May 9th, 2018, St. Louis Region – Officials from Gateway Motorsports Park in Madison, Illinois, and ARCA Midwest Tour, a leading short track auto racing sanctioning body, announced today they are in the initial planning stages for a major asphalt Super Late Model race in 2019.

Chris Blair, GMP’s Executive Vice President and General Manager and Gregg McKarns, ARCA’s Midwest Tour President are planning an event to take place in the fall of 2019. The event, a non-points race on the 1.25-mile oval, would take place in late October following the completion of the majority of the regional series in the Midwest and Southeast.

“One of our goals has been to build a true year-end specialty event for asphalt Super Late Models that is in a convenient location so we can reach racers from all areas,’ said Blair. “Gregg and I have been kicking around the idea for nearly three years and our next step is to finalize a date and start laying the groundwork for 2019.”

As a result, the Midwest Tour Super Late Models will no longer be part of the June 22-23 racing weekend which features the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on Saturday night and the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards on Friday night.

“One challenge a mid-season, points-paying event presents is that it requires a tremendous amount of travel for the regional teams, not to mention possible scheduling conflicts with other series,” Blair added. “Gregg and his team and I decided our best effort would be to focus on the future when we can get support from multiple series and produce a major motorsports festival that showcases asphalt Super Late Models and the best drivers in the business.”

About Gateway Motorsports Park

Gateway Motorsports Park is the home of INDYCAR, NASCAR and NHRA racing in the St. Louis region. Located just five minutes from downtown St. Louis and covering more than 340 acres, Gateway Motorsports Park is the largest outdoor entertainment facility in the area. Gateway Motorsports Park’s facilities include a 1/4-mile drag strip, 1.25-mile superspeedway, 1.6-mile road course, a state-of-the-art karting facility and a 14-acre, multi-purpose dirt off-road venue. Gateway Motorsports Park was the recipient of the 2017 Outstanding Facility of the Year Award from the Race Track Business Conference and the 2017 Spirit of St. Louis Award from St. Louis Attractions Association.