SARVER, Pa. (EYT) — The third time was a charm for Lernerville Speedway on Friday where they finally got the western Pennsylvania racing season underway. A big opening night crowd filled the stands and was treated to some great racing to start the season.

(Pictured above: Franklin’s Blaze Myers opened his 2022 season with a big win. Photo courtesy: Zach Yost Racing Photography)

After winning last year’s track championship despite not winning a feature AJ Flick got feature win number one out of the way in convincing fashion. Flick charged from his 9th starting spot to take the lead from Clarion’s Mike Bauer with just two laps remaining to secure his first win of 2022.
Other winners Friday night included four-time track champ Mat Williamson who returned from New York for another dominating performance in the big block modified feature. Jared Miley scored his 36th career win in the late model feature while Tyler Dietz closed out the evening by winning the pro stock feature.

This weekend Tony Stewart’s All-Star Circuit of Champions will invade Lernerville Speedway on Friday and Sharon Speedway on Saturday with some of the top sprint car drivers in the country to challenge the western Pennsylvania regulars. Leading the way will be the series champ and current point leader Tyler Courtney in the NOS Energy Drink number 7.

Defending champion Tyler Courtney and the All-Stars will visit the area this weekend. Photo by Rick Rarer.

Other drivers expected include former track champion Tim Shaffer, ten-time IRA champ Bill Balog, Justin Peck, and Parker Price-Miller among others. RUSH Modifieds will join the All-Stars Friday and Econo Mods will also be on the card Saturday at Sharon Speedway. For the first time in the track’s history, the All-Stars will sanction the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup race at Lernerville this July where the winner will take home 25,000 dollars.

The RUSH wingless sprint car series also got their season underway this past weekend but did it in West Virginia at Tyler County Speedway, also known as “The Bullring”. After scoring his first sprint car win at Pittsburgh Motor Speedway last year in his rookie season Blaze Myers of Franklin made sure there would be no sophomore jinx in 2022 and wasted no time doing it.

Blaze Myers scored the popular win in his first start of the season after passing early leader Chad Ruhlman. Myers would lead the rest of the way for first win of the season and second career sprint car win. Ruhlman would hold on for second over Andy Priest, John Mollick, and Tyler Newhart. The RUSH sprint cars will return to action on Saturday, May 7th, at Pittsburgh Motor Speedway.

Local sprint car racer Cody Bova of Struthers scored his first career 410 win over the weekend at Wayne County Speedway in Ohio at their season opener. It was a good night for western Pennsylvania drivers where Brandon Spithaler and Leyton Wagner finished 3rd and 4th behind Bova.

The All-Star race scheduled for Thursday at Bedford Speedway has been postponed due to concerns about the national tire shortage. Stay tuned for more news on the tire situation in the upcoming weeks.