Wolla takes winning ways to Texas for $5,000 Fall Classic IMCA Modified checkers

Feature

Jason Wolla was the $5,000 IMCA Modified main event winner at Heart O’ Texas Speedway’s weekend Fall Classic. (Photo by Stacy Kolar, Southern Sass Photography)

Wolla takes winning ways to Texas for $5,000 Fall Classic IMCA Modified checkers

WACO, Texas (Oct. 27) – Add Texas to the list of states Jason Wolla has scored first-time wins in this season.

Wolla topped the IMCA Modified main event at the Heart O’ Texas Fall Classic, leading the last 15 of 25 circuits to earn the $5,000 top prize.

“The thing I liked best about this was that any time you can go to a track you’ve never been to and win, it says a lot about your race program,” he said following his biggest IMCA career payday. “This season we went to Kansas, Montana and Texas and won for the first time in each state. We’ve had a lot of fun traveling.”

Wolla had started fourth, was running second when a well-time caution came out and used multi­ple lines to work his way into the lead. He had a comfortable lead on the rest of the field when he caught up with lapped traffic late in the race.

Outside pole starter Anthony Roth ended in second while 11th starting Tom Berry was third. IMCA na­tional rookie of the year Jeffrey Abbey and 15th starting Kelly Shryock completed the top five.

Hard charger Cory Davis, winner of the $10,000 IMCA.TV Dirt Dominator race, advanced a dozen positions from his original starting spot to end in eighth.

“Heart O’ Texas is a little bullring, a track with a lot of character,” said Wolla, who counted 14 victo­ries at eight different tracks, plus a qualifying feature and the Harris Auto Racing Race of Champions at Boone Speedway during the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s this season. “It’s real small and definitely not what we’re used to in North Dakota. I think it’s similar to Benton County Speedway (in Iowa) where we’ve raced and won before. We defi­nitely take notes at the places we race and that helps you later on.”

Wolla was already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot.

Nearly 300 cars packed the pits at HO’T for the 21st annual Fall Classic, completed despite wet weather leading up to the weekend. Gabe Tucker topped the $1,500 to win Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMod feature and Benji Kirkpatrick motored to the $1,500 first prize for IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars.

Pole starter Tucker fell back to fourth in the Southern SportMod headliner as Jeff Sheppherd, Garrett Rawls and Eddie Grmela were faster early on.

“They were really quick,” Tucker said. “It took me a little while to find my line. You had to get up on the wheel and be aggressive, which was hard to do and not run over your neighbor.”

The 2018 national champion worked his way to the lead by midway, then inched away from the pack after the only caution waved on the 14th of 20 laps. Shepperd, Rawls and Brandon Geurin rounded out the top four.

Kirkpatrick had started outside the front row and slipped back a couple spots, then made a nifty move inside and led the last 18 times around the track in the Stock Car feature.

A multi-car tangle took out his closest challengers late in the contest. Dillon Smith started 14th and went from sixth to the runner-up position in the final two laps. Damon Hammond and Billy Wade were third and fourth, respectively.

Feature Results

Modifieds – 1. Jason Wolla; 2. Anthony Roth; 3. Tom Berry Jr.; 4. Jeffrey Abbey; 5. Kelly Shryock; 6. John Gober; 7. Garrett Higgins; 8. Cory Davis; 9. Kevin Green; 10. Eric Tomlinson; 11. Mat Hollerich; 12. Fred Wojtek; 13. Chris Morris; 14. Brandon Hood; 15. Chase Allen; 16. J.P. Dowell; 17. Nick Roberts; 18. Paul White; 19. Brian Schultz; 20. Kevin Sustaire; 21. David Goode Jr.; 22. Josh McGaha; 23. Jake Henderson; 24. Greg Dinsmore.

Southern SportMods – 1. Gabe Tucker; 2. Jeff Shepperd; 3. Garett Rawls; 4. Brandon Geurin; 5. James Guyton; 6. Eddie Grmela; 7. T.J. Green; 8. Tyler Bragg; 9. Taylor Florio; 10. Michael Mar­tin; 11. Joel Garcia; 12. Rusty Head; 13. James Hanusch; 14. Bobby Ortega; 15. Chris Chamber­lain; 16. Ray Smith; 17. Kevin Ward; 18. Jason Kingery; 19. Kyle Wilkins; 20. Kevin manning; 21. Hayden Wade; 22. Casey Brunson; 23. Brian Walker; 24. Collin Montgomery; 25. Chad Fitzger­ald; 26. Joe Browning; 27. Billy Lindsey.

Stock Cars – 1. Benji Kirkpatrick; 2. Dillon Smith; 3. Damon Hammond; 4. Billy Wade; 5. Tyler Muirhead; 6. Andy Roller; 7. Austin Smith; 8. Bryan Schutte; 9. A.J. Dancer; 10. Travis Norman; 11. Lewis Blackwood; 12. Brandon Prewett; 13. George Egbert; 14. Christopher Bruner; 15. Char­lie Brown; 16. Jason Riddle; 17. G.W. Egbert IV; 18. Dean Abbey; 19. Westin Abbey; 20. John Frydrych; 21. Jamey Lough; 22. Don Chamblee.

Related Articles

Events

IMCA STARS drivers racing for Texas-sized payout at inaugural Texas Mod Lite Nationals

WACO, Texas (July 7, 2022) – Heart O’ Texas Speedway rolls out the red carpet for an IMCA STARS Mod Lite special so big it could only be held in the Lone Star State.  The winner of the inaugural Oct. 13-15 Kick-N-Back Refrigeration Texas Mod Lite Nationals earns a $10,000 share of the $33,650 main event purse that weekend at Waco.  Runner-up pay is $5,000, with $2,000 for third and $1,500 for fourth. A minimum of $1,000 will be paid to finish in the top 10 and a minimum of $500 paid to start the 24-car feature field.  Two long haul awards of $150 will be paid. Hard charger awards are $100 for the feature and $50 for non-qualifiers. The Joe Butler Jr. Invitational pays $500 to win, $200 for second and $100 for third through eighth place. Entry fee is $200 for drivers registering by Sept. 5 at heartotexasspeedway.com or $300 after that date. Pit gates open at 6 p.m. and an open practice runs from 7-10 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13. Gates open at 6 p.m. [Read More]

Events

IMCA Modifieds race for $1K at Red River Tour shows

ARDMORE, Okla. – IMCA Modifieds race for $1,000 to win and Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot berths each night of the Lone Star Super Gas Red River Tour South presented by Smiley’s Racing Products. Opening night for the third annual tour is Wednesday, July 1 at Southern Oklahoma Speedway, with events to follow July 2 at Grayson County Speedway, July 3 at Heart O’ Texas Speedway, July 4 at Kennedale Speedway Park and July 5 at Boyd Raceway.  Ken Schrader will follow the tour, which has no entry fee any night. Mufflers are required at KSP and at Boyd.  The July 3 Baby Blue Harcrow Memorial for IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars at Heart O’ Texas pays $1,500 to win and $100 to start. Stocks also race opening night at Ardmore and at Kennedale.  Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMods join all five programs. 

Feature

Gould, Scrivner, Hanson hoist hardware at Heart O’ Texas Speedway Fall Classic

WACO, Texas (Oct. 23) – Another big race at Heart O’ Texas Speedway brought out the best in William Gould. The 24th annual Fall Classic saw Robert Scrivner and Lance Hanson impress, too. All three were $2,000 feature winners Saturday night, Gould in the IMCA Modifieds, Scrivner in the Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMods and Hanson in the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars. The recently crowned Razor Chassis South Central Region champion Gould had won the All Star Shootout fueled by Fast Shafts main event at HO’T in May and led green to checkered of the 2021 season finale.  “The track was black from top to bottom and start to finish I was in the right place at the right time,” said Gould, newly eligible for the 2022 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational. “I led going into turn one and kept the car going where it needed to.”  Kevin Green, J.P. Dowell, P.J. Egbert and David Goode Jr. rounded out the top five. Winless in seven Heart O’ Texas starts this season, Scrivner enjoyed a flag-to-flag run at [Read More]