ABERDEEN, MS – The 2023 Season Opener for the Southern Thunder Series will be at Whynot Motorsports Park in Meridian, MS as a part of the Battle of the States Race on Saturday night, March 4. The first ever-race for the Southern Thunder Series for 602 Dirt Late Models will be a 25-lap race paying $1,200-to-win and $75-to-start race.

The on-track action at “The House of Hook” will begin with an Open Practice Session on Friday night, March 3. For more information about the Battle of the States at Whynot Motorsports Park, visit the track website at www.whynotmotorsportspark.com, or visit the Whynot Motorsports Park Facebook page.

The 2023 Southern Thunder Series rules have been posted on the series’ Facebook page. Southern Thunder Series officials will be announcing more 2023 race dates soon, as they are currently in negotiations with tracks in Mississippi and Alabama.

Motorsports businessmen Mike Boland and Robert Brown are the principles of the new Dirt Late Model sanctioning body around the Chevrolet Performance 602 Circle Track Engine. Boland and Brown are proposing as many as 16 races paying a minimum of $1,000-to-win., with a graduated increase in purse with an increase in car count.

The two men are spearheading the effort to give racers and tracks an economical option to make a little extra money in a tough economy. There will also be a proposed Season Points Fund for the Southern Thunder Series. Boland and Brown have spoken with several dirt track owners in Mississippi and Alabama that have shown interest in the new motorsports endeavor.

“We are looking to sanction Special Events for the 602 Late Models at tracks within a three-hour radius of Central Mississippi,” Boland said. “In addition to Whynot Motorsports Park, tracks that have shown an interest in scheduling Southern Thunder Series events in 2023 include Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, MS, Jackson Motor Speedway in Jackson, MS, Buckshot Speedway in Clanton, AL, Tri-County Speedway in Flomaton, AL, and Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, AL.”

The engines that will power the Southern Thunder Series Dirt Late Models are the affordable all-steel 350 horsepower Chevrolet Performance 602 “Crate” Engines that are built and sealed at the factory to prevent any expensive modifications. The Southern Thunder Series will also utilize an affordable Shock rule with a claim option.

The Chevrolet Performance 602 powerplants are called crate engines by Chevrolet Performance because of the wooden containers that are used to ship the engines to Chevrolet Performance Dealers across the county, and then on to the racers.

For more information about the Southern Thunder Series, contact Mike Boland at 601-527-2990, or by E-Mail at mboland222@bellsouth.net, and Robert Brown can be reached at 662-436-0977.