MECHANICSBURG, PA (September 4, 2026):  Doug Hammaker, a highly successful 358 Sprint Car racer at Williams Grove Speedway earlier in his career, defeated Freddie Rahmer, Jr. in a thriller to notch his first career 410 victory at the historic oval. Hammaker lost the lead to Rahmer twice during the closing laps, but he rallied to pass Rahmer in turn three on the final lap. However, Hammaker did not earn the bonus for a last lap pass because he was electronically scored as the leader on lap twenty-four by only 0.026 seconds.

Hammaker had what appeared to be an insurmountable lead with five laps remaining. But when lapped traffic slowed his pace, Rahmer was able to cut the margin significantly as the race drew to a close. Indeed, Rahmer passed Hammaker twice in the final laps, but Hammaker retained the lead at the scoring loop throughout. Nonetheless, Hammaker trailed Rahmer through turns one and two on the last lap and he made a strong inside move in turn three to regain the lead. Hammaker took the checkers 0.119 seconds ahead of his challenger.

Hammaker explained why his lead shrank in the closing laps thusly. “I hit the lapped cars at the wrong time,” adding that he seemed to reach them at the end of the long straights. “I knew I was just a sitting duck. I was trying to run the bottom and that was not the right move.” He continued, “they (the lapped cars) were too far of a gap where I couldn’t slide them. So, I had to do my best to try and carry my momentum around those corners.”

However, Rahmer first passed Hammaker on the inside coming off turn two when the leader got hung up behind some slower cars.

There were no lapped cars to interfere with Hammaker’s winning move on the final lap. Hammaker used the same strategy to salvage the win. “I ran it in on the bottom (of turn three) and I think that screwed up Freddie’s entry,” he noted. Hammaker then finished off the pass with a short slider.

Despite the frenzied last lap, Hammaker candidly admitted that Chase Dietz was the man to beat this night. Once again, though, Dietz suffered from some bad racing luck. He led Hammaker by more than 1.2 seconds moments before tangling with a lapped car in turn four on lap nine. Dietz spun toward the inside guardrail but avoided contact with the barrier. With no apparent damage, he rejoined the back of the field and raced his way into the top ten by the conclusion of the thirty lapper.

Dietz used the cushion in turn two to drive by Hammaker on the opening lap. Rahmer, Cameron Smith, and Dylan Norris made up the rest of the top five in the early going. Dietz built a substantial lead until the calamity in turn four nine laps into the event.

Hammaker inherited the lead for the restart, with Rahmer, Smith, Norris, Dietrich, Logan Rumsey, Austin Bishop, Troy Wagaman, Jr., T.J. Stutts, and Kody Hartlaub rounding out the top ten at that time. Hartlaub lost his spot in the top ten on lap fourteen, and Norris ended his top five run five laps later.

The caution for Norris was converted into an open red because track officials determined that the racers would not be able to finish the remaining eleven laps without adding fuel.

So, Hammaker had the point for the final restart with eleven laps to go. He was followed by Rahmer, Smith, Dietrich, Rumsey, Wagaman, Bishop, Stutts, Lance Dewease, and Brent Shearer.

Rahmer tried to go under Hammaker entering turn one on the restart. Hammaker had the right rear planted in the cushion, and his momentum carried him past Rahmer.

Three laps after the race resumed, Dietrich took third away from Smith with a slider in turn four. Dietrich then began to close in on Rahmer. Soon, they were both approaching Hammaker.

However, the late race drama began to unfold because Hammaker was struggling with lapped traffic. Rahmer and Dietrich had both cut into his lead. For a moment, It seemed that there would be a three-car battle for the top spot, but Dietrich lost contact with the leaders while they were navigating through the slower cars.

Rahmer made his most significant move taking the lead coming off turn two, but Hammaker was somehow ahead by a nose at the scoring loop as they took the white flag. Rahmer regained the advantage through the first two corners on the final lap. Hammaker came storming back entering turn three. Rahmer tried to turn back under him coming off turn four, but Hammaker was far enough ahead after the final two turns to secure his momentous win.

Dietrich followed Hammaker and Rahmer to the checkers. Smith and Rumsey were fourth and fifth, respectively. Wagaman, Bishop, Stutts, Dewease, and Dietz completed the top ten.

The $8,000 victory was the first for Sandy Kline at Williams Grove as the sole owner of the yellow number 22 with the throwback paint scheme. For several years, she co-owned a similar car with her late husband, Jim. Their last win at the Grove came in 2009 with the late Greg Hodnett at the controls.

Dietz, Rahmer, and Hammaker scored heat wins. There was no B Main needed for the twenty-five car field.

Justin Whittal flipped during hot laps and scratched for the night. He was not injured in the crash.

Mike Walls surprisingly passed Kyle Lee in turn two on the final lap of the Limited Late Model race. Kyle Lee took the lead from Dan Zechman on lap nine and it appeared that he would cruise to victory in the twenty lapper. However, Kyle Lee slowed when he jumped the cushion following a lap nineteen restart and Mike Walls was there to capitalize on the error.

D.J. Myers made some nifty moves in the closing laps to get third, finishing ahead of Chase Billet and Brian Booze. Travis Mease, Treyton Lee, Chad Earnst, Colton Friese, and Shannon Slaughter completed the top ten.

Lane Snook, Kyle Lee, John Moser, Jr., and Mike Wells won the heat races in the only appearance of the Limited Late Models at the track for 2026. Travis Horan captured the B Main. Thirty-three cars signed in for the event.

SARVER, PA (September 1, 2026):  In winning the inaugural Yinzer 100 at Lernerville Speedway, Max Blair applied lessons he learned in the Bill Emig Memorial for RUSH Late Models held in conjunction with the Firecracker 100 for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. The three-time winner of the Emig event said, “we tried some stuff with the Crate car during the Firecracker and we used that here, and we were pretty good.”

Blair, of Centerville, PA, explained that his car got better every time that it hit the track during the Yinzer 100. However, the deciding factor in the race turned out to be tire management. “I think I had more tire than Drake (Troutman) did at the end.”

Blair saw a three second lead evaporate with two laps remaining in the century grind. He said that gave him flashbacks to his first full-point Lucas series victory at Muskingum County Speedway earlier this season. In that event, Blair had a commanding lead, but he still had to withstand a green-white-checkered finish.

“I just had to calm myself down. I didn’t know where to go on the restart.” He opted for the high side, which was the preferred line of Michael Norris, who was running second. The choice was a correct one, as Blair drove away to a margin of 1.2 seconds in the final two circuits.

That was not the only time that Blair had to calm himself down during the hundred lapper. He recalled an incident during the first half of the event when Max McLaughlin passed him for third moments before a caution on lap thirty-seven. “That got my blood boiling,” Blair noted. But, he regained his composure and, soon thereafter, he overtook McLaughlin.

Blair inherited second on lap forty when the leader, Dave Hess, Jr., suddenly slowed coming off turn two. Hess’s misfortune returned the lead to Drake Troutman, who led the first thirty-seven circuits. In fact, Troutman led twice in the event for a total of eighty-one laps.

Blair stalked Troutman for more than forty laps. Blair went low in turn three on lap eighty-five and he assumed control with a slider coming through turn four.

As Blair stretched his lead, Troutman came under attack from Norris, Tyler Wyant, and Hess, who slowly worked his way forward after the first half incident.

Troutman yielded second with five laps remaining. That gave Norris the runner-up spot, with young Wyant in third. Hess continued in fourth for several laps before falling back in the running order.

The final caution, with two laps remaining, gave Norris one shot at the win. However, Blair got away cleanly on the restart, and Norris could not get any momentum when stuck on the inside. Wyant was an impressive third, followed by McLaughlin and Ryan Montgomery.

Gregg Satterlee was sixth. Hess held on for seventh. Dan Angelicchio and Boom Briggs were the final two cars still running at the end of the race. Troutman was credited with tenth based on his laps completed.

Drake Troutman, Levi Yetter, Max Blair, and Lincoln Smith prevailed in the heat races. Jon Lee took the B Main.

Max Blair was the fastest overall qualifier. He topped Group B with a time of 15.594 seconds. Drake Troutman was fastest in Group A, with a lap of 15.693 seconds.

Thirty-three Super Late Models checked in for the unsanctioned event.

The Pierogi 30 for the Penn Ohio Pro Stocks closed out the night. The race paid $1,500 to win and, as usual whenever extra money was on the line, Chris Schneider found his way to the head of the line at the pay-window.

Joey Zambotti led the first three laps before Schneider assumed command. Despite two cautions, Schneider led by almost seven-and-a-half seconds during the event.

But, like Blair, Schneider had to survive a two-lap shootout to get the win. “You don’t know what is going on behind you,” Schneider said. “I saw Corey (McPherson’s number) on the board. I thought he’d come ripping around me, but I never saw him, so I must have been OK.”

McPherson was second, followed by Curtis J. Bish, Tyler Dietz, and track champion Jacob Dietz. Tyler Schneider, Zambotti, Cody Koteles, Rocky Kugel, and Jason Fosnaught were sixth through tenth.

The Pro Stocks ran a pair of heat races, with the wins going to Jacob Dietz and Joey Zambotti. There was no B Main needed to set the A Main line-up for the nineteen cars that checked in for action.

MERCER, PA (August 21, 2026):  Brandon Spithaler, of Butler, scorched his 410 Sprint Car foes at Michaels Mercer Raceway. His margin of victory was nearly 6.6 seconds in a race that lasted less than nine minutes. And, that included one caution flag! Spithaler picked up $3,000 for his first victory of the season and fourteenth of his career at the tricky oval. He now has seven wins overall this season.

Logan Lewis took the $2,000 check for the Mark Marcucci Tribute race. The special event for the Mod Lites honored a highly successful racer who tragically lost his life in a highway accident in 2018. He had amassed forty-one career wins and four track titles at Mercer alone.

Also scoring wins were Jeremy Kornbaugh (IMCA Racesaver 305 Sprints), Jammin’ John Mollick (RUSH (Crate) Sprints), Karston King (DIRT 602 Crate Sportsman Modifieds), Skylar Cline (270 Winged Micros), and Dave Hanshaw, Jr. (Crown Vics).

“Well, I felt good early, but I got tight in the middle of the race,” Spithaler said. That was to be expected, he noted, because they set the car up to be tight in the beginning, thinking that the car would get faster in the second half of the contest. They hit the set-up perfectly.

“When I saw (Jeremy) Kornbaugh’s nose two times, I got concerned,” he added. That was on lap eleven, before Spithaler got to traffic. And, when he did, he was able to drive away from Kornbaugh with ease.

A pair of Brandons, Matus and Spithaler, shared the front row for the start of the twenty-five lapper. In row two, Kornbaugh was paired up with Michael Lutz, Sr., who came out of retirement for this race. Adam Kekich and ageless Bob Felmlee were next on the grid, followed by Michael Bauer and Jacob Begenwald. Then came Jim Morris and eastern racer Hayden Miller, in row five; and Jeremy Weaver and Brent Matus, in row six.

Spithaler rolled the top in turns one and two to grab the lead from Brandon Matus coming off turn two on the opening lap. Kornbaugh, Lutz, Kekich, and Felmlee followed closely. Matus stayed close to Spithaler for several laps before surrendering the second position to Kornbaugh.

The only caution of the event occurred on lap eight for a 360 spin by Joel Mellon in turn two. That incident gave Kornbaugh an opportunity to try to duplicate the move that won the 305 Sprint Car race for him earlier in the night. Kornbaugh got inside of Spithaler in turn one following the restart, but Spithaler’s momentum in the sweeping corners allowed him to drive away from Kornbaugh.

Kornbaugh wasn’t finished yet, however. He stayed close for a couple of laps looking for an opening. On lap eleven, he dove into turn one again, This time, he got alongside the leader. Spithaler powered off turn two with the lead.

Spithaler picked up speed as the race went on. He began to get some separation from Kornbaugh as the leaders started to put some of the slower cars down a lap. Fortunately for Spithaler, most of the lappers were hugging the inside line, leaving the top groove open for him. As Spithaler lapped more cars, he kept building upon his lead.

Meanwhile, Brandon Matus was racing in third, ahead of Felmlee and Lutz. Lutz began to slide back in the running order as the race reached the midpoint. Dan Kuriger replaced him in fifth. Kuriger chased down Felmlee and passed him in traffic to get the fourth position in the closing laps.

Spithaler, Kornbaugh, Brandon Matus, Kuriger, and Felmlee made up the top five. They were followed by Kekich, Begenwald, Jack Sodeman, Jr., Bauer, and Weaver.

Brandon Matus, Kekich, and Kornbaugh scored the heat wins. No B Main was needed to set the twenty-one car field. Spithaler was the fastest qualifier overall with a lap of 13.611 seconds.

In the Marcucci Tribute race for the Mod Lites, Shane Meadows led the opening lap before giving way to Carson Hubbard. After several hotly contested laps, Logan Lewis assumed command. He built up a lead of more than three seconds.

However, a caution on lap nineteen set up a one-lap dash for the money and the glory. Lewis was up to the task, and he held off Hubbard to get the prestigious victory. Meadows was third, followed by Sean Iftody and Jake Bowman. Positions six through ten went to David Innes, Ryan Anderson, Doug Stanley, Blake Robbins, and Lucca Ledford.

Ledford, Hubbard, and Anderson took the preliminaries. No B Main was needed for the twenty-one cars on hand.

Kornbaugh took advantage of a restart on lap nineteen to get the win in the IMCA Racesaver 305 Sprint Car feature. Aaron Marano was gunning for his first career win. He led from the start of the twenty lapper and he fought off a couple of challenges from Jarrett Rosencrance. Kornbaugh took over second moments before the pivotal caution on lap nineteen.

Kornbaugh charged into turn one on the final lap, drawing even with Marano at the entry to turn two, He powered off that corner with the lead. Although Marano crossed the line in second, he was subsequently disqualified.

That moved Rosencrance up to second. Vivian Jones, who helped organize the Marcucci Tribute race, was third, followed by Mike Mathieson and Brett Brunkenhoefer. Jazlyn Boyles, Rocco Capelli, Samantha Priest, Mike Shellhaas, and Tommy Jasen completed the top ten.

Brunkenhoefer and Mathieson split the heat wins. There was no B Main.

John Mollick went wire-to-wire in the RUSH Sprint Car feature, which went without any cautions. Logen Lockhart raced up to second. Gale Ruth, Jr. came on in the closing laps to get third. Grayson Bayle and Ashton Riggle completed the top five. Brayden Blackshear, Lucas Roessner, Devon Deeter, Arnie Kent, and Cooper Macormac were the next five finishers. The heat wins belonged to Ruth and Mollick. There was no B Main required.

Third generation driver Karston King picked up his first win of the year and second in his brief career at Mercer in the DIRT Sportsman main. He used a power move on the inside of turns one and two to take the lead away from Brian Schaffer on lap thirteen. Schaffer had inherited the lead when Patrick Lane spun and flipped his mount in turn three on the fourth lap. Caden Petry, Logen Lockhart, and Anthony Antus followed King and Schaffer across the finish line. Eric Gabany, Bill Adams, Darin Gallagher, Jordan Ehrenberg, and Gage Priester completed the top ten. Adams, Gabany, and Lane took the heat wins. There was no B Main needed.

Skylar Cline raced to victory in the 270 Winged Micro portion of the program. He passed the early leader, Matt Haefke, on lap five. Haefke held on for second. Parker Lucas, Dustin Young, and Mason McAndrew were the next finishers. Kenny Hardy, Jr., Brian Borawiec, Jr., Deryk Jones, Wes Libert, and Sean Price were sixth through tenth. Jada Gottschling, McAndrew, Cline, and Jones took the honors in the heat races. The B Main was scratched when an insufficient number of cars answered the call. Nathan McDowell was unhurt when he got sprayed with hot oil during the feature event. Twenty-nine cars checked in for the racing.

Dave Hanshaw, Jr. overtook Branden Porter on a lap nine restart to get the Crown Vic win. Porter was leading by more than seven seconds when the caution was displayed. He finished second nonetheless. Bradley Shaffer, Brian Krepps, Mark Lawrence, Sheriff Tim Callahan, and Dalton Marsh were the other competitors. Shaffer won the only heat race.