The "Dirty Dozen" of Late Model dirt track racing are coming to Lernerville Speedway.

And Zelienople's John Flinner - three-time defending track champion - is leading the welcoming committee of local drivers.

"I'm not intimidated by those guys," Flinner said. "A lot of local drivers will be intimidated and will get nervous out there on the track.

"I may have been that way when I was younger, but I know better now. Those guys can be beaten. I've seen Billy Moyer get lapped before," he added.

The inaugural World of Outlaws Late Model Series will be at Lernerville Friday. Gates open at 5 p.m., time trials are at 7:15, with racing at 8.

Late Models will be the only cars on the track that night and there will be plenty of them.

"I've got to believe there will be 60 cars here, at least," said Late Model driver Chuck Kennedy, a Mars resident.

Each Outlaws Late Model feature is 50 laps. Of the first nine features in the series so far, only one winner - Brian Birkhofer of Iowa, who won March 27 - is not one of the Dirty Dozen.

The first seven features of the series produced seven different winners before Dale McDowell and Bart Hartman became repeat winners last weekend at Lone Star Speedway in Kilgore, Texas.

The Dirty Dozen are the 12 professional Late Model drivers who agreed to race the entire Outlaws series this season. Besides Moyer, McDowell and Hartman, they include Scott Bloomquist, Rick Eckert, Steve Francis, Clint Smith, Dan Schlieper, Mike Balzano, Chub Frank, Darrell Lanigan and Rick Aukland.

"These guys do this for a living," said driver Lynn Geisler of Cranberry Township said. "They're not coming here to turn laps. They're coming here to race."

Former Lernerville Late Model points champions expected to join Friday's field are Flinner, Geisler, Nick Jones, Dave Norton, Gary Lyle, Ben Miley, Dave Hoffman and Ron Davies.

Alex Ferree of Valencia won the 2003 Mid-Atlantic Championship Series Late Model race here last year. Chuck Harper won the MACS race at Lernerville in 2002, and Mike Blose claimed the race in 2001.

All of them are expected to join Friday's field as well.

"I'm more concerned about the quantity of cars that will be here," Flinner said. "It's going to be hard to make (qualify for) the show."

Ferree recently finished third in a 150-lap asphalt-track race in Hickory, N.C.

"This is going to be a totally different league, and everyone will have to step up their program," Ferree said. "The 50 laps will give the veteran guys time to get a feel for the track."

Lernerville's track is different from most dirt tracks nationwide because the surface doesn't get rubbery as the racing goes on.

"This track has a lot of bite early," Lyle said.

"Lernerville is a different place," Kennedy said. "A lot of those hot dogs will have their hands full running here.

"I think some of our better local drivers will give them a run for their money," he added.

The local drivers will have to learn how the track handles with Late Models being the lone division running all night.

"That's never happened here before," Geisler said. "A lot will depend on how they prepare the track. For time trials, I know I'd rather go out there early and get a feel for what it's like."

Donnie Moran owns the fast-lap record for Late Models at Lernerville, completing a lap in 15.67 seconds in 1984. Harper had a time of 15.733 in 2002.

The total purse Friday is more than $40,000. The feature winner will receive $10,000.

The Outlaws Late Model series will return to Lernerville Aug. 13.