What won the race: Turning back multiple challenges from Ricky Thornton Jr., Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., completed a hard-fought wire-to-wire victory in Saturday’s 50-lap Nippy 50 finale at Maquoketa Speedway. The 28-year-old star beat Thornton to the finish line by 1.351 seconds to earn a $15,000 paycheck that topped off his sweep of the MARS Late Model Championship Series-sanctioned weekend.

Quotable: “The track was good, man,” Pierce said. “Tricky, fine line up there. The holes threw us for a loop a couple times, you had to hit it right, but hey, it had some character. I like a track that’s got a little bit of character in it so it was fun.”

Key notes: Pierce’s back-to-back checkered flags brought him a total of $25,000. … It was Pierce’s eighth overall victory of 2025 and the 18th of his career in MARS competition. … Thornton ran second for the entire distance and briefly nosed ahead of Pierce in the corners several times during the race’s second half, but a slip over the turn-four banking on lap 45 as he was close to Pierce cost him too much distance that he couldn’t make up. … The feature’s lone caution flag flew on lap four for a multi-car tangle between turns three and four. The incident began when Daryn Klein spun and collected, among others, Chad Simpson, Dylan Thornton and Bob Gardner. ... Brian Shirley reached third on lap eight and held the position for the remainder of the distance. … Garrett Alberson finished fourth after reaching the spot on lap 33 while Ryan Gustin cracked the top five on lap 44 and went on to place fifth. … Ricky Thornton Jr. set a new track record of 13.077 seconds in qualifying, lowering Pierce’s previous mark of 13.324 seconds established last year. … Darkside Promotions partnered with Hoker Trucking in hosting the second annual Nippy 50 (last year's was contested unsanctioned).

On the move: Jason Feger of Bloomington, Ill., started 20th and finished ninth.

Winner's sponsors: Pierce’s Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Vic Hill Racing Engine and carries sponsorship from Low Voltage Solutions, Rio Grande Waste Services, Hoker Trucking, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Oakwood Tire Center, Churchill Transport, Collins Brothers Towing, K1, Carnaghi Towing & Repair, Toyota of Danville, Floyd’s Waste Systems, PureMax Racing Oil, A Plus Vacuum, Leka Tree Service, Bert Transmissions by Budda, Ted Brown’s Quality Paint & Body Shop, VP Race Fuels, Swift Springs, Bilstein Shocks, Dirt Car Lift and Performance Bodies.

Points chase: After Maquoketa: 1. Bobby Pierce (150); 2. Ricky Thornton Jr. (140); 3. Brian Shirley (125); 4. Brandon Sheppard (119); 5. Garrett Alberson (117).

Current weather: Overcast, 52°F

Car count: 44

Fast qualifier: Ricky Thornton Jr.

Time: 13.077 seconds

Polesitter: Brandon Sheppard

Heat race winners: Ricky Thornton Jr., Brian Shirley, Bobby Pierce, Brandon Sheppard

Consolation race winners: Tony Jackson Jr., Mike Spatola

Provisional starters: Justin Duty, Bob Gardner

Next series race: April 4, Paducah International Raceway (Paducah, KY) $10,000