IMPERIAL, PA (September 26, 2026) – Champions Night officially closed the book on the 2026 points season at Dirt’s Monster Half Mile Saturday night, but with two championship battles separated by just one point entering the evening, there was still plenty left to decide.

The Rohrich Parts Center/Chevrolet Performance RUSH Late Model championship came down to three drivers separated by a single point, while the top two in the Auto House Hobby Stocks were also just one point apart as qualifying, nine heat races, a six-lap dash, and six feature events stood between them and a championship.

Adding even more to the night were the Josh Langer Memorial for the Auto House Hobby Stocks, the Crawford Auto Repair SCDRA Sport Compact Shootout, and a Super Late Model tune-up ahead of the upcoming Pittsburgher 100.

Alex Ferree (1C), from Saxonburg, captured the Super Late Model feature; Ben Easler (02), from Linesville, scored his first Rohrich Parts Center/Chevrolet Performance RUSH Late Model victory; and defending champion Brandon Burgoon (5X) survived the razor-thin points battle to claim another division championship.

Stephen Shelpman (17P), from Bethel Park, won the Josh Langer Memorial and secured his sixth Auto House Hobby Stock track championship, while AJ Poljak (36), from Baldwin, added another Kehm Oil Penn Ohio Pro Stock victory and wrapped up his fourth track title.

Josh Frantz (114), from Reynoldsville, claimed the Crawford Auto Repair SCDRA Sport Compact Shootout; Bill Tennant (2), from Colliers, West Virginia, earned the division championship; Kane Zupancic (11), from Collier, scored his first career Young Guns victory; and Ryleigh Heasley (212), from Beaver, was crowned the Young Guns track champion.

Defending track champion Brandon Burgoon (5X) entered Saturday night with a one-point lead over Tom Klein (77), from Rochester, and Clinton Hersh (16), from Somerset, setting up a three-way fight for the Rohrich Parts Center/Chevrolet Performance RUSH Late Model championship.

With 19 RUSH Late Models on hand, the field was split into two heat races with the top four from each advancing to the redraw.

Burgoon started second in heat one, while Hersh started third and Klein ninth in heat two, and when the heats were complete, Burgoon and Hersh had earned redraw spots while Klein missed the cut by just one position.

Hersh drew the pole for the 20-lap feature with Colby Beighey (36), from Romulus, Michigan, alongside him, while Ben Easler (02), from Linesville, and Philip Bubeck (4), from Colliers, West Virginia, made up row two.

Burgoon rolled off fifth with the championship lead hanging by a thread, while Klein started tenth with plenty of work ahead of him.

When the green flag dropped, Easler and Hersh raced side by side for the lead before Easler gained the advantage on lap two, just as the first caution of the event slowed the field.

Easler chose the inside for the restart and held the lead when racing resumed, but another caution on lap four forced the field to regroup once again.

The next restart barely made it through turns one and two before another caution brought out a complete restart, keeping the field packed together and the championship battle very much alive.

When racing finally resumed, Easler again led the charge while Daryl Charlier (42), from Midway, moved into second, Marino Angelicchio (55), from Greensburg, climbed to third, and Hersh slipped back to fourth.

Cautions at the halfway point on lap 10 and again on lap 12 gave Charlier more chances to challenge, but Easler continued choosing the inside lane and continued holding the field behind him.

From there, Easler controlled the final eight laps and raced to his first Rohrich Parts Center/Chevrolet Performance RUSH Late Model feature victory.

Charlier finished second, Hersh crossed the line third, Burgoon came home fourth, and Angelicchio rounded out the top five.

But when the checkered flag fell, the race for the win was over while the championship still needed one final calculation.

Hersh and Burgoon finished the season tied in points, sending the championship to the tiebreaker of most feature wins during the season.

Burgoon held three victories to Hersh’s zero, giving Burgoon the tiebreaker and his second consecutive Rohrich Parts Center/Chevrolet Performance RUSH Late Model track championship.

Heat race victories went to Brandon Burgoon and Philip Bubeck.

Alex Ferree (1C), from Saxonburg, set the fast time for the Super Late Models with a lap of 17.515 seconds, while Colton Flinner (48), from Allison Park, was close behind at 17.614.

Following the redraw, Flinner started on the pole for the 25-lap feature with Levi Yetter (10), from Cabot, alongside him in second, while Michael Norris (72), from Sarver, and Ferree made up row two.

When the green flag dropped, Ferree quickly moved to the front with Flinner settling into second and Norris running third.

By lap nine, Ferree had stretched his advantage to 2.240 seconds over Flinner, Norris, and the rest of the field.

Norris moved into second on lap 12 and began cutting into Ferree’s advantage, trimming the gap to 1.929 seconds by lap 16.

Just as Norris appeared to be closing in, lapped traffic slowed his charge and gave Ferree the opportunity to rebuild his advantage with five laps remaining.

Ferree controlled those final five circuits and went on to score the Super Late Model feature victory in his final tune-up before the Pittsburgher 100.

Norris finished second, Flinner came home third, Kyle Lukon finished fourth, and Yetter rounded out the top five.

Ferree also picked up the heat race victory.

Garrett O’Patchen (25), from Scott Township, entered Saturday night with a one-point lead over Stephen Shelpman (17P), from Bethel Park, setting up a winner-take-all feeling for the Auto House Hobby Stock championship during the Josh Langer Memorial.

O’Patchen struck first by setting the fast time with a lap of 23.724 seconds, while Shelpman was right behind him at 23.751.

Following qualifying, the field was split into two heat races with the top three from each advancing to the six-lap dash.

Adam Kostelnik (25A), from East McKeesport, started on the pole for the dash with O’Patchen alongside him, while Leroy Brown (40B), from Aliquippa, and Shelpman made up row two.

O’Patchen won the dash with Shelpman finishing second, putting the two championship contenders side-by-side on the front row for the 15-lap Josh Langer Memorial.

Kostelnik started third with Brown alongside him in fourth, but the field could not complete the opening lap before a caution forced a complete restart.

On the second attempt, Shelpman and O’Patchen raced door-to-door for the lead before Shelpman gained the advantage on lap two.

A caution on lap five erased that advantage, and Shelpman chose the outside for the restart with O’Patchen lining up underneath him.

When green replaced yellow, O’Patchen used the inside line to wrestle the lead away, putting the championship advantage back in his hands.

Shelpman refused to let him get away, however, and the two championship contenders raced side-by-side again from laps seven through nine before Shelpman reclaimed the lead at the completion of lap nine.

O’Patchen stayed glued to Shelpman over the final six laps, leaving both the Josh Langer Memorial and the track championship hanging in the balance all the way to the checkered flag.

Shelpman held him off to win the Auto House Hobby Stock Josh Langer Memorial, while O’Patchen crossed the line a close second; Joe Brown Jr. finished third, Marc Corio finished fourth, and Leroy Brown rounded out the top five.

The victory also gave Shelpman his sixth Auto House Hobby Stock track championship.

Heat race victories went to Garrett O’Patchen and Stephen Shelpman.

AJ Poljak (36), from Baldwin, started on the pole for the 15-lap Kehm Oil Penn Ohio Pro Stock feature with Dale Tuche (310), from Cheswick, alongside him in second.

Daryl Charlier (74) started third, while Brandon Connor (55C), from Penfield, completed row two in fourth.

Poljak wasted no time taking control at the drop of the green flag, and by lap three he had already built a 2.679-second advantage with Charlier running second and Tuche third.

From there, nobody could reel him back in as the feature stayed green from start to finish and Poljak led every lap of the event.

Poljak went wire-to-wire for the victory, giving him an incredible 17 feature wins since the start of the 2025 season.

The win also capped another dominant season, with Poljak securing yet another Kehm Oil Penn Ohio Pro Stock track championship.

Charlier finished second, Tuche came home third, Jason Fosnaught finished fourth, and Nick Kocuba rounded out the top five.

Poljak also picked up the heat race victory.

Seventeen Crawford Auto Repair SCDRA Four Cylinders were on hand for the Sport Compact Shootout, with Anthony Uddstrom (18U), from Pittsburgh, starting on the pole for the 15-lap feature and Josh Frantz (114), from Reynoldsville, alongside him in second.

Camden Frantz (158), from Reynoldsville, started third, while Adam Bales (626), from Knoxdale, completed row two in fourth.

When the green flag dropped, Josh Frantz immediately jumped to the lead and quickly began separating himself from the field.

Early in the event, Frantz had already opened a 3.410-second advantage over Camden Frantz in second, and the gap continued to grow as the laps clicked away.

By lap 11, Josh Frantz had stretched his lead to 4.015 seconds with Camden Frantz still holding second, David Seibert Jr. (777) running third, and Bales fourth.

With nobody able to mount a challenge, Josh Frantz led every lap and crossed the finish line 4.553 seconds ahead of the field to win the Crawford Auto Repair SCDRA Four Cylinder Sport Compact Shootout.

Camden Frantz finished second, Bales came home third, Seibert Jr. finished fourth, and Uddstrom rounded out the top five.

Adam Bales and Josh Frantz picked up the heat race victories.

When the night was complete, Bill Tennant (2), from Colliers, West Virginia, was crowned the Crawford Auto Repair SCDRA Four Cylinder track champion.

Kane Zupancic (11), from Collier, started on the pole for the 10-lap Young Guns feature with Hunter Bennett (67), from New Cumberland, West Virginia, alongside him in second.

Ryleigh Heasley (212), from Beaver, started third, while Connor Greynolds (18), from New Cumberland, West Virginia, completed the four-car field in fourth.

When the green flag dropped, Zupancic jumped to the early lead with Heasley quickly moving into second and settling directly onto his rear bumper.

Heasley stayed within striking distance for all 10 laps, but Zupancic never gave him the opening he needed.

On this night, the spotlight belonged to Zupancic as he led every lap and raced to his first career Young Guns feature victory.

Heasley finished second, Greynolds came home third, and Bennett rounded out the top four.

Zupancic also picked up the heat race victory.

While Zupancic celebrated his breakthrough win, Heasley capped the season by being crowned the Young Guns track champion.

BEDFORD, PA (September 26, 2026):  Gregg Satterlee joined Jeff Rine as the only two-time winners of the Keystone Cup at Bedford Fairgrounds Speedway. In its brief nine year history, the Keystone Cup has become the biggest Super Late Model race run without a sanction in Pennsylvania. The veteran from Indiana, PA led from wire to wire to collect $20,000 in the event which also honored the late Turk Burket. Burket was one of the most prolific Late Model winners at Bedford.

“It feels so good to get this win tonight,” Satterlee said. “We’ve raced a lot here, and we’ve had some success, but the last few times we weren’t so good.” Satterlee was clearly relieved to get the monkey off his back.

At the start of the event, Satterlee was dominant on the high side of the speedway. However, midway through the race, he moved down. He explained his strategy thusly, “I figured that was the safest place to be.” He said that he wanted to be more careful around the lapped cars. And, he added, he was better able to manage his tires.

Mitch Thomas and Satterlee brought the field to the green flag for the start of the fifty-five lapper. However, Satterlee got the jump on Thomas and he led Thomas by several car lengths entering turn one on the opening lap. Hayes Mattern, Trever Feathers, Andrew Yoder, Mason Zeigler, Justin Weaver, and Jason Covert followed them in the early going.

About a dozen laps into the contest, Feathers and Zeigler began to work their way toward the front. Feathers took over second on lap thirteen, and Zeigler reached third three laps later. Soon thereafter, Zeigler was challenging Feathers for second.

Meanwhile, Satterlee maintained a lead of more than a second and a half as he raced through the backmarkers. A caution on lap twenty-four for a flat tire on J.T. Spence’s mount eliminated Satterlee’s advantage. That turned out to be the only interruption in the race.

When the action resumed, Satterlee broke away from his competition. Without any lapped cars to slow his pace for a while, Satterlee quickly built his lead back up to more than two seconds. Meanwhile, Zeigler took advantage of the Delaware double file restart to overtake Feathers as they raced through turns one and two.

However, Satterlee was into lapped traffic again around lap thirty-three. Zeigler began to close in on the leader. In about five laps, he cut the lead down to approximately one second. As Zeigler continued to close the gap, Feathers mounted a charge of his own.

The three front runners were running nose to tail as they picked their way through the slower cars. That enabled Mattern to join the fray.

As the race entered the final stage, the first four cars were racing together and there were no lapped cars among them.

With five laps remaining, the action intensified. Zeigler was only a couple of car lengths behind Satterlee. Then Feathers began to press Zeigler for second. On lap fifty-three, he got under Zeigler coming off turn two. Although Zeigler was able to hold him off, that momentary distraction allowed Satterlee to scoot away.

Satterlee was nearly a second ahead of Zeigler at the checkers. Feathers and Mattern followed. Weaver was some distance back in fifth. Andrew Yoder, Covert, Trevor Collins, Dylan Yoder, and Jakob Piper rounded out the top ten.

Zeigler, Satterlee, Mattern, and Feathers scored the heat wins. Spence earned the B Main victory. Zeigler was the fastest qualifier overall. His lap of 20.036 seconds was the best in Group A. Brock Pinkerous topped Group B with a time of 20.710 in his first appearance ever at the historic speedway.

In the Pure Stocks, Madison Miller went from third to first in turn four on the opening lap. She led the first four laps. However, after a restart, Shawn Wyles drove by her on the high side in turn four. Miller continued in second through lap eleven despite her engine going sour. She retired soon thereafter.

Wyles went on for the win over Alex Mock. Barry Clark lost his left front wheel on the final lap but still brought his mount home in third. Brad Hoffman and Brittany Beach were the other racers still in action at the finish.

Miller, Denver Dishong, and Braydale Bauman were early retirees.

Bauman and Wyles won the heats. There was no B Main.

Charlie Clise scored the win in the fifteen lap nightcap for the Crown Vics. He took the lead from Doug Winning four laps into the contest.

Shawn Metty was second, followed by Byler Aikey, Bradley Chabol, and Allen Harding. Ed Vogel, Jr., Quinten Beeman, Collton Replogle, Kainen Brown, and Dacron Powell completed the top ten.

Jamey Swank, Aikey, and Metty took the preliminaries. There was no B Main.

MECHANICSBURG, PA (September 25, 2026):  Chase Dietz was, as he put it, “in the right place at the right time.” He inherited the lead on lap nineteen when Justin Whittall spun near the pit road entrance at turn three after suffering a mechanical failure. Dietz’ victory was his third of the season at Williams Grove Speedway, his eighth with the PA Posse Series, and his twenty-second overall.

Dietz also clinched his first championship in the Hoosier Diamond Series, but he still trails Troy Wagaman, Jr. by 140 points for the speedway’s seasonal championship. The Hoosier Diamond Series provides a separate point fund for certain races on the track’s schedule. The seasonal championship will be decided during the upcoming National Open weekend.

Dietz also now leads Danny Dietrich by 77 points in the PA Posse Series heading into Saturday’s event at Lincoln Speedway.

Dietz conceded that Justin Whittall should have won this race but for his misfortune in turn three. Dietz was able to close in on Whittall midway through the race. However, after clearing a couple of lapped cars, Whittall stretched his lead to almost two and a half seconds on lap sixteen. Although Dietz was narrowing the gap after that, he doubted that he could overtake the leader.

Dietz led the first two laps from the pole position. Whittall sailed past him on lap three. Dietz admitted that he was not surprised by the move. He explained that Whittall was really quick on the inside line and that he (Dietz) did not know where to go when his car carried a full fuel load.

Dylan Norris ran third in the early laps of the twenty-five lapper. Logan Rumsey was fourth at that stage, followed by Mike Thompson, Buddy Schweibinz, Lance Dewease, Brent Shearer, Danny Dietrich, and Troy Wagaman, Jr.

Rumsey’s first attempt to pass Norris for third was thwarted by a spin by Dave Grube on lap four. Their battle continued for the next fourteen laps. It was interrupted by a caution for Freddie Rahmer, Jr., who slowed on the frontstretch, and on lap nineteen for Whittall’s spin.

Rumsey was able to overtake Norris after the final restart of the event. However, Dietz maintained his lead by staying on the inside line which had taken rubber. Because Rumsey could no longer make speed on the outside line, Dietz was able to pull away from him in the closing laps.

At the checkers, Dietz led Rumsey by more than three seconds. Norris finished third, followed by Schweibinz and Dewease. Thompson held on for sixth. Shearer, Wagaman, Dietrich, and Lucas Wolfe completed the top ten.

Dietz, Rumsey, and Thompson won the heat races. Preston Lattomus captured the B Main. Dietz won the dash. He also set the evening’s fastest time in qualifications, turning in a lap of 16.927 seconds.

Doug Hammaker crashed during hot laps. He was not injured in the incident but he had to scratch for the night.

Reece Raudabaugh won his first career 358 Sprint Car race in dominant fashion. Remarkably, it was just his fourth start in the division, as he previously competed with the PASS IMCA Sprint Cars.

“We were having trouble with the 305,” he said. “We had this (358 motor) laying around from when Kevin Knouse ran it. We thought we’d put this in and come out and play.”

Raudabaugh led all twenty laps from the pole position, which he earned by winning the first heat race. By lap eight, his lead was more than 5.6 seconds. However, cautions on laps twelve and fifteen eliminated his significant advantages.

Chance Hendershot ran second for most of the contest. However, Brock Hammaker took the position away from him moments before that final caution.

Hammaker finished second and Hendershot third. They were followed by Zach Newlin and Adam Carberry. Chase Gutshall, Matt Findley, Brayden Mickley, Eli Tuckey, and Jacob Galloway rounded out the top ten.

Derek Locke clinched his fourth track championship in the 358 Sprint division with his twelfth place run. His challengers, Austin Reed and Cody Fletcher, also finished outside the top ten. Reed was eleventh and Fletcher fourteenth.

In addition to Raudabaugh, Newlin and Mickley were heat winners. No B Main was needed to set the twenty-car starting field.