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BIG-BLOCK MODS HEADLINE SATURDAY'S OPENER AT SHARON ON CDL & TOUCH-A-TRUCK NIGHT; UMP MODS, RUSH SPRINTS & CROWN VICS ALSO IN ACTION

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(Hartford, OH)... Sharon Speedway will try for the fifth time to kick-off the 2026 racing season this Saturday night (May 23) in a "Steel Valley Thunder" event. The 97th anniversary season opener will feature the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modifieds along with the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply UMP Mods presented by A&MP Electric, Gibson Insurance Agency RUSH Sprint Cars, and the Gibson Insurance Agency Crown Vics. Warmups will begin at approximately 6:30 p.m. followed by racing. It's Novus Home Mortgage and A&MP Electric Night.

Saturday is the first of numerous theme nights scheduled throughout the season. Saturday's promotion is CDL & Touch-A-Truck Night presented by Ohio Intra Express and P.I.&I. Motor Express. Saturday will recognize those that hold a CDL license with FREE general admission! Numerous trucks will also be on display.

In commemoration of their 70th anniversary of operation, King Bros. Ready Mix Concrete will give away a bicycle to a child at every Big-Block Modified event this season. The Big-Block Modified feature winner will draw a child's ticket in victory lane. If Rex King, Jr. wins the feature, two tickets will be drawn and two children's bicycles will be given away! Sharon Speedway would like to thank King Bros. for their support over the years.

The Willy's World Kids Club presented by Millcraft Barns returns for the second straight year. The Kids Club will include games and sensory friendly crafts and will open when the general admission gates open at 5 p.m. UMP Mod racer, Ty Rhoades, will be the driver of the week that will be signing autographs and participating in the Kids Club activities. Sharon Speedway is a Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Friend Venue; information is available at the Kids Club site behind the main grandstand building.

The Hovis Auto & Truck Supply Big-Block Modifieds are set for their first of what is now nine appearance over the remainder of the 2026 season presented by King Bros. Ready Mix Concrete, King's Sanitary Services, Russ King Racing, and Thermo Supply. Saturday's event will pay $2,000 to-win, $200 to-start.

The Big-Block Modifieds have made 648 appearances all-time at Sharon with 99 different winners. The late Lou Blaney sits atop the all-time win list with 121 victories. Active drivers with double digit win totals include Rex King, Jr. (29), Jim Rasey (19), Brian Swartzlander (14), and Rob Kristyak (11). New York invader, Erick Rudolph, is up to seven Sharon wins and will look to add to that on Saturday. Canadian Dalton Slack won his first career Big-Block Modified feature last year at Sharon and is planning on competing Saturday as well.

The Hovis Auto & Truck Supply UMP Mods are slated for their first of 12 visits during 2026. Special thanks to A&MP Electric, Holbrook Sewer & Excavating, and Wedge Motorsports for their support of the UMP Modified division. Saturday's event will pay $1,000 to-win, $100 to-start and is also part of the Locals Cup program.

Last season saw Ty Rhoades and Zain Harvey victorious in UMP Mod action. For Rhoades, it was his fourth career win in the division, while Harvey's was his first at Sharon. There have been 337 races run all-time at Sharon for the UMP Mod division with 64 different winners. Alan Dellinger sits atop the all-time win list with 87 victories over Joel Watson, who is still active in the class. Scott Stiffler, who in recent years has competed in the Pro Stock division, has 20 victories as Jeff Johnson (18) and Russ Dunn (13) complete the top five. After Watson, the next active UMP Mod winner is Joe Gabrielson with nine victories.

After two prior rainouts, the Gibson Insurance Agency RUSH Sprint Cars will look to get their season underway on Saturday. The non-wing Chevrolet Performance crate engine powered cars are in their ninth year of racing and have completed 42 events all-time at Sharon with 15 different winners.

Retired racer Chad Ruhlman, a five-time Series Champion, leads the way with 14 RUSH Sprint Car victories at Sharon. All eight of John Mollick's wins in the division at Sharon have come over the last two years. Blaze Myers sits third on the win list with four victories. Myers is the defending $5,000 Rustler Sales & Service Weekly Series Champion and won this year's only completed event on the circuit last Friday night at Tri-City.

Rounding out the four-division program on Saturday night will be the Gibson Insurance Agency Crown Vic division, which debuted on June 21, 2025. The division has exploded in popularity throughout the nation in recent years. Five events were completed last year during the inaugural season with four different winners. Brian Krepps was the only repeat winner, while Coleton Longwell, Travis Reeher, and Jacob Moon were also victorious. The rules are available at the following link: https://www.sharonspeedway.com/downloads/get.aspx?i=1195691. For tech questions, contact Rick Robinson at 724-893-6898.

Summit Racing Equipment will present the hard charger award on Saturday night to the Big-Block Modifieds. The driver that passes the most cars in the feature from their initial starting position will receive a $100 Summit gift card. In the event of a tie, the tiebreaker will be the driver that finishes highest in the feature.

One-way driver radios are mandatory; channel 454.000. AMB/MyLaps transponders are required; rentals available for $25. If you have yet to register for the 2026 season, please bring the registration form completed with you: https://www.sharonspeedway.com/downloads/get.aspx?i=1006835

Fans can not only experience viewing from the frontstretch and backstretch grandstands, but also from the infield fan zone, which includes concessions and restrooms. Sharon is the only track in the area to have viewing from the unique infield perspective. There will be times throughout the night when fans can cross on the frontstretch back and forth.

The pits will be open throughout the afternoon with passes going on sale at 4 p.m., while general admission opens at 5. Warmups are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. followed by racing. Grandstand/fan zone admission for those 14 and over is $15, while senior admission is $13. Patio seating upgrades are just $10 and can be done on race night at the track office for non-special events. As always, children under 14 and parking are always FREE. Pit passes are $35. As a reminder, coolers nor outside food or beverages are not permitted.

Coming next Saturday (May 30) will be round four of Western PA Speedweek featuring the Hovis Auto & Truck Supply "410" Sprint Cars racing for $5,000 to-win in "Floyd Trevis Memorial". The Hovis Big-Block Modifieds will return for $2,000 to-win and the Gibson Insurance Agency Crown Vics will round out the program.

Sharon Speedway is owned by Dave Blaney, Ryan Blaney, and Will Thomas III and is a 3/8-mile dirt track located on Custer-Orangeville Road in Hartford, Ohio near the intersection of Routes 7 & 305. For more information, check out the website at www.sharonspeedway.com or call 330-772-5481. Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sharonspeedway and follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @sharonspdwy.