0
0
Photo Michael Jaworecki/Myracenews
Atlantic City, New Jersey (JANUARY 30, 2025) — The glory of almost 80 years of auto racing inside Jim Whelen Boardwalk Hall continues this Friday and Saturday, January 31 & February 1, when the Indoor Auto Racing Championship returns for the 23rd running of the Gambler’s Classic, and stakes are high.
Competitors from up-and-down the East Coast converge on Boardwalk Hall, bringing together some of the fiercest competitors in short-track racing. From seasoned veterans to rising stars, the fields are stacked with talent, eager to etch their name in Atlantic City history.
“Everyone wants to win in Atlantic City because the pioneers of racing all won there,” two-time Gambler’s Classic winner Joey Payne stated. “There’s prestige in it.”
While the modern-era record books shows that Andy Mackereth of Ontario, Canada was the first winner, auto racing inside Boardwalk Hall has a long history dating back to 1938. Then known as the Atlantic City Convention Center, a series of Midget car races were held during the fall of that year.
With World War II hanging over the nation, many auto races were canceled to aid in the war effort and Boardwalk Hall racing was such a casualty.
It was not until January of 1965 that Pleasantville, NJ businessman George Stockinger began the first of 55 indoor racing events that would stretch over the course of the next 15 winters. The featured attraction was the Three Quarter (TQ) Midget — the same machine that the Indoor Auto Racing Championship races today.
Because of the scheduling of these races in the dead of winter, the Atlantic City Indoor Races received widespread attention among the auto racing community. The frenzy peaked in 1973 when six events were held, and through 1981 at least three events took place each year.
Twenty two years later, in 2003, Len Sammons, publisher of Area Auto Racing News, resurrected the Atlantic City Indoor racing traditions. On January 18, 2003, a packed house saw the racing events and Andy Mackereth from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada won the Inaugural Gambler’s Classic.
Since 2003, names such as PA’s Lou Cicconi, N.J.’s Joey Payne and CT’s Ted Christopher have cemented themselves as the new legends of Boardwalk Hall victory lane thanks to multiple visits between 2003 and 2013.
In the last decade a new group of stars has dominated the boardwalk. Carry four Gambler Classic victories is Anthony Sesely of Matawan, N.J. with trophies in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2023; and Andy Jankowiak of Tonawanda, NY scored wins in 2019, 2020, 2023, and 2024.
Perennial contenders Tim Buckwalter (2022) and Ryan Flores (2018) each have one victory in the event, but come to Atlantic City as favorites to take home the title in 2025.
“The Gambler’s Classic is a race where, when your career is over, you want to say you won it,” Flores shared. “More importantly, you want to say you won it more than anyone else.”
While current stars of the Indoor Auto Racing Championship chase glory and the Gambler’s Classic trophy, big winners in the “Stockinger Era” are now memorialized through annual special awards during the Gambler’s Classic events. One is given out each year in Stockinger’s name, others named for racers including Doug Craig, Larry Michaels, Tony Romit, and Sonny Saunders.
As they did nearly 80 years ago, the TQ Midget stars, along with drivers in supplementary divisions including Slingshots, Champ Karts, and Micro Sprints will do battle around an oval built on the concrete floor of Jim Whelen Boardwalk Hall.
Racing kicks off on Friday, January 31 at 7 PM headlined by the BlackJack 21 feature race for the TQ Midgets, and continues on Saturday, February 1 at 7 PM headlined by the Gambler’s Classic.
Tickets are available at the Jim Whelen Boardwalk Hall Box Office and at ticketmaster.com. For more information on the Indoor Auto Racing Championship and the NAPA Auto Parts Atlantic City Indoor Races visit www.indoorautoracing.com
