Thunder Mountain Hosts Super DIRTcar Series For The Natural 77 Honoring Dale Planck
CENTER LISLE, NY – For the only time in 2024, the Super DIRTcar Series will invade New York’s Southern Tier.
The Series debuts at Thunder Mountain Speedway in Center Lisle, NY, on Tuesday, July 9, for The Natural 77 Honoring Dale Planck.
Drivers will battle in a 77-lap Feature, paying $ 7,700-to-win in honor of Planck, who ran the number 77.
Bonus money is also on the line, as Heat Race winners receive $77, and the drivers who finish seventh and 17th in the Feature get $100.
DIRTcar Sportsman will join the Super DIRTcar Series in the mid-week event.
Here’s a look at what to watch for at Thunder Mountain:
Perfect In New York: Super DIRTcar Series points leader Mat Williamson has been in a New York groove in 2024. The St. Catharines, ON driver has won all three Series Features contested in the Empire State.
He’ll have the chance to win his fourth straight Feature in New York on Tuesday while chasing another milestone. Winning The Natural 77 would make Williamson the first driver to win three consecutive Features since he won four straight last season.
Williamson has made three starts at Thunder Mountain in his career, earning two podiums. He finished third in the Lightning on the Mountain in 2021 and second in the Working Man’s 50 in 2019.
His next Super DIRTcar Series victory will be the 27th of his career.
Chasing The 88: After a second-place finish at Land of Legends Raceway, 10-time and defending Series champion Matt Sheppard has moved into second in the Super DIRTcar Series standings – 15 points behind Williamson.
The Waterloo, NY driver can cut into that lead on Tuesday at a place where he’s been successful. Sheppard has two victories at the 1/4-mile track, winning the Lightning on the Mountain in 2014 and 2021.
Sheppard’s next Series win will be his 97th, as he continues his quest to become the second driver in Super DIRTcar Series history to reach 100 victories.
Anthony Perrego, who’s third in the Series standings, has also found Victory Lane at Thunder Mountain. He won the Lightning on the Mountain in 2017 and finished on the podium on three other occasions (2013, 2015, 2016).
The “Ant-Man” enters the weekend 19 points behind Williamson.
Peter Britten and Jimmy Phelps are also within striking distance of the points lead.
Britten, “The Batman,” is 26 points out of first after going from 22nd to fourth at Land of Legends, and Phelps is in fifth, 39 points behind Williamson after his first Series podium of 2024.
Both are searching for their first Series win of the season and first win at Thunder Mountain.
Phelps enters The Natural 77 with momentum after winning the DIRTcar 358 Modified Series event at Weedsport Speedway on Sunday.
Valuable Experience: Darren Smith and Mike Mahaney are two drivers with extensive Thunder Mountain experience. Both have won track titles, with Smith’s coming in 2023.
The Binghamton, NY driver has two wins at the 1/4-mile track in 2024, including the Pinnacle of Power event in May, where he bet three full-time Super DIRTcar Series drivers.
Meanwhile, Mahaney was the 2015 Thunder Mountain track champion. However, Tuesday will be the first time he’s raced there in a Big Block and on Hoosier Tires. “Smooth Shoe” has won twice in 2024, winning at Grandview Speedway and Albany-Saratoga Speedway.
Smith’s win in the Pinnacle of Power event in 2024 was one of the only times Super DIRTcar Series stars gained experience at the track this season.
Tim Sears Jr. (third) and Phelps (fifth) earned top five finishes in the May event while Larry Wight finished seventh.
Ready To Defend: One of the home track regulars with extensive experience is current Thunder Mountain points leader Brandon Walters. The former Super DIRTcar Series regular has a win, three top fives, and four top 10s in five starts at the track in 2024. The Unadilla, NY driver has five career wins at the track.
Jimmy Zacharias, currently third in the track standings, also aims to steal a victory from the Super DIRTcar Series drivers at his home track on Tuesday.
The Candor, NY driver has three top fives this season and will pilot a Dale Planck tribute car at the event. Zacharias is a three-time winner at the track.
WHEN AND WHERE
Thunder Mountain Speedway (1/4-mile) in Center Lisle, NY on July 7
TRACK RECORD
Thunder Mountain: No Qualifying Session has been run
FEATURE WINNERS: (4 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins
- Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ON-4
- Matt Sheppard, Waterloo, NY- 2
- Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-1
Stewart Friesen, Niagara-On-The-Lake, ON-1
HEAT RACE WINNERS (18 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins
- Matt Sheppard, Waterloo, NY-5
- Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ON-4
- Peter Britten, Brisbane, QLD, AUS-3
Stewart Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON-3 - Jimmy Phelps, Baldwinsville, NY-2
Erick Rudolph, Ransomville, NY-2 - Rick Laubach, Quakertown, PA-1
Alex Payne, Hopewell, NY-1
Rex King Jr., Bristolville, OH-1
Larry Wight, Phoenix, NY-1
Billy Pauch Jr., Frenchtown, NJ-1
Bob McGannon, Garnerville, NY-1
Tim Sears Jr., Hastings, NY-1
Max McLaughlin, Mooresville, NC-1
Tim Fuller, Edwards, NY-1
Ronnie Johnson, Duanesburg, NY-1
Dalton Slack, Welland, ON-1
Justin Stone, Middlebury, VT-1
LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (11 Drivers)
Rank- Driver- Hometown-Wins
- Larry Wight, Phoenix, NY-3
- Felix Roy, Napierville, QC-1
Stewart Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON -1
Billy Pauch Jr., Frenchtown. NJ-1
Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-1
Marc Johnson, Guilderland, NY-1
Brandon Walters, Unadilla, NY-1
Daniel Johnson, Middlesex, NY-1
Alex Yankowski, Covington Township, PA-1
Kolby Schroder, Staatsburg, NY-1
David Schilling, East Greenbush, NY-1
PODIUM FINISHES (9 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – Podiums
- Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ON-5
- Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-4
Matt Sheppard, Waterloo, NY-4 - Stewart Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON-3
- Erick Rudolph, Ransomville, NY-2
Peter Britten, Brisbane, QLD-2 - Larry Wight, Phoenix, NY-1
Alex Yankowski, Covington Township, PA-1
Jimmy Phelps, Baldwinsville, NY-1
HARD CHARGER (6 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – H.C.
- Larry Wight, Phoenix, NY-2
- Stewart Friesen, Niagara-On-The-Lake, ON-1
Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ON-1
Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-1
Louden Reimert, Oley, PA-1
Mike Mahaney, Elizabethtown, NY-1
Peter Britten, Brisbane, QLD-1
BILLY WHITAKER CARS AND TRUX QUICK TIMES (8 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – QTs
- Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ONT-1
Rex King Jr., Bristolville, OH-1
Demetrios Drellos, Queensbury, NY-1
Peter Britten, Brisbane, QLD-1
Stewart Friesen, Sprakers, NY-1
Erick Rudolph, Ransomville, NY-1
Tim Fuller, Edwards, NY-1
Dalton Slack, Welland, ON-1
JAM Performance Fastest Hot Lap Award (5 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – QTs
- Jimmy Phelps, Baldwinsville, NY-3
- Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-2
- Stewart Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON-1
Tim Fuller, Edwards, NY-1
Dalton Slack, Welland, ON-1
Super DIRTcar Series Lap Leaders (13 Drivers)
Rank – Driver, Hometown – Laps Led
- Mat Williamson, St. Catharines, ON- 187
- Anthony Perrego, Montgomery, NY-84
- Stewart Friesen, Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON-60
- Darren Smith, Binghamton, NY-40
- Tanner VanDoren, Schnecksville, PA-32
- Demetrios Drellos, Queensbury, NY-24
- Ronnie Davis III, Memphis, NY-22
- Matt Sheppard, Waterloo, NY-21
- Larry Wight, Phoenix, NY-12
- Erick Rudolph, Ransomville, NY-9
Alex Yankowski, Covington Township, PA-9 - Tim Sears Jr., Hastings, NY-5
- Jimmy Phelps, Baldwinsville, NY-7
2024 Super DIRTcar Series Schedule and Winners
- Wednesday, Feb. 14/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Matt Sheppard (1)*
- Thursday, Feb. 15/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Mat Williamson (1)*
- Friday, Feb. 16/Volusia Speedway Park/Barberville, FL/Matt Sheppard (2)*
- Saturday, March 30/New Egypt Speedway/New Egypt, NJ/Anthony Perrego (1)
- Sunday, May 26/Weedsport Speedway/Weedsport, NY/Mat Williamson (2)
- Tuesday, June 4/Big Diamond Speedway/Pottsville, PA/Stewart Friesen (1)
- Tuesday, June 25/Albany-Saratoga Speedway/Malta, NY/Mat Williamson (3)
- Thursday, July 4/Land of Legends Raceway/Canandaigua, NY/Mat Williamson (4)
*: Denotes Non-Points Paying Victory