Story Lines: Christmas in July at Berlin Raceway
Story Lines: Christmas in July at Berlin Raceway
A Party of Two at Berlin
In what will surely be the most unique event on the 500 Sprint Car Tour Schedule, the Christmas in July event at Berlin Raceway will be a companion event between the Auto Value Bumper to Bumper 500 Sprint Car Tour, Must See Racing, and the USSA Kenyon Midgets. The companion race will be the first of its kind since 2010 as the only two 410 pavement sprint car series in the country will be competing on the same day at the same racetrack. This will be the first time that the 500 Sprint Car Tour and Must See Racing will compete together as sanctioning bodies.
Fans will notice one significant difference between these two racing series, as Must See Racing promotes a winged sprint car that produces high downforce and blistering speeds, while the 500 Sprint Car Tour boasts a non-winged sprint car that produces extreme horsepower and grueling side by side racing. Tyler Roahrig and Bobby Santos III, both 500 Sprint Car Tour regulars and race winners, will be competing in both the Must See Racing feature and the 500 Sprint Car Tour feature.
Can she get the Monkey off her Back?
After a strong start to the season with a second place finish at Anderson Speedway on April 8th, Taylor Ferns and her race team have had one bad finish after another. As the Michigan native heads back to her home track, she will look to get a monkey off her back and return to the front of the grid. Ferns has shown great pace, but after a 13th place finish in the first trip to Berlin and back to back retirements due to engine issues, she quickly fell down to seventh place in the points standings.
With five races left in the season, Berlin will be a great opportunity for Ferns to turn her season around. A handful of tracks are still on schedule that Ferns has performed very well at, so she is still in a favorable position to jump into the top five in the championship. The Christmas in July 40 at Berlin Raceway is where the climb into the Championship race will begin.
Taylor Ferns practicing at Berlin Raceway in June 2023. - Jack Kessler Photo
Roahrig has a good Relationship with the 7/16th mile
The 500 Sprint Car Tour has made three trips to Berlin Raceway in Marne, Michigan since the beginning of the 2022 racing season. All three visits were won in dominating fashion by one driver, Tyler Roahrig. Roahrig will look to continue his dominance over Berlin as he prepares for a sprint car double duty this coming weekend.
In three races at Berlin Raceway since the beginning of the 2022 racing season, Roahrig has led an astonishing 79 of 120 laps. He has also set fast times in qualifying in all three events and has battled from two eighth place draws and a sixth place draw. Taking more than 10 laps to reach the front only once, Roahrig’s speed showed through in clean air and in traffic. Roahrig has a combined margin of victory of 8.189 seconds between his three victories at Berlin, giving him an average margin of victory of 2.729 per win.
Round Two Better for Macenko
Rookie of the year contender and front runner, Jackson Macenko, has made progressive gains during his first sprint car season. Impressing veteran drivers right off the bat with his ability to maintain pace, race competitively and cleanly, and learn quickly from what his car is telling him, Macenko is evolving into a fast and confident sprint car racer. His best finish of the year came in the form of a fifth place finish at Anderson Speedway on July 8th. The performance was somewhat expected out of his camp as this would be the first time he returned to a track he had already raced on.
Macenko’s confidence is running high as he now goes to his second repeat track of the season at Berlin Raceway. With a ninth place finish in the first trip to Berlin, Macenko adapted to the tricky track right away. He now will look to find more pace in his Brad Hayes Racing machine and move further up the grid, or a potential podium finish.
Jackson Macenko at practicing at Toledo 2023 - Jack Kessler Photo
2022 Full Time Competitor jumps on the Tour for the first time in 2023
After focusing their efforts on their Little 500 campaign, Derek Bischak will compete with the 500 Sprint Car Tour for the first time in 2023 when the series heads to Berlin Raceway on Saturday, July 22nd. A full time competitor in 2022, Bischak finished the year seventh in points standings and was a favorite to compete for race wins going into 2023.
When the season started at Anderson Speedway on April 8th, Bischak broke a drive shaft at the pre-event practice that forced him to withdraw from the event. He then turned his focus to the Little 500 where he finished seventh. Now, back on track for his first points earning event of the season, Bischak will look to make up ground right away and contend for a race win in a crowded field of drivers.
Christmas in July
Berlin Raceway will be holding their Christmas in July celebration during Saturday’s racing event. Not only will it be a celebration of a newfound way to celebrate the meaning of Christmas all year round, but the racetrack will be taking it to a whole new level with their toy donation drive. Any fan that brings an unopened, new toy to the race and donate it to Cherry Health Pediatrics will receive a ticket voucher that will be good to a race later in the season. Fans who donate a gift will receive a gift, and will also be treated to a night full of great racing action!
The 500 Sprint Car Tour will be joined at Berlin Raceway by the USSA Kenyon Midget Series, Must See Racing winged sprint cars, and Sportsman Late Models. General Admission gates open at 4:00pm and rotating practice subsequently begins at 4:00pm. Qualifying for the 500 Sprint Car Tour is set to begin at 6:00pm with racing beginning at 6:30pm. The 500 Sprint Car Tour feature is the final feature of the night and will be featured on FloRacing. Tickets for the event are on sale now and can be purchased here for a special price.
Watch this Saturday’s Berlin event LIVE on FloRacing here.
