What won the race: Rolling on with his summer hot streak, Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., dominated from flag-to-flag for a $12,000 victory in Saturday’s 50-lap King of the Mountain feature at Smoky Mountain Speedway. The 48-year-old kept Dale McDowell at bay in the caution-free race to beat the Georgia driver by 1.003 seconds for his second Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series triumph of 2026.

Quotable: “Since the new track configuration I’ve really struggled here,” Marlar said of the 3/8-mile layout. “To finish in front of Jimmy (Owens) and Dale (McDowell), you know, they’re two of the best in the whole sport ever, so to be able to beat them … I don’t know if I beat ‘em, I finished in front of ‘em.”

Key notes: Marlar’s previous Hunt the Front win this season came on July 31 at Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, Tenn. He was victorious for the third time in his career on the regional tour. ... Dating back to the Duck River event, Marlar has ripped off five wins and two runner-up finishes in his last eight starts. He ran his win streak to three in a row coming off a pair of triumphs last weekend at Kentucky’s Rockcastle Speedway and Richmond Raceway. ... Marlar notched his sixth Smoky Mountain special since 2012, collecting more than $47,000 over that span. ... McDowell reached second with a lap-13 pass of Sam Seawright and trailed Marlar the rest of the way. He closed within a few car lengths of Marlar around the halfway point before slipping high in turns three and four on lap 29 and again with less than 10 laps left but wasn’t able to make a serious bid for the lead. ... Jimmy Owens made a late charge, going from fifth to third from laps 40-46 to finish in the final podium position driving his Koehler Motorsports Rocket Chassis with support from McCarter Brothers Racing and others. ... Seawright settled for fourth place after running second for laps 3-12 and in third until lap 46. ... Points leader Ashton Winger finished sixth one night after starting-and-parking in the tour’s stop at Tazewell (Tenn.) Speedway. ... Max McLaughlin finished 14th after experiencing problems with his tow vehicle en route to the track. ... The nonstop feature was completed in just under 14 minutes.

On the move: Brandon Williams of Crossville, Tenn., started 23rd and finished 16th.

Winner's sponsors: Marlar’s winning Ronnie Delk-owned Rocket Chassis is sponsored by Delk Equipment Sales, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Can-Am Auto Salvage, Langenfelder Mechanical Contractors, Petroff Towing, Spirit Fueled Racing, Swift Springs, Fox Racing Shox, VP Racing Fuels, Performance Parts & Bodies, Midwest Sheet Metal and Capital Sign Company.

Points chase: After Smoky Mountain: 1. Ashton Winger (946); 2. Dalton Cook (868); 3. Joseph Joiner (846); 4. Jadon Frame (834); 5. Sam Seawright (756).

Current weather: Broken Clouds, 82°F

Car count: 32

Fast qualifier: Dale McDowell

Time: 14.859 seconds

Polesitter: Mike Marlar

Heat race winners: Dale McDowell, Mike Marlar, Sam Seawright, Cory Hedgecock

Consolation race winners: Austin Smith, Zack Mitchell

Provisional starters: Brandon Williams, Shane Belk

Next series race: September 25, Swainsboro Raceway (Swainsboro, GA) $8,000