Louis Noakes 4/27/26 Louis Noakes 4/27/26

NEW PARIS: LINDLAG IMPRESSES; DEVREESE AND SCHISLER DOMINATE

The New Paris Speedway opened their weekly racing season on Saturday, April 25, 2026.

NEW PARIS, IN — When the New Paris Speedway announced that they would be adopting National Compact Touring Series rules and combine their struggling Outlaw Front Wheel Drive class with their Mini Stock group, many wondered how the new class would shape.

Most tracks in the area have switched to an ABC format with similar rule sets. New Paris and Russell’s M-40 Speedway were one of the lone holdouts on the ABC format. Russell’s M-40 decided to go in a different direction when they merged their Outlaw Front Wheel Drives and Mini Stocks together to form one class, they kept their stock class as their own, and introduced a budget class in honor of Mottville. For 2026, New Paris aligned with Russell’s as its closest track where some drivers may race on off nights in either location, and the move would also allow drivers to potentially run with the National Compacts.

It was an original member of the National Compacts Touring Series which took home the opening night feature victory as Sheldon Lindlag held off several Mini Stocks to take home the competitive victory. It wasn’t for a lack of effort by the Mini Stocks as several pushed their way forward, but Lindlag had an answer for them at every corner. For Lindlag, this was not his first experience in racing with Mini Stocks on the track, and he’s been one of the top contenders each year for Drew Jach’s Compact series. Where many fans might have assumed an easy path to victory for the Mini Stocks, as is often the case at other tracks, on this night, the Front Wheel Drive counterparts flexed their potential in the new class. While it is only one night out of several to come, the building blocks for a successful transition showed themselves immediately.

**A Returning Champion**

Nick Stremme, a former Street Stock Champion at New Paris, made his return to The Hottest 1/4 Mile in the Midwest on April 25, 2026.

The Street Stocks took two false starts to get their laps going, but once the third green flag dropped, a race to the front took place which saw Saige Hanna bolt out front quickly. A speeding ticket sent The Grumpy Girl to the back, but another Hanna soon found themself out front as her dad, Charlie, had the lead. Not for long though, as fast qualifier Andrew DeVreese raced like he was on a fire department call and chased down Hanna for the lead. Once out front, it seemed that only a mistake by DeVreese or a race changing caution could make things interesting. Former track champion, Nick Stremme, made his return to New Paris and found himself in second place as he attempted to chase down DeVreese, but there were not enough laps to make up the overall distance despite lapped traffic providing some opportunity as DeVreese worked his way through them.

**Hot Out of the Gate**

Andrew DeVreese raced his way to the front and never looked back in his first victory of the 2026 season at New Paris on April 25, 2026.

The Limited Late Models went green to checkered as Bug Schisler found himself out front within the first couple of laps and put it on cruise control from there. Street Stock winner, Andrew DeVreese, played a similar role as Stremme did in the Feature before as DeVreese attempted to chase down Schisler to put some pressure on the former track champion and defending Trifecta Champion, but it was on this night that it belonged to Schisler and crew. DeVreese raced in place for Jerime Damron who had planned to jump into the Limited Late but swapped over to race the Hornet.

Speaking of Damron, he had an impressive race himself in the Hornet A-Feature. Not only did his hood pop open during the race, which caused temporary blindness as he followed his instincts to stay in the race despite limited visibility, he had to work his way through a crowded front. Once he found some space, Damron went to work and, with a missing hood, took home the opening night win.

The B-Feature saw several new faces make their debut in the Hornets which included Doug Beem Jr., a traditional Night of Destruction competitor, and Cruz Everage, a former Mini Wedge racer who got his first big car experience this past winter in a few Enduro races. But on this night, the victory belonged to Harley Stanley as he held off Beem several times to take home the win.

No Hoodie Weather for Damron

No hood, no sweat. Jerime Damron won the Hornet A-Feature after his hood went up earlier in the race and was removed by safety during a caution on April 25, 2026 at the New Paris Speedway.

New Paris returns to action next Saturday, May 2nd, for their annual Cabin Fever featuring the first leg of the Trifecta Series. On the property will be the Modifieds, Street Stocks, and Limited Late Models. The Street Stocks race for $1,000 to win while the Limited Lates and Modifieds will race for $1,075 to win. It’s $275 to start for the Modifieds and Limited Late Models and $200 for the Street Stocks. Racing starts at 5:15 P.M.

Louis Noakes 4/19/26 Louis Noakes 4/19/26

Kalamazoo: Roahrig, Town Deliver On Big Night

Opening Night at Kalamazoo was raced in front of thousands of spectators.

KALAMAZOO, MI — It’s been a while since a line wrapped around the property with race fans to enter the Kalamazoo Speedway for a weekly show, and that’s exactly what took place on Opening Night 2026 when thousands of fans packed the stands for the Outlaw Super Late Models, Street Stocks, and Front Wheel Drives.

The Street Stock Feature was a show stealer in many ways. After Brock Ganus raced out to an early lead that he held down for most of the race, two late race cautions changed the entire dynamics of the Feature. On the first restart, Ganus was able to hold off the pack behind him and get out front, but action in Turn 2 once again brought out the caution. This was all within a few minute window as Ganus originally took the white flag before the caution displayed. Now with a second restart to go, Ganus was out front but Jeffery Town was able to get by Ganus and completed the race out front as he held off Ganus on the high side.

The headliner, The Intimidator 100, had a difficult act to follow, but the Outlaws delivered. Phil Bozell had a dominating performance at the start of the race as he paced the field for several laps, but issues ended the Bozell night early which saw Mark Shook and Tyler Roahrig take over as they battled. While Shook held fort with Roahrig for many laps, Roahrig was able to stretch the race out and picked up his latest victory in the Outlaw Super Late Models at Kalamazoo. Fans were treated to surprises from the field as Scott Hantz and Craig Everage, both cars which were not on the pre-entry list, made the trip north to Kalamazoo.

The Front Wheel Drives A-Feature was won by defending champion Matthew Elsey Jr. in his freshly designed car. The B-Feature was won by former Hartford Speedway Compact driver James McDonald, and the C-Feature was won by Dayton Brady after several cars received a speeding ticket during the race.

Kalamazoo returns to action on Friday, April 24th, with their Fast Friday’s at the Zoo Weekly Racing program on Alamao Township Night. The Front Wheel Drives will also race for a higher purse with the Autism Awareness Race.