POSSE’S BRIGHTEST LIGHT

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FEATURE

SPRINTS

ANTHONY MACRI

THE PA POSSE’S BRIGHTEST LIGHT

By Doug Kennedy

Photo: Paul Arch

AT 22 YEARS OF AGE, Sprint Car driver Anthony Macri of Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, has been making tremendous waves over the past two seasons and is one of the brightest stars to emerge from the state of Pennsylvania in several seasons.

Macri used the strangeness of the 2020 COVID season to get some laps nationally while waiting for Pennsylvania to open up and all of that experience helped him to nine wins that season and put him on the map with national audiences and put travelers on their heels when they came calling on his home tracks.

In 2021, Macri continued to grow on the track and in reputation nationally and garnered 11 feature wins this season and continued to travel outside the Keystone State to gain valuable experiences at another Knoxville Nationals and his first Trophy Cup, which was his introduction to Golden State fans at Tulare Thunderbowl.

Macri’s first ever sprint car win came at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pennsylvania, on June 3, 2017. Macri battled Glenndon Forsythe throughout the race for the win. “Honestly, it felt unreal. I never thought our first 410 win would come in my very first year of competing,” Macri said. “I was pretty proud about it.”

Last year, he reached another apex when he won the Keith Kauffman Classic on June 24th at Port Royal and beat the red hot Kyle Larson in the process. Macri started on the pole and never lost the lead, pocketing $6,000 for the win. “I felt like it was the turning point for us,” Macri related. “At the time, we weren’t really struggling, but we weren’t as good as we wanted to be. It gave us confidence to keep going and we are feeling better about the tracks we go to now. It felt unreal to beat somebody like him (Larson). It gives me the feeling that I have the potential to be a good driver.”

“When I was a youngster, I would go to the racetrack and actually fell in love with racing,” Macri said. To help support his desire, Macri’s father, Nick, bought his twelve year old boy, a micro sprint. Anthony won five races in that car. By 2016, Nick moved his son up to a 410 sprint and he has been there ever since.

He loves the tracks in his home state, including Port Royal Speedway. “It’s an awesome facility. You can tell they put their heart and soul into the facility. The track people will thank you for coming. I think the racing surface is the best in Pennsylvania. It’s slick and always allows the racers to put on a good show,” said Macri.

He also enjoys Friday nights at Williams Grove Speedway. “It’s a track with a strong tradition and a really nice facility. The racing surface is more of a slicker side and me being a fan of the slicker track, well that suits me just fine.”

With all that being said, Macri says he also enjoys the smaller tracks like Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania and Hesston Speedway in Hesston, Pennsylvania.

His dad, however, is partial to one particular track in Pennsylvania. “I like

A shot from time trials late in the 2020 season, a year which proved to be a true breakout for Macri.

Photo: John Rothermel

Port Royal a lot,” said Anthony’s dad, Nick. “I like the setting with a small town flavor.”

Nick is 100 percent behind his son’s racing career and the team is completely funded by him, although they have a growing list of sponsors that includes Macri Concrete, Valley Supply, C&D Rigging, J&J Fabrication and Randy Shearer Heating and Plumbing. His crew on any given weekend race night includes his crew chief, Jim Shuttlesworth, who came on board last year.

Besides his dad, his mom, Melinda, provides moral support. “She makes most of the races, but when she is there, she does worry a little bit,” Macri said of his mom.

Macri considers himself to be somewhat of a loner which goes back to his days spent at Northern High School. “I kind of stay to myself,” Macri said. “I consider myself to be somewhat average on the track but I do feel like I can run with the best guys in Pennsylvania week in and week out. This year I have

Photo: Zach Yost

The Posse member went hunting All Stars in West Virginia and landed a big one at WVMS last summer.

Macri literally burns rubber at Central Pennsylvania’s final 410 race of the year, where he ran 6th at BAPS Motor Speedway.

more confidence and I also have a lot of respect from my competitors.”

As far as the other drivers, Macri said, “All the drivers are pretty open to helping me. I will usually turn to Lance Dewease when I have a question. Prior to that, Macri relied a lot on the late Greg Hodnett, a driver who was sponsored by Anthony’s dad for a couple of seasons. Other drivers who Nick sponsored included Cris Eash for five years, Dick Leach for a year and Todd Shaffer for a year.

“He (Hodnett) was probably my biggest influence,” Macri said. “He was one of those drivers who took me under his wing. He would drop anything to help me if I had a question. He really took the time to explain things to me the best way possible and helped me with my learning curve.”

“Greg told me that it takes five to ten years to learn how to really drive a Sprint Car and if I didn’t have the patience to do that then I should get out of it,” said Nick Macri.

Greg’s crew chief when he died was Ryan Hand, who now works for Macri Concrete. “He brings a welcome knowledge to the team and particularly for Anthony,” Nick said. “He’s been a great help for the team.”

As for Macri Motorsports, Anthony said, “I feel like we have the equipment and the financial backing to go on the road with a traveling series. I think I would like to do one year of the All-Stars to get a taste of what its like to be on the road, but ultimately, I would like to do the World of Outlaws Series. I want to run with the Outlaws because you have the best of the best.”

“That is our ultimate goal,” said Nick. “We’re building the team to do that [down the road].”

As mentioned earlier, the team is funded by sponsors and Macri Concrete, a company that Nick has owned for nearly 30 years. He does commercial concrete work for various places within the region, but never travels out of state. He currently is working on a five million dollar job with the Harrisburg Federal Courthouse. Other jobs he has done include the Giant Center, the ice rink for the Hershey Bears. His business runs from State College to the East Coast of Pennsylvania but avoiding Philadelphia. One of his main clients is Mascaro Construction based out of Pittsburgh.

“It pays the bills,” Anthony said. As far as Anthony’s work is concerned, he said, “Racing is my full-time job. I work on my cars during the week.”

One of the highlights of Macri’s career came last summer when he won four straight features at Port Royal. That streak began on June 15th and culminated on July 2nd. Those wins included the $5,000 win on June 13th, the Valley Supply Night $5,000 win on June 20th, the $6000 win at the fifth annual Keith Kauffman Classic on June 24th and the $7,000 win for Round Six of the 30th annual and 2nd annual Greg Hodnett Classic Pennsylvania

Photo: John Rothermel

Speedweek on July 4th. There was also a 360 win thrown in there as well.

“Things were just clicking for us,” Anthony said of his Port Royal streak.

Although it may seem he has burst on to the scene recently, his success should not come as a surprise to anyone. At the end of the 2019 season, Macri got his first ever win at Port Royal and had a podium finish in a World of Outlaws race.

When he’s not racing, Macri enjoys skiing during the off season. “I can get down the hill pretty well,” Macri said. During the summer, he likes to relax at home or have dinner with friends.

As for the future of Sprint Car racing, Macri feels that it’s moving in the right direction. “I don’t really look at the big picture of racing. I just kind of stick to our own deal.”

Macri had a breakout 2020 and followed that up with an even better 2021. He built on success with wins as far away as West Virginia, a 360 win in New Jersey, an A-main start at the Knoxville Nationals, an All Star win at Bedford and he put the caps on a spectacular season with a win at the 41st edition of the Jack Gunn Memorial at Selinsgrove.

It’s been a steady build in consistent runs and speed and Macri is building something special in his family racer and ready for a massive breakout national one day very soon as he continues to be one of the best the Posse has to offer.

Photo: Zach Yost

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FEATURE

MIDGETS

USAC’S DMA MIDGETS

KEEPING WHEELS OPEN IN THE NORTHEAST

Words and Photos By John Dadalt

WHEN WHIP CITY SPEEDWAY in Westfield, Massachusetts, closed at the end of the 2010 racing season, a group of midget racers were without a place to race. At that time Stanley “Skip” Matczak got together with Ray Miller and Denny Zimmerman to devise a plan to keep midget racing on dirt alive in New England. Thinking of the advice that National Speed Sport News publisher Chris Economaki gave him about trying to find a race track that was not leased but run by the owner, Matczak called Butch Elms at Bear Ridge Speedway with a proposition that the midgets could race there. Elms agreed initially and scheduled five races but that was expanded to eight before the first season (2011) ended. Matczak also reached out to his contacts at USAC from his years as co-owner of a Silver Crown car and secured a sanction. Thus, the USAC Dirt Midget Association was born.

The DMA race every other week at Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, Vermont, along with two yearly visits to Albany-Saratoga Speedway in Malta, New York. The week off between races gives the teams time to regroup and repair between events. One unique aspect of the club is that there is no payout at the end of the night. Each team is issued three season passes good for entry each week. The USAC sanction gives the club recognition and provides the members with an excellent insurance package. The DMA champion is honored at USAC’s banquet in Indianapolis each year.

The series has several members of the

Will Hull uses every inch of the temporary track at Loudon, New Hampshire, to try to track down Seth Carlson, who held him off for the win.