ONA, WV-Following an exciting first three race night of the 2021 season, the Ona Speedway will be back in action for another special event this Saturday, May 22nd for Southern Ohio Speed Night. The exciting night of racing will feature the CRS Super Truck Series, Keaton’s Collision Center Late Models, McCam Builders Modifieds, Greg Chandler Frame & Body Sport Mods, Rocky Top’s Pizza Street Stocks, McCam Builders Classic Cars, Southern Ohio Speed INEX Legends Car Pro, and Keaton’s Collision Center INEX Legends Car Semi-Pro.
CRS Super Truck Preview
Saturday will be the second race of the 2021 season for the CRS Super Truck Series and will be the series only appearance at Ona Speedway this year. In the series first race at Sandusky Speedway back in April, northern Ohio driver Brian Taylor took the win in an exciting race that featured 5 lead changes. Taylor competed in both CRS Super Truck races at Ona last season and had a 3rd and 5th place finish. Taylor will be looking to break up the Ona Speedway dominance of Brandon Huff. Huff won both CRS Super Truck Series races at Ona last season and was the fast qualifier at Sandusky. The CRS Super Trucks are loud, fast, and produce great door to door racing, making them a fan favorite at Ona Speedway. With an influx of new drivers to the series this season, it is sure to be a can’t miss show for the 50 lapper on Saturday!
Keaton’s Collision Center Late Model Preview
Jake Keaton has been the story of the Keaton’s Collision Center Late Model division so far this season. Keaton has driven his Fury Race Car to feature wins in both races this season and comes into Saturday as the points leader. Keaton’s wins have not came easy though as Jerick Johnson challenged him for several laps on May 1st and Jacob Bell led the first 6 laps of an exciting feature last Saturday. Bell has started the season strong with a 2nd and 4th place finish and comes into Saturday second in points. Defending track champion Kenny Parsons rebounded from a tough first race to move into third in points following a third place finish last Saturday. Will Keaton make it three wins in a row Saturday or will someone new visit victory lane?
McCam Builders Modified Preview
If there’s one thing we learned from last week’s first McCam Builders Modified feature of the season, it’s that the class is ultra-competitive once again. The top 7 cars in qualifying were only separated by 0.135 tenths of a second. The close action continued in the 30 lap feature with a thrilling race that saw Jake Keaton pass Greg Chandler on a lap 3 restart to never look back and take his second feature win on the night. Chandler and Andy Booten had one of the most intense battles we’ve seen in a long time with a thrilling, side by side battle for the races final five laps with Chandler taking the second spot in a drag race at the line by only 0.013 hundredths of a second.
As if thrilling competition wasn’t enough, this Saturday is also set to be the return of two legendary drivers at the track. Hubie Hatfield and Roger Dilley have both verbally committed to racing Saturday as Hatfield debuts a new car and Dilley will run his familiar #3R machine with a new body on the car. One thing is for sure, the Modified race on Saturday alone will be worth the price of admission!
Greg Chandler Frame & Body Sport Mod Preview
The Greg Chandler Frame & Body Sport Mod class has featured two different winners in the first two races. Last race, veteran driver Rick Watson returned to Ona Speedway victory lane in only his second race since his return to racing. Watson is an early season dogfight for the track championship with defending track champion Marty Powers as both drivers come in tied for the points lead heading into Saturday. With both drivers fast and it difficult to make up points in this class, every single race has major points implications as Watson and Powers will look to out run each other on Saturday. Powers, Chad Bailey, Chris Smith, and Jacob Parsons will be looking for their first wins of the season while Watson will look to win and stand alone atop the point standings.
Rocky Top’s Pizza Street Stock Preview
We hyped in our 2021 Season Preview articles about how competitive the Rocky Top’s Pizza Street Stock class was going to be this season. In two races, the class has lived up to it’s hype with 2 different winners in 2 races. Clinton Thompson took his first feature win since 2019 back on April 30th while former dirt racer Clark Perry took the win last week in only his eighth start on asphalt. There are still several drivers looking to make their debut race in the class this season. Two of those drivers, Josh Ferrell and Chris Wheeler, plan on competing in the class this Saturday. The racing action is expected to be intense once again as Clark Perry enters Saturday with a slim 4 point lead over Chris Jividen.
McCam Builders Classic Car Preview
While car count has been lower than normal in the McCam Builders Classic Cars for the first two races, the racing action through the field has been excellent. Last week, Cabell-Midland high school student Will Hass took the lead on the highside after an intense battle with Brad Cooper to take the win. Dating back to last season, Hass has won the last 4 Classic Car races and will look to take his fifth win in a row on Saturday and extend his points lead. The car count is expected to be higher on Saturday as Cam McKinney looks to be back in action following motor problems last week and Jeff Taylor and Alvie Deal look to make their first race of the season.
Southern Ohio Speed INEX Legends Car Pro Preview
Thrilling racing has become the norm for the Legends Car classes at Ona and the last race with the Southern Ohio Speed INEX Legends Car Pro class was no different as Steve Swann stormed from the tail to win. Ironically, the last two races Swann has competed in he has came from the tail to win. Since his return to racing last season, Swann has been undefeated in the class but will be facing stiffer than ever competition this Saturday and the rest of the season. Some of the most intense racing of the night on Saturday will no doubt be found in this class.
Keaton’s Collision Center INEX Legends Car Semi-Pro Preview
The Keaton’s Collision Center INEX Legends Car Semi-Pro could very well be the class that has the most parity of any classes this season. 15 year old driver Will Geer took a thrilling win in the first race of the season back on May 1st while Dale Garrett and Aaron Auffant had podium finishes in their first ever races. The drivers in this class are all hungry for checkered flags and with lap times so close together, every single driver has a chance to win. It will no doubt be a wild 20 lap feature in this class on Saturday!
Friday Practice
Ona Speedway normally hosts practice on Thursdays prior to a race night. To accommodate CRS Super Truck Series teams traveling to the track, Southern Ohio Speed Practice Night will be on Friday, May 21st this week. Practice will run from 5:00 pm until dark. Pit passes for practice night are $5 while the cost to practice a race car/truck is only $20.
Times and Admission Prices
In a bargain deal for race fans, general admission prices for Saturday’s Southern Ohio Speed Night are only $15 for ages 15 and up, $10 for ages 11-14, and free for ages 10 and under. All access pit passes are $30 for ages 15 and up, $15 for ages 11-14, and free for ages 10 and under. Pit gates Saturday will open at 1:00 pm with practice until 4:00 pm. Drivers meeting will be at 4:30 pm with qualifying at 5:00 pm and racing at 6:00 pm. This will be the final race until the fall that the early 6:00 pm start times will be utilized.
For more information visit www.onaspeedway.com.
