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Dirt Racing

Mayor Makes it Two in a Row, Stake Scores Also

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Photo: Paul Arch

PORT ROYAL, PA (March 5, 2023): Dylan Cisney, the elected Mayor of the Borough of Port Royal, reigned supreme in the 410 Sprint Car opener for the second consecutive season at the Port Royal Speedway. Cisney bided his time and made a last lap pass to score the $5,000 victory. In the Super Late Model undercard, Dillan Stake went wire to wire to capture his first ever career win and first opening day triumph. Stake, a veteran of the Limited Late Model class and a part-time performer in the top division, announced that he will compete full-time with the Super Late Models in 2023. He took home $4,000. This was the eighty-first opener for the Speed Palace.

“It’s tough in these things,” Cisney said with a sigh. “You see the guys behind you, and you need to be patiently aggressive.” Cisney was referring to heavy hitters Like Anthony Macri and Danny Dietrich, who were behind him most of the way. Cisney added, “we didn’t have a good start, but that’s OK, I’d rather be the chaser.” Cisney explained that he did not want to see Parker Price-Miller get by him late in the race, but “when they (Price-Miller and Macri) got to racing each other, I was able to get in there.”

Cisney drew the pole for the twenty-five lapper. Next to him was Jeff Halligan. Justin Schulz and Lance Dewease were penciled into the second row, but Dewease could not get his motor to fire and he never started the race. That moved Parker Price-Miller into his spot. Danny Dietrich was paired up with Anthony Macri with the outside line moving up. Dylan Norris and Austin Bishop made up row four. The fifth belonged to Devon Borden and Steve Buckwalter.Mike Wagner and Justin Whittal took up row six.

Cisney won the race to turn one, but he played it conservatively, staying on the inside rather than sailing it in on the outside. Cisney noted that he was concerned about the condition of the high line, which was sprinkled with some water by the track crew before the start of the feature. Halligan was more daring, and he came off the second turn with the lead.

Halligan opened several car lengths on Cisney and the two maintained that separation through the first caution, on lap five, for Borden in turn four. Price-Miller held onto third, followed by Macri, Dietrich, Schulz, Bishop, Norris, Rehmer, and Gerard McIntyre.

Price-Miller overtook Cisney entering turn three on lap nine and Macri saw an opportunity to challenge Cisney as well. But, last year’s ten-time winner could not pull off the pass. Mike Wagner was making moves, however, and he reached the top ten by the time that his son, five-time and defending track champ, Logan Wagner, spun in turn four, That was the second and final caution, and it was recorded on lap eleven.

The remaining fourteen laps were run without any interruptions. On the restart, Danny Dietrich made a bold attempt to pick up some positions. He dove low into turn one, making it three-wide for third. Cisney and Macri retained their positions, and Dietrich fell back into fifth once again.

Halligan remained the leader, but Price-Miller was narrowing the gap. They were batting for the lead when the five-lap signal was displayed to the field. Halligan was stuck in traffic, and he went searching for an opportune place to pass a slower car. He tried the inside line in turn one, but he lost momentum, and Price-Miller sailed by to take the lead.

Macri slid by Cisney and Halligan, and he was closing on Price-Miller. Macri started to press Price-Miller, and Cisney rallied. He passed Halligan and Macri was next to fall to his charge. Cisney continued his mission, dropping to the inside of turn one on the final lap to pass Price-Miller. Cisney slid up to block the counterattack through turn two.

Cisney held the advantage through the rest of the lap and emerged with the win. Scott Cowman, his car owner, who made it in from Wisconsin for this race, was enthused by the win. He teased his driver about “waiting so long” to make the winning move.

Price-Miller held on for second, followed by Macri, Dietrich, and Halligan. Mike Wagner, Whittal, Rahmer, Schulz, and Borden completed the top ten.
Three heats were spun off in rapid order, with wins going to Borden, Macri, and Norris. The B Main winner was Chris Windom.

Amanda Robinson pulled the pole for the twenty-five lap Super Late Model night cap. Next to her was Dillan Stake. Her husband, Ross, was behind her. He was flanked by Hayes Mattern. Logan Zarin and Rick Eckert were in row three, followed by Trever Feathers and Austin Berry. Gary Stuhler and Mike Lupfer handled row five. Defending titleholder Colton Flinner and Justin Weaver started in row six.

Stake seized the lead in turn one on the opening lap and he never looked back. Mattern ran second, followed by Ross and Amanda Robinson, Eckert, Berry, Stuhler, Zarin, Flinner, and Feathers in the early going.

As Ross Robinson moved forward, Amanda fell back. She had a spirited battle with Eckert, Berry, and Stuhler for most of the race. Later, Jeff Rine joined in the fun.

At the checkers, it was Stake, Ross Robinson, Eckert, Mattern, and Rine. Amanda Robinson, Flinner, Stuhler, Gregg Satterlee, and Berry completed the top ten.

Weaver, Flinner, Lupfer, and Stuhler captured the heat wins. The B Main went to Nick Dickson.

Before the racing started for the day, track management announced purse increases for both the 410 Sprints and Super Late Models. All regular season events will pay $5,000 to win and $500 to start for the 410s and $4,000 to win and $400 to start for the Super Late Models.

Next weekend, Port Royal Speedway will present the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series. The two-day program will carry a Sunday raindate of both ends of the event are lost to weather. The Friday race will start at 7 p.m., and Saturday will have a 6 p.m. start. The wingless Super Sportsmen will provide support on Saturday only. Port Royal will be dark on March 18 in consideration of teh World of Outlaws event at Lincoln SPeedway. Racing will return on March 25. The three-division program will consist of 410 Sprints, Super Late Models (with the ULMS) and Limited Late Models.

Dirt Racing

Michael Norris wins his 5th Jook George Steel City Classic

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Photo: RUSH Late Model Touring Series

IMPERIAL, PA (July 25, 2026) – Michael Norris is back in Victory Lane at Pittsburgh’s Pennsylvania Motor Speedway after winning Saturday night’s Jook George Steel City Classic.

The win was Norris’ fifth in seven events and the Late Model standout from Sarver, PA dedicated the win to his Grandparents.

“I want to dedicate this win to my grandma and grandpa,” said the 34-year-old Norris.  “We lost them this year and miss them a lot- this one is for them. My pap would always say I want you to go down there and show them how it’s done and I showed them how it’s done for him.”

The victory was a family affair for Norris, who was driving the ND Motorsports #N1.

“I have to think Nico (Dabecco) and Vinny,” said Norris, Nico’s brother-in-law. “We really changed the car a lot from the Firecracker (Lernerville Speedway June 27) and found some things we needed to address.”

Norris and Kyle Lukon led the 26-car field to the green flag with Norris leading lap 1 but Lukon grabbing the lead on lap and holding it through lap 7.

Norris wasn’t done however, pulling a slider in turn three to lead lap 8.  Norris padded his lead the next couple of laps, pulling out over a second over Lukon.

Lukon was slowed when he slid into the wall on lap 15, giving third place Dan Angelicchio the chance to catch up and the battle was on for second.

Lukon slid into the wall a second time on lap 23 and slowed to bring out the caution.

The restart lined Angelicchio up alongside Norris but ‘the crusher kid’ dropped the hammer and was gone. Demetrios Drellos was able to drive around Angelicchio on the outside to take over the runner-up spot, but was never able to get close enough to Norris to challenge in lapped traffic.

“When this track is like this, it’s so much fun and you can race all over it,” Norris explained. “They did a great job on it tonight.”

Norris took home $6,010 for the win and $6,500 for the night to bring his total take home from ‘the Jook’ to $34,000 over his five wins.

“I have to thank Branden (Lockwich),” said Norris. “He does such a great job, puts a lot of effort into this, and tries different things every year to make it better and get more people here. We’ll keep supporting it as long as they keep having it. Thanks to all the fans for coming out and Blair (Cress) for keeping this place open.”

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Dirt Racing

Marks Magnificent in Hodnett Classic at Port Royal

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Photo: Port Royal Speedway

PORT ROYAL, PA (July 25, 2026):  Brent Marks dominated the Greg Hodnett Classic at Port Royal Speedway to score a $15,000 victory on night number one of the Bob Weikert Memorial Weekend. Marks established himself as the odds on favorite to scoop up the $100,000 first prize.

Marks’ lead was almost 4.8 seconds before the only caution of the race. It was called prematurely on lap eighteen by a track official when Daison Pursley got out of shape in turn two. Pursley got his car righted and he was allowed to blend in where he was running after the caution.

Marks sped away from his rivals when the race resumed. Justin Peck moved into second with five laps remaining. Although Chase Dietz took over third on lap twenty-three, he was penalized to positions at the finish for being out of line for the restart. That moved Anthony Macri into third and Ryan Smith into fourth.

“The car was awesome all night,” Marks said. He timed in third in Group B, won his heat race, and ran away with the dash. He led all twenty-five laps of the feature event without any challenges.

“I wanted to make the top work a little more,” Marks noted. “Fortunately, there was a good cushion to help me out. After the caution, Marks came down off the top and ran in the middle for the final seven laps. His margin of victory was 1.035 seconds over Peck.

Peck, who came on strong in the final half of the race, mentioned, “I think we were fast from start to finish.” He was the fastest qualifier of the night, topping Group A with a lap of 15.862 seconds. He was second in his heat race and fourth in the dash. He added, “I haven’t felt this good at Port Royal since 2021.” He thought he could have squeezed a little more speed out of his car for the feature, “but, I was scared to get out of our window.”

Macri also thought that he had a good car. He commented, though, “I have to work on my tires under the yellow. I have to study.”

The dash finish set the first eight positions in the A Main. Marks and Macri occu[ied row one. They were followed by Dietz and Peck. Then came the championship contenders, Rico Abreu and Aaron Reutzel, in row three; and Pursley and Kerry Madsen, in row four. Ryan Smith and Giovanni Scelzi claimed row five based on their heat reace finishes. James McFadden and Danny Dietrich (who was sporting Weikert colors and the iconic number 29 tonight) departed from row six.

Marks jumped out to the early lead and he began to pull away from Macri. Peck and Dietz raced along in fourth and fifth, ahead of Abreu, Reutzel, Madsen, Smith, Scelzi, and Tyler Courtney.

The first five were unchanged through the first half of the race. Abreu and Reutzel battled for sixth, while Smith began to close in on them.

That premature caution on lap eighteen wiped away Marks’ advantage. Macri, Peck, Dietz, Smith, Reutzel, Abreu, Courtney, Madsen, and Scelzi were the announced starting order for the remaining seven laps. However, Dietz managed to position himself ahead of Peck for the restart, giving rise to the penalty imposed at the finish.

Dietz blasted into third on the restart. But Peck rallied and drove up to second by the finish. Macri was under attack from Smith in the closing laps and they were both moved ahead of Dietz in the finishing order.

Positions six through ten went to Logan Wagner, who was designated as the hard charger. He advanced sixteen positions over the course of the race. Most of his passed came after the restart. Abreu was seventh, followed by Reutzel, Courtney, and Madsen.

Madsen, Macri, Marks, and Pursley took the checkers in their respective heat races. Domenic Melair won the C Main. Cameron Smith took the honors in the B Main. Peck was the top qualifier, at 15.862. Abreu topped Group B with a time of 16.682 seconds. Forty-seven cars checked in for the event

Ageless Steve Wilbur went wire to wire to win the Wingless Sportsmen thirty lapper. He took the lead at the start and steadily pulled away to a seven second advantage. Brett Perigo moved into second on lap fifteen and he cut into the margin while Wilbur struggled with lapped traffic.

The lead was down to 1.666 seconds by the time the red came out for a spectacular crash involving Dexter Ehrenzeller and Donnie Farlling on the front stretch. Ehrenzeller’s car came to rest near the victory lane. He required medical attention and was transported to a nearby hospital. No report of his condition was available by the end of the program.

Tony Jackson followed Wilbur and Brett Perigo at the finish. Marty Brian and Sam Leonard, Jr. completed the top five. The nxt five finishers were Eric Wlaker, Curt Stroup, Scott Smith, Lee Kauffman, and Craig Perigo.

Jackson, Brian, and Brad Mellott tallied the heat race wins. There was no B Main needed to align the twenty-one car field.

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Dirt Racing

Dietz Finally Scores At Williams Grove

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Photo: Williams Grove Speedway

MECHANICSBURG, PA (July 24, 2026):  Chase Dietz finally got a win at Williams Grove Speedway. It was his seventeenth overall for the season and sixth in his career at the famous oval. The $6,000 triumph also extended his points lead in the fledgling PA Posse Series.

Dietz executed a perfect slider in turn four on lap thirteen to take the lead from the current Williams Grove points leader and defending track champion, Troy Wagaman, Jr. “You have to take your shot when you get it,” Dietz said.

Dietz commented that he tried to drive under Wagaman in turn one on the opening lap, but he could not pull off the pass. In fact, he lost a position to Anthony Macri in the process. He explained that the temporary setback “probably helped me, it pissed me off.”

He noted that “the track was pretty narrow with a good cushion.” But, he added, ”it was pretty dicey with those lapped cars. They want to run where you are.” Fortunately, Dietz was able to navigate around them efficiently after taking the lead.

He concluded, “it’s a great time to have this (his first win at the track) happen. We have the Outlaws coming in and we want to put it on them.”

Although this was a Posse Series race, the track used a format similar to a World of Outlaws event to help get the race teams ready for next week’s Summer Nationals program. Thus, the heat races started heads-up, with the fastest qualifier on the pole instead of fourth per Posse Series procedures. The first two finishers from each heat advanced to the dash, instead of the heat winners and the fastest qualifiers from beach heat. The dash established the starting order for the first six cars in the feature event, instead of a random draw. All others fell in line based upon their qualifying times, instead of their heat race finishes.

Accordingly, the pole position for the twenty-five lapper went to Wagaman, with Dietz as his wingman. Logan Rumsey and Macri were next in line. The final two dash participants, Brent Shearer and Austin Bishop, manned row three. Then came Danny Dietrich and Preston Lattomus, in row four; Justin Whittall and Dylan Norris, in row five; and Freddie Rahmer, Jr. and Doug Hammaker, in row six.

Wagaman reached turn one ahead of Dietz and established himself on the cushion. Dietz opted for the low side, and that allowed Macri to roll in behind Wagaman on the top. Macri had better momentum coming off turn two, and he gained the second position heading down the back stretch. Rumsey was fourth, followed by Bishop, Shearer, Dietrich, Lattomus, Whittall, and Norris on the opening lap.

The first four began to separate themselves from the other racers in the early going. Meanwhile, Dietrich was pressing Rumsey for the fifth spot.

On lap seven, Macri got a tremendous launch off turn two and he closed very quickly on the leader. However, Wagaman was able to get to a lapped car before Macri could make a bid for the lead. Soon thereafter, Dietz powered past Macri for second. He then closed in on Wagaman in traffic.

The only caution of the event occurred on lap eleven. Rahmer got a flat and struck the outside wall in turn two while running in the top ten.

Wagaman had the point for the single file restart, with Dietz in second, followed by Macri, Rumsey, Dietrich, Bishop, Shearer, Whittall, Lattomus, and Norris.

Dietz pressed Wagaman for the lead when the race resumed. It took him a couple of laps to set up his winning pass in turn four. Meanwhile, Dietrich and Bishop moved ahead of Rumsey.

Dewease was another racer making forward progress after the restart. He was thirteenth in the queue when the green light came on again, and he cracked into the top ten on lap fifteen. He gained two more positions in the final ten laps.

Dietz stretched his lead over Wagaman as the laps clicked off. Wagaman remained in second. Dietrich got under Macri for third with three laps remaining in the contest.

Dietz took the checkers almost four and a half seconds ahead of Wagaman. Then came Dietrich, Macri, and Bishop. Whittall, Rumsey, Dewease, Norris, and Ryan Smith completed the top ten.

Rumsey, Dietz, and Bishop took the heat wins. There was no B Main. Wagaman prevailed in the dash. Rumsey was the evening’s fastest qualifier with a lap of 16.715 seconds. It was his first quick time award.

Eli Tuckey survived an early challenge from Austin Reed to get his first career win at the speedway in the 358 Sprint Car division. “I was diving poorly,” Tuckey conceded. “I figured if I could stay next to him (Reed), I could pull it off.” Tuckey adjusted his wing and did exactly that.

Reed held on for second, followed by Chase Gutshall, Derek Locke, and Adam Carberry. Cody Fletcher, Brock Hammaker, Seth Schnoke, Matt Findley, and Tim Wagaman, II rounded out the top ten.

Tuckey, Gutshall, and Schnoke copped the preliminaries. There was no B Main needed to set the starting field.

Cole Young had a spectacular crash at the start of his heat race. His car flipped several times and the front axle was ripped from the car. He was not hurt in the wreck. Brian Wolf, Jr. tipped his car over at the start of his heat. The car was not extensively damaged, and he was not injured. He was able to start the feature.

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