August 14, 2026

Ritchie records first Shawano IMCA Modified win

By Scott Owen

SHAWANO, Wis. (Aug. 18) – Justin Ritchie has won a number of features at Shawano Speedway, but the former late model track champion scored his first IMCA Modified feature Saturday night.

Cautions plagued the start of the event, but once the race got going Tim Rothe took the lead. Ritchie pursued Rothe until lap three when he made an inside pass to take the lead.

As Ritchie led, the action was hot and heavy behind him as Jason Czarapata, Lance Arneson and Wyatt Block all came from deep in the field to battle for second and third. In the end it was Ritchie making his way to victory lane followed by Czarapata, Block, Arneson and Konnor Wilinski.

Mitch Stankowski returned to victory lane after some time away from the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car division. Lucas Lamberies raced to his seventh local Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod victory of the year ahead of Tyler Sobiesczyk, who finished a career-best second.

shawanospeedway

Lemmens, Sobiesczyk, Mullen are Shawano winners

By Dave Buss SHAWANO, Wis. (April 24) – Hardy fans came out Saturday evening to Shawano Speedway to see Luke Lemmens, Tyler Sobiesczyk and Mike Mullen pick up IMCA feature wins. Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods led off feature action with Dylan Waldvogel and Sobiesczyk on the front row. Sobiesczyk did not let his great starting position go to waste as he stormed out to a commanding lead in the early part of the race. Waldvogel was challenged and eventually passed by John Holtger, who got close to the Sobiescyk machine on a couple of occasions but was not able to make the pass. Back in traffic, Jayden Schmidt was working his way forward in a spirited battle with Jeffrey Teske and Max Oreskovich. Schmidt eventually grabbed the third spot with Teske fourth. After troubles in his heat race, Teske had recovered by winning the “B” main. Early on it looked like the IMCA Modified main would be the Eddie Munster show. Muenster rocketed to a large lead on lap number one and began to pull [Read More]

Mullen captures third straight on Bob Bennett Memorial Night

By Dave Buss SHAWANO, Wis. (May 1) – On Saturday night, Shawano Speedway celebrated its Night of Champions, honoring the 2020 championship class. Webster’s Dictionary defines a champion as ‘someone who fights or speaks publicly in support of a person, belief, cause.’ Before the races, another champion’s life was honored as Bobby Bennett was remembered. Although Bennett never won a track championship at Shawano, it was only appropriate to honor his life on the Night of Champions. The IMCA Modifieds took to the track to open the features with Mike Mullen trying to extend his season-opening win streak to three. Kevin Feck looked to be the man to end the streak early on as he led the opening five laps. Further back in the pack, Andy Karl and Marcus Yarie, along with Jerry and Konnor Wilinski were waging a spirited battle with three-wide racing and competing slide jobs. Meanwhile, Mullen was dicing his way forward and with a power move grabbed second on lap six. Riding his momentum, Mullen took his spot at the lead [Read More]

Clements notches first career victory

By Scott Owen SHAWANO, Wis. (June 16) – Second-generation racer Bryce Clements scored his first Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod career feature win Saturday night at Shawano Speedway. The win was an early Father’s Day gift for his dad Scott, a former local sportsman racer. Kaden Besaw led the early stages while Clements fell in line behind him. Clements used the outside line to his advantage to take the lead on lap three and Kyle Raddant soon began to battle Besaw for second. Raddant eventually would get past Besaw, as would Jordan Barkholtz. The race was marred by a series of late cautions but Clements survived every challenge. Multi-time track champion Eddie Muenster scored his first local IMCA Modified win of the year and Travis Van Straten brought home win number four in IMCA Sunoco Stock Car action.

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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