Ryan Clark

Smith rides fast start to first Northern SportMod national title

LAKE CITY, Iowa – Ten early season wins convinced Doug Smith this was the year to run for the IMCA national championship. Wins in his final two starts of the season wrapped up his first Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod crown. “I have never chased one (a national championship). I’ve always gone out and tried to win every race,” said the Lake City, Iowa, veteran, whose brothers David, Devin, Donavon and Dustin own IMCA national championships of their own. “There have been other years when I’ve had a lot of wins but not a lot of starts. This was just a good year.” The Buena Vista Raceway and Crawford County Speedway track and KMJ Performance State champion, Smith won 10 of his first 13 starts, collecting seven straight checkers from June 3-17. “That was definitely the best start to the season I’ve had and it came in a new Rage car. I think the start of the season was a combination of it being my third year in a Rage and we changed some mounts to [Read More]

Time can’t slow Abbey in pursuit of third national Southern SportMod crown

BOYD, Texas – A lot had changed since Dean Abbey last won an IMCA national championship. One thing hasn’t. The Boyd, Texas, driver is still plenty fast. Abbey raced to a career third Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMod crown this season, wheeling a Chris Bragg-owned Harris Chassis to a single-season career best 23 feature wins in 38 starts. “We had a heck of a season. We had really good luck all year and the attention to detail and the equipment Chris gave me was second to none,” said Abbey, who had won back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012. “Everything just went our way this year. I can’t say enough about everybody who was part of this team. It was a real team effort on and off the track.” Abbey last ran a SportMod full-time in 2013 before successful stints in both an IMCA Modified and an IMCA Sunoco Stock Car. Bragg’s son Tyler saddled up in a Harris beginning early last season. Abbey joined the team in an active advisory role and the partnership took [Read More]

Always a contender, Probst wins first IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock national title

BREWSTER, Minn. – He’s always been a contender. Now Cory Probst is the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock national champion, despite the lack of sleep. The Brewster, Minn., driver collected 24 feature wins – and another 14 top five finishes – in 41 starts, earning Big Daddy Race Cars Northern Region plus Arlington Raceway and Murray County Speedway track titles in addition to his first national crown. “I’m glad we were finally able to do it,” said Probst, runner-up to Shannon Anderson in 2018 and to Jeff Ware last year. “We hadn’t planned to run for the national championship this season. Now it’s exciting to know you can run at the same level as the other guys who have won it.” “Our daughter Kenleigh was born last September and I didn’t think I’d be able to race as much or as hard,” he continued. “I spent as much time with Kenleigh as I could every night before she went to bed before going to work on the car. I’m one of those guys who is nitpicky [Read More]

High hopes exceeded in Nichols’ history-making IMCA Sunoco Stock Car season

HARLAN, Iowa – Mike Nichols began 2020 with high hopes for the year on and off the track. He achieved that broad goal in what proved to be the most unique of his IMCA career. Nichols became IMCA’s winningest driver, ending the season with 561 career checkers while racing to a record ninth IMCA Sunoco Stock Car national championship as well as a ninth EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region crown. He also won four track titles, upping his already-best IMCA career total to 42. On top of all that, Nichols completed four years of online studies for his master’s degree in organizational leadership from Buena Vista University. When social distancing guidelines allow, he’ll walk across the stage during ceremonies in Storm Lake to accept his diploma. “I had hoped 2020 would be one of life accomplishments. The way the year started, it didn’t seem like it would go that way,” said Nichols, who would be as pleased with his academic achievements as his on-track ones. “So many things were unique about this year. I couldn’t go [Read More]

Bard does the math, numbers add up to IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car national championship

WELLS TANNERY, Pa. – The math Garrett Bard did in August added up to an IMCA national championship in September. The second year IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car driver from Wells Tannery, Pa., went on a tear over the last two months of the season, ending the year with a division-best 13 feature wins, plus Pennsylvania Sprint Series and KMJ Performance Pennsylvania State titles to complement the national crown. “We sat down at one point in early August, figured we had right around a dozen races left and that we needed at least seven top three’s to have a chance at the national championship,” recalled Bard. “Eight of our next nine starts were firsts or seconds, then we ended with two wins.” “It’s cool to win it all. We’re already determined to try for it again next year,” he continued. “Hopefully next October we can get the same congratulatory phone call from IMCA.” Bard ran 600 microsprints in his home state and across the East Coast before making his RaceSaver debut in July of 2019 at [Read More]

Perfect score paves way for Dumpert in IMCA Sunoco Late Model title chase

YORK, Neb. – Cory Dumpert sought and achieved IMCA Sunoco Late Model perfection in 2020. Dumpert raced to a second straight national championship, and his first outright, collecting three track titles and the KMJ Performance Nebraska State crown as well. His 21 feature wins, in just 32 starts, were the most by an IMCA Late Model driver since Justin Kay’s division record 24 checkers in 2014. “Our goal this year was to go out, get it done and leave no doubt. We built a brand new car and it was really good right out of the box,” said Dumpert, from York, Neb. “We were more familiar with the IMCA point structure this season. Once we knew we had a perfect score after our 20th win it was a relief and we could just go out and race after that.” Putting together streaks of three, four, five and then six wins over the course of the season, Dumpert won eight times at Junction Motor Speedway, six times at U.S. 30 Speedway and five times at Boone County [Read More]

Berry is lights out in drive to IMCA Modified national crown

DES MOINES, Iowa – Tom Berry Jr. saw it as a sign from above when the lights went dark at Marshalltown Speedway. Qualified but in the trailer with more damage than he had time to fix, Berry got a reprieve when the electricity went out before that evening’s IMCA features could be run. Knowing his father must be looking down and smiling, Berry came back to town two weeks later, finishing second in the make-up race and winning the scheduled event. That Friday night provided a foundation for Berry’s drive to the IMCA Modified national championship. He’d win 21 of his 47 starts in all, complementing the Marshalltown crown with Stuart Speedway and KMJ Performance Iowa State titles while repeating as Side Biter Chassis North Central Region king. “There were a couple nights when things happened like that and we wondered if they were signs or omens or what,” said Berry, now from Des Moines. “I had drawn 66 the night I won the Speed Shift TV Dirt Knights Tour at Benton County Speedway, which [Read More]

Next newsletter goes to print on Dec. 9

VINTON, Iowa – Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting quarantine, a single issue of the Inside IMCA newsletter will be published for November and December. That issue will include 2020 champions and rookies of the year feature stories and 2021 divisional rules. All will be posted on the IMCA website before the combined newsletter is printed and mailed on Dec. 9. “Health issues of our staff took priority and resulted in this decision,” explained IMCA President Brett Root. “We anticipate that divisional rules will be posted on the website beginning this week.” “Newsletter deadlines are extremely tight and when we realized there was no possible way to meet our November deadline, we were forced to adjust our print schedule in a way that makes immediate sense and also satisfies our December demands,” he explained. “Consolidating the two months into one publication accomplishes that.” The newsletter will resume regular publication in January of 2021.

IMCA Modifieds, Northern SportMods on Cocopah’s Turkey Classic cards

SOMERTON, Ariz. – A pair of $1,500 to win IMCA Modified features are on race night cards at Cocopah Speedway’s Nov. 27 and Nov. 28 Turkey Classic. Both Friday and Saturday main events are 2021 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifiers. Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods race for $500 to win each night. The pit gate opens at 1 p.m. both days, with the front gate opening at 3 p.m. and racing at 5 p.m. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and military and free for kids 11 and under. All pit passes are $35. The Turkey Classic is presented by Bad Boy Designs and Fisher Chevrolet Buick GMC.

Thornton completes Desert Thunder Nationals sweep

By Lonnie Wheatley CASA GRANDE, Ariz. (Nov. 22) – Ricky Thornton, Jr., finished off a sweep of Central Arizona Speedway’s seventh annual Desert Thunder Nationals, thundering to victory lane in Sunday afternoon’s 25-lap IMCA Modified feature event atop the 3/8-mile clay oval. Thornton, already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot, had topped $1,000 to win features on Friday and Saturday leading up to Sunday’s $3,000 checkers and denying brother Jeremy the win in the process. Ricky Thornton Jr. spent the first half of the race chasing Jeremy Thornton before working his way into the lead on the 14th round. He led the field the rest of the way with Jeremy Thornton fending off Jake O’Neill for runner-up honors and Jeff Larson and Austin Kuehl rounding out the top five. “It’s pretty awesome to run one-two,” Thornton, Jr. said of sibling sweep of the top two positions. While Thornton completed the trifecta, Bo Partain foiled a second consecutive Cody Thompson sweep attempt in the Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod ranks. Bo Partain gunned into the lead at the [Read More]