Top Storylines Heading into the Glen Niebel Classic at Anderson Speedway
Top Storylines Heading into the Glen Niebel Classic at Anderson Speedway
The yourBIGplans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour kicks off the 2026 season at Anderson Speedway on Saturday, April 18. There is no shortage of storylines as the tour enters the 26th Glen Niebel Classic presented by CB Fabricating.
New Partnerships for 2026 and Beyond
The 500 Sprint Car Tour is proud to announce a new multi-year entitlement partnership with Byrd Insurance Group, further strengthening the series’ growth and long-term vision. As part of the agreement, the tour will officially be named the YourBigPlans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour beginning with the upcoming 2026 season. The YourBigPlans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour will continue to showcase the best pavement sprint car drivers and teams across some of the most historic short tracks in the country. The new partnership ensures the tour’s continued stability and growth while honoring the heritage of non-wing sprint car racing.
Racing America is excited to announce a multi-year broadcast agreement and marketing partnership with Anderson Speedway and the YourBIGPlans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour. The broadcast agreement brings the 500 Sprint Car Tour to RacingAmerica.TV, including three-day coverage of the series’ marquee event, the Little 500 at Anderson Speedway. The announcement expands RacingAmerica.TV’s coverage of some of the biggest short track events in the Midwestern United States. RacingAmerica.TV offers access to 250+ live pavement short track races, streamed on any device for subscribers. Click here to learn more and become a RacingAmerica.TV subscriber today to watch the 500 Sprint Car Tour and events from Anderson Speedway in 2026.
With all eyes on the Little 500, drivers treating Glen Niebel as a tune up
The yourBIGplans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour officially kicks off their 2026 season this Saturday, April 18th with the Glen Niebel Classic presented by CB Fabricating at Anderson Speedway. The 26th edition of the Glen Niebel Classic will be the fourth consecutive year that the event begins the 500 Sprint Car Tour schedule. The traditional opening weekend race will serve as a tune up event for the 78th Annual Unified Group Services Little 500 presented by Ed Martin Automotive Group. A field of 24 cars is currently entered into the 26th Glen Niebel Classic presented by CB Fabricating, with a couple teams potentially joining the field later in the week. A strong field of competitors has been common for this event since moving it to April as teams view the opportunity as a chance to fine tune before the Little 500.
Large host of rookies running for BHR Performance Rookie of the Year
The 26th Running of the Glen Niebel Classic will see a lot of new faces as a handful of competitors will make their debut with the series. Mike Hathaway from Falson, Colorado, Tyler Fitzpatrick from Columbia City, Indiana, Chris Schmelzle from Colville, Washington, and Mario Clouser from Auburn, Illinois will all be making their first starts in the 500 Sprint Car Tour. They will be joined by qualifying rookies, Colin Grissom, Olivia Shelbo, Rob Keesling, and Tony McVey as drivers with little experience in the series who will be looking to put together a solid Rookie of the Year campaign in 2026.
New for 2026 is a partnership between the yourBIGplans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour, and Brad Hayes Racing Performance to sponsor the Rookie of the Year. BHR Performance is proud to introduce the “BHR Performance Rookie of the Race” award, which will be presented at every event in both the YourBigPlans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour and the Kenyon Midget Series. This new initiative is designed to recognize and support emerging talent in the sport. At each feature race, the highest-finishing rookie driver in both series will receive a $100 credit toward purchases of $200 or more at BHR-performance.com.
#96 Ted Slinkard Machine enters with Mario Clouser behind the wheel
Open Wheel veteran, Mario Clouser, is set to make his first start with the yourBIGplans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour on Saturday, April 18th. Clouser has made one previous pavement sprint car start at Indianapolis Raceway Park, before the inception of the 500 Sprint Car Tour. He may be a rookie to pavement sprint cars, but is a veteran in pavement midgets and silver crown cars.
Clouser is taking the reins from longtime Little 500 veteran, Scott Hampton. Hampton was involved in a serious accident in the Glen Neibel Classic in 2025, causing him to take a step back from driving. He has taken over the role of Crew Chief for the team owned by Ted Slinkard. The team continues a close partnership with Unified Group Services, based out of Anderson, IN. Clouser will be one to watch at Anderson Speedway this Saturday for the Glen Niebel Classic and also in the 78th Annual Unified Group Services Little 500 this May.
Swanson back with Kevin Doran and Co. for the Glen Niebel Classic and Little 500
After contending the entire 2025 500 Sprint Car Tour season with driving for Nick Bohanon, Kody Swanson will find himself in a familiar seat for the 26th Glen Niebel Classic and the 78th Annual Unified Group Services Little 500 presented by Ed Martin. Swanson will be back behind the wheel of the Doran Enterprises machine that he has routinely driven in the Little 500 in year’s past, and that he won the inaugural 500 Sprint Car Tour championship in 2022.
Traditionally competing with the #77, the team has decided to switch to #33 for the Glen Niebel Classic on April 18th. This decision was made because Swanson will resume competition with Nick Bohanon after the Little 500 in May. By switching to the #33 that Bohanon will run for 2026, the decision allows Swanson to earn maximum driver’s points for the season-long championship.
Colville, Washington's Chris Schmelzle starts the season with a long haul
Chris Schmelzle brings more than two decades of racing knowledge to the Midwest, having competed across a wide range of disciplines including winged dirt sprint cars, midgets, pavement sprint cars, and NASCAR’s K&N Pro Series West. His résumé includes years of competition at Skagit Speedway, ASCS National events, West Coast sprint car racing, and seven consecutive starts in the prestigious USAC Turkey Night Grand Prix.
In addition to his time behind the wheel, Schmelzle is also a respected chassis builder. Since 1997, he has operated CS Fabworks, producing pavement sprint car chassis under the Black Widow Chassis brand, equipment both drivers will race during their rookie campaign. The move to the yourBIGplans.com 500 Sprint Car Tour represents a major step up in competition, geography, and track style. Accustomed to smaller, flatter quarter-mile tracks in the Northwest and Arizona, Schmelzle knows the Midwest’s bigger ovals will present a steep learning curve.
Race Information
The 26th Running of the Glen Niebel Classic presented by CB Fabricating will not only open the season for the 500 Sprint Car Tour, but will also be the first race of the 2026 season for some of the Anderson Speedway local divisions, as well as the USSA Kenyon Midget Series. The event will be held on Saturday, April 18th and the 500 Sprint Car Tour will be joined by the USSA Kenyon Midget Series, Beaver Contracting Thunder Roadsters, and Vern’s Concrete Late Models. Pit gates will open at 1:00pm, front gates will open at 3:00pm, and racing is set to begin at 6:00pm. The event will be streamed live on Racing America, and pre-sale tickets for the event can be purchased online by clicking HERE.
Entry List for the 26th Glen Niebel Classic presented by CB Fabricating
00 Colin Grissom Anderson, Indiana
U2 Derek Bischak Angola, Indiana
1 Dakoda Armstrong New Castle, Indiana
4 Donnie Adams Jr Yorktown, Indiana
5 Michael Lewis Noblesville, Indiana
8 Olivia Shelbo London, Ohio
18 Travis Welpott Pendleton, Indiana
22 Bobby Santos III Franklin, Massachusetts
24 Jackson Macenko Cincinnati, Ohio
26 Colton Bettis Lutz, Florida
27 Mike Hathaway Falson, Colorado
31 Timmy Creech Greenfield, Indiana
33 Kody Swanson Kingsburg, California
42 Rob Keesling Alexandria, Indiana
47 Tony McVey Waldron, Indiana
53 Justin Harper Denver, Indiana
56 Tyler Roahrig Plymouth, Indiana
57 Tyler Fitzpatrick Columbia City, Indiana
57c Chris Schmelzle Colville, Washington
64 Rylan Gray Greenfield, Indiana
67 Kyle O’Gara Camby, Indiana
69 Billy Wease Noblesville, Indiana
71 Brian Vaughn Shirley, Indiana
87 Brady Allum Taylorville, North Carolina
96 Mario Clouser Auburn, Illinois
25 Cars Entered
