All things are possible through horsepower, which will give six area clergy the strength to thrash one another in school buses on Charlotte Motor Speedway’s frontstretch quarter-mile on Tuesday. As part of an action-packed night of Bojangles’ Summer Shootout excitement presented by iFLY, local clergy will leave the pulpit for the pits when they converge on America’s Home for Racing for a Faster Pastor school bus slobberknocker like no other.
With racing’s rising stars setting the tone for an eventful night of family-friendly excitement, six of the world’s most aggressive – if not fastest – pastors will duel to decide whose next sermon will be on how to trade paint. The starting field will be set by the church to donate the most non-perishable food items, personal hygiene products, baby food, diapers, wipes, formula, household cleaning supplies, paper products and laundry supplies to the speedway’s purple “Blessing Bus” in front of the Smith Tower entrance.
As an added bonus, all race fans named “Matthew,” “Mark,” “Luke” or “John” get in FREE with a valid I.D.
This year’s Faster Pastor field includes:
- Josh Fraley – Euto Baptist Church
- Dustin Hamrick – Calvary Baptist Church
- Kris Mares – Mount Tabor United Methodist Church
- Ian Montalto – Venture Church
- George Whitmire – Harris First Baptist Church
- Daniel WIlson – Assurance United Methodist
Mares won the Faster Pastor showdown in 2017. The wife of Bill Mares – the interior mechanic for Matt DiBenedetto’s No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota Camry in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series – is ready to make it two out of three.
“I’m ready to bring home the victory belt and trophy,” Mares said. “Racing is a family sport for us and I love that my church and NASCAR friends can all come together in one place to enjoy some fun. I won in 2017 and I’m ready to rub tires and get back in Victory Lane.”
Mares’ road to the Promised Land won’t be easy.
Hamrick, a newcomer to the high-stakes, low-speed world of Faster Pastor racing, has his plan in place and is ready for his prayers to be answered.
“This will be my first Faster Pastor race and I am super excited about it,” Hamrick said. “My approach to victory is to return with the first-place trophy or return broke.”
Gates open at 5 p.m. with opening ceremonies set for 6:15 p.m.
TICKETS:
Tickets, which cost only $8 for adults and are FREE for kids 13 and under, can be purchased at the gate or in advance by calling 800-455-FANS or online at www.charlottemotorspeedway.com/tickets.
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