Lessons learned take rookie to first IMCA Stock Car win

Rookie Mitchell Ferguson was joined in victory lane following his career first IMCA Sunoco Stock Car win by team members Jose Martinez, Chaz Baca and Chaz Baca Sr. (Courtesy Photo)

QUEEN CREEK, Ariz. (Oct. 4, 2024) – As a spectator and new to dirt track racing, Mitchell Ferguson thought the IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars looked fast and fun.

As a rookie in The Class Too Tough To Tame, he learned you don’t have to go fast to win.

The Queen Creek, Ariz., driver had 36 starts under his belt before ending his freshman campaign at Desert Thunder Raceway’s Castle Country Clash. He sandwiched career win number one between second-place finishes in earning the overall title at the season-ending special.

“It was a big accomplishment and it didn’t come easy. When I got to second place, the leader was almost a straightaway ahead of me. I just ran my line, it took about three laps and I passed him on the bottom,” said Ferguson, owner of a drilling company based in the Grand Canyon State. “It was hard to keep my emotions under control. I didn’t even see the checkers come out and I did another lap.”

“It (that first win) took longer than I wanted but pretty much everybody I race against weekly or raced against for rookie of the year has a racing background, they’ve grown up racing and came from SportMods or Hobby Stocks,” he added. “I didn’t do any of that. I didn’t have a dirt track racing background at all when I started so I’m pretty happy with what success I’ve had this year.”

Ferguson’s son Axel caught the racing bug first and after watching their first races on Youtube, they were soon watching from the stands at Central Arizona Raceway.

Axel started his own career in a local mini dwarf class. His dad got his feet wet in a pro stock before moving to the sanctioned Stock Car division.

Ferguson met Chaz Baca last November and they’ve been a team since then, with the defending Friesen Performance IMCA Modified champion serving as a combination crew chief, mechanic and most importantly a mentor ever since.

“I’ve had Chaz in my corner this year and he helps me with every aspect of it. We weren’t even finishing races before. We’ve got it pretty dialed in,” he said. “We’ve had some pretty good runs this year but I’ve made some rookie mistakes and I think it’s cost me some wins.”

“Slow is fast. That has been absolutely the hardest thing for me to learn and Chaz has tried to beat that in my head every weekend. I finally went slow and fast, and that’s how I got my first win.”

Next season he’ll start off at the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals and chase more wins and a track championship or two in his home state, with plans to pick up more seat time in Texas, during the Dakota Classic Tour and at the IMCA Speedway Motors Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s.

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