ONA, WV-The Ona Speedway is set for a quick turn around for the second race of the season this Saturday, June 10th for Express Employment Professionals Kids Night. This event will be one of the most fan friendly events of the season with lots of free activities for the kids as well as a full, exciting 7 division racing program of All Seasons Powersports Late Models, Patriot Meat Processing Modifieds, Haunted Majestic Street Stocks, Contempo Trophy & Awards UCAR’s, Mays Tire & Service Center INEX Legends Car Pro, Jeffrey Trucking INEX Legends Car Semi-Pro, and Gumbo Stop Cafe Crazy Compacts. Below are the biggest headlines heading into Saturday’s big night of racing:
Lots of Fun for the Kids
Ona Speedway has always strived to be a place for family friendly fun. Not only will all kids 12 and under be admitted free with a paying adult on Saturday, as they will all season, there will also be lots of fun for the kids. An inflatable bounce house and slide will be setup at the track that will be free for all kids in attendance to play on. The inflatables will be open starting at 5:00 pm. The Reptile House & Rescue, one of the top attractions at the Huntington Mall, will also be setup at the track with large snakes, large tortoises, and even an alligator. They will be doing a live reptile show at the speedway at 5:30 pm and will have a second show during intermission. The animals will be on display at the speedway throughout the evening.
If that wasn’t enough, there will also be lots of giveaways for the kids. Geer Brothers Body Shop and Workman’s Lawn Care have donated bicycles while The Foam House has donated 4 passes and Dale Garrett Racing has donated hot wheel cars. All kids will be given a ticket when they enter the speedway and tickets will be drawn to determine the winners at intermission.
What impact will the choose rule have?
When Ona Speedway officials announced all restarts would be utilized using the choose rule, we knew it would add a major strategy element to each race. We already saw this first hand last Saturday during Putnam County Bank Throwback Night. During the Haunted Majestic Street Stock feature, Tommy Rowe was the only driver to choose the high side and it results in him greatly improving his position and challenge for a win following the restart. During the Contempo Trophy & Awards UCAR feature, all rows were even on a restart, with Chris Deskins utilizing the high side to make the pass on the restart and go on to win. In the Mays Tire & Service Center INEX Legends Car Pro, Zack Steele went to the tail for spinning and then chose the outside on the restart, allowing him to duck back into the position he was running in before the spin.
While each restart looked different as far as the number of cars lined up on the high side, the result of each restart usually saw the driving choosing the high side improve or at minimum maintain their position. It will be interesting to see if more cars will start choosing the high side during restarts this Saturday.
Late Model Field Wide Open Saturday
There’s been no doubt that over the past couple of seasons, 2 time defending track champion Jake Keaton has been the driver to beat in the All Seasons Powersports Late Model division. Keaton has won more races in the class than any other driver, including having a perfect win season in 2021. Keaton however, is not scheduled to be at Ona on Saturday due to a schedule conflict with the speedway having to adjust the rain date. This will no doubt open the field up for a new winner this season. Last Saturday saw the largest Late Model field in many years at Ona in a non-Mountaineer 100 race with a lot of great competition. Keep an eye on Saturday’s 25 lap Late Model feature as being one of the closest, most intense races of the night.
Legends Cars Look to Thrill Again
Track officials announced a new Legends Car field split over the offseason that was aimed to make both the Pro and Semi-Pro classes as competitive as ever. This new formula already proved it worked last weekend as both classes produced some of the most exciting racing of the night. Heading into the season, no driver in the Semi-Pro class had won a race in the division. This mix of potentially seeing so many first time winners creates excitement in itself as last Saturday saw Jay Dunlap score his first career win in thrilling fashion. Will Dunlap repeat this Saturday or will we see another first time winner? One thing is for sure, it will be fun to watch.
The Pro class might just be the most competitive class at the speedway from top to bottom. Tyler Martin started where he left off at the end of last season by taking the feature win. Jake Keaton and Will Geer were all close behind Martin in a thrilling, three car race for the win. In a class where any driver in the field can win, the action is sure to be hot and heavy in the class Saturday.
Chapman Keeps Winning
Kenny Chapman has been a staple of the Haunted Majestic Street Stock class for many years. Chapman has drove his familiar #16 machine at the speedway since the 1990’s. With all the changes that have came to the class in the 25 years Chapman has competed in it, Chapman keeps winning. At the end of last season, rumors swirled that Chapman was going to be retiring. However, Chapman quickly put those rumors to rest over the winter with pictures of all the work going into his car. Chapman started the year last year winning in thrilling fashion over Tommy Rowe, who scored his best career finish in second. The Street Stocks always put on incredible racing at Ona and will no doubt do the same this Saturday.
Keaton, Cooper, Watson Start 2023 Much Like 2022
Jake Keaton, Jeremy Cooper, and Stacie Watson were all track champions in their respective divisions last year and scored the most wins in their divisions. The trio of drivers started 2023 the way they ended 2022, in victory lane. While Keaton isn’t scheduled to be in attendance to defend his Late Model win this Saturday, Cooper and Watson will be looking to continue their strong momentum by starting the season off 2 for 2 on Saturday.
Times and Admission Prices
General admission is only $15 for ages 13 and up and kids 12 and under are free. Race fans can upgrade their experience with an all access pit pass which is $35 for ages 13 and up and free for ages 12 and under. Pit gates open at 1:00 pm with practice at 2:00 pm, qualifying at 4:00 pm, and racing at 6:30 pm. A complete raceday schedule is posted on the website.
