By Bill Martin
DAVENPORT, Iowa (Oct. 25, 2026) – A Karl Kustoms IMCA Modified driver who says he was “just out to win races” this season won the first regional championship of his career, too.
Spencer Diercks collected a personal single-season best 21 features in reigning over point standings for the Razor Chassis North Central Region.
He was track champion and a five-time winner at hometown Davenport Speedway. The national runner-up, Diercks made starts at 13 different tracks in his home region in 2026, winning at least once at a remarkable 11 of those venues.
“Everything had to go our way, and it was cool to accomplish what we did. It’s October now and I still kind of look back and think ‘Damn, we did that,’” Diercks said. “It’s pretty cool, and I never thought I’d be able to win the region.”
“We had luck on our side, the car was working good and the team worked well together. Everything was just gelling,” he’d add. “Everything has to work good and that starts with all the work in the shop. You’re not just going to win races by working on your car one hour a week, so props to everybody who helped me.”
The season was his sixth in the division. Diercks ran in the top five in 35 of his 46 North Central Region outings.
“When we go to race, we go to win. I feel like you discredit yourself as a racer by showing up and not thinking you could win. Everybody should have that attitude, not just myself,” he said. “I feel like any night we can win. Obviously, you have to have luck, and everything has to fall your way, but we had a really good start to the year.”
He had an even better July, winning seven straight starts over the last half of the month, then followed with another three straight wins in early August.
“We kind of just fell into the regional championship. We had a good year at Davenport and were winning races before we went to Nashville in the middle of the year on a mini vacation, right in the heart of the racing season,” Diercks explained. “Everything just fell our way after we got home. We already had the car already loaded up, we hopped in the truck and drove to Beatrice, where we finished second to Ricky Thornton Jr., one of the best-ever in an IMCA Modified. We had some momentum on our side when we went on that little hot streak.”
A third-generation driver, he piloted a 2026 Brand X ride to the regional and track crowns. The championship at Davenport was his second straight; Diercks was also runner-up in points and a three-time feature winner at Maquoketa Speedway.
“We did have some plans to race a Late Model at the beginning of the year,” said Diercks, who’d begun his on-track career in the full-bodied class. “My wife Danielle and I got married last fall, work was so busy and life was so busy.”
“We talked about a Late Model during the winter, but I ended up not wanting to do it. With a Late Model you have to give 110 percent all the time, but with my (Diercks and Associates concrete) company going as well as it is, we decided to stick with the Modified and obviously it paid off.”
Still enjoying his 2026 success, Diercks hasn’t looked ahead to next season.
“I’ll probably just set out to win races. That’s always been our goal,” he said. “At the end of the day, you’re not going to win championships if you don’t win races.”
Diercks now has 59 sanctioned wins in his IMCA Modified career.
Wins – 21
Top Five Finishes – 35
Starts – 46
HIS CREW: Matt Pewe, Jim Costello, Alan Schmell, wife Danielle, daughter Elena, father Steve, mother Lisa, brother Justin, nephew Hayden and Dan Hoffman.
HIS SPONSORS: PepsiCo and Rock Star Energy Drink, Petersen Plumbing and James V. Costello Builders, all of Davenport; Older Tire Performance of West Davenport; Zach Johnson and Lindquist Ford and Dirt Stars Pullbars, both of Bettendorf; Diamond Builders of Long Grove; American Concrete Care of Freeport, Ill.; Creative Curb of East Moline, Ill.; and Brand X Racecars of Beatrice, Neb.