4/5/2026
Potomac Speedway
Winter Thaw Opening Night 4/4/2026
Pope Delivers Strong Message with Potomac Opening Night Win
The new era of Saturday Night racing at Potomac Speedway kicked off with a large crowd on hand to witness some great Opening Night racing action. Headlining the 5-division action was Hanover, Maryland driver Ed Pope III, as the former Crate racer took the Limited Late Model field by storm in securing his first win of the season in his first time out in the Limited class. Starting 3rd, Pope needed a couple restarts to duck under Sam Archer and cruise to his first Limited victory. Archer came home second, followed by Austin Lathroum, Jonathan Raley, and rookie defending Hobby Stock Champion Mason Hanson. Heats for the 14 cars on hand went to Pope and Lathroum.
In the 15 lap Street Stock main, Pennsylvania’s Ronnie Dennis grabbed the lead from Johnny Oliver in lapped traffic, then staved off several restart challenges from defending champion Wyatt Hanson in scoring his first career Potomac victory. Hanson rolled home second, followed by PJ Hatcher, Deuce Wright, and Bobby Meixsell, Heats went to Dennis and Hanson.
The 15- lapper for the Hobby Stocks courted several different leaders early, with Justin Hatcher eventually taking control of the race, fending off Trent Clemens for his first win of the season. Following the duo were Jayden Hatcher, Connor Cheseldine, and Richie Gibson. Heats went to Jayden Hatcher and Cheseldine.
Top qualifier John Hardesty Jr led wire to wire in the 15-lapper for the Strictly Stock division, with former champion Nabil Guffey chasing him across the stripe in second. Completing the top 5 were Daniel Knodle, Mason Foster, and Joshua Blocker.
In the 15- lap nightcap for the U Car Class, Fast Timer Brody Guy fended off furious challenges from a trio of drivers, surviving several restarts, and laying claim to his first win of the season. Keith Brown chased Guy to the stripe, with Thomas Windsor, Brooke Bowles, and Adam Suda completing the top 5.
Potomac will take 1 weekend off, returning April 18 with the 4th Annual Danny Garrett Memorial for the Limited Late Models, with the winner receiving $3,999. Street Stocks, Hobby Stocks, Strictly Stocks, and U Cars will also return to action as well. For more information on Potomac’s 2026 season, visit www.Potomacspeedway.com
Limited Late Model Results:
1: #11P Ed Pope III, 2: #36 Sam Archer, 3: #6 Austin Lathroum, 4: #25 Jonathan Raley, 5: #28H Mason Hanson, 6: #21 Eric Hanson, 7: #411 Matt Tarbox, DNF: #43 Jarrett Edwards, #19L Brandon Long, #14C Chuck Bowie, #8 Jeremy Pilkerton, #41JT John Davis, #2 Deuce Wright, DNS: #51 Garrett Donnell
Street Stock Results:
1: #19 Ronnie Dennis, 2: #25 Wyatt Hanson, 3: #777 PJ Hatcher, 4: #2 Deuce Wright, 5: #19M Bobby Meixsell, 6: #53 Greg Morgan, 7: #23W Billy Wroble, 8: #26X Robert Martin, DNF: #67 Johnny Oliver, #93 Tyler Alton, #3X John Cobb, DNS: #M1 Wayne Hartley, #89 Scott Wilson
Hobby Stock Results:
1: #77 Justin Hatcher, 2: #01 Trent Clemens, 3: #7H Jayden Hatcher, 4: #6 Connor Cheseldine 5:#3 Richie Gibson, 6: #27 Brandon Crenshaw, 7: #89 Craig Newcomb, 8: #78 Mikey Latham, 9: #34 Ken Ellis, 10: #76 Thomas Dennison, 11: #11 Mike Watson, 12: #42 Daniel Byrd, DNF: #93 Rusty Alton, #14 James Rainey Jr, #92 Kacey Gordon, #23B Brian Hubbard, DNS: #26 Richard Martin
Strictly Stock Results:1: #27 John Hardesty Jr, 2: #90 Nabil Guffey, 3: #7 Daniel Knodle, 4: #96 Mason Foster, 5: #23 Joshua Blocker, 6: #55 Shawn Howsare, 7: #519 Will Mayhew, 8: #810 Stephen Suite 9: #69 George Burch, DNF: #6 Sarah Culver, #610 James Stone Jr, #56 Ed Pope Sr, #14C Kelly Crouse, #88 Greg Mattingly
U Car Results:
1: #99 Brody Guy, 2: #777 Keith Brown, 3: #89 Thomas Windsor, 4: #48 Brooke Bowles, 5: #54 Adam Suda, 6: #7 Nikolas Weber, 7: #69 Ben Pirner, 8: #61 Travis Dye, 9: #15 Ryan Martin, 10: #222 Serenity Schwartz, 11: #12J Andrew Robinson
Article Credit: Buddy Long
Submitted By: David Williams
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