Newswire

Jet Racing returning as title sponsor of IMCA Central Region for Modifieds

BEATRICE, Neb. – Jet Racing continues its long and successful association with IMCA in 2019, returning as title sponsor of the Central Region for Modifieds. Owned by four-time IMCA Modified national champion Johnny Saathoff, the Beatrice, Neb., chassis builder will furnish a portion of the $6,000 point fund to be paid to top 10 drivers in the region encompassing tracks in Arkansas, eastern Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma. The champion earns $2,500 and the runner-up $1,250, with $625 paid for third, $325 for fourth, $300 for fifth and $200 for sixth through 10th places. Drivers are required to display two Jet Racing decals on their race car to make themselves eligible for point fund shares. Jet is in its 22nd year as an IMCA sponsor, having previously supported IMCA special events competitors and then Stock Car and Hobby Stock regions before taking over the Modified Central Regional title sponsorship in 2012. A retailer of high performance parts and automotive accessories, Jet also builds Northern SportMod, Stock Car, Hobby Stock and Sport Compact chassis. Ramsey Meyer won [Read More]

Fast start key for three-time Deery champion Kay

WHEATLAND, Iowa – His fast start and a typically consistent string of top five finishes the rest of the way took Justin Kay to his career third Deery Brothers Summer Series championship. Kay opened the IMCA Late Model tour with victories at Cedar County Raceway, Maquoketa Speedway and Quad City Speedway. He collected half a dozen top five’s, clinching the title by starting the Sept. 21 finale at Davenport Speedway. “We got off to a really good start and just kept trying to do our best the rest of the way,” said the Wheatland, Iowa, driver, also champion of the 2014 and 2015 series. Also the winner of the last Deery event in 2017, he matched the series record of four straight victories shared by Gary Webb, Rob Toland and Brian Harris with the May 6 checkers at East Moline. “We had to pass a lot of cars that night. It didn’t look good for us at the beginning of the race but we kept at it and won.” said Kay, who had started 24th after [Read More]

Coyne goes all out in successful race for Deery Series rookie of the year honors

ORION, Ill. – A couple good seasons in another class convinced Chad Coyne that 2018 was the right time to make the move to an IMCA Late Model. The Deery Brothers Summer Series rookie of the year award proved that decision to be correct. The Orion, Ill., driver qualified for 10 of the 11 events he entered and finished 12th overall in point standings for the Late Model Tour. He experienced the highs of winning a heat race at Benton County Speedway to the lows of totaling his car at Fayette County Speedway during a learning 2018 season. “I had raced the ‘B’ modifieds, mod-lites and then outlaw street stocks before the Late Model,” said Coyne. “I had always told myself that someday I would drive a Late Model. We had two good years in a street stock before the right deal came along and I bought one. We decided to go all out this year and try to win Deery Series rookie of the year and we got it done.” He lost a back-up motor [Read More]

Scholpp, Appel winners of Harris Race Tech drawings

AMES, Iowa – Their special event victories during the 2018 IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing season have made Kody Scholpp and Josh Appel winners for a second time. Both were winners of drawings to attend Bob Harris Enterprises Race Tech Info dirt chassis schools early next year. Winners of 30 designated events for IMCA Modifieds and 15 specials for Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods and Smiley’s Racing Products Southern SportMods were entered in that drawing. Scholpp was the winner of the Gunslinger Tour finale at Black Hills Speedway. Appel’s checkers came on night two of Spring Nationals at Beatrice Speedway. Modified winners entered in the drawing also included Casey Arneson, Bryce Borgen, Kyle Brown, Cayden Carter, Nick DeCarlo, Zane DeVilbiss, Jordan Grabouski, Richie Gustin, Jason Hughes, Danny Lauer, Hunter Marriott, Robert Miller, Bob Moore, Joey Price, Jake Sachau, Tyler Stevens, Kyle Strickler, Ricky Thornton Jr., Aaron Turnbull, Dominic Ursetta, A.J. Ward and Jason Wolla. Other SportMod drivers were Lance Borgman, Joe Docekal, Ronnie Hults, Luke Krogh, Jake McBirnie, Rusty Montagne, Tony Olson, Kyle Raddant, Fred Ryland, [Read More]

Second-year driver Duinkerken is first in Western RaceSaver Sprint Series points

RIVERDALE, Calif. – His national rookie of the year campaign in 2017 laid the foundation for Grant Duinkerken’s Western RaceSaver Sprint Series championship this year. Duinkerken won six times and finished outside the top three in just two of 17 starts, earning California State honors along with the IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car tour crown. “After getting a full year of 305 races in, everything just worked out for me,” said Duinkerken, 18 years old and from Riverdale. “We had the setup right for the different tracks and had a little bit of luck with the draw during the season. I went into the year with more confidence and I think I did a better job driving.” His win in the series opener March 31 was also Duinkerken’s career first victory in the division. He won twice at Thunderbowl Raceway and once each at Bakersfield Speedway and Ocean Speedway before wrapping up the series championship in the Sept. 22 finale at Santa Maria Raceway. “That first win was amazing. It was the first race my girlfriend [Read More]

Good program, good competition make Newlin Pennsylvania Sprint Series king

MILLERSTOWN, Pa. – Seven runner-up finishes paved the way for Zach Newlin’s first Pennsylvania Sprint Series championship in 2015. An IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car career-best seven feature wins did the trick for him this year. From Millerstown, Pa., Newlin registered 19 top five finishes in 26 PASS starts. He recorded three win at BAPS Motor Speedway and two each at Port Royal Speedway and Path Valley Speedway. Third in the national point standings, he also collected another Pennsylvania State crown. “I like all the tracks we run at. You can run a big half mile one night, then run a bullring the next,” Newlin said. “I’ve always been consistent at BAPS. We won twice this season at Port Royal, where I’d never won before, so that was special.” “We’ve got a real good program going. We’re using both our experience and time in the shop to our advantage,” added the six-year veteran of the division. “We’ve got really good car counts in this series (better than 28 cars a night). We had the most wins [Read More]

Shouse three-peats in Sprint Series of Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – A fast start and consistency throughout the season combined to make Andy Shouse champion of the Sprint Series of Oklahoma for the third consecutive year. Shouse collected top four finishes in the first four IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car tour events before winning at Red Dirt Raceway on April 27. His second series win came July 14 at Southern Oklahoma Speedway. “We’ve been at this a long time and usually have the car right,” said Shouse, from Oklahoma City, Okla., and IMCA’s national champion in 2016. “We have a lot of new drivers coming up – the Oklahoma area is one of the tougher RaceSaver areas – so any win is a good one.” “The third (series) championship is just as good as the first one,” he added. “Winning a point championship isn’t just being at every race. It’s a reward for consistency and we had a lot of good runs.” Squaring off with familiar competition that included eventual race winner and 2018 national champion Kevin Ramey, Shouse duked it out with [Read More]

Spectator-turned-driver Harris is Virginia Sprint Series champion

ROCKINGHAM, Va. – Tony Harris attended his first Sprint Car race as a spectator. Now he’s attending banquets as a champion. Harris topped point standings for the Virginia Sprint Series this season, getting one win and eight top five finishes in 10 IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car starts. “I came close to winning it last year but came up a bit short,” said Harris, from Rockingham and also the Virginia State champion. “It’s a great feeling to have finally won this series. It kind of takes the load off. When you race you always have this concern that you could lose a race or a championship because of something that happens in a split second. It’s a neat feeling to win a series like this.” Harris and his brother Jerald – a three-time Virginia Sprint Series champion – were fans when they ran into French Grimes at a Sprint Car event some 20 years ago. “We talked to French and decided to give Sprint Cars a try,” said Harris, who earned his sanctioned career 10th victory along [Read More]

Zevenbergen excels during record-setting Dakota Tour IMCA Stock Car championship

OCHEYEDAN, Iowa – Elijah Zevenbergen added another trophy to his collection after his latest racing vacation to North Dakota and Canada. Zevenbergen won the Kupper Chevrolet Dakota Classic Tour for IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars for a record fourth straight time. His fifth career crown was also a record for the division. “Those tracks just fit my driving style,” said Zevenbergen, from Ocheyedan, Iowa, and the winner this year of tour features at Nodak Speedway and Southwest Speedway. “They’re smooth and perfectly dry from top to bottom. It seems like those are the tracks where we excel.” A record 56 drivers from the U.S. and Canada competed in the Stock Car half of the Dakota Tour. Zevenbergen owns 17 tour victories during his career. He won 10 of 39 starts in all this year, taking the checkers at a number of the division’s top-paying events, among them Hometown Heroes at Kossuth County Speedway, Hancock County Speedway’s Hobo 100 and Arlington Raceway’s Schoknecht Shootout. “We had a really good year last year,” said Zevenbergen, behind the wheel [Read More]

Howes knows how to find podium in race for IMCA Arizona Tour Northern SportMod crown

MEMPHIS, Mo. – Austin Howes admitted to having some concerns about finding the tracks during his travels on the Karl Performance Arizona IMCA Tour. He didn’t have any problem finding the fastest way around them once he got there. Howes chalked up a win and six top five finishes in topping point standings for the Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMod half of the February tour. The Memphis, Mo., driver wrapped up the title with a convincing run to the checkers in the finale at Cocopah Speedway. “It was a lot of fun to go out there without knowing anything about the tracks, run with the guys who race at them weekly and beat them,” he said. “This definitely has been the highlight of my career so far.” Working his way up from mid-pack or deeper starts most nights, Howes made up for a DNF in the Canyon Speedway Park show to win the tour crown. Second- and third-place finishes at Somerton preceded his victory on championship night. Closer to home, he’d race at nine different tracks [Read More]