Friday night at Tri City Raceway Park had a little bit of everything — a major career milestone, dominant drives, dramatic comebacks, and some future stars putting on a show of their own. When it was all said and done, Dave Hess Jr. grabbed his 400th career feature win in the Flea Flickers Super Late Models, Erick Rudolph put on a clinic in the 21st Century Energy Group Big Block Modifieds, Blaze Myers added to his already incredible year in the Complete Car Care Center RUSH Sprint Cars, and William Baker outlasted the field in a wild Clarion County Community Bank RUSH Stock Car finish.
The Flea Flickers Super Late Model main event started off hot with Jared Miley jumping to the early lead. Miley’s been fast all year at Tri City with two wins under his belt, and it looked like another might be coming his way. But just seven laps in, the races only caution flew when Matt Tifft, who had charged from 14th up to fifth, suffered a right front flat. Credit to Tifft’s crew — they got the tire changed quick and got him back out without losing a lap. That restart changed everything. Dave Hess Jr. wasted no time and took full advantage, slipping past Miley to grab the lead. From there, fans were treated to a 23-lap shootout that had everyone talking. Hess had the top spot, but he was getting all he could handle from Miley and 14-year-old Brock “Bam Bam” Pinkerous. The teenager got within striking distance several times, got by Hess momentarily only to see the veteran from Waterford, Pa get back by him. Then "Bam Bam" and Miley traded second back and forth a few times. Hess held his ground, though, and crossed the line first to lock down his first-ever Super Late Model win at Tri City — and with it, career victory number 400.
“Man, this is awesome,” Hess said after the race. “We’ve won here before in other classes, and we finished second to the Outlaws one time, but we’ve been chasing a Super Late win here for a while. To finally get it done — and have it be #400 — it really means a lot. The track was great tonight, really racy, and it’s just a great feeling to finally check this one off the list.”
Pinkerous came home second in another head-turning effort, Miley settled for third, with Jon Lee and track champion Josh Ferry rounding out the top five. As for Tifft? He worked his way back to 10th after that early tire issue.
In 21st Century Energy Group Big Block Modified action, it was all Erick Rudolph. The Ransomville, New York native got the jump on track champ Brad Rapp off turn two on the opening lap and never looked back. Rudolph led flag-to-flag and built up more than a half-lap lead by the time he hit the checkers. Rapp held on for second, with Jim Rasey in third, and 14-year-old Brayden Beatty showing again why he’s one to watch — finishing fourth. Rick Regalski completed the top five.
“We’ve been struggling a bit lately,” Rudolph said. “This win was big for us. My crew works so hard, and we really needed this to get back on track. The surface was fast and fun tonight — hats off to the track crew. You can tell they’re putting in the effort here.”
The Complete Car Care Center RUSH Sprint Car feature had a rough start with three tries to get things going. First, Luke Mulichak spun in turn three on the initial start. Then came the only red flag of the night when both Matt Urey and Jesse Armstrong went upside down on the next restart. Thankfully, both drivers were okay, but their night was done. Once the race finally got rolling, Wyatt Long led the first two laps before Blaze Myers took over on lap three. A lap later, Long’s night ended with front-end damage. Myers built a solid lead, but cautions on laps 8 and 15 gave Zach Morrow a couple chances to challenge. Morrow looked close through turns one and two, but Myers powered away each time and never looked back. He took the checkers for his ninth win of the year at Tri City and his 14th all-time in the division — both track records.
“This has just been a dream season,” Myers said. “I can’t thank Ted and Cal Hull enough for everything they do for me. The car’s been dialed in every week, and I love racing here. The track was smooth, fast — just a lot of fun tonight.”
Morrow brought it home second, with Grayson Bayle, Joe Buccola, and Mulichak rounding out the top five.
The Clarion County Community Bank RUSH Stock Car feature closed the night out, and it might’ve been one of the most exciting races of the season. Raidden Wilson, already a three-time winner this year, jumped to the early lead and held the top spot for the first four laps before Camron Kramer took control on lap five. That’s when the action really picked up, with Kramer, William Baker, Darr Diegleman, and Wilson all in the mix. The first of two cautions came on lap nine when Wilson spun in turn one, and he’d bring out another yellow a few laps later in turn four. On the final restart, Baker timed it just right — pulling even with Kramer coming off turn two, then taking the lead going into turn three. Kramer stayed close, but Baker held on over the final three laps to take home his second win of the season.
“That was a fun one,” Baker said. “Those guys raced me clean but hard — I had one shot on that restart and took it. Really happy to get another one here, it's been a while”
Kramer finished second, Diegleman third, Wilson recovered for fourth, and Jim Buchanan capped off the top five.
Flea Flicker Super Late Models 30 Lap Feature Results:
- (44) Dave Hess Jr., 2. (555) Brock Pinkerous, 3. (10) Jared Miley, 4. (5L) Jon Lee, 5. (33) Josh Ferry, 6. (22B) Darrell Bossard, 7. (19) Bob Dorman, 8. (12B) Andy Boozel, 9. (217) Eric Wilson, 10. (57) Matt Tifft, 11. (b22) Bump Hedman, 12, (60H) Brian Huchko,13. (03S) Chevy Scott, 14. (03E) Doug Eck, 15. (20) Nicholas Eck, 16. (28D) Del Rougeux, 17. (6W) Chad Wright, 18. (24) Tyler Wyant, 19. (0) Ryan Scott
Heat Race Results:
Heat 1 - 1. (24) Tyler Wyant, 2. (12B) Andy Boozel, 3. (44) Dave Hess Jr., 4. (555) Brock Pinkerous, 5. (19) Bob Dorman, 6. (217) Eric Wilson, 7. (03E) Doug Eck, 8. (60H) Brian Huchko, 9. (03S) Chevy Scott, 10. (20) Nicholas Eck
Heat 2 - 1. (22B) Darrell Bossard, 2. (5L) Jon Lee, 3. (6W) Chad Wright, 4. (10) Jared Miley, 5. (28D) Del Rougeux, 6. (33) Josh Ferry, 7. (0) Ryan Scott, 8. (57) Matt Tifft, 9. (b22) Bump Hedman
Qualifying Group 1 - 1. (555) Brock Pinkerous 17.551, 2. (44) Dave Hess Jr. 17.872, 3. (24) Tyler Wyant 18.062, 4. (12B) Andy Boozel 18.084, 5. (19) Bob Dorman 18.134, 6. (217) Eric Wilson 18.671, 7. (60H) Brian Huchko 19.452, 8. (03S) Chevy Scott 19.603, 9. (03E) Doug Eck - DNQ, 10. (20) Nicholas Eck - DNQ
Qualifying Group 2 - 1. (b22) Bump Hedman 18.077, 2. (6W) Chad Wright 18.094, 3. (28D) Del Rougeux 18.179, 4. (22B) Darrell Bossard 18.203, 5. (5L) Jon Lee 18.212, 6. (0) Ryan Scott 18.261, 7. (10) Jared Miley 18.269, 8. (57) Matt Tifft 18.313, 9. (33) Josh Ferry 18.404
21st Century Energy Group Big Block Modified 25 Lap Feature Results:
- (25) Erick Rudolph, 2. (11R) Brad Rapp, 3. (32) Jim Rasey, 4. (B4) Brayden Beatty, 5. (13) Rick Regalski, 6. (18) Colton Walters, 7. (5A) Austin Eyler, 8. (3K) Shawn Kozar, 9. (60) Thomas Holden, DNS (44V) Phil Vigneri III
Heat Race Results: 1. (25) Erick Rudolph, 2. (B4) Brayden Beatty, 3. (32) Jim Rasey, 4. (11R) Brad Rapp, 5. (18) Colton Walters, 6. (5A) Rob Eyler, 7. (13) Rick Regalski, 8. (3K) Shawn Kozar, 9. (60) Thomas Holden, 10. (44V) Phil Vigneri III
Complete Care Center RUSH Sprint Car 20 Lap Feature Results:
- (41) Blaze Myers, 2. (68) Zach Morrow, 3. (21) Grayson Bayle, 4. (5B) Joe Buccola, 5. (213) Luke Mulichak, 6. (1T) Ricky Tucker III, 7. (54) Devon Deeter, 8. (57C) Cooper Fritz, 9. (17M) CJ McClintock, 10. (21N) Samantha Priest, 11. (58X) Mike Hover, 12. (23) Charlie Utsinger, 13. (16) Jayden Shiffer, 14. (63L) Wyatt Long, 15. (20A) Jesse Armstrong, 16. (501) Matt Urey
Heat Race Results:
Heat 1 - 1. (41) Blaze Myers, 2. (68) Zach Morrow, 3. (213) Luke Mulichak, 4. (63L) Wyatt Long, 5. (5B) Joe Buccola, 6. (20A) Jesse Armstrong,7. (501) Matt Urey
Heat 2 - 1. (1T) Ricky Tucker III, 2. (23) Charlie Utsinger, 3. (54) Devon Deeter, 4. (21) Grayson Bayle, 5. (17M) CJ McClintock,6. (21N) Samantha Priest, 7. (58X) Mike Hover, 8. (16) Jayden Shiffer
Clarion County Community Bank RUSH Stock Cars 15 Lap Feature Results:
- (620) William Baker, 2. (854) Cameron Kramer, 3. (15) Darr Diegelman, 4. (77) Raidden Wilson, 5. (22) Jim Buchanan, DNS (22S) Michael Smiley
Heat Race Results:
- (620) William Baker, 2. (77) Raidden Wilson, 3. (854) Cameron Kramer, 4. (22) Jim Buchanan, 5. (15) Darr Diegelman, 6. (22S) Michael Smiley
Hooiser Tire Winners
Flea Flicker Super Late Models - Darrell Bossard
21st Century Energy Group Big Block Modifieds - Brayden Beatty
Complete Car Care Center RUSH Sprints - Wyatt Long
Clarion County Community Bank RUSH Stocks - Michael Smiley
Upcoming Races
Oil Region Labor Day Classic Weekend
August 29 - $4,000 to win RUSH Late Models Touring Series, 410 Sprint Cars, Time Trials (Sat & Sun) for Pro Stocks and RUSH Sprints
August 30 - BRP Modified Tour, $1,500 to win Pro Stocks, $800 to win RUSH Sprints
August 31 - BRP Modified Tour, $2,500 to win Pro Stocks, $1000 to win RUSH Sprints, $600 to win RUSH Stocks
September 13 - Applefest Races: $2,500 to win Penn Ohio Pro-Stock Tour Race, $750 to win RUSH STOCKS, $800 to win RUSH Modifieds, $600 to win Mini Stocks
Race Day Information at Tri City Raceway Park
Pit gates will open at 3:00 PM, with general admission gates opening at 4:00 PM. Racing action is scheduled to begin at 7:00 PM. Pit passes are available
for $35, while general admission is priced at $20 for attendees aged 17 and older. Seniors (62+) and military personnel can enter for $15, and kids 11-16
are also $15, with children 10 and under admitted free.
Race Schedule
Fridays: Racing begins at 7:00 PM
Sundays: Racing starts at 6:30 PM
Tri City Raceway Park - Marketing Partners:
Hovis Auto & Truck Supply, 21st Century Energy Group, Flea Flicker LLC, Shawgo Real Estate, Compete Car Care Center, Clarion County Community Bank,
Marsh Heating and Cooling, Erie Beer, Big Dog RC, Shambaugh Towing, Wabtec, Constable Refuse Garbage Company, First Rate Reality, McCandless Ford,
KEI Klapec Express Trucking Company, Heffren Septic Systems, UCIP United Community Independence Program, Schaeffer's Oil, MAD Tree Service,
BKI Bert Klapec INC, Hards Fabrication & Welding INC, Vape Shop & Game Room, Gates & Burns Reality, Sunbelt Rentals Meadville, Tionesta Builders Supply,
McCandless Trailer Sales, Allegheny Toyota, Close Racing Supply, Friedhaber's Appliances, Log Cabin Restaurant, Bernards Electrical Services & Troubleshooting,
Oil Creek Family Campground, Landscaping Connections, PJ'S Excavating & Concrete, Bish Heating and Cooling, Blue Ox Timber, Mad Mac BBQ,
Top Gun Settlements, Top Notch Tree & Stump Service, Wet Hose
Tri City Raceway Park is proudly owned by Josh & Kyrsten Shiffer and is located at: 3430 State Route 417, Franklin, Pennsylvania. Whether you're a seasoned racing fan or new to the sport, Tri City Raceway Park offers thrilling races and a vibrant atmosphere for all ages. Bring your family and friends and enjoy an exciting night of racing action! We look forward to seeing you at the track! ??
*Please credit all photos to Turn 4 Photography / Jolene Bernard
- administrator on Aug 27, 2025
- Article Date: 8/22/2025 by Mike Ackelson