By Ben Deatherage
(Photo Courtesy of Pixel Boss Productions)
Casa Grande, Arizona (January 9, 2025) — Todd Heinrich brought the Central Arizona Raceway crowd to its feet by winning the race to the finish line in the Sunoco IMCA Stock Car feature during the second night of the IMCA TV Winter Nationals presented by Pitt Stop Motorsports. The veteran driver from Fargo, North Dakota, who started in third position, earned his first career Winter Nationals feature victory.
The 25-lap contest kicked off with Heinrich outpacing Gary Pesicka to lead the initial lap. From there, the two drivers engaged in a thrilling cat-and-mouse battle on the 3/8-mile clay oval. Pesicka’s patience paid off when he finally passed Heinrich on the eleventh lap. However, Heinrich refused to let him pull away and regained the lead with ten laps remaining.
Not to be outdone, Pesicka reclaimed the lead once again on lap seventeen. The climactic moment came when Heinrich powered up beside Pesicka, with the two drag racing down the back stretch on the final lap. The outcome remained uncertain until they crossed the finish line, with Heinrich edging out Pesicka by a nose after getting an amazing run out of turn four.
Gabe Deschamp finished third, completing the podium.
The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds, Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMods, Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stocks, and Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compacts also competed during the event. The winners in those respective features were Ethan Braaksma, Robby Thome, Dillon Richards, and Billy Foultz.
Jonathan Mawhinney got off to a great start in the IMCA Modified finale. After taking the lead and handling a lap five restart, the driver from the Silver State of Nevada pulled ahead of the competition. However, as the race continued without any stoppages, lapped traffic entered the mix with less than ten laps remaining. That’s when Braaksma made his move, pressuring Mawhinney until he executed a decisive slider in turn four on the eighteenth circuit. Braaksma pulled away to secure his third Winter Nats triumph for car owners Trent Guest and Danny Meir.
The battle for second place came down to the wire, with Brandon Beckendorf taking the spot in the final laps and Mawhinney finishing third.
Robby Thome dominated the IMCA Northern SportMod field. The driver from Spalding, Nebraska, showcased impressive speed, made smart moves in lapped traffic to lead the race from start to finish, and went untouched in the stoppage free feature. It was the first time he had captured a Winter Nationals main event trophy in only his second career start with the series.
The race for second was briefly intense, with double duty Deschamp finishing in that position. Kaden Woodie, who also raced in two divisions, managed to hold off the 2024 Central Arizona Raceway track champion to finish third at the double checkers.
In the IMCA Hobby Stocks, Dillon Richards continued his dominance, taking the lead at the start and skillfully navigating multiple restarts due to cautions. The racer from Beatrice, Nebraska, secured his second victory of the week and his fifth overall in Winter Nats competition, making him the all-time leader in that division after a four-way tie with Brock Beeter, Tim Gonska, Erik Knutson, and Thomas Daffern.
Dillon Thompson finished second for the second consecutive night, while Blake Luinenburg rounded out the podium in third.
For the IMCA Sport Compacts, it seemed like it would be Iowa racer Kaytee DeVries’ night as she held an early lead. However, night one winner Billy Foultz found a way to the front after a restart and successfully defended against challenges from DeVries and Gilbert Aldape. Foultz, from Descanso, California, claimed his second victory of the week and his fourth Winter Nationals feature win, tying him with Oliver Monson for the most all-time.
Aldape and DeVries finished second and third, respectively.
The event was broadcast live on IMCA TV.
