(Press Release from NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications)
Following the disappointing postponement of the Clash at Claremont 150 last week, the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season will resume with the running of the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 at Lancaster Motorplex this Saturday night (8 p.m. ET on FloRacing).
The event marks just the second time the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will visit Lancaster Motorplex. The series made its inaugural trip to the facility in 2021, when the result came down to a dogfight between Patrick Emerling and Justin Bonsignore, with Emerling narrowly emerging as the winner in a photo finish.
Thanks to the efforts of Lancaster Motorplex officials as well as an unnamed benefactor, the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 will feature an increased purse. The race winner will take home more than $13,000, which includes posted contingency awards. The race winner won’t be the only driver getting extra money, as the increased purse has been spread throughout the field, meaning every driver will take home a little extra prize money Saturday night.
To make things even better, a lap money program has also been instituted for Saturday’s race. The top three drivers of all sponsored laps will split $100 in memory of Zachary Hackett, the late son of Mike Myers, the owner of promotional company Speed Enterprises Entertainment.
Tickets to Saturday’s Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 are available here. Below is everything you need to know about the 10th race of the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 at Lancaster Motorplex
What to watch for:
The last time the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour competed at Lancaster Motorplex, Justin Bonsignore came agonizingly close to a trip to Victory Lane. That race, held in 2021, saw Patrick Emerling edge Bonsignore at the finish line by approximately half a car length.
Bonsignore, the winner of the most recent NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, returns to Lancaster with his sights set on earning the trip to Victory Lane that he narrowly missed out on two years ago. He won’t have to contend with Emerling, who will be busy racing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series event Saturday at Michigan International Speedway.
He will have to contend with a driver who knows Lancaster perhaps better than anyone in Matt Hirschman. The driver from Northampton, Pennsylvania has won countless times at the New York oval and will look to add a NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour victory at the track to his resume.
MORE LANCASTER: Watch live on FloRacing | Get tickets
Ron Silk, who leads the series standings by eight points ahead of Bonsignore, will look to add to his championship lead with a strong run at Lancaster. Doug Coby and Austin Beers, each of whom have one victory this year, will look to get back in the championship fight with strong runs of their own. Max McLaughlin, who finished third two years ago at Lancaster, will be back in action in search of his maiden series win.
Several returning names are also set to join the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour at Lancaster. They include Chuck Hossfeld, a seven-time NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour winner, who will be making his season debut with the series. In three starts last year, Hossfeld earned two top-five finishes, including a runner-up result at Oswego Speedway.
Also joining the field will be Mike Leaty, the son of NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour legend Jan Leaty. The younger Leaty will be making just his sixth career NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour start, and he’ll be doing so with his father acting as his crew chief.
Other notable entries include Tommy Catalano, Anthony Nocella, Tyler Rypkema, Anthony Sesely, Kyle Ebersole and Bryan Narducci.
The complete entry list for the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 will be available later this week.
RACE FACTS
| Race | Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 |
| Date | Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023 |
| Track | Lancaster Motorplex |
| Layout | 0.625-mile paved oval |
| Location | Lancaster, New York |
| Start Time | 8 p.m. ET |
| Laps | 150 |
| Posted awards | $108,995 |
| Live stream | FloRacing (Live) |
Schedule: Saturday, Aug. 5 … Final practice from 2:15 to 3:15 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 5 p.m. ET … Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 at 8 p.m. ET (FloRacing).
Qualifying: Two consecutive qualifying laps. Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the Nu-Way Auto Parts 150 is limited to 26 starters including Provisional Positions.
Tire allotment: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is eleven (11) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by Hoosier, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. Four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. All qualifying tires must remain in impound until released by NASCAR Officials. The remaining tire allotment may be used for practice and/or change tires during the event. The tire change rule is three (3) tires, any position.
40% of the entry list has about 0.00000000000001% chance of winning or getting a top 5. Pretty bad when 8 of 20 cars in a whelen tour event are just junk riding around that couldn’t finish top 10 in a SK Light race at Stafford.
Isn’t it a fact that we fans never lean into what we do have but tend to harp on what we don’t.
When have we ever really cared about who is not likely to compete for a win. We look at the size that gets our attention for sure but otherwise who cares how many time Fifield and McDonald are lapped? Is anyone disappointed Sapienza isn’t there to see how far out of the top 10 he finishes?
Looking at the Lancaster entries it’s a bounty of riches as the top with J. Bonsignor, Silk, Coby and Hirschman all capable of winning. Wait one cotton pick’in minute shouldn’t the kid Beers be in the mix as well?
That’s what fans normally care about who can win and on that score there could be high drama. Looking down further who will be in the second tier I dare you to predict. McLaughlin, Nocella, Hossfeld, Ole Blue very recognizable names. Sesely has had some good runs, Catalano and Rypkema are racing in their part of the region and even Ebersol turns in a great finish every now and then. How about K. Bonsignor as well.
Are you a cup full or empty fan? For this one it’s definitely half full for me.
The second-biggest farce in modified racing is Lancaster calling itself a 5/8-mile track. When did it magically grow from the 1/2 mile track it has been for the last 60 years? Lancaster is shorter than Stafford! All I can think of is the promoter from Lancaster went to the Seekonk School of Track Measurement… TOTAL FARCE!