ONA, WV-The 2025 season at the Ona Speedway is set to get underway this Saturday, May 3rd for Putnam County Bank Opening Night! The race night will be headlined by the Putnam County Bank Throwback Classic featuring a 40 lap, $1,000 to win special for the LG Pressure Washing Modifieds. All Season’s Powersports Late Models, Eco First Street Stocks, Contempo Trophy & Awards UCAR’s, Three Sixteen Motorsports INEX Legends Cars, Brody Nash Century 21 Crown Vics, Crazy Compacts, and Keaton’s Collision Center Juice Boxes will also be on the racing card.
This year’s Putnam County Bank Opening Night is one of the most highly anticipated Opening Night races in the track’s modern era. A lot of the excitement is around the new asphalt that has been put down on the track on the frontstretch, turn one, turn two, and the backstretch. The new asphalt is expected to pick up speeds and is expected to change the way that the drivers drive the track. The new asphalt will present a challenge to drivers as they will go from sections with maximum grip on the new surface into sections with minimal grip on the old surface. This could create a whole lot of shake up in who is fast and who isn’t as old setups and driving styles now become almost obsolete. The drivers who figure out the new track surface the quickest will be the drivers who find early season success. All of this will make reaching victory lane on Saturday more difficult than ever.
Saturday will also be the debut of the highly anticipated Keaton’s Collision Juice Box division. The Juice Box division allows children ages 3-8 an opportunity to race at the speedway in a small track on the frontstretch. This class has received a lot of attention, including a featured segment on WSAZ News Channel 3, and is expected to have a large number of entries on Saturday. The entries are high enough where the track will have two races, one for kids ages 3-5 and one for kids ages 6-8.
Putnam County Bank Opening Night, the first race back after a long winter offseason, is always a race that every driver circles on their schedule to want to win. It brings high anticipation as everyone starts off on an even slate. That will be the case even more so this year with the new track surface. Putnam County Bank Opening Night is the first race in a long championship battle that spans the length of the spring and summer. A win on Opening Night can set you up strong for the championship hunt while a bad night on Opening Night can put drivers in a points hole to start the year. An incredible night of racing in every class is expected.
Drivers will have the opportunity to take their first practice laps on the track on Thursday, May 1st with an open Test N’ Tune from 5:00 pm until dark. This practice session will be crucial for teams to help get their setup dialed in. Friday, May 2nd from 5:00 pm until dark will serve as the rain date for the Test N’ Tune in case weather would intervene on May 1st. Pit passes for the Test N’ Tune are only $10 while the cost for a driver and race car is $25.
Pit gates on Saturday will open at 1:00 pm while general admission gates will open at 5:00 pm. Racing will start at 6:30 pm. General admission is only $15 (ages 13 and up) and FREE for ages 12 and under. All access pit passes are $35 for ages 13 and up and FREE for ages 12 and under.
For more information visit www.onaspeedway.com.
