By Chris Kolstad
BRAINERD, Minn. (Jul. 12, 2025) – The Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stock feature was hands down the race of the night at North Central Speedway. Josh Maleski jumped to the lead from the drop of the green and stretched out a sizable advantage over the field. Former track champions Mark Johnson and Brandon Bombardo methodically worked their way through traffic and settled into the top three in a caution-free 15-lap affair.
Lapped traffic came into play with two laps to go, allowing Bombardo to close the gap to Maleski’s rear bumper. The two went at it hard in the final corners, slicing through traffic and getting together in turns three and four. Both cars slid sideways as they raced to the line in what looked like a near dead heat.
Bombardo was scored the winner by inches, with Maleski second and Johnson third—until a minor post-race tech infraction cost Maleski the runner-up position, handing second to Johnson and third to Nick Dillenburg.
The victory was Bombardo’s first of the season in the B&B Racing Chassis Northern Region.
Johnston Scores First Career Win in Compacts
The Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compact feature saw Matt Johnston take the lead at the drop of the green. Kole Holtz made a strong move to the bottom in turn two on lap four to briefly take over the top spot, but Johnston got him back the following circuit.
On the white flag lap, first-time visitor Gilbert Aldape closed in fast and made contact in turn one, nearly spinning Johnston. But Johnston made a stellar save and kept it straight to score his first-ever career feature win. Aldape was second and Holtz took third.
Aaron Johnson Cruises to Modified Victory
In Friesen Performance IMCA Modified action, Aaron Johnson wasted no time jumping out front from the start. Johnson put together a dominating run and was never seriously challenged en route to the victory.
The win was Johnson’s sixth of the year at North Central Speedway and in the Razor Chassis North Central Region. Pete Hines brought home second, and Kyle Root scored a career-best third-place finish on the night.
Siercks Gets First SportMod Win of 2025
The Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMods delivered another eventful feature. Polesitter Justin Jones retired before the green even flew, handing the early lead to Chris Siercks. Siercks paced the field until lap eight when Jake Kierstad slipped by. A caution brought the field back together, and veteran Dave Siercks capitalized on the restart to take over on lap 10.
Two laps later, Bud Martini—who had spun earlier and dropped back to 14th—used a late restart to power to the apparent win. However, both Martini and third-place Kierstad failed post-race tech, giving the win to Dave Siercks, his first of the year. Chris Siercks moved up to second, and Troy Jordan was credited with third.
The win marked at least one feature victory for Dave Siercks in all but one season since 1981.
The event was broadcast live on IMCA TV affiliate Dirt Race Central. Catch every lap again with the IMCA TV Replay Subscription, available for just $24.99/month. Don’t miss Season 2 of The Boone Docuseries, now streaming exclusively on IMCA TV.
