IMCA Modified, Hobby, Northern SportMod rookies of year earn Friesen crate engines

Feature

Chad Smith, at left, represented Friesen Performance and Bill Martens, at right, represented Chevrolet Performance in presenting crate engine awards to IMCA national rookies of the year in three divisions, Kaden Reynolds, Hobby Stock, Cade Richards, Northern SportMod and, not pictured, John Oliver Jr., Modified. (Photo by Bruce Badgley, Motorsports Photography)

LINCOLN, Neb. – Friesen Performance made stellar seasons pay off even more for rookies of the year in three IMCA divisions.

Modified rookie of the year John Oliver Jr. received a 604 crate engine while Hobby Stock rookie of the year Kaden Reynolds and Northern SportMod rookie of the year Cade Richards both earned 602 crates.

Reynolds also paced Big Daddy Race Cars Northern Region rookie standings. He was a 10-time feature winner and was 13th in the national points race.

Richards won five features and was 17th nationally. He continued his rookie campaign despite a broken left hand suffered in a crash midway through the season, finishing in the top five in seven of nine starts made with a form-fitting cast.

Also the top rookie in the Side Biter Chassis North Central Region, Oliver won half a dozen features and was track champion at Lee County Speedway.

“This is a great program that has fresh new faces receiving awards each and every year and made possible by the great relationships we have with Friesen and Chevrolet,” noted IMCA Marketing Director Kevin Yoder. “It is just another example of the outstanding support IMCA racers have from our loyal sponsors.”