All Star Showcase, TCM iRacing Spring Finale Week Taking Shape

When it comes to iRacing in Atlantic Canada, the TCM Special Events Season Finale is starting to come together with the All Star Showcase taking place on the final full week of the month. The All Star Showcase and Showcase Open will officially close the Spring Season of the TCM Special Events as hosted on iRacing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ALL STAR SHOWCASE – THURSDAY, JUNE 25TH

The All Star Showcase finale on Thursday, June 25th at 9pm Atlantic will pit all TCM Special Event winners against each other for a total purse currently worth over $500. As of June 11th, 22 drivers have qualified for the race with only five more events to be run prior to the Showcase Open.

TRACK TO BE ANNOUNCED FRIDAY NIGHT

The track for the event has yet to be determined, though Five Flags Speedway and Southern National Motorsports Park are the two finalists. The race tracks hosted the first two TCM Special Events Super Late Model races in the Spring. The announcement will be made on Friday, June 12th as a part of the Tranquility Super Late Model race at the Lucas Oil Raceway.

WHO HAS QUALIFIED?

All drivers who have won a TCM Special Events race that has had open registration to all drivers, including the three-race Petty International Raceway eSports Series, have claimed a spot in the finale. Whether they accept the invite is up to the driver but to date, 22 drivers have secured a spot in the event should they choose to take the green flag.

Ethan Miller (Kennetcook, NS) was the first TCM Special Events winner back in March when he took the checkered flag first in an impromptu Legend race at the Oxford Plains Speedway. Since then, over 200 drivers have raced at least one of the 35 TCM Special Event open races that have taken place. Mike Alexander (Dartmouth, NS) leads the pack with eight wins in his 29 starts. Matthew Barkhouse (Dartmouth, NS) shadows his brother in the win column with six victories to his credit. Danny Chisholm (Canning, NS), Cory Hall (Jolicure, NB) and Ryan Messer (Harvey, NB) each have two wins to their credit. Single race winners include Sam Rogers (Lower Onslow, NS), Jake Goodwin (Amherst, NS), Mike Rhyno (Lawrecetown, NS), Nick Codner (Torbay, NL), Noel Fougere (Antigonish, NS), Nathan Blackburn (Timberlea, NS), Ricky Arbeau (Lincoln, NB), Craig MacDonald (Waverley, NS), Brad Eddy (Lower Sackville, NS), Nic Doucette (Lower Wedgeport, NS), Brett Suggs (Kannapolis, NC), Kevin King (San Diego, CA), Kyle Young (Central Square, NY), Barrett Bonnar (Yarmouth, NS) and Steven Matthews (Bedford, NS). Jon Fitzpatrick (Charlottetown, PE) has also qualified via his win in the Petty Raceway eSports Series at Five Flags Speedway. Alexander and Chisholm were the other two race winners in that Series, with Alexander collecting the championship.

Five race events stand between now and the All Star Showcase week. Two of which are Friday night Tranquility Super Late Model events at Lucas Oil Raceway and Oxford Plains Speedway. Two additional events at Oxford, a Late Model Stock 100 and an ARCA National 150, will also be a part of a week that will see a collective 500-laps of feature action at the virtual Maine oval. The Super Speedway Summer Slam will be the “wildcard” to kick off the All Star week with a 66-lap feature at the Talladega Super Speedway. Four drivers will transfer from the All Star Showcase Open event on June 22nd. At maximum, a total of 31 drivers could start the TCM All Star Showcase.

 

ALL STAR SHOWCASE FORMAT

The Pit Row TV Heat Races, set by random draw, will determine the starting grid for the 250-lap feature. Each race will be 15-laps in length and feature a maximum of eight cars for up to a maximum of four heat races. The winners of each heat will receive a $10 bonus and the top heat race winner in the Showcase will receive an one month Pavement Pass to Pit Row TV.

The Showcase will be a 250-lap feature with caution laps counting.

LAP LEADERBOARD FILLING UP

At this point, just 76 laps remain on the Showcase Lap Leaderboard. Each lap costs $2.50 to sponsor, with $1 of that going into the purse, $1 going to the leader of that lap and $.50 going to hosting costs associated with the event. Thank you to the lap sponsors who have collectively bought 174 of the 250 laps in the race, including;

30 – LBT Pallets/Dirty Rotten Racing
27 – The Laker News
20 – Carr / Fitzpatrick Racing
20 – Pawsitive Care – PEI
20 – SDC Racing
10 – Fans of Rowdy Nation
10 – Fox Subaru Fredericton
10 – Randy Titus Racing
10 – Vano Racing
8 – Roger Down Racing
6 – Clattenburg Racing Fabrication
3 – Birt Racing

PURSE GROWS TO OVER $500

Including lap money and contingency awards, the total purse for the race is $528. At this point, the top dozen finishing positions will be paid with the hopes of being able to give something to all starters in the 250-lap feature. The race will pay a guaranteed $100 to the winner, plus any lap and contingency awards.

Several sponsorship packages are available to help meet the goal of paying all finishers and start at just $15 per package. For more information on sponsorship for the All Star Showcase, contact Tim Terry.

SHOWCASE OPEN FINAL CHANCE TO QUALIFYING FOR FINALE

The Showcase Open will act as the ultimate Last Chance Qualifier for the All Star Showcase. The 125-lap feature on Monday, June 22nd will give the podium finishers a chance to the All Star Showcase finale on June 25th.  A Fan Vote driver from the qualifiers for the Open will round out the transfer drivers from the Monday race. Qualifying for the Showcase Open begins at 9pm on Vidane TV with a Non Qualifiers Race at 8:15pm.

THIRTY-FIVE DRIVERS TO QUALIFY FOR SHOWCASE OPEN

A new format for the Showcase Open will see a maximum of 35 cars attempt to qualify on race night for the 23 car starting grid for the 125-lap feature.

5 – The five active drivers with the most starts in TCM Special Events will receive invites to the event. The drivers must have started qualifying for at least one race in the three weeks leading into the Showcase Open. These events include the Tranquility Super Late Model races at South Boston Speedway (June 5th), Lucas Oil Raceway (June 12th) and Oxford Plains Speedway (June 19th) along with Oxford 500 events (Late Model Stock on June 15th and ARCA National on June 18th) and the Super Speedway Summer Slam (June 21st).

The top ten drivers with the most amount of TCM starts as of June 11th without a win include;

Byron Bartlett – 26
John Biron – 25
Conrad Murphy – 25 (inactive driver)
Dave Cassidy – 24
Travis Roma – 24
Colin Matthews -22
Caden Tufts – 22
Michael Neary – 21
Craig Tully – 19
Mackenzie Brewer – 19 (inactive driver)
Jonathan Pollard – 19 (inactive driver)

25 – Open qualifying sessions will see the top 25 receive invites to the Showcase Open. Sessions are scheduled to begin on Sunday and be scattered throughout the week with the final session happening at 11:30pm on Sunday, June 21st.

5 – For those who fail to make the top 25 in open qualifying, they have one more chance to make the Showcase Open by racing in the 35-lap Non Qualifier race on Monday, June 22nd at 8:15pm. The top five in that race will advance for a shot at making the All Star Showcase.

Please note, all drivers must make at least one TCM Special Events qualifying attempt prior to the Showcase Open to attempt to qualify for the All Star Showcase Finale week.

SHOWCASE OPEN RACE NIGHT FORMAT

A maximum of 35 drivers will race for one of the 23 starting positions in the Showcase Open feature, which will see 125-laps determine the final four transfers to the Showcase Finale. Here is how they will line up on Monday, June 22nd;

8 – The top eight will lock into the feature event through qualifying. No invert of these drivers unlike previous TCM Special Events in the past month.

12 – Three Heat Races will set the next 12 starters with four drivers advancing to the feature through heats. Each heat will be 10-laps in length.

3 – The podium finishers from one final Last Chance Qualifier will race their way to the 125-lap feature. The Last Chance Qualifier will feature up to 15 cars and will be 25-laps in length.

GO OR GO HOME BONUS

The top three from the Showcase Open will qualify for a transfer position into the All Star Showcase Finale – but there is a wrinkle in all of this. The “Go or Go Home” Bonus will tempt the top three with a $20 cash prize to give up their starting position in the Showcase Finale. The top three in the Showcase Open will be offered the Bonus in order of finish – they can either accept the Showcase Finale starting spot or the $20 and decline the transfer position. Only one driver can accept the $20 bonus. If a top three driver accepts the Go or Go Home Bonus, their transfer spot to the Showcase Finale will go to the fourth place finisher in the Open. If the top three each decline the bonus, the fourth place finisher will receive $20. The driver who receives the Go or Go Home Bonus will not be eligible for the Fan Vote.

FAN VOTE

The drivers finishing in fourth to tenth in the Showcase Open, plus any driver in the top five in TCM Special Event starts that has not qualified for the main event but made a Showcase Open qualifying attempt, will qualify for the All Star Fan Vote. Fans will be able to vote on the TCM Facebook page by “reacting” to the photo of their favorite drivers. The photos will be posted on Tuesday, June 23rd at 12pm Noon following Monday’s Showcase Open and voting will close on Thursday, June 25th at 12pm Noon. The driver with the most reactions on their photo will receive a transfer spot into the Showcase Finale.

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The next iRacing event for the TCM Special Events takes place on Friday, June 12th when the Tranquility Super Late Models head to Lucas Oil Raceway. Race time is 9pm and the event can be seen live on the Tim’s Corner Motorsports Facebook page as produced by Vidane TV.