INDIANA SHARK TANK: Jackson Dominates Kokomo for Third Win in Five Street Stock Races

After enduring the smell of defeat in the previous two weeks, defending Chevy Performance Street Stock League champion Tyler Jackson returned to his usual winning ways Wednesday night with a dominating performance at Kokomo Speedway, leading the last 17 laps of the race en route to his ninth career DIRTcar eSports Feature win.

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results)

Chevy Performance Feature (25 Laps) 1. 822-Tyler Jackson [2]; 2. 68-Ronald Pyles [3]; 3. 03-Dylan Thomas [8]; 4. 77-Holden English [1]; 5. 57-Jim Reavis [7]; 6. 21-Charles Barnes [4]; 7. 17-Brett Rowles [14]; 8. 199-Patrick Solari [22]; 9. 71-Daniel Stiffler [11]; 10. 28-Bailey Hipp [18]; 11. 115-Eric Tupper [9]; 12. 5-Isaac Salas [5]; 13. 30-Stevin Goldner [10]; 14. 99-Mitch Erickson [12]; 15. 002-Clifford Bellomy [15]; 16. 97-Butch Baker [6]; 17. 58-Jason Welsh [19]; 18. 60-Kyle Householder [13]; 19. 45-Jarrett Jones [24]; 20. 93-Steve Miskolczi [23]; 21. 000-Travis Clark [17]; 22. 27-Joseph Driscoll [21]; 23. 25-Dylan Petty [16]; 24. 3-Carden Cochran [20]

12/15/21 – Street Stocks at Kokomo Speedway

Chevy Performance Feature (25 Laps) 1. 822-Tyler Jackson [2]; 2. 68-Ronald Pyles [3]; 3. 03-Dylan Thomas [8]; 4. 77-Holden English [1]; 5. 57-Jim Reavis [7]; 6. 21-Charles Barnes [4]; 7. 17-Brett Rowles [14]; 8. 199-Patrick Solari [22]; 9. 71-Daniel Stiffler [11]; 10. 60-Kyle Householder [13]; 11. 28-Bailey Hipp [18]; 12. 115-Eric Tupper [9]; 13. 5-Isaac Salas [5]; 14. 30-Stevin Goldner [10]; 15. 99-Mitch Erickson [12]; 16. 002-Clifford Bellomy [15]; 17. 97-Butch Baker [6]; 18. 58-Jason Welsh [19]; 19. 45-Jarrett Jones [24]; 20. 93-Steve Miskolczi [23]; 21. 000-Travis Clark [17]; 22. 27-Joseph Driscoll [21]; 23. 25-Dylan Petty [16]; 24. 3-Carden Cochran [20]

Qualifying (2 Laps) 1. 21-Charles Barnes [14.846]; 2. 822-Tyler Jackson [14.857]; 3. 199-Patrick Solari [14.89]; 4. 77-Holden English [14.892]; 5. 5-Isaac Salas [14.915]; 6. 045-Kyle Jared [14.992]; 7. 30-Stevin Goldner [15.047]; 8. 3-Carden Cochran [15.078]; 9. 68-Ronald Pyles [15.088]; 10. 57-Jim Reavis [15.097]; 11. 28-Bailey Hipp [15.142]; 12. 97-Butch Baker [15.16]; 13. 17-Brett Rowles [15.179]; 14. 03-Dylan Thomas [15.19]; 15. 115-Eric Tupper [15.21]; 16. 60-Kyle Householder [15.215]; 17. 71-Daniel Stiffler [15.273]; 18. 25-Dylan Petty [15.275]; 19. 050-Steven Gaines [15.276]; 20. 000-Travis Clark [15.282]; 21. 99-Mitch Erickson [15.295]; 22. 58-Jason Welsh [15.3]; 23. 86-Jason Metoxen [15.317]; 24. 27-Joseph Driscoll [15.328]; 25. 45-Jarrett Jones [15.396]; 26. 76-Robert Palmer [15.471]; 27. 002-Clifford Bellomy [15.476]; 28. 50-Alex Bonsignore [15.496]; 29. 84-Mike Watt [15.57]; 30. 93-Steve Miskolczi [15.613]; 31. 33-Mike Warren [15.701]; 32. 38-Ryan Carlisi [15.783]; 33. 00-Kelly Miller [16.025]; 34. 1-Cooper Redding [NT]; 35. 19-Tyler Dolack [NT]; 36. 85-Devin Ray [NT]

Heat 1 (8 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 77-Holden English [2]; 2. 21-Charles Barnes [1]; 3. 57-Jim Reavis [4]; 4. 30-Stevin Goldner [3]; 5. 60-Kyle Householder [6]; 6. 17-Brett Rowles [5]; 7. 58-Jason Welsh [8]; 8. 50-Alex Bonsignore [10]; 9. 050-Steven Gaines [7]; 10. 45-Jarrett Jones [9]; 11. 1-Cooper Redding [12]; 12. 33-Mike Warren [11]

Heat 2 (8 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 822-Tyler Jackson [1]; 2. 5-Isaac Salas [2]; 3. 03-Dylan Thomas [5]; 4. 71-Daniel Stiffler [6]; 5. 86-Jason Metoxen [8]; 6. 000-Travis Clark [7]; 7. 84-Mike Watt [10]; 8. 38-Ryan Carlisi [11]; 9. 28-Bailey Hipp [4]; 10. 19-Tyler Dolack [12]; 11. 3-Carden Cochran [3]; 12. 76-Robert Palmer [9]

Heat 3 (8 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 68-Ronald Pyles [3]; 2. 97-Butch Baker [4]; 3. 115-Eric Tupper [5]; 4. 99-Mitch Erickson [7]; 5. 002-Clifford Bellomy [9]; 6. 25-Dylan Petty [6]; 7. 27-Joseph Driscoll [8]; 8. 85-Devin Ray [12]; 9. 93-Steve Miskolczi [10]; 10. 00-Kelly Miller [11]; 11. 045-Kyle Jared [2]; 12. 199-Patrick Solari [1]

B-Main 1 (10 laps, top-6 transfer) 1. 60-Kyle Householder [1]; 2. 002-Clifford Bellomy [2]; 3. 000-Travis Clark [3]; 4. 58-Jason Welsh [4]; 5. 27-Joseph Driscoll [5]; 6. 93-Steve Miskolczi [8]; 7. 045-Kyle Jared [11]; 8. 38-Ryan Carlisi [6]; 9. 76-Robert Palmer [12]; 10. 050-Steven Gaines [7]; 11. 19-Tyler Dolack [9]; 12. 1-Cooper Redding [10]

B-Main 2 (10 laps, top-6 transfer) 1. 17-Brett Rowles [2]; 2. 25-Dylan Petty [3]; 3. 28-Bailey Hipp [7]; 4. 3-Carden Cochran [10]; 5. 199-Patrick Solari [12]; 6. 45-Jarrett Jones [8]; 7. 50-Alex Bonsignore [5]; 8. 84-Mike Watt [4]; 9. 33-Mike Warren [11]; 10. 86-Jason Metoxen [1]; 11. 85-Devin Ray [6]; 12. 00-Kelly Miller [9]

ZERO TO HERO: Bergeron Qualifies Last, Mounts Comeback to Win Night Before the 500

Seay finishes second, keeps 1-point gap to Bergeron

The current DIRTcar eSports Tour points leader showed exactly why he sits atop the standings last Wednesday night.

Reigning iRacing Sprint Car World Champion Alex Bergeron climbed all the way from 11th on the starting grid to the lead in the first 14 laps of the first-ever 360 Non-Wing Sprint Car race in DIRTcar eSports and held on for his second career victory in the Epperson Painting Night Before the 500 pres. by Wheeler Motorsports Consulting.

“These are things you can add to your stats,” Bergeron said of the special event’s prestige. “The event being as big as it is, the Fake 500 at Indianapolis [Motor Speedway]… we’re not a part of that but will definitely be watching.”

The race, which drew a total of 49 entries in the preliminary event held before Elbows Up Sim Sport’s marquee Fake 500 event on asphalt, endured several caution flags in the 40-lap affair. Bergeron used those to his advantage, getting great restarts and using the very bottom lane around the Kokomo Speedway to dig for the lead in the early going.

On lap 13, he finally got his chance. Leader Dylan Yeager overshot the bottom lane into Turns 3-4 and Bergeron was there to pounce. He crossed the line in second by less than a hundredth of a second but was able to take the lead away for good the next time around.

“I just had to wait for the right chance,” Bergeron said. “We took it when [Yeager] made a mistake.”

From there on out, it was all Bergeron. Yeager gave it a valiant effort in the closing laps to catch the three-time iRacing world champion, nearly getting underneath him with six laps left, but clipped an infield tire, dashing his chances for victory.

Yeager brought it home in second, followed by Californian Adam Elby, making his first Tour start of Season 4, Hayden Cardwell and Gregory Lamey.

UP NEXT

The wings go back on the 360 Sprint Cars for this Wednesday night’s (Dec. 15) event at Williams Grove Speedway. Catch all the action live on DIRTVision.

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results)

Night Before the 500 Feature (40 Laps) 1. 12-Alex Bergeron [11]; 2. 48-Dylan Yeager [3]; 3. 74-Adam Elby [6]; 4. 07-Hayden Cardwell [19]; 5. 99-Gregory Lamey [1]; 6. 85-Tyler Schell [14]; 7. 41-Logan Rumsey [5]; 8. 331-Dustin Hall [13]; 9. 06-Rylan Gray [12]; 10. 33-Evan Seay [7]; 11. 49-David Heileman [16]; 12. 70-Zach Jaynes [9]; 13. 5-Rusty Kruger [20]; 14. 69-Shae Paulo [10]; 15. 13-Aiden Bierlein [18]; 16. 18-Austen Semmelmann [23]; 17. 80-Vinnie Sansone [15]; 18. 085-Hank Silver [21]; 19. 63-Jake Froemke [17]; 20. 05-Casey Miller [24]; 21. 127-Blake Matjoulis [4]; 22. 19-Mike Augustine [22]; 23. 90-Trevor Royer [8]; DQ. 09-Tanner Tomasi [2]

12/8/21 – 360 Non-Wing Sprint Cars at Kokomo Speedway

Night Before the 500 Feature (40 Laps) 1. 12-Alex Bergeron [11]; 2. 48-Dylan Yeager [3]; 3. 74-Adam Elby [6]; 4. 07-Hayden Cardwell [19]; 5. 99-Gregory Lamey [1]; 6. 85-Tyler Schell [14]; 7. 41-Logan Rumsey [5]; 8. 331-Dustin Hall [13]; 9. 06-Rylan Gray [12]; 10. 33-Evan Seay [7]; 11. 49-David Heileman [16]; 12. 70-Zach Jaynes [9]; 13. 5-Rusty Kruger [20]; 14. 69-Shae Paulo [10]; 15. 13-Aiden Bierlein [18]; 16. 18-Austen Semmelmann [23]; 17. 80-Vinnie Sansone [15]; 18. 085-Hank Silver [21]; 19. 63-Jake Froemke [17]; 20. 05-Casey Miller [24]; 21. 127-Blake Matjoulis [4]; 22. 19-Mike Augustine [22]; 23. 90-Trevor Royer [8]; DQ. 09-Tanner Tomasi [2]

Qualifying (2 laps) 1. 99-Gregory Lamey [11.735]; 2. 09-Tanner Tomasi [11.774]; 3. 48-Dylan Yeager [11.822]; 4. 127-Blake Matjoulis [11.828]; 5. 41-Logan Rumsey [11.831]; 6. 49-David Heileman [11.846]; 7. 33-Evan Seay [11.873]; 8. 90-Trevor Royer [11.882]; 9. 85-Tyler Schell [11.883]; 10. 69-Shae Paulo [11.895]; 11. 74-Adam Elby [11.899]; 12. 63-Jake Froemke [11.939]; 13. 331-Dustin Hall [11.95]; 14. 70-Zach Jaynes [11.957]; 15. 18-Austen Semmelmann [11.984]; 16. 7-Craig Silby [12.015]; 17. 06-Rylan Gray [12.038]; 18. 13-Aiden Bierlein [12.06]; 19. 07-Hayden Cardwell [12.067]; 20. 80-Vinnie Sansone [12.07]; 21. 19-Mike Augustine [12.122]; 22. 66-Shilo Boyce [12.132]; 23. 085-Hank Silver [12.147]; 24. 035-Tommy Brandon [12.18]; 25. 5-Rusty Kruger [12.187]; 26. 710-Wade Fields [12.201]; 27. 27-Anthony DeBaro [12.205]; 28. 14-Jake Erickson [12.219]; 29. 013-Bryce Barrus [12.233]; 30. 71-Josh Gerlach [12.257]; 31. 29-Billy Richardson [12.27]; 32. 05-Casey Miller [12.343]; 33. 72-Jeffrey Steward [12.391]; 34. 74-Loic Bernier [12.473]; 35. 21-Nicholas Kohan [12.477]; 36. 30-Stevin Goldner [12.544]; 37. 98-Austin Blair [12.551]; 38. 46-Jonathan Nause [12.709]; 39. 96-Gunnar Swanchara [12.745]; 40. 007-Kris Gibeau [12.777]; 41. 12-Alex Bergeron [13.22]; 42. 38-Ryan Carlisi [NT]

Heat 1 (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 99-Gregory Lamey [1]; 2. 74-Adam Elby [3]; 3. 12-Alex Bergeron [9]; 4. 49-David Heileman [2]; 5. 7-Craig Silby [4]; 6. 710-Wade Fields [6]; 7. 30-Stevin Goldner [8]; 8. 19-Mike Augustine [5]; 9. 29-Billy Richardson [7]

Heat 2 (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 09-Tanner Tomasi [1]; 2. 33-Evan Seay [2]; 3. 06-Rylan Gray [4]; 4. 63-Jake Froemke [3]; 5. 66-Shilo Boyce [5]; 6. 98-Austin Blair [8]; 7. 05-Casey Miller [7]; 8. 27-Anthony DeBaro [6]; 9. 38-Ryan Carlisi [9]

Heat 3 (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 48-Dylan Yeager [1]; 2. 90-Trevor Royer [2]; 3. 331-Dustin Hall [3]; 4. 13-Aiden Bierlein [4]; 5. 085-Hank Silver [5]; 6. 14-Jake Erickson [6]; 7. 46-Jonathan Nause [8]; 8. 72-Jeffrey Steward [7]

Heat 4 (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 127-Blake Matjoulis [1]; 2. 70-Zach Jaynes [3]; 3. 85-Tyler Schell [2]; 4. 07-Hayden Cardwell [4]; 5. 035-Tommy Brandon [5]; 6. 013-Bryce Barrus [6]; 7. 96-Gunnar Swanchara [8]; 8. 74-Loic Bernier [7]

Heat 5 (10 laps, top-4 transfer) 1. 41-Logan Rumsey [1]; 2. 69-Shae Paulo [2]; 3. 80-Vinnie Sansone [4]; 4. 5-Rusty Kruger [5]; 5. 18-Austen Semmelmann [3]; 6. 71-Josh Gerlach [6]; 7. 21-Nicholas Kohan [7]; 8. 007-Kris Gibeau [8]

B-Main 1 (14 laps, top-2 transfer) 1. 085-Hank Silver [2]; 2. 18-Austen Semmelmann [3]; 3. 7-Craig Silby [1]; 4. 98-Austin Blair [4]; 5. 29-Billy Richardson [11]; 6. 46-Jonathan Nause [7]; 7. 30-Stevin Goldner [6]; 8. 013-Bryce Barrus [5]; 9. 74-Loic Bernier [10]; 10. 21-Nicholas Kohan [8]; 11. 27-Anthony DeBaro [9]

B-Main 2 (14 laps, top-2 transfer) 1. 19-Mike Augustine [8]; 2. 05-Casey Miller [6]; 3. 66-Shilo Boyce [1]; 4. 96-Gunnar Swanchara [7]; 5. 71-Josh Gerlach [5]; 6. 14-Jake Erickson [4]; 7. 72-Jeffrey Steward [9]; 8. 710-Wade Fields [3]; 9. 035-Tommy Brandon [2]; 10. 007-Kris Gibeau [10]; 11. 38-Ryan Carlisi [11]

GOING TOPLESS: 360 Non-Wing Sprints Race Night Before the 500 at Kokomo

Open setups, show-up points, broadcasted on DIRTVision and Twitch

The anticipation is building for DIRTcar eSports’ first-ever special event on iRacing.

The third annual Epperson Painting Night Before the 500 pres. by Wheeler Motorsports Consulting takes 360 Non-Wing Sprint Cars to the virtual Kokomo Speedway for the first time in DIRTcar eSports Tour history on Wednesday, Dec. 8, for a $250-to-win, $20-to-start special, broadcasted live on DIRTVision.

NIGHT BEFORE THE 500 REGISTRATION

Elbows Up Sim Sport has partnered with DIRTcar eSports to co-sanction the marquee event, run one night prior to the start of Elbows Up’s annual Fake 500 asphalt event at iRacing’s Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Contrary to traditional DIRTcar eSports events, the Night Before will feature open setups, allowing drivers to create a custom car setup that fits their driving style. The School of Sim Racing has created a recommended setup to get drivers in the right ballpark, which can be downloaded at the link below.

360 NON-WING SETUP FILES

While the race will pay out the normal DIRTcar eSports Tour purse, the open-setup stipulation makes it a show-up points event for all entrants. All drivers who attempt to qualify for the Night Before will receive 45 points toward the DIRTcar eSports Tour championship standings.

As an added twist, Tour championship chasers will have the opportunity to make up big gaps in the standings on their opponents in the final event of the season, when the Bicknell Racing Products Big Block Modifieds take to The Dirt Track at Charlotte on Jan. 19 for a double-points Feature event (1st – 150 pts, 2nd – 140 pts, 3rd – 130 pts, etc.)

The event format follows the traditional DIRTcar eSports format, which can consist of up to three separate rounds of racing. The exact race format used will depend on the number of entries, all of which is detailed in the link below.

DIRTCAR ESPORTS EVENT FORMAT

DIRTVision.tv will have live coverage of the Night Before with announcers Chase Raudman and Justin Prince. The all-new DIRTcar eSports Twitch channel will also stream the event; drivers with Twitch accounts are encouraged to watch, share and interact with the channel throughout the winter season.

The session will go live on iRacing servers at 7:40pm ET with a 20-minute (minimum) practice session. Qualifying will begin immediately following the conclusion of the preceding Chevy Performance Street Stock League race at Bristol Motor Speedway.

If Qualifying Rounds and/or Preliminary Rounds are necessary, they will all be held on Wednesday night in succession, as opposed to the Tuesday before (as specified in the DIRTcar eSports format).

CONTACT AT KOKOMO: Tucker Wins Third Tour Feature of Season 3 After Bergeron Penalty

Tucker pads large points lead, looks to seal second straight title in two weeks’ time

White flag. Big slide job in Turns 1-2 by Alex Bergeron. Kendal Tucker crosses underneath him with the lead as they exit Turn 2. Then, big contact.

Both drivers dove for the inside of Turn 3 at Kokomo Speedway, neither willing to give an inch as they rounded the final corners before the finish line. Some contact was made, then some more, and even more still as they crossed underneath the checkered flag in Wednesday night’s NOS Energy Drink 360 Sprint Car Feature.

The iRacing simulation showed Bergeron as the winner, but DIRTcar eSports officials determined, in post-race review, that Bergeron was at fault in the incident for initiating the contact with Tucker. Therefore, Bergeron was handed a two-spot post-race penalty, and officially scored in third place.

This handed the $250 Feature win over to Tucker and moved original third-place Dylan Houser into second.

The last-lap fireworks succeeded a very entertaining 30 laps around the virtual quarter-mile, filled with several clean slide jobs for the lead as Houser and Bergeron tried to wrestle the lead from polesitter Tucker, who led all but the final lap.

Houser was the first to do so on Lap 25, launching a big slider in Turns 3-4 that Tucker quickly turned underneath to regain the position. Bergeron threw one the very next corner, which Tucker answered immediately, driving right back by him on the inside to take the spot back.

Tucker led the race through the white flag before Bergeron threw the slide job at him again in Turn 1 before the final-corner melee that decided the race, ultimately handing Tucker his second Tour Feature victory of Season 3.

The DIRTcar eSports Tour is back in action next Wednesday night, May 19, for Round #9, featuring the 358 Small-Block Modifieds at USA International Speedway. Catch all the action live on DIRTVision presented by Drydene.

NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps) – 1. 00-Kendal Tucker [1]; 2. 2-Dylan Houser [10]; 3. 12-Alex Bergeron [2]; 4. 33-Evan Seay [3]; 5. 85-Tyler Schell [4]; 6. 115-Boddie Parker [11]; 7. 48-Dylan Yeager [20]; 8. 1-Jesse Enterkin [8]; 9. 17-Brett Rowles [13]; 10. 331-Dustin Hall [9]; 11. 461-Cole Dewease [15]; 12. 46-Jonathan Nause [18]; 13. 43-Terrell Wheeler [17]; 14. 033-Richard Murtaugh Jr. [5]; 15. 29-Billy Richardson [7]; 16. 14-Brett Wright [19]; 17. 17-Sam Reakes [6]; 18. 5-Jacob Karklin [16]; 19. 13-Matt Remick [21]; 20. 38-Ryan Carlisi [12]; 21. 82-Eric Schroeter [14]

5/12/21 – 360 Sprint Cars at Kokomo Speedway

NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 laps) – 1. 00-Kendal Tucker [1]; 2. 2-Dylan Houser [10]; 3. 12-Alex Bergeron [2]; 4. 33-Evan Seay [3]; 5. 85-Tyler Schell [4]; 6. 115-Boddie Parker [11]; 7. 48-Dylan Yeager [20]; 8. 1-Jesse Enterkin [8]; 9. 17-Brett Rowles [13]; 10. 331-Dustin Hall [9]; 11. 461-Cole Dewease [15]; 12. 46-Jonathan Nause [18]; 13. 43-Terrell Wheeler [17]; 14. 033-Richard Murtaugh Jr. [5]; 15. 29-Billy Richardson [7]; 16. 14-Brett Wright [19]; 17. 17-Sam Reakes [6]; 18. 5-Jacob Karklin [16]; 19. 13-Matt Remick [21]; 20. 38-Ryan Carlisi [12]; 21. 82-Eric Schroeter [14]

Qualifying (2 laps) – 1. 00-Kendal Tucker [11.369]; 2. 12-Alex Bergeron [11.422]; 3. 33-Evan Seay [11.439]; 4. 48-Dylan Yeager [11.511]; 5. 033-Richard Murtaugh Jr. [11.544]; 6. 17-Sam Reakes [11.62]; 7. 14-Brett Wright [11.625]; 8. 85-Tyler Schell [11.631]; 9. 29-Billy Richardson [11.636]; 10. 5-Jacob Karklin [11.667]; 11. 115-Boddie Parker [11.748]; 12. 38-Ryan Carlisi [11.78]; 13. 331-Dustin Hall [11.783]; 14. 2-Dylan Houser [11.954]; 15. 17-Brett Rowles [12.06]; 16. 1-Jesse Enterkin [12.14]; 17. 13-Matt Remick [12.151]; 18. 46-Jonathan Nause [12.172]; 19. 43-Terrell Wheeler [12.289]; 20. 82-Eric Schroeter [12.444]; DNQ. 461-Cole Dewease [NT]

Heat Race 1 (10 laps, all transfer) – 1. 00-Kendal Tucker [1]; 2. 33-Evan Seay [2]; 3. 033-Richard Murtaugh Jr. [3]; 4. 29-Billy Richardson [5]; 5. 331-Dustin Hall [7]; 6. 115-Boddie Parker [6]; 7. 17-Brett Rowles [8]; 8. 461-Cole Dewease [11]; 9. 43-Terrell Wheeler [10]; 10. 14-Brett Wright [4]; 11. 13-Matt Remick [9]

Heat Race 2 (10 laps, all transfer) – 1. 12-Alex Bergeron [1]; 2. 85-Tyler Schell [4]; 3. 17-Sam Reakes [3]; 4. 1-Jesse Enterkin [8]; 5. 2-Dylan Houser [7]; 6. 38-Ryan Carlisi [6]; 7. 82-Eric Schroeter [10]; 8. 5-Jacob Karklin [5]; 9. 46-Jonathan Nause [9]; 10. 48-Dylan Yeager [2]

DOUBLE VISION: Seay Wins Second Career Tour Race in UMP Modified Battle at Kokomo

KOKOMO, IN – He won the inaugural DIRTcar eSports Tour event back in April. And just like that, Evan Seay is now the Tour’s third multi-time Feature winner.

Forced to climb back up to the top after slipping back from his pole starting spot early in the Summit Racing Equipment UMP Modified Feature at the virtual Kokomo Speedway, Seay ran a strong yet patient race en route to the $250 victory, holding off a late-race charge from fellow iRacing Pro Kendal Tucker.

At the drop of the green, Seay, of Chesnee, SC, dropped back to second and proceeded to mix it up with the top-five through the first half of the race, trailing the likes of Alex Bergeron, of Drummondville, QC, and Blake Matjoulis as the race progressed.

A few caution flags bunched the field up for several restarts before halfway, setting the stage for a ferocious battle between leaders Bergeron and Matjoulis, of Ashville, NY. The two traded slide jobs several times before coming together out of Turn 2 on Lap 24, sending Matjoulis around into the wall and Bergeron around with contact from passing cars.

Both drivers restarted from much further back in the field from where they were as the leaders. Back to green the field went, Seay back to the lead now after assuming the spot after the incident.

Tucker, now back to the runner-up spot, gave Seay all he could handle as the laps wound down, chasing him on the high side. It seemed as though Seay was going to walk it on back to the checkers as he came to the stripe to take the white flag, but a yellow was suddenly thrown.

Seay was on top of his game, though, using that high-side momentum to carry himself through the green-white-checkered restart. After taking the white, Seay threw it to the bottom in the final two corners to protect the spot from Tucker trying to get by underneath. Some slight contact was made coming out of Turn 4, but Seay prevailed as he drove across the stripe first to collect $250 and 75 points toward the overall Tour championship.

Joe Grabianowski Photo

This was Seay’s second career DIRTcar eSports Feature victory and first with the UMP Modifieds. Coming home in third was the first non-Pro driver finish in the field – Magnolia, TX’s own Karter Battarbee, after a great run inside the top-six all night long.

The DIRTcar eSports Tour action continues next Wednesday night, Dec. 9, with the Drydene Pro Late Models from The Dirt Track at Charlotte. Catch all the action LIVE on DIRTVision!

Summit Racing Equipment Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 33-Evan Seay (1); 2. 00-Kendal Tucker (8); 3. 110-Karter Battarbee (4); 4. 105-Sheldon Oberle (11); 5. 2-Dylan Houser (16); 6. 10-Jesse Enterkin (19); 7. 127-Blake Matjoulis (6); 8. 1-Austin Carr (7); 9. 157-Drew Hopkins (9); 10. 171-Brandon Freeburg (21); 11. 0-Kevin Dedmon (14); 12. 787-Cody Zobrist (15); 13. 41-Matthew Logan (23); 14. 331-Dustin Hall (18); 15. 2-Craig Swartz (2); 16. 112-Devon Morgan (10); 17. 92-Cory Austin (24); 18. 242-Blake Stieb (17); 19. 99-Patrick Solari (20); 20. 3-Carden Cochran (12); 21. 12-Alex Bergeron (3); 22. 71-Keven Hebert (22); 23. 29-Richie Yost (5); 24. 93-Zane Yost (13)

12/2/20 – UMP Modifieds at Kokomo Speedway

Summit Racing Equipment Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 33-Evan Seay [1]; 2. 00-Kendal Tucker [8]; 3. 110-Karter Battarbee [4]; 4. 105-Sheldon Oberle [11]; 5. 2-Dylan Houser [16]; 6. 10-Jesse Enterkin [19]; 7. 127-Blake Matjoulis [6]; 8. 1-Austin Carr [7]; 9. 157-Drew Hopkins [9]; 10. 171-Brandon Freeburg [21]; 11. 000-Kevin Dedmon [14]; 12. 787-Cody Zobrist [15]; 13. 41-Matthew Logan [23]; 14. 331-Dustin Hall [18]; 15. 02-Craig Swartz [2]; 16. 112-Devon Morgan [10]; 17. 92-Cory Austin [24]; 18. 242-Blake Stieb [17]; 19. 99-Patrick Solari [20]; 20. 3-Carden Cochran [12]; 21. 12-Alex Bergeron [3]; 22. 71-Keven HÈbert [22]; 23. 29-Richie Yost [5]; 24. 93-Zane Yost [13]

Qualifying (2 Laps) – 1. 33-Evan Seay [13.333]; 2. 29-Richie Yost [13.463]; 3. 12-Alex Bergeron [13.465]; 4. 1-Austin Carr [13.466]; 5. 02-Craig Swartz [13.48]; 6. 127-Blake Matjoulis [13.497]; 7. 112-Devon Morgan [13.508]; 8. 00-Kendal Tucker [13.535]; 9. 331-Dustin Hall [13.551]; 10. 110-Karter Battarbee [13.57]; 11. 105-Sheldon Oberle [13.6]; 12. 3-Carden Cochran [13.626]; 13. 99-Patrick Solari [13.63]; 14. 2-Dylan Houser [13.652]; 15. 157-Drew Hopkins [13.655]; 16. 93-Zane Yost [13.662]; 17. 41-Matthew Logan [13.669]; 18. 91-FÈlix Roy2 [13.671]; 19. 171-Brandon Freeburg [13.701]; 20. 000-Kevin Dedmon [13.712]; 21. 787-Cody Zobrist [13.732]; 22. 14-Trey Mills [13.749]; 23. 71-Keven HÈbert [13.769]; 24. 92-Cory Austin [13.793]; 25. 923-Alex Rakers [13.811]; 26. 27-Joby Baugh [13.812]; 27. 97-Billy Richardson [13.819]; 28. 242-Blake Stieb [13.836]; 29. 46-Jonathan Nause [13.836]; 30. 10-Jesse Enterkin [13.871]; 31. 96-Josh Rhinerson [13.891]; 32. 510-Eddie Holden [13.909]; 33. 56-Ethan Kammerude [13.976]; 34. 8-Peter Breis [13.985]; 35. 32-Brad Bauer [14.105]

Heat 1 (10 Laps) – 1. 33-Evan Seay [1]; 2. 110-Karter Battarbee [4]; 3. 1-Austin Carr [2]; 4. 112-Devon Morgan [3]; 5. 93-Zane Yost [6]; 6. 99-Patrick Solari [5]; 7. 171-Brandon Freeburg [7]; 8. 923-Alex Rakers [9]; 9. 14-Trey Mills [8]; 10. 96-Josh Rhinerson [11]; 11. 242-Blake Stieb [10]; 12. 8-Peter Breis [12]

Heat 2 (10 Laps) – 1. 02-Craig Swartz [2]; 2. 29-Richie Yost [1]; 3. 0-Kendal Tucker [3]; 4. 105-Sheldon Oberle [4]; 5. 000-Kevin Dedmon [7]; 6. 27-Joby Baugh [9]; 7. 71-Keven HÈbert [8]; 8. 510-Eddie Holden [11]; 9. 2-Dylan Houser [5]; 10. 32-Bradley Bauer [12]; 11. 46-Jonathan Nause [10]; 12. 41-Matthew Logan [6]

Heat 3 (10 Laps) – 1. 12-Alex Bergeron [1]; 2. 127-Blake Matjoulis [2]; 3. 157-Drew Hopkins [5]; 4. 3-Carden Cochran [4]; 5. 787-Cody Zobrist [7]; 6. 92-Cory Austin [8]; 7. 91-FÈlix Roy [6]; 8. 331-Dustin Hall [3]; 9. 10-Jesse Enterkin [10]; 10. 56-Ethan Kammerude [11]; 11. 97-Billy Richardson [9]

B-main 1 (14 Laps) – 1. 93-Zane Yost [1]; 2. 787-Cody Zobrist [2]; 3. 242-Blake Stieb [10]; 4. 10-Jesse Enterkin [8]; 5. 171-Brandon Freeburg [4]; 6. 41-Matthew Logan [12]; 7. 32-Brad Bauer [9]; 8. 91-FÈlix Roy [5]; 9. 510-Eddie Holden [6]; 10. 27-Joby Baugh [3]; 11. 14-Trey Mills [7]; 12. 97-Billy Richardson [11]

B-main 2 (14 Laps) – 1. 000-Kevin Dedmon [1]; 2. 2-Dylan Houser [7]; 3. 331-Dustin Hall3 [6]; 4. 99-Patrick Solari [2]; 5. 71-Keven HÈbert [4]; 6. 92-Cory Austin [3]; 7. 923-Alex Rakers [5]; 8. 96-Josh Rhinerson [8]; 9. 56-Ethan Kammerude [9]; 10. 46-Jonathan Nause [10]; 11. 8-Peter Breis [11]

LUCKY SEVENS: Cardwell Capitalizes on Late Restart to win DIRTcar eSports at Kokomo

KOKOMO, IN – Even in the virtual world, there’s a reason they call it Indiana’s Baddest Bullring.

A perfectly timed slide job right after the race’s only restart was all it took for recent World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model iRacing World Championship winner Hayden Cardwell to score his first-ever victory in the Hoosier Racing Tire DIRTcar eSports 360 Sprint Car Showdown at Kokomo Speedway, besting his teammates David Heileman and Dylan Houser in a final seven-lap shootout for the $300 top prize.

“Luckily, we still got the 1-2-3… David [Heileman] almost got me there at the end, but it was a wild, wild deal,” Cardwell said. “This is my second start [in DIRTcar eSports]; I hope to be back more. It was a blast.”

And wild it was. Swindell SpeedLab eSports driver Kendal Tucker had taken the lead from polesitter Tyler Schell early on and was swiftly navigating through lapped traffic on the slicked-off quarter mile when a lapped car got loose and spun right in front of him. Tucker instantly piled right into him, sending his #00 flipping through Turns 1-2 and surrendering the lead on lap 25.

The yellow flag was thrown, and Tucker was able to salvage his now-bruised ride, lining up fifth for the restart. But despite his best efforts to reach the head of the field again, Tucker dropped back even further, setting for a 14th-place finish.

Out front for the restart was Heileman, who inherited the lead after a solid run inside the top-five throughout the race. He and the rest of the field hit the gas on the restart, gunning for the win in a seven-lap dash to the finish.

Cardwell lined up to Heileman’s outside and got a great run around the top before diving to the bottom in Turns 3-4 to set up a big slide job to take the lead in the next two corners. Heileman came back with a slider of his own on the next lap, but Cardwell’s top side momentum was just too strong. He stole the lead back and held off his hard-charging teammates in the final corners to secure the victory.

The three-car jingle that sent Tucker flipping in Turn 1 (Joe Grabianowski Photo)

“I had a lot of luck come my way in that race. It helps when you have two of the best in the game and two of your teammates right there in lapped traffic. It helped me see the wreck with Tucker,” Cardwell said.

In the final three laps, Cardwell, Heileman and Houser were parked right on the cushion the entire way around the track with nearly zero margin for error. Cardwell’s #7 scrubbed the outside wall a few times in the closing laps and opened the door for Heileman to try and make a last-ditch effort run down low in the final corner, but he was unsuccessful.

“I actually got a lot more grip off the bottom than I thought in that last corner, and I mashed the throttle,” Heileman said of his last-lap move to the bottom. “I didn’t really think I was gonna be that close. Even if I kinda worked up the throttle right, [Cardwell] still might have nicked me at the line.”

“I was waiting for it, but [Heileman] never threw it. I probably could have protected, but I have a good history of hitting yuke tires, so I wanted to stay away from them as best I could,” Cardwell said.

The DIRTcar eSports action continues in two weeks’ time – Wednesday, July 15. The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds will take to The (virtual) Dirt Track at Charlotte for a $350 top prize, broadcasted LIVE on DIRTVision presented by Drydene.

Joe Grabianowski Photo

DIRTcar eSPORTS SHOWDOWN; 360 Sprints at Virtual Kokomo Speedway; July 1, 2020 RESULTS

CHEVY PERFORMANCE Feature (35 laps) — 1. 7-Hayden Cardwell [4] [$300]; 2. 49-David Heileman [8] [$200]; 3. 2-Dylan Houser [5] [$100]; 4. 18-Austen Semmelmann [11] [$75]; 5. 85-Tyler Schell [1] [$50]; 6. 5-Rusty Kruger [6] [$45]; 7. 12-Alex Bergeron [2] [$40]; 8. 79-Billy Rowlee [12] [$35]; 9. 8-Matthew Howard [13] [$30]; 10. 71-Keven Hebert [18] [$25]; 11. 11-David Kalb [7] [$20]; 12. 1-Jeremy St. Louis [21] [$20]; 13. 14-Austin Wagner [16] [$20]; 14. 00-Kendal Tucker [3] [$20]; 15. 27-Dalton Wicker [15] [$20]; 16. 47-Brett Brunkenhoefer [10] [$20]; 17. 17-Cory Austin [19] [$20]; 18. 0-Billy Brickley [14] [$20]; 19. 125-John Lakata [22] [$20]; 20. 190-Seth Smyser [23] [$20]; 21. 86-Chase Swafford [9] [$20]; 22. 119-Miles Schwarz [20] [$20]; 23. 55-Matthew Erdman [24] [$20]; 24. 51-Clayton Tilley [17] [$20]. Lap leaders: Tyler Schell 1-4; Kendal Tucker 5-24; David Heileman 25-28; Hayden Cardwell 29-35. DIRTVision Hard Charger: Jeremy St. Louis +9.

 RACING ELECTRONICS Qualifying — 1. 85-Tyler Schell [11.806] [$25/Cometic Gasket]; 2. 12-Hebert Alex Bergeron [11.821]; 3. 00-Kendal Tucker [11.845]; 4. 7-Hayden Cardwell [11.861]; 5. 49-David Heileman [11.911]; 6. 86-Chase Swafford [11.968]; 7. 11-David Kalb [12.006]; 8. 18-Austen Semmelmann [12.057]; 9. 8-Matthew Howard [12.084]; 10. 51-Clayton Tilley [12.086]; 11. 2-Dylan Houser [12.095]; 12. 5-Rusty Kruger [12.124]; 13. 77-Will Salisbury [12.149]; 14. 71-Keven Hebert [12.156]; 15. 92-Caleb Kill [12.209]; 16. 47-Brett Brunkenhoefer [12.223]; 17. 46-Jonathan Nause [12.239]; 18. 17-Cory Austin [12.272]; 19. 32-Bradley Bauer [12.295]; 20. 0-Billy Brickley [12.325]; 21. 66-Shilo Boyce [12.369]; 22. 15-Brett Punkari [12.381]; 23. 55-Matthew Erdman [12.391]; 24. 79-Billy Rowlee [12.403]; 25. 119-Miles Schwarz [12.419]; 26. 31-Matthew Ogden [12.42]; 27. 14-Austin Wagner [12.499]; 28. 190-Seth Smyser [12.569]; 29. 27-Dalton Wicker [12.778]; 30. 125-John Lakata [12.834]; 31. 69-Brian Smith [12.958]; 32. 126-Jeffrey Eddy [13.085]; 33. 19-Chris Dolack [13.344]; 34. 22-Cody Weli [13.494]; 35. 1-Jeremy St. Louis [NA]; 36. 9-Matthew Schelk [NA].

DRYDENE Heat 1 (10 laps) — Top 4 Transfer — 1. 85-Tyler Schell [1] [$25]; 2. 7-Hayden Cardwell [2]; 3. 11-David Kalb [3]; 4. 47-Brett Brunkenhoefer [6]; 5. 190-Seth Smyser [10]; 6. 77-Will Salisbury [5]; 7. 32-Bradley Bauer [7]; 8. 15-Brett Punkari [8]; 9. 51-Clayton Tilley [4]; 10. 119-Miles Schwarz [9]; 11. 69-Brian Smith [11]; 12. 22-Cody Weli [12].

COMP CAMS Heat 2 (10 laps) — Top 4 Transfer — 1. 12-Alex Bergeron [1] [$25]; 2. 2-Dylan Houser [4]; 3. 49-David Heileman [2]; 4. 18-Austen Semmelmann [3]; 5. 0-Billy Brickley [7]; 6. 27-Dalton Wicker [10]; 7. 71-Keven Hebert [5]; 8. 31-Matthew Ogden [9]; 9. 55-Matthew Erdman [8]; 10. 46-Jonathan Nause [6]; 11. 126-Jeffrey Eddy [11]; 12. 1-Jeremy St. Louis [12].

ARP FASTENERS Heat 3 (10 laps) — Top 4 Transfer — 1. 00-Kendal Tucker [1] [$25]; 2. 5-Rusty Kruger [4]; 3. 86-Chase Swafford [2]; 4. 79-Billy Rowlee [8]; 5. 17-Cory Austin [6]; 6. 14-Austin Wagner [9]; 7. 66-Shilo Boyce [7]; 8. 125-John Lakata [10]; 9. 8-Matthew Howard [3]; 10. 92-Caleb Kill [5]; 11. 19-Chris Dolack [11]; 12. 9-Matthew Schelk [12].

WRISCO Last Chance Showdown #1 (14 laps) — Top 6 Transfer — 1. 8-Matthew Howard [8] [$25]; 2. 27-Dalton Wicker [3]; 3. 51-Clayton Tilley [7]; 4. 17-Cory Austin [2]; 5. 1-Jeremy St. Louis [12]; 6. 190-Seth Smyser [1]; 7. 32-Bradley Bauer [4]; 8. 66-Shilo Boyce [5]; 9. 31-Matthew Ogden [6]; 10. 69-Brian Smith [10]; 11. 19-Chris Dolack [11]; 12. 46-Jonathan Nause [9].

VP RACING FUELS Last Chance Showdown #2 (14 laps) — Top 6 Transfer — 1. 0-Billy Brickley [1] [$25]; 2. 14-Austin Wagner [3]; 3. 71-Keven Hebert [4]; 4. 119-Miles Schwarz [8]; 5. 125-John Lakata [6]; 6. 55-Matthew Erdman [7]; 7. 9-Matthew Schelk [12]; 8. 126-Jeffrey Eddy [10]; 9. 92-Caleb Kill [9]; 10. 77-Will Salisbury [2]; 11. 15-Brett Punkari [5]; 12. 22-Cody Weli [11].