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IMCA adding to membership benefits, doubles excess medical coverage to $100,000

VINTON, Iowa – With no increase in cost to drivers, IMCA membership benefits will include excess medical coverage doubled to $100,000 beginning in the 2021 race season. “It has always been extremely important for IMCA to maintain membership costs while increasing the benefits our licensed drivers and sanctioned race tracks receive,” emphasized IMCA President Brett Root. “While no one ever wants to have to need or have to use it, it’s very important that such coverage is available and in place.”  This excess medical policy that accompanies IMCA membership reimburses IMCA members racing in sanctioned events for covered excess medical expenses, including those incurred during travel to and from IMCA sanctioned events.  Excess means the accident medical benefit is payable after benefits under any other health plan have been considered first. Also, there is a $5,000 policy deductible, usually track insurance, that needs to be satisfied before any payments can be made. Coverage is subject to policy terms, conditions and exclusions.  The member’s policy purchased from Jones Birdsong includes $5,000 accidental death, dismemberment and paralysis coverage [Read More]

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GRT captures IMCA Manufacturers’ Cup crown

GREENBRIER, Ark. – The company with the We Build Winners slogan is the winner of IMCA’s 2020 Manufactur­ers’ Cup contest. GRT Chassis of Greenbrier, Ark., paced the 16 chassis builders entered in the 12th annual contest with 49 points, awarded based on the make of chassis driven by racers finishing in the top 10 in each of the five re­gions for IMCA Modifieds. Nine drivers, including regional champions Mitchell Hunt in the Eastern and Jordan Grabouski, in the Central, contributed to the GRT point total. “It definitely means a lot to us being the Manufacturers’ Cup champion and winner of two regions,” said GRT’s Zach Wehlage. “It means a lot to our customer base and we look forward to serving them in the future.” Razor Chassis was second with 34 points, defending cup contest champion Rage Chassis third with 23. Both had five drivers finishing in regional top 10’s; national and North Central Region champion Tom Berry Jr. wheeled a Razor. Rounding out the top five in Manufacturers’ Cup points were Harris Auto Racing with 21 and Ingalls Racing [Read More]

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New IMCA, STARS Mod Lite agreement hailed as win-win

VINTON, Iowa – Drivers, tracks and race fans across the United States and Canada are the winners of the new agreement between IMCA and the Modified Lite STARS Racing Series.  The Mod Lites, a 5/8-scale Modified division of race car powered by a motorcycle engine, become the ninth division sanctioned by IMCA, which will provide administration, including points and point funds, while supporting current sanctions and promoting new sanctions of the class.  STARS will continue to use rules now in place for weekly, regional and special events. Owner and President of Competition and Racing Operation Jimmy May also becomes IMCA’s division director for the Mod Lites.  “This agreement is win-win,” said IMCA President Brett Root. “While Mod Lites run at many tracks we already sanction, it is a division that in almost every aspect we have nothing similar to now. There are a lot of things about STARS that appeal to IMCA.”  “IMCA provides consistency in administration and benefits of membership,” he added. “Our goal is to grow this division across the United States and [Read More]

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More laps, more money in IMCA Wild West Tour plans for 2021

MYTON, Utah – Drivers in three IMCA divisions will have the opportunity to run more laps and earn more money on each night of the 2021 Wild West Tour. IMCA Modifieds, IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars and Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods see 14 dates at six tracks in as many different states on next season’s tentative schedule, beginning with the tour’s first-ever visit to Cocopah Speedway and Arizona on March 19 and 20.  Friday-Saturday tour twinbills follow April 16 and 17 at Aztec, N.M., Speedway; May 21 and 22 at Winnemucca, Nev., Regional Raceway; June 18 and 19 at Sweetwater Springs in Rock Springs, Wy.; July 16 and 17 at Desert Thunder Raceway in Price, Utah; and Aug. 20 and 21 at new Blue Valor Speedway in Emmett, Idaho.  The tour returns to Price for the Sept. 17 and 18 finale, and to Cocopah for the Nov. 6 Top 20 Showdown. All tour events will be broadcast on IMCA.TV. All Modified features will be 2021 or 2022 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifying events, with a [Read More]

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Seven January dates for IMCA.TV Winter Nationals at Cocopah

SOMERTON, Ariz. – Cocopah Speedway gets the 2021 race season off to a fast start with seven IMCA.TV Winter Nationals dates in January.  IMCA Modifieds run for $1,000 to win in Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifying features Wednesday, Jan. 6; Thursday, Jan. 7; Friday, Jan. 8; and Saturday, Jan. 9; and again at Thursday, Jan. 14; Friday, Jan. 15; and Saturday, Jan. 16 shows.  Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods race for $750 to win, IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars for $500 to win and IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks for $350 to win each night. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, regional and KMJ Performance State points will be awarded each night. Drivers who pre-register via My Race Pass by opening night pay no entry fee; entry fee for the tour after that date is $100. An open practice runs from 6-9 p.m. Jan. 5 at Somerton. Another open practice, as well as the $500 to win Mach-1 Sport Compact main event and the $1,000 to win Gene Freeman pit crew challenge is slated for Jan. 13. [Read More]

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Changes minimal in IMCA rules for 2021

VINTON, Iowa – As expected, changes in IMCA rules for the 2021 race season were minimal. “Making no changes in rules is always the most cost effective for our racers. Changing rules costs money,” IMCA President Brett Root said. “Of course we can’t foresee the future. Making rules is what we do by definition as a sanctioning body. We try to keep changes to a minimum and the vast majority of what we do falls under the category of necessary corrections.” “A number of the changes or clarifications for 2021 were being made in multiple divisions,” added Root. “Shocks, springs and front and rear suspensions, for example, are going in a direction we didn’t believe was good for drivers in the long term.” A maximum seven inch stroke will be in effect on front shocks and maximum nine inch stroke on rear shocks for Modifieds, Stock Cars and Northern SportMods. And no Modified, Stock Car, Hobby Stock, Northern or Southern SportMod shock can pre-load or pin any spring. 2021 rules for those five divisions have [Read More]

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Thornton, DeVilbiss, Becerra capture first IMCA Duel In The Desert crowns

By Steven Young LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Nov. 14) – Three already accomplished IMCA drivers raced to career first championships Saturday night at the 23rd annual Duel In The Desert. Ricky Thornton Jr. topped the $10,000 to win main event for IMCA Modifieds while Zane DeVil­biss and Austen Becerra left the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track with $5,000 each after winning IMCA Sunoco Stock Car and Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod features, respectively.  Jason Wolla led the opening lap. Thornton used the cushion to perfection to move around Wolla and into the top spot in the running order at the end of lap two.  Cody Laney took over second on lap three. With a dozen laps in the books, Thornton had caught up to the rear of the field but a cushion saved him from having to work lapped traffic. Wolla moved back to second, bringing five-time Duel winner Jeremy Payne with him. Laney re­gained the second spot following a lap 11 restart, as Collen Winebarger moved into third. Ethan Dotson was the next driver to occupy [Read More]

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Winebarger, Wolla take final IMCA Modified qualifiers at Duel

By Steven Young LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Nov. 13) – Collen Winebarger and former IMCA Modified national champion Jason Wolla earned the final qualifying victories at the 23rd annual Duel In The Desert at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Friday night.  Tom Berry Jr. and Eddie Belec led the field to the green in qualifier number one, with Winebarger and Belec making significant contact entering the first pair of turns. Winebarger took the lead until a caution on the second lap. Belec moved back to second on the ensuing restart, bringing Kyle Brown with him to third. Another caution with six complete failed to disrupt the running order, as Winebarger continued to lead over Belec. The top three pulled away from the rest of the field by three seconds, as Belec remained within a car length with 10 to go. Brown took a peek to Belec’s inside with seven remaining, but the lead duo remained the same into the waning laps, as Winebarger continued on to victory over Belec. In qualifier number two, [Read More]

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Dotson, DeMey head to Duel finale with Thursday night wins

By Steven Young  LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Nov. 12) – Ethan Dotson and Shane DeMey earned their places in Saturday night’s main event for IMCA Modifieds at the 23rd annual Duel In The Desert with qualifying feature wins Thursday night at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track. Jason Wolla and Jordan Grabouski led the field to the green at the start of the first of the pair of 20-lap qualifiers and it was Grabouski who took the point early. Dotson chased down Grabouski on the second round, eventually taking the lead on the backstretch, as Wolla reeled Grabouski back in for the second and final transfer spot.  Wolla and Grabouski swapped lines in their bid for the position, allowing Dotson to pull away by a second in a half. Dotson built a lead of over two seconds by the halfway point, as he approached the rear of the field. As the leader worked traffic, Grabouski closed to under a second with seven remaining. It was then when Jacob Hobscheidt made a strong run from third [Read More]

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Thornton, Egbert win opening night Duel qualifiers

By Steven Young  LAS VEGAS, Nev. (Nov. 11) – Ricky Thornton Jr. and P.J. Egbert punched their tickets Wednesday night for the 23rd annual Duel In The Desert IMCA Modified main event, winning their respective 22-lap qualifying features.  In the first qualifier at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track, Thornton and William Gould led the field to the green. Thornton set a blistering pace early, leading by over a full second at the completion of the opening round. Tanner Black moved up to the second spot on the second circuit, then began to close in on Thornton for the top spot. The lead duo maintained the same distance through 10 completed laps, as they approached the rear of the field. Thornton closed in on a pair of lapped cars running high and low with six remaining, allowing Black to close to within a half of a second with five laps left.  Three lapped cars further quelled Thornton’s momentum, causing him to abandon the bottom to work the traffic with three laps left. Thornton put [Read More]