By Chris Kolstad
BRAINERD, Minn. (Apr. 26, 2025) — North Central Speedway launched its 2025 season with a thrilling night of Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly racing, headlined by Bud Martini’s remarkable comeback in the Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMods feature.
Starting from the 10th position, Martini swiftly moved into the top three by lap four. However, contact with second-place T.J. Wyman in turn one brought out a caution and sent Martini to the rear of the field. Undeterred, he methodically worked his way back through the pack. A pivotal moment occurred with six laps remaining when leader Tim Bergerson spun, collecting Wyman and Jake Kierstad.
This incident allowed Martini to re-enter the top five. On the ensuing restart, the Avon veteran surged past the front runners, seizing the lead with four laps to go and holding off a hard-charging Wyman to secure his first North Central Speedway win of the season and third overall in 2025. Bergerson managed to finish third.
In the Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars feature, Tim Johnson started on the front row alongside Brody Carlsrud and immediately took command of the race. Despite a pair of cautions, Johnson maintained a sizeable advantage over Jim Horejsi, who held a comfortable second place throughout the event. Johnson’s victory marked his first in the EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region for the season, with Horejsi finishing second and Aaron Johnson rounding out the podium in third.
The Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stocks feature began with chaos as Tom Anderson got turned sideways at the drop of the green flag, resulting in a double rollover and bringing out the red flag. On the restart, Mark Johnson jumped out to the lead and stretched it out for a nearly uncontested win. A late caution with four laps to go, caused by a spin from Nathan Kohl, did not deter Johnson, who drove away to his first B&B Racing Chassis Northern Region victory of the year. Nick Dillenburg and Bryon Britton completed the top three.
In the Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compacts, Travis Roush of New York Mills took an early lead and maintained it throughout the race to collect his first victory of 2025. Defending Minnesota State champion Gary Schumacher achieved his best-ever finish at North Central Speedway by securing second place, while defending track champion Baylen Rooker of Emily finished third.
The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds concluded the night with Shawn Fletcher taking advantage of his front-row starting spot to build a significant lead. However, a late-race battle with Aaron Johnson of Brainerd saw Johnson overtake Fletcher with three laps to go, ultimately driving off to his first Razor Chassis North Central Region win of the new campaign. Fletcher settled for second, with A.J. Viehauser finishing third.
The entire event was broadcast live on IMCA.TV affiliate Dirt Race Central. Full replays are available now with the IMCA.TV Replay Subscription for $24.99/month. Don’t miss Season 2 of the Boone Docuseries, now streaming exclusively on IMCA.TV.
