By Ben Deatherage
ANNA, Texas — Perseverance and patience paid off for Landon Capps, who turned his first season running for points into the biggest moment of his career — his first IMCA Southern SportMod national championship. Piloting the D&D Elevators/J&G Services/Bell’s Pool Care no. 5X TRC Race Cars, the Anna, Texas, driver emerged from a year-long battle decided by a tiebreaker to claim Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly gold.
“It was pretty close all year,” Capps said. “At the beginning of the year, we had some motor trouble for the first couple of races and got that all figured out. Once we did, we started running up front at Ardmore and then went to chase points at Grayson County. We had a really good year there, and I’m glad everything turned out the way it did.”
The tiebreaking championship came down to Capps’ 11 forty-point feature wins, edging runner-up Trevor Cogburn, who had ten. Capps’ 2025 campaign produced 11 victories in 32 starts, including ten at Grayson County Speedway and one at Southern Oklahoma Speedway, along with 25 top-five finishes, 28 top-tens, and 20 podiums. He also earned his first career track title at Grayson County Speedway and became the latest in a long line of Texas drivers to bring home the Southern SportMod national crown — a streak interrupted only once since the division’s inception in 2005. His 11 victories were the most he’s ever recorded in a single IMCA Southern SportMod season, marking a new personal best.
Anna, Texas, driver Landon Capps earned his first career Smiley’s Racing IMCA Southern SportMod National championship in 2025. (Photo by Mike Frieri)
The 2025 season was filled with momentum. After early challenges, Capps found his rhythm in May, notching his first Grayson County victory on May 10 and then stringing together five straight wins from May 31 through June 28, including a pair of weekend sweeps that cemented his title bid. He experienced another heater in late summer, scoring four consecutive wins from Aug. 2 through Aug. 23, all at Grayson County. His late-year consistency — capped by a September 13 win — ultimately made the difference in the national standings.
“This was my first year really chasing points, but I’ve been in the division about four and a half seasons,” he said. “It’s definitely a lot of work when you’re running for something like this, but it’s worth it. We had a good group helping us every week, and I can’t thank everyone enough.”
Capps credited his parents and girlfriend for their constant support through the ups and downs of the season. “Dad and Mom were there for everything, helping me in the shop and at the track, and my girlfriend Annika has been amazing — she’s been there every step of the way,” he said.
Feature Wins 11
Total Top Five’s 25
Total Starts 32
Pit Crew: dad Casey, mom Krystal, Annika Van Der Heyden
Sponsors: D&D Elevators, J&G Services, Bell’s Pool Care, All State Insurance–The Heatherly Agency, J&S Fabrication, MBR, All Service Heating and Air, Adams Towing, Club 20 Suspension, Crew of 2022, Wicked Fast Transmissions, Bullet Racing Engines, Seth Sadler, BAM Supplies, RCR, CCE, Racing4Granny, Garrett Zachary Transportation, Vanguard GMC of Sherman, Bulletproof Tees, Royalty Racecars, Landon Capps Designs, Roy Capps Racing Engines, Beam Concrete