The 2026 MARS Late Model Championship Powered by FK Rod Ends comes down to one final night of racing at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri.
Ryan Unzicker enters the finale with 1,284 points and a 24-point advantage over Jason Feger, who has 1,260. After a season-long battle, the championship will be decided in Saturday’s 50-lap, $10,000-to-win feature.
That margin looked much different a week ago. Unzicker entered last Saturday’s race at Fairbury Speedway with an 82-point cushion. He left with a 36-point lead, and Feger trimmed another 12 points off the deficit Friday at Lucas Oil.
Now it comes down to a 50-lap, $10,000-to-win feature—and whether Feger can gain at least 25 points on Unzicker.
A win gives Feger his best shot, but winning the race alone will not win him the championship.
Under the MARS points scale, the feature winner earns 75 points. If Feger wins, Unzicker must finish eighth or worse for Feger to take the title outright. Eighth pays 48 points, enough for a 27-point swing and a three-point championship margin in Feger’s favor.
Seventh is the dividing line. If Feger wins and Unzicker finishes seventh, they will end the season tied in points. Feger would also draw even with Unzicker at five feature wins apiece. Both drivers have five second-place finishes, but Unzicker holds a 4–2 advantage in third-place finishes. With ties broken by wins, then seconds, then thirds, that combination would make Unzicker the champion.
Feger can still win the title without winning the race, although he would need Unzicker to finish considerably farther back:
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Second: Unzicker must finish ninth or worse.
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Third: Unzicker must finish 12th or worse.
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Fourth: Unzicker must finish 16th or worse.
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Fifth: Unzicker must finish 19th or worse.
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Sixth: Unzicker must finish 22nd and last.
That last scenario is as close as it gets. Sixth pays 54 points and 22nd pays 29, giving Feger the 25-point gain he needs to win the championship by one point.
A seventh-place finish or worse by Feger would not produce enough of a points swing if Unzicker starts the feature.
For Unzicker, the task is simpler: keep Feger from gaining 25 points. A top-seven finish would secure the championship regardless of where Feger finishes. Beyond seventh, Unzicker’s title chances depend on how far up the order Feger lands.
Unzicker does not have to chase the race win. He can finish behind Feger and still leave Wheatland with the championship. But the margin no longer gives him much protection from a poor finish, particularly if Feger is running at the front.
Feger has already done the work to make the finale matter. The three-time defending champion has brought an 82-point deficit down to 24 in a week and now has a chance to claim his fourth consecutive MARS title. Unzicker, the 2022 series champion, is trying to end that run after finishing runner-up to Feger in each of the past three seasons.
Saturday’s race gives Feger one final opportunity. He needs a strong finish—and enough trouble for Unzicker to open the door. Unzicker just needs to keep it shut.
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