ST. LOUIS – With the month of December brings the start of marquee indoor racing events for the winter.
The fifth annual Arizona Sport Shirts Gateway Dirt Nationals at The Dome at America’s Center gets underway Thursday with the first of two preliminary nights in advance of Saturday’s finale around the temporary one-fifth-mile clay oval.
Midgets, late models and UMP-style modifieds charge the first big indoor event of the winter.
Late models have 122 pre-entries, headlined by Thursday’s preliminary racers Brandon Sheppard and Scott Bloomquist and Friday’s headliners Jonathan Davenport and Bobby Pierce.
Sheppard is expected to race in Donny Schatz’s No. 15 Rocket Chassis this week.
Fifty-one modifieds, meanwhile, have pre-registered. Nick Hoffman, one of the discipline’s best, is scheduled to compete in Thursday’s preliminary night. Ricky Thornton Jr. and Mike McKinney lead the modified glamor on Friday.
For the midgets, it’s considered worthy practice for January’s Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, Okla., also held indoors at the Tulsa Expo Center. Unlike the late models and modifieds, entry lists won’t be known until closer to race time on Thursday.
This year’s NASCAR Cup Series champion, two-time reigning Chili Bowl Nationals champion and reigning Gateway Dirt Nationals midget winner Kyle Larson has been invited to compete, but hasn’t confirmed his attendance.
Newly crowned USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget champion Buddy Kofoid will not be participating in the event.
On track activity begins Thursday at 3 p.m. Central Time with hot laps for the late models and timed hot laps for midgets and modifieds.
Things will roll into eight-lap heat races. If necessary, eight-lap B mains will be coursed.
On Thursday and Friday, the midgets will race for 20 laps and $3,000 to win, the late models will go for 25 laps and $5,000 to win and the modifieds will run 20 laps for $3,000 to win.
On Saturday, on-track activity begin at 3 p.m. Central Time with last-chance qualifiers for the late models.
In the finale, the late models will race for 40 laps and $30,000 to win, while the midgets and modifieds go for 30 laps and $10,000 to win apiece.
The event returns after conditions from the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled last year’s running.
In 2019, Tyler Carpenter beat out Sheppard in a door-banging finish to win the late model portion, while Larson outran Chris Windom and Tyler Courtney in a midget.
Derek Losh is the reigning winner in the modified but isn’t on the pre-entry list.
For late model and modified pre-entry lists, turn to the next page.