Tyler Erb, Tyler Nicely Cross Career Milestones at Spoon River in Summer Nationals Feature Wins

📸 Tyler Carr

LEWISTOWN, IL — July 2, 2025 — Tyler Erb is back to championship form.

Chasing his second title with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models in 2025, the New Waverly, TX driver closed back in on Jason Feger towards the overall points lead with 11 races remaining with a masterclass around Spoon River Speedway.

Erb rolled off from the front row alongside Rodney Melvin for the Wednesday night Feature, with Melvin taking the lead from the bottom lane.

Erb’s Rocket Chassis worked to find his pace on the cushion through the early stages, which helped him gain enough momentum to make a charge for the lead at the finish line. “Terbo” had enough clearance on Melvin into Turn 1 to slice down to the bottom lane to block Melvin’s move and secure the lead.

The Best Performance Motorsports No. 1 was able to grow the bubble between the car and the field as Bob Gardner and Tyler Millwood battled Melvin for the podium positions.

As the lapped traffic interrupted Erb’s three-second lead, Gardner and Millwood steadily reeled back into the chase for the win.

While Gardner and Millwood got to within one second of the lead, they were unable to reach Erb in time as he took the 20th checkered flag of his Hell Tour career.

“Just be patient,” Erb said. “Obviously, to pull out of line and pass a lap car would have been tough. If they make a mistake, you gotta capitalize and try to get by them. You get a chance to win races like this when you qualify good, and win your Heat race. We did everything correct tonight. It was a really good night for our team, and really fun.”

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 1-Tyler Erb[2]; 2. 4G-Bob Gardner[3]; 3. 31M-Tyler Millwood[5]; 4. 27M-Rodney Melvin[1]; 5. 5-Mark Whitener[4]; 6. 25F-Jason Feger[7]; 7. 14-Haiden Cowan[6]; 8. 18-Shannon Babb[9]; 9. 29-Christian Hanger[8]; 10. 28B-Carson Brown[10]; 11. 33-Mike Harrison[13]; 12. 89-Mike Spatola[16]; 13. 17SR-Brody Smith[11]; 14. 17SS-Brenden Smith[12]; 15. 14JR-Trey Mills[15]; 16. 15-Clay Stuckey[19]; 17. 55-Eli Johnson[14]; 18. 388-Jackson Hise[22]; 19. 75-Dillon McCowan[18]; 20. 13-Dylan Thornton[17]; 21. (DNF) 44-Blaze Burwell[20]; 22. (DNF) A9-AJ May[21]

Tyler Nicely Ties Ray Bollinger for Fourth in All-Time Summit Modified Nationals Wins at Spoon River

With 12 races remaining in the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals season, Tyler Nicely has a chance at scoring his second career title in 2025. 

Through the last five races, the Owensboro, KY veteran has won three, with his most recent triumph coming on Wednesday night at Spoon River Speedway.

Nicely began the night with a Heat race win, which helped him draw the Pole Position for the night’s 25-lap Feature.

Starting alongside fellow Owensboro native Cole Falloway, Nicely took command from the drop of the green flag while Falloway followed behind the No. 25 Elite Chassis.

While Falloway stayed within a one-second gap to Nicely, the two cars extended their lead to over four seconds on third-place Allen Weisser.

Falloway attempted the cushion and the middle lanes of the 3/8-mile racetrack, but held him back as he was the first to witness Nicely capture the twin checkered flags for the third time in 2025.

Nicely’s win also marked the 14th of his career, which ties him with Ray Bollinger for fourth on the all-time wins list for the Summit Modified Nationals.

“I know he’s not gonna go in there and wreck me,” Nicely said. “I knew I just wanted to set the pace. I didn’t want to get into lap traffic where there was no place to go. It just shows we’re out here tonight, and I can’t thank my crew enough.”

Up Next: The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Models and DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals return to LaSalle Speedway for the first time since 2021 in the Freedom 40 on Thursday, July 3.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online or by downloading the DIRTVision App.

Feature (25 Laps): 1. 25-Tyler Nicely[1]; 2. 66-Cole Falloway[2]; 3. 12-Allen Weisser[3]; 4. 292-Josh Allen[4]; 5. 96M-Mike McKinney[5]; 6. 09-Michael Ledford[9]; 7. C40-Mike Chasteen Jr[6]; 8. 77-Ray Bollinger[7]; 9. 05-Dave Wietholder[10]; 10. 3-Mike Brooks[12]; 11. 45H-Chase Holland[15]; 12. 97-Charles Hess[13]; 13. 27G-Jason Garver[19]; 14. 23B-Ethan Boomsma[11]; 15. 21D-John Dimmitt[17]; 16. 49B-Zach Brandt[14]; 17. 69-Riley Roberts[8]; 18. (DNF) 75-Daniel Adam[18]; 19. (DNF) 03B-Mark Burgtorf[16]