PONTOON BEACH, Ill. – June 21, 2013 – Chris Simpson passed Brady Smith for the lead on lap 18, then led the remaining 22 laps en route to his first DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” victory on Friday night at Tri-City Speedway.
With a field of 43 cars in attendance, Simpson of Oxford, Iowa, started the race from the fourth position and ran third for the first 10 laps. Then he changed his driving line and ran down pole-sitter Brian Shirley, who was running second. Simpson was definitely in the right groove because after he cruised past Shirley, he went by Smith and captured the $10,000 checkered flag.
“I jumped up to the top early there and wasn’t too good,” Simpson said. “So I just ran that momentum line. I bought this car from Brian Birkhofer and I’ve watched him win a lot of races running that line. It worked for us tonight.”
(Click here for news and information on the DIRTcar Summer Nationals.)
Birkhofer, Mark Burgtorf and Shannon Babb rounded out the top five.
Heat race winners included Shirley, Simpson, Smith and Kevin Weaver.
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Hell Tour continues on Saturday night at Fairbury American Legion Speedway in Fairbury, Ill.
DIRTcar Summer Nationals Statistical Report; Tri-City Speedway; Pontoon Beach, Ill.: June 21, 2013
A-Main (40-laps): 1. Chris Simpson ($10,000), 2. Brady Smith, 3. Brian Birkhofer, 4. Mark Burgtorf, 5. Shannon Babb, 6. Brian Shirley, 7. Ryan Unzicker, 8. Tyler Reddick, 9. Jack Sullivan, 10. Billy Faust, 11. Dustin Griffin, 12. Jason McBride, 13. Brandon Sheppard, 14. Scott Weber, 15. Jason Perry, 16. Kevin Weaver, 17. Jimmy Mars, 18. Randy Korte, 19. Bobby Pierce, 20. Craig Smith, 21. Michael Kloos, 22. Billy Moyer.
2013 DIRTcar Summer Nationals ‘Hell Tour’ Schedule
| Day | Date | Track | Location | Winner |
| Wed. | June 12 | Brownstown Speedway | Brownstown, IN | Dennis Erb, Jr. |
| Thurs. | June 13 | Off | ||
| Fri. | June 14 | Cedar Lake Speedway | New Richmond, WI | Brian Birkhofer |
| Sat. | June 15 | Cedar Lake Speedway | New Richmond, WI | Cancelled (RAIN) |
| Sun. | June 16 | Wilmot Speedway | Wilmot, WI | Kevin Weaver |
| Mon. | June 17 | Off | ||
| Tues. | June 18 | Off | ||
| Wed. | June 19 | Spoon River Speedway | Canton, IL | Brandon Sheppard |
| Thurs. | June 20 | Belle Clair Speedway | Belleville, IL | Brandon Sheppard |
| Fri. | June 21 | Tri-City Speedway | Pontoon Beach, IL | Chris Simpson |
| Sat. | June 22 | Fairbury Speedway | Fairbury, IL | |
| Sun. | June 23 | I-96 Speedway | Lake Odessa, MI | |
| Mon. | June 24 | Peoria Speedway | Peoria, IL | |
| Tues. | June 25 | Off | ||
| Wed. | June 26 | Clarksville Speedway | Clarksville, TN | |
| Thurs. | June 27 | Clayhill Motorsports Park | Atwood, TN | |
| Fri. | June 28 | Paducah International Raceway | Paducah, KY | |
| Sat. | June 29 | Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 | Pevely, MO | |
| Sun. | June 30 | Lincoln Speedway | Lincoln, IL | |
| Mon. | July 1 | Off | ||
| Tues. | July 2 | Quincy Raceways | Quincy, IL | |
| Wed. | July 3 | Jacksonville Speedway | Jacksonville, IL | |
| Thurs. | July 4 | LaSalle Speedway | LaSalle, IL | |
| Fri. | July 5 | Fayette Co. Speedway | Brownstown, IL | |
| Sat. | July 6 | Highland Speedway | Highland, IL | |
| Sun. | July 7 | Tri-State Speedway | Haubstadt, IN | |
| Mon. | July 8 | Off | ||
| Tues. | July 9 | Florence Speedway | Union, KY | |
| Wed. | July 10 | Terre Haute Action Track | Terre Haute, IN | |
| Thurs. | July 11 | Macon Speedway | Macon, IL | |
| Fri. | July 12 | Kankakee County Speedway | Kankakee, IL | |
| Sat. | July 13 | 34 Raceway | Burlington, IA | |
| Sun. | July 14 | Vermilion County Speedway | Danville, IL | |
| Mon. | July 15 | Off | ||
| Tues. | July 16 | Off | ||
| Wed. | July 17 | Brushcreek Motorsports Park | Peebles, OH | |
| Thurs. | July 18 | Twin Cities Raceway Park | North Vernon, IN | |
| Fri. | July 19 | Attica Raceway Park | Attica, OH | |
| Sat. | July 20 | Oakshade Raceway | Wauseon, OH |
The DIRTcar Summer Nationals “Hell Tour” is brought to fans across the country by many important partners including: Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Racing Electonics (Official Communication), Vicci (Official Uniform), VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to these fine Contingency Sponsors: Beyea Headers, Butlerbuilt, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Dominator Race Products, Edelbrock, Chevy Performance Parts, Integra Shocks, Intercomp, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, Klotz Lubricants, MSD Performance, Petroff Towing, Quartermaster, Superflow Dynos, UNOH (University of Northwestern Ohio), and Wrisco Aluminum.