The 2021 racing season is winding down fast as Macon Speedway will determine all the point champions later this month. Only three race nights remain, including this Saturday, September 11th, where a Midwest Big Ten Series Street Stock champion will be crowned. Decatur Area Convention & Visitors Bureau/Griz 98.1 FM night will feature seven divisions, including a special visit from the Vintage Racing Of Illinois Series.
Co-headlining the event will be the Midwest Big Ten Street Stocks, which have run nine of their ten events this season. Saturday night, the 2021-point champion will be decided and the two drivers with the best chance are the only two to claim championships in series history, Terry Reed and Jeremy Nichols. Each has claimed three series championships.
Entering Saturday’s event, Cerro Gordo, IL’s Reed has a 14-point lead on Lovington, IL’s Nichols in the Big Ten standings. Despite being in second, Nichols might have the better chance to claim the championship as only the best eight finishes count toward the points. Nichols has a 34-point race to fall off, while Reed has a 50-point race that may fall off. If you look at it that way, Nichols virtually has a two-point advantage entering the final event. There are many scenarios that will keep the championship battle interesting.
The Vintage Racing of Illinois Series will be making their only visit of the season. The series features race cars of yesteryear and is a must see for lovers of vintage race cars. Not only are they great to see, they are fun to watch battle for the wins as they actually race hard for the trophy. The previous visit, a couple years ago, kept fans on the edge of their seats. A field in upwards of 12-14 cars is expected.
The Decatur Building Trades Pro Late Models are back this week with Williamsville, IL driver, Colby Sheppard, leading the way. Sheppard has a 156-point lead in the division standings over Macon, IL’s Donny Koehler. Sheppard, who could lock up the championship this week, is coming off of his second win of the season two weeks ago, making a late race pass on Braden Johnson. Ryan Miller, Johnson, and Derek Smith complete the top five in points in the class.
Macon Speedway’s strongest division this year has been the BillingsleyRewards.com Modified class. The division has seen over 20 cars in each of the last two events, leading to exciting feature events. Springfield, IL’s Guy Taylor, leads the points by 70, having claimed three feature wins this season. Kyle Helmick in his Pro Mod, Alan Crowder who won the most recent race, Tommy Sheppard, and Billy Knebel round out the top five in points. Each driver in the top five has won at least one feature this year.
The aforementioned, Helmick, is leading the DIRTcar Pro Mod standings at the track by 64 over Knebel. Both drivers have run Mods and Pro Mods all season long, keeping them busy every Saturday night. Helmick has claimed five feature wins in the Pro Mod division, while Knebel, Kevin Crowder, and Guy Taylor in positions two through four, have claimed one each. Fifth place competitor, Nick Justice, has taken three victories.
Allan Harris, of Chatham, IL, is the DIRTcar Hornet point leader coming into Saturday’s action at the track. Harris has won five features throughout the 2021 season but has just a 52 point lead on Billy Mason, of Brownstown, IL. Shelby Beiler, in her rookie season, Justin Coffey, and Korey Bailey round out the top five in points.
One of the closest point battles every year seems to come in the Micros By Bailey Chassis division. 2021 is just the third year the track has counted the class as an official point collecting division. This Saturday’s event is the last one of the season for the Micros at Macon Speedway so a champion will be determined. Springfield, IL’s Daryn Stark leads the points by 32 over Warrensburg, IL’s Hayden Harvey, so it will be a battle of the #55 cars. John Barnard, Jacob Tipton, and Kyle Barker round out the top five in points.
Pits open Saturday at 4:00, grandstands at 5:00, hotlaps begin at 6:00, and racing will take the green at 7:00. Grandstand admission is $15, while kids 11 and under are free.
Track Side Enterprises PR
