The Labor Day weekend always offers a glut of prestigious short track events across the country and Hickory Motor Speedway is no exception.
In fact, the self-described Birthplace of the NASCAR Stars will host its biggest event of the season on Saturday night in the Bobby Isaac Memorial 100. What is typically a stout field of Late Model Stock Cars will actually become even stronger thanks to the weather-related cancellation of races at South Boston Speedway and Southern National Motorsports Park.
The totally package should make for a star-studded and action-packed NASCAR Whelen All-American Series main event.
Christian Eckes is amongst those making the trip to the historic venue on Saturday. He’s enjoyed a fair amount of success at the .3-mile track and expects to contend by the end of 100 laps. He finished second on June 4 and qualified second on August 6 in Big 10 Challenge races and believes his JR Motorsports team is rounding into shape for some of the more prestigious fall races like the Isaac.
“We had a suspension issue in that race where we qualified second and that forced us off the track,” Eckes told Short Track Scene on Friday night. “We feel really good racing at Hickory and we’ve been able to test with (teammate) Josh Berry awhile back just to figure out some things we were might have needed to improve on.”
Berry will not be competing on Saturday as he was offered the chance to run the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Darlington Raceway. But a handful of unexpected contenders have filed entries in his place – including CARS Tour regulars Stefan Parsons and Austin McDaniel.
Other News: CRA Championship Down to Three Races, Brewing Tension
McDaniel has been amongst the most consistent drivers on the tour this season, posting top-10s in all but one start. He finished fourth in the series’ visit to Hickory in May and also made two regular season starts at the track with good pace.
As a result, he feels Saturday night could play out in his favor.
“With the CARS Race at Southern National being cancelled it has been interesting to see the amount of cars that are coming to run the Bobby Isaac,” McDaniel said. “But I think we have a good shot at the win because we’ve had some really strong runs lately.
“We just haven’t been able to put the whole deal together to come home with the trophy. I know the competition will be tough but if we race hard and keep the car clean then I think that will put us where we need to be.”
Parsons has always had an appreciation for the history of the sport, as evidenced by the helmet he wears as a tribute to his father, Phil. But that’s also the reason he’s excited to make a run at the race named after the 1970 Grand National champion and 2016 NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee.
“Hickory is a great race track with a lot of history and character,” Parsons said. “This being the 40th annual Bobby Isaac Memorial makes it all the more special. I feel like if we are anywhere close to how we were here for the last CARS Tour race, we should have a really competitive car.
“It’s gonna be a great field of cars and I’m super excited to race on Saturday night.”
The grandstands open at 5 p.m. ET with racing set to begin at 7. The card is also highlighted by Limited Late Models, Street Stocks and Classic Sportsmen. The entry list does not reflect the final car count but known expected entrants can be viewed below.
- Dexter Canipe
- Ryan Millington
- Austin McDaniel
- RD Smith
- Ashley Huffman
- Chris Denny
- Andrew Garcia
- Charlie Watson
- Christian Eckes
- Monty Cox
- Jeremy Pelfrey
- Ryan Vasconcellos
- Shane Lee
- Kyle Manesh
- Zachary Dabbs
- Dylon Wilson
- Stefan Parsons
- Justin Carroll
- Mitch Walker
