MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – Fans at Williams Grove Speedway will notice a format change to a few racing programs at the oval this season.
With the season lidlifter slated for March 13 at 2 p.m. offering the 410 sprints and the first appearance at the track by the wingless super sportsman, the oval recently went public with the qualifying tweak to four of its slated shows.Â
All four Yellow Breeches 500 races planned during the season will see timed practice laps used to set the heat starting lineups.
Hot lap/qualifying groups for the shows will be established and seeded equally based on each entered drivers season earning’s average to that point and all cars in a group will face off against the same opponents in their respective heat races.
An invert of the driver’s times after hot laps will be used to set the heat starting grids.
The top two or three heat finishers, based on the total number of heats contested, will then be placed into the front starting spots of the night’s main event again handicapped onto the grid based on each driver’s financial earning’s average to that point in the year.
Other rules updates for the season ahead include a change to a long-standing enforced penalty.
Officials have removed the two-week penalty clause that previously forced a driver who chose to compete directly against the oval to start at the rear of his or her heat race in the next two Williams Grove races they entered. Â
The speedway released a 31-date schedule for the racing season in November and is currently ramping up for the 2022 opener in just a few weeks.