By Kasey Kreider
(Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
It took an extra day and a Sunday afternoon finale to get the 2026 iteration of the East Coast Transponders Nationals into the books. But the wait was well worth it for Connor Gross, as the Middleton, MA-born driver – now living in Asbury, NJ – claimed the biggest individual payday of his already accomplished micro sprint career. Last year’s Hyper Racing 600 Speedweek champion made the pass for the lead on Kayden Barker just past the race’s midway point, and then channeled his quarter-midget roots by hitting his marks lap after lap on the track’s slick surface to secure the $12,000 winner’s payday.
The future stars of racing also dueled for a whopping $2,000 to win in the Storm Chassis Wingless Junior Sprint event. Elon, NC’s Wyatt Parsley – racing at the Clyde for the very first time – battled with Barrett Bressler in a thrilling race and came out on top to take the massive check back to the Tar Heel State.
Hyper Racing Wingless 600 East Coast Transponders Nationals
Connor Gross’ path to an East Coast Transponders Nationals victory started with a solid – but not spectacular – first night of competition. In Friday night’s time trials, Gross only clocked in 16th amongst the cars in his flight, leaving him buried in the lineup for the first round of heat races. But things took an upward swing from there, as Gross put together a sixth-to-second run in his heat race to move him up to 19th in the points chart after the opening night. Gross then charged from 12th to a fourth-place finish in the Friday Night Lights A-Main.
Starting Saturday right on the bubble of being one of the top 18 lock-in drivers, Gross came up clutch by going from fourth to first on the opening lap and grabbing the checkers of his second-round heat race. That effort was good enough to lock Gross firmly into the feature as the ninth-place starter.
Other Saturday night heat races were won by Nick Fauci, Aidan Turner, Matt Donley, Christian Bruno, and J. R. McCutcheon. But then Mother Nature came in and got the last laugh. A thunderstorm followed by persistent rainfall forced the postponement of all remaining racing to Sunday morning, with hot laps beginning at 11 a.m. in order to beat the next round of storms forecasted for Sunday evening.
When action resumed on Sunday, the first three rows of the A-Main still had to be settled via the Cash Dash. After scoring 388 of a maximum 400 points during the weekend, North Carolina native Trevor Cline was the high-point man entering the Dash, with Kayden Barker, Abel Engler, Alex Ruppert, Matt Warner, and Kyle Spence being the other drivers to lock into those top six spots.
Cline dashed away to the victory over the six-lap sprint, securing himself as the polesitter for the 51-lap Championship A-Main. The big mover was Spence, as the pilot of Curt Matherly’s No. 89 rocketed from sixth up to second, putting himself on the outside of the front row for the main event.
Trevor Cline put himself on pole position for the Sunday A-Main after winning the Cash Dash at the East Coast Transponders Nationals. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Some lower main action still had to fill out the remaining six starting spots in the 24-car feature event. First, two C-Mains were contested to transfer drivers into the 15-lap Last Chance Qualifier. Nick Fauci claimed the win of the first C-Main, while Tylen Trammell scored the triumph in the second. Then, all of the C-Main move-ups along with those who had just barely missed locking into the feature out of the heat races were left to fight for the half-dozen transfer spots that remained.
Winning the LCQ was Gunnar Pio, as last year’s runner up put the East Coast Transponders-sponsored No. 25 into the main event. Friday night’s third-place finisher Christian Bruno also transferred along with Nate Freed and Chase Rodgers. And Nick Fauci – for the second year in a row – along with James Fries transferred out of the C-Main, through the LCQ, and into the A-Main event.
After driver introductions through the grandstands, along with a four-wide salute to pay tribute to the race fans who had stuck it out all weekend long through the sweltering heat and the inclement weather, the 2026 East Coast Transponders Nationals Championship A-Main went green just prior to 2 p.m., with the race being 51 laps in distance as a tribute to the late Kyle Busch, who passed away in May.
Trevor Cline led the field to green for the start of the feature, but it was fifth-place running Kayden Barker who found himself at the front after just the first lap of action. With Cline and most of the leaders sliding to the top groove of the racetrack in turn 1, Barker rolled around the infield tires and passed all of the front-runners on the inside of the speedway. Brian Carber – who started inside the fourth row – followed suit and moved into second. And Gross – who was inside row five at the drop of the green – found himself third in the blink of an eye.
After an early caution on lap 3, Gross capitalized on a double-file restart and claimed the runner-up spot away from Carber, leaving only Barker between himself and a marquee victory at the Clyde.
On a daytime track surface, it was clear early on that track position would be at a premium, and that even one slip off of the bottom groove could be the difference in gaining or losing several spots. After a collision between polesitter Trevor Cline and Aiden Purdue brought out the caution on lap 6 – and another caution then waved for a Christian Bruno flip in turn 1 – the race then settled into what turned out to be a 27-lap green flag run.
Barker continued to control the pace as the pack of cars snaked around the speedway, pulling away to a lead that at one point was up over a full second. But as Barker began to catch the tail of the field around lap 16, that was when Gross and new third-place driver Dominic Schmidt began to set their sights on the New Zealand native.
As traffic was stacked up in front of Barker, Gross remained patient, biding his time and waiting for one right moment to pounce. That opportunity came on the 27th lap, as after peeking inside of Barker out of turn 2, Gross fired his CPG Motorsports No. 14c Hyper Chassis down to the inside and all the way alongside Barker’s No. 3NZ on the run down to the third turn. The two drivers made side-to-side contact, each keeping their machines pointed in the right directions, but Gross was able to power off of turn 4 with the lead in hand.
Connor Gross (No. 14c) battled to the inside of Kayden Barker (No. 3NZ) and took the lead away on lap 27 of the East Coast Transponders Nationals A-Main. (Photo Courtesy of Steve Sabo/SDS Racing Photography)
With Gross in control, it was now Barker who found himself in the catbird seat, still searching for his first big micro sprint win in the United States. A caution for James Fries’ spin on lap 33 finally brought the extended green-flag run to an end. But it also set up a double-file restart, putting Barker’s hold on the runner-up spot in jeopardy.
Fortunately for Barker, each of the double-file restarts in the closing portion of the race were followed by another caution that came before any further laps could be completed. That kept Schmidt from swiping second, but still tasked Barker with finding a way past the always smooth and steady Gross.
The biggest entanglement of the race occurred on lap 37, as Kyle Spence and Brian Carber made contact while fighting for the bottom on the entrance to turn 1. That incident led to a six-car pileup, and put both of those drivers who had been running in the top five all race long out of contention for the win.
But that crash served as the final major incident of the race, as with the exception of a loose wheel cover bringing out the caution just after the restart, the race ran green the rest of the way. Barker kept Gross honest all the way to the finish, never allowing the Garden State driver to get more than about a car length or two out of sight. Coming to two laps to go, Barker appeared to be closing and mounting one final charge, but Gross never gave him the slip up or chance that he needed to make a move for the win.
So it was Gross who took the checkers first, with just one car length separating himself from Barker at the final flag. Gross’ success in long-distance races was once again put on full display, as he added an East Coast Transponders Nationals victory to three 100-lap Battle at the Bullring wins at Airport, a Skyscraper win at Bridgeport, and a Fair Nationals win at Action Track USA.
Somewhat ironically, the victory was only Gross’ second-ever win at the Clyde, as Gross has long admitted that the Newmanstown bullring isn’t one of his stronger circuits. But on this Sunday afternoon, Gross rose above the rest for his first five-figure payday.
Barker was forced to settle for second – an effort made more impressive when considering his limited laps around the speedway. Defending track champion Dominic Schmidt pocketed the final podium spot to complete a great effort in the Groff Motorsports No. 3. Defending race champion Alex Ruppert finished fourth, and Lukas Kostic rounded out the top five.
Results:
1. 14C-Connor Gross[9]; 2. 3NZ-Kayden Barker[5]; 3. 3-Dominic Schmidt[11]; 4. 5R-Alex Ruppert[4]; 5. 10L-Lukas Kostic[12]; 6. 55X-Trevor Cline[1]; 7. 66-Billy Koch[8]; 8. 34-Abel Engler[3]; 9. 37-Aiden Purdue[13]; 10. 89-Kyle Spence[2]; 11. 12-Dylan Kontra[15]; 12. 16-Alex Slade[14]; 13. 95B-James Roselli[18]; 14. 95-Colton Key[17]; 15. 95F-Nicholas Fauci[21]; 16. 39L-Brian Carber[7]; 17. 25-Gunnar Pio[19]; 18. 1F-James Fries[24]; 19. 2X-Jason Swavely[10]; 20. 91-Nate Freed[22]; 21. 5X-Chase Rodgers[23]; 22. 21B-Mason Beinhower[16]; 23. 5-Christian Bruno[20]; 24. 98-Matthew Warner[6]
DNQ: 71-Brian Kramer; 90-Trent Warner; 28-Brent Shearer; 14Z-Tony Zajonczkoski; 2L-Luke Hess; 29X-Liam Kane; 95AU-Flynn Roser; 98G-Mason Peters; 21-Zach Curtis; 15G-Ashen Glazier; 1-Tylen Trammell; 88J-JR McCutcheon; 01M-Aden Myers; 50-Jacob Severn; 11H-Holden Eckman; 03-Ryan Groff; 9G-Grady McGrew; 5A-Anthony Yerger; 707-Jax Wittmer; 12G-Lance Griffith; 14W-Amelia Westlake; 99G-Gordon Greenlaw; 5C-Grady Rinehart; 7J-Cyle Johnson; 26-Aidan Turner; 15D-Matthew Donley; 23-Adam Presnar; 2J-Jace Marshall; 23M-Kenny Miller III; 14-Cole Gerber; 10J-Noah Carpenter; 6-Tom Alloco; 15Q-Quinn Llewellyn; 49-Scott Kreutter; 4J-Zane Reeves
Connor Gross led the final 25 laps of Sunday afternoon’s East Coast Transponders Nationals A-Main to pocket the big $12,000 payday at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway. (Photo Courtesy of Wayne Hohler Photography)
Race winner Connor Gross (middle), along with second-place Kayden Barker (left) and third-place Dominic Schmidt (right) made up the podium for Sunday afternoon’s East Coast Transponders Nationals finale. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Storm Chassis Wingless Junior Sprints
The Storm Chassis Wingless Junior Sprints provided great action and excitement all weekend long, and their 20-lap, $2,000-to-win finale lived up to the billing on Sunday afternoon. Traveling up from Elon, NC and making his very first appearance at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, Wyatt Parsley parked his Paylor Motorsports No. 93W Hyper Chassis in the winner’s circle after an intense battle with local hotshoe Barrett Bressler.
Friday night winner Gage Pio won the Dash earlier in the afternoon and started from pole position for the A-Main, looking to sweep the weekend and get his redemption after being passed on the final lap of last year’s feature event.
Pio led initially, but soon found himself in a four-car swarm that included Bressler, Parsley, and Ashlyn Wittmer. Bressler and Pio made a little contact in turn 4 coming to complete the second lap, which gave Parsley a chance to momentarily make things three-wide while Bressler zipped past Pio for the lead.
Eventually, things funneled out with Bressler leading the way ahead of Wittmer and Parsley, while Pio was forced to drop out of the race with a problem on his No. 26. As the good racing continued from second on back, Bressler stretched his legs and held control of the race as it ran past halfway.
A critical moment occurred just inside of 10 laps to go as Wittmer and Parsley continued to battle for second. Parsley moved inside of Wittmer out of turn 2 and drove deep into turn 3 to snatch the runner-up spot away. As Wittmer attempted to crossover, the two drivers made contact coming out of turn 4, sending both cars sliding sideways. Parsley was able to keep his car running – and kept his second-place as a result – but Wittmer was not as fortunate, as she was forced to drop to the back of the field.
After a crash on the lap 12 restart led to another attempt, Parsley saw an opportunity to make his move on Bressler for the lead. Utilizing a great restart, Parsley dove to the bottom of Bressler on the run down to turn 3, and then drag-raced Bressler for the top spot before clearing him for good out of turn 2.
Although Parsley now had the advantage, Bressler wasn’t finished just yet. Bressler put all kinds of pressure on the back bumper of Parsley’s No. 93W, and looked to the high side a few times while Parsley kept a defensive line around the track. A caution with two laps to go set up a dash to the finish, and despite Bressler’s best efforts, Parsley didn’t put a wheel wrong all the way to the checkered flag.
For Parsley, his first win in Pennsylvania came after much success racing in the junior divisions at the Millbridge Speedway. After driving from the back of the pack up to a fourth-place finish on Friday night, Parsley completed his dazzling weekend in storybook style with the biggest win of his young career to date.
Meanwhile for Bressler – out of Tremont – he was still happy to collect a second-place finish, showing great sportsmanship even after coming so close to the win. Cole Surman finished third, marking himself as the only driver to podium in both A-Mains during the weekend. Caleb Witmer ran fourth, and Everette Knorr finished off the top five.
Results:
1. 93W-Wyatt Parsley[4]; 2. 64B-Barrett Bressler[3]; 3. 33-Cole Surman[8]; 4. 7-Caleb Witmer[11]; 5. 7K-Everette Knorr[10]; 6. 12A-Brady Ayres[7]; 7. 95-Landen Edsall[14]; 8. 7R-Ashlyn Wittmer[2]; 9. 9E-Connor Edsall[12]; 10. 52K-Dawson Kreutter[13]; 11. 45-Logan Schibilia[5]; 12. 14A-Brycen Austin[6]; 13. 39W-Logan Wirt[9]; 14. 36J-Jaxson Payero[16]; 15. 26-Gage Pio[1]; 16. 09-Ryker Bridges[15]
Wyatt Parsley (No. 93W) led Barrett Bressler (No. 64B) across the finish line after an exciting 20-lap finale for the Storm Chassis Wingless Junior Sprints. (Photo Courtesy of Mike Knappenberger Photos)
Wyatt Parsley (middle) poses with fellow podium finishers Barrett Bressler (right) and Cole Surman (left) after winning Sunday afternoon’s Storm Chassis Wingless Junior Sprint A-Main at the Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway. (Photo Courtesy of Steve Sabo/SDS Racing Photography)
The Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway would like to thank Tim and Julie with East Coast Transponders, along with Kenny and Nicole from Groff Motorsports for all of their hard work in putting this event together. The speedway also extends a thank you to all of the sponsors who supported the event, along with the drivers and teams who traveled to compete. Lastly, the speedway sends a thank you to all of the race fans, who stuck through three days of competition and unfavorable weather conditions prior to the show’s culmination on Sunday.
The Clyde returns to action Saturday, July 11 with a regular points show for all five weekly classes. The Hyper Racing Wingless 600s will have one last chance to take to the track ahead of the Hyper Racing 600 Speedweek Finale, while the EVO Fuel Injection Winged 600s, Border Magic 270s, Yeti Fence Sportsmans, and the Gretna Graphics 125/4 Strokes will all resume their exciting seasons of competition. Gates open at 4:30 p.m., with hot laps and racing starting at 6 p.m. Grandstand admission is $10, and live streaming coverage will be provided by The Cushion for those unable to attend.