Jason Feger
Mike McKinney
Jerrad Krick
Jake Montgomery
Results | Points | Story & Pictures by Rocky Ragusa
The Fairbury Speedway opened their 80th consecutive season of auto racing. On hand Saturday night was a FALS Cup program featuring Late Models, Modifieds, Stock Cars, and the Pro Modified division. Taking home the wins were Jason Feger, Mike McKinney, Jerrad Krick, and Jake Montgomery.
The night’s action began with a 30-lap Late Model race sponsored by Varsitee Screen Printing. Starting in the second position, Ryan Unzicker took the lead from Jason Feger on the start and built a ten car-length lead. Unzicker set an intense pace and began working slower traffic by the seventh lap. On lap 10, as the duo went down the backstretch, Feger dove under Unzicker in turn three to take the lead. After a caution on lap 11, Feger pulled away from Unzicker, with Jake Little, Daniel Adam, and Mike Spatola racing for third. A caution fell on lap 14, and on the restart, Little moved past Unzicker for second. Unzicker began to lose ground and found himself trying to hold position as Spatola and McKay Wenger closed in. A caution fell with five laps to go, and on the restart, Wenger took second. At the end of the race, and following a dismal start to his year, Feger was able to take the win. “We started the year with only finishing one out of four races. Things didn’t go our way,” said Feger. “That’s part of racing. Hopefully we have gotten the bad luck off our back. The car felt good all night, so hopefully we are headed in the right direction.” Wenger took second, with Spatola, Unzicker, Little, and Kyle Hammer following. Michael Ledford started 13th and finished seventh. Jeffrey Ledford, Adam, and Zach Taylor rounded out the top ten. Feger set quick time with a 12.579 as 20 cars took time trials. Feger and Unzicker won their heat races.
In the 25-lap Modified race sponsored by Aftershock Decals and Designs, pole sitter Mike McKinney took the lead as fourth starter Austin Friedman moved into second. Two early cautions kept the field in check, with McKinney leading Friedman, Matthew Baker, Zeke McKenzie, and Carson Friedman. When the field went green after a lap seven caution, McKinney pulled away as McKenzie took second from Friedman. The caution fell with one lap to go, but on this night, McKinney was too much and took the win. For McKinney, it was his first Fairbury win since October 4, 2024. “We had a rough year here at Fairbury last year,” McKinney said. “This (Elite Chassis) is one of the best cars we have ever had here. Those cautions were killing me. It would take me a couple of laps to get the car going and back into rhythm.” McKenzie and Austin Friedman followed, with 12th starter Jeff Curl in fourth. Alan Stipp was involved in an early caution and rallied to finish fifth. Baker, Beau DeYoung, Eric Vaughan, John Dimmitt, and Derick Doerr followed. Austin Friedman set fast time with a 13.602. McKinney, Carson Friedman, and Baker took heat race wins.
Jerrad Krick turned the ¼-mile track in 14.680 seconds for fast time. Krick later won his heat race, with Cody Clubb and Jesse Simmons also winning their heats. The B-main went to Pete Odell as 24 Stock Cars were in attendance. In the 15-lap feature, Krick led as Zane Reitz and Cody Clubb raced for second, followed by Joe Brown and Nick Seplak. On the second restart after a lap six caution, Reitz went to the top side of the speedway to take second and pressured Krick for the lead. A caution fell with four laps to go with Krick leading Reitz and Brown. It was a tremendous race to the finish, but Krick was able to hang on for a hard-fought win. “I saw Zane down there a few times, and I knew I had to be patient,” Krick said. “I missed my marks down in turn one and knew I couldn’t do that again. I have won a few races here before, but this is my first FALS Cup. This is pretty awesome.” Reitz settled for second, followed by Brown, Clubb, Kyle Anderson, Barry Sauder, Simmons, Seplak, Jace Gall, and Odell.
The night’s racing program ended with a 15-lap Pro Modified race. Jake Montgomery, off to a good early-season start, raced into the lead and never looked back as he picked up his first-ever Fairbury feature win and third of the year. “I came here in 2016 in a Street Stock and I got to see what speed was like,” said Montgomery. “We came here tonight just wanting to finish the race. Everything just fell into place.” Kody Kovski, Donnie Cheesman, Donnie Martin, and Drake Compton rounded out the top five. Mark Rhoades, Mason Duncan, Randy Schoener, David Henderson, and Dylan Turpin completed the top ten. Nineteen cars made qualifying attempts, and Montgomery led the way with a 14.552. Montgomery completed the hat trick by winning his heat race, and Duncan claimed the second heat.
If the excitement of the 36th annual World of Outlaws Prairie Dirt Classic, presented by the Bank of Pontiac and Popejoy’s Inc., isn’t enough to look forward to, FALS officials will continue to host the FloRacing Night in America “One for the Road,” presented by I Beam Sliding Doors, a $20,000-to-win Late Model special on Wednesday night, July 22nd. All roads will again lead to America’s Dirt Track for a third night of racing during the Prairie Dirt Classic weekend. The PDC will continue its traditional Thursday Shriner’s children’s golf outing, Bank of Pontiac dinner, and country concert.
The 2026 Prairie Dirt Classic (July 24/25) will continue to pay an elite $50,000 to win, $3,000 to start, with an additional $50,000 in lap leader bonuses with the fans’ FALS Draw. In 2025, Brian Shirley picked up an amazing $88,500 for his first PDC win on a wild night at FALS. In addition to more than the $290,000 Late Model event purse for the World of Outlaws Prairie Dirt Classic, the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Championship will be a part of the PDC again in 2026, paying $5,000 to win.
The Triple Down Shootout hits Memorial Day weekend (May 23rd) with MARS Late Models ($5,000 to win), MARS Modifieds ($2,000 to win), and the Earl J. Hubert Stock Car special paying a strong $4,300 to win. Last year, Jason Feger, Derek Losh, and Nick Seplak took home action-packed feature wins, with 131 cars in the pits.
The Illinois Dirt Shootout will see a boost to the Labor Day weekend event on September 5th in 2026, with the MARS Championship Late Model Series paying $15,000 to win. The MARS Modified Championship Series will pay $5,000 to win, and added to the prestigious weekend will be DIRTcar Stock Cars paying $1,000 to win.
The FALS Frenzy will continue to be the final event in 2026 and home to the October tradition on the weekend of October 2nd & 3rd. Two days of racing action will continue the road to the MARS Championship campaign, with a $5,000-to-win Late Model feature on Friday night and a $10,000-to-win feature on Saturday. The MARS Modified Series will crown a champion and will race for $2,000 on Friday and $3,000 on Saturday. Also in action will be the DIRTcar Pro-Crate Late Models, battling for $750 to win on Friday and $1,000 to win on Saturday.
