August 14, 2026

Repeat winners are Saturday story at Canyon

By Tony Steele

PEORIA, Ariz. (March 17) – Repeat winners were the story Saturday at Canyon Speedway Park.

Jason Noll wasted no time following a Leading Edge IMCA Modified restart and made what proved to be the race-winning pass of Ryan Roath to the inside when the green flag flew. Chaz Baca had a strong run going until a misstep allowed Joey Moriarity to get by to the inside, putting both MRT Racecar teammates on the podium.

For the first time in almost a full year the race fans at Canyon were treated to a full Allscapes IMCA Stock Car battle between Cody Center and George Fronsman. It seems between the two it’s been one of them having some type of mechanical problem over the last six or so races. At last, both cars held up to full strength and the fight raged on.

Much of the race was led by Fronsman on the low side while Center continued to chip away on the cushion. Center finally got the run he needed to get by Fronsman and did look back.

For the third time this season, Joe Peterson recovered from an early trip to the hot pits en route to victory lane in the Desert Restorations IMCA Hobby Stocks.

Billy Ayres Jr. captured his second win of the year in the brand new Mach-1 Sport Compact division.

Next up at Canyon Speedway Park on Saturday, March 31 will be the Easter Eggstravaganza, featuring the Leading Edge IMCA Modifieds and Arizona Differential IMCA Northern SportMods.

canyonspeedwaypark

Thornton, Baca split Winter Challenge IMCA Modified features

By Tony Steele PEORIA, Ariz. (Jan. 25-26) – Two drivers already familiar with the view from victory lane at Canyon Speedway Park made their way back to that locale following season-opening IMCA Modified Winter Challenge feature victories. Ricky Thornton Jr. continued right where he left off last winter at Canyon, earning the $1,250 win on Saturday before Chaz Baca broke Thornton’s streak with the victory on Sunday. Both drivers were already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Andy Altenburg and Brad King each swept their respective divisions in the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars and IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks, respectively, while Shelby Frye and Cody Thompson split Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod features. Thornton beat fellow front row starter Zachary Madrid to the Saturday lead and outran everybody en route to a dominating green to checkered victory. Madrid and Baca made up the top three. John Parmeley paced the first two laps of the Sunday show before Baca made his way to the front. Baca walked away from the field until the ninth starting Thornton worked [Read More]

IMCA Modified features get top billing for Canyon’s holiday weekend show

PEORIA, Ariz. (Aug. 27) – A pair of $1,000 to win IMCA Modified features are on the docket for Canyon Speedway Park’s Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 1 and 2 Labor Day Weekend special. Both 25-lap events are qualifiers for the 2019 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot and pay a minimum of $100 to start. Entry fee each night is $25. IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars race 20 laps for $500 to win with a $20 entry fee on Saturday while Sunday’s 100-lap marathon pays $1,000 to win and has a $50 entry fee. The 20-lap IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock feature on Saturday pays $250 to win with a $20 pill draw; Sunday’s 30-lapper pays $500 to win with a $25 pill draw. Both shows are draw/redraw and IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, regional, Arizona State and track points will be awarded each night. Pit gates will be open all day and cleared around 3:30 p.m. The drivers’ meeting is at 5:30 p.m. with the grandstand opening at 5 p.m. and packing and hot laps preceding [Read More]

Parmeley, Kuehl, Fronsman top Canyon features

By Tony Steele PEORIA, Ariz. (June 8) – John Parmeley continued his hot streak at Canyon Speedway Park with his fourth victory of the year in the Arizona Differential IMCA Modifieds Saturday night, while Taylor Kuehl grabbed her first win of the season in the Askrens Trucking/Flexi Flyer IMCA Northern SportMods. In Allscapes IMCA Stock Car action it was once again George Fronsman in victory lane, earning his fifth win of the season. A new point leader has been crowned after another weekend of Modified action as Parmeley snagged a two point lead from the ever-consistent Ryan Roath. Jay Foster started the feature from the pole, taking off from the field for the first few laps of the race. With Foster in charge, Parmeley drove up from the eighth spot to challenge. Parmeley eventually grabbed the lead from Foster as the fourth lap was clicked off, racing his way to another win. Artie Garcia led lap one of the SportMod main from the front row before Ron Poe, starting sixth, took over. Poe led until halfway, later [Read More]

Feature

Nate Coopman: Three Hundred Wins and a Lasting Legacy

By Ben Deatherage MANKATO, Minn. — Three hundred victories. Even Nate Coopman has a hard time wrapping his head around that number. “I can’t believe it,” Coopman said. “It’s pretty amazing to have had that much success.” On Aug. 1 at Arlington Raceway, the Mankato, Minn., driver reached another milestone by earning the 300th IMCA Sport Compact feature victory of his career, extending his record as the division’s all-time winningest driver. What began with his first IMCA feature victory in 2011 quickly turned into one of the most dominant seven-year stretches in IMCA history. Between 2011 and 2017, Coopman never won fewer than 21 features in a season, highlighted by a 54-win campaign in 2014 that is tied with Mike Nichols’ 2016 IMCA Stock Car season for the modern-era record for victories in a single IMCA class. “We were racing four or five nights a week for a while, so I guess I never really looked at it that close,” Coopman said. “When you step back now, it’s pretty incredible.” Nate Coopman celebrates his historic 300th [Read More]

Feature

Dan Mackenthun: The Hamburg Racer’s Road to 200 Stock Car Wins

By Ben Deatherage HAMBURG, Minn. (Aug. 11, 2026) — Two hundred victories don’t happen overnight. They aren’t the product of one dominant season or one magical race car. They’re built one night at a time, one feature at a time, one year after another. When Dan Mackenthun earned the 200th Sunoco IMCA Stock Car victory of his career, the Hamburg, Minn., driver joined one of the most exclusive clubs in IMCA history, becoming just the eighth driver to reach the milestone. “It was something we were looking forward to,” Mackenthun said. “The Stock Car class is pretty tough competition anywhere, so to pick up just one win is a feat, let alone to do it 200 times. It’s been a pretty solid year so far.” His first IMCA Stock Car victory came in 2002 at Arlington Raceway. The following night he backed it up with another triumph at Redwood Speedway, unknowingly beginning one of the sport’s most accomplished careers. Mackenthun’s milestone also earned him membership in IMCA Stock Car racing’s exclusive Double Century Club. Only seven [Read More]

Events

Ralph Bloom Memorial Returns to Cottage Grove Speedway Aug. 14-15

By Ben Deatherage COTTAGE GROVE, Ore. (Aug. 12, 2026) — The sixth annual Ralph Bloom Memorial returns to Cottage Grove Speedway on Aug. 14-15 with an exciting new twist, as the Karl Kustoms IMCA Northern SportMods will compete topless for the first time in event history. The two-night special honors the memory of Ralph Bloom, one of the patriarchal members of the Bloom Family Racing team whose passion for racing helped build one of Cottage Grove Speedway’s most recognizable racing families. His legacy continues to be celebrated each summer through one of the premier IMCA SportMod events in the Pacific Northwest. Saturday night’s 33-lap feature currently pays at least $3,333 to win and $333-to-start main event. The confirmed purse has already grown to nearly $14,000, with additional support continuing to come in. Presented by American Steel, Industrial Source, Discount Windows, R&S Industrial Supply and Bloom Family Racing, the event continues to grow in prestige while drawing many of the Northwest’s top IMCA SportMod competitors. The weekend opens Friday, Aug. 14, with qualifying competition to set the [Read More]

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