MANSFIELD — The green flag will drop Saturday at Mansfield Speedway for the first time in six years.

The .440-mile dirt track on the city’s north side will roar back to life Saturday for the Comeback Classic.

The $5,000-to-win, 30-lap main event will feature the Valvoline American Late Model Iron-Man Series fueled by VP. The FAST on Dirt 410 Sprint Cars and the UMP DIRTcar Modifieds also will be in action.

For track owner Matt Tifft, Saturday is the culmination of a head-spinning 12 months. He bought the 180-acre property in June of 2025. 

Since then, Tifft and his team have pumped millions of dollars into renovating the track, which first opened in 1959.

“It’s a slow-moving train, but renovations are going well,” Tifft said in February as work crews put the finishing touches on the state-of-the-art jumbotron at the 180-acre property off Crall Road. “We know it’s not going to be perfect on opening weekend. We just want to have a smooth weekend.”

The property enjoyed a soft launch of sorts in April when the Central Ohio Motocross Series popped the cork on the recently-added motocross track adjacent to the dirt oval. Almost 150 riders turned out for that event.

“The hardest thing is to get the awareness out here whenever you have something new,” Tifft said at the time. “So to have the turnout we had … and to get that excitement is huge.”

The track will host the World of Outlaws national touring series for the 57 Special in late-May, bringing some of the top Late Model racers in the country to town.

“Our biggest weekend from a national-exposure standpoint is May 29 to 30,” Tifft said. “But we also know that from a local excitement perspective it’s opening weekend.”

Saturday’s weather forecast calls for sunny skies and temperatures in the upper-40s. Saturday’s schedule has been adjusted to accommodate the cooler temperatures.

Gates will open to spectators at 3 p.m. On-track activity begins at 4:15 p.m.

Opening weekend will conclude Sunday with a demolition derby dubbed Night of Destruction.

Fans can purchase tickets for Saturday and Sunday at thespeedway.com.