WEEDSPORT, N.Y. —For just the third time in nine seasons, Weedsport Speedway’s season opening Icebreaker 50 saw the green flag on Sunday afternoon and it was Alex Payne running away with a dominant green to checkered win in DIRTcar Big Block Modified action, worth $5,000.
Gray skies and unseasonably cool temperatures saw officials start the day’s events two hours ahead of schedule, with more than 100 racecars enjoying a full day of action on the Weedsport oval.
Hunter Hollenbeck and Jerry Lobdell Jr. would join Payne atop victory hill, topping their respective DIRTcar Sportsman and Empire Street Stock divisions.
Twenty-eight DIRTcar Modifieds took the green flag on Sunday with an all-Payne front row consisting of Alex and Zach Payne for the start of the day’s featured 50-lapper. It would be Alex wasting little time darting to the head of the pack, utilizing the outside lane of a tabletop smooth Weedsport surface, which saw racing across three grooves in the main event.
Starting from third, Alex Yankowski quickly settled into the second position with Jimmy Phelps making an early charge from sixth to third in the No. 98H.
In what would turn out to be a green to checkered main, Payne would cruise to a comfortable lead from the get-go, with Yankowski and Phelps locked in a tight battle for the runner-up position in lapped traffic. Eventually Phelps would clear, leaving Yankowski in his wake as he did his best to try and chase down Payne at the front of the field.
The four-position charge from Phelps would fall short however, as Payne’s momentum on the top side of the speedway propelled him to a 5.366-second victory over the course of the 50-lapper for his first official DIRTcar Big Block Modified win of 2026.
Yankowski would settle for third ahead of Larry Wight and Zach Payne in the front five positions. Peter Britten, Darren Smith, Michael Maresca, Tim Sears Jr. and Erick Rudolph would land inside the top ten at the end of the afternoon.
Jerry Lobdell Jr. made a drive from seventh to the win in the Empire Street Stock main event to cap off the afternoon on Sunday.
The finish:
Feature (50 laps): 1. 70A – Alex Payne, 2. 98H – Jimmy Phelps, 3. 84Y – Alex Yankowski, 4. 99L – Larry Wight, 5. 7Z – Zach Payne, 6. 21A – Peter Britten, 7. 12 – Darren Smith, 8. 7MM – Michael Maresca, 9. 83X – Tim Sears Jr., 10. 25R – Erick Rudolph, 11. 32R – Ronnie Davis III, 12. 11 – Matt Caprara, 13. 6 – Matt Stangle, 14. 19 – Tim Fuller, 15. 3RS – Dalton Slack, 16. M1 – Dave Marcuccilli, 17. 5H – Amy Holland, 18. 72 – Ajay Potrzebowski, 19. 30 – Nicholas Root, 20. 7 – Paul Mancini, 21. 27Z – Dylan Zacharias, 22. 63 – Bryon Worthing, 23. 11T – Jeff Taylot, 24. 88H – Chris Hulsizer, 25. 160 – Max Hill, 26. 7B – Mitchell Bard, 27. 22 – Brandon Walters
