Feature Archives

Thornton cashes in at Dacotah Legendary

By Mike Spieker MANDAN, N.D. (July 13) – For the third consecutive year, the Legendary 50 at Dacotah Speedway brought the Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic IMCA Modified Tour week to a close. And for the second time in those three years, the driver taking home the big check – this time $10,003 – following the 33-car, 50-lap main event was Ricky Thornton Jr. Thornton backed up his inaugural Legendary 50 win Friday night, leading the final 35 trips around the high-banked, 3/8-mile clay oval. “I knew I was starting around some pretty fast cars. I felt confident with my car and was ready to get the race started,” said Thornton, who took the initial green from the eighth spot. “We were good running the bottom the night before and that was where I wanted to run again.” Eddie Belec, Jason Wolla and Shawn Strand made up the front row of the three-wide start as the field of 11 rows charged to the green flag. Strand took the lead on the opening lap with Wolla and R.C. [Read More]

IMCA Modifieds chase $3,000 check at I-30’s Ed Jordan Memorial

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A top check of $3,000 is at stake this Saturday, July 21 at I-30 Speedway’s sixth annual Ed Jordan Memorial for IMCA Modifieds. A minimum of $300 will be paid to start the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifier. Entry fee is $100 and includes the driver’s pit pass if paid by July 19. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Jet Racing Central Region, Arkansas State and track points will be awarded. Spectator admission is $12 for adults, $1 for kids ages 6-12 and free for five and under. Pit passes are $30. Pit gates and the grandstand open at 5 p.m. Hot laps are at 7 p.m. with racing to follow. More information is available by calling 501 455-4567, at the www.i-30speedway.com website and on Facebook. Gates open at 6 p.m. for Thursday’s open test and tune. Pit passes are 415 and grandstand admission is free.

Emotions flow at Mandan as Wolla scores Modified finale, Lund lands Stock Car prize

By Mike Spieker MANDAN, N.D. (July 12) – The defending national champion let his emotions show when the 29th annual Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic Tour came to a close Thursday at Dacotah Speedway. Jason Wolla claimed a hard-fought Modified win after 30 laps, as Hunter Marriott successfully concluded his bid for a third straight title with a second-place finish. “Hell yeah! We won!” Wolla exclaimed from victory lane. “To every single one of the fans up in the stands, it means a hell of a lot for me to be able to win this race on our home track. All these guys from out of town can pack it up, we won tonight.” Outside front row starter Wolla grabbed the lead on the opening circuit as third row starters Ricky Thornton Jr. and Marriott made their way up to second and third, respectively. Thornton slid up briefly to take the lead on lap 12 but Wolla came back to retake the top spot on the other end of the speedway. The lead duo swapped the [Read More]

Thornton wins Dakota Tour thriller at Dickinson, Zevenbergen cruises to another Stock Car win

By Mike Spieker DICKINSON, N.D. (July 11) – Winning streaks by both inclement weather and Hunter Marriott came to an end Wednesday night at Southwest Speedway. Ricky Thornton Jr. picked up the Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic IMCA Modified Tour win at Dickinson, ending both the streak of two straight wins by two-time defending champion Marriott and then back-to-back rainouts. R.C. Whitwell and Shawn Strand made up the front row for the 30-lap main event. Whitwell grabbed the lead before Thornton got a run to go from fourth to second on lap two, getting by both Strand and Ethan Dotson. The top three distanced themselves from the rest of the field at the halfway point. With 14 to go, Whitwell found himself in lapped traffic and had to move away from the preferred bottom groove, which allowed Thornton to reel him in. Thornton dove to the inside with 10 to go to take the lead but Whitwell didn’t go down without a fight. The Arizona driver battled back to go three wide with Thornton along with a [Read More]

IMCA Modifieds chase $1,000 checks in July 16, 17 debut at Brown County Speedway

ABERDEEN, S.D. – IMCA Modifieds make their Brown County Speedway debut next Monday and Tuesday, July 16 and 17, in $1,000 to win main events on the 1/3-mile clay oval. Both features are 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifiers. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Side Biter Chassis North Central Region, South Dakota State and track points will be awarded. Pit gates open at 2 p.m., the grandstand opens at 4 p.m. and racing follows 6:30 p.m. hot laps both days. Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Cars are also on the card Monday, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series on Tuesday. There is no entry fee for the Modifieds. Pit passes are $25 on Monday and $40 on Tuesday. Adult grandstand admission is $20 on Monday and $35 on Tuesday. Kids ages 7-13 are $10 and six and under get in free both days. More information is available by calling 605 868-4141.

Dacotah Speedway hosts $10,003 to win Legendary special for IMCA Modifieds

MANDAN, N.D. – Dacotah Speedway is excited to announce the $10,003 to win IMCA Modified Legendary 50 presented by Corral Sales scheduled for Friday, July 13. Many of the best drivers from across the United States and Canada will compete for the largest cash prize for an IMCA Modified race in North Dakota. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Side Biter Chassis and North Dakota State points, but no track points will be awarded. Entry fee is now $150. The main event is a 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifier and will feature the 32 drivers who raced their way into the big show, plus one additional spot to be determined by presenting sponsor Corral Sales. Some time between lap 25 and 35, a caution will wave for mandatory pit stops. This allows drivers and pit crews five minutes to make any changes they need with the exception of changing tires. The leader at that point earns $500, as does one fan, chosen by drawing, in a contest to guess the leader at that [Read More]

Deery Brothers Summer Series returns to CJ Speedway for July 18 show

COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa – An absence of more than 22 race seasons comes to an end next Wednesday, with the return of the Deery Brothers Summer Series to CJ Speedway. Touring IMCA Late Models last traveled to Columbus Junction for an April 12, 1996 show won by Rick Wendling of Hazleton. They’ll vie for $2,000 to win and a minimum of $300 to start when they’re back in town on July 18. “This has been one of the events that we’ve really been looking forward to since the schedule for the 32nd annual series was announced,” noted Tour Director Kevin Yoder. “A lot of our series drivers have never raced at CJ before, or have never raced there in a Late Model, and I know they’re looking forward to next week.” Pit gates and the grandstand open at 5:30 p.m. on race day. Hot laps are at 7 p.m. with racing to follow. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, $8 for seniors, $7 for students ages 11-17 and free for kids 10 and under. Pit [Read More]

Winner banks $2,500 at Hancock County’s IMCA Northern SportMod Nationals

BRITT, Iowa (July 10) – There’s a $2,500 check waiting for the winner of tonight’s Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod Nationals at Hancock County Speedway. The MaxYield Seed-sponsored special pays a minimum of $300 to start. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National and Iowa State, but no track points will be awarded. Top finishers from each heat advance to the $200 to win DeKalb/Asgrow Dash to determine their starting spots in the main event. The evening’s IMCA Modified feature pays $1,000 to win and is both a Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot and Wehr’s Dash at the Harris Clash qualifier. IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars race for $600 to win, IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stocks for $500 to win. National, regional and state points will be awarded in those three divisions. Pit gates at Britt open at 5 p.m., the grandstand opens at 6 p.m. and racing follows 7 p.m. hot laps. Spectator admission is $12 for adults and $7 for students, seniors and veterans. Kids 12 and under get in free. Pit passes are $25. More information [Read More]

Marriott goes back-to-back with Nodak win, Zevenbergen rules Dakota Tour Stock Cars

By Mike Spieker MINOT, N.D. (July 8) – Hunter Marriott looks poised to back up last year’s Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic IMCA Modified Tour championship. The Brookfield, Mo., driver claimed the $2,454 IMCA Modified win Sunday at Nodak Speedway for his second win in as many nights. Things heated up at halfway as both Ricky Thornton Jr. and Marriott got a run on leader Michael Greseth down the backstretch, which made for a three-wide race for the lead into turn three. Marriott went from third to the point as Thornton drifted up out of turn four and caught the wall. Greseth returned the favor on Marriott with a big slide job in turns one and two, but Marriott was able to regain the lead down the backstretch. Once out front, Marriott checked out from the rest of the field. Behind him, a torrid battle for second continued. On lap 18, Tim Ward drove from fifth to second after getting a run off turn two. Greseth, Wolla and Thornton went three wide for third into turn three, [Read More]

Opening night Dakota Tour feature wins at Jamestown go to Marriott, Rogers

By Mike Spieker JAMESTOWN, N.D. (July 7) – The 29th annual Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic IMCA Modified Tour got underway Saturday at Jamestown Speedway with a familiar name in victory lane as two-time and defending champion Hunter Marriott, picked up the opening night win in convincing fashion. Marriott took the point as the race resumed after an early restart with Mark Dahl and John Corell in tow. Several cautions plagued the opening circuits, but once the race endured a green flag stretch, Marriott checked out. Seventh starting R.C. Whitwell quickly moved into the second spot as Dahl and Corell continued to battle. Marriott reached lapped traffic at the halfway point, but by then he had already established a full straightaway lead over Whitwell. Seeming effortlessly, Marriott sliced through the dense traffic before increasing his advantage in the final stages. Marriott cruised to the win over Whitwell, while Jeff Taylor came from 12th to round out the podium. Dahl and Corell rounded out the top five. “The car felt really good tonight. I’ve never won here in [Read More]