Dirt on Dirt - Red Hill gives Heckenast $10,000 Hell Tour victory

July 3

Red Hill Raceway,

Sumner, IL

Sanction: DIRTcar Summer Nationals - $10,000

Information provided by: Series and track reports (last updated July 4, 12:46 pm)

Red Hill gives Heckenast $10,000 Hell Tour victory

Frank Heckenast Jr.
Tanner English
Sam Seawright
Kyle Hardy
Clay Stuckey
Jason Feger
Brandon Carpenter
Mitch McGrath
Tyler Millwood
Brody Smith
Jason Milam
Luke Morey
Braiden Keller
Lee Williams
Logan Mounce
Dean Carpenter
Jarrett Jones
Tucker Chastain
Shannon Babb
Gregory Carrico
Carter Schlenk
Rusty Schlenk
Mark Voigt

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Frank Heckenast Jr. zips around Red Hill Raceway.

What won the race: Capitalizing on Jason Feger's lap-14 flat tire, pole-starting Frank Heckenast Jr. of Frankfort, Ill., led the rest of Friday's DIRTcar Summer Nationals 40-lapper at Red Hill Raceway for a $10,000 victory. Heckenast's first tour victory in six seasons came 4.343 seconds ahead of Tanner English with ninth-starting Sam Seawright third in the caution-plagued event that saw just six drivers complete 40 laps.

Quotable: "These are just hard to win, you know?" Heckenast said. "People think they just show up, they're gonna win one, you know, because they're out on the road or something. It's not that easy."

Key notes: Winning his sixth career series feature, Frank Heckenast Jr. scored his first since July 23, 2020, at Springfield (Mo.) Raceway. ... Heckenast's previous victory of any kind came May 23, 2025, at Farmer City (Ill.) Raceway. ... Jason Feger led the first 13 laps before a blown right-rear tire forced him to the hot pit; he rallied back to sixth. ... Runner-up Tanner English made a bid for the lead on the 12th lap when he nearly got outside Feger in turn four just as a yellow flag flew. ... Seven cautions slowed the action, the first on the initial start when Mark Voigt and Tucker Chastain tangled in turn four before taking the green. ... On the second lap, Lee Williams and Brody Smith spun in turn two. ... Mitch McGrath's shredded right-rear tire drew a lap-11 yellow. ... Feger's flat drew a lap-14 caution, then three laps later a slowing Logan Mounce brought out another yellow (Feger pitted again). ... On the 24th lap, two cautions appeared, first for a slowing Braiden Keller then for a Williams spin. ... The 34-minute feature concluded at 11:21 p.m. .... Rusty Schlenk started and parked after rear end issues following a spin in heat action. ... Cars hit the track for heat races just before 9:30 p.m. after a brief rain shower following time trials. ... Kyle Hardy lost a left-front wheel at the start of hot laps, which started at 7:30.

On the move: Sam Seawright of Rainsville, Ala., started ninth and finished third.

Winner's sponsors: Heckenast's Vic Hill-powered Longhorn Chassis is sponsored by Indy U-Pull-It, JR Hauling, Storage Squares, Petroff Towing, Jim Weber Motorsports, Capital Signs, Allstar Performance, Dirt Oval Route 66, Bilstein, Wabam, Swift Springs, Keyser Manufacturing, Midwest Sheet Metal, Gorsuch Performance, Cometic Gaskets, Impact Race Gear, Dragon Racing Fuels, Buzze Racing and TeamDemo.com.

Points chase: Week 4 after Red Hill: 1. Tanner English (363); 2. Sam Seawright (343); 3. Jason Feger (312); T4. Clay Stuckey (281); T4. Luke Morey (281); 6. Kyle Hardy (271). Overall after Red Hill: Tanner English (964); 2. Jason Feger (904); 3. Clay Stuckey (737); 4. Michael Leach (601); 5. Mitch McGrath (599).

Current weather: Clear, 81°F

Car count: 23

Fast qualifier: Sam Seawright

Time: 14.836 seconds

Polesitter: Frank Heckenast Jr.

Heat race winners: Frank Heckenast Jr., Jason Feger, Shannon Babb

Next series race: July 4, Highland Speedway (Highland, IL) $10,000

Editor's note: Results and race details are unofficial.

From staff reports

SUMNER, Ill. — Updates from Friday’s 14th round of the 40th annual DIRTcar Summer Nationals at Red Hill Raceway, an event highlighted by a 40-lap, $10,000-to-win feature for DIRTcar Super Late Models (results unofficial):

Feature

Capitalizing on Jason Feger's lap-14 flat tire, pole-starting Frank Heckenast Jr. of Frankfort, Ill., led the rest of Friday's DIRTcar Summer Nationals 40-lapper at Red Hill Raceway for a $10,000 victory. Heckenast's first tour victory in six seasons came 4.343 seconds ahead of Tanner English with ninth-starting Sam Seawright third in the caution-plagued event that saw just six drivers complete 40 laps.

Feature lineup

(40 laps)

Row 1: Frank Heckenast Jr., Jason Feger
Row 2: Shannon Babb, Tanner English
Row 3: Clay Stuckey, Tyler Millwood
Row 4: Dean Carpenter, Kyle Hardy
Row 5: Sam Seawright, Brandon Carpenter
Row 6: Lee Williams, Braiden Keller
Row 7: Mitch McGrath, Jarrett Jones
Row 8: Luke Morey, Jason Milam
Row 9: Rusty Schlenk, Brody Smith
Row 10: Tucker Chastain, Logan Mounce
Row 11: Mark Voigt, Carter Schlenk
Row 12: Gregory Carrico

Heat race results

(Eight laps; all transfer)

First heat: Frank Heckenast Jr., Tanner English, Dean Carpenter, Brandon Carpenter, Mitch McGrath, Jason Milam, Tucker Chastain, Carter Schlenk.

Second heat: Jason Feger, Clay Stuckey, Kyle Hardy, Lee Williams, Jarrett Jones, Rusty Schlenk, Logan Mounce, Gregory Carrico.

Third heat: Shannon Babb, Tyler Millwood, Sam Seawright, Braiden Keller, Luke Morey, Brody Smith, Mark Voigt.

Time trials

Group A
Driver (car no.), hometown, time (unofficial)
1. Frank Heckenast Jr. (99jr), Frankfort, Ill., 15.199
2. Dean Carpenter (51), Coldwater, Miss., 15.264
3. Tanner English (96), Benton, Ky., 15.342
4. Mitch McGrath (74), Waukesha, Wis., 15.371
5. Carter Schlenk (lil91), McClure, Ohio, 15.429
6. Brandon Carpenter (51B), Coldwater, Miss., 15.591
7. Tucker Chastain (80), Mitchell, Ind., 16.351
8. Jason Milam (82B), Guntown, Miss., 16.778
Group B
1. Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 15.012
2. Clay Stuckey (15), Shreveport, La., 15.166
3. Kyle Hardy (99), Stephens City, Va., 15.219
4. Rusty Schlenk (91), McClure, Ohio, 15.473
5. Logan Mounce (81), Mitchell, Ind., 15.610
6. Gregory Carrico (67), Winchester, Va., 15.705
7. Jarrett Jones (17), Guntown, Miss., 15.815
8. Lee Williams (17w), Haubstadt, Ind., no time
Group C
1. Sam Seawright (16s), Rainsville, Ala., 14.836
2. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., 14.868
3. Luke Morey (49), Zeeland, Mich., 14.964
4. Tyler Millwood (31m), Kingston, Ga., 15.164
5. Brody Smith (17sr), Dade City, Fla., 15.190
6. Braiden Keller (k67), West Lebanon, Ind., 15.265
7. Mark Voigt (30), Marine, Ill., 15.404

Friday’s schedule

(All times local)
3 p.m. - Pits open
4:30 p.m. - Tech and registration open
6 p.m. - Tech and registration close
6:30 p.m. - Drivers’ meeting
7 p.m. - On-track activity
- Late Model hot laps
- Modified group qualifying
- Late Model time trials (2 laps)
- B-mod group qualifying
- Hornet hot laps
Opening ceremonies
- Late Model heats (8 laps)
- Modified heats (8 laps)
- B-mod heats (8 laps)
- Hornet heats (6 laps)
Feature events
- Late Models (40 laps)
- Modifieds (25 laps)
- B-mods (20 laps)
- Hornets (12 laps)