June 21, 2024 | By Colby Trotter

Ryan Unzicker Capitalizes on Erb-Feger Collision to Win at Spoon River

CANTON, Ill. — Tyler Erb was four laps away from the checkered flag in what was potentially his fifth DIRTcar Summer Nationals Feature win of 2024, until as Ryan Unzicker put it, “(Jason) Feger came out of nowhere.”

Twenty-seven laps into Thursday’s main event at Spoon River Speedway, Erb was riding the high banks around the 3/8-mile oval, having led every lap up to that point with Unzicker and Feger following close behind. Feeling the pressure from Unzicker with only four laps left, Erb switched to the bottom lane heading into Turn 1 to keep Unzicker at bay behind him while Feger rode the cushion around the top.

Heading out of Turn 2 and down the backstretch, Feger shot the gap between Unzicker and Erb. Feger then dove low in Turn 3 in a slide job attempt, slid up the track in front of Erb in Turn 4 and the two made contact, ending with Erb facing the wrong way and bringing out the caution.

“I just had a hell of a run down the backstretch that was for the lead, and it looked like it was a good opportunity to take it,” Feger said. “I don’t think [Erb] was expecting it. I don’t even know if he knew I was there because he was racing with Ryan, and he probably wasn’t expecting me to be there.

“I thought I had him cleared. This place is pretty tricky coming off Turn 4. He probably thought I was going to leave him a lane or something there and it closed last minute. It’s hard racing.”

With Erb restarting from the tail of the field, Unzicker inherited the lead with four laps left and Feger lined up behind him. On the restart, Unzicker got the jump and led the final four circuits to collect his 14th career Hell Tour win.

“I didn’t actually see the contact,” Unzicker said of his point-of-view on the Erb-Feger incident. “We were coming out of [Turn 2], I was a little bit underneath Erb. Jason came out of nowhere to me and had a good run off the top of 2 and shot between [Erb] and I going into [Turn] 3 and I didn’t see it.

“I don’t know if I would’ve won without that. I’m not sure but at the end of the day my name is on the check I guess. But all I will say is we was battling Erb and had a good car.”

After the event’s conclusion, Erb was unavailable for comment.

Earlier in the race, Unzicker chased Erb while battling with Feger for the second spot. At one point early on, they were battling three-wide – Feger on the bottom, Unzicker in the middle and Erb on the top. As the race reached the halfway point, Unzicker was racing side-by-side with Erb and had inched ahead of him in Turns 1 and 2 on the bottom multiple times but was unable to clear him before the incident in the final laps.

It was Unzicker’s second win with the Summer Nationals at Spoon River – 14 years removed from his first win on the Hell Tour at the same place.

“It’s been a long time hasn’t it,” Unzicker said. “Anytime you can win anymore it’s a good feat. I think what I’m mostly proud of is I still feel like that I’m that regional, local working man and that makes me proud that I can still win against some guys that do it for a living.”

UP NEXT:  The DIRTcar Summer Nationals next head for Brownstown Bullring on Friday, June 21, racing alongside the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals.

Tickets will be on sale at the gate. If you can’t be there to watch in person, catch all the action live on DIRTVision.


RESULTS

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 24-Ryan Unzicker[2]; 2. 25F-Jason Feger[3]; 3. 96-Tanner English[5]; 4. 33-Kye Blight[10]; 5. 10-Garrett Smith[6]; 6. 21-Billy Moyer Sr[11]; 7. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[8]; 8. 27M-Rodney Melvin[4]; 9. 58-Tyler Clem[21]; 10. 8-Dillon McCowan[12]; 11. 25W-Allen Weisser[16]; 12. 15V-Kolby Vandenbergh[15]; 13. 22R-Will Roland[17]; 14. 15-Clayton Stuckey[9]; 15. 1-Tyler Erb[1]; 16. 99-Dylan Thompson[18]; 17. 30-Mark Voigt[19]; 18. 26M-Bob Gardner[14]; 19. 75-Daniel Adam[7]; 20. 38-Thomas Hunziker[22]; 21. 17A-Austin Howes[13]; 22. 10K-Daryn Klein[20]

Consolation Race (8 Laps): 1. 25W-Allen Weisser[3]; 2. 22R-Will Roland[2]; 3. 99-Dylan Thompson[6]; 4. 58-Tyler Clem[5]; 5. 28-Carson Brown[1]; 6. 30-Mark Voigt[14]; 7. 38-Thomas Hunziker[4]; 8. 21B-Rich Bell[12]; 9. 11E-Brandon Eskew[8]; 10. 32M-Cody Maguire[7]; 11. 25T-Tucker Finch[9]; 12. (DNS) 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr; 13. (DNS) 10K-Daryn Klein; 14. (DNS) 74-Russ Adams; 15. (DNS) 50K-Kayden Clatt

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 25F-Jason Feger[2]; 2. 27M-Rodney Melvin[3]; 3. 75-Daniel Adam[4]; 4. 33-Kye Blight[1]; 5. 17A-Austin Howes[7]; 6. 28-Carson Brown[9]; 7. 38-Thomas Hunziker[6]; 8. 32M-Cody Maguire[8]; 9. (DNF) 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[5]; 10. (DNS) 74-Russ Adams

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 24-Ryan Unzicker[2]; 2. 96-Tanner English[5]; 3. 11T-Trevor Gundaker[8]; 4. 21-Billy Moyer Sr[1]; 5. 26M-Bob Gardner[9]; 6. 22R-Will Roland[4]; 7. 58-Tyler Clem[6]; 8. 11E-Brandon Eskew[7]; 9. 10K-Daryn Klein[3]; 10. 30-Mark Voigt[10]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 1-Tyler Erb[1]; 2. 10-Garrett Smith[5]; 3. 15-Clayton Stuckey[2]; 4. 8-Dillon McCowan[6]; 5. 15V-Kolby Vandenbergh[7]; 6. 25W-Allen Weisser[9]; 7. 99-Dylan Thompson[3]; 8. 25T-Tucker Finch[8]; 9. 21B-Rich Bell[10]; 10. 50K-Kayden Clatt[4]

Qualifying 1 (2 Laps): 1. 33-Kye Blight, 00:13.284[3]; 2. 25F-Jason Feger, 00:13.353[6]; 3. 27M-Rodney Melvin, 00:13.500[1]; 4. 75-Daniel Adam, 00:13.530[10]; 5. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr, 00:13.712[5]; 6. 38-Thomas Hunziker, 00:13.801[8]; 7. 17A-Austin Howes, 00:13.858[2]; 8. 32M-Cody Maguire, 00:13.868[7]; 9. 28-Carson Brown, 00:13.904[4]; 10. 74-Russ Adams, 00:14.384[9]

Qualifying 2 (2 Laps): 1. 21-Billy Moyer Sr, 00:13.464[3]; 2. 24-Ryan Unzicker, 00:13.483[8]; 3. 10K-Daryn Klein, 00:13.500[10]; 4. 22R-Will Roland, 00:13.590[1]; 5. 96-Tanner English, 00:13.632[9]; 6. 58-Tyler Clem, 00:13.634[2]; 7. 11E-Brandon Eskew, 00:13.825[5]; 8. 11T-Trevor Gundaker, 00:13.834[7]; 9. 26M-Bob Gardner, 00:13.855[4]; 10. 30-Mark Voigt, 00:13.943[6]

Qualifying 3 (2 Laps): 1. 1-Tyler Erb, 00:13.557[10]; 2. 15-Clayton Stuckey, 00:13.655[6]; 3. 99-Dylan Thompson, 00:13.673[8]; 4. 50K-Kayden Clatt, 00:13.738[1]; 5. 10-Garrett Smith, 00:13.785[5]; 6. 8-Dillon McCowan, 00:13.794[3]; 7. 15V-Kolby Vandenbergh, 00:13.853[4]; 8. 25T-Tucker Finch, 00:14.048[2]; 9. 25W-Allen Weisser, 00:14.076[7]; 10. 21B-Rich Bell, 00:14.246[9]



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TREVOR NEVILLE HOLDS OFF TYLER NICELY FOR HIS SECOND SUMMIT RACING MODIFIED TOUR WIN

CANTON, Ill. -- Before the summer began, Trevor Neville had yet to win a DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Feature. But after his win Thursday night at Spoon River Speedway, he now has two wins in less than a week.

Neville, of Mackinaw, IL, led all 25 laps, defeating both 2023 Summit Modified champion Tyler Nicely and current UMP Modified national points leader Mike McKinney.

“I’ve spent many hours on the T.V. watching them guys win races at this exact track,” Neville said. “So, to hold [Nicely and McKinney] off on this Summer Nationals tour and get the first win here at Spoon River, I can’t thank God enough for that one. That’s magical.”

He used the bottom lane to hold off his challengers, though he said that was not his preferred line.

“If I could’ve done what I wanted to do I would’ve stayed the whole 25 laps on the [high] cushion,” Neville said. “That’s what I would’ve done but I knew there was a little moisture down there getting off.”

UP NEXT:  The Summit Modifieds return to action with a visit to Brownstown Bullring on Friday, June 21, racing alongside the DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models.

Tickets will be on sale at the gate. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision.


RESULTS

DIRTCAR UMP MODIFIEDS

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 777-Trevor Neville[1]; 2. 25-Tyler Nicely[4]; 3. 66-Cole Falloway[7]; 4. 25B-Austen Becerra[9]; 5. 13-Charlie Mefford[3]; 6. 96M-Mike McKinney[2]; 7. 292-Josh Allen[5]; 8. 24-Zeke McKenzie[13]; 9. 36-Kenny Wallace[17]; 10. 12L-Lucas Lee[10]; 11. 14C-Rick Conoyer[12]; 12. 77-Ray Bollinger[8]; 13. C40-Mike Chasteen Jr[18]; 14. 1A-Steve Meyer Jr[16]; 15. Z1-Zac Odedewaldt[11]; 16. 27-Michael Turner[22]; 17. 54-Zachary Hawk[15]; 18. 14-Dalton Lane[19]; 19. 05-Dave Wietholder[14]; 20. 31-Mark Anderson[21]; 21. 3-Mike Brooks[20]; 22. 59R-Jacob Rexing[23]; 23. (DNS) 99-Hunt Gossum

Last Chance Showdown 1 (10 Laps): 1. 36-Kenny Wallace[1]; 2. 72-Todd Neiheiser[3]; 3. M16-Blake Monroe[5]; 4. 35-Brandon Roberts[2]; 5. 11D-Brian Diveley[4]; 6. 23-Tim Carpenter Jr[6]; 7. B5-Matthew Baker[7]; 8. (DNS) 11-Alec Davis

Last Chance Showdown 2 (10 Laps): 1. C40-Mike Chasteen Jr[6]; 2. 59R-Jacob Rexing[1]; 3. 27-Michael Turner[7]; 4. 14-Dalton Lane[5]; 5. 9-Ken Schrader[3]; 6. 3-Mike Brooks[4]; 7. 37-Devin Wright[2]; 8. (DNS) 31-Mark Anderson

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 13-Charlie Mefford[1]; 2. 292-Josh Allen[2]; 3. 25B-Austen Becerra[3]; 4. 24-Zeke McKenzie[6]; 5. 36-Kenny Wallace[4]; 6. 72-Todd Neiheiser[5]; 7. M16-Blake Monroe[7]; 8. B5-Matthew Baker[8]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 777-Trevor Neville[1]; 2. 66-Cole Falloway[2]; 3. Z1-Zac Odedewaldt[3]; 4. 54-Zachary Hawk[4]; 5. 35-Brandon Roberts[5]; 6. 11D-Brian Diveley[6]; 7. 23-Tim Carpenter Jr[7]; 8. 11-Alec Davis[8]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 96M-Mike McKinney[1]; 2. 99-Hunt Gossum[3]; 3. 12L-Lucas Lee[2]; 4. 05-Dave Wietholder[5]; 5. 59R-Jacob Rexing[4]; 6. 9-Ken Schrader[7]; 7. 14-Dalton Lane[8]; 8. 27-Michael Turner[6]

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 25-Tyler Nicely[1]; 2. 77-Ray Bollinger[4]; 3. 14C-Rick Conoyer[5]; 4. 1A-Steve Meyer Jr[6]; 5. 37-Devin Wright[7]; 6. 3-Mike Brooks[8]; 7. (DNF) C40-Mike Chasteen Jr[2]; 8. (DNS) 31-Mark Anderson

Qualifying A (3 Laps): 1. 13-Charlie Mefford, 00:14.359[9]; 2. 777-Trevor Neville, 00:14.375[5]; 3. 292-Josh Allen, 00:14.410[13]; 4. 66-Cole Falloway, 00:14.442[2]; 5. 25B-Austen Becerra, 00:14.485[16]; 6. Z1-Zac Odedewaldt, 00:14.488[15]; 7. 36-Kenny Wallace, 00:14.512[10]; 8. 54-Zachary Hawk, 00:14.569[4]; 9. 72-Todd Neiheiser, 00:14.579[3]; 10. 35-Brandon Roberts, 00:14.624[12]; 11. 24-Zeke McKenzie, 00:14.670[6]; 12. 11D-Brian Diveley, 00:14.784[14]; 13. M16-Blake Monroe, 00:15.141[1]; 14. 23-Tim Carpenter Jr, 00:15.180[11]; 15. B5-Matthew Baker, 00:15.315[7]; 16. 11-Alec Davis, 00:16.551[8]

Qualifying B (3 Laps): 1. 96M-Mike McKinney, 00:14.495[12]; 2. 25-Tyler Nicely, 00:14.546[15]; 3. 12L-Lucas Lee, 00:14.627[2]; 4. C40-Mike Chasteen Jr, 00:14.653[13]; 5. 99-Hunt Gossum, 00:14.657[11]; 6. 31-Mark Anderson, 00:14.670[4]; 7. 59R-Jacob Rexing, 00:14.689[8]; 8. 77-Ray Bollinger, 00:14.811[10]; 9. 05-Dave Wietholder, 00:14.908[6]; 10. 14C-Rick Conoyer, 00:15.005[14]; 11. 27-Michael Turner, 00:15.008[7]; 12. 1A-Steve Meyer Jr, 00:15.039[1]; 13. 9-Ken Schrader, 00:15.146[9]; 14. 37-Devin Wright, 00:15.165[5]; 15. 14-Dalton Lane, 00:15.186[16]; 16. 3-Mike Brooks, 00:15.234[3]