Cadillac, MI (Friday, March 26, 2021) - Tri City Motor Speedway (TCMS) and Merritt Speedway have already made some big announcements for both facilities when it comes to events at both tracks for 2021. Having announced that the Battle by the Bay at Tri City will pay a cool $10,000 to win and the 33rd Annual WoodTic will dole out $33,000 to win, Mike Blackmer announced at the speedway’s awards banquet that the regular divisions will be battling for increased purses in series events at both tracks. Each division will be highlighted on back-to-back and individual nights throughout different points of the season with each series concluding their championship on September 10th and 11th at Merritt and then the following weekend at TCMS.
The Factory Stock Series gets things going on May 7th at TCMS and the next night at Merritt with both events paying $1,500 to win. The class will vie for $2,000 to win on June 4th and 5th and then again on July 2nd and July 4th before battling for $3,000 to win on August 13th and 14th.
Pro Stock drivers battle for $1,500 to win May 14th and 15th before trying to win $2,000 the weekend of June 11th and 12th. $2,500 is on the line at TCMS and Merritt on July 16th and 17th and a $500 increase happens on August 20th and 21st.
4-6 Cylinder Series action gets underway on the weekend of May 21st and 22nd when $600 is on the line at the two tracks. $1,000 will be up for grabs on the weekends of June 18th and 19th as well as July 9th and 10th. On July 23rd and 24th, $1,500 will be given to the winner of each event.
B-Modifieds at Merritt get a chance to go for increased dollars starting on April 24th with a $1,000 to win feature. They will then race for $1,500 on June 26th, $2,500 July 10th, $2,000 July 31st, and $1,500 on August 28th. September 10th at Tri City and 11th at Merritt will showcase the class’ series championship when they race for a very impressive $3,000 to win on each night.
Tri City IMCA Modifieds race for $1,000 to win on April 23rd and then round out the month of May with a $1,500 to win show on May 28th. June 25th sees the purse go up to $2,000 to win followed by $2,500 to win on August 6th and then another $1,000 to win race on August 27th.
The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds first crack at increased payouts start on May 30th as part of day two of the Memorial Day celebration at Merritt with a $2,000 to win feature on tap. Another $2,000 is up for grabs on both June 26th and on July 10th. The Great Lakes Super Sprints Championship Weekend sees the class battling for $5,000 September 10th at Tri City and then the next night for another $5,000 to win!
The series championship for all classes (except Merritt B-Mods) will be part of The Battle by the Bay weekend at Tri City Motor Speedway on September 17th and 18th.
Track owner Mike Blackmer stated, “We are doing this to make it worth the driver’s time and money to come and race both nights at our facilities. We have a good group of drivers that run at both facilities and hope this is something everyone will enjoy.”
The seasons begin in just under a month with Friday night racing at TCMS kicking off on Friday, April 23rd, followed by the Merritt Speedway season opener on Saturday, April 24th. For more information on TCMS, log onto www.tricityracetrack.com. Learn more about Merritt Speedway at www.merrittspeedwaymi.com.
For more stories from around the region, be sure to log ontowww.horsepowerhappenings.com. Listen to on-demand episodes of the Horsepower Happenings Podcast, with new episodes every Monday night at 9:00 pm.
Story - Chuck Darling, Horsepower Happenings
Photo - Horsepower Happenings File Photo