What won the race: Dominating the Chuckwagon 40, polesitter Mike Spatola led all the way at Farmer City Raceway for a $5,000 MARS Championship Series victory. His car wafting tire-rub smoke in the final laps, Spatola took the checkers 0.455 of a second ahead of sixth-starting Jason Feger, who kept series points leader and third-place finisher Ryan Unzicker in check most of the second half of the 40-lapper.

Quotable: "With about 10 (laps) to go, I pushed my right-front (tire) off and I couldn't steer and had to start backing it in," Spatola said. "And then I think from doing that, I blasted the cushion down there so hard and knocked the bracing off the right rear and got in the tire and had the right-rear going down. So I'm just glad it wasn't 50 laps ... we held on."

Key notes: Mike Spatola won his fourth career MARS feature and first since May 28, 2022, at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway. ... Spatola, the track champion at Kankakee County Speedway in Kankakee, Ill., and Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway, notched his 12th overall feature victory of the season. ... Spatola, nicknamed Opie, stayed ahead of a flurry of action much of the race, he a three-second lead early and held on late. ... Runner-up Jason Feger recovered after losing positions on a lap-19 restart. ... Two cautions slowed the race, the first on the initial start when Caden McWhorter stopped on the backstretch (he retired after four laps). ... On the 19th lap, Dylan Thornton pulled up with damage in turn four after Paul Parker's backstretch departure caused a jamup entering turn three. ... The 15-minute feature concluded at 9:31 p.m. ... Austin Howes scratched from the feature. ... In prelims, Brandon Sheppard overcame mechanical issues in his heat race to transfer through the night's consolation in his family-owned No. B5. ... . ... Farmer City track champ Donny Walden appeared to lose power while running fourth in the third heat, collecting Caden McWhorter. ... Roben Huffman, David Marlow and Evan Miller scratched before heats. ... Chuckwagon Food Service sponsored the track's season finale and provided Spatola a lemonade in victory lane.

On the move: Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., started 18th and finished fifth.

Winner's sponsors: Spatola’s Rocket Chassis is powered by a Pro Power Racing Engine and sponsored by Lake Norman Mechanical, T&S Heating, Cooling & Refrigeration, Illinois State Rifle Association, B&D Chemical, Big Daddy Scrap, Steve’s Performance, V.R. Haag Consulting, County Chevrolet, Integra Racing Shocks, Allstar Performance, Night Owl Design and Fast Lane Wraps.

Points chase: After Farmer City: 1. Ryan Unzicker (1,037); 2. Jason Feger (955); 3. Dylan Thornton (901); 4. Daniel Adam (746); 5. Bob Gardner (739).

Current weather: Clear, 82°F

Car count: 30

Fast qualifier: Shannon Babb

Time: 12.565 seconds

Polesitter: Mike Spatola

Heat race winners: Shannon Babb, Mike Spatola, Jason Feger

Consolation race winners: Jake Little

Provisional starters: Mark Voigt, Austin Howes

Next series race: September 5, Fairbury Speedway (Fairbury, IL) $15,000