KKR #9 Team Builds New Car, Changes Engine in Hot Laps, Rallies to Win Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals Opener

ALGER, WA – September 3, 2021 – The racing gods threw everything they could at the Kasey Kahne Racing #9, but James McFadden was not to be denied.

From Sunday’s brutal crash followed by an 18-hour drive to a near-complete re-build of their operation to a spur-of-the-moment engine change, there isn’t much that crew members Justin Adams, Gary [Woodman] Patellaro, and Rob Beattie didn’t overcome this week.

In the end, all of the blood, sweat, and tears took them to victory lane for the second time this season, as McFadden conquered Washington’s Skagit Speedway upon his first visit to the 3/10-mile bullring.

His opening triumph of the Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals gives him four World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series wins, most notably tying the Northern Territory boy with fellow Australian Ian Madsen of New South Wales for 68th on the All-Time Wins List.

In a positive spin of the evening for Enumclaw, WA’s Kasey Kahne – who ran 13th in his Outlaws debut at his home track – he still made it to victory lane as a team owner. In fact, KKR’s fifth win at the Alger, WA facility (2 with Saldana, 2 with Pittman) makes them the winningest team at the track over Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing.

“It’s rewarding to rebound like this, especially after the big drama at the last race,” McFadden mentioned. “These guys worked their butts off this week. The long drive here, then the day we had yesterday, then the motor change, just so much has happened. How fast they changed that motor tonight might’ve won us this race.”

Indeed, the timing of the engine change ended up playing a huge role in McFadden’s win. They began the process following the second of three Hot Lap sessions and barely beat the clock to make it to staging for their 14th qualifying spot. McFadden ultimately timed in fourth-quick and joked “I didn’t have any time to think about screwing it up.”

From there he transferred to the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash and then finished second to earn his fourth front row start of the year.

Before James gave his baby boy Maverick McFadden his first-ever wing dance, he had to survive a relentless attack from Sheldon Haudenschild. J-Mac officially led all 30 laps, but it wasn’t without a ferocious challenge from the NOS Energy Drink #17.

The duo ran 1-2 for the entirety of the race, splitting their battles between lap traffic and clean air restarts. Haudenschild got close on Lap 10 with the aid of backmarkers but struggled to find room to make his move on the #9. He had another shot on Lap 22 with more traffic looming, but a caution set the stage for an eight-lap dash to the finish.

With both gassers committed to the tall cushion, Haudenschild stalked McFadden and patiently waited to strike at the right time. He saved his moment for the 30th and final lap, following McFadden to the curb in turn one and setting himself up for a last-corner slide job at the win. However, the #17 slipped over the cushion in turn two and caught the wall, killing Haudenschild’s momentum and taking away his chance at a sneak attack.

Ultimately, Haudenschild fell short of McFadden by 0.514-seconds at the checkered flag.

“I could hear him,” McFadden said of Haudenschild’s run. “Obviously, Sheldon is gonna pound it, so I knew getting the start was crucial. I thought if I could short-slide myself and hit the cushion coming off that I would be okay. I’ve never raced here, but it seems pretty narrow and I tried to play that to my advantage as the leader. I wanted to run a little harder, but felt I should protect at the end.”

It wasn’t back-to-back wins, but Sheldon Haudenschild did extend his wildly impressive four-race top-two streak by claiming runner-up honors. The NOS Energy Drink #17 has been firing on all cylinders recently with crew members Kyle Ripper, Drew Brenner and Stephen Hamm-Reilly clicking down the homestretch.

“James did an awesome job, a near-perfect race for him,” Haudenschild said. “I wanted to get more traffic, but the cautions just fell at the wrong times. I planned on stalking him and waiting for the right shot. I saw the white flag and knew I needed to rip it, but I ruined my run at the slide job when I slipped high and caught the wall. We’ve got an incredibly great car right now, though. We’ll try to build on that the rest of the week.”

Rounding out the podium at the Alger, WA 3/10-mile was David Gravel aboard the Big Game Motorsports #2. The Watertown, CT native cut four points off the championship lead, leaving him -116 points behind Sweet with 18 races remaining.

Donny Schatz finished fourth aboard the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15, making it seven straight top-four finishes for the 10-time champion. Points leader Brad Sweet and his Kasey Kahne Racing #49 team rallied from a rough qualifying effort to earn KSE Racing Hard Charger honors with a 10th-to-fifth bid.

Closing out the top-10 on night one of the Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals was Logan Schuchart in sixth, Carson Macedo in seventh, Jacob Allen in eighth, Washington local Jason Solwold in ninth, and Californian Rico Abreu in tenth.

UP NEXT (Sat-Sun): The Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals continues tomorrow at Washington’s Skagit Speedway and then concludes on Sunday night when the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series competes for a $25,000 top prize.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (30 Laps): 1. 9-James McFadden [2][$10,000]; 2. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [1][$5,500]; 3. 2-David Gravel [4][$3,200]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [3][$2,600]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [10][$2,350]; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart [8][$2,150]; 7. 41-Carson Macedo [5][$2,100]; 8. 1A-Jacob Allen [13][$1,950]; 9. 18-Jason Solwold [11][$1,900]; 10. 24-Rico Abreu [7][$1,850]; 11. 55-Trey Starks [9][$1,400]; 12. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [15][$1,200]; 13. 83-Kasey Kahne [12][$1,000]; 14. 21P-Robbie Price [16][$1,000]; 15. 11K-Kraig Kinser [6][$1,000]; 16. 7-Tyler Thompson [18][$1,000]; 17. 18T-Tanner Holmes [19][$1,000]; 18. 44W-Austen Wheatley [17][$1,000]; 19. 7S-Jason Sides [14][$1,000]; 20. 22X-Brock Lemley [20][$1,000]; 21. 75-Brian Boswell [21][$1,000]; 22. 99-Malachi Gemmer [22][$1,000]; 23. 2C-Wayne Johnson [23][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: James McFadden 1-30. KSE Hard Charger Award: 49-Brad Sweet[+5]

NEW Championship Standings (63/81 Races): 1. Brad Sweet (8,284); 2. David Gravel (-116); 3. Carson Macedo (-164); 4. Donny Schatz (-220); 5. Sheldon Haudenschild (-240); 6. Logan Schuchart (-312); 7. James McFadden (-716); 8. Kraig Kinser (-970); 9. Brock Zearfoss (-1216); 10. Jacob Allemn (-1448).

The Rock Hill, SC driver survived several restarts and a challenge from Tyler Bruening to find Victory LaneLAVONIA, GA– September 3, 2021 – In 2019, Ben Watkins blew a tire while leading a World of Outlaws Feature at Lancaster Speedway. It’s the heartbreak he thought he’d never fix.  Watkins finally got his redemption Friday night at Lavonia Speedway, leading all 40 laps to win the Charlie Mize Memorial. He’s the fifth driver to win his first career World of Outlaws Feature in 2021.    Watkins started on the outside pole next to Rookie of the Year contender Tyler Bruening, searching for his first World of Outlaws win. When the green flag dropped, the two thundered into Turns 1 and 2 side by side before Watkins carried his momentum around the 16 car, rocketing to the top spot down the back straightaway.  That wasn’t the last time Watkins saw Bruening, as the Decorah, IA driver peeked underneath him, pulling even with him in lap traffic on Lap 19. A caution on Lap 24 gave Watkins some breathing room, allowing him to take the race one lap at a time.  “When we caught lap traffic, they were two wide, and they were racing,” Watkins said. “With the dirty track, it kind of upset my car a little bit, and it was hard to maneuver through them. The way the cautions played out, I was not upset.” Three cautions plagued the second half of the 40 lap Feature, but they couldn’t have come at a better time for Watkins. He knew he had just enough laps to avoid dealing with traffic and another potential battle with Bruening.  “We had that restart with 11 [laps] to go, I believe it was, and I was hoping that was just enough time we wouldn’t catch lap traffic too bad,” Watkins said. “Right at the end, we caught them and had just enough of a lead to kind of settle in there, and it played out perfectly for us.”  Bruening, the top Rookie of the race, finished second, his best finish of the season. The Decorah, IA driver, knew he had his work cut out for him on the initial start since he was on the bottom.  “It was just a little slimy on the bottom, and you really just wanted to be on that outside groove,” Bruening said. “We put a whole night together, just one spot short in the end. We were really good all night long, and I’m really proud of the effort to come back from [Thursday].” Three-time and defending champion Brandon Sheppard crossed the line third, his 22nd podium finish of 2021. The New Berlin, IL driver, thought he might have had a chance if Watkins spent more time battling traffic. “I felt like we had a strong car, and once we got strung out there, it was hard to pass,” Sheppard said. “I was hoping for more time in lap traffic than what we had, just to be able to dice things up a little bit, but all in all, we’re happy with a top three.”  One night after winning $40,000 Cherokee Speedway, Brandon Overton finished fourth, and Zack Mitchell rounded out the top five. Ben Watkins earned his redemption Friday at Lavonia Speedway. It’s an opportunity he thought may never happen again and one he’ll cherish for the rest of his career.  “I didn’t really think I’d ever get another chance at it; these opportunities come few and far between,” Watkins said.  UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet travel to Tennessee for the fourth time in 2021 for a stop at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, TN.  If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.Morton Buildings Feature (40 Laps)-1. 16W-Ben Watkins [2][$10,000]; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening [1][$6,000]; 3. 1-Brandon Sheppard [4][$3,500]; 4. 76-Brandon Overton [6][$2,800]; 5. 57-Zack Mitchell [5][$2,500]; 6. 18D-Daulton Wilson [7][$2,300]; 7. 79-Ross Bailes [15][$2,200]; 8. 7-Ricky Weiss [10][$2,100]; 9. 28-Dennis Erb [14][$2,050]; 10. 44-Chris Madden [13][$2,000]; 11. 42-Cla Knight [3][$1,600]; 12. 88-Trent Ivey [17][$1,400]; 13. 19R-Ryan Gustin [16][$1,200]; 14. 4-Ryan Wilson [23][$1,100]; 15. F1-Payton Freeman [8][$1,050]; 16. 1C-Kenny Collins [9][$1,000]; 17. 99B-Boom Briggs [20][$1,000]; 18. 1D-Brent Dixon [18][$1,000]; 19. B1-Brent Larson [11][$1,000]; 20. 22S-Nick Schlager [21][$1,000]; 21. 24D-Michael Brown [12][$1,000]; 22. 21-Will Harris [22][$1,000]; 23. 18E-Ethan Wilson [19][$1,000]; 24. 87-Walker Arthur [24][$1,000] Hard Charger: 4-Ryan Wilson[+9]Qualifying –1. 57-Zack Mitchell, 15.378; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 15.527; 3. 16W-Ben Watkins, 15.535; 4. 16-Tyler Bruening, 15.566; 5. 76-Brandon Overton, 15.679; 6. 42-Cla Knight, 15.751; 7. 7-Ricky Weiss, 15.761; 8. B1-Brent Larson, 15.767; 9. 1C-Kenny Collins, 15.769; 10. 18D-Daulton Wilson, 15.779; 11. F1-Payton Freeman, 15.804; 12. 24D-Michael Brown, 15.812; 13. 18E-Ethan Wilson, 15.825; 14. 88-Trent Ivey, 15.841; 15. 1D-Brent Dixon, 15.917; 16. 44-Chris Madden, 15.946; 17. 28-Dennis Erb, 15.97; 18. 79-Ross Bailes, 15.99; 19. 19R-Ryan Gustin, 15.999; 20. 99B-Boom Briggs, 16.031; 21. 87-Walker Arthur, 16.051; 22. 21-Will Harris, 16.119; 23. 4-Ryan Wilson, 16.201; 24. 22S-Nick Schlager, 16.248; 25. 22-Chris Ferguson, NT; DNS. O5-Corey Roulette, NT

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Drydene (Official Motor Oil), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), Morton Buildings (Official Building), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Arizona Sport Shirts/Gotta Race, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, MSD, Penske Racing Shocks, Quarter Master, Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award), and Wrisco (Exclusive Racing Aluminum); along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Capital Race Cars, FireAde, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, Reliable Painting, and Rocket Chassis.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS® Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings® Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 03, 2021) – The John Force Racing team returned to the most prestigious event on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway, with finesse on Friday night. Both John Force with the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro and Brittany Force with the Monster Energy dragster took the provisional No. 1 positions while Robert Hight and the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy sit solidly in No. 3. John Force took the PEAK Camaro to a stellar 3.877-second pass at 330.72 mph under the lights in the first qualifying pass of the U.S. Nationals. Force is looking to secure his 12th No. 1 qualifying position at the historic facility, but his first since 2006. His 11 top spots are already more than at any other event in the series. “I’ve always loved this. Go out here in Indy at night, go down that racetrack, header fire on both sides, driving around weaving, yeah it’s a turn on,” Force said. “It’s a great night at Indy. Our teams are doing well. This PEAK Chevy, that Monster Energy dragster and Auto Club Camaro, we’re all running well, I’m proud of us.” Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team are once again in familiar territory after their stunning 3.684-second pass at 334.57 mph has them sitting at the top of the Top Fuel field. Force is performing to secure her sixth consecutive and eighth overall No. 1 this season. “Potentially eight No. 1 qualifiers, that’s pretty cool. It says a lot about this team, David Grubnic and Mac Savage and all these guys,” Force said. “We want No. 1 qualifiers, but we also want to win on race day. We had some luck a couple weeks back in Topeka, but we want to do it here, the biggest race of the season, Indy. I’ve been coming here since I was a baby, love this place and we want to get the win here.” The Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy was handled to a 3.889-second run at 329.67 mph by three-time champion Robert Hight to currently put them in the No. 3 qualifying spot heading into Saturday. Hight is going after his second No. 1 spot at Lucas Oil Raceway. “This was a good start to the weekend,” Hight said. “This Auto Club team put in some extra work after Brainerd, figured some things out and left testing really excited for what we think we can do. We’ll keep it up for tomorrow, go some rounds on Sunday and make up a couple of spots in the points on Sunday to start the NHRA Countdown in a prime position for another championship.” Qualifying at the Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals continues Saturday with sessions at a revised time of noon and 5:45 p.m. ET. Eliminations are slated for 10 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage for the weekend will continue Sunday at 9 a.m. ET on FS1. Eliminations television coverage will be live but split with a show at 11 a.m. ET on FS1 and a second show at 1 p.m. ET on FOX Broadcast Network.

New crew help, quest for new records propelled Illinois icon to dominant season

OAKWOOD, IL – Sept. 3, 2021 – At just 24 years of age, Bobby Pierce has now reigned supreme over the Midwest’s most grueling Dirt Late Model tour four times. But this one just might be his most impressive.

His fourth career DIRTcar Summer Nationals title run included 13 Feature wins, 23 top-fives and 25 top-10s in 28 starts, plus five weekly points titles for a grand total of $119,000 in first-place and championship earnings alone.

Pierce also set a new personal-best for wins in a single season – just two shy of fellow four-time champion Shannon Babb’s record of 15, which he established in 2005. To top it off, he finished with a 178-point advantage over runner-up Ashton Winger, all while having one less appearance than five of the other seven full-time drivers.

Overall, it was one of the most dominant and high-profile summers of his young career – one that began from the humble days of his early teens, with father and two-time Summer Nationals champion Bob right by his side.

“I’ve just gotta give a huge thanks to my dad, mostly,” Pierce said. “Starting me off pretty young, going to all these racetracks right in the beginning of my racing career. He pushed me to be the best that I could be, and it goes a long way.

“It’s been a long journey, even though I’m pretty young. It’s been a long journey so far, and I’m excited to maybe go on and get another four championships,” Pierce said.

But for the past three seasons, the Summer Nationals yard had been run by Illinois rival Brian Shirley. Pierce’s partial participation of the 2018 and 2020 tours, along with a runner-up effort in 2019, set up his chance for a return to the top in 2021.

On his climb back up the mountain from his home in Oakwood, IL, Pierce fended off some of the toughest full-time competitors from outside the state of Illinois the tour has seen in the last several years. Winger, Tanner English, even Devin Moran came out and scored two wins on tour over the 68-day stretch.

“For sure, Summer Nationals has its competition,” Pierce said. “Whether they think it or not, it definitely does. I think racing against that competition every night is what propels us to get better.”

Through all 1,240 laps of Feature competition, Pierce and his team sharpened their skills and only became more consistent as the season continued – most notably rattling off three-peat wins at Beaver Dam Speedway, Davenport Speedway and The Dirt Oval at Route 66 Raceway.

“I definitely feel like we’re more improved than we were last year,” Pierce said. “Even when we go to all these other races, we’ve been doing pretty good, qualifying good, running up front in the Features… Hopefully we can just keep that up.”

Their team got a few new additions for the tour, including tire prep specialist Kyle Albury and crew member Josh Raymond. The two joined forces with the Pierce father-son duo to make one of the most well-oiled machines in the pits.

“I give them an A, for sure. Everyone was working very hard. It’s definitely one of the toughest series when it’s super hot outside,” he said. “You have those long, late nights… we hit a deer early on [in the tour]… just stuff like that happens that you don’t expect.

“It made it pretty challenging with all the stuff thrown at us. And with that, we still ended up winning the points, and winning it by a lot. So, I’ve got to give everyone props for that.”

Twenty-eight races over any stretch of time is a lot for even the best Dirt Late Model teams in the country to take on, let alone perform at the top level every night. The tough courses, ranging from high-banked quarter-miles, to long, flat half-miles, are at the core of what makes the Summer Nationals unique. Pierce has been around the block several times now and knows that it’s a driver-crew-fortune combo.

“You’ve gotta be good, but you’ve gotta have some luck, too,” Pierce said. “You can’t have any failures and you’ve gotta qualify good every night. Every night’s a new battle within itself.”

“Just to be the fastest car every night is one thing, but you go to all these different places and track conditions – to be consistent is really key.”

Consistency wins championships, but records get the instant glory. Pierce owned 12 victories heading into the final four-race swing through Michigan, and won the first at Butler, but ultimately fell a few short of tying Babb’s record of 15.

Next year, he’ll start another quest to try and break it, while aiming for a fifth championship and the century mark in Feature wins.

“It could definitely maybe happen,” Pierce said. “If we don’t get that… if anything, it’s going to be a long time until I reach 100 wins, like [Shannon] Babb and [Billy] Moyer.”

Tense late-race restarts decided Lebanon Valley Speedway’s 101-lap Mr. DIRT Track USA

WEST LEBANON, NY – It all came down to one final lap and The Wild Child, Andy Bachetti, rose to the occasion. 

After 100 laps of high speed, high banked action at The Valley of Speed, the 101-lap, $25,500-to-win Mr. DIRT Track USA had yet to be decided. 

Larry Wight, who had led laps and fought inside the top three all race, slowed on the backstretch with a mechanical problem bringing out the caution flag on lap 100. 

Andy Bachetti, from Sheffield, MA, was able to hold off Matt Sheppard and Stewart Friesen to be the first across the finish line under the waving checkered flags. At the same time, Sheppard made the pass for second place on the final lap over Friesen and took home $6,000.

Bachetti now has five Super DIRTcar Series victories at Lebanon Valley Speedway (2004, 2004, 2008, 2013, 2021) which means he has Series wins in three different decades. 

He was extremely thankful for his hard-working crew and the clutch calls they made on the setup going into the Feature. 

“We were good all night,” Bachetti said about his #4 Big Block. “My team made the right calls tonight. We went with the right tire combination and the Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming machine was awesome.” 

It’s not all in the setup though. Lebanon Valley Speedway can use a racecar up very quickly without the proper care behind the wheel. 

“You have to keep the car square and straight,” said Bachetti. “You gotta keep the tires on. You gotta have a good enough car to get there. We had a lot of brake fade and a lot of issues. When I got here, we had a brake issue so was pumping the brakes a lot. Would get tight and push too but overall, it was a super way to end the year.”

Mike Mahaney, in the #35, brought the field to the green flag and raced to the lead in the first corner. Unfortunately, a brake failure caused Mahaney to overshoot the next corner and hit the wall. The car rolled down the track in front of the field and luckily no other drivers made contact with his prone racecar. 

The race restarted on lap seven with Larry Wight and Adam Pierson now on the front row. The #99L jumped to the lead and the #4 of Andy Bachetti followed by and into second place. Wight managed to hold off Bachetti until lap 20 when he finally got by. 

Meanwhile, Sheppard and Friesen started on the fifth row in ninth and 10th, respectively. Friesen followed in Sheppard’s footsteps up through the field.

“I got up through the field pretty good,” said Sheppard. “I was working on Larry Wight. I was a little faster, but I couldn’t quite get by him. I lost the spot to Stewie and then we had another restart. Tyler Dippel crashed into me and we lost a few more spots. We were able to fight back to the front though and got by Decker, Friesen, and others. I was just happy to get back to second.”

As laps clicked off towards halfway, Sheppard and Friesen got up to third and fourth. Only Larry Wight was in between Bachetti and Sheppard. 

Sheppard was determined to get around Wight to try reeling in Bachetti who kept amassing sizeable leads over the dueling rivals.

The #9s was all over the #99L from lap 40 to lap 59 when Kenny Tremont Jr. brought out the caution flag with a flat left rear tire. 

“I was working him high and low,” said Sheppard of his battle with Wight. “He was running a different line and it was working for him. It blocked the bottom and the top. I couldn’t get a great run on the top and or the bottom.”

On a lap 63 restart, Friesen got around Sheppard for third. Bachetti’s lead grew until lap 74 when Adam Pierson brought out the caution flag. When the field got back underway Friesen got up to third while Sheppard was shuffled back several positions after contacting Tyler Dippel. He who showed his displeasure with the #9s under caution. 

On lap 81, Kenny Tremont Jr. brought the caution out again. The running order was Andy Bachetti in first place, Larry Wight second, and Stewart Friesen in third with 20 to go.

Unfortunately, on the restart, Bachetti fired prior to the VP Racing Fuels starting point. The #4 was sent back a row and the restart was attempted again. 

“We kind of got a raw deal getting put back a row on the restart,” said Bachetti. “When you are the leader you should be able to restart like that.”

Luckily for Bachetti, Drellos came up lame on lap 92, and on the ensuing restart, the #4 took the lead back from Friesen one last time. 

There was stout competition for the overall hard charger award which goes to the driver who makes up the most positions from their starting spot. The 2021 Mr. DIRT Track USA Hard Charger was Peter Britten, a former force in Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship action at Lebanon, who started 25th and drove his #21A Big Block to sixth.

Erick Rudolph, as usual, also passed a lot of cars and drove his #25R up 18 positions and finished ninth. Local racer Kolby Schroeder did his hometrack fans proud picking up 15 spots to finish an impressive seventh against the best of the best. 

Next weekend, the Series runs a doubleheader at the Cavalcade Cup Weekend at Weedsport Speedway, Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 11-12). Night one is capped by a 60-lap $7,500 Super DIRTcar Series Feature before the Series takes to the ⅜ mile historic dirt track for 100 laps and $10,000. Get your tickets here or catch all the action live on DIRTVision. 

Feature (101 Laps)

1. 4B-Andy Bachetti [5][]; 2. 9S-Matt Sheppard [9][]; 3. 44F-Stewart Friesen [10][]; 4. 91D-Billy Decker [17][]; 5. 97H-Bobby Hackel [4][]; 6. 21A-Peter Britten [25][]; 7. 99S-Kolby Schroeder [22][]; 8. 42S-Kyle Sheldon [11][]; 9. 25R-Erick Rudolph [27][]; 10. 35L-LJ Lombardo [12][]; 11. 98H-Jimmy Phelps [28][]; 12. 88W-Mat Williamson [23][]; 13. 115-Kenny Tremont [24][]; 14. 3J-Marc Johnson [14][]; 15. 45J-Wayne Jelley [19][]; 16. 60B-Brian Berger [15][]; 17. 74H-JR Heffner [6][]; 18. 215p-Adam Pierson [2][]; 19. 2L-Jack Lehner [16][]; 20. 5H-Chris Hile [18][]; 21. 9D-Chase Dowling [30][]; 22. 99L-Larry Wight [3][]; 23. 35CC-Chris Curtis [21][]; 24. 111D-Demetrios Drellos [20][]; 25. 1T-Tyler Dippel [7][]; 26. 55B-Brett Hass [8][]; 27. 2RJ-Ronnie Johnson [13][]; 28. 98M-Eddie Marshall [29][]; 29. 32CC-Max Mclaughlin [26][]; 30. 35M-Mike Mahaney [1][]

Hard Charger Award: 21A-Peter Britten[+19]

ALGER, WA – September 4, 2021 – Brad Sweet is making a habit out of conquering the tracks that have haunted him for years.He finally won at Lincoln (PA) in May; he finally topped River Cities (ND) two weeks ago; and tonight, The Big Cat finally scored a Skagit Speedway victory that has eluded since he made his debut at the track 19 starts ago in 2010.It was a puzzling path to victory lane filled with lap traffic mayhem and an ever-changing 3/10-mile surface, but it was no task too tall for the NAPA Auto Parts #49. Sweet started third in the 30-lapper, slid by Donny Schatz for second on Lap 12, then drove right by David Gravel for the lead on Lap 22.The most troubling news for the field in Sweet’s 16th World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series win of the year (double his closest competitor) is his mention that the team, including Eric Prutzman, Joe Mooney & Andrew Bowman, “found something they’ve been missing over the last few weeks.”Saturday’s Skagit score, which marks wins at 42 different tracks with The Greatest Show on Dirt, brings Sweet to 74 career wins and leaves him only 10 away from reaching Stevie Smith to crack a legendary top-10 on the All-Time Wins List.Kasey Kahne Racing continued their perfect weekend in the boss’ home state as Sweet became the fourth driver to deliver a win at Washington’s Skagit Speedway, joining Joey Saldana (2), Daryn Pittman (2), and James McFadden (1).”I’ve always loved coming to Skagit,” Sweet told the fans. “We’ve got a great crowd and a great track this weekend. We’ve always been close here but seemed to finish second or third and just miss that little extra bit in the late going. I think we found something tonight, though. I could move around and get through traffic really well, and that’s what wins or loses these races. I felt like I could do things that I haven’t been able to do in weeks with this setup.”Halted by only one caution on Lap 8, Saturday’s 30-lapper was full of thick, tight, and troubling lap traffic. After earning a Series-best ninth pole position, Gravel jetted away to a 2.194-second lead at the halfway mark, but then traffic got tricky.Once Sweet cleared Schatz for the second spot, he quickly caught Gravel and applied pressure with the #2 struggling to make moves on the backmarkers.The winning move came on Lap 22 when Sweet aced the bottom of turns one and two and rolled right by Gravel, who was pinned on the high side. The #49 machine immediately checked out and ran to the win unchallenged over the last eight laps, but things got wild for the runner-up position as Gravel, Schatz, McFadden, and Haudenschild went wheel-to-wheel under a blanket and in traffic on the narrow 3/10-mile.Ultimately, Sweet took the checkered flag ahead by 2.336-seconds.”Sometimes it’s easier to be in second at a track like this,” Sweet noted. “It’s so much fun to race with guys like David, Donny, and everyone on tour right now. This is the toughest the World of Outlaws has been I think. Hopefully, we can come back tomorrow and get us $25,000.Sweet now only has four tracks with 10+ starts and zero wins: Williams Grove (PA), The Dirt Track at Charlotte (NC), Thunderbowl (CA) Raceway, and Tri-State (IN) Speedway. He’ll have a shot at the first two later this fall.Capitalizing on the wild lap traffic action, Donny Schatz clawed back from fourth and ended up second in Saturday’s 30-lapper. He’s up to eight consecutive top-four finishes aboard the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing, Ford Performance, Carquest #15.”That was a high-speed chess match,” Schatz said. “The car feels solid, so I think we should be good for tomorrow’s big show.”After leading the opening 21 laps, David Gravel of Watertown, CT slipped back to finish third-place for the third-straight race. He slipped back to fourth at one point amid the lap traffic chaos but recovered nicely for his 20th podium of the year in the Big Game Motorsports #2.”It’s a bummer to draw the one on back-to-back nights with zero wins to show for it,” Gravel admitted. “We got better today, so hopefully we’ll find a little more tomorrow with $25,000 on the line.”James McFadden, who won Friday’s opener at Skagit, finished fourth on Saturday and took home KSE Hard Charger honors in the Kasey Kahne Racing, Karavan Trailers #9. Sheldon Haudenschild drove the NOS Energy Drink, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17 to a fifth-straight top-five finish at the Alger, WA track.Rounding out the top-1o on night two of the Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals was Carson Macedo (6th) in the Jason Johnson Racing #41, Logan Schuchart (7th) in the Drydene Performance Products #1S, Brock Zearfoss (8th) in the Moose’s LZ Bar & Grill #3Z, Kasey Kahne (9th) in the Beef Packers #83, and Rico Abreu (10th) in the Rowdy Energy #24.UP NEXT (Sunday): The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will return to Washington’s Skagit Speedway tomorrow, September 5, for the $25,000-to-win finale of the Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals. On Labor Day,NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (30 Laps): 1. 49-Brad Sweet [3][$10,000]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [2][$5,500]; 3. 2-David Gravel [1][$3,200]; 4. 9-James McFadden [7][$2,600]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [4][$2,350]; 6. 41-Carson Macedo [6][$2,150]; 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart [10][$2,100]; 8. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [9][$1,950]; 9. 83-Kasey Kahne [8][$1,900]; 10. 24-Rico Abreu [12][$1,850]; 11. 55-Trey Starks [11][$1,400]; 12. 2C-Wayne Johnson [15][$1,200]; 13. 11K-Kraig Kinser [14][$1,000]; 14. 18-Jason Solwold [17][$1,000]; 15. 44W-Austen Wheatley [16][$1,000]; 16. 21P-Robbie Price [18][$1,000]; 17. 7S-Jason Sides [5][$1,000]; 18. 18T-Tanner Holmes [19][$1,000]; 19. 99-Malachi Gemmer [22][$1,000]; 20. 7-Tyler Thompson [20][$1,000]; 21. 22X-Brock Lemley [21][$1,000]; 22. 1A-Jacob Allen [13][$1,000]; 23. 75-Brian Boswell [23][$1,000]; 24. 1J-Jack Eckard [24][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: David Gravel 1-21, Brad Sweet 22-30. KSE Hard Charger Award: 9-James McFadden[+3]NEW Championship Standings (64/81 Races): 1. Brad Sweet (8,434); 2. David Gravel (-122); 3. Carson Macedo (-176); 4. Donny Schatz (-224); 5. Sheldon Haudenschild (-250); 6. Logan Schuchart (-326); 7. James McFadden (-724); 8. Kraig Kinser (-996); 9. Brock Zearfoss (-1,232); 10. Jacob Allen (-1,492).Photo – Trent Gower

• Rain-shortened qualifying sets the field for the National Hot Rod Association’s (NHRA) 67th annual Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals in Lucas Oil Raceway
• Last year’s Top Fuel runner-up finisher at Indianapolis Leah Pruett will start from the No. 5 position on the eliminations ladder after a solid Friday evening qualifying run aboard her Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) Dodge//SRT Redeye dragster
• Pruett will also race her Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak in Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown (FSS) from the No. 12 starting position in a competitive 22 car-field as she looks to double-up on trophies at the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals
• Three-time U.S. Nationals Funny Car title winner Cruz Pedregon and his Snap-On Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat qualify No. 4 on the strength of his Friday qualifying pass
• Ron Capps positioned his DSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car in the top half of the field with his Friday qualifying run as he sets his sights on earning an elusive Wally trophy at the “Big Go”.
• NHRA Funny Car points leader Matt Hagan recently tested positive for COVID-19 and withdrew from competing in the 2021 Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals
• Tommy Johnson Jr. took over driving duties aboard the DSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Funny Car in Hagan’s absence but did not qualify due to a mechanical issue on Friday and rain on Saturday

Indianapolis, Indiana, Sept. 4, 2021— Qualifying for the National Hot Rod Association’s (NHRA) 67th annual Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals proved to be more of a challenge than usual as rain washed out both Saturday sessions for most categories competing at Lucas Oil Raceway, resulting in elimination fields being set based on a single Friday evening run.

Leah Pruett, last year’s Top Fuel runner-up finisher at Indianapolis, will start her drive for another shot at a final round appearance from the No. 5 position on the eliminations ladder after taking her Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) Dodge//SRT Redeye dragster for a solid qualifying pass under the lights. Her 3.755 second elapsed time (E.T.) run at 322.88 mph gives her lane choice over No. 12 seed, Joe Morrison. 

In Funny Car qualifying action, three-time U.S. Nationals Funny Car title winner Cruz Pedregon’s Snap-On Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat was the top HEMI®-powered entry starting from the fourth spot earned with a 3.896-second drive at 323.66 mph. The Cruz Pedregon Racing team owner and driver will have No. 13 seed Terry Haddock as his first round opponent on Sunday.

DSR’s 27-year veteran driver Ron Capps also positioned his NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car in the top half of the field with a 3.907 second/326.08 mph effort to go into the final eliminations battle of the regular season as the No. 6 seed. Capps will have No. 11 Justin Schriefer in the next lane as he sets his sights on battling for the elusive Wally trophy from the only NHRA event he has never won.

As the DSR Funny Car team prepared to take to the staging lanes for Friday qualifying, the team announced that two-time U.S. Nationals winner and category points leader Matt Hagan had recently tested positive for COVID-19 and would not be competing in this year’s event. In his place, the team called upon Tommy Johnson Jr. to take on the driving responsibilities for Hagan’s Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Funny Car. Johnson was the easy choice after finishing second in the 2020 NHRA Funny Car World Championship with DSR with three wins and three No. 1 qualifier positions last season. 

Efforts to qualify the hard charging Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye for the prestigious Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals and add to Hagan’s point total were short-lived. Following a mechanical issue, found immediately after the burnout, that didn’t give Johnson the chance to take the tree, any opportunity to get in a run on Saturday was washed out by persistent rainfall. That left Johnson with no qualifying time and without a spot on the eliminations ladder, a situation that also unfortunately meant that no points would be awarded to Hagan. With the unique points-and-a-half format employed at this final regular season event, that drops the DSR driver several positions in the final battle for position in the Funny Car standings heading into the NHRA’s “Countdown to the Championship” which begins next weekend at the Mopar Express Lane Nationals in Reading, Pennsylvania.

In Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown (FSS), Pruett took her 2021 Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak for a 7.969 second run at 176.79 mph to earn the No. 12 spot on the eliminations ladder comprised of a competitive 22-car field. Following two runner-up finishes this season in consecutive events at Denver and Topeka, Pruett is seeking another FSS win at the U.S. Nationals to add to her 2018 Indy victory. By juggling stints aboard both her Top Fuel dragster and drag pak on Sunday, Pruett has the unique possibility of taking home two Wally trophies for Dodge at the world-renowned event to which the performance brand has lent its name as title sponsor for the first-time. 

Pruett will begin her day against DSR teammate and No. 13 seed David Davies and his 2021 Mopar Drag Pak after his best qualifying effort to date. He was among only a handful of FSS competitors that got in a second run on Saturday morning before rain showers claimed the day. 

Fellow DSR FSS driver Mark Pawuk, who finished runner-up at the last year’s event, was unfortunately not among that group as he could have benefitted from the opportunity to get in a second qualifying pass after finding himself in the final spot on the ladder following his Q1 run. Nevertheless, he will work to battle his way through the field aboard his 2021 Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak as it makes its maiden drive in competition this weekend.

Television coverage of the 67th annual Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals will be broadcast on Sunday Sept. 5, on FS1 from 11 a.m.- 1 p.m. and then on the FOX national broadcast network from 1 – 4 p.m. EDT.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES

FUNNY CAR:

Tommy Johnson Jr., DSR Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye

(Did Not Start) 

Qualifying 1: Did not run due to mechanical issue on the starting line

“It’s a bummer. I hate it for the guys. They worked so hard to make this happen, and make it successful in a tough situation. I hate it for them to not get a shot at this. After being out of the car for so long, it’s disappointing. To have that shot, and get to do a burnout and have an issue and not make it, and then not get to make a run at all, it’s just a bummer. I really wanted to have that feeling of throwing the ‘chutes. But, I appreciate the opportunity, and should DSR ever need a stand-in again, I’d welcome the chance to do my best to represent the them.”

Ron Capps, DSR NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 6 Qualifier – 3.907 seconds at 326.08 mph)

Qualifying 1: 3.907 seconds at 326.08 mph

“Indy is always a weird weekend in the sense that we’ve had a lot of first time winners in the past at the U.S. Nationals. If something strange is going to happen, it always seems to be around this race with so much history and so much going on. This weekend, we only had one qualifying run and the field is set. We had a little bit of drama with our leader in the points not being in the race, and so it just adds to the typical U.S. Nationals craziness. Sunday is going to be interesting because it’s supposed to warm up and we’re going to have conditions like we haven’t seen this weekend. That’s when you really appreciate having great crew chiefs that can adapt. That’s what I love about Guido (Dean Antonelli) and John Medlen. Our NAPA team has done so well in different conditions all year long, so we’re going to focus on our goal of reclaiming the points lead. There’s a lot of other teams saying that same thing, but we’re going to see if we can get it done tomorrow.”

Cruz Pedregon, Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 4 Qualifier – 3.896 seconds at 323.66 mph)

Qualifying 1:  3.896 seconds at 323.66 mph

“We’re qualified fourth with a 3.89 (second elapsed time run) at 323 mph which is a great first run off the trailer even if we pulled it back a little bit. We knew there was a good possibility of rain, so we weren’t pushing really hard, but it was still a great elapsed time. We would have liked to have had another shot at it. I talked to my crew chief JC (John Collins) and we were going to push it a little harder and try to move up the ladder a few more spots but we’ll take that fourth place. We’ll approach the race like all races even though we have just one run under our belts for this week. The track is solid and it’s similar to Brainerd (where we just ran) and we’re confident we can go out there tomorrow and put strings of good runs together. That’s the plan for the Snap-on Tool Dodge SRT Hellcat and we’re excited to see what happens.”

TOP FUEL:

Leah Pruett, DSR Pennzoil Mopar Dodge//SRT Dragster  

(No. 5 Qualifier – 3.755 seconds at 322.88 mph)

Qualifying 1: 3.755 seconds at 322.88 mph

“What a wild Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals that we’ve had. Not a lot of on-track action, but I’m proud of this team for coming out strong on our one and only qualifying hit to land us in the No. 5 position. We’re looking forward to a good elimination outing on Sunday. Our team does well when we have a strong start to the weekend, and for us, that started on Friday night, and it doesn’t get much bigger than this. We’re at our sponsor’s race in our team’s hometown, and it’s the U.S. Nationals. Of course, we want to go one step further than last year’s runner-up finish, but it all starts first round and it’s an early morning. We’ve got our hot rod tucked away, and ready to rip it on the strip tomorrow, and look forward to putting on a phenomenal show.”

FACTORY STOCK SHOOTOUT:

Leah Pruett, 2021 Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak 

(No. 12 Qualifier – 7.965 seconds at 166.70 mph)

Qualifying 1: 7.969 seconds at 176.79 mph

“Factory has very much emulated Top Fuel where we made a solid pass in the first session. It was tricky on the starting line, and we have some new gearing so that was our first run with this new set up. We had some issues right through the lights which cut our speed and our E.T. so we definitely would have qualified better than our .96, but, it was an easy fix and we look forward to seeing the results of that fix in the first round of eliminations. With a 32-car field and multiple rounds to go, I’m very confident in this team that has gone to back-to-back final rounds, and we know what a win looks like at the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals with this Dodge Mopar Drag Pak team. I’m very impressed with how cohesive our Factory Stock program has been with the addition of David Davies and his Drag Pak. We’re all running three different packages so for (crew chiefs) Kevin Helms and A.J. Berge to keep them organized, and for all of us to have a solid shot at going rounds on Sunday, is impressive and makes me proud to work with this Mopar team. I’m looking forward to putting on more win lights tomorrow, and hopefully grabbing our second U.S. Nationals win.”

Mark Pawuk, Empaco Equipment Mopar Drag Pak

(No. 22 Qualifier – 13.781 seconds. at 75.07 mph)

Qualifying 1: 13.781 seconds at 75.07 mph

“We were really looking forward to getting our new Empaco Equipment Dodge Drag Pak out on the race track this weekend. After overpowering the track on the first run, we weren’t qualified very well, and we were ready to go out and kick some butt this morning. I did my burnout and got ready to stage and then it started raining, and I didn’t get to make my run. Unfortunately, the rest of the day got washed out. It’s a big disappointment. Some of the class ran, and we were part of the group that didn’t get to make a lap. But, we’re qualified. My new car looks great. We’re going to keep plugging away until we get this thing figured out, and start winning some races.”

David Davies, D H Davies Racing Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak

(No. 13 Qualifier – 7.969 seconds at 176.79 mph)

Qualifying 1: 7.969 seconds. at 176.79 mph

“The extra work that the team put in leading up to the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals has paid off. We had a successful first qualifying session that put us in the 10th spot leading into today’s second round of qualifying. We didn’t move the 2021 Drag Pak up the ladder in Q2 today, but still we made a successful pass that kept us in the ‘top 16’ in a very competitive field. Unfortunately, Mother Nature didn’t let the entire Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown class to complete their second qualifier so we’ll have to see how tomorrow shapes up. It’s good for the entire team to see the payoff from the lessons learned from Topeka, and we’re all looking forward to Sunday.”

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News
Fans can follow all the NHRA action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com. 

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram
The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Mopar
Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) offers exceptional service, parts and customer care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, the Mopar brand has evolved over more than 80 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, the brand expanded to include technical service and customer support. Today, Mopar integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Mopar is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com. 

PORTSMOUTH, OH (September 4, 2021) – Current Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Championship point leader, Tim McCreadie, won his second consecutive series race as he took the top spot in the River Days Rumble – presented by Pepsi on Saturday night at Portsmouth Raceway Park. McCreadie’s win was his fifth this season. Devin Moran finished second to McCreadie with Ricky Thornton Jr., Tyler Erb, and Jimmy Owens rounding out the top five. Kyle Bronson led the first four laps of the race until Bronson, Moran, and McCreadie went three-wide for the lead on lap five, with McCreadie emerging as the new first place car. Moran was able to challenge McCreadie after several of the restarts. Despite ten caution flags that slowed the action, McCreadie held the lead to the checkers by 2.8 seconds, for his 27th career series victory.  In Lucas Oil Victory Lane McCreadie was already thinking about the next race in the quest for his first Lucas Oil title. “It’s great to win here that’s for sure, but I am just going one race at a time. The car was pretty much flawless tonight, we are always working to make it better. This group of drivers are so tough. There are still a lot of races left to go in the season. I want to thank my car owners Donald and Gena Bradsher, they have given me everything I need. They are supportive whether we win or not; we could run second, fifth, or whatever and they are always positive. That is a great feeling to know that.” “With that many cautions you just have to be patient. It’s tough to start and get going and then the caution would come out. Taking the lead there early on was important. I just went for it, and it worked out. I figured maybe Devin or Kyle would go back to the outside and get by me, but no one ever did. It’s great to win in front of this crowd. Sometimes during the other races, I will come up there and sit with some of you. I remember sitting in the grandstands and rooting for my dad for several years.” Moran, looking for his third career Lucas Oil win and his first of the season, came home in second. “Our car was good for most of the race, we kind of faded there at the end, but we held on for second. I was able to stay with Timmy there for a long time, but those cautions kind of hurt my momentum. That one restart we went to the top and was running him down. I would go into one a little lower than him and we would make up even more ground. To finish second here hopefully gives us some good notes for when we come back here in October.”  Thornton Jr., the top Eibach Springs rookie this season in the series pitted during one of the caution flags to change a flat tire but came back to round out the podium. Yes, it was a nice comeback for us to come back to get third. The car was really good the last part of the race. We could get up there and run with Devin and I thought we had a shot to get second for a moment. To come from the back, I have to thank my crew for getting me back on the track after the flat.” The winner’s Donald and Gena Bradsher Paylor Motorsports Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Bilstein Shocks, D&E Marine, Racing for Heroes, and The Aesthetic Haus. Completing the top ten were Hudson O’Neal, Spencer Hughes, Jonathan Davenport, Rod Conley, and Clint Keenan. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race Summary River Days Rumble – presented by PepsiSaturday, September 4th, 2021Portsmouth Raceway Park – Portsmouth, OH Allstar Performance Time TrialsFast Time Group A: Devin Moran / 14.516 seconds Fast Time Group B: Kyle Bronson / 14.496 seconds (overall)Penske Race Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 9-Devin Moran[1]; 2. 81F-Brandon Fouts[2]; 3. 1-Earl Pearson Jr[5]; 4. 14-Josh Richards[6]; 5. 11R-Josh Rice[3]; 6. 55-Chuck Kimble[7]; 7. B1-Josh Bocook[8]; 8. 17ST-Shannon Thornsberry[4]Summit Racing Equipment Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie[1]; 2. 49-Jonathan Davenport[2]; 3. 12J-Jason Jameson[5]; 4. 111-Steven Roberts[4]; 5. 20B-Todd Brennan[3]; 6. 71R-Rod Conley[6]; 7. 10-Mike Meyers[7] Simpson Race Products Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson[1]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb[3]; 3. 25-Shane Clanton[4]; 4. 71-Hudson O’Neal[2]; 5. 11J-Jared Hawkins[6]; 6. 33K-Kevin Wagner[5]; 7. 73B-Charles Mullett[7]Ohlins Shocks Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 11H-Spencer Hughes[2]; 2. 20-Jimmy Owens[3]; 3. 71C-RJ Conley[4]; 4. 4G-Kody Evans[5]; 5. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 6. 1B-Nick Bocook[7]; 7. 29-Clint Keenan[6] LINE-X B-Main #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 6 Transfer): 1. 11R-Josh Rice[1]; 2. 11J-Jared Hawkins[2]; 3. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[4]; 4. 20B-Todd Brennan[3]; 5. 71R-Rod Conley[7]; 6. 29-Clint Keenan[12]; 7. 33K-Kevin Wagner[6]; 8. 10-Mike Meyers[11]; 9. 1B-Nick Bocook[8]; 10. 73B-Charles Mullett[10]; 11. 55-Chuck Kimble[5]; 12. B1-Josh Bocook[9]; 13. 17ST-Shannon Thornsberry[13]River Days Rumble Feature Finish (50 Laps):

Race StatisticsEntrants: 29Lap Leaders: Kyle Bronson (Laps 1-4); Tim McCreadie (Laps 5-50)Wrisco Feature Winner: Tim McCreadieArizona Sport Shirts CJC – Presented by DirtOnDirt Feature Winner: n/aBrandon Ford TV Challenge Feature Winner: n/aMargin of Victory: 2.881 secondsStop Tech Brakes Cautions: Todd Brennan (Lap 2); Steven Roberts (Lap 9); Jason Jameson (Lap 13), Josh Richards (Lap 13 restart); Josh Rice (Lap 14); Kyle Bronson (Lap 14 restart); Debris (Lap 34); Josh Richards (Lap 34 restart); RJ Conley (Lap 35); Earl Pearson, Jr. (Lap 40)Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Provisionals: n/aSeries Emergency Provisionals: n/aAllstar Performance Fast Time Provisionals: Shannon Thornsberry; Kevin WagnerTrack Provisional: n/aBig River Steel Podium Top 3: Tim McCreadie, Devin Moran, Ricky Thornton, Jr.Penske Shocks Top 5: Tim McCreadie, Devin Moran, Ricky Thornton, Jr., Tyler Erb, Jimmy OwensOptima Batteries Hard Charger of the Race: Ricky Thornton, Jr. (Advanced 16 Positions)Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Tim McCreadieHot Rod Processing Most Laps Led: Tim McCreadie (46 Laps)Sunoco Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Tyler ErbEibach Springs Rookie of the Race: Ricky Thornton Jr.Dirty Girl Racewear Fastest Lap of the Race: Tim McCreadie (Lap 5 – 15.163 seconds)Fast Shafts Tough Break of the Race: Kyle BronsonOuterwears Crew Chief of the Race: Philip Snelen (Tim McCreadie)ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Racing EnginesMiller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn ChassisDirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Devin Moran (14.378 seconds)Time of Race: 61 minutes 14 seconds Lucas Oil Championship Points:

*Results are unofficial until Close of Business on the Tuesday following Race Day*

BATAVIA, OH (September 3, 2021) – The stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series are gearing up for a Labor Day weekend doubleheader in Portsmouth, Ohio and Middlebourne, West Virginia.  The action will kick off Saturday, September 4th when the tour returns to Portsmouth Raceway Park for the River Days Rumble – Presented by Pepsi. The event features a complete show of: Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and a 50-lap, $15,000-to-win main event. Saturday’s racing action at Portsmouth Raceway Park will also include full shows for the Modified and Sport Modified divisions. The pit gate will close at 1:30 PM ET and reopen at 2:00 PM ET with the general admission gate opening at 4:00 PM ET. Hot laps will begin at 7:00 PM ET with the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. On Sunday, September 5th teams will return to Tyler County Speedway for the 53rd Annual Hillbilly Hundred – Presented by Arizona Sport Shirts, America’s oldest running dirt late model event. There will be a complete program for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, with a 100-lap, $30,000-to-win main event. The Legend Car Series and the Crate Late Models will also be in action on Sunday, September 5th. Other Hillbilly Hundred shenanigans will be taking place throughout the day with a “Best Hillbilly Themed Campsite” judging at 1:00 PM ET and a “Best Dressed Hillbilly” contest at 5:30 PM ET, to be judged by spectators in attendance. The pit gate will close at 1:30 PM ET and reopen at 2:00 PM ET, the general admission gates will also open at 2:00 PM with on track racing action beginning at 6:15 PM ET with hot laps.  Track and Event Information:Portsmouth Raceway ParkPhone Number: 740-354-3278Location: 25648 State Route 73, West Portsmouth, OH 45663Directions: 0.5 mile south of US 52 on SR 73, then right just before bridgeWebsite: www.portsraceway.com Tyler County SpeedwayPhone Number: 304-758-2660Location: 1 Boreman School Road, Middlebourne, WV 26149Directions: 3 miles south of Middlebourne, WV on SR 18Website: www.tylercountyspeedwayonline.com Tire Rules:Portsmouth Raceway Park:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1300Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1300 NRM, (29.0) 1300 NRMW, (29.0) 1425 NRM, (29.0) 1425 NRMW*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, and B-Mains.*For the A-Main, competitors may use 2 new rear tires.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Tyler County Speedway:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1300, (28.5) 1425Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1300 NRM, (29.0) 1300 NRMW, (29.0) 1425 NRM, (29.0) 1425 NRMW*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, and B-Mains.*For the A-Main, competitors may use 3 new tires.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position. Event Purses:River Days Rumble Purse (50 Laps): 1. $15,000, 2. $6,500, 3. $3,500, 4. $3,000, 5. $2,500, 6. $2,400, 7. $2,300, 8. $2,200, 9. $2,100, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,400, 13. $1,300, 14. $1,200, 15. $1,050, 16. $1,000, 17. $1,000, 18. $1,000, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000. = $57,050 Hillbilly Hundred Purse (100 Laps): 1. $30,000, 2. $12,000, 3. $7,500, 4. $5,000, 5. $4,000, 6. $3,000, 7. $2,500, 8. $2,100, 9. $2,050, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,450, 13. $1,425, 14. $1,400, 15. $1,375, 16. $1,350, 17. $1,325, 18. $1,300, 19. $1,275, 20. $1,250, 21. $1,225, 22. $1,200, 23. $1,200, 24. $1,200, 25. $1,200, 26. $1,200. = $91,125

NASCAR CUP SERIES DARLINGTON RACEWAY COOK OUT SOUTHERN 500 TEAM CHEVY PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT SEPTEMBER 3, 2021
ALAN GUSTAFSON, CREW CHIEF, NO. 9 NAPA/CHILDREN’S CAMARO ZL1 1LE, met with media via teleconference in advance of this weekend’s Cook Out Southern 500 Darlington Raceway, where Gustafson will be calling his 600th career NASCAR Cup Series race. Press Conference Transcript:  MODERATOR: IN ADVANCE OF THIS WEEKEND’S RACE AT DARLINGTON, IT WILL BE YOUR 600TH START ATOP THE BOX. AS A CREW CHIEF, TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE MEMORIES IN THAT ROLE THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER?“Yeah, I think you remember the wins, obviously. But I think for me, when I reflect back, it’s the different drivers, situations with the different drivers and the personalities, pit crew members. All those different things. I guess some of my favorites – obviously, the first win with Kyle (Busch) was a big one. The Chicago win with Mark (Martin) really stands out to me. The Brickyard with Jeff (Gordon). And then certainly Phoenix with Chase (Elliott). Those are, if I had to say the ones that I reflect on the most, probably stand out the most.” 
WHEN YOU HAD START NUMBER ONE, DID YOU EVER THINK YOU’D EVER GET TO 600?“No (laughs). I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t know I was even approaching 600 and then Morgan said something to me a couple months ago – ‘yeah, Darlington will be your 600th start’. I’m like, wow that’s crazy. I think when you start at one, you’re just hoping to get to two. And then you’re maybe kind of hoping to get to get to 30 and then you’re trying to make it two years. As you go, you’re just really trying to survive. This sport is obviously super competitive and a lot of times it’s more bad news than good news. So, you’re trying to do the best you can to prosper and survive.”
I WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT DARLINGTON AND THE UNCERTAINTY OF THIS REPAVE IN TURN TWO. WITH THE XFINITY RACE BEFORE YOUR GARAGE EVEN OPENS, WILL YOU ALL BE IN A PARKING LOT SOMEWHERE MAKING ANY ADJUSTMENTS OR WILL YOU MAKE ADJUSTMENTS AT THE SHOP AND THE HAULER NOT EVEN LEAVE UNTIL SATURDAY NIGHT?“No – I don’t think we can make any significant adjustments based on the Xfinity race. I think we can make some minor adjustments. I don’t really feel like even if they run something way outside of what we expect – which I certainly don’t think that’s going to happen – it’s a difficult correlation. There’s not a direct correlation between the Xfinity cars are starting with this and we need to do that. It’s still a bit different. I think just in generalities, you’ll learn some things from the Xfinity race. That is a big unknown over there, but I don’t know that we can fix it based on their experience.”
GOING BACK TO YOUR 600TH START THIS WEEKEND, WHAT’S CHANGED FROM START ONE TO START 600 FROM ATOP THE PIT BOX? “It’s changed a lot in 600 starts. I was kind of reflecting on this the other day; just thinking about it. It’s something I usually haven’t thought about. When I first started, it was really the crew chief and the team, and man, you did everything. You did everything – spec the chassis builds; where you wanted your front clips; where you wanted your rear clips; where you wanted your frame rails; where you wanted to install the engine; what this car was going to run and the body specification when we just had the templates; how far you wanted to offset your tail; and what do you want to do with your roof. Not only did you have a vast amount of options, you had very little information to make those decisions with. I just remember back then, there was a lot of freedom and room to run; and certainly, a lot of uncertainty that came with that. Now, it’s much more granular. It’s very small stuff and we do it collaboratively.”
“What I’ve kind of seen transition through my career is racing was very team-oriented to start. Then, it became very organization-oriented. And now it’s kind of becoming very manufacturer-oriented. So, it’s just moving that direction to where it’s a much bigger concerted effort.”
I WANTED TO GET YOUR THOUGHTS ON WHERE THIS TEAM IS GOING INTO THE PLAYOFFS AS THE DEFENDING CHAMPIONS. CHASE (ELLIOTT) SAID THIS WEEK THAT NOTHING IS REALLY DIFFERENT IN TERMS OF MINDSET. HE SAID HE FEELS YOU ALL ARE IN A GOOD PLACE AND READY TO GO. YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT?“Yeah, I agree. We’re ready to go; we’re ready to race. This is our favorite time of year and this is when you have to make it happen. I think we’re in a good position to do that. I’m excited to get going and execute. If we do that, we certainly all feel like it’s under our control. We’ve got the ingredients in place and the opportunity there to do it. We’re certainly excited to go do that and feel good about it. I think we’ve got a great opportunity to win races and be there at Phoenix.”
THERE’S A LOT OF TALK ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY THAT HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS COULD AND OBVIOUSLY SHOOT TO HAVE ALL FOUR CARS IN AT PHOENIX. IS THAT SOMETHING THAT GETS TALKED ABOUT AMONGST YOU ALL OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT JUST DOESN’T NEED TO BE SPOKEN ABOUT? IT’S OBVIOUSLY A GOAL FOR EVERYBODY.“Yeah, I think it’s just the goal for everybody. We’re certainly all going to do everything we can to make that happen. That’s just kind of a given. It’s what we try to do every year. It’s certainly never been done and it would be extremely, extremely difficult. But that’s our goal.”
BACK WHEN THE PLAYOFFS WOULD START AT LAS VEGAS OR CHICAGO, SOMEBODY WOULD DO REALLY WELL AND OF COURSE WE’D ALL BE LIKE ‘THAT’S THE CHAMPIONSHIP FAVORITE’ BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF 1.5-MILE TRACKS AND HOMESTEAD IS 1.5-MILE. NOW, THE FIRST THREE RACES ARE ALL 750 RACES. HOW MUCH SHOULD I READ INTO DARLINGTON AND/OR RICHMOND ON TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO’S GOING TO WIN THE TITLE.“That’s a great question. That is interesting because that’s another huge thing that’s changed throughout my career is the Playoffs. It used to be 10 cars. I can remember when it was 10, that was tough. It wasn’t 10 and a win. It was 10 on points and everything had to.. (inaudible).” “Yeah, it’s changed. The first rounds are maybe not the greatest indicator on who’s going to win. I think you have to be competitive at those rounds; certainly, you have to be really good. But the guy that’s strongest in the first round, I wouldn’t say would necessarily be the odds-on favorite to win the Championship, in my opinion. So, it’s hard to say. Richmond certainly configures like Phoenix, but races way different. So, I don’t know that you can draw a correlation there. You look at the Kansas, Texas, Martinsville round – you really can’t draw a whole lot of conclusions based on what we’re going to do in this first round. I would say more than the first round, probably just the whole body of work of the season would be a better indicator than the first round.”
YOU KNOW THE MEDIA; WE WANT TO PICK A FAVORITE RIGHT AFTER THE FIRST ROUND. DO YOU DO THAT IN-HOUSE OR DO YOU HAVE TO SAY ‘THAT’S JUST ONE RACE’ OR ‘THAT’S JUST THE FIRST TWO RACES – WE’VE GOT EIGHT TO GO’. “Yeah, 10 races is a long time. To me, every race brings an opportunity. Every race brings an opportunity to score stage points, win points and bonus points. Throughout these 10 weeks, you’re going to position yourself at every race to either improve your position, decrease your position or hold neutral. That’s the way I look at it. So, every race you’re trying to better position yourself throughout the standings and throughout the playoffs. It’s very individualistic. We go to win.. (inaudible). If we go win at Darlington, the only thing I’m going to take away is A) we have more bonus points and a better position for the next round. But past that, when we go and reset at Vegas, it doesn’t really matter. All that’s going to matter about Darlington is what bonus points we scored there. I mean there are lessons learned, but that’s every day. But I think in general, when you’re talking about the playoffs, it’s very individual per race.”

Richard Childress Racing at Darlington Raceway… In 133 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, Richard Childress Racing has found success at the ‘Lady In Black’ with eights victories, 24 top-five, and 43 top-10 finishes. The Welcome N.C. organization has yet to find victory lane in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the historic South Carolina speedway, but has accumulated 10 top-five and 23 top-10 finishes. Catch the Action… The NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 at Darlington Raceway will be televised live Saturday, September 4, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Motor Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  The NASCAR Cup Series’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway will be televised live Sunday, September 5, beginning at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Motor Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

‌  ‌  ‌

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Darlington Raceway… Dillon has made 10 career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway, posting a career-best second-place finish in September 2020, missing Victory Lane by a narrow margin over Kevin Harvick. Dillon also has a fourth-place finish in 2017. He finished 16th at the track earlier this year. Dillon has made three appearances at “The Lady in Black” in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, securing his best finish of fifth in 2012. The 2011 NASCAR Truck Series champion has two starts at the track in the Truck Series, earning his best finish of fifth in August 2010. About Tracker Off Road… Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE prominently features TRACKER ATVs, a game-changing new line of all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides offering breakthrough performance, service and value in the off-road industry. TRACKER OFF ROAD was born out of a powerhouse partnership formed between Bass Pro Shops and TRACKER founder Johnny Morris and Textron Specialized Vehicles, bringing together the undisputed world leader in boating with a global leader in innovation and technology.  About Bass Pro Shops… Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit www.basspro.com. AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:How does Darlington Raceway suit your driving style?“I think long races in the past have fit my racing style. There is plenty of time to make the car better during a long race, and all of our wins have come in races 500 miles or more. So, I think that bodes well for Darlington. We learned a lot in the Southern 500 last year that we can translate to this weekend. Darlington is a place that falls off, so tire management becomes important and I really like that. It’s nice that we’re going to place that long run speed matters a bit.”

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Darlington Raceway… Reddick has four NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, with his best finish of seventh coming last year at NASCAR’s first race back after the season paused out of COVID-19 concerns. Reddick also has three starts at the ‘Lady in Black’ in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, collecting two top-five finishes. Time for the NASCAR Playoffs… Reddick punched his ticket into the 2021 NASCAR post season after a tight battle with his RCR teammate Austin Dillon at Daytona International Speedway last weekend. It marks the sophomore NASCAR Cup Series driver’s first appearance into the NASCAR Playoffs. About Childress Vineyards… Childress Vineyards is a premier winery located at the southern gateway of the Yadkin Valley in Lexington, North Carolina. Owned by Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner and Hall of Fame member, Childress Vineyards has been producing award-winning wines with the expertise of Winemaker Mark Frizsolowski. Open daily for tours, tastings, and lunch in the Bistro. Information about Childress Vineyards can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/childresswines/, on Twitter at @ChildressWines and on Instagram at Instagram.com/childresswines. TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:These first three tracks are ones where you’ve consistently fought for top 10s, top 5s. What is your confidence level heading into your first Playoffs? “It’s good. The nice thing is that we’re going back to a venue that we’ve been to earlier this season. The speed we had early at this race at Darlington in the beginning of summer was really promising. I’m excited for sure going into Darlington. But even more exciting, after all the chaos and everything at Daytona, our fifth-place finish at Daytona is going to help our starting position at Darlington. There’s only 13 points between myself and sixth right now, and with that tight of a spread I think we’re going to see a lot of shake up right away. We’re going to try to take advantage of that.”   Does the intensity level raise up?“Yes and no. I think I experienced this level of intensity for sure when we ran the Southern 500 last year. We at times were racing around a lot of Playoff cars all night long at Darlington, and Bristol especially once we were up in the top five. We weren’t racing for what those guys were, but we were still racing to try and have a good finish. So, I think the intensity’s there whether you’re in the Playoffs or not. When you’re a Playoff driver, you’re racing really hard with those other Playoff drivers. It seemed like the guys outside of the Playoffs understand what is going on, but they’re still going to race hard for their season. The give-and-take, the mark has moved a little bit from where it is in the regular season up until that point.  But I’d say either way you have it. It’s just shaped a little bit differently whether you’re in the Playoffs or not. Last year when I wasn’t, I felt like the Playoff drivers – as they should – were racing hard for every single spot. Essentially, this one or two points at the end of the year ultimately doesn’t dictate whether I make the next round or not. So, it is different, but I wouldn’t say it’s more intense. It’s just the intensity level is with a certain group of drivers on one side and another in the Playoffs.”

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 Crosley Brands Chevrolet Camaro at Darlington Raceway… Snider has three career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Darlington Raceway, the most recent coming earlier this season in the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. The 26-year-old earned a 10th-place finish in the fall race last season. About Crosley Brands… For over 30 years, Crosley Brands has been a leader in the nostalgic electronics category. From their beginning in the premium incentive industry, Crosley Brands developed their own exclusive product lines and built solid relationships with some of the most well-known catalogers and retailers in the business. Today, Crosley Brands is known for two brands – Crosley Radio and Crosley Furniture. At the front lines of the Vinyl Revolution, Crosley Radio seeks to bring new life to a classic medium, with its revolutionary line of turntables to its new series of high-fidelity units. Building on a legacy of entrepreneurship, Crosley Furniture delivers quality products at competitive prices, without sacrificing style. From the patio to the kitchen, bath, entryway and beyond, Crosley Furniture offers over 1,800 indoor and outdoor furniture items in a variety of categories and designs. For more information, please visit www.crosleybrands.com.  MYATT SNIDER QUOTE:With three weeks remaining before the Playoffs begin for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, what are you looking forward to? Where is your opportunity? “Darlington Raceway is one we have circled for sure. That place owes me one. Our No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro was really fast there in the spring earlier this season, but I made a rookie mistake and didn’t give myself enough room off the corner. I didn’t quite get a Darlington stripe, but I got a Daniel Hemric stripe because I ran right into his left rear without getting clear. I thought I was going to clear him, but the track narrows up fast off turn two in Darlington.”

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 04, 2021) – John Force and the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro and Brittany Force and the Monster Energy dragster will start race day at the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals from the No. 1 qualifying spots in their respective categories. Robert Hight and the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy will start race day from the No. 3 spot. After making every attempt to overcome the inclement weather, NHRA officials had no choice but to cancel the final two qualifying sessions Saturday at Lucas Oil Raceway. On Friday night, John Force took the PEAK Camaro to a stellar 3.877-second pass at 330.72 mph to earn his 12th No. 1 qualifying position at the historic facility, his first since 2006. Force will be racing Sunday for his sixth win at the prestigious event. “Well, we were all watching the weather, even yesterday. This PEAK Chevy, we’re in the show, we knew that when we made the run last night at the end of the Funny Car field,” said Force who will race Dave Richards in the first round. “This is Indy so it’s still exciting. It’s still the race you want to win. Tomorrow will be beautiful, I can’t wait to see the fans in the stands and put on a show for them.” Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team landed their sixth consecutive and eighth overall No. 1 this season off a stunning 3.684-second pass at 334.57 mph. They’ll be chasing their second win of the season, first at the U.S. Nationals and 12th in Force’s career. “It’s the U.S. Nationals, there’s so much history behind this race. It’s always been the biggest race on our circuit and it’s the one race every team wants to come out and win,” said Force who faces Shawn Langdon first round. “I’ve heard people say a hundred times, ‘You have to win Indy. You can’t retire until you’ve done that.’ I’ve been chasing the Indy win, it’s the big one. We want to come out here and do it this weekend. We haven’t had luck here in the past but hoping to turn things around and end up in that winners circle.” Three-time world champion Robert Hight handled the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy to a 3.889-second run at 329.67 mph to put him in the No. 3 qualifying spot and set them up to chase their fourth U.S. Nationals win. “Really wish we could have had at least one more run but we knew there was a possibility of weather coming in to today,” said Hight who will go head-to-head with Dale Creasy Jr. “Coming from testing at Brainerd to Indy and making that first run, that felt good. I’m not worried about tomorrow.

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION DODGE/SRT NHRA U.S. NATIONALS LUCAS OIL RACEWAY AT INDIANAPOLIS, BROWNSBURG, INDIANA SEPT. 4, 2021                                                                                                    Chevrolet sweeps No. 1 qualifiers at U.S. NationalsBrittany Force (Top Fuel), John Force (Funny Car), Kyle Koretsky (Pro Stock) lead way BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Sept. 4, 2021) – Big performances by Team Chevy drivers on a clear Friday night at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis were crucial as the two remaining rounds of qualifications for the 67th U.S. Nationals were canceled Saturday, Sept. 4, because of persistent rain.
Chevrolet drivers earned No. 1 qualifier honors in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock for the third time in 11 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series events this season.
Brittany and John Force, who shared the winner’s stage for the first time three weeks ago, roared to the top of qualifying for the second time this season in their respective professional classes.
Brittany Force raced to her seventh consecutive No. 1 Top Fuel qualifier honor – and eighth in 13 races – with a 3.684-second pass at 334.57 mph in the Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet dragster.
Tony Schumacher in 2005 was the last Top Fuel racer to earn six top qualifiers in a row and he owns the record for most No. 1s in a season with 13. Force will aim for her second victory of the season, which would give her 200 career round wins, and secure the second seed for the seven-race Countdown to the Championship that begins next week.
“Eight No. 1 qualifiers, that says a lot about this team, ” said Force, who was the top qualifier in the 2019 U.S. Nationals. “We want No. 1 qualifiers, but we also want to win on race day. I’ve been chasing the Indy win. It’s the big one and we want to come out here and do it this week. We haven’t had luck here in the past but hoping to turn things around.
“I think we’re in a really good place. We’re No. 2 in points and our goal coming into this season was to be top three for the Countdown, where everything resets. It’s been a long season and we’ve put a lot of hard work into getting that No. 2 spot.”
Her father, John, has five Funny Car wins at the U.S. Nationals – tied for the most with Ed McCulloch – and took a step toward his sixth victory and the top seed for the Countdown by securing his second top qualifier of the season.Force, driving the PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS, turned in a 3.871-second pass. He last won the U.S. Nationals in 2019 for his 150th career victory, and all John Force Racing drivers did not compete in the 2020 event because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’ve always loved this. Go out here in Indy at night, go down that racetrack, header fire on both sides, driving around weaving,” said Force, who claimed the 162nd top qualifier of his career. “Our teams are doing well. This PEAK Chevy, that Monster Energy dragster and Auto Club Camaro, we’re all running well, I’m proud of us.”
Teammate Robert Hight, a three-time winner of the event, qualified third with a pass of 3.889 seconds in the Automobile Club of Southern California Camaro SS. 
“This was a good start to the weekend,” Hight said. “This Auto Club team put in some extra work after Brainerd, figured some things out and left testing really excited for what we think we can do. We’ll go some rounds on Sunday and make up a couple of spots in the points to start the NHRA Countdown in a prime position for another championship.”
Koretsky, runner-up at the most recent Pro Stock race at Topeka, Kansas, three weeks ago, picked up his initial No. 1 qualifier with a 6.572-second pass in the Lucas Oil/NitroFish Camaro SS.
“It’s huge for my self-confidence. It felt good when I made the run, and to come back and find out I’m No. 1 is great,” he said. “KB Racing supplies me with the best power out here. Who doesn’t want to be No. 1 at the U.S. Nationals? Our goal is to leave Indy top five and I’m confident we can do it.”
Elite Motorsports teammates Troy Coughlin Jr. and Erica Enders were Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, in the Camaro SS. KB Racing’s Greg Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Camaro SS, qualified seventh as he seeks to tie Warren Johnson’s class record of 97 career wins. Koretsky’s father, Kenny, was runner-up to Anderson at the 2004 U.S. Nationals.

•  No.1 qualifier Steve Comella drove his 1968 Plymouth Barracuda to the winner’s circle after a dominant performance in the 20th anniversary edition of the Dodge HEMI® Challenge at Lucas Oil Raceway during the 2021 Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals
• Comella followed up his runner-up finish at last year’s event with his first career win in the longest running, continuous, specialty race in NHRA history showcasing HEMI-powered Super Stock 1968 Dodge Darts and Plymouth Barracudas in head-to-head battles
• Comella defeated Jim Daniels Jr., a four-time Dodge HEMI Challenge winner, in an exciting final elimination battle to earn the uniquely crafted 42.5 lb. Dodge HEMI Challenge trophy and $15,000 winner’s prize
• Defending winner Stephen Yantus III earned the NHRA’s special award for “Best Appearing Car” at the 67th annual the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals

Indianapolis, Indiana, Sept. 4, 2021– The 20th anniversary edition of the Dodge HEMI® Challenge saw a new winner crowned at Lucas Oil Raceway as a determined Steve Comella drove his 1968 Plymouth Barracuda from a runner-up finish in last year’s event to earn his first victory at longest running, continuous, specialty race in National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) history. 

Comella earned the victory at the fan-favorite classic muscle car competition from the No. 1 qualifier position with a dominant performance through eliminations to advance to an exciting final where he defeated Jim Daniels Jr., four-time (2016-2019) Dodge HEMI Challenge winner. He drove his iconic Super Stock ’68 Cuda to an elapsed timed (E.T.) run of 8.364 seconds at 161.17 mph to beat his opponent’s 8.423 sec/ 158.02 mph pass under the lights at Lucas Oil Raceway in a late night showdown during the 67^th annual Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals on Friday. 

On his drive to the winner’s circle, Comella battled head-to-head against Steve Kent and inaugural event winner Bucky Hess, and had a semifinal solo run when defending event winner Stephen Yantus III wasn’t able to make the start due to a mechanical issue. In the final against Daniels and his vintage ’68 Dodge Dart, Comella overcame his opponent’s early lead by chasing him down and turning on the win lights with a 0.0202-second margin of victory.

Highlights of Comella’s performance through five elimination rounds included a lightning 0.001-second reaction time and a trio of 8.3-second runs, the last of which gave him low E.T. and top speed of the event. His efforts were rewarded with the coveted custom-made 42.6-lb. trophy crafted from a 426 HEMI cylinder head, a $15,000 award, and the immense satisfaction that comes with a first career win.

“At the moment I’m exhausted, but this means a lot,” said Comella, who finished runner-up to Yantus in last year’s edition of the Dodge HEMI Challenge and has previously earned two runner-up finishes in overall NHRA Super Stock competition. “We’ve been chasing this for a while. Last year kind of felt like a stone in the shoe all year, so we decided to really kind of put everything into [this race] this year. It was a lot of work and here it (the trophy) is.”

While last year’s winner Yantus saw his efforts to defend his title come to an end in the semifinals, his ’68 Barracuda came away from the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals as a winner after being presented with NHRA’s special award for “Best Appearing Car”.

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 Crosley Brands Team Earn Solid Top-10 Finish at Darlington Raceway

9th

9th

12th

“Today was a solid ninth-place finish for our Crosley Brands Chevrolet team. I thought our Camaro had really good speed, but I lacked the stability in the center of the corners to keep the momentum going. We consistently ran inside the top-10 and if the last cautions would have fallen a little differently, I think we would have had a shot at a top-five. A consistent finish like this is exactly what our Richard Childress Racing team needs to keep doing leading up to the Playoffs. I’m proud of this group for battling all day, in the heat, and we will continue to chip away at building a solid foundation over the next two weeks.”  -Myatt Snider

Richard Childress Racing at Darlington Raceway… In 133 NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, Richard Childress Racing has found success at the ‘Lady In Black’ with eights victories, 24 top-five, and 43 top-10 finishes. The Welcome N.C. organization has yet to find victory lane in the NASCAR Xfinity Series at the historic South Carolina speedway, but has accumulated 10 top-five and 23 top-10 finishes. Catch the Action… The NASCAR Xfinity Series’ Sport Clips Haircuts VFW Help A Hero 200 at Darlington Raceway will be televised live Saturday, September 4, beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Motor Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.  The NASCAR Cup Series’ Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway will be televised live Sunday, September 5, beginning at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN and will be broadcast live on the Motor Radio Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

‌  ‌  ‌

Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops / TRACKER Off Road Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Darlington Raceway… Dillon has made 10 career starts in the NASCAR Cup Series at Darlington Raceway, posting a career-best second-place finish in September 2020, missing Victory Lane by a narrow margin over Kevin Harvick. Dillon also has a fourth-place finish in 2017. He finished 16th at the track earlier this year. Dillon has made three appearances at “The Lady in Black” in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, securing his best finish of fifth in 2012. The 2011 NASCAR Truck Series champion has two starts at the track in the Truck Series, earning his best finish of fifth in August 2010. About Tracker Off Road… Dillon’s No. 3 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE prominently features TRACKER ATVs, a game-changing new line of all-terrain vehicles and side-by-sides offering breakthrough performance, service and value in the off-road industry. TRACKER OFF ROAD was born out of a powerhouse partnership formed between Bass Pro Shops and TRACKER founder Johnny Morris and Textron Specialized Vehicles, bringing together the undisputed world leader in boating with a global leader in innovation and technology.  About Bass Pro Shops… Bass Pro Shops is North America’s premier outdoor and conservation company. Founded in 1972 when avid young angler Johnny Morris began selling tackle out of his father’s liquor store in Springfield, Missouri, today the company provides customers with unmatched offerings spanning premier destination retail, outdoor equipment manufacturing, world-class resort destinations and more. In 2017 Bass Pro Shops acquired Cabela’s to create a “best-of-the-best” experience with superior products, dynamic locations and outstanding customer service. Bass Pro Shops also operates White River Marine Group, offering an unsurpassed collection of industry-leading boat brands, and Big Cedar Lodge, America’s Premier Wilderness Resort. Under the visionary conservation leadership of Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops is a national leader in protecting habitat and introducing families to the outdoors and has been named by Forbes as “one of America’s Best Employers.” Bass Pro Shops has a long relationship with NASCAR, dating back to 1998. For more information, visit www.basspro.com. AUSTIN DILLON QUOTE:How does Darlington Raceway suit your driving style?“I think long races in the past have fit my racing style. There is plenty of time to make the car better during a long race, and all of our wins have come in races 500 miles or more. So, I think that bodes well for Darlington. We learned a lot in the Southern 500 last year that we can translate to this weekend. Darlington is a place that falls off, so tire management becomes important and I really like that. It’s nice that we’re going to place that long run speed matters a bit.”

Tyler Reddick and the No. 8 Childress Vineyards Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE at Darlington Raceway… Reddick has four NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington Raceway, with his best finish of seventh coming last year at NASCAR’s first race back after the season paused out of COVID-19 concerns. Reddick also has three starts at the ‘Lady in Black’ in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, collecting two top-five finishes. Time for the NASCAR Playoffs… Reddick punched his ticket into the 2021 NASCAR post season after a tight battle with his RCR teammate Austin Dillon at Daytona International Speedway last weekend. It marks the sophomore NASCAR Cup Series driver’s first appearance into the NASCAR Playoffs. About Childress Vineyards… Childress Vineyards is a premier winery located at the southern gateway of the Yadkin Valley in Lexington, North Carolina. Owned by Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner and Hall of Fame member, Childress Vineyards has been producing award-winning wines with the expertise of Winemaker Mark Frizsolowski. Open daily for tours, tastings, and lunch in the Bistro. Information about Childress Vineyards can be found on Facebook at facebook.com/childresswines/, on Twitter at @ChildressWines and on Instagram at Instagram.com/childresswines. TYLER REDDICK QUOTES:These first three tracks are ones where you’ve consistently fought for top 10s, top 5s. What is your confidence level heading into your first Playoffs? “It’s good. The nice thing is that we’re going back to a venue that we’ve been to earlier this season. The speed we had early at this race at Darlington in the beginning of summer was really promising. I’m excited for sure going into Darlington. But even more exciting, after all the chaos and everything at Daytona, our fifth-place finish at Daytona is going to help our starting position at Darlington. There’s only 13 points between myself and sixth right now, and with that tight of a spread I think we’re going to see a lot of shake up right away. We’re going to try to take advantage of that.”   Does the intensity level raise up?“Yes and no. I think I experienced this level of intensity for sure when we ran the Southern 500 last year. We at times were racing around a lot of Playoff cars all night long at Darlington, and Bristol especially once we were up in the top five. We weren’t racing for what those guys were, but we were still racing to try and have a good finish. So, I think the intensity’s there whether you’re in the Playoffs or not. When you’re a Playoff driver, you’re racing really hard with those other Playoff drivers. It seemed like the guys outside of the Playoffs understand what is going on, but they’re still going to race hard for their season. The give-and-take, the mark has moved a little bit from where it is in the regular season up until that point.  But I’d say either way you have it. It’s just shaped a little bit differently whether you’re in the Playoffs or not. Last year when I wasn’t, I felt like the Playoff drivers – as they should – were racing hard for every single spot. Essentially, this one or two points at the end of the year ultimately doesn’t dictate whether I make the next round or not. So, it is different, but I wouldn’t say it’s more intense. It’s just the intensity level is with a certain group of drivers on one side and another in the Playoffs.”

Myatt Snider and the No. 2 Crosley Brands Chevrolet Camaro at Darlington Raceway… Snider has three career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Darlington Raceway, the most recent coming earlier this season in the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. The 26-year-old earned a 10th-place finish in the fall race last season. About Crosley Brands… For over 30 years, Crosley Brands has been a leader in the nostalgic electronics category. From their beginning in the premium incentive industry, Crosley Brands developed their own exclusive product lines and built solid relationships with some of the most well-known catalogers and retailers in the business. Today, Crosley Brands is known for two brands – Crosley Radio and Crosley Furniture. At the front lines of the Vinyl Revolution, Crosley Radio seeks to bring new life to a classic medium, with its revolutionary line of turntables to its new series of high-fidelity units. Building on a legacy of entrepreneurship, Crosley Furniture delivers quality products at competitive prices, without sacrificing style. From the patio to the kitchen, bath, entryway and beyond, Crosley Furniture offers over 1,800 indoor and outdoor furniture items in a variety of categories and designs. For more information, please visit www.crosleybrands.com.  MYATT SNIDER QUOTE:With three weeks remaining before the Playoffs begin for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, what are you looking forward to? Where is your opportunity? “Darlington Raceway is one we have circled for sure. That place owes me one. Our No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro was really fast there in the spring earlier this season, but I made a rookie mistake and didn’t give myself enough room off the corner. I didn’t quite get a Darlington stripe, but I got a Daniel Hemric stripe because I ran right into his left rear without getting clear. I thought I was going to clear him, but the track narrows up fast off turn two in Darlington.”

The Evans, GA driver powered past the likes of Kyle Larson and Jonathan Davenport for his fourth World of Outlaws win of the season

GAFFNEY, SC – September 2, 2021 – Brandon Overton had one thing on his mind as the laps dwindled Thursday night at Cherokee Speedway. He replayed an old race at the South Carolina venue. One he lost on the final corner because he mismanaged his tires.

This time, he wouldn’t let it happen again. The Evans, GA driver, played the tire game perfectly, holding on to win the inaugural Rock Gault Memorial—worth $40,000. 

While “Big Sexy” saved his tires enough for the end of the race, worry still sank in the last few laps. Especially when he saw Jonathan Davenport and Chris Ferguson, who were in the top-five, go to the pits. 

“I was behind [Jonathan Davenport] the whole time, and I was like he really wasn’t that sideways,” Overton said. “That worried me, so I just slowed down as much as I could and was just trying to baby it to the end.

“I lost a race over here for 10 grand coming to the checkered, so that was playing back through my mind, and I was like, slow down and don’t blow the tire off.” 

Before Davenport’s tire blew, the start of the race saw Kyle Larson take the early lead with “Superman” in his tire tracks and Overton lurking behind them. When Larson eventually slipped off the bottom in Turn 1, Davenport darted under the #6 car to steal the lead and brought Overton with him.

Then, Davenport and Overton waged an epic war for the lead. Overton took several peeks to the outside of Davenport for the top spot before making his move on a Lap 48 restart. 

“Big Sexy” rolled to the outside of Davenport in Turn 3, using his momentum to pull even. He flexed his muscles even more in Turn 4, propelling his Longhorn Chassis past Davenport and into the race lead. 

“It was latched good on that restart, and I said man, I ain’t got nothing to lose,” Overton said. “I just blasted her in there, and I got me a good run, and as soon as I cleared him, I got back down.” 

The win is Overton’s fourth World of Outlaws triumph of the season and the 17th Series win of his career. The $40,000 check adds to Overton’s list of high-paying wins in 2021, including more than $300,000 between the Dirt Late Model Dreams and Firecracker 100. 

Davenport, whose chance at a podium finish ended with tire problems, finished 19th. The tire wear in the Feature surprised the Blairsville, GA driver, throwing him a curveball. 

“I never really thought tire wear would be an issue after the Heat Race, so we probably cut ours up too much,” Davenport said. “I was just not really balanced enough to drive off the right front like I needed to because I tightened my car up a little bit, thinking we didn’t need to worry about tire wear issues.”

Chris Madden finished second, grabbing a podium finish in front of his home state fans. The Gray Court, SC driver stated tire wear affected his ability to make a run at Overton in the last few laps. 

“We had to use a little bit of tire to get there, and we just didn’t have enough tire there at the end to put on a charge,” Madden said.  

Jimmy Owens crossed the line third after starting ninth. The Newport, TN driver bided his time working through the field, knowing he’d have to save his equipment for the end. 

“We just took our time early in the race because we knew we had to have a lot of tire left at the end there,” Owens said. “We had a pretty decent car; we made a whole lot of adjustments, and it was a whole lot better there for the Feature than it was in the Heat Race.”

Trent Ivey finished fourth and Larson finished fifth—his third top five with the World of Outlaws in four starts this season.

Brandon Overton’s experience at Cherokee and what to do when his tires were going away paid off, leading to the $40,000 Victory. It’s that experience that helps him add to accolades in 2021, especially when there’s big money on the line.

UP NEXT: The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet head to Lavonia Speedway, in Lavonia, GA for its only trip to the Peach State this season. 

Morton Buildings Feature (60 Laps)-1. 76-Brandon Overton [4][$40,000]; 2. 44-Chris Madden [5][$15,000]; 3. 20-Jimmy Owens [9][$10,000]; 4. 88-Trent Ivey [6][$4,000]; 5. 6-Kyle Larson [1][$3,500]; 6. 18D-Daulton Wilson [12][$3,000]; 7. 79-Ross Bailes [17][$2,800]; 8. 17M-Dale McDowell [11][$2,700]; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening [20][$2,600]; 10. 1-Brandon Sheppard [23][$2,500]; 11. 28-Dennis Erb [24][$2,000]; 12. 6B-Dillon Brown [13][$1,800]; 13. 7-Ricky Weiss [25][$400]; 14. 39-Tim McCreadie [10][$1,500]; 15. 22-Chris Ferguson [2][$1,400]; 16. 19R-Ryan Gustin [16][$1,300]; 17. 0-Nick Hoffman [19][$1,200]; 18. 24D-Michael Brown [8][$1,200]; 19. 49-Jonathan Davenport [3][$1,200]; 20. 14-Josh Richards [22][$1,200]; 21. 1D-Brent Dixon [18][$1,200]; 22. 57-Zack Mitchell [15][$1,200]; 23. 42-Cla Knight [14][$1,200]; 24. 70-Jeff Smith [7][$1,200]; 25. 20H-Bryson Harper [21][$1,200] Hard Charger: 1-Brandon Sheppard[+13]

Qualifying Flight-A –1. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 15.376; 2. 76-Brandon Overton, 15.424; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport, 15.484; 4. 57-Zack Mitchell, 15.51; 5. 88-Trent Ivey, 15.571; 6. 17M-Dale McDowell, 15.613; 7. 6B-Dillon Brown, 15.637; 8. 70-Jeff Smith, 15.644; 9. 20-Jimmy Owens, 15.673; 10. 0-Nick Hoffman, 15.675; 11. 79-Ross Bailes, 15.775; 12. 26JR-Jimmy Sharpe, 15.859; 13. 28-Dennis Erb, 15.86; 14. 91-Derrick Ramey, 15.928; 15. 99B-Boom Briggs, 15.946; 16. 20H-Bryson Harper, 15.988; 17. 23-Ahnna Parkhurst, 16.123

Qualifying Flight-B-1. 22-Chris Ferguson, 15.266; 2. 24D-Michael Brown, 15.318; 3. 39-Tim McCreadie, 15.378; 4. 6-Kyle Larson, 15.422; 5. 44-Chris Madden, 15.604; 6. 18D-Daulton Wilson, 15.624; 7. 42-Cla Knight, 15.662; 8. 19R-Ryan Gustin, 15.716; 9. 16-Tyler Bruening, 15.734; 10. 14-Josh Richards, 15.785; 11. B1-Brent Larson, 15.799; 12. 1D-Brent Dixon, 15.823; 13. 16W-Ben Watkins, 15.83

Enumclaw, WA Native Eyes First-Career World of Outlaws Win on Home Turf

ALGER, WA – September 2, 2021 – Kasey Kahne’s roots at Skagit Speedway can be traced all the way back to 1985.

“I loved this place so much growing up,” Kahne said. “It was always the coolest place to me whether I was watching the World of Outlaws or Dirt Cup. I remember sitting up in the grandstands with my mom like it was yesterday.”

Since that five-year-old little boy fell in love with racing at the Alger, WA track, he grew up to become a NASCAR Cup Series superstar and the champion owner of a World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series dynasty.

The year is now 2021 and Kahne is a “full-time” Outlaw, a childhood dream of his, as he completes the remainder of the World of Outlaws season aboard the Roth Motorsports, Beef Packers #83. This weekend, the schedule takes Kahne back home where it all started for the Enumclaw, WA native.

The Greatest Show on Dirt will race in Washington for four consecutive nights, expecting near sold-out crowds for the Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals on Friday-Sunday, September 3-5 and Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, WA on Monday, September 6.

For Kahne, it’s a chance to reconnect with some of his most passionate and loyal fans, and arguably his best shot yet at achieving his first-career World of Outlaws win.

“I haven’t been here in a long time, but I definitely have a lot more laps here vs. anywhere else we go on the Outlaw tour,” Kahne noted. “I remember these places pretty well, though. I’d expect to have good runs in all four shows this weekend. Each night in the Roth #83 we’re getting better. I’m really looking forward to the entire west coast swing, but especially starting it in Washington.”

Thrown into the Dennis and Teresa Roth owned entry last month, Kahne took the wheel of the #83 in early August following the suspension and ultimate dismissal of former pilot Aaron Reutzel. Over that span, Kahne has contested eight events highlighted by his performance at The Granddaddy of ‘Em All, the 60th Knoxville Nationals.

Kahne earned his first-career Nationals QuickTime on his preliminary night, locked in for his second-career Nationals A-Main, and eventually finished a career-best eighth in the 50-lap Knoxville Nationals finale. Since then, the Roth #83 has continued to show immense speed in qualifying as Kahne and his Crew Chief Grant Boyum continue to work on their Feature package.

As a car owner, Kahne has enjoyed World of Outlaws wins at Skagit with drivers Joey Saldana and Daryn Pittman taking the #9 to victory lane at his home track. For Kahne himself, he hasn’t raced in his home state with the Outlaws since August of 1998 at Grays Harbor, where he’ll head for a Labor Day special on Monday.

Kahne is a two-time Jim Raper Memorial Dirt Cup champion (2002, 2003), along with many other accomplishments at the Skagit 3/10-mile oval. The next achievement he wants most is simple: World of Outlaws win.

A scattered career with The Greatest Show on Dirt has seen Kahne start 122 Features with 21 top-10 finishes and most notably two top-five results at the 2002 Kings Royal and Mississippi’s Magnolia Motor Speedway earlier this year in the KKR #9.

The three-time World of Outlaws owner champion (2013 with Pittman, 2019-20 with Brad Sweet) has made it clear that one thing he desires more than most before he calls it a career is a win for himself against the World of Outlaws, something he has a good chance for this weekend in Washington.

“I learned a lot as a kid watching the Outlaws at Skagit,” Kahne mentioned. “To be racing with them now and back at home is pretty exciting. I’m thrilled to be a part of the races this weekend at the tracks where I really learned the most early on in my career.”

Along with championship leader Brad Sweet in the NAPA Auto Parts #49 and Rookie of the Year contender James McFadden in the Karavan Trailers #9, Kahne in the Roth #83 will try to keep it in the KKR family this weekend.

The four-race Washington weekend begins on Friday at Skagit Speedway in Alger, WA, and continues through Sunday’s $25,000/Win Sage Fruit Skagit Nationals finale. A Labor Day special then brings some Monday Night DIRTVision to the table as the Outlaws head south to Elma, WA’s Grays Harbor Raceway on September 6.

Following this weekend, the NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars will head for California to wrap up the west coast swing at Silver Dollar Speedway (Sept. 10-11), Keller Auto Speedway (Sept. 17), and Placerville Speedway (Sept. 18).

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch Kahne in his home state and all remaining World of Outlaws events live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.

Demetrios Drellos draws on experience and hard lessons to conquer Lebanon Valley Speedway

WEST LEBANON, NY – Big speed, big brakes, and big-time bravery are what the Super DIRTcar Series stars will need if they want to take home the $25,500 grand prize at Lebanon Valley Speedway on Saturday (Sept. 4).

Lebanon Valley Speedway’s Mr. DIRT Track USA is one of the most highly anticipated events on the Series schedule. Its long straightaways and high-banked paperclip turns require a very different approach and setup that drivers need to be extra prepared for.

The Series is looking to complete its 16th race of the season with an exciting September-November run on tap, featuring some of the biggest events of the year.

Stewart Friesen currently leads the points standings with seven-time Series champion Matt Sheppard on his heels. Meanwhile, third through seventh in the points standings are only separated by a mere 20 points. Those drivers are Peter Britten, Mat Williamson, Mike Mahaney, Max McLaughlin, and Billy Decker. 

Get your tickets for Mr. DIRT Track USA here. 

ON THE DRAWING BOARD WITH DRELLOS

Demetrios Drellos, from Queensbury, NY, is running 14th in points but he feels the season starting to turn around. Double D hasn’t found the rhythm he’s looking for yet, but his qualifying results have improved, putting him in a better position to find consistency. 

Drellos’ last visit to Lebanon Valley ended early after heavy contact with the outside retaining wall in Turn 1. However, he felt he had a fast car and is now anxious to come back and get more laps with his Big Block. 

“To go to Lebanon Valley, it takes more preparation than 95% of the places we go to,” Drellos said. “Everything is different. As much as people want to say it’s not. It is. And that’s a good thing. Every track has its own personality but to go to Lebanon it takes different tires, a different setup, and a different mentality. It’s treated me well other than that last time. That was just an unfortunate circumstance. It was a lack of judgment on my part. Just don’t go to the outside of some people I guess.”

Drellos raced there weekly and in 43 starts collected four wins in the Small Block Modified division. He conceded the Big Block is a whole new ballgame, though.

“I haven’t been there in a few years other than Mr. DIRT Track USA,” Drellos said. “I like the place. It’s been good to me. It has character. You are racing the closest and the fastest of anywhere. There are similar speeds but here you are racing side by side a lot at those speeds. I have a lot of 358 (Modified) laps there. The track gets a lot smaller in a Big Block. You wouldn’t believe how much faster the Big Block is. I’ve only run it like five or six times and that’s not a lot of laps compared to most of these guys.”

The #111 competes against the biggest teams in Big Block racing at every tour event and he does so with a limited budget and crew. He knows it takes some extra time to get ready to race at The Valley of Speed.

He’s thankful for the laps he has there because there is nothing like it on the schedule. 

“As much throttle time you give at Lebanon, you spend just as much time braking,” Drellos described. “It’s the only racetrack that you have to care what the car is doing under braking. On most tracks, you are on the brakes for just a split second where yes you do give it thought but at The Valley, you actually have to worry about what the car is doing when you are slowing down for the corner.

“The cars handle very uniquely there. The setup and driving style is just totally different. If you don’t race it weekly, you aren’t used to it. Look at the fast guys like Kenny Tremont Jr., Andy Bachetti, and Eddie Marshall. All those local guys have a chance to win, absolutely.”

TREMONT DOMINANT 

No one knows how to turn laps at The Valley of Speed like Kenny Tremont Jr. It’s been his home track since the 1970s. Tremont has 10 Series wins at Lebanon Valley with his first coming in 1985. Only Brett Hearn (15) has more Series wins there than the 59-year-old driver from West Sand Lake, NY. 

Before Sheppard’s win at The Valley earlier this year, Tremont had won the last two Series visits to the ⅝-mile behemoth. Notably, those back-to-back wins in 2018 and 2019 broke a drought that went back to 2005. 

Tremont has 140 wins at Lebanon Valley including one earlier this year in Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly championship competition. 

HOME TURF

The high banks are tough on outsiders and many of The Valley faithful are looking to defend their home turf. Andy Bachetti is a past Mr. DIRT Track USA champion and currently leads the track points by a very slim margin over Marc Johnson and Brett Haas, who both finished in the top-five when Mr. DIRT Track was run.  

Mr. DIRT Track USA is a points-paying race for the Lebanon Valley Speedway weekly racers. And with it only paying show-up points, Bachetti will be crowned the champion of The Valley of Speed. 

Living legend Eddie Marshall picked up a win this year, ending his winless drought at the West Lebanon, NY speedway. The driver of the #98 will be looking for the podium against the premier Super DIRTcar Series drivers this Saturday. 

HARD CHARGERS 

It’s always exciting to pick out a fast driver in the back of the pack and watch him work his way through the field to the front. These are the last four drivers to be named the hard charger of the race:

Rookie driver Tim Sears Jr. in the yellow #83X picked up 18 positions finishing sixth from 24th at the Orange County Fairground Speedway on Aug. 12. That bodes well for Sears as Lebanon Valley and Orange County are both ⅝-mile tracks. 

Jack Lehner and Mike Mahaney were the hard chargers in the Twin 60s at Land of Legends Raceway on Aug. 4. Lehner made up an incredible 20 positions in race one and Mahaney went one step further, grabbing a whopping 28 spots in race two and making his way onto the podium. 

Erick Rudolph was +20 at the last visit to Weedsport Speedway. Rudolph is a perennial hard charger. The Ransomville, NY driver passed 15 cars at Lebanon Valley on May 31 for the honors, further proving the #25R is a potential threat even if forced to start in the back. 

NAPA Super DIRT Week qualifier

Stewart Friesen, Demetrios Drellos, Tim Fuller, Matt Sheppard, Max McLaughlin, and Chris Hile have all secured their guaranteed start for the Billy Whittaker Cars 200 at NAPA Super DIRT Week (Oct. 6-10). Along with Mr. DIRT Track USA paying $25,500 to the winner, it will also award a guaranteed starting position at Oswego Speedway. It’s one of only five chances remaining for drivers to secure the prestigious starting spot in the historic $50,000-to-win 200-lap race.

HOW TO WATCH

If you can’t make it to the track, don’t forget to watch live on DIRTvision with either the Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month. Download the app today. 

On The Internet

Twitter – @SuperDIRTcar

Instagram – @SuperDIRTcar

Facebook – Facebook.com/SuperDIRTcarSeries

YouTube – Youtube.com/DIRTCarRacing

DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month

Around The Turn: The Super DIRTcar Series will return to Weedsport Speedway for the two-day Cavalcade Weekend, Friday and Saturday, Sept. 11-12.

Schatz, Dewease, Gravel, Marks & Dietrich Eye Another Title at Williams Grove

MECHANICSBURG, PA – September 2, 2021 – Established in 1963, the Champion Racing Oil National Open at Williams Grove Speedway is simply the biggest Sprint Car race on the East Coast.

Slated to consume Mechanicsburg, PA on October 1-2, the “Beer Hill Gang” will be raucous and rowdy as their beloved PA Posse locals face the superstars of the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series with $75,000 – the fourth-highest payday for Sprint Cars in the world this year – up for grabs to the winner of the 40-lapper.

The Cumberland County crown jewel is considered the final leg of the “triple crown,” which includes the three most prestigious Sprint Car races on the calendar. As they call it, the “Natty O” has the pleasure of sharing that honor with iconic events like the Knoxville Nationals and the Kings Royal.

NATIONAL OPEN TICKETS (Oct. 1-2)

For Outlaws and Posse alike, it’s a chance at not only the big bucks but the glory and bragging rights of conquering the famed 1/2-mile too. The list of National Open winners ranges from eventual Indianapolis 500 champion Gordon Johncock to the King of the Outlaws Steve Kinser to Posse faithful Fred Rahmer, Greg Hodnett, and many, many more.

At the 59th edition of the race next month, five former champions will return seeking additional hardware.

Headlining that list is the winningest driver in event history, Donny Schatz. He scored his sixth title over Kyle Larson last October and left the fans with this mic drop in victory lane: “They [fans in turn three] told me that I suck before the race started, so I wanted to remind them that before that race I was the only five-time National Open champion, and now I’m the only six-time.”

The timing of the National Open is perfect for Schatz, who is on a red-hot streak of six straight top-four finishes since his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 switched to a new Ford Performance 410. The Fargo, ND native will be chasing his 22nd win at Williams Grove, which is the winningest track of his World of Outlaws career.

Leading the charge for the PA Posse is Lance Dewease of Fayetteville, PA, a four-time master of the National Open. He earned his most recent title in 2018, which marked his first driving the iconic Kreitz #69K with the legendary Davey Brown on the wrenches.

This season alone, Dewease and the baby blue bullet have won four races at Williams Grove, including his historic 100th win. He never finished outside the top five in four World of Outlaws shows at the 1/2-mile this year, finishing 2nd, 2nd, 3rd & 5th. Another National Open crown would break a tie with Steve Kinser (4) and make him the second-winningest driver in event history just shy of his 56th birthday.

Back to the Outlaw front, David Gravel is the only other full-time driver with multiple National Open titles. The Watertown, CT native topped the 40-lapper in controversial fashion over Stevie Smith in 2014 when he drove for Roth Motorsports, but added a second score in dominating fashion in 2017 with CJB Motorsports.

This time he’ll rip around Williams Grove in the Big Game Motorsports #2, his new team which he’s won eight races with this year and propelled to second in the World of Outlaws championship chase. The 29-year-old is trying to join elites like Doug Wolfgang, Kenny Weld, Steve Smith, and Stevie Smith with three National Open trophies.

Although Brent Marks of Myerstown, PA was a card-carrying full-time Outlaw when he won $65,000 at the 2019 National Open, he’ll return to “part-time Posse” status this year when his family-owned #19 operation chases a second title as they continue a banner year.

The sixth and final returning winner is Danny Dietrich of Gettysburg, PA, who earned the biggest win of his life at the 2016 National Open. He’s fourth in points at Williams Grove this year, although winless at the track. Along with Marks, the 33-year-old veteran is attempting to become the 13th multi-time champion of the National Open.

Outside of those six, there’s a whole fleet of true contenders aiming to become the 35th champion in 59 years of the National Open.

Earlier this year, Sheldon Haudenschild of Wooster, OH, and Carson Macedo of Lemoore, CA both won their first-career Williams Grove Speedway Features, and they did it in World of Outlaws competition. Haudenschild’s NOS Energy Drink #17 and Macedo’s Jason Johnson Racing #41 will be ones to watch as they try to track down their first-career crown jewel title.

Former full-time Outlaw Aaron Reutzel, who ran fourth at the 2019 National Open, topped the Morgan Cup in May at Williams Grove and is expected to return next month now that his 30-day suspension for violating technical procedures has ended. He’s landed a new gig driving the RSR #83 based out of Knoxville, IA.

At the moment, seven other Williams Grove winners this year are expected to throw their name into the ring to defend PA Posse turf. The likes of Anthony Macri, Freddie Rahmer, Lucas Wolfe, Justin Whitall, Devon Borden, Matt Campbell, and Justin Peck will all be worth watching at the Mechanicsburg oval.

Extra Outlaws to watch include Hanover, PA’s Shark Racing duo of Logan Schuchart and Jacob Allen, newly-welcomed Roth #83 pilot Kasey Kahne, and his KKR squad including championship leader Brad Sweet and rookie of the year contender James McFadden.

With the All Star Circuit of Champions sidelined that weekend, it’s likely you’ll see King Sunshine Tyler Courtney in his Clauson-Marshall Racing #7BC, Cory Eliason in his Rudeen Racing #26, Hunter Schuerenberg in the Tony Vermeer #55, Spencer Bayston in the Sam McGhee #11, and potentially Paul McMahan in the CJB Motorsports #5, among other possible entrants.

The bottom line is this: the National Open is can’t miss.

On October 1-2, 2021, the tight, technical 1/2-mile at Williams Grove will bring the best Sprint Car drivers in the country in front of a possibly sold-out and wild crowd. We’ll crown a National Open champion, make some history, and have a whole lot of fun in Cumberland County.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch every World of Outlaws race live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.

National Open Titles:
6 – Donny Schatz (’20 – ’12 – ’07 – ’05 – ’04 – ’00)
4 – Lance Dewease (’18 – ‘02 – ’01 – ’96)
4 – Steve Kinser (’03 – ‘94 – ’92 – ’90)
3 – Stevie Smith (’15 – ’92 – ’89)
3 – Doug Wolfgang (’86 – ’85 – ’84)
3 – Steve Smith (’81 – ’76 – ’74)
3 – Kenny Weld (’73 – ’72 – ’71)
2 – David Gravel (’17 – ’14)
2 – Sammy Swindell (’10 – ’97)
2 – Mark Kinser (’99 – ’95)
2 – Lynn Paxton (’83 – ’82)
2 – Bobbie Adamson (’68 – ’67)
1 – Brent Marks (’19)
1 – Danny Dietrich (’16)
1 – Fred Rahmer (’13)
1 – Jason Meyers (’11)
1 – Greg Hodnett (’09)
1 – Cody Darrah (’08)
1 – Doug Esh (’06)
1 – Billy Pauch (’98)
1 – Don Kreitz Jr. (’93)
1 – Kenny Jacobs (’88)
1 – Joey Allen (’87)
1 – Allen Klinger (’80)
1 – Smokey Snellbaker (’79)
1 – Kramer Williamson (’78)
1 – Van May (’77)
1 – Bobby Allen (’75)
1 – Johnny Grum (’70)
1 – Gene Varner (’69)
1 – Lou Blaney (’66)
1 – Henry Jacoby (’65)
1 – Larry Dickson (’64)
1 – Gordon Johncock (’63)

Photo – Paul Arch