By Chris Kolstad
BRAINERD, Minn. (May 3, 2025) — The race of the night at North Central Speedway came from the Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stocks, as veteran Chris Seidel delivered a dramatic last-lap pass to steal the win and his first of the season in the B&B Racing Chassis Northern Region.
Seidel jumped to the early lead before a caution on lap three bunched up the field. Josh Maleski, a second-year driver, quickly moved into contention. Maleski slipped past Seidel on lap 7 with a bold move to the inside down the backstretch, taking over the top spot before another yellow reset the field. Multiple cautions on laps 7 and 8 kept the pack tight, but Maleski held strong as Seidel regrouped behind him.
With two laps to go, Maleski pushed high in turn two, opening the door for Seidel to charge back to the inside. On lap 14, Seidel completed the pass and then held off a determined Maleski over the final circuit to win in front of a cheering hometown crowd. Mark Johnson rounded out the podium in third. The victory gave Seidel his first regional win of 2025 and showed the veteran still knows how to finish strong.
Martini Makes It Two in a Row in SportMods
Bud Martini found the high line to his liking as he rallied late in the Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMod main event to pick up his second consecutive win at North Central Speedway. The Avon driver started mid-pack and used the cushion to his advantage, storming into the lead with four laps to go and never looking back.
Jake Kierstead led early and battled hard with David Siercks and Martini in an exciting three-wide exchange on a restart at lap 11. Siercks briefly took over the point but couldn’t fend off Martini’s charge. Once out front, Martini checked out for his fourth win of the season, adding to a pair of victories collected in Arizona back in January. Siercks settled for second while T.J. Wyman crossed the line third.
Bud Martini captured his second straight victory at North Central Speedway in the Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMods. (Photo by Stephanie Frederick)
Carlson Breaks Through in Sport Compact Chaos
It took just two starts for rookie Hunter Carlson to find victory lane, and he did it in style. The Staples driver dominated a caution-marred Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compact main event, holding off repeated challenges through numerous restarts to claim his first career win.
Carlson, who started on the front row, kept the field at bay even as the race went stop-and-go through the early laps. Travis Roush made a daring charge from the tail to second but couldn’t get a run to the lead as Carlson stayed smooth and steady. Eric Pfundt finished third.
Rookie Hunter Carlson won his first-ever feature in only his second start in the Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compacts. (Photo by Stephanie Frederick)
Johnson Dominates Modified Feature
Aaron Johnson took control early and never relinquished it in the Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds, leading all but the opening lap to earn his second Razor Chassis North Central Region win of the season.
Johnson got around A.J. Viehauser on lap two and ran away from the rest of the field following a mid-race caution. He was never seriously challenged again. Viehauser held on for second, with Erick Thiesse rounding out the top three.
Aaron Johnson drove to a dominant victory in the Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds for his second Razor Chassis North Central Region win of the year. (Photo by Stephanie Frederick)
The event was broadcast live on IMCA.TV affiliate Dirt Race Central. Catch every lap again with an IMCA TV Replay Subscription, available for just $24.99/month. Plus, don’t miss Season 2 of the Boone Docuseries, now streaming exclusively on IMCA.TV.
