MAPLE PARK, Ill. — On-again, off-again rain showers became more persistent and forced the postponement of Friday night’s $10,000-to-win DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour 40-lap main event at the Sycamore Speedway.
The feature race makeup date will be either July 8 or 9 depending whether Saturday night’s Hell Tour event at the Dirt Oval Route 66 Raceway in Joliet is completed.
Qualifying, heat races and a the “B” feature were in the books when heavy rains hit the speedway. Three-time Summer Nationals champion Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., paced a field of 34 entries with a lap of 14.593 seconds around the Sycamore oval to earn fast time honors.
Heat races were won by Brandon Sheppard, Ryan Unzicker, Charlie Olson and three-time Hell Tour champion Dennis Erb Jr. Shannon Babb, who has won four Summer National crowns in his career, won the “B” main, which, along with provisionals, set the 22-car feature field.
One of the provisional starting spots went to two-time Summer Nationals titlist Brian Shirley, who won Thursday’s Hell Tour opener at Kankakee County Speedway. Shirley, the 2018 Nationals champ, was leading the third 10-lap heat race of the night when he got into the loose stuff in turn three with few laps to go.
The rain also caused the Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals headliner to be postponed.