MATTOON, Ill. — Since the 1950s in Illinois, the town of Mattoon has witnessed dirt midget racing grow from a regional to a national level.
The town welcomed the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota to Coles County Speedway for the first time last year, and this year the midget series returns for the inaugural King of Coles event May 30-31.
Competition begins with a $4,000-to-win Feature in the weekend’s opener on Friday. Then, Saturday night’s $5,000-to-win finale will crown the King of Coles County Speedway.
Both nights will also count toward the Xtreme-POWRi Challenge Series. They’ll be the third and fourth races of the 10-race series.
Inaugural Coronation
The Xtreme Outlaw Midgets visited Coles County Speedway for the first time in 2024, with the year’s Rookie of the Year Ashton Torgerson winning the night’s feature.
Upping the stakes in its second year with the series, the track will award the status of King of Coles for this year’s main event winner.
Alongside the racing, the Honest Abe Roofing Cookout will provide food and refreshments for drivers and teams to enjoy at the Xtreme weekend on Friday night.
Holding Strong
Series point leader Jacob Denney’s time at Airport Raceway did not go the way he wanted. Trouble early on in the race resulted in his drive from 16th to eighth by the checkered flag.
His recovery helped him maintain his points lead. He left Garden City with a 57-point advantage over Chase McDermand.
Similar to the four tracks that the series has raced in 2025, the pilot of the Keith Kunz/Curb-Agajanian Motorsports No. 67 will climb into his car at Coles County for the first time to chase the first monarch honors in the track’s history.
Cannon’s Takeoff
Cannon McIntosh needed a spark to get his 2025 Xtreme Outlaw Midgets season back in full song after leaving Farmer City Raceway 16th in points. Since then, the Bixby, OK driver has garnered a top-five finish at Humboldt Speedway, a podium finish at 81 Speedway, and then his first win of the season at Airport Raceway – his second career Midget Roundup victory.
The reigning champion’s May comeback helped him jump 10 positions in the standings to sixth place as he looks to score his second win of the season at a track that saw him pick up a top five and a podium finish in 2024.
Challenge Royale
The King of Coles weekend sets up the third and fourth races of the 2025 Xtreme-POWRi Challenge Series schedule – the first events since Farmer City Raceway in April.
IL’s Karter Sarff leads the standings entering the weekend, with Denney behind the Toyota-powered No. 21K by a single point.
The top five drivers sit within 26 points of each other, with 2023 champion Zach Daum in third (20 points), Chase McDermand in fourth (24 points), and fifth-place rookie Kameron Key in tow.
Flying Rookies
Several rookies of the Xtreme Outlaw Midgets have shone through the first quarter of the season as they knock on the door toward their first feature win.
Hayden Wise became the first 2025 Series rookie to lead laps in a Feature after starting the Midget Roundup on the pole and leading the opening 14 laps before finishing fourth for her first top five.
Trifecta Motorsports’ Michael Faccinto scored his second straight top five, while 21-year-old Alex Karpowicz has scored top 10s in every series race contested in Kansas.
