PIT BOX: Modified Tour will crown a champion this Sunday at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park
Adam Fenwick
(Photo: Kostas Lymperopoulos/NASCAR)
For the first time since 2020, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour will crown a champion at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park this Sunday during the World Series 150 (4:30 p.m. ET on the NASCAR Channel and FloRacing).
Patrick Emerling, a Modified Tour winner at Thompson, enters Sunday's finale with a comfortable, 30-point advantage on Austin Beers in the race for the title. He'll look to put the finishing touches on his first championship with a strong performance Sunday evening.
Sunday's event will mark the 161st Modified Tour race held at historic speedway dating back to 1985. Mike Stefanik leads all drivers with 15 Modified Tour wins at the track, with Justin Bonsignore right on his heels with 14 victories. Other notable winners include Ted Christopher, Jeff Fuller, Tony Hirschman, Doug Coby, Rick Fuller and the most recent Tour winner at the track, Matt Hirschman, among others.
Tickets to Sunday's World Series 150 are available trackside. Below is everything you need to know about the 2026 NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season finale.
[caption id="attachment_527936" align="aligncenter" width="1300"] No track has hosted more NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races than Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. (Photo: Jaiden Tripi/NASCAR)[/caption]
World Series 150 at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park
In his ninth full season of Modified Tour racing, Patrick Emerling is on the verge of his first championship.
Emerling, a five-time winner this season in NASCAR's oldest division, enters Sunday's finale at Thompson with a 30-point margin in the battle for the championship. A finish of 25th or better will clinch the championship for Emerling no matter what second-place Austin Beers does Sunday.
A win at Thompson would simply be icing on the cake for Emerling, but there's a stout field of competitors who will look to deny Emerling that satisfaction.
Chief among them is Matt Hirschman, the most recent Thompson winner in Modified Tour competition. Hirschman also leads the FloRacing Connecticut Challenge, which concludes Sunday at Thompson. The four-race miniseries featuring the four Modified Tour events in the state of Connecticut will pay $7,500 to the champion.
Beers, who has gone winless thus far in 2026 with KLM Motorsports, will look to close the season with his first win at Thompson. While the championship seems unlikely, Beers can still end the season in Victory Lane if things go according to plan Sunday.
Justin Bonsignore and the Ken Massa Motorsports should also be among the contenders Sunday. Bonsignore enters the event with 14 Thompson victories, one shy of the record held by NASCAR Hall of Famer Mike Stefanik. A win Sunday would put Bonsignore in rarified air.
Another notable entry is that of Eric Goodale, who will make his 250th Modified Tour start Sunday. His most recent series victory came at Thompson in 2022, something he'd like to replicate this weekend.
Other notable entries include Stephen Kopcik, Teddy Hodgdon, Doug Coby, Jon McKennedy, Tyler Rypkema, Mike Christopher Jr., Chase Dowling and Paulie Hartwig III, among others.
The full entry list for Sunday's World Series 150 will be available later this week.
[caption id="attachment_527950" align="aligncenter" width="1300"] Austin Beers (64) leads Matt Hirschman (60) during the Thompson 150 earlier this season at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park. (Photo: Jaiden Tripi/NASCAR)[/caption]
SCHEDULE: Sunday, Oct. 11: Practice from 12:05 to 12:50 p.m. ... Final practice from 1:20 to 1:50 p.m. ... American Racer Pole Award qualifying at 3:30 p.m. ... Start of the World Series 150 (150 Laps / 93.75 Miles) at 4:30 p.m. ET.
QUALIFYING: Two consecutive qualifying laps. (EIRI) Faster lap determines qualifying position. Adjustments or repairs may not be made on the vehicle after the vehicle has taken the green flag at the start/finish line. NASCAR reserves the right to have more than one vehicle engage in qualifying runs at the same time. Starting field for the World Series 150 presented by FloSports.com is limited to 30 starters including Provisional Positions.
TIRE ALLOTMENT: The maximum tire allotment available for this event is eleven (11) tires per team. All tires used for qualifying and the race must be purchased at the track and scanned by NASCAR Officials, unless otherwise approved in advance by the Series Director. The same four (4) tires must be used for qualifying and to begin the race. The remaining tire allotment may be used for change tires. Maximum of three (3) tires of the allotment may be used as change tires. The tire change rule is two (2) tires per stop. This includes "swapping" tires front to back.