Rockingham Speedway combines last two Crown 9 races; MB Drift’s Halloween Havoc, NCE30’s Oktoberfest coming this month

ROCKINGHAM — The Crown 9 Champion Series inaugural season will be cut short.

Rockingham Speedway announced this week that the final race will be Nov. 2 — instead of Nov. 15 as originally scheduled.

Track Manager Dustin Russell cited a scheduling conflict in a video posted Oct. 17 to the speedway’s Facebook page.

Russell said there is a lot of construction going on at the speedway in preparation for NASCAR’s return in April of 2025, which will feature races in the Arca Menards Series East, as well as NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck and Xfinity series.

“We’ve got tons of construction going on — the suites, on the tracks, everywhere,” Russell said. “We were just unable to juggle the construction and everything else that’s going on with Crown 9 at the same time, so we had to cut one short.

“We wish we didn’t have to,” Russell continued. “We enjoy having everybody out here. It’s growing unbelievably fast. The fans love it, the drivers love it. If you haven’t been out here, come check it out.”

With the combination of two races, Russell said the pot was being increased.

A post earlier in the week shows the first-place winner will receive $3,500 instead of the $3,000 awarded in the first two races. The payout for other finishers is as follows: $2,500 for second, $1,500 for third, $700 for fourth, $600 for fifth, $400 for sixth and $200 for seventh-10th place.

Sergio Pena currently sits on top of the leaderboard, having won the first two races of the season. Mark Dysart and Doug Horn have placed second and third, respectively, in the previous races.

The inaugural season of the Rock’s own series for Ford Crown Victorias was initially slated for five races, however the Oct. 9 race was canceled in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

“We’re not canceling next season,” Russell said, adding that the schedule for the 2025 season — featuring nine races throughout the year — will be released on Nov. 2.

Gates open at 9 a.m. with practices at 11 a.m. and noon. The first 15-lap heat races is scheduled to start at 1:30 p.m., followed by ride-alongs with Warriors in Motion at 2 p.m. and the second heat at 3 p.m. The final 30-lap race is slated to start at 4:15 p.m.

The speedway is also hosting Hops and Hot Rods at the Rock the same day, which runs from 4-9 p.m.

In the meantime, there are two other events coming to the track this month.

MB Drift is holding its final event of the 2024 season, Halloween Havoc, Oct. 19-20. The event will feature drifting on various layouts on the infield road course and at the Little Rock, as well as a trunk-or-treat, costume contest and pit decoration contest.

Free ride-alongs are available for any spectators 18 or older.

NCE30 returns to the Rock Oct. 25-27 for its Oktoberfest.

NCE30 was founded in 2008 and its annual Oktoberfest, according to its website, is the longest running E30 event in the world.