Dirt Racing
Marks All Tuned Up for National Open; Norris Grabs No. 5
WILLIAMS GROVE, PA (September 26, 2025): Brent Marks took advantage of an open date on the High Limit Racing Series schedule to get tuned up for the National Open, which will take place at Williams Grove Speedway next weekend. Marks earned $6,000 for his twenty-first career victory at the venerable race track.
Also getting to victory lane was Dylan Norris, who scored his fifth win of the season in the 358 Sprint Car division at Williams Grove. He has five additional wins at other area speedways. Sadly, it may be his last appearance at the track in the dominant car owned by former racer Chad McClelland. McClelland, who has been successful as a driver and a car owner, recently announced that he will shut down his operation at the end of this season.
“It is really cool to get the yellow car into victory lane,” Marks said. “We went off the wall with the color on this one,” he added with a laugh. He debuted the brightly colored car for the Knoxville Nationals and it has been raced less than a handful of times since then. Marks explained that he put a familiar set-up in the car, something that he is comfortable with at Williams Grove. The car responded perfectly. He plans to bring it back next week for the biggie, the National Open, with the same set-up. Marks believes that the track may well be different, but he is confident that his team can make whatever adjustments may be needed come race day.
Marks noted that Freddie Rahmer, Jr. “got away from me there, like in the dash. Clean air is so important. I just saved my tires and waited for traffic to get a run on him.” When Marks had the opportunity after clearing some lapped cars, he dove low entering turn three and slid across Rahmer’s nose to grab the lead. “The way the track was, you had to be really aggressive.”
The WoO format was used for this event to enable the racers to become familiar with it. Time trials set the heat race line-ups with the fastest car on the pole. The top two cars from each heat were eligible for the dash. The dash finish determined the first six starters in the A Main.
Thus, Rahmer and Marks were paired on the front row, just as they started and finished in the Dash. In row two, Brock Zearfoss was matched with Daison Pursley. Cameron Smith and Justin Whittall, the Port Royal champion, were seeded in row three. The fourth consisted of Troy Wagaman, Jr., the current points leader at both Williams Grove and Lincoln Speedways, and Chad Trout. Giovanni Scelzi and Danny Dietrich made up row five. Then came Kody Hartlaub and Chase Dietz.
The first lap was quite entertaining, with Marks turning under Rahmer to grab the lead in turn one and Rahmer fighting back at the other end of the speedway. It was all for naught, however, as Pursley rolled to a stop coming off turn four, requiring a caution. Under speedway rules, the lap did not count because the full field did not complete a lap under the green.
So, the field realigned for another go. This time, Rahmer held the lead through turns one and two and Marks tucked in behind him. Zearfoss, Smith, Wagaman, Trout, Whittall, Scelzi, Hartlaub, Dietrich, and Austin Bishop followed.
Rahmer and Marks drove away from Zearfoss and company and the race boiled down to their private contest.
Marks stayed close to Rahmer, but he got considerable help from a pack of slower cars that were racing side-by-side when Rahmer closed in on them to try to put them a lap down. That allowed Marks to drive up to Rahmer’s rear bumper. The two leaders cautiously navigated through the traffic.
After Rahmer and Marks cleared that bunch, Marks made his bid for the lead. He got a good run on Rahmer coming off turn two and carried his momentum into turn three. Marks executed a perfect slide job to take the lead on lap thirteen.
While Marks led the rest of the way in the twenty-five lapper, he did have one close call. Much like Rahmer, Marks encountered a cluster of slower cars and he had to check up. Rahmer drew close, but there was no opening for him to try to pass Marks and the lapped cars. So, he, too, slowed up. Marks was then able to use some of the slower cars as picks to keep Rahmer at bay.
Meanwhile, Zearfoss held off Smith for the third position.
Marks took the checkers almost 1.7 seconds ahead of Rahmer. Zearfoss was third, and he collected a $2,000 bonus from Lobar, Inc., one of his sponsors. Smith and Wagaman were next across the finish line. Whittall, Dietrich, Trout, Scelzi, and Dietz completed the top ten.
Logan Rumsey, the eleventh place finisher, was named the hard charger, at plus nine.
Rahmer’s second place finish shaved forty points off Wagaman’s lead in the championship standings heading into next weekend’s final two races of the year.
The three heat winners were Whittall, Marks, and Pursley, all of whom started on the pole for their respective preliminaries. Ryan “Fig” Newton captured the B Main. Lance Dewease dropped out of his heat and the B Main while in a transfer position in each event. Whittall set the mark in qualifications at 16.665 seconds.
Dylan Norris added an exclamation mark to his championship season in the 358 Sprint Car ranks. He overhauled Chase Guttshall on lap twelve of twenty. “Chase was setting a good pace. I knew that I had to get there fast,” Norris explained.
It took three tries to get the finale started. The first stoppage was innocent enough, Adam Carberry coasting to a halt on the backstretch. The second, however, was complete chaos. When the fourth place starter, Colton Moyer, started swerving down the front stretch, cars behind him wildly scrambled for any open spaces they could find. A massive crash developed involving seven cars, with several of them flipping or hitting the inside wall. One driver, J.T. Ferry, required medical attention for a possible foot injury.
When the race got going, Guttshall seized control, followed by Eli Tuckey, Chad Criswell, Norris, and Hunter Fulton. Norris worked his way into second by lap seven and he took the lead on lap twelve, passing both Guttshall and a lapped car on the outside of turn two.
Norris took the checkers almost six seconds ahead of Guttshall. Tuckey was third, followed by Criswell and Ayden Hare, one of the cars that sustained minor damage in the opening lap melee. Frankie Herr, Cole Young, Scott Fisher, Derek Locke, and Nash Ely completed the top ten.
Tuckey, Guttshall, and Criswell were the heat winners. There was no B main.
Dirt Racing
Marks Magnificent in Hodnett Classic at Port Royal
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.
Dirt Racing
Dietz Finally Scores At Williams Grove
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.
Dirt Racing
Sharon Speedway cancels Saturday program
HARTFORD, OH (July 18, 2026) Sharon Speedway is cancelling Saturday night’s “Steel Valley Thunder” program thanks to a near 100% likelihood of thunderstorms in the forecast from late afternoon through the evening hours including the potential for severe weather.
Sharon made the decision in the best interest of safety for fans, racers, and staff members.
“Super Series” action presented by Bala Management will return next Saturday (July 25) featuring the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply “410” Sprint Cars for $4,000 to-win along with the Hovis UMP Mods presented by A&MP Electric, Gibson Insurance Agency RUSH Sprint Cars, and the Gibson Insurance Agency Crown Vics on Alcon Mechanical and Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Night. Kids Club Night presented by Willy’s World with kids bike and big wheel races. It’s also the first of three Menards Giveaway Nights.
Additional information can be found at www.sharonspeedway.com.

