8/29/2023
Charleston Speedway
Owen Steinkoenig--10th different DIRTcar Modified WINNER; Dakota Ewing goes back-to-back in DIRTcar Pro Late Model; Randy Smyser looks unstoppable-
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
8.26.2023 CHARLESTON SPEEDWAY: CHARLESTON, IL
The roller coaster of weather on Saturday had everyone second guessing what to do. The facility received 0.8” of rain overnight on Friday, and there seemed to be a storm headed straight for the Speedway at 4pm. Brad Agney and his staff were on eggshells all day long, but eventually at 3pm the decision was made to press forward until Mother Nature put her foot down. As the afternoon and evening progressed, the storm broke up, went north and south and we had clear skies for another GREAT night of racing action. 109 Teams trusted our decision-making process and checked in for night #15 at The Charleston Speedway. Knowing the amount of rainfall we received the previous night, and understanding the impact that had on the Speedway, Brad was able to orchestrate yet another fabulous racing surface. Some drivers expected it to be hammered down, or rough, but outside of a little extra moisture on the bottom, the smooth slick surface provided excellent racing all the way across the entire surface! Owen Steinkoenig made his first stop at the speedway this Saturday and proved to be a contender right out of the gate. Steinkoenig set fast time with a 14.673 lap time. Ryan Hamilton was 2nd quick with a 14.749, while Deece Schwartz qualified 3rd with a time of 14.778. Steinkoenig would start P1 of Heat 1 and come away with the win, while Hamilton would start P1 of Heat 2 and capture the win. These two young guns would start on the front row of the Modified Feature. However, the father son duo of Danny & Deece Schwartz from Ashmore, IL was stalking them from the 2nd row. Due to unfortunate mechanical issues, 3 of the 22-car field were unable to start the race, but the 19 cars taking the track would be anything but a disappointment. When the green flag dropped the 19 cars came to life and the race was on. While the statistics will show the Steinkoenig led every lap of the Feature, his victory was earned. Deece Schwartz, who started P3, would immediately take the 2nd position and set his sights on the leader. However, Danny Schwartz who started P4 took over 3rd and had his sights set on P2. The father/son pair would battle back and forth, allowing Steinkoenig to maintain his lead. As the race wore on, Deece Schwartz, able to maintain 2nd over Danny Schwartz, was finally able to focus on the leader. When a late race caution came out causing the field to bunch back up, the battles behind Steinkoenig were all he needed to best the field and become the 10th different winner in the DIRTcar Modified division this season! Deece Schwartz would have to settle for 2nd and Danny Schwartz finished out the podium in 3rd. After a 15th place qualifying effort, and a bit of a lack luster P8 to P9 in Heat 1, Austin Lynn in the #72A would get his hot rod dialed in to come all the way from his 17th starting position in the feature to finish 11 spots better in 6th place. Austin Lynn showed great speed in the feature, making him a future threat for sure. The 2023 DIRTcar Modified Points battle at The Charleston Speedway remains unchanged with Kasey Schrock leading 9 points ahead of Deece Schwartz, while Kenny Carmichael Sr. is only 21 points back in 3rd.
The 22 DIRTcar Modified drivers always put on an outstanding race and if you weren't able to attend in person, you can watch it here: https://youtu.be/mudF4LLHU24?si=TLJPCPZr1XVe1QaE
The “feels like” temps reaching 115 degrees during the week, the high temp of 85 degrees on Saturday was more than a welcome sight! The cooler temps meant the DIRTcar Pro Modified division was poised to heat things up! Brayden Doyle and Deece Schwartz are tearing up the DIRTcar Pro Modified scene. On Friday night, Brayden Doyle would take the Win at Kankakee County Speedway, and he had his sights set on nothing less than the top spot on Saturday. Doyle unloaded with a fast car and proved it by setting fast time with a qualifying run of 15.033. Deece Schwartz has had plenty of speed this season and he continued that trend with a 2nd place qualifying effort of 15.095. Last week’s fast time qualifier Bryce Farr, fell short of the top two spots, but qualified a solid 3rd with a time of 15.129. 24 DIRTcar Pro Modified showed up and were ready to rumble! The top 3 qualifiers would start P1 in their respective heat races and each one backed up their qualifying effort with heat race wins. Doyle won Heat 1, Schwartz won Heat 2, and Farr won Heat 3. The veteran Gabe Menser would finish 2nd in his heat race, giving him a P4 starting position and thus setting the first 2 rows of the feature. The DIRTcar Pro Modified division was the first feature of the night and they set the bar pretty high with their side by side, wheel to wheel racing action for all 15 laps! Doyle and Schwartz would swap the lead back and forth multiple times before lap 10 where Deece Schwartz would take the lead for the final time and force Doyle to settle for 2nd. With these two guys looking to be unstoppable this season, Bryce Farr started P3 and finished the podium in 3rd. Matt Milner in the #24M was not able to make a qualifying effort due to being late to staging, he struggled in the heat race; starting 8th and finishing 8th, but that was just the beginning. Before the night was over, Milner had the 24M rolling as he would take his car from his 24th starting position all the way up to finish 10 spots better in 14th! The Points battle remains very tight with Deece Schwartz leading Brayden Doyle by 19 points, followed by Gabe Menser 64 points back in 3rd. The DIRTcar Pro Modified division puts on some extremely exciting racing, if you weren’t able to see it live, or want to relive the experience, you can watch the DIRTcar Pro Modified Feature here: https://youtu.be/3I4oDhRsKfA?si=659662_rhU92cCLR
The DIRTcar Pro Late Model division has seen 9 different winners with Jammie Wilson winning the most with 4. Dakota Ewing has only made 3 stops at The Charleston Speedway, but he has won the last 2 in a row. Ewing struggled in qualifying and was unable to record a time, giving Devin McLean the opportunity to set a quick time of 14.433. The youngster Rockett Bennett was 2nd quick with a time of 14.462, while reigning track champ Morgan Staggs qualified 3rd with a time of 14.554. Devin McLean would go onto win heat 1 from P1, while Rockett Bennett would win Heat 2 from P1 as well. Dakota Ewing showed some serious speed in heat 2, starting P8 and finishing P2 right on the back bumper of Rockett Bennett. As the green flag waived for the Feature event, Ewing would make his way to 2nd on lap 1. However, dispensing of Devin McLean would prove to be a difficult task, but on lap 7, Dakota Ewing would make the pass and never look back. McLean held on to finish 2nd over 3rd place Rockett Bennett. The DIRTcar Pro Late Model division has provided some exciting racing this season. Anthony Tucker extended his point lead over Colby Eller by 27 points, while closely in 3rd is Jammie Wilson, 31 points back.
If you missed any of the wheel-to-wheel action of the DIRTcar Pro Late Models, simply click here to check it out: https://youtu.be/kjjmYasQ2ek?si=DdhXMcw92brOoJT_
The DIRTcar Factory Stock division is one of the staples of The Charleston Speedway, providing excellent stock car racing for the drivers and fans alike. While the fans of the other drivers are cheering them on as much as they can, nothing seems to be able to stop the dominance of the #X of Randy Smyser. Smyser qualified fast time with a time of 16.867, would win heat 1 and start P1 in the feature. Having won 6 in a row, no one expected Smyser to win #7 in a row, and Lee Joseph Hall made the trip down to try and ensure it wouldn’t happen. Hall qualified 2nd quick with a time of 16.983, while Mike Reitz in the #27 would qualify 3rd with a time of 17.034. With Smyser outrunning the field in Heat 1, Heat 2 would be won from P1 by Lee Joseph Hall. Factory Stock found themselves last in the running order, but the show they put on was worth sticking around for. Smyser would jump out to the early lead, with Lee Joseph Hall in 2nd. Damion Wilmoth who started P3 would settle in 3rd and keep the pressure on the leaders, lap after lap. With Smyser making a major mid race mistake and getting his car almost sideways in 3-4, Lee Joseph Hall looked poised to take advantage of Smyser’s misfortune. However, somehow Smyser was able to keep his car pointed in the right direction and stave off the Challenge from Hall. 15 laps, every one led by Smyser, giving him his 7th straight feature win in a row. Hall finished 2nd, while Wilmoth was relegated to 3rd. With all the races finished, the Charleston Speedway tech officials called the top 3 finishers of the Factory Stock division to the front stretch for some post-race tech inspections. All top three finisher’s engines were checked for cubic inch displacement to verify they were not oversized beyond the rules. All 3 engines checked out almost identical and within the specs of the rules. Smyser is having a stellar year and continues to hang on to the top spot in the points by 9 over 2nd place Steve Nolen. Mike Reitz finds himself 54 points back from Smyser in 3rd place.
Can Smyser finish out the season winning more races?
Will Nolen breakthrough and get his first feature win of 2023?
Will Reitz challenge either of the top two for their spots in the points?
Who will be crowned the 2023 Charleston Speedway DIRTcar Factory Stock Champion?
The only way to answer these questions and more is to be at the final races of the 2023 season!!
DIRTcar Factory Stock are exciting to watch at The Charleston Speedway and if you want to see why, click to watch their feature here:
https://youtu.be/9C-4P1-OWy0?si=zl1CW9Jpp_rSPxnh
The next race on our schedule is our 4th Annual Freaky 40 for DIRTcar Pro Modified presented by McHugh’s Double-Drive Thru! The Freaky 40 is a SPECIAL Topless race where the DIRTcar Pro Modified drivers will remove their roofs so you can watch them in their cockpit from the grandstands. This is very exciting to watch in person as you can see just how hard the drivers are working inside their cars! September 2, 2023, is the date of this highly anticipated race. Looking just a bit further into the schedule and you’ll find a Monster Truck Racing League Show on September 9, 2023. Write these very important dates on your calendar and make plans NOW to join us before it’s too late! Monster Truck Tickets are available online, click here to order tickets now:
http://tickets.monstertruckchallenge.live
Here are your fast time qualifiers;
DIRTcar Modified, #5 Owen Steinkoenig; 14.673
DIRTcar Pro Modified, #2 Brayden Doyle; 15.033
DIRTcar Street Stock, #99K Jerrad Krick; 15.380
DIRTcar Factory Stock, #X Randy Smyser; 16.867
DIRTcar Pro Late Model, #33 Devin McLean; 14.433
Your run down of Heat Race winners for August 26, 2023
DIRTcar Modified: #5 Owen Steinkoenig & #58R Ryan Hamilton
DIRTcar Pro Modified: #2 Brayden Doyle & #121 Deece Schwartz & #95 Bryce Farr
DIRTcar Street Stock: #99K Jerrad Krick & #42 Jesse Simmons
DIRTcar Factory Stock: #X Randy Smyser & #90 Lee Joseph Hall
DIRTcar Pro Late Model: #33 Devin McLean & #55 Rockett Bennett
DIRTcar Hornet: #19 Dee Friar & #38DD Dustin Galbreath
Here are the Feature Winners:
DIRTcar Modified #5 Owen Steinkoenig
DIRTcar Pro Modified #121 Deece Schwartz
DIRTcar Street Stock #99K Jerrad Krick
DIRTcar Pro Late Model #6 Dakota Ewing
DIRTcar Factory Stock #X Randy Smyser
DIRTcar Hornets #19 Dee Fiar
DIRTcar Hornet Feature, where Dee Friar picked up his 1st feature win of 2023 can be watched by clicking here:
https://youtu.be/jLcjHQu7hIY?si=ZqbeA9zbZdUcbq6Q
DIRTcar Street Stock Feature, where Jerrad Krick fends off the challenge from Jesse Simmons to win his 4th feature in a row, bring his 2023 win total to 7; can be viewed by clicking here:
https://youtu.be/Yh7oyLJ3dnQ?si=AUdBQVfHxjKA4LXU
ALL Video credits to Zack Carter.
Be sure to check out, and purchase a few of the MANY photos that were taken at the Speedway right here:
https://srldesigns.smugmug.com/CHARLESTON-2023/8-26-2023/
ALL Photo credits to SRL Designs.
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU SOON…………..AT THE CHARLESTON SPEEDWAY!!!
#chuckvegas
Submitted By: Sonny Ross
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