Matt Hirschman leads green to checker to win Whittaker F-50 at Spencer Speedway
COLUMN BY: RACE OF CHAMPIONS MEDIA – WALL WILLIAMSON, NY – Matt Hirschman continued his dominating streak with the Race of Champions Modified series by going two-for-two for the 2026 season.
Hirschman started on the pole, and stayed there the entire night, leading all 50 laps of the Whittaker Ford F-50. Early on, however, he did feel some pressure from Mike Leaty and Jake Lutz, as they were side-by-side behind him, and steadily gaining.
On Lap 26, Leaty gave Hirschman a run for his money by going down low to try and pass him on the bottom, closing the gap between them. Leaty’s attempt was no good; Hirschman was able to hold him off.
Leaty, a native of Williamson, NY, held off Paulie Hartwig III (Galloway, NJ) to come home in second.
“I can’t remember the last time I drew pole in an ROC race,” said Hirschman in Victory Lane. “[But] the heavy-hitters [Lutz, Leaty, and Hartwig] were right there.”
Hirschman (Northampton, PA) also mentioned how he couldn’t remember the last time he drew pole for a Race of Champions Modified race was. “Not in the last ten years, or more,” said Hirschman.
