He let one get away from him back in July, and there was no way Nick Hoffman was about to let it happen again Friday night at Farmer City Raceway.
Starting on the pole, Hoffman put a big hurt on the field, leading all 30 laps en route to becoming the fifth different Summit Racing Equipment American Modified Series winner in five contested races this season, besting the nine-time Farmer City winner Mike McKinney and seven-time DIRTcar UMP Modified National points champion Mike Harrison.
Hoffman’s good friend and Elite Chassis customer Mike McKinney beat him in a terrific DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Feature event at Farmer City almost two months ago with a late-race pass for the win. Needless to say, Hoffman made certain that did not happen again this time around.
Hoffman jumped out to the lead early and made light work of any lapped traffic he encountered.
“I was able to maneuver really well and pick and choose my lines,” Hoffman said. “When I did have to come off the bottom and go through the middle, I felt I carried plenty of speed where nobody could get below me if they were on me.”
After a quick caution just under halfway, Hoffman again started pulling away from the field, but McKinney had just taken second and rode less than two seconds back. As they entered slower traffic once again, Hoffman sliced through rapidly, but McKinney began to get held up slightly, allowing for Harrison, Allen Weisser and Will Krup to catch him as they entered the home stretch.
In the end, Hoffman remained unchallenged as he cruised to the $2,500 victory while McKinney was able to hang on in traffic for second. Harrison made a terrific effort on the top side to claim third, and Krup nipped Weisser at the stripe to get fourth.
With the guy who’s won nine times at Farmer City in his non-existent rearview mirror, Hoffman held strong out front, knowing the #96 was behind and could strike at any moment if he wasn’t careful.
“There were a couple of times where [signal sticks] showed me that Mike [McKinney] was getting closer, so I stepped my game up and rolled a little bit faster,” Hoffman said.
Heading into the FALS Super Nationals Saturday night at Fairbury Speedway, Hoffman knows it’s going to take another performance like Friday’s for him to beat McKinney and gain those ever-so-important UMP National points before the season wraps-up in the coming weeks.
“[McKinney’s] won nine races here, so he’s the king of this place right now. And Fairbury too, he’ll be really tough, probably the toughest guy to beat,” Hoffman said.
UP NEXT
The American Modified Series action continues Saturday night at Fairbury Speedway in Fairbury, IL, for the $10,000-to-win FALS Super Nationals. Follow DIRTcar Racing on social media for live updates throughout the event.
UMP MODIFIEDS A FEATURE 1
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 7 |  |
Nick Hoffman | Mooresville, NC | – | |
| 2 | 4 | 96M |  |
Mike McKinney | Plainfield, IL | 2 | |
| 3 | 3 | 24H |  |
Mike Harrison | Highland, IL | – | |
| 4 | 5 | K19 |  |
Will Krup | Mt. Carmel, IL | 1 | |
| 5 | 2 | 25W |  |
Allen Weisser | Peoria, IL | -3 | |
| 6 | 11 | 77 |  |
Ray Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | 5 | |
| 7 | 13 | 5CS |  |
Curt Spalding | Watervilet, MI | 6 | |
| 8 | 7 | 3L |  |
Jeff Leka | Buffalo, IL | -1 | |
| 9 | 21 | 25 |  |
Tyler Nicely | Owensboro, KY | 12 | |
| 10 | 18 | 32 |  |
Bobby Pierce | Oakwood, IL | 8 | |
| 11 | 9 | 4 | |
Victor Lee | Danville, KY | -2 | |
| 12 | 16 | 45 | |
Kyle Hammer | Clinton, IL | 4 | |
| 13 | 20 | 28 | |
Michael Bolyard | St. Peter, IL | 7 | |
| 14 | 10 | 35S |  |
David Stremme | Mooresville, NC | -4 | |
| 15 | 8 | 99W |  |
Chris Arnold | Dillsburg, PA | -7 | |
| 16 | 12 | 16C |  |
John Clippinger | Evansville, IN | -4 | |
| 17 | 15 | 1KS | |
Keith Smith | -2 | ||
| 18 | 14 | 242 | |
Brandon Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | -4 | |
| 19 | 19 | 59R |  |
Jacob Rexing | Brighton, IL | – | |
| 20 | 22 | 81C | |
Chris Cole | Evansville, IN | 2 | |
| 21 | 6 | 21D | |
Danny Schwartz | Ashmore, IL | -15 | |
| 22 | 17 | 43A | |
Larry Anderson | Clay City, IL | -5 | |
| 23 | 23 | 21 |  |
Troy Dodson | Hammond, IL | – | |
UMP MODIFIEDSB FEATURE 1
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 43A | |
Larry Anderson | Clay City, IL | 1 | |
| 2 | 3 | 59R | |
Jacob Rexing | Brighton, IL | 1 | |
| Top 2 transfer | |||||||
| 3 | 11 | 8 | |
Jimmy Lennex | MAYSVILLE, KY | 8 | |
| 4 | 8 | R0 |  |
Rory Overmyer Sr | Champaign, IL | 4 | |
| 5 | 13 | 25 | |
Tyler Nicely | Owensboro, KY | 8 | |
| 6 | 7 | 88 |  |
Daniel Flessner | Roberts, IL | 1 | |
| 7 | 4 | 81C | |
Chris Cole | Evansville, IN | -3 | |
| 8 | 1 | 63 | |
Dustin King | Charleston, IL | -7 | |
| 9 | 6 | 35 |  |
Ethan Weber | Fairbury, IL | -3 | |
| 10 | 10 | 10 | |
Jason Highley | Terre Haute, IN | – | |
| 11 | 5 | 83 | |
Kasey Schrock | Ashmore, IL | -6 | |
| DNS | 9 | 29 |  |
Jason Turner | Tilton, IL | – | |
| DNS | 12 | 01 | |
Don Kiger | Tilton, IL | – | |
| DNS | 14 | 12 | |
Wyatt Harms | Fairbury, IL | – | |
UMP MODIFIEDSB FEATURE 2
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 | 32 | |
Bobby Pierce | Oakwood, IL | 12 | |
| 2 | 2 | 28 | |
Michael Bolyard | St. Peter, IL | – | |
| Top 2 transfer | |||||||
| 3 | 12 | 71D | |
Ron Davies | Warren, PA | 9 | |
| 4 | 10 | 7L | |
Mark Lamont | Crossville, IL | 6 | |
| 5 | 3 | 5S | |
Alan Stipp | Forrest, IL | -2 | |
| 6 | 4 | 18 | |
Ryan Sutter | Rock Port, MO | -2 | |
| 7 | 9 | 21 | |
Troy Dodson | Hammond, IL | 2 | |
| 8 | 6 | 43 |  |
Jason Johnson , | Alvin, IL | -2 | |
| 9 | 11 | T9 | |
Ryan Thomas | Fair Grove, MO | 2 | |
| 10 | 8 | 34T | |
Tanner Reed | Paris, IL | -2 | |
| 11 | 1 | 1S | |
Brian Shaw | Robinson, IL | -10 | |
| 12 | 5 | 81 | |
Mark Cole | Evansville, IN | -7 | |
| DNS | 7 | 1D | |
Dean Hoffman | Troy, IL | – | |
| DNS | 14 | 21A | |
Nick Allen | Wheatfield, IN | – | |
UMP MODIFIEDSHEAT 1
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 7 | |
Nick Hoffman | Mooresville, NC | – | |
| 2 | 2 | K19 | |
Will Krup | Mt. Carmel, IL | – | |
| 3 | 4 | 4 | |
Victor Lee | Danville, KY | 1 | |
| 4 | 10 | 5CS | |
Curt Spalding | Watervilet, MI | 6 | |
| Top 4 transfer | |||||||
| 5 | 3 | 63 | |
Dustin King | Charleston, IL | -2 | |
| 6 | 5 | 59R | |
Jacob Rexing | Brighton, IL | -1 | |
| 7 | 7 | 83 | |
Kasey Schrock | Ashmore, IL | – | |
| 8 | 9 | 88 | |
Daniel Flessner | Roberts, IL | 1 | |
| 9 | 11 | 29 | |
Jason Turner | Tilton, IL | 2 | |
| 10 DNF | 6 | 8 | |
Jimmy Lennex | MAYSVILLE, KY | -4 | |
| 11 DNF | 8 | 25 | |
Tyler Nicely | Owensboro, KY | -3 | |
UMP MODIFIEDSHEAT 2
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 25W | |
Allen Weisser | Peoria, IL | – | |
| 2 | 2 | 21D | |
Danny Schwartz | Ashmore, IL | – | |
| 3 | 3 | 35S | |
David Stremme | Mooresville, NC | – | |
| 4 | 5 | 242 | |
Brandon Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | 1 | |
| Top 4 transfer | |||||||
| 5 | 7 | 43A | |
Larry Anderson | Clay City, IL | 2 | |
| 6 | 4 | 81C | |
Chris Cole | Evansville, IN | -2 | |
| 7 | 6 | 35 | |
Ethan Weber | Fairbury, IL | -1 | |
| 8 | 9 | R0 | |
Rory Overmyer Sr | Champaign, IL | 1 | |
| 9 | 10 | 10 | |
Jason Highley | Terre Haute, IN | 1 | |
| 10 | 8 | 01 | |
Don Kiger | Tilton, IL | -2 | |
| DNS | 11 | 12 | |
Wyatt Harms | Fairbury, IL | – | |
UMP MODIFIEDSHEAT 3
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 96M | |
Mike McKinney | Plainfield, IL | – | |
| 2 | 4 | 3L | |
Jeff Leka | Buffalo, IL | 2 | |
| 3 | 5 | 77 | |
Ray Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | 2 | |
| 4 | 3 | 1KS | |
Keith Smith | -1 | ||
| Top 4 transfer | |||||||
| 5 | 8 | 1S | |
Brian Shaw | Robinson, IL | 3 | |
| 6 | 6 | 5S | |
Alan Stipp | Forrest, IL | – | |
| 7 | 10 | 81 | |
Mark Cole | Evansville, IN | 3 | |
| 8 DNF | 2 | 1D | |
Dean Hoffman | Troy, IL | -6 | |
| 9 DNF | 11 | 21 | |
Troy Dodson | Hammond, IL | 2 | |
| 10 DNF | 9 | T9 | |
Ryan Thomas | Fair Grove, MO | -1 | |
| 11 DNF | 7 | 32 | |
Bobby Pierce | Oakwood, IL | -4 | |
UMP MODIFIEDSHEAT 4
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | +/- | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 24H | |
Mike Harrison | Highland, IL | 1 | |
| 2 | 1 | 99W | |
Chris Arnold | Dillsburg, PA | -1 | |
| 3 | 4 | 16C | |
John Clippinger | Evansville, IN | 1 | |
| 4 | 6 | 45 | |
Kyle Hammer | Clinton, IL | 2 | |
| Top 4 transfer | |||||||
| 5 | 9 | 28 | |
Michael Bolyard | St. Peter, IL | 4 | |
| 6 | 10 | 18 | |
Ryan Sutter | Rock Port, MO | 4 | |
| 7 | 11 | 43 | |
Jason Johnson , | Alvin, IL | 4 | |
| 8 | 3 | 34T | |
Tanner Reed | Paris, IL | -5 | |
| 9 | 5 | 7L | |
Mark Lamont | Crossville, IL | -4 | |
| 10 | 7 | 71D | |
Ron Davies | Warren, PA | -3 | |
| DNS | 8 | 21A | |
Nick Allen | Wheatfield, IN | – | |
UMP MODIFIEDSQUALIFYING 1
| Finish | Start | # | Competitor | Hometown | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 38 | 21A | |
Nick Allen | Wheatfield, IN | ||
| 2 | 9 | 43A | |
Larry Anderson | Clay City, IL | ||
| 3 | 29 | 99W | |
Chris Arnold | Dillsburg, PA | ||
| 4 | 40 | 242 | |
Brandon Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | ||
| 5 | 15 | 77 | |
Ray Bollinger | Kewanee, IL | ||
| 6 | 23 | 28 | |
Michael Bolyard | St. Peter, IL | ||
| 7 | 8 | 16C | |
John Clippinger | Evansville, IN | ||
| 8 | 21 | 81C | |
Chris Cole | Evansville, IN | ||
| 9 | 7 | 71D | |
Ron Davies | Warren, PA | ||
| 10 | 28 | 21 | |
Troy Dodson | Hammond, IL | ||
| 11 | 25 | 88 | |
Daniel Flessner | Roberts, IL | ||
| 12 | 5 | 45 | |
Kyle Hammer | Clinton, IL | ||
| 13 | 39 | 12 | |
Wyatt Harms | Fairbury, IL | ||
| 14 | 32 | 24H | |
Mike Harrison | Highland, IL | ||
| 15 | 24 | 10 | |
Jason Highley | Terre Haute, IN | ||
| 16 | 35 | 1D | |
Dean Hoffman | Troy, IL | ||
| 17 | 19 | 43 | |
Jason Johnson , | Alvin, IL | ||
| 18 | 26 | 01 | |
Don Kiger | Tilton, IL | ||
| 19 | 34 | K19 | |
Will Krup | Mt. Carmel, IL | ||
| 20 | 17 | 7L | |
Mark Lamont | Crossville, IL | ||
| 21 | 20 | 4 | |
Victor Lee | Danville, KY | ||
| 22 | 36 | 3L | |
Jeff Leka | Buffalo, IL | ||
| 23 | 22 | 8 | |
Jimmy Lennex | MAYSVILLE, KY | ||
| 24 | 11 | 96M | |
Mike McKinney | Plainfield, IL | ||
| 25 | 16 | 25 | |
Tyler Nicely | Owensboro, KY | ||
| 26 | 3 | R0 | |
Rory Overmyer Sr | Champaign, IL | ||
| 27 | 12 | 32 | |
Bobby Pierce | Oakwood, IL | ||
| 28 | 14 | 34T | |
Tanner Reed | Paris, IL | ||
| 29 | 1 | 59R | |
Jacob Rexing | Brighton, IL | ||
| 30 | 13 | 83 | |
Kasey Schrock | Ashmore, IL | ||
| 31 | 10 | 21D | |
Danny Schwartz | Ashmore, IL | ||
| 32 | 37 | 1S | |
Brian Shaw | Robinson, IL | ||
| 33 | 4 | 1KS | |
Keith Smith | |||
| 34 | 2 | 5CS | |
Curt Spalding | Watervilet, MI | ||
| 35 | 33 | 5S | |
Alan Stipp | Forrest, IL | ||
| 36 | 31 | 35S | |
David Stremme | Mooresville, NC | ||
| 37 | 41 | 18 | |
Ryan Sutter | Rock Port, MO | ||
| 38 | 30 | T9 | |
Ryan Thomas | Fair Grove, MO | ||
| 39 | 18 | 29 | |
Jason Turner | Tilton, IL | ||
| 40 | 27 | 35 | |
Ethan Weber | Fairbury, IL | ||
| 41 | 6 | 25W | |
Allen Weisser | Peoria, IL | ||