The Missouri-based Lucas Oil Midwest LateModel Racing Association, one of Dirt Late Model racing longest-running and most successful regional tours, has been dissolved, the Lucas Oil racing organization announced today.

The series that operated under three ownership groups since 1989 was a fixture in Missouri and surrounding states with high-profile champions that included National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame drivers Terry Phillips, Al Purkey, Bill Frye and Ken Essary, who co-founded the series with Randy Mooneyham 35 years ago.

“Ending the MLRA was a difficult decision for everyone here at Lucas Oil,” Jamie Devney, the president of Lucas Cattle Co. and Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo., said in a press release. “The series has brought fans incredible Late Model racing for years, but this shift helps us dedicate more time, energy and resources to growing the (Lucas Oil) Late Model Dirt Series and enhancing the Lucas Oil Speedway.”

MLRA series director Ernie Leftwich will in January take a new role as assistant general manager at Lucas Oil Speedway, which had been the tour's home track since Lucas Oil purchased MLRA in 2012. Leftwich will work alongside track general manager Danny Lorton in day-to-day operations along with overseeing several capital improvements at the facility that includes a 3/8-mile dirt oval.

“Lucas Oil Products remains fully committed to the ongoing development of Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo.,” Devney added. “There are significant projects already in progress, which include infrastructure improvements and facility upgrades. There is no doubt Lucas Oil Speedway will continue to serve as a cornerstone of grassroots racing for years to come."

Besides the Essary-Mooneyham and Lucas Oil ownership, the series was owned by Harriett and Allen "Cowboy" Chancellor from 1997-2011.

MLRA completed 19 events in 2024 with Chad Simpson of Mount Vernon, Iowa, winning his third championship in a row and fifth overall. Purkey's six champions between 1998-2010 were the most all time while Phillips, a four-time champion, goes down as the winningest series driver with 116 victories, 67 more than the second-place Purkey (49 victories). Hall of Famer Billy Moyer was third on the all-time list with 45 wins.

Chris Simpson, Chad's younger brother and the tour runner-up in 2024, will go down as the final series winner with an Oct. 11 victory at Tri-City Speedway in Granite City, Ill.

Lucas Oil Speedway (formerly Wheatland Raceway) hosted the most races on the series at 122 followed by Monett (Mo.) Speedway at 53.