MECHANICSBURG, PA (July 4, 2025): Danny Dietrich picked up his second Pennsylvania Speedweek win of the 2025 season. The Mitch Smith Memorial at Williams Grove Speedway was worth $20,000 to the driver from Gettysburg and it inched him closer to unseating Anthony Macri as the Speedweek Champion. However, Macri finished second, so he still has a twenty-three point cushion over Dietrich heading into the penultimate round at Port Royal Speedway.

Dietrich fought a tight race car for most of the thirty lap affair. “I don’t know what happened to my top wing,” he said. “It got stuck forward early in the race. I thought it had air in it (the hydraulic wing adjuster), and I jammed it back. I wanted to move it forward again, and it wouldn’t move.” So, he completed the race with the wing back.

Fortunately for Dietrich, the car performed well enough in the low groove of the race track that he was able to make some passes at critical moments. One was when he passed a lapped car and Troy Wagaman, Jr. to take over second place on lap thirteen, The other was when he took the lead from Brent Marks coming off turn two on lap twenty.

Dietrich said that he learned how to run the inside groove by watching Lance Dewease. He then added that he wasn’t sure that he could run that line for an entire race, as Dewease has been known to do.

Macri also made an important move at a key moment in the race. He took over second with a well-executed slide job on Brent Marks following the fuel stop on lap twenty-five. “I knew we were really good on restarts,” Macri said. He explained, “with these new tires, you have one or two good laps after a restart.”

Marks, who led two-thirds of the race before finishing third, commented, “it was hard to run the rim late in the race.” He added that, after Macri passed him, he lost his rhythm. “I wasn’t making good laps after the restart.”

Marks sat on the pole as a result of the redraw for the heat winners and fast qualifiers. Next to him was Ryan Smith. Beyond that duo was Dietrich and Lance Dewease. Chase Dietz and Wagaman manned row three. Anthony Macri and T.J. Stutts were the final drivers eligible for the redraw. Justin Whittall and Kody Hartlaub set out from row five, with Lucas Wolfe and Ashton Torgerson in row six.

Logan Schuchart and Brock Zearfoss were relegated to row seven,, with current track points leader Freddie Rahmer, Jr. two rows behind them. Recent winner Chad Trout started shotgun in this event.

Marks powered to the early lead, followed by Ryan Smith, Wagaman, Dietrich, Dewease, and Macri. Wagaman showed early speed, taking third by lap five, and second just four laps after that. Wagaman was using the inside line very effectively. However, as he was chasing Marks, he had to leave the bottom to lap some cars, and his forward progress was gone.

In the middle stage of the race, Macri picked up the pace. He gained two positions following the restart on lap fourteen that resulted from a spin by Steve Buckwalter. He was closing in on Dietrich and Marks, the leaders, when the second caution came out for Brady Bacon who stopped at the exit of turn four. That caution was converted to an open red to allow teams to add fuel for the final five laps.

When the race resumed, Dietrich drove hard into turn one on the low side. Marks tried the cushion, but he could not draw up beside Dietrich. Macri shot the gap, and his slider moved him into second.

Dietrich continued in the low groove and he maintained his advantage over Macri to the finish of the race. Third went to Marks, with Wagaman holding off Dewease for the fourth position. Ryan Smith, Torgerson, Schuchart, Wolfe, and Dietz rounded out the top ten.

Marks, Dietrich, Stutts, and Ryan Smith scored heat race victories. Tyler Ross took the honors in the B Main. Macri was the evening’s fastest qualifier. His time of 15.732 was the best in Group A. Wagaman was tops in Group B with a lap of 17.076 seconds.

Macri has 747 points to Dietrich’s 724 heading to Port Royal Speedway. Wagaman has moved into third in the Speedweek standings and assumed the lead in track points as well. Dietz and Rahmer are fourth and fifth, respectively. Cameron Smith, Wolfe, Zearfoss, Ryan Smith, and Dewease are the next five in Speedweek rankings.

Williams Grove Speedway will be dark next Friday. The 410 Sprints will return to action on July 18, with support from the 358 Sprint cars. Then, the World of Outlaws will invade Williams Grove on July 25 and 26.

HAGERSTOWN, MD (July 3, 2025): Kyle Larson thrilled a packed house at Hagerstown Speedway to win round four of Pennsylvania Speedweek. The $10,000 victory will go into the books as his only series win this season for the former Speedweek champion. However, it was an important win for Larson and his team, who rebounded from a disappointing second the night before at Port Royal Speedway. Larson and company have been struggling to get back on track for some higher paying events in the coming months.

“My car was much better tonight, finally,” Larson said with a sigh of relief. “We’ve worked real hard in the last two weeks to get it where we wanted it.”

Larson was able to keep pace with the leader, Danny Dietrich, throughout the race, but the difference was apparent after the fuel stop which came on lap twelve. “I actually thought I was quite a bit better that him (Dietrich) but the red played into his favor.” When the race resumed, Larson stalked him for fifteen more laps until the opportunity presented itself for Larson to shoot past Dietrich coming off turn two. He immediately opened a lead of several car lengths and maintained that advantage to the checkers.

Dietrich, who finished second, explained that he got held up by a slower car when Larson surged ahead. “We just got caught up behind a lapped car.” He added that he was searching for a better line, but Larson had “a better car.” He summed, “that was a frustrating night. I really wanted to win at Hagerstown. Maybe next year.”

Lucas Wolde turned in his best run of Speedweek. “It was a good overall night,” the third place finisher said modestly. “We were making good laps and we were able to stay up front.”

Dietrich drew the pole in the redraw for the four heat winners and three fast cars that transferred into the A Main. Missing from the redraw was the evening’s fastest qualifier, Ryan Smith, who did not finish his heat race due to a mechanical issue.

Wolfe was next to Dietrich on row one, with Brock Zearfoss and Logan Wagner in the second row. Anthony Macri was inside of Larson in row three. They were followed by Troy Wagaman, Jr. and Brady Bacon. Justin Whittall and Chase Dietz made up row the fifth row. Ryan Newton and J.J. Loss completed the first half of the starting grid.

Further back in the line-up were Freddie Rahmer, Jr. and Lance Dewease, in row seven; Ashton Torgerson, in row nine; Kody Hartlaub, in row ten; and Smith, in row ten.

Dietrich sailed into the lead on the opening lap, followed by Wolfe, Larson. Macri, and Wagner. However, on the next round, Tyler Walker tipped his car over in turn two for a red flag. He was unhurt, and returned to action following a pit stop for some minor repairs.

The front runners stayed in formation for several laps after the restart. However, positions in the back half of the top ten were changing, with Wagaman and Rahmer joining the group and Dewease lurking just outside the top ten.

Larson moved into second seven laps into the contest and he began to close in on Dietrich. His pursuit was temporarily stopped on lap twelve, when T.J. Stutts stopped between turns three and four.

Officials took the opportunity to convert the caution into an open red to ensure that the racers would have enough fuel to go the thirty lap distance.

During the red, Dietrich added fuel and adjusted tire pressures. Paul Silva tweaked the left front shock in addition to dumping some fuel.

The final eighteen laps were run without any additional incidents.

Dietrich led the way, with Larson on the prowl. Wolfe continued in third, with Macri moving into fourth, and Zearfoss holding down fifth. Wagaman reached sixth, chased by Dewease, as they climbed ahead of Bacon, Whittall, and Wagner.

Larson scooted by Dietrich coming off turn two with three laps remaining in the contest. He easily completed the appointed rounds.

Dietrich ran second, followed by Wolfe, Macri, and Zearfoss. Wagaman, Dewease, Whittall, Cameron Smith, and Rahmer were sixth through tenth.

Dietrich, Zearfoss, Macri, and Wagner captured the preliminaries. Ryan Smith prevailed in the B Main after repairs were made to his mount. Smith was the fastest overall qualifier and the best in Group B with a lap of 15.199 seconds. Wolfe topped Group A with a quick time of 15.528 seconds.

Macri retained the Speedweek point lead, but his margin shrank a bit. He leads Dietrich 595 to 550 heading into the Mitch Smith Memorial at Williams Grove Speedway. Rahmer remains in third, followed by Larson and Cameron Smith. Dietz, Wagaman, Zearfoss, Wolfe, and Ryan Smith round out the top ten with three races left to go.

PORT ROYAL, PA (July 2, 2025): Anthony Macri led every lap at Port Royal Speedway, but he still needed some good luck to ensure his Speedweek victory. Macri spun to avoid a wreck in turn four and retained his starting position. Then, late in the race, he ran out of fuel under a caution that was converted to an open red, again retaining his position at the head of the line.

Chase Dietz, who was doing double duty, dominated the URC 360 Sprint race, which he regarded as a test session for the upcoming Knoxville 360 Nationals.

“I don’t know who was looking out for us,” Macri observed before expressing his thanks for the good fortune. He added that the win was a confidence boost, but could not rely on that with the bulk of Speedweek still remaining.

Second place finisher, Kyle Larson, admitted that he made too many mistakes while chasing Macri. Most notable was his spin in turn two. “I was trying to diamond the corner, and I hit a hole,” he explained. Larson was critical of the late race fuel stop, noting that he always has a larger fuel tank than most of his competitors, and he added that perhaps rules makers should consider some standardization to reduce the need for fuel stops to accommodate racers using smaller fuel tanks.

Third place finisher, Dietz, made a bid for second on the final restart, but he knew that he could not pass Larson, who had momentum in his favor on the high side of turn one.

Larson drew the pole in the redraw for the four heat winners and fast qualifiers. Macri nabbed the number two pill, which may have been the preferred spot given the dominant top groove at the Speed Palace. Justin Whittall, the current track points leader, was inside row two, with Lance Dewease alongside. Dietz and Ryan Smith were in row three, with Brock Zearfoss inside row four as the final driver eligible for teh redraw. His partner was Devin Adams. Then came Logan Wagner and Lucas Wolfe. Behind them were Steve Buckwalter and Mike Walter, Jr.

Speedweek contenders Danny Dietrich and Freddie Rahmer, Jr. were in thirteenth and twenty-third, respectively.
Macri won the race to the topside of turn one, with Larson in hot pursuit. Whittall, Dietz, Dewease, Adams, Buckwalter, Logan Wagner, and Zearfoss followed.

On lap two, Adams spun in between turns three and four while racing in the seventh position.

On the ensuing restart, Macri led Larson, Ryan Smith, Whittall. Dietz, and Dewease. However, Logan Wagner and Danny Dietrich were making some progress. Soon, they were up to sixth and seventh, respectively.

Larson’s spin on lap twenty-two shook up the running order, as Whittall moved up to second, with Dietz, Smith, Dietrich making up the top five. That incident interrupted a good battle among Logan Wagner, Dewease, and Zearfoss for positions in the top ten.

On the next completed lap, Zearfoss flipped in turn four. Zearfoss landed in the high groove, and Macri had to spin to avoid impact with him. The officials ruled that Macri was not part of the incident, so he resumed the point for the restart.

Just a few rounds later, on lap twenty-five, Danny Dietrch coasted to a stop on the backstretch. He was out of fuel. He made a quick trip to the pits, and returned to the fray.

Macri was still the leader for the restart, followed by Whittall and Dietz. Larson raced back up to the fourth spot, with Smith holding fifth. Dewease, Logan Wagner, Ryan Newton, T.J. Stutts, Buckwalter, and A.J. Flick.

The field completed one more lap under green before Whittall and others began to slow for lack of fuel. Larson was on the charge, reaching second.

To Whittall’s chagrin, he was charged with the caution. Macri, who was sputtering, was still moving when the caution was called, so he was not deemed to be part of the caution. Again, he resumed his position for the restart.

The final restart had Macri on the point, followed by Larson, Dietz, Smith, and Logan Wagner.

The last four laps were run without any further incidents. The first five were unchanged. A.J. Flick raced up to sixth, followed by Dewease, Dietrich, Stutts, and Whittall.

The heat winners were Whittall, Smith, Macri, and Dewease. Troy Wagaman, Jr. captured the B Main. Dietz set the mark in Group A qualifications with a lap of 15.859 seconds. Larson was best in Group B with a time of 16.073 seconds.

In the URC nightcap, a redraw for the three top finishers in the heat races determined the front of the starting field. Adam Carberry drew the pole, with Josh Weller in second. Dylan Cisney and Hayden Miller were in row two, followed by Cody Fletcher and Dietz. Mark Smith and Buddy Schweibinz claimed row four. Tyler Ulrich and Cole Young were next. Logan Rumsey and Derek Locke departed from row six.

Carberry bolted out to the early lead, with Fletcher, Weller, Dietz, and Cisney in tow. Before the racers could start to make moves, a caution was called for debris on the track.

On the ensuing restart, Dietz moved into third. On the next trip around, he was second. He slid by Carberry in turn one to gain the lead on lap four.

Over the course of the next eleven laps, Dietz built a lead of nearly five seconds. A caution for Jacob Galloway erased that advantage, but Dietz raced out to an advantage of almost four seconds before a flip by Wyatt Walizer stopped the action with two laps remaining.

At the end of twenty-five laps, the winner was Dietz, followed by Fletcher, Rumsey, Mark Smith, and Carberry. Schweibinz, Weller, Ryan Smith, Seth Schnoke, and Cisney completed the top ten.

The preliminaries for the URC Sprints went to Mark Smith, Cisney, and Schweibinz. No B Main was run, as all twenty-six entrants were allowed to start the A Main.

Port Royal will present the penultimate round of Speedweek on Saturday, July 5, with support from the Super Late Models. On July 12, the 410 and 305 Sprints will be joined by the Limited Late Models. Then, July 19 will feature three divisions of Sprint Cars, the 410, 358, and 305 winged warriors will be in action.