May 28, 2026

Central Arizona winners are Mecl, George

M-Tyler-Mecl-VL — Tyler Mecl scored the win in Saturday’s IMCA Modified feature at Central Arizona Speedway.

By Jeff McSpadden

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (May 12) – Persistent Tyler Mecl and a very fast Jason George were IMCA winners Saturday at Central Arizona Speedway.

Mecl used the outside of the speedway to surprise Jeremy Thornton and take over the lead coming to the stripe to complete the ninth lap of the IMCA Modified main.

From there, Mecl weathered one last caution on lap 12 to take the checkered flag by more than two seconds over Thornton and Trevor Mille.

Jason George shot from fifth to first, somehow going lower on the speedway than the three-wide trio of Gerry Glenn, Mark Farnes and Chris Tipton on the first lap of the Karl Chevrolet Northern Sport Mod feature.

George pulled away to a full straightaway lead by the halfway mark and simply checked out over the last 10 laps of the race. George crossed the finish line almost nine seconds ahead of Glenn.

centralarizonaspeedway

Thornton, Harrison prevail at Central Arizona

By Jeff McSpadden CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (April 28) – Jeremy Thornton rocketed to his second IMCA Modified victory of the season while Mark Harrison came back from early troubles to hold off Jason George in the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod feature Saturday at Central Arizona Speedway. Thornton shot into the lead following an early restart and left the rest of the field to battle for second. At the finish, Thornton took a 2.303 second win over Tyler Mecl, Darin Center, Trevor Miller and Chuck Grohnke. With two laps remaining and a bunched-up restart, it appeared as if George might be able to challenge Harrison for the Northern SportMod win. But Harrison was up to the task and got a nice jump at the green. George stayed close but, in the end, would cross the stripe .488 seconds behind Harrison at the finish. Arron Hetrick held on to the third spot after crossing the line side by side with a charging Jimmy Terstriep.

Baca, Thornton, Thompson get tour wins in Sunday afternoon show at Central Arizona

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (Feb. 9) – Chaz Baca, Ricky Thornton Jr. and Cody Thompson all raced to second wins in their respective divisions, in the third IMCA Arizona Dirt Track Tour event of the weekend. Baca led the way to the $2,000 IMCA Modified checkers while Thornton collected the $750 IMCA Sunoco Stock Car checkers Sunday afternoon at Central Arizona Speedway while Thompson returned to Casa Grande for another impressive Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod victory, also good for $750. After a rough start to the 25-lapper, Baca led the distance in the Modified main. Already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot, he was chased every time around the track by Tim Ward while Thornton made his way from 17th starting to third before a lap 14 caution. The race stayed green to the finish from that point. Thornton, Jeff Taylor and Casey Arneson rounded out the top five. Back-to-back yellows just after midway were all that slowed Thornton in his drive to the Stock Car win. Brendon LaBatte, Zachary Madrid, 10th starting Arron Hetrick and Chanse [Read More]

Always learning, Thompson takes $1,000 IMCA Modified checkers at Central Arizona

CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (Jan. 22) – Cody Thompson got his first win of 2022 while continuing his IMCA Modified education Saturday at Central Arizona Speedway. The 2021 national and North Central Region rookie of the year motored from ninth starting to the lead just before midway, then outran Friday winner Zachary Madrid and hard charger Matt Aukland to the $1,000 checkers. “I just kind of worked my way up there and made my passes in (turns) three and four,” said the Sioux City, Iowa, speedster, already eligible to qualify for the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational. “I restarted behind Zach – he’s pretty good – after a caution and did a slide job on him for the lead.” Thompson made nine early-season starts in Arizona last year and had six IMCA.TV Winter Nationals outings under his belt before journeying to Case Grande this January. “Central Arizona remind me of Park Jefferson Speedway,” said Thompson, broadening his horizons by helping at a friend’s horse ranch between his Arizona starts. “It takes the same gear and has tighter [Read More]

Feature

IMCA Summer Nationals Ready to Invade Independence for Big Money Racing

By Ben Deatherage INDEPENDENCE, Iowa (May 27, 2026) — The stage is set for one of the richest and most anticipated dirt track events of the summer as the IMCA Summer Nationals prepares to take over Independence Motor Speedway from May 31 through June 3 with more than $200,000 in purse money on the line. Co-promoted by Mike Van Genderen and Trent Chinn, alongside track promoter Dana Benning, the four-day showcase will feature five Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly Racing divisions competing for massive payouts and marquee event prestige. Over the course of the week, competitors in Karl Kustoms IMCA Modifieds and Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars will race for a combined $13,000 to win, while Karl Kustoms IMCA Northern SportMods compete for $8,000, Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stocks for $5,500, and Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compacts for $2,750. “Over the last four years the racing has gotten so much better at Independence Motor Speedway and it’s time to bring some marquee racing events here,” said Benning. “A lot of drivers are publicly saying this is one of their favorite [Read More]

Feature

Herrera Sweeps Sweetwater’s May Mayhem Weekend in SportMods

ROCK SPRINGS, Wyo. (May 23, 2026) — The Karl Kustoms IMCA Northern SportMods produced some of the best racing of Sweetwater Speedway’s Memorial Day weekend ‘May Mayhem’ opener presented by Pitt Stop Motorsports as Payce Herrera swept both feature events against stacked fields on the 3/8-mile Sweetwater Events Complex oval. Friday’s 25-lap opener featured a packed 27-car field and ended with one of the weekend’s most thrilling finishes. Herrera, from Price, Utah, charged from eighth and used lapped traffic to his advantage before making a last-lap, last-corner pass on Josh Pate to steal the victory. The triumph was Herrera’s sixth win of the season at his third different track of 2026. Pate settled for second while David Pitt completed the podium. J.D. Renfro crossed the stripe fourth with Slade Pitt rounding out the top five. Herrera returned Saturday and proved the opening-night performance was no fluke. Starting fourth, he raced to another feature victory to complete the weekend sweep and score his seventh triumph of the year. Justin Wright advanced from ninth to finish second while [Read More]

Events

2nd Annual Joey Kay Memorial Race Weekend Returns June 12-13 to Bridgeport Speedway

By Ben Deatherage SWEDEBORO, N.J. (May 27, 2026) — The 2nd Annual Joey Kay Memorial Race Weekend presented by Tanner Brothers Dairy Store and Tru-Scapes Outdoor Lighting is set to bring two nights of action-packed racing and remembrance to Bridgeport Speedway on June 12-13. The weekend honors the memory of Joey Kay while celebrating the racing community he loved so deeply, featuring the DCB’s Plumbing and Heating Mid-Atlantic Sprint Series presented by Capitol Renegade. Friday night’s opener will feature a loaded program headlined by a $812-to-win, $160-to-start feature event, along with contingency bonuses and additional purse money throughout the night. Fans and teams are also encouraged to stick around following the racing program for the Scarlet Oaks Wholesale Nursery Tire Change Challenge behind the grandstands, where crews will compete for a $500 cash prize by changing a right rear and right front tire in the fastest time. The weekend then shifts into high gear on Saturday, June 13, with “The Big Show,” paying $4,012 to win and $512 to start the feature. The evening will also [Read More]

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