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Photo: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
For the first time in the history of the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, the series invades North Wilkesboro Speedway this Saturday night for the running of the Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 (8 p.m. ET on FloRacing).
While this is the first time the NASCAR Tour has visited North Wilkesboro, Modifieds have raced at the track for decades. Notable names like Red Byron, Curtis Turner, Fonty and Tim Flock, Buck Baker, Junior Johnson, Speedy Thompson, Ray Hendrick, Jerry Cook, Satch Worley, Geoff Bodine, Jimmy Spencer, Gary Myers and Junior Miller have won Modified races at the legendary facility.
Modifieds last raced at North Wilkesboro in 2022, when Ryan Newman and Matt Hirschman split a pair of events as part of the Racetrack Revival that helped breathe new life into the track. Both men are in the field for the Whelen Modified Tour’s inaugural event at North Wilkesboro this weekend.
Tickets to Saturday’s Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 are available here. Below is everything you need to know about the 16th race of the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season.
Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 at North Wilkesboro Speedway
What to watch for:
An incredible field is set to race at historic North Wilkesboro Speedway for the inaugural running of the Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 this Saturday night.
A whopping 39 cars have filed entries to compete in Saturday’s event, making it the largest field of entries this season and the largest overall since 2019 for the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour.
Headlining that list are championship contenders Justin Bonsignore and Ron Silk, who are separated by just three points with three races remaining in the 2023 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season. Both drivers will be making their North Wilkesboro Speedway debuts.
A pair of NASCAR Cup Series veterans – Bobby Labonte and Ryan Newman – rejoin the Tour for Saturday’s race. Newman has the unique honor of winning the first race of North Wilkesboro’s revival in 2022, which happened to be a Modified race. Labonte was in the field when the NASCAR Cup Series ran its last points paying event at the track in 1996. Both men will drive for SS Racing this weekend.
MORE NORTH WILKESBORO: Watch live Saturday on FloRacing
In addition to regulars like Austin Beers, Kyle Bonsignore, Craig Lutz and Tyler Rypkema, some of Modified racing’s best competitors are joining the fray at North Wilkesboro. They include Matt Hirschman, who is returning to Tour competition after suffering a broken bone in his left arm at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park in August.
Doug Coby and Tommy Baldwin Racing, fresh off capturing the Whelen Granite State Short Track Cup, are back in action at North Wilkesboro. Bowman Gray Stadium champion Brandon Ward makes his Whelen Modified Tour debut while another Bowman Gray regular, Burt Myers, makes his first Tour start in two years.
Bobby Santos III, the 2010 Whelen Modified Tour champion, will once again wheel the No. 44 for the Tinio family. Patrick Emerling also returns to the Tour, this time aboard the No. 14 for Advantage Motorsports. Andy Seuss is also slated to make his second start of the season in his family’s No. 70.
Other notable entrants include Kyle Ebersole, Chase Dowling, Tommy Catalano, Eric Goodale, Anthony Nocella, Sam Rameau and Jake Johnson, among others.
RACE FACTS
The complete entry list for Saturday night’s Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 is available here.
| Race | Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 |
| Date | Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023 |
| Track | North Wilkesboro Speedway |
| Layout | 0.625-mile paved oval |
| Location | North Wilkesboro, North Carolina |
| Start Time | 8 p.m. ET |
| Laps | 150 |
| Posted awards | $110,495 |
| Live stream | FloRacing (Live) |
Schedule: Saturday, Sept. 30 … Practice from 1 to 1:45 p.m. ET … Final practice from 2:30 to 3:15 p.m. ET … Qualifying at 5:15 p.m. ET … Brushy Mountain Powersports 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 Brushy Mountain Powersports 150 is limited to 32 starters including Provisional Positions.
Tire allotment: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is fourteen (14) 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 six (6) tires, any position.
