Bobby Pierce Continues to Roll with Jacksonville Win
Photo by Jim Denhamer
Summer Nationals kicks off Heartland Tour week
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – June 21, 2016 – Bobby Pierce continued his Summer Nationals dominance Tuesday night at Jacksonville Speedway’s ILMO Propane Wildman Kelly Classic as he battled Mike Marlar to score his third win so far this season.
Pierce, the 19-year-old reigning Summer Nationals champion, came into the Heartland Tour kick off at Jacksonville after the first Monday break. After setting a new track record of 11.783 during qualifying, Pierce started the 40-lap feature in sixth with Marlar on the pole.
Pierce very quickly powered through the field once the green flag fell and found his way around the leader Marlar on lap 14. Through the remaining laps, Pierce was in a class all his own as Marlar looked for some way to catch the No. 32. Just before a caution on lap 37, Pierce nearly had the entire field lapped, having caught the battle for third at that point.
Pierce easily closed out the night with his second win in a row and third in five races. It was his 10th career Summer Nationals victory.
“Man, it’s starting off really good,” Pierce said. “I just hope it keeps going.”
Marlar, who has consistently been up front through the still young Summer Nationals tour, closed out the night in second with Michael Kloos getting a hard fought third place finish.
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals returns to action on Wednesday at Farley Speedway in Farley, Iowa.
Follow the Summer Nationals and Summit Modified Nationals on Twitter at Twitter.com/SummerNationals or on Facebook at Facebook.com/SummerNationals. Stay up-to-date with the latest news from the series throughout the lead up and the summer on the series’ websites at TheHellTour.com and ModifiedNationals.com.
DIRTcar Summer Nationals Statistical Report; Jacksonville Speedway, Jacksonville, Ill.
A-Main: 1. Bobby Pierce (Oakwood, IL) ($5,000), 2. Mike Marlar (Winfield, TN), 3. Michael Kloos (Trenton, IL), 4. Kevin Weaver (Gibson City, IL), 5. Shannon Babb (Moweaqua, IL), 6. Jason Feger (Bloomington, IL), 7. Dennis Erb, Jr (Carpentersville, IL), 8. Brian Diveley (Springfield, IL), 9. Chuck Mitchell (Jacksonville, IL), 10. Kolby Vandenbergh (Ashland, IL), 11. Greg Kimmons (Pleasant Plains, IL), 12. Brandon Sheppard (New Berlin, IL), 13. Mark Burgtorf (Quincy, IL), 14. Mike Hammerle (St Charles, MO), 15. Timothy Culp (Sheridan, AR), 16. Caleb Ashby (Cunningham, TN), 17. Don Hammer (Clinton, IL), 18. Bob Gardner (East Peoria, IL), 19. Ryan Unzicker (El Paso, IL), 20. Rodney Melvin (Benton, IL), 21. Gordy Gundaker (St Charles, MO), 22. Justin Reed (Camp Point, IL). Hard Charger: Jason Feger.
2016 DIRTcar Summer Nationals Schedule
| Date | Day | Track | Winners |
| Northern Kickoff | |||
| June 15 | Wednesday | Brownstown Speedway | Rain/Cancelled |
| June 16 | Thursday | Kankakee Co. Speedway | Bobby Pierce |
| June 17 | Friday | Cedar Lake Speedway | Billy Moyer |
| June 18 | Saturday | Cedar Lake Speedway | Billy Moyer (2) |
| June 19 | Sunday | Wilmot Speedway | Bobby Pierce (2) |
| Heartland Tour | |||
| June 20 | Monday | OFF | |
| June 21 | Tuesday | Jacksonville Speedway | Bobby Pierce (3) |
| June 22 | Wednesday | Farley Speedway | |
| June 23 | Thursday | Spoon River Speedway | |
| June 24 | Friday | Tri-City Speedway | |
| June 25 | Saturday | Fairbury Speedway | |
| June 26 | Sunday | Tri-State Speedway | |
| Southern Tour | |||
| June 27 | Monday | OFF | |
| June 28 | Tuesday | Clarksville Speedway | |
| June 29 | Wednesday | Belle Clair Speedway | |
| June 30 | Thursday | Springfield Raceway | |
| July 1 | Friday | Fayette Co. Speedway | |
| July 2 | Saturday | Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 | |
| July 3 | Sunday | Lincoln Speedway | |
| Independence Week | |||
| July 4 | Monday | LaSalle Speedway | |
| July 5 | Tuesday | Daugherty Speedway | |
| July 6 | Wednesday | Peoria Speedway | |
| July 7 | Thursday | Macon Speedway | |
| July 8 | Friday | Farmer City Speedway | |
| July 9 | Saturday | Highland Speedway | |
| July 10 | Sunday | Quincy Raceways | |
| Champions Week | |||
| July 11 | Monday | OFF | |
| July 12 | Tuesday | Plymouth Speedway | |
| July 13 | Wednesday | Shadyhill Speedway | |
| July 14 | Thursday | Merritt Speedway | |
| July 15 | Friday | Oakshade Raceway | |
| July 16 | Saturday | Oakshade Raceway |
