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet finished 9th:“Great job by my PPG team. The car was great, Team Chevy continues to step it up on the natural terrain circuits. Looking forward to racing at my home track at Nashville Superspeedway.”
Nolan Siegel, No. 6 NTT DATA Arrow McLaren Chevrolet finished 10th:“It was a good day today. We moved forward and made the most of it given where we started. Congrats to the team on the 1-2 for the 5 and the 7, the team’s first 1-2. I’m overall satisfied with our day, and am looking forward to some oval racing next.”
Caio Collet, No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet finished 11th:“It was a good day overall. The team executed. really good race strategy wise, pitstops I think we did everything well today. Unfortunately, we had an incident with another car that was running a different strategy he was probably a lap behind, and we went off track which probably cost us a top-10 there. But nevertheless, fighting for the top-10 is where you want to be. We did everything right today. Big thanks to Combitrans and Chevrolet for all of their effort this weekend and hopefully we can keep on doing races like that.”
Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet finished 19th:“Not our day obviously. I think we did a really good job with the race car. It felt relatively competitive. We tried to get off strategy early in hopes for a caution that never came and that ended up being our race. Just unfortunate.”
Alexander Rossi, No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet finished 20th:“Where do I begin? Really, a tough weekend overall. There were some glimmers of goodness, but ultimately, we really didn’t have the pace, and there were no strategy plays we could make to try to move forward in an all-green race. Frustrating day. There’s lots to look over and learn from. Good job to the 21 car, and I look forward to getting back out there in Nashville.”
Sting Ray Robb, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger – Goodheart Chevrolet finished 22nd:“Frustrating day. I don’t really know what to say, one to forget I guess. Not really anything bad or mistake wise, just lack of execution and p22 is as good as we did. Disappointing weekend after what could have been a Fast 6 qualifying. Had a really good car under us yesterday and I don’t know what happened today, so we’ll look at it and go to Nashville. A track that I like, an oval that I like, hopefully we’ll be towards the front.”

NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceSunday, July 5, 2026Pato O’WardTony KanaanPress Conference
THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up today’s the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, Pato O’Ward joins us, the champion this year, who led a race-high 45 laps in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, second win here at Mid-Ohio, first win of the season, 10th of his career, jumps up to fifth now in the 2026 NTT INDYCAR Series championship, and by the way, there’s a big Mexico match later tonight, so this could be a really big day for you.
PATO O’WARD: Yeah, man. Hopefully we can bring out the broom, Mexico sweep.
Q. Getting that first win here this year, how big was this?
PATO O’WARD: It’s great. It’s great that the first podium of the year for me is a win. We’ve had performances, and I think today was a textbook showing of execution. I want to give it to my guys in the pits; they were phenomenal. I know they’ve been working so hard because this year that has been a bit of a challenge, and I know they’re working so hard to give me the pit stops that they gave me today. I know they’ve been working hard for that.
I really want to recognize that because they make or break my race. They truly allowed me to fight my way and keep my position today as we were fighting on track.
Obviously the cars have been strong all weekend. It’s been a very strong weekend for all three cars. It was a matter of being perfect.
Q. You want to talk about the pass for the lead there?
PATO O’WARD: Yeah, like I said, the pace has been so close between Christian and I. We’ve basically matched each other every single session. It’s been the weekend that obviously the team wants to have every single weekend. We want to be fighting exactly where we were today every single time.
I was positioning myself to bounce on an opportunity whenever he would make a mistake, so I was banking on that he was going to make one, and he did. That’s what ultimately gave me the opportunity, and I took full advantage of it.
It’s always more fun to do it on track over a pit stop sequence or something.
Q. When you’re racing like that with a teammate, is that a thing where you can trust your teammate a little bit better than if it had been somebody from another team?
PATO O’WARD: I think it depends who you’re racing. You can really tell who you can race side-by-side with or who’s going to tell you, no thanks.
Obviously Christian is one of the best in the series. Like obviously Palou is not an Arrow McLaren driver, but I think if I was in that situation with him, he would also respect me like that, and I think you can say that about a lot of other guys, like Malukas and that stuff. I don’t think it really makes a difference.
But obviously as for the team’s instance, we obviously don’t want to take both cars out. We knew that we were going to race hard, and it was either his or mine. I ran a cleaner race.
Q. I hate using cliches, so I won’t, but how important was it for you to get that “he hasn’t won a race this year or finished on the podium” out of the way?
PATO O’WARD: Honestly, I wasn’t really worried. I’ve been in this business for a long time. I know there’s plenty of other guys that have had many more years than I have, but I’ve got plenty under my belt to understand how things flow. The bad luck doesn’t last forever, but the good luck also doesn’t.
Today was a simple showing of execution, and even coming off of Road America, I had so much pace. I’ve had so much pace in the last two road courses. Sadly, Road America we weren’t even able to fight because we got hosed by that yellow.
But this weekend it was an all-green race. Physical, oh, my God, really physical. Really hot in there. But that’s why we train so hard in the off-season. That’s what’s most important.
Yeah, honestly, that’s it for me. I knew my win was coming. Whether it was going to be in the last couple races or in the middle, I don’t know. But obviously I made it happen today.
It’s just nice to kind of put ourselves in a position to keep on climbing, keep on building on this great momentum that we’ve had because I do feel like some good results have ran away from us just from little details. But today I really want to thank my guys for giving me an amazing race car and in the pits. Like I said, that is so important.
THE MODERATOR: All-green race, to your point. Somehow there were still 24 cars that finished on the lead lap, so crazy race. Tony Kanaan joins us, who is the team principal at Arrow McLaren, as they celebrate their 30th all-time win, first ever one-two finish in INDYCAR history for the team, so congratulations. I saw you were a little emotional on the pit stand there.
TONY KANAAN: I’m finding now that I forget that I’m on TV sometimes, and when my oldest son texts me and says, hey, you’re embarrassing me on TV, I think I should stay in the truck. I was a nerve wreck.
I was excited, obviously. We were having such a good weekend with the two cars and Nolan being in the top 10, it’s just something that I’m not handling the team principal role on the other side well, but I was excited. I think it’s been a great day for the team.
I’ve learned over the years that you’ve got to celebrate each one of them because you never know.
Q. Pato, all year it feels like it’s been one thing or another for you, whether it’s luck with yellows, pit stops, feel in the car. How rewarding is it to finally have everything go right today; Christian makes a mistake and you capitalize?
PATO O’WARD: Well, it’s been great. Obviously this is why I’m here, and the reality is I’ve really strived for perfection from my side every single race weekend. I don’t want to make mistakes. I want to be clean. I want to be smart. I want to put the car and pick my battles, and I really feel like I’m driving better than ever. I don’t think the results this year have really shown how I feel inside of the race car because, like you said, about one thing or another, but the most important thing in this business is you need to be comfortable and confident of what you can do and about what you can control. Sometimes you can’t control everything. Sometimes you will do everything perfectly, and things won’t work out.
But I don’t think it’s a reason to lose motivation, lose hunger. I know it was just a matter of time for things to kind of click, or at least not go against us.
Obviously it’s sometimes on the extremes. You might have horrible luck or you might have insane luck. We haven’t had that insane luck yet, so maybe we do, and it would be nice to keep racking up some more. But yeah, it’s just great to get this first win of the season for me.
Nashville I truly believe is a place that obviously I’ve always enjoyed, the team enjoys, and we’ve got some unfinished business from last year just with that unlucky, whatever that was. I’m excited to go back there, and we’re going to try and repeat but actually finish the race where we were.
Q. TK, it appears that Christian or Nolan could be out the door here. You made your expectations clear with Nolan, but as it pertains to Christian, what has he maybe not shown you to verify that you want to bring him back?
TONY KANAAN: I think first, there’s a lot of talk about what we’re doing in the team and a lot of speculation. I think we haven’t reached an agreement yet. I think you guys will see in the near future what the team is doing. We haven’t been able to agree on a couple things.
But I think as a team principal, I’m responsible for running this team as best as I can, and I think Christian has shown his potential, but also, there are other options out there, and I’ve got to consider all of them. The decision hasn’t been made yet.
Although people keep putting people in my cars, it’s not done until it’s done. He’s still very much in play, and he’s an extremely capable race car driver. We’ll see what’s going to happen.
Q. Pato, you’ve indicated you didn’t have a lot angst about when the win was going to come, but I think the perception is that you’re the leader of this team, the veteran of this team, and there are decisions made on this team to help you. I’m curious, is any of that in your head when trying to perform or win or add pressure to you?
PATO O’WARD: I mean, I think the team gives us all the tools the best they can. I wouldn’t put myself as I get the best of everything. I truly feel like we’re all very equal, and we all have as good of a shot as anybody else.
I think it’s up to us, being the quarterback of my little 5 car team, to try and lead and to try and really maximize what our potential can be.
You know, I feel like — I don’t really get rattled. I know a lot of people — and there’s been so much noise, people writing me off already, but the people that actually watch and they actually know what they’re watching, they truly know what’s going on, and they really do see that a lot of the times it can be something that’s out of your control.
Honestly, this year there’s been quite a bit of that. That’s the nature of this sport. It’s not going to be the last time, and it’s not going to be the first time. I’ve had plenty of years here where — they’ve been up and down, up and down, but the most important part was everybody was writing me off, oh, what a horrible year. I’m still fifth in the championship, and this is my first podium. Rack up two or three more, and I’m fighting for the championship. I still am.
People need to chill. It’s just, the championship is long. There’s plenty of racing to go. I sure as hell am not getting worse.
I keep working hard. I obviously enjoy my life outside of racing, as well, which is very important, and along with that, you’ve got to enjoy it with your guys. You have to. You never know when it’s your last time, your last win together. You never know. It’s so important to do that because that’s truly why we do this. We do this to win and to compete, but we also do this — what makes it so much sweeter is actually the people that we get to share it with after making these strong relationships within the team.
For me, obviously papaya is a second family, and they will remain to be. I always try and give the best I’ve got. There’s not once where Tony has come to me and he’s like, I need you to try harder because I know he knows ex act ly how much I expect from myself and how perfect I want to be, and that’s how I do everything, jobs, investments. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing. That is what you want to do.
Q. You’re 94 points behind Alex with seven races to go, so that’s doable?
PATO O’WARD: Yeah, obviously it’s doable. I think at this point last year I was somewhere there, as well, and if it’s not first in the championship, a repeat of a second would be great. It’s not the end of the world. We’re obviously still working hard. We’re still getting better.
Like Tony said, we’re all trying to put these pieces together to make this team stronger as a whole. It’s not about me. It’s not about Christian. It’s not about Nolan. It’s not about Tony. It’s not about Zak. It’s about making everything as strong as possible.
When you see the two biggest goals that any race team in INDYCAR has, it’s winning the Indy 500 and winning the INDYCAR championship, which we’ve been very close on both. We’re going to keep working hard.
Q. You mentioned you’re excited for Nashville. You think you’ve got unfinished business there. Looking at the other six races outside of Nashville and kind of the stretch run of the season, is it realistic that you can be competitive enough to make up that points differential and be a factor in the championship?
PATO O’WARD: I mean, if we keep having weekends like today, certainly so. That would be fantastic. Obviously Nashville has been a great place for me and the team. Portland we’ve been very strong, as well. Markham, we’ve had the best street course results that we’ve had in quite some time this year. I’m excited for Markham. I’m excited for Washington. That one is going to be crazy. Milwaukee, we’ve won there before.
There’s plenty of opportunities left. Like I said, I’m not changing my approach. It’s going to be the same as it’s been all year. I didn’t really change it this weekend, either.
Q. Tony, a lot of noise surrounding the team this weekend —
TONY KANAAN: Really? I haven’t heard anything.
Q. To be able to deliver a one-two amidst all of this noise, talk about that from your perspective as a team principal.
TONY KANAAN: Hey, they make noise, we’ll make a bigger noise. That’s how we work. I think this is a statement of what it is. There is a lot of things going on, a lot of distraction, and we’re able to keep this team on track with what we came here to do. We came here to win the race. We came here to finish one-two-three, and we finished one-two. We’re trying to win this championship.
I kept the team tight. I kept the team at truth. They’re going to hear from me whatever the decision is.
If they haven’t heard from me, that means there is no decision made yet. But rest assured that the decision is going to come with a lot of certainty and not taking for granted that 130 people are putting their life and their faith towards me, towards this guy that has a lot of responsibility, and I feel responsible for all of them.
If I have to take a gamble, take a gamble, and if I need to take a hit, I’ll take a hit. I’m here to win races. That’s what Zak put me here for. That’s why I wake up every morning, and I’m working on that team for 13, 14 hours a day since I retired. For me, nothing is changing. Bring it on. Bring the distractions. Will we’ll keep changing that a little bit. Today we’re going to talk about one-two.
Q. A lot of teams and drivers can get complacent in the summer, middle part of the season. Everybody seems locked in from all three aspects, from Christian to Nolan to Pato. Talk about how good that is to have all three aspects locked in going into this latter half of the season.
TONY KANAAN: It says a lot about how much work we’ve been doing. Look at this team three years ago and look at this team now. It’s not the same team. We’ve been changing. We’ve been adding personnel. We’ve been adding a lot of the culture that we’ve been trying to achieve. We’ve been adding the Hunter-Reays and the Kyle Moyers and also working with the drivers with what we need and what they need to be able to perform. There is no excuses when you have a name like McLaren and a boss like Zak.
I just said, this was our first one-two, and my text to him says, and it won’t be the last, and that’s Zak. Proud of them, proud of the drivers with the distraction and everything that has been going on. I’m trying to be as mindful and as fair as possible using my own experiences. I’ve been through some ups and downs in my career, if I can help them out. But the focus is we always leave is all at the racetrack because at the end of the day the results will speak for themselves.
As much as you win and you put yourself in a position to do so, I think your life will become easier one way or the other. Proud of them. Proud of Pato. There is a lot of talk, and I’m not going to debate on it, and I think he has me handling that quite well. So is Christian, and then Nolan with his best last four races, he’s stepped it up pretty much every race.
Q. You mentioned about the 130 people that work for you back in Indy. Can you talk a little bit about the investment that McLaren have put into the team? You’ve got the new race shop. How proud are you of the work that the team has done?
TONY KANAAN: I mean, if you look at our last, what, I would say 16 months, we got the shop up last July, I think. We had six months to turn it around. We spent two months with the cars are parked and the entire team was building chairs, desks, making — patching walls and stuff in the team to make it our home.
I remember when Zak presented this challenge, I would say, to me, I asked him where he wants to be. I knew the answer, right? To set a standard like that, we need a facility that we’re able to compete with Penske and Ganassi and to provide the opportunity of just anything, manufacturer things that we couldn’t do in the old shop because it was too small but also the work environment, the culture.
You guys know me well enough from my previous career I love to have fun and I think we can still win and have fun. I don’t want to run like other teams. I want to be different. I want to be the guy that you walk into my office and I have to remind you, maybe I’m busy, but if you are comfortable to just walk in.
Proud of the team. Our home is awesome. I love it. I spend more time there than at my house. If I ask my wife that, since we build that, it’s an excuse for me to be there all the time.
If you look at the past 20 years, only two teams have won the championship. When we got — I got the responsibility and everyone else put McLaren with those guys, we have to step it up, and we did, and we are. We’re getting there with the shop and everything else.
I can’t really run a team and be compared to legends, which is Chip and Roger, that have had so much success for the last 30 years. I can’t go to a fight without the proper guns, the same guns that they have. Obviously made a huge difference. We’re proud of it, and hopefully we’ll get there.
Q. Pato, Christian was here and said earlier that the track conditions from the warmup today morning to the race were totally different. What is your opinion about that? Do you feel also that the track conditions were different?
PATO O’WARD: I thought it was a little bit warmer for sure, but I think it was the same change that we usually get on the other road courses, as well, when all this rubber starts getting laid down. The cars do seem to change a little bit. But I wouldn’t say that it completely transformed what we’ve had. I think in terms of pace, we were right where we have been compared to the rest of the weekend, right? Obviously the track will fluctuate and things need to change, but we’ve got things inside of the car that we can mess around with to put it in a bit more of a happy place.
Q. Pato, I don’t know if you’ve been keeping track, but that was 14 races without a podium. How much of a relief is it to finally get that off your back? That’s actually the most races that you’ve gone in your INDYCAR career without a podium. Will how much of a relief is it, and how much of a difference do you think it makes going forward through the rest of the year?
PATO O’WARD: Yeah, it’s obviously nice that the first one has been a win because, yeah, a win does hit different than just a second or a third. I think this is — I had a bit of a sniff of it in Road America. I really did. I was positioning myself there to take the win, and we had so much pace.
Coming into here, I knew that we were going to be able to do something similar to that, and we went out there and executed. That was the most important part.
Yeah, it’s been nice, but honestly, I don’t really look at all of that. I just go every single weekend with the open mind that we always want to do better than the previous year. We always want to do better than the previous weekend. That’s what we did.
Q. TK, this is the first weekend this year that all three McLaren drivers have been in the top 10. I know you feel like you’ve made a statement to the public, but how does this affect morale within the team, given that this has been such a big weekend?
TONY KANAAN: I mean, we get to celebrate tonight. Tomorrow, everybody is going to report to the shop at 7:00 a.m. because we’ve got to go to Milwaukee. It’s going to be a short celebration, but look, I think this is a little bit of — this is a part of the result. Today we get to enjoy it for a couple hours. But we’ve been winning at the shop every day with what we’re building, how we are communicating, how we are going through the good days and the bad days, how we sit down and have very, very uncomfortable meetings talking about putting ourselves in a position to be accountable for what we need to do better.
Today was just an execution of the work we’ve been doing at the shop. The wins are made back home. Today was just the result of it. Proud of them, and we’ll get a couple hours to celebrate, and we’re going to have a team meeting at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow and everybody is going to be working again.
Pato does talk a lot in the team meeting, if you guys think I talk a lot. Christian will do it, as well. So does Nolan. It’s a big family.

NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceSunday, July 5, 2026Christian LundgaardPress Conference
THE MODERATOR: Wrapping up today’s the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V hybrid, Christian Lundgaard is here. After leading 41 laps this afternoon in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, best finish here at Mid-Ohio, second runner-up finish of the season, fifth podium of 2026, 14th career podium, as well. Just your thoughts on an all-green day. Pretty grueling inside the car for sure but second place finish for you today.
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Yeah, very long day, very tough day. Obviously very tough physically out there with the heat, but also just an all-green race. It didn’t really help that we were quite loose. We kind of went into the race knowing that — or thinking the balance was going to go towards understeer, and I don’t think that was the case as much. I think we kind of overreacted and made the car a lot harder to drive.
Very, very difficult, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how difficult the car is to drive. I still think we sort of maximized today, which is always nice.
Q. Talk about trying to hold off Pato.
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Yeah, at the end of the day it was a mistake of my own. I was struggling so much on entries with the rear. It happened three times before that lap. Then obviously I wanted to be the good sport. I could just easily have run him off the track in 4 if I wanted to. Didn’t.
We fought. We touched. I think that’s always good racing.

Q. Christian, I’d like to go back to the pass. You mentioned you made a couple of mistakes. Was that because of traffic ahead of you or was that just what the car was giving you?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: No, I struggled all day. Even on the first stint, wasn’t particularly happy with the rear. I was nowhere in Turn 1 all day. All high speeds, just no rear, stability. It made sense with what we did overnight and even after warmups. It’s pretty clear in my head what really happened.
Obviously we were fine-tuning the car as the race went on and the last stint was better but still struggled a lot.
Q. To struggle that much and come away with a second place, how does that happen?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Maximizing a weekend.

Q. Christian, with this weekend over for you, what are the next steps for you as far as figuring out your situation for next year?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I’m going to go take a shower, I’m going to sleep and then see what comes.
Q. Are you going to sleep well?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Me? I sleep great. I’m a big sleeper.
Q. Is there any part of you that is anticipating being proactive in this and figuring it out, or are you just waiting for people to call you maybe?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I guess both. I mean, it isn’t really where my head’s at now. There’s, what, nine races to go, eight races to go? Eight. Plenty of races to win. Seven, whatever. Seven races. Plenty of races to be competitive at.
Q. Christian, you said earlier you struggled with the rear. Did you have already this problem today in the morning in the warmup, or it just came up during the race?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: No, we were struggling with it in warmup. But again, I feel like the track condition was so different. I don’t know what specifically the track temp was different in the race. Obviously it was rising quite high throughout the race.
It’s a very different track than it was this morning. But I think it was highlighted even more in the race.

Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) celebrates his 2026 pole at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Media Resources: Images | Media Advances | Chevrolet Newsroom

Christian Lundgaard (No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet) celebrates his 2026 pole at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Chevrolet at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseChevrolet wins at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 132026 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren2024 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren 2022 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske 2021 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2020 Race #1 – Will Power – Team Penske 2017 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske 2014 – Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing 1993 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske 1992 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske 1991 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1990 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1988 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Patrick RacingChevrolet poles at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 142026 – Christian Lundgaard – Arrow McLaren2022 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren 2021 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2020 Race #1 – Will Power – Team Penske 2019 – Will Power – Team Penske 2017 – Will Power – Team Penske 2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske 2015 – Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing 2014 – Sebastien Bourdais – KV Racing Technology 2013 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global 2012 – Will Power – Team Penske 1991 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1990 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1988 – Danny Sullivan – Team Penske Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 36Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by driver: Will Power (7), Emerson Fittipaldi (4), Michael Andretti (3), Josef Newgarden (3), Al Unser Jr. (3), Mario Andretti (2), Christian Lundgaard (2), Scott McLaughlin (2), Pato O’Ward (2), Simon Pagenaud (2), Sebastien Bourdais (1), Rick Mears (1), Bob Rahal (1), Danny Sullivan (1) and Paul Tracy (1). Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by team: Team Penske (19), Newman Haas Racing (6), Galles Racing (4), Arrow McLaren (4), Chip Ganassi Racing (1), KV Racing Technology (1) and Patrick Racing (1) Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 1122Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by driver: Will Power (178), Emerson Fittipaldi (168), Josef Newgarden (161), Michael Andretti (152), Pato O’Ward (97), Scott Dixon (67), , Scott McLaughlin (49), Mario Andretti (44), Christian Lundgaard (41), Sebastien Bourdais (38), Ryan Hunter-Reay (30), Juan Montoya (30), Simon Pagenaud (23), Paul Tracy (23), Al Unser Jr. (11), Helio Castroneves (6), James Hinchcliffe (2), and Danny Sullivan (2) Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by team: Team Penske (575), Newman Haas Racing (196), Arrow McLaren (138), Chip Ganassi Racing (67), Patrick Racing (63), KV Racing Technology (38), Andretti Global (32), Galles Racing (11), and ECR (2) Manufacturer History at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseWins (with competition)13 – Chevrolet (2026, 2024, 2022, 2021, 2020 Race #1, 2017, 2016, 2014, 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990, 1989)13 – Honda (2025, 2023, 2020 Race #2, 2019, 2018, 2015, 2013, 2012, 2001, 2000, 1999 1997, 1996)6 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1986, 1984, 1983, 1980)2 – Ford (2002, 1998)1 – Ilmor (1994)1 – Mercedes (1995)1 – Porsche (1989)Poles (with competition)14 – Chevrolet (2026, 2022, 2021, 2020 Race #1, 2019, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 1991, 1990, 1988)10 – Honda (2025, 2024, 2023, 2020 Race #2, 2018, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1996)6 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1980)5 – Ford (2002, 1997, 1995, 1993, 1992)1 – Ilmor (1994)1 – Porsche (1989)

Uncategorized

Tanner English Wins Eighth Career Summer Nationals Feature at Highland

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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]

Uncategorized

Blair Banks $25,000 Lucas Oil Victory at Muskingum County Speedway

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

Blair Banks $25,000 Lucas Oil Victory at Muskingum County Speedway

ZANESVILLE, Ohio (July 4, 2026) – Max Blair of Centerville, Pennsylvania, charged from the 15th starting position to take the lead with three laps remaining and, despite two caution flags in the closing laps, held off Devin Moran and Hudson O’Neal to earn the biggest victory of his career. Blair collected $25,000 for winning the Freedom 50 on Saturday night at Muskingum County Speedway.
It was Blair’s second career victory with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series as the third-generation racer returned to the series full time in 2026.
Moran slipped past O’Neal at the checkered flag to finish second, while O’Neal completed the Big River Steel Podium in third. Clay Harris, who led the opening lap and spent much of the race running second, finished fourth. Ricky Thornton Jr. rounded out the top five.
Blair climbed to fourth with 14 laps remaining and then reeled in O’Neal, Harris, and Moran without the benefit of a caution. Asked in his post-race interview whether he believed he had a chance to win after starting 15th, Blair laughed.
“Not a chance. That was a heck of a run. Going from 15th to fourth was pretty cool, and I was thinking maybe we’d get a yellow and have a shot at it. Then we went three laps, and I’m thinking, ‘Holy cow,’ even in lapped traffic I’m running them down. I can’t believe it. It’s awesome,” said the 36-year-old racer.
“I have won another race that paid the same amount, but this is by far the biggest win of my career. I’m sure my wife and kids were screaming at the TV during those final laps, and then all of those cautions kept coming out. I’m out of breath and speechless.”
“When I took the lead, I knew I was a little better than they were, and I didn’t want to catch those lapped cars because I felt like I didn’t need to. Then I saw Shirley break or have a flat, and I thought, ‘There’s no way this is happening.’ I’ve got to thank my dad. This is what we’ve been trying to do for 20 years, and we finally did it.”
Moran, coming off his Firecracker 100 victory at Lernerville last weekend, continued his strong points surge by taking second from O’Neal at the finish.
“I used to love coming here because it was my home track. Now I love coming here because it’s a badass racetrack. My dad and those guys do a great job, and we always have an amazing crowd here. I thought I had a chance. Congratulations to Max Blair. He’s been really close all year and has had a really good race car. He got the job done. I thought it was Clay underneath me because I had just gotten by him, but it was Max, and I knew there was no way I was beating him tonight.”
O’Neal will head to 34 Raceway in Iowa on Thursday night with a 45-point lead over Brandon Sheppard, who finished seventh in the feature. O’Neal led 46 of the race’s 50 laps.
“I was fading pretty hard at the end. I knew somebody had to be coming. There’s always one guy who comes on late, and I became a sitting duck. We went too soft on tires, and I didn’t have much left. We just weren’t balanced at the end, and that’s something we need to work on.”
The winning Brad Spochaz/Centerline Motorsports Longhorn Chassis was powered by a Clements Racing Engine and sponsored by Riggs Fiber, Virgilie Iron and Steel, Creekside Auto Sales, Murphy’s Logging, C&J Dairy, Upstate Auto Group, Andy’s Towing, Tavern 618, Gable Inn, and Lakeside Auto Body.
Completing the top 10 were Logan Zarin, Brandon Sheppard, Dillon McCowan, Garrett Alberson, and Brandon Overton. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary Freedom 50Saturday, July 4, 2026Muskingum County Speedway | Zanesville, OH Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Hudson O’Neal | 15.688 seconds (Overall)Fast Time Group B: Ricky Thornton, Jr. | 15.828 seconds Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 71-Hudson O’Neal[1]; 2. 99-Devin Moran[2]; 3. 1Z-Logan Zarin[5]; 4. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[3]; 5. 58-Garrett Alberson[4]; 6. 93L-Cory Lawler[6]; 7. 156-James Dennis[7] Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 3S-Brian Shirley[1]; 2. 60-Dan Ebert[3]; 3. 93-Carson Ferguson[2]; 4. 111-Max Blair[4]; 5. 20-Todd Brennan[5]; 6. 0-Stephen Prince[6]; 7. (DNS) 59-Larry Bellman
Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 6-Clay Harris[2]; 2. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 3. 40B-Kyle Bronson[4]; 4. 31-Lincoln Smith[5]; 5. 76-Brandon Overton[3]; 6. C4-Freddie Carpenter[6]; 7. 34-Aaron Scott[7]; 8. K11-George Klintworth[8]
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1-Brandon Sheppard[1]; 2. 8-Dillon McCowan[5]; 3. 11-Josh Rice[2]; 4. 93J-Donovan Jackson[6]; 5. 17SS-Brenden Smith[4]; 6. 57-Caiden Black[3]; 7. (DNS) S8-Chris Stotts Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 6 Transfer): 1. 58-Garrett Alberson[1]; 2. 76-Brandon Overton[2]; 3. 20-Todd Brennan[3]; 4. 17SS-Brenden Smith[4]; 5. 93L-Cory Lawler[5]; 6. 156-James Dennis[9]; 7. C4-Freddie Carpenter[6]; 8. 34-Aaron Scott[10]; 9. 0-Stephen Prince[7]; 10. 59-Larry Bellman[11]; 11. K11-George Klintworth[13]; 12. (DNS) 57-Caiden Black; 13. (DNS) S8-Chris Stotts
Freedom 50 | Feature Finish (50 Laps):Pos – Start – Car # – Competitor – Hometown – Earnings1 – 15 – 111 – Max Blair – Centerville, PA – $25,8002 – 5 – 99 – Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – $11,2003 – 1 – 71 – Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – $7,3004 – 2 – 6 – Clay Harris – Jupiter, FL – $4,8005 – 6 – 20RT – Ricky Thornton Jr – Chandler, AZ – $4,7006 – 9 – 1Z – Logan Zarin – Hookstown, PA – $2,7007 – 4 – 1 – Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – $3,3008 – 8 – 8 – Dillon McCowan – Urbana, MO – $3,2009 – 17 – 58 – Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – $3,00010 – 18 – 76 – Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – $2,90011 – 7 – 60 – Dan Ebert – Lake Shore, MN – $2,80012 – 11 – 93 – Carson Ferguson – Lincolnton, NC – $2,70013 – 14 – 31 – Lincoln Smith – Belmont, OH – $1,80014 – 3 – 3S – Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – $2,50015 – 12 – 11 – Josh Rice – Crittenden, KY – $2,40016 – 16 – 93J – Donovan Jackson – Hope Mills, NC – $1,50017 – 13 – 22 – Daniel Hilsabeck – Earlham, IA – $2,30018 – 25 – 57 – Caiden Black – New Concord, OH – $1,50019 – 23 – 0 – Stephen Prince – Newark, OH – $1,50020 – 19 – 20 – Todd Brennan – Zanesville, OH – $1,50021 – 10 – 40B – Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – $2,30022 – 21 – 93L – Cory Lawler – Hanover, PA – $1,50023 – 20 – 17SS – Brenden Smith – Dade City, FL – $1,50024 – 24 – 59 – Larry Bellman – Wooster, OH – $1,50025 – 22 – 156 – James Dennis – Lower Salem, OH – $1,500 Race Statistics Entrants: 29Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Hudson O’NealMD3 Lap Leaders: Clay Harris (Lap 1); Hudson O’Neal (Laps 2-47); Max Blair (Laps 48-50)Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Hudson O’NealWieland Feature Winner: Max BlairMargin of Victory: 1.113 secondsHellraizer Jacks Cautions: Brian Shirley (Lap 49); Brenden Smith, Josh Rice, Cory Lawler (Lap 49 restart)MyRacePass Series Provisional: n/aFast Time Provisional: Stephen Prince; Larry Bellman Jr.Emergency Provisionals: n/aTrack Provisional: Caiden BlackBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Max Blair, Devin Moran, Hudson O’NealPenske Shocks Top 5: Max Blair, Devin Moran, Hudson O’Neal, Clay Harris, Ricky Thornton, Jr.Behrent’s One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Max Blair, Hudson O’Neal, Devin MoranPEM 4th Place Feature: Clay HarrisDiversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Ricky Thornton, Jr.Wilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Brandon SheppardWehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Dan EbertVelocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Lincoln SmithXS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Josh RiceHoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Max Blair (Advanced 14 positions)MD3 Most Laps Led: Hudson O’Neal (46 Laps)Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Hudson O’NealMidwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Hudson O’NealO’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: Dillon McCowanPro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Hudson O’Neal | Lap 5 | 16.796 secondsFK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Brian ShirleyVictory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Clay HarrisOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Rob BlairARP Engine Builder of the Race: Clements Race EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Max Blair | 15.6405 secondsTime of Race: 24 minutes 21 seconds Big River Steel Championship Standings Presented by ARP:Pos – Car # – Competitor – Hometown – Points – Earnings1 – 71 – Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 4370 – $191,0502 – 1 – Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 4325 – $188,3003 – 99 – Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 4220 – $249,3244 – 76 – Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 3945 – $93,9005 – 111 – Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 3935 – $107,8756 – 20RT – Ricky Thornton Jr – Chandler, AZ – 3850 – $119,8257 – 58 – Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 3695 – $79,3258 – 3s – Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 3590 – $66,0509 – 11 – Josh Rice – Crittenden, KY – 3585 – $72,17510 – 40B – Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – 3495 – $57,97511 – 6 – Clay Harris – Jupiter, FL – 3475 – $71,55012 – 93 – Carson Ferguson – Lincolnton, NC – 3440 – $59,30013 – 60 – Dan Ebert – Lake Shore, MN – 3320 – $58,15014 – 8 – Dillon McCowan – Urbana, MO – 3140 – $44,40015 – 22 – Daniel Hilsabeck – Earlham, IA – 2920 – $40,87516 – 17SS – Brenden Smith – Dade City, FL – 2785 – $33,92517 – 93L – Cory Lawler – Hanover, PA – 2605 – $23,175

Uncategorized

Christian Lundgaard grabbed his second pole with Chevrolet power, leading an all Arrow McLaren front row, including Pato O’Ward

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

What They’re Saying – Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio race David Malukas, No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet qualified 4th:“Overall, really good. When you look back from last year to today. This track was actually our worst. We did a lot of work in the off-season to get it turned around. These guys did a fantastic job. We were in the Firestone Fast Six, when last year we didn’t get to Q2. A big difference. Big kudos to these guys. In Practice 1, we weren’t anywhere near where we needed to be and they flipped this car and we are in the Fast Six. A really good day. A few mistakes from my side in that Q3 from my side to learn from. We’re still learning every single day and making ourselves a better team every single day. Looking really strong for tomorrow.” Christian Lundgaard, No. 7 VELO Arrow McLaren Chevrolet qualified on pole:“I honestly didn’t get off to the best of starts in Turn 11 and Turn 1 was a little messy. Had a big overseer out of 12 and13 as well. We knew it was a one lap tire, when it was a one lap shootout, really, for all of us. So, I’m happy at this point. We’ve got to go finish it off tomorrow, but at least we’re in the hunt for three road courses in a row.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet qualified 2nd:“I’ve got to thank the guys and gals at Arrow McLaren and Team Chevy. That’s a great Fast Six for them as well. Congrats to Christian on the pole. Good to be running out and on the front row heading into turn one. It’s a pretty good view. I’ve been happy with my car all weekend, and we’ve got a good one to make it happen tomorrow.”
Christian Rasmussen, No. 21 Splenda Chevrolet qualified 5th:“That was pretty good! America’s birthday brought some good things for us here. Starting 5th at Mid-Ohio, my best start in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES to date and also my first Fast 6. I can’t believe it’s taken us this long but now that monkey is off our back! We’re going into tomorrow confident and we’ll see what we can do. We’re excited, the No. 21 Splenda Chevrolet is a good racecar.” Rinus VeeKay, No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet qualified 6th:“Really good qualifying here at Mid-Ohio. That was Sting Ray’s best road course qualifying of the season so far and also ours. Really good job by the team. Testing here really helped. I think we found a good set-up for a place like this. We did the right thing from practice two. We got lost there, and we went back, and did the right things for qualifying. Really good job there by the Juncos Hollinger Racing team. Ready for tomorrow.”Josef Newgarden, No. 2 PPG Team Penske Chevrolet qualified 9th:“The car is on rails. I think David is showing it from the speed standpoint in the Firestone Fast Six. I think the car has just been lovely to drive right from the start. Having a great test here last week with Felipe (Nasr); he did a phenomenal job. We’ve learned a lot. Team Chevy has done tremendous for us leading into this. I feel really positive going into the race. We’d like to have a great result with this special PPG livery and have something to celebrate” Caio Collet, No. 4 Combitrans Amazonia Chevrolet qualified 11th:“From where we were this morning, a good improvement. Very, very close, just a tenth (of a second) away from the Firestone Fast Six. I think we could have done a little bit better there, with maybe executing a little bit better in the last run in the Fast 12. Overall, very happy with how we progressed from this morning, and I think we have very good pace for tomorrow.”Nolan Siegel, No. 6 NTT DATA Arrow McLaren Chevrolet qualified 15th, and will start 14th: “Disappointing day. I was focused on translating our potential into a deeper run into Qualifying, but it wasn’t in the cards. We’ll be ready to move forward tomorrow. Of course, congrats to the team, Team Chevy, Christian and Pato for going 1-2.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Good Ranchers Team Penske Chevrolet qualified 17th, but will start 16th:“We were just too loose there which was really unfortunate for the Good Rancher Chevy It was just really hard to maximize the car when you sort of don’t really have the confidence on the (corner) entry with the rear of the car. We had a really good car in our first and second practices, so frustrated to miss out there, but that is what it is. We’ll just see what we got in morning warmup. We just got out there and have a play, and We definitely are better than we were here right now. Just a frustrating miss out there. So close in INDYCAR, you can’t miss it. So that’s what it is.” Alexander Rossi, No. 20 ECR Java House Chevrolet qualified 18th, but will start 17th:“We made a lot of progress. We only ran one set of the alternates there because we use a set in practice two and that time that we was good enough to get through in round one. So, we were trying not to relegate ourselves to twelfth because we would have had to use another set for round two. It was an aggressive decision to sit on the time and hope it was good enough, and it was by six-hundreths. That’s the way it goes. “It’s (the package) infinitely better than it has been through the sessions leading up to this, so we’ve made progress. Both cars have worked well together to evolve as the weekend goes on. I’m much more confident after that session, despite the result.” Sting Ray Robb, No. 77 Juncos Hollinger – Goodheart Chevrolet qualified 14th, and will start 21st after a penalty for an unapproved engine change:“I’m really proud of the team. This is the best car we’ve had rolling off the truck ever. Disappointed not being inside the Firestone Fast Six today. I think we had a car and the ability to do that. Congrats to Rinus for being in the Fast Six. The engine penalty doesn’t help us going into tomorrow. Props to the team. It’s really exciting to make big steps like this and it’s really fun to drive.” Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Homes For Our Troops Chevrolet qualified 22nd:Santino: “Honestly, this weekend we have not been competitive at all. We’ve been working very diligently to close the gap and to be honest and we did kind of just that. We’ve just been struggling to find a change in the car that will give us some reaction. But what it came down to in qualifying is we were on the wrong side of one tenth of a second which is about the rate you blink your eyes. Honestly It’s just a bit of a bummer so because instead of starting in the fast 12, we start 22nd—that’s just how close it is. We’re gonna have to drive through the field tomorrow and see what we can do.”

Pato O’Ward during qualifying at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceSaturday, July 4, 2026Christian Lundgaard
Pato O’WardPress Conference
THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. Wrapping up qualifying for tomorrow’s the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid.
Christian Lundgaard in the No. 7 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, best start here at Mid-Ohio, second straight front-row start at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, first pole since Portland last year, fourth career NTT P1 award. Pato O’Ward will start second, third front-row start here at Mid-Ohio and third of the season.
Congratulations, Christian. Your thoughts on pole position and having the best view of tomorrow’s race at the start?
CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Yeah, we’ve been fast all weekend, so I feel like it was just the goal at the end of the day. Obviously we qualified second here last year, and to do it any better, it was one position.
To have it as a team, too, at the end of the day, if it’s one way or the other, I don’t think it really matters. We’re leading the show tomorrow, and we can dictate the pace. So I think that will be at least our strongest benefit tomorrow.
Q.  Pato, just your thoughts on a great day for the team?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I think it’s a great result for the team. Like Christian said, I think we’ve got the best view going into Turn 1. I think it’s — well, Turn 4 because we’re starting on the backstretch.
But yeah, it’s a good look to have an all-papaya front row and the cars have been strong all weekend and they have been in the past, obviously.
It’s not a stranger for us to look forward to a Sunday here and feel like we can really have a very strong ending result.
Q.  Christian, as a competitor, after what you’ve been through the last 24 hours, just how cool is this to be able to pull this off, just from a competitive aspect?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Well, at the end of the day for me it’s just noise. Once you’re in the car, I don’t really think anything matters. The talk is for next year, not this year.I still have a job to do and a job to finish.
Q.  Pato, as his teammate, you’ve probably developed a pretty close relationship with him. How cool is this from your standpoint to see what he was able to do even though it kept you from winning the pole?PATO O’WARD: No, I think we’ve had a very strong pairing, to be honest, in the last two years. This is not the first time that we’re sharing a front row, and I think what we strive to do every single weekend is just this, right? Like this is what we want to be doing. This is where we want to be positioning our race team and our engine manufacturer, which it was good to see this qualifying session was quite strong for Team Chevy, so thanks to them for bringing a good package for us this weekend for all of us to try and get it done.Yeah, this is what you want when you have a teammate. You want to be able to push each other. You want to be able to keep striving for the ultimate ceiling, right, which a lot of the times you don’t know where it is.
So far, I think we’ve done our jobs, and we’re trying to really maximize the package that we’ve got.
Q.  Christian, you mentioned you’ve been fast in every session. Do you almost feel like going into tomorrow you might have more confidence than you’ve had at any of the other races so far this year?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I mean, you know, I was very vocal in the beginning of the season that we just had to qualify better, right, and the results would be even better than they had been at the time. We proved it at Indy Road Course, qualifying further up. Road America is still sort of a mystery to me how we ended up where we did. Obviously the car was fast, but we needed some lucky yellows to just put us back in play.
Here we can dictate the pace. We know the car is fast in race trim. I don’t necessarily think it gets me more confidence in that regard. We just have to focus on in warmup tomorrow to be able to produce the best race car, as well.
Q.  A couple months ago Tony Kanaan was talking about your contract and said when he drove, he always told owners or whoever his boss was that he wanted them to let him know if he was being fired. Has he or Zak Brown or anybody extended that same grace and transparency to you in the past few weeks?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I mean, there’s a lot of talks back and forth. At the end of the day, I still have a job to do now. What next year brings, at the end of the day, I still don’t know. My guess is as good as yours is from that regard.
But as long as I keep doing the best that I can and keep winning races, I feel like those results speak for themselves.
Q.  Pato, you talked a lot about trying to get your first podium of the year. If there comes a situation where maybe you risk — do you want your team to roll the dice if you have to to win versus maybe play it safe or a top 3?PATO O’WARD: I mean, I don’t think we’re in a position to be rolling the dice, to be honest. We have a good position.
There’s a lot of things that can happen. I’ve started in the front row other times this year, and we’ve had some happy pedalers behind that pumped us or take us out. You cannot control that. I cannot control that. I also cannot control if we have a hiccup in the pits. I cannot control that. All I can do is maximize what I’ve got inside of the race car, and I truly believe that’s what I’ve been doing this year. I don’t think I’ve driven as well as I have this year. Sadly, the results I don’t think are well correlated with that, but I think there’s a lot of little things that have been costing us a lot of just much better results in certain areas.My hope for tomorrow is just to have a clean race. I don’t need the fastest pit stops. I don’t need the best strategy. I don’t need extremely lucky yellows. All I need is a nice smooth race, and I’m more than skilled enough to get the job done.
Q.  For either of you, it seemed like yesterday it was so hot, you could really get a good gauge on the softs. Did you get a good gauge today, and did they react the way you expected them to?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Well, I think considering all qualifying laps was done on lap 2, I feel like that is a pretty good indication.
Q.  Christian, starting on pole, how much does that mean to you to get that spot, especially with all the noise?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: Yeah, I mean, it doesn’t really make a difference, right? For me, I’m going to continue to do the best that I can. It’s not like I’ve had more motivation this weekend than I’ve had any other weekends. I continue to show up and do the best that I can.
Some weekends are better than others, and that’s life. That’s racing. Obviously to get a pole is great. It shows that we figured something out from our qualifying package, which we’re going to try to bring on to the rest of the season.
Q.  To continue your run of dominance on road courses, I feel like Alex Palou has been able to circumvent that into many championships here in INDYCAR and you’re pretty good on the street courses, as well. How does it feel to prove that, as well, or continue to prove that?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: You know, right now I’m taking it a day at a time. Of course I’m focused on the race tomorrow. I feel like there’s races coming up as a team where we’ll be strong, and that’s really where we have to maximize on the 10. We have a better chance of winning tomorrow than obviously he does, and I feel like I can speak for Pato, as well. We’re fourth and fifth in the championship; this is a good opportunity for us to score more points and catch up.
But again, we can’t really keep thinking that way. We need to be doing the best that we can and win races, and then the rest will take care of itself.
Q.  How much does it mean to you guys as a team to get one up on Alex Palou this weekend?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I mean, I don’t really know. This is what we’re here to do. It hurts losing, and at the end of the day, he’s done a tremendous job for such a long time. Still is. Just wasn’t his day, I guess.
PATO O’WARD: He’s still leading the championship. Today means nothing. I’m not focused on Alex. I’m trying to maximize my weekends. I think when you do that, that’s what’s going to take you to have a chance to win the championship, whether it’s going to be against Palou, whether it’s going to be against Newgarden, whether it’s going to be against Malukas. You don’t know.
But I think it’s important to really focus on what your packages are because a lot of the times you might get pretty close in points. No one has in the last few years. But you can be pretty close in points at the end of the year.
The good races for each of you can look very different. I think it’s just all about knowing what’s under you.
Q.  Christian, with the delay and the rain, did you feel any difference grip-wise on the track? And earlier today your driving colleagues from INDY NXT said it’s very difficult to overtake in a traffic situation. What’s your opinion about that?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I mean, on the rain delay, I love driving in the rain, so even if it was going to be wet, I wouldn’t really have cared too much. I feel like all of us would have enjoyed it.
I wouldn’t really say there was a big difference, in all honesty. I feel like the lap times were relatively similar. I think we’re all expecting a bigger speed gap compared to P2, but again, the temperature is warmer, so that slows us down.
Going into tomorrow, we have strategy as well. It’s between a three- and a two-stop, so there’s plenty of opportunity I feel like.
Yeah, it’s going to be difficult to overtake if everybody is doing the same thing, but I feel like we’ll find our way.
Q.  Pato, you mentioned at the end of Detroit that you felt like the Chevy was a little bit behind the Honda and you mentioned a couple of minutes ago that you feel like that gap is kind of closed. Obviously five of the Fast Six were Chevrolet powered. Where has that gap been made up between the two engines for you?PATO O’WARD: Everybody at Chevrolet and GM have really put on a board really what we needed, right. They’re very aware of where we’ve been lacking or where we’ve had to improve. I mean, every single — after every single weekend they’re always trying to give us more tools, more of everything just to be able to get us to that position, whether it’s a feeling, whether it’s all around just better drivability. They’re hitting every single angle, and I feel like they’ve really tried to cater, not just to all of us in the Chevy camp, but also to what the teams are specifically asking for. It’s not always what we ask for is what Penske is asking for and stuff.
I think they’ve been great to work with all this time, and obviously we put all this time and effort telling them what we need from them.
They’re doing as they should and like we are. We’re pushing each other, and we’re telling each other what we need to just have better chances at the end of the year because it’s definitely been a tough one.
Q.  Christian, you mentioned on Friday that it’s just been business as usual for you in the cockpit. But you’ve had so much success this year, particularly on the road courses. Was there a change in the off-season? Did you do anything differently to prepare? Is there any kind of a mindset change, or is it just, as you said on Friday, business as usual?CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD: I kept playing golf. (Laughter).
No, in all honesty, I feel like we were gaining so much momentum throughout last year. At the end of the day, we had two great races in Portland and Laguna last year, two road courses, and again, they’re still yet to come. What can we do there at the end of this year.
But I feel like our road course package has been really good on Sunday, and we’ve definitely struggled in qualifying. I don’t think that’s a secret. I think that’s why today feels better as a team to be one-two because I feel like we definitely have struggled in qualifying.

Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske) is interviewed after winning the 2022 race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Chevrolet at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseChevrolet wins at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 122024 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren 2022 – Scott McLaughlin – Team Penske 2021 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2020 Race #1 – Will Power – Team Penske 2017 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske 2014 – Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing 1993 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske 1992 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Team Penske 1991 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1990 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1988 – Emerson Fittipaldi – Patrick RacingChevrolet poles at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 132022 – Pato O’Ward – Arrow McLaren 2021 – Josef Newgarden – Team Penske 2020 Race #1 – Will Power – Team Penske 2019 – Will Power – Team Penske 2017 – Will Power – Team Penske 2016 – Simon Pagenaud – Team Penske 2015 – Scott Dixon – Chip Ganassi Racing 2014 – Sebastien Bourdais – KV Racing Technology 2013 – Ryan Hunter-Reay – Andretti Global 2012 – Will Power – Team Penske 1991 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1990 – Michael Andretti – Newman Haas Racing 1988 – Danny Sullivan – Team Penske Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 34Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by driver: Will Power (7), Emerson Fittipaldi (4), Michael Andretti (3), Josef Newgarden (3), Al Unser Jr. (3), Mario Andretti (2), Scott McLaughlin (2), Simon Pagenaud (2), Sebastien Bourdais (1), Christian Lundgaard (1), Rick Mears (1), Pato O’Ward (1), Bob Rahal (1), Danny Sullivan (1) and Paul Tracy (1). Chevrolet podiums at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by team: Team Penske (19), Newman Haas Racing (6), Galles Racing (4), Arrow McLaren (2), Chip Ganassi Racing (1), KV Racing Technology (1) and Patrick Racing (1) Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course: 1034Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by driver: Will Power (178), Emerson Fittipaldi (168), Michael Andretti (152), Scott Dixon (67), Pato O’Ward (52), Scott McLaughlin (49), Mario Andretti (44), Sebastien Bourdais (38), Ryan Hunter-Reay (30), Juan Montoya (30), Simon Pagenaud (23), Paul Tracy (23), Al Unser Jr. (11), Helio Castroneves (6), James Hinchcliffe (2), and Danny Sullivan (2) Chevrolet laps led at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course by team: Team Penske (573), Newman Haas Racing (196), Chip Ganassi Racing (67), Patrick Racing (63), Arrow McLaren (52), KV Racing Technology (38), Andretti Global (32), Galles Racing (11), and ECR (2) Manufacturer History at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseWins (with competition)13 – Honda (2025, 2023, 2020 Race #2, 2019, 2018, 2015, 2013, 2012, 2001, 2000, 1999 1997, 1996)12 – Chevrolet (2024, 2022, 2021, 2020 Race #1, 2017, 2016, 2014, 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990, 1989)6 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1986, 1984, 1983, 1980)2 – Ford (2002, 1998)1 – Ilmor (1994)1 – Mercedes (1995)1 – Porsche (1989)Poles (with competition)13 – Chevrolet (2022, 2021, 2020 Race #1, 2019, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 1991, 1990, 1988)10 – Honda (2025, 2024, 2023, 2020 Race #2, 2018, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1996)6 – Cosworth (1987, 1986, 1985, 1984, 1983, 1980)5 – Ford (2002, 1997, 1995, 1993, 1992)1 – Ilmor (1994)1 – Porsche (1989)

Christian Lundgaard grabbed his second pole with Chevrolet power, leading an all Arrow McLaren front row, including Pato O’Ward

Media Resources: Images | Media Advances | Chevrolet Newsroom

Pato O’Ward during qualifying at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Scott McLaughlin (Team Penske) is interviewed after winning the 2022 race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

Uncategorized

Power qualifies third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

July 6, 2026 ARP Trish Leave a comment

July 4, 2026 — MANSFIELD, OH

Will Power leads Honda drivers with P3 start in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
Andretti Global qualifies all three drivers in the top-10
Alex Palou eighth, snapping streak of five-consecutive pole positions

Will Power led Honda-powered NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers, qualifying his #26 Andretti Global Machine third for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid.

This is Power’s second-best starting position since moving to the Andretti Global team for the 2026 season, following his front row start at the Detroit Grand Prix last month.

Power’s Andretti Global teammates of Marcus Ericsson and Kyle Kirkwood also qualified in the top 10, lining up seventh and tenth respectively in an incredibly tight qualifying session. Fourth through 10th in the Top-12 round of qualifying were separated by less than one tenth of a second.

Championship leader Alex Palou’s streak of consecutive pole positions came to an end today, he will start eighth after claiming pole position at the previous five races.

Ohio-born Graham Rahal also made it through to the Top-12 round of qualifying, the 2015 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course winner will roll off P12.

Marcus Armstrong qualified 24th in his Acura-branded Honda Indy car with Meyer Shank Racing. Armstrong’s Acura Honda is the third appearance of Acura branding this season—following strong runs for Felix Rosenqvist at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, where he started from pole and finished second, and Armstrong himself at the Indy 500 where he finished fifth after leading at the white flag. Acura has activated around the IndyCar series in 2026 to celebrate 40 years of the Acura brand and help introduce the automaker to a new, and growing, audience in IndyCar.

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid Honda Qualifying Results

3rd Will Power
7th Marcus Ericsson
8th Alex Palou
10th Kyle Kirkwood
12th Graham Rahal
13th Felix Rosenqvist
16th Mick Schumacher– R
19th Louis Foster
20th Kyffin Simpson
21st Scott Dixon
23rd Romain Grosjean
24th Marcus Armstrong
25th Dennis Hauger– R

Andretti Global Honda
Andretti Global Honda
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Andretti Global Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
Meyer Shank Racing Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
Dale Coyne Racing Honda
Meyer Shank Racing Honda
Dale Coyne Racing Honda

R – Rookie

Quotes

Power qualifies third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

July 4, 2026 — MANSFIELD, OH

Will Power leads Honda drivers with P3 start in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio
Andretti Global qualifies all three drivers in the top-10
Alex Palou eighth, snapping streak of five-consecutive pole positions

Will Power led Honda-powered NTT INDYCAR SERIES drivers, qualifying his #26 Andretti Global Machine third for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid.

This is Power’s second-best starting position since moving to the Andretti Global team for the 2026 season, following his front row start at the Detroit Grand Prix last month.

Championship leader Alex Palou’s streak of consecutive pole positions came to an end today, he will start eighth after claiming pole position at the previous five races.

Ohio-born Graham Rahal also made it through to the Top-12 round of qualifying, the 2015 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course winner will roll off P12.

Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio presented by the 2027 CR-V Hybrid Honda Qualifying Results

3rd Will Power
7th Marcus Ericsson
8th Alex Palou
10th Kyle Kirkwood
12th Graham Rahal
13th Felix Rosenqvist
16th Mick Schumacher– R
19th Louis Foster
20th Kyffin Simpson
21st Scott Dixon
23rd Romain Grosjean
24th Marcus Armstrong
25th Dennis Hauger– R

R – Rookie

Quotes

Will Power (#26 Andretti Global Honda) qualified third: “That was really good for us. I’m glad we got qualifying completed in the dry because I felt like we had a good car and we were in a position where we could capitalize in those conditions. We left nothing on the table there. I think it was just so, so close in the Fast Six. It could’ve gone any way, there was just a little bit of everything in those final runs. I’m really happy with our Honda, we’ve been having really good races with it lately. I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

ARP Racing News

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: American Sprint Car Series Points Battles Intensify Ahead of Arkansas Doubleheader

Zack Mitchell Joining G.R. Smith Motorsports Full-Time With World of Outlaws

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Busiest Stretch of World of Outlaws Season Begins with Hartford, Wilmot Visits

BAGGSY UNVEILS THE ULTIMATE TOYOTA GR COROLLA DRIFT CAR

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut at Epic 49 th Annual Night Under Fire

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut at
Epic 49^th Annual Night Under Fire

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Points Battles Head North

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

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Set for Three-Night Midwest Swing

CORVETTE RACING AT CTMP: Robert Wickens Q&A

TOP FIVE STORYLINES: Northeast Trip Features Midweek Stateline Return, Sharon Doubleheader

CORVETTE RACING AT SĀO PAULO: A Le Mans Encore?

Brandon Sheppard Dominates Macon to Win Second Herald & Review 100

Wood Brothers Racing–Chicagoland Post race

Byron, Bowman Lead Chevrolet with Top-Five Finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series Return to Chicagoland Speedway

Kyle Kirkwood finishes third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

Kyle Kirkwood finishes third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

CHEVROLET INDYCAR RACE REPORT – Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio – O’Ward grabs win

Tanner English Wins Eighth Career Summer Nationals Feature at Highland

Blair Banks $25,000 Lucas Oil Victory at Muskingum County Speedway

Christian Lundgaard grabbed his second pole with Chevrolet power, leading an all Arrow McLaren front row, including Pato O’Ward

Power qualifies third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

Power qualifies third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

Racer News and Results

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut atEpic 49th Annual Night Under Fire

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

Kyle Kirkwood finishes third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

Power qualifies third in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio

Racer News and Results

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

Funny Car Standout Spencer Hyde Set for Debut at
Epic 49^th Annual Night Under Fire

Spencer Hyde is looking to turn heads and wow the fans at Night Under Fire in August,
photo credit Innovation Creative Experts