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MARS Championship Tours Set for St. Louis Area Doubleheader

MARS Championship Tours Set for St. Louis Area Doubleheader

FAIRBURY, IL (August 15, 2023) When people think of dirt racing in the Midwest, one location always appears in conversation as a staple of continuous high-quality shows over the years: The Greater St. Louis area. Whether it is Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, Tri-City Speedway, Highland Speedway, the Gateway Dirt Nationals at The Dome at America’s Center, or even some of the racetracks that are currently not operating such as Belle-Clair Speedway, St. Charles Speedway, or Godfrey Speedway, the St. Louis area has always been a travel destination for race fans from far and wide. This weekend looks as enticing as any, with Chamber of Commerce weather forecasted and the ultra-competitive MARS Championship Tours set to do battle.

As the summer begins to wind down, so does the season for both the MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends and the MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment. The time is now for the movers and shakers to hit their stride for one final push towards series titles. Tri City Speedway is a track that will be crucial for MARS Late Model teams to gather data and tweak setups for, as the season championship weekend will be held at the speedway on September 22 and 23 in conjunction with Mod Mania weekend. Championship weekend events cannot be dropped for either series, so it will be crucial for teams to have solid runs on the return trip in September to close out the season.

Jason Feger continues to lead the MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends standings and welcomes the sight of Tri City Speedway on the schedule as he was able to collect top 5 finishes in both DIRTcar Summer Nationals events held at the speedway in 2023. While Feger has had a strong season on tour to-date, the El Paso, Illinois driver, Ryan Unzicker, has been equally as impressive. While he has 2 less victories than Feger, Unzicker only trails Feger by 19 points in the standings before the drop nights are factored in. Prior to championship weekend, each driver will be allowed to drop their 2 worst finishes of the tour. If you dropped each driver’s 2 worst finishes at this point, it would close the gap between Feger and Unzicker to only 13 points. Mike Harrison currently sits 3rd in series standings and is also the current Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Year points leader. Bob Gardner and Blaze Burwell round out the top 5.

Owensboro, Kentucky driver Tyler Nicely currently leads the MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment standings as we are just past the halfway point of the tour. Although Nicely has been dominate to this point, there are a pair of drivers behind him in current standings that are sure to cut into his lead this weekend. While Nicely has been as dominate as he has been this season, Josh Harris has managed to keep the points lead at only 44 as he has also had a season of strong finishes. Harris has 8 top 10 finishes in 10 starts and picked up his first series win at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 back in July. Michael Long, Kyle Steffens and Mike Chasteen Jr round out the top 5 in season standings as all 3 plan to make appearances throughout the weekend.

Friday, August 18 – Tri City Speedway – Granite City, IL – MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends / MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment – 2nd Annual Gary Gerstner Memorial Presented by Complete Auto Body & Repair

Tri City Speedway and the MARS Dirt Series will pay tribute to the late Gary Gerstner with the running of the 2nd Annual Gary Gerstner Memorial Presented by Complete Auto Body & Repair this Friday night. Gary was a long-time supporter of the dirt racing community and owned/sponsored numerous Late Models over the years. He owned Gerstner Plumbing in Breese, Illinois for over 40 years. This will mark the 12th visit for the MARS Late Models to the 3/8-mile dirt oval with the most recent being in 2019 where Daryn Klein was victorious.

On the agenda for the 2nd Annual Gary Gerstner Memorial Presented by Complete Auto Body & Repair will be $5,000-to-win MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends, $2,000-to-win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment, $1,057-to-win HART Limited Modified Series, and $1,000-to-win DIRTcar 4 Cylinders. Pit gates will open at 4:00 p.m. with grandstands opening at 5:30 p.m. The driver’s meeting is set for 6:00 p.m. with hot laps taking the speedway at 6:30 p.m. sharp. Ticket prices for Friday’s event are $30 for general admission with children 12 and under admitted for free. Pit passes will be available for purchase for $40, $15 for kids ages 6-12, while children 5 and under will be admitted for free.

A special thanks to event sponsors Complete Auto Body & Repair, Bolin Services, A2B Towing & Recovery Service, A&A Towing Services, Crash City USA, Hoon’s Towing, Hart Automotive, and Cardinal All Hour Towing.

Saturday, August 19 – World Famous Highland Speedway – Highland, IL – MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends / MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

On Saturday night, August 19, the MARS Championship Tours will roll into the World Famous Highland Speedway for the lone stop this season to the 1/4-mile dirt oval. Highland has been one of the up-and-coming racetracks of the Midwest this season, with solid car counts and some of the best weekly crowds in the state. All eyes will be on the speedway this Saturday as it marks the first ever visit for the MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment and the third visit in series history for the MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends.

Joining the $5,000 to win MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends and $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment will be $500 to win for the DIRTcar Pro Modifieds. Pit gates are scheduled to open at noon on Saturday while the general admission gates will open for patrons at 4:00 p.m. The driver’s meeting will take place at 6:00 p.m. with hot laps scheduled to hit the speedway at 6:30 p.m. Ticket prices are $30 for adults, $10 for kids ages 13-18, with children 12 and under being admitted for free. Pit Passes will be available for $40.

MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends Tire Rule for each night:

LF: Hoosier NLMT2/LM20/NLMT3/LM30
RF: Hoosier NLMT2/LM20/NLMT3/LM30
LR: Hoosier NLMT2/LM20/NLMT3/LM30
RR: Hoosier NLMT3/LM30/NLMT4/LM40

Grooving and Siping will be permitted. We will mark tires at the scales after qualifying. You must run these 4 tires for the remainder of the night. You will be allowed 1 new tire for the feature only. If you have a flat in Qualifying, Heat Race, or B-Main, you must replace with a used tire of the same compound.

MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends Feature purse: 1) $5,000 2) $2,500 3) $2,000 4) $1,600 5) $1,400 6) $1,200 7) $1,000 8) $800 9) $700 10) $600 11) $500 12) $500 13) $500 14) $500 15) $500 16) $500 17) $500 18) $500 19) $500 20) $500 21) $500 22) $500. Non-Transfer Tow Money (Friday $90) (Saturday $90)

MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment Feature purse: 1) $2,000 2) $1,500 3) $1,200 4) $1,000 5) $800 6) $600 7) $500 8) $400 9) $300 10) $275 11) $250 12) $250 13) $250 14) $250 15) $250 16) $250 17) $250 18) $250 19) $250 20) $250 21) $250 22) $250. Non-Transfer Tow Money – (Friday $65) (Saturday $65)

2023 MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends Point Standings

1. Jason Feger - 724
2. Ryan Unzicker - 705
3. Mike Harrison - 571
4. Bob Gardner - 535
5. Blaze Burwell - 486
6. Jake Little - 465
7. Tommy Sheppard Jr - 461
8. Justin White - 407
9. Rich Dawson - 396
10. Mark Voigt - 359
11. Drake Troutman - 343
12. Frank Heckenast Jr - 308
13. Billy Moyer - 300
14. Doug Tye - 300
15. Kye Blight - 290

Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Year Point Standings

1. Mike Harrison – 571
2. Blaze Burwell – 486
3. Jake Little – 465
4. Tommy Sheppard Jr – 461
5. Justin White – 407
6. Rich Dawson – 396
7. Doug Tye – 300
8. Kye Blight – 290
9. Kyle Hammer – 288
10. Logan Nickerson – 245

MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment Point Standings

1. Tyler Nicely - 625
2. Josh Harris - 581
3. Michael Long - 544
4. Kyle Steffens - 469
5. Mike Chasteen Jr - 445
6. Trevor Neville - 399
7. Charlie Mefford - 390
8. Allen Weisser - 343
9. Zeke McKenzie - 337
10. Dillon Nusbaum - 326
11. Blake Bailey - 313
12. Mike McKinney - 311
13. Rick Frasure - 268
14. Brian Shaw - 255
15. Logan Veloz - 254

Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Year Points Standings

1. Charlie Mefford – 390
2. Blake Bailey – 313
3. Rick Frasure – 268
4. Logan Veloz – 254

2023 MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends Statistics

Illinois State Rifle Association Heat Race #1 Winners
Tyler Erb – 2
McKay Wenger – 1
Brandon Sheppard – 1
Kevin Weaver – 1
Dillon McCowan – 1
Payton Freeman – 1
Jason Feger – 1
Billy Moyer Jr – 1
Drake Troutman – 1
Frank Heckenast Jr – 1
Spencer Diercks – 1

Pontiac RV Heat Race #2 Winners
Ryan Unzicker – 4
Drake Troutman – 3
Mike Harrison – 3
Jason Feger – 1
Kevin Weaver – 1

FK Rod Ends 1st Place Finisher
Jason Feger – 4
Ryan Unzicker – 2
Tyler Erb – 1
Shannon Babb – 1
Brandon Sheppard – 1
Billy Moyer – 1
Gordy Gundaker – 1
Drake Troutman – 1

Out-Pace Racing Products 3rd Place Finisher
Tommy Sheppard Jr – 2
Mike Harrison – 2
Shannon Babb – 1
Brian Shirley – 1
Drake Troutman – 1
Logan Nickerson – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Rich Bell – 1
Jason Feger – 1
Jeff Larson – 1

FK Rod Ends 5th Place Finisher
Jason Feger – 2
Ryan Unzicker – 2
Kyle Hammer – 1
Rodney Melvin – 1
Rich Dawson – 1
Mike Harrison – 1
Payton Freeman – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Drake Troutman – 1
Justin Kay – 1

Fairbury Fastener 7th Place Finisher
Billy Moyer Jr – 2
Blaze Burwell – 2
Tanner English – 1
Frank Heckenast Jr – 1
Billy Moyer – 1
Dillon McCowan – 1
Justin Reed – 1
Jason Feger – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Clayton Stuckey – 1

Budda by Bert Transmission 9th Place Finisher
Bob Gardner – 2
Drake Troutman – 1
Taylor Scheffler – 1
Tommy Sheppard Jr – 1
Mike Spatola – 1
Josh Boller – 1
Trevor Gundaker – 1
Jake Little – 1
Joseph Hughs – 1
Blaze Burwell – 1
Matt Furman – 1

Hooker Harness 11th Place Finisher
Kye Blight – 2
Blaze Burwell – 2
Daryn Klein – 1
Logan Nickerson – 1
Frank Heckenast Jr – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Mike Harrison – 1
Drake Troutman – 1
Trevor Gundaker – 1
Justin Duty – 1

Keyser Manufacturing 13th Place Finisher
Rich Dawson – 1
Mike Spatola – 1
Logan Nickerson – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Kyle Hammer – 1
Justin White – 1
Blaze Burwell – 1
Frank Heckenast Jr – 1
Jake Little – 1
Mark Voigt – 1
Austin Howes – 1
Jake Rainey – 1

Fast Shafts 15th Place Finisher
Bob Gardner – 1
Jake Little – 1
Mark Voigt – 1
Justin White – 1
Jason Feger – 1
Austin Howes – 1
Roben Huffman – 1
Mike Mataragas – 1
Kye Blight – 1
Rich Dawson – 1
Dylan Thompson – 1
Brandon Queen – 1

MD3 Hard Charger Award Winners
Rodney Melvin – 2
Tommy Sheppard Jr – 2
Jason Feger – 1
Taylor Scheffler – 1
Kyle Hammer – 1
Blaze Burwell – 1
Billy Moyer – 1
Joseph Hughs – 1
Bob Gardner – 1
Justin Kay – 1

Wilwood Brakes Hard Luck Award Winners
Kyle Hammer – 2
Mark Voigt – 2
Matt Bailey – 1
Kevin Weaver – 1
Brandon Tibaldi – 1
Chase Osterhoff – 1
Trevor Gundaker – 1
Jordan Bauer – 1
Tucker Finch – 1
Bob Gardner – 1

Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Race Winners
Tommy Sheppard Jr – 4
Mike Harrison – 4
Blaze Burwell – 2
Logan Nickerson – 1
Rich Dawson – 1

2023 MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment Statistics

Multi Fire X Fast Time Award Winners
Josh Harris – 3
Tyler Nicely – 2
John Clippinger – 1
Kyle Steffens – 1
Jared Thomas – 1
Trevor Neville – 1
Brian Shaw – 1

Willy’s Carb & Dyno Heat Race #1 Winners
Kyle Steffens – 2
Josh Harris – 2
Charlie Mefford – 1
Zeke McKenzie – 1
John Clippinger – 1
Tyler Nicely – 1
Michael Long – 1
Austen Becerra – 1

Summit Racing Equipment 1st Place Finisher
Tyler Nicely – 3
Kyle Steffens – 2
Michael Long – 2
Mike McKinney – 1
Cole Falloway – 1
Josh Harris – 1

Fast Shafts 3rd place Finisher
Josh Harris – 2
Tyler Nicely – 2
Trevor Neville – 1
Kyle Steffens – 1
Derek Losh – 1
Dillon Nusbaum – 1
Mike McKinney – 1
Kenny Wallace – 1

Out-Pace Racing Products 5th Place Finisher
Mike Chasteen Jr – 2
Josh Harris – 2
Zeke McKenzie – 1
Allen Weisser – 1
Dillon Nusbaum – 1
Trevor Neville – 1
Brandon Roberts – 1
Rick Conoyer – 1

Keyser Manufacturing 7th Place Finisher
Zeke McKenzie – 2
Charlie Mefford – 1
John Clippinger – 1
Allen Weisser – 1
Rick Conoyer – 1
Caden McWhorter – 1
Kyle Steffens – 1
Danny Ems – 1
Mike Chasteen Jr – 1

Hooker Harness 11th Place Finisher
Mike McKinney – 1
Cole Falloway – 1
Josh Lemke – 1
Justin Jones – 1
Jacob Rexing – 1
Josh Harris – 1
Steven Brooks – 1
Mike Brooks – 1
Jim Black – 1
Shawn Deering – 1

MD3 Hard Charger Award Winners
Michael Long – 1
Caden McWhorter – 1
Justin Jones – 1
Will Krup – 1
Logan Veloz – 1
Dave Baldwin – 1
Mike Chasteen Jr – 1
Danny Schwartz – 1
Danny Ems – 1
Trevor Neville – 1

Wilwood Brakes Hard Luck Award Winners
Blake Bailey – 2
Cole Falloway – 1
Trevor Neville – 1
Zeke McKenzie – 1
Logan Mounce – 1
Allen Weisser – 1
Josh Allen – 1
Kyle Steffens – 1
Frankie Wellman – 1

Sunoco Race Fuels Rookie of the Race Winners
Charlie Mefford – 7
Caden McWhorter – 1
Logan Veloz – 1
Blake Bailey – 1

If you are unable to make it to the track, you can catch EVERY MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends event in 2023 live at floracing.com.

For more information about the MARS Dirt Series, please contact Jonathan Clayton at 731-467- 1316, visit the tour’s webpage at marsracingseries.com, or visit @MARSDirtRacing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends and MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment would like to thank the following sponsors and marketing partners for their support of the 2023 racing season: FK Rod Ends, Summit Racing Equipment, Elliott’s Custom Trailers & Carts, Flo Racing, Racing Electronics, Hoosier Racing Tire, Sunoco Race Fuels, Illinois State Rifle Association, Pontiac RV, Allstar Performance, O’Reilly Auto Parts, DIRTcar Racing, Driscoll Motors, Woods Basement Systems, MD3, Josh James Artwork, MWD Signs & Graphix, Fairbury Fastener & Supply, King’s Graphix, Dirt Draft, Digital Copy Systems, Whelen, Multi Fire X, Budda Bert Transmission, Dyer’s Top Rods, Fast Shafts, Wilwood Brakes, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Out-Pace Racing Products, Keyser Manufacturing, Varsitee Screenprinting, Willy’s Carb & Dyno, Mackinaw Valley Powder Coating, Trackside Racewear, and Hooker Harness.

MARS Championship Upcoming Events

o August 18, 2023 – Tri City Speedway – Granite City, IL – 2nd Annual Gary Gerstner Memorial Presented by Complete Auto Body & Repair- $5,000 to win MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends & $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

o August 19, 2023 – World Famous Highland Speedway – Highland, IL - $5,000 to win MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends & $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

o August 25, 2023 – Paducah International Raceway – Paducah, KY - Midwest Dirt Nationals - $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

o August 26, 2023 – Paducah International Raceway – Paducah, KY – Midwest Dirt Nationals - $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

o September 1, 2023 – Farmer City Raceway – Farmer City, IL - $5,000 to win MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends & $2,000 to win MARS Modified Championship Powered by Summit Racing Equipment

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