ALEX PAYNE CLAIMS 10TH ANNUAL STEVE KENT SUMMER NATIONALS MODIFIED VICTORY AT OUTLAW SPEEDWAY
Franek (ESS), Morgan (NYPENN IMCA), Mayo (Crate Sportsman) all first timers in 2025. DeCamp (Mini Stocks) goes back-to-back and Glenn Whritenour (Street Stocks) makes it number seven.
Story by Kenny Shupp JR.
(Dundee, NY) After a couple weeks at the beginning of the 2025 season that did not go so well for Alex Payne, the Hopewell, NY speedster has kicked it into high gear the past month and is now back in contention to possible back up his 2024 Outlaw Speedway Friendly Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep Modified Championship.
After his second win of the season in the 10th Annual Summer Nationals and a seventh-place finish by current point leader, Mike Maresca the point battle has tightened up with just three regular point shows heading into the Double Point Finale on August 29.
Tommy Collins along with Outlaw Speedway owner/promoter, Bossman Tyler Siri would bring the twenty-three-car field to the opening green flag with Siri flexing his muscle and taking control of the thirty lap Steve Kent Memorial Event.
Out in front and in clean air Siri was setting a torrid pace keeping Collins at bay, with some good battles back in the pack with heavyweights like Payne, Maresca and Boby Varin all bogged down mid-pack.
Through a few yellow flag slow downs throughout the first half of the event, Siri was able to continue to hold court at the top, unfortunately a lap twenty-three yellow flag would change the entire complexity of the remaining seven laps of the event as Siri would slow on the track with a flat right rear tire ending his flawless drive which looked like a sure victory,
With the yellow it allowed Alex Payne who was now into the top three a chance to challenge Will Shields who had been dogging Siri for the better part of the feature as the Kings Ferry, NY driver was looking to back up his earlier season feature victory on June 13.
However, Payne was able to blast by and from there go on to win two on the campaign after visiting victory lane earlier on June 20.
Following Payne and Shields across the line was the Genoa Giant, Pat Ward piloting one of Tyler Siri’s house cars.
Ward, who has struggled mightily since joining Team Siri on June 13 was in a different car out of the Siri stable of machines on this night, lined up inside row two on the opening grid and ran within the lead pack throughout the entire distance and wound up third completing the podium.
Collins had one of his better efforts in the past two months finishing fourth keeping the leaders within eyesight the entire distance while two time 2025 feature winner, Bobby Varin would start the event in eleventh, use the caution flags to his advantage, make some nifty moves coming through traffic and would complete the top five finishers.
Davie Franek loves coming to the Outlaw Speedway and his history proves it having won numerous features along with a Track Championship during COVID when Outlaw ran the 360 Sprints on a weekly basis.
Franek is the kind of guy that just loves to plant his right foot into the injectors and race around the top if there is a cushion and with Outlaw’s smooth and wide surface, the man nicknamed “No Panic” rocketed into the lead right off the drop of the opening green and led every lap in the non-stop green to checkered twenty-five lap ESS 360 Sprint A Main.
Joe Trenca joined Franek on the front row, but was never a threat as Dalton Rombough was able to move from his original eighth starting slot to make it to second while Dylan Swiernik made some bold moves coming through traffic to progress to third, but neither had anything for the high flying Davie Franek as the Wantage, NJ speedster and that is how the podium would be completed with Franek taking the win, Rombough second with Swiernik completing the top three.
Fourth place was pick-ed up by current ESS Point leader French Canadian, Jordan Poirier who finished right where he started with Shawn Donath of South Onondaga rounding the top five.
For a more concise look at all the night of ESS action at Outlaw Speedway including special award winners simply log on at www.empiresupersprints.com. ESS Public Relations guru, Curtis Berleue, will have a full wrap up of the night’s action.
The NYPENN IMCA Modified’s were making their first official appearance at Outlaw Speedway as an organization and the Jake Maynard led group did not disappoint as some twenty-two machines made the tow to the popular Yates County Oval all looking for the $1,010 winner’s check and bragging rights having won the 10th Annual Summer Nationals.
A pair of former Outlaw Speedway IMCA Champions found their way back to Dundee including Rodney Morgan along with Brandon Smith of Bath.
Those two along with a who’s who list of drivers all looking to conquer the Fast 4/10 of a Mile Clay Oval.
Brad Delamater along with Charlie Pulton would make up the front row and bring the field to green for their scheduled twenty-five lap feature.
Several caution flags in the early going would slow the pace and keep the field bunched up allowing outside row three starter Rodney Morgan to keep the leaders within eyesight.
It did not take Morgan long to get to the point and once out in front and in clean air was in decent shape that was until Keith Jack Lamphere was able to break out of the pack from his eighth starting position and close on what was once an insurmountable Morgan advantage.
Lamphere, who has been a world bearer on numerous occasions thus far in 2025, gave it everything he had but came up just short as Morgan was able to secure the victory.
Keith Jack Lamphere would have to settle for second with Tyler Belcher completing the podium.
Fourth place went to IMCA Rookie contender, Earl Zimmer who continues to impress as Jakub Ingham completed the top five.
Brandon Smith, making his first appearance in an IMCA Modified in the past few seasons, made several smooth moves coming from his nineteenth starting spot to finish eighth and with that claimed the Hard Charger Award.
For a more in depth and complete wrap up of the entire night involving the IMCA Modifieds including special awards log on at www.nypennimcamodifiedseries.
As part of the 10th Annual Steve Kent Summer Nationals the ever-popular Knapp and Schlappi Lumber Crate Sportsman were on the card with the winner of the twenty-five-lap event taking home a hefty winners check of some $1,750.
Up to this night there has only been one repeat winner with that being Donnie Lawson with seven different faces visiting victory lane.
Beaver Dams NY young gun, Justice Mayo has been quick all season in fact last week he was on his way to win one in the season until Dale Walty chased him down and got by with just a lap remaining.
Not getting down, Justice Mayo bounced right back and led every lap in claiming his first CS feature of the season and with it made it eight faces spending time in victory lane thus far in 2025.
Joining Mayo on the front row was one-time 2025 Crate Sportsman feature winner and Dundee native Andrew Clark, but on this night Clark nor any other driver would have anything for Mayo as he cruised to the $1750 pay day.
Finishing in the runner-up spot was Clark who continues to have an impressive 2025 season.
Veteran driver, Tim Guild from Rathbone, NY would begin the event fourth and advance one position to complete the podium.
George Schweigart of Woodhull does a lot of traveling hitting as many Sportsman Short Track Super Series Events as possible but makes Outlaw Speedway his Friday night race place. Still a relatively young competitor in the super competitive Crate Sportsman Division, Schweigart once again turned in a great performance lining up eighth and advancing to fourth with Addison, NY driver, Cayden Lawson completing the top five the highest finishing Lawson family member including father, Donnie and younger brother Braylon who were also in the feature field.
The Swarthout Recycling Street Stocks were up to bat next, and it was a foregone conclusion that either Glenn Whritenour or Jimmy Grant would bring home the bacon in their twenty-lap feature as GW and Grant had won all the features coming into the night.
If you were a betting person you would put your money on the man from Jasper, NY as Whritenour started in lucky position Seven on the original start and wasted little time getting to the front and claiming win seven on the campaign.
Carl Cleveland and Joe Giardina led the charge of the fourteen-car starting field from their front row spots, but as he has done so many times throughout his illustrious Street Stock career, GW finds a way of treading his potent #15 through traffic and finding his way to victory lane.
In the late going 2024 Track Champion, Gene Sharpsteen of Chemung, NY was able to bust out of traffic from his inside row three starting spot and try as he might Sharpsteen tried everything to run down Whritenour, but when the double checkered flags waved it was Whritenour over Sharpsteen with Beaver Dams young gun, Willy Easling having his best run of the year completing the top three podium finishers.
Fourth was claimed by Corning’s Brett Crawford piloting the George Miller #77 on the night with Penn Yan’s Jimmy Grant rounding the top five.
Rounding out the night the Winner’s Circle Deli Mini Stocks were also on the 10th Annual Summer Nationals with a nice field of fifteen machines taking the opening green with Gavin Hall and Mike Ayers leading the charge.
Craig DeCamp completely missed the first four events of the season, digging himself into a deep hole if he had any aspirations for a championship run.
However, the past two weeks the Beaver Dam’s native looks like a world beater as he lined up fifth on the grid and took no prisoners in picking up his second consecutive Mini Stock feature win along with a hefty $1010 paycheck.
Chasing DeCamp across the line in the twenty-lap feature was Zach Daugherty and for the young man from Elmira entering his Senior year when he returns to school and the football field he will have some great racing memories.
Daugherty’s runner-up finish coupled with an off night by Jayson Smart finds the class Rookie of the Year contender taking over the top spot in the point battle entering the month of August.
Without a doubt The Nature Boy Mike Stone of Campbell had the drive of the night starting last on the grid, mowing down the field and completing the podium with an impressive third place finish.
Derrick Puryear and Connor Erick completed the top five after starting eighth and tenth, respectively.
Congratulations to all competitors in the 10 Annual Outlaw Speedway Steve Kent Memorial Summer Nationals.
Up next at Outlaw the track will open the month of August with a FAST 5* SHOW, 1 on 1 Spectator Races and it will be SPCA Night. All that on Friday, August 1, 2025.
10TH ANNUAL STEVE KENT OUTLAW SPEEDWAY SUMMER NATIONALS. July 25, 2025.
FRIENDLY CHRYSLER, DODGE, JEEP, RAM MODIFIEDS. (23 cars)
30 lap feature. ALEX PAYNE (2), Will Shields, Pat Ward, Tommy Collins, Bobby Varin, Jeff Daugherty, Mike Maresca, Jim LaRock, Brian Swarthout, Kreg Crooker, Derrick Podsaidlo, Billy Paine, Steve Paine, Vinnie Vitale, Adam Coots, Brady Fultz, Tyler Siri, Aiden Grover, Danny Johnson, Wally Wade, Tommy Paine, Ron Cartwright Jr. DNS, Christian Thompson.
Heats. Siri, Ward, Varin.
360 EMPIRE SUPER SPRINTS. (20 cars)
25 lap feature. DAVIE FRANEK, Dalton Rombough, Dylan Swiernik, Jordan Poirier, Shawn Donath, Zach Sobotka, Jason Barney, Jared Zimbardi, Joe Trenca, Steve Glover, Spencer Burly, Parker Evans, Jordan Thomas, Tyler Graves, Keith Granholm, Dan Bennett, Nathan Pierce, Ethan Gray. DNS, Jordan Jutton, Logan Crisafulli.
Heats. Trenka, Franek, Swiernik. Dash. Kevin Granholm.
KNAPP AND SCHLAPPI LUMBER CRATE SPORTSMAN. (24 cars)
25 lap feature. JUSTICE MAYO, Andrew Clark, Tim Guild, George Schweigart, Cayden Lawson, Brent Ayers, Donnie Lawson, Collin Brown, AJ Lloyd, Josh Nobriga, Karl Comfort, Chris Fisher, Blake Parsons, Daryl Krebs, Scot Torbitt, Dale Welty, Braylon Lawson, Loren Lincoln, Bryan Rhodes, Colton Coots, Kenny Peoples Jr., Eric Bingham, Kevin DeCamp. DNS, Quintin Buchanan.
Heats. Brown, Clark, Mayo,
SWARTHOUT RECYCLING STREET STOCKS. (14 cars)
20 lap feature. GLENN WHRITENOUR (7), Gene Sharpsteen, Willy Easling, Brett Crawford, Jimmy Grant, Carl Cleveland, Joe Giardina, Jared Hill, Jesse Balance, John Burritt, Zach Teed, Sparky Hills, Quinn Sutherland, Tim Grady.
Heats. Whritenour, Grant.
WINNER’S CIRCLE DELI MINI STOCKS. (15 cars)
20 lap feature. CRAIG DECAMP (2), Zach Daugherty, Mike Stone, Derrick Puryear, Connor Erick, Mike Ayers, Scott Lehman, Parker Cunningham, Ralph Teeter, Brighton Grant, Gavin Hall, Kenneth Evans, Jayson Smart, Jesse Smith. DNS, Marvin Jenkins
Heats. Smart, Daugherty.
NYPENN IMCA MODIFIEDS. (22 cars)
25 lap feature. RODNEY MORGAN, Keith Jack Lamphere, Tyler Belcher, Earl Zimmer, Jakub Ingham, JW Lamphere, Jake McConnell, Brandon Smith, Tyler Stoddard, Mike Wilcox, Shawn Bruce, Bob Maynard, Dalton Maynard, AJ Hunsinger, Aaron Benjamin, Charles Pulton, Brad Delamater, Brad Sites, Gary Roberts, Dave Stalker, Jason Butler, Matt Roberts.
Heats. Ingham, KJ Lamphere, Roberts.