Story By: BEN SHELTON / RYAN UNZICKER RACING – EL PASO, IL – It may not have been easy nor the way he drew it up, but Ryan Unzicker was able to capture his first win of the 2024 season on Saturday night at Peoria (Ill.) Speedway aboard his RJR Transportation / Brucker Farms No. 24 Mosquito Hero / MB Customs / Pro Power Racing Engine Super Late Model.
After starting the A-Main in 12th, Unzicker took command of the lead on lap 36 and ran off with the $5,098 Garry Swibold Memorial victory.
“I can’t thank all my crew, my sponsors, the Swibold family for putting a lot of this money out and the MARS Series (enough),” Unzicker said. “We’ve been struggling a little bit the first couple of times out, a little miscommunication with the MB Customs team and myself. This is the very first night that we was able to make those changes.”
With Friday’s weekend opener at Brownstown Bullring (Brownstown, Ill.) wiped out by wet weather, Ryan Unzicker returned with MARS Late Model Championship on Saturday at Peoria Speedway (Peoria, Ill.) for the Garry Swibold Memorial.
Drawing 36 Super Late Models, Ryan’s third-place finish in his heat race positioned him on the sixth row for the feature. Wasting no time working his way forward, Unzicker was up to fifth by the 10th circuit and closed in on Brian Shirley in the final 10 laps. Inheriting the lead from Shirley on lap 35, Ryan paced the remainder of the 40-lapper to secure his first win of the season and eighth career MARS triumph. He banked the $5,098 payday ahead of Tommy Sheppard Jr., Jake Little, Justin Duty, and Allen Weisser.
Sunday’s MARS Late Model Championship event scheduled for East Moline Speedway was postponed by Mother Nature to August 11.
Ryan leaves Peoria with a five-point advantage atop the MARS point standings.
This weekend will find Unzicker in action at Spoon River Speedway on Friday and Fairbury Speedway on Saturday as both tracks host their 2024 opener.