Newswire

It’s Ardmore and Lawton this weekend for Sprint Series of Oklahoma

By David Smith Jr. OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – A huge weekend double-header awaits the Sprint Series of Oklahoma IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car Series presented by Smiley’s Racing Products. The tour will make a Friday, Aug. 18 appearance at Southern Oklahoma Speedway in Ardmore before making its inaugural appearance at Lawton Speedway for a Saturday, Aug. 19 event atop the famed red clay quarter-mile oval. The SSO has been scheduled four previous times this 2017 race season with Mother Nature having its way twice. Michael Day won the last time the series visited Ardmore back on June 23 while Chad Koch took the series opener back on March 25. Dating back to last year’s inaugural season, Southern Oklahoma Speedway has hosted a total of six series events without a repeat winner. Season-long point leader Jake Martens comes into the two-race weekend with a slim 13-point advantage over defending tour and IMCA national champion Andy Shouse. Shouse also has a series-leading four feature victories on the season while Martens remains winless. Despite missing one event, Joe Wood [Read More]

IMCA Modifieds chase $1,000 Benefit Weekend check at Idaho Falls

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – Night two of Idaho Falls Raceway EIRMC Auxiliary Benefit Weekend will be headlined by IMCA Modifieds running for $1,000 to win along with a berth on the 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Sanctioned Modifieds and Karl Chevrolet Northern SportMods are on Friday, Aug. 18 and Saturday, Aug. 19 programs at Idaho Falls. More money is also on the line Saturday for Northern SportMods as they run for $500 to win. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Allstar Performance State and track points will be awarded both nights in both divisions. Modifieds also earn Larry Shaw Racing Western Region points and a $500 bonus will be paid to the Modified driver sweeping the weekend. Racing starts at 7:30 p.m. Friday and at 7 p.m. Saturday. Grandstand admission is $12 for adults, $8 for seniors 65 and over and veterans with military ID, $6 for kids ages 6-12 and free for five and under. Proceeds from the weekend go to the Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center Auxiliary.

IMCA Modified features at Jim Marsh Classic pay $1,000 to win

TONOPAH, Nev. – IMCA Modified features at Tonopah Speedway’s Jim Marsh Classic special will pay $1,000 to win. The Friday, Aug. 18 and Saturday, Aug. 19 main events are qualifiers for the 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Larry Shaw Racing Western Region, Allstar Performance State and track points will be awarded both nights. Car and driver each night is $100; pre-entry fee for both nights is $175. Pit gates open at 3 p.m., hot laps are at 5:30 p.m. and racing starts at 7 p.m. both days. Spectator admission is $10 for adults and $5 for seniors, military and kids. Pit passes are $25. More information is available by calling 775 277-1583 and on Facebook. A pre-entry form is on the www.tonopahspeedway.net website.

Strickler switches gears, then checks out in second half of Shryock Memorial All-Star main

BRITT, Iowa (Aug. 12) – Kyle Strickler was right where he wanted to be midway through Hancock County Speedway’s Shryock Memorial All-Star main event. As a result, he was right where he wanted to be at the end of Saturday’s 50-lap feature for IMCA Modifieds. Strickler stayed close to Ryan Ruter following numerous cautions throughout the first half and was running second when the race was halted for the mandatory pit stop at halfway. He restarted second, took the lead almost at the drop of the green and checked out on the rest of the 31-car field, taking the $4,000 checkers handily ahead of Ruter. “It was so important to be lined up second,” Strickler explained. “The track had rubbered up and I was definitely trying to position myself for the restart.” “It’s tough to run well in a field this good but we made a gear change (at halfway) that helped us,” he added. “I knew if I could get out front I’d be tough to catch.” The second 25 laps ran caution-free. The [Read More]

IMCA Speedweek sees first repeat winner as Marriott repeats at Night of 10,000 Stars

BRITT, Iowa (Aug. 11) – Hunter Marriott became the first repeat winner of IMCA Speedweek when he repeated as the Night of 10,000 Stars winner Friday at Hancock County Speedway. Marriott led all but the first lap, earning $7,000 for the IMCA Modified feature victory along with a $1,000 bonus for leading at halfway in the 50-lap main event. Tad Reutzel drew the pole start and was scored first on the opening circuit; the sixth-starting Marriott made the best use of the lower line, had the lead the next time around and stayed in front to the finish. Richie Gustin raced from 13th starting to finish second while hard charger Ryan Ruter passed 21 cars and ended in third. Rounding out the top five were Joel Rust, who had started 22nd, and Ethan Dotson. Marriott, runner-up at Thursday’s Night of 1,000 Stars at Britt, had raced his way onto the 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot by winning Monday’s Arnold Motor Supply Hawkeye Dirt Tour feature at Clay County Fair Speedway. Randy Brands was the [Read More]

Hancock County success continues for Droste at Night of 1,000 Stars

BRITT, Iowa (Aug. 10) – Tyler Droste’s second career IMCA Modified win at Hancock County Speedway looked a lot like his first. Droste led the last 35 times around the track in Thursday’s Night of 1,000 Stars main event at Britt. His $3,500 share of the purse was complemented by a $1,000 bonus for leading at halfway in the 50-lapper. Johnny Whitman ran at the front early on but couldn’t keep Droste, who’d started in the middle of the second row, at bay. There was no catching Droste from that point, although racing continued two, three and sometimes four-wide behind him. The final caution waved with five laps left. Droste, already on the 2018 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot, pulled away again to beat Hunter Marriott to the checkers by half a straightaway. Marriott had started 15th. Defending race winner Richie Gustin was third, Corey Dripps was fourth and Jay Noteboom completed the top five. Dripps made his way from 22nd starting. Hard charger Joel Rust started 28th and finished 11th. Another impressive run up [Read More]

Shryock clinches title, Abelson takes checkers in Arnold Motor Supply Hawkeye Dirt Tour finale

ALTA, Iowa (Aug. 9) – Chris Abelson took the checkers while Kelly Shryock took the championship of the Arnold Motor Supply Hawkeye Dirt Tour Wednesday at Buena Vista Raceway. Abelson passed Shryock for the lead early in the IMCA Modified 30-lapper, stayed in front to the finish of a feature that ran caution-free and pocketed $1,000 for his second tour victory of the season. After finishing in the top five in all but one of the nine tour events – and placing second in each of the last three – Shryock earned a $1,000 share of the tour point fund, along with a Traeger Lil’ Tex Elite Pellet Grill courtesy of Arnold Motor Supply. “Winning a championship is cool,” said Shryock, the eighth different driver to win the Hawkeye Dirt Tour title in as many years. “Maybe we can repeat next year.” Abelson, the 2016 tour champion, has run part-time this season at Alta. He drew the fifth starting spot for the main event and didn’t need much time to get to the front. “We [Read More]

Cranston is king of URSS Belleville 305 Nationals

BELLEVILLE, Kan. (Aug. 5) – Luke Cranston’s smooth, on-the-fence driving style has always been a good fit at the Belleville High Banks and Saturday night proved no different as the “semi-retired driver jumped into Danny King’s mount and claimed his fourth victory in the eighth annual Belleville United Rebel Sprint Series 305 Nationals. The fifth starting Cranston wasted no time getting around Tyler Drueke as he drove around him for the lead on lap two and began a blistering pace. Ty Williams used the very top rim to pass both Zach Blurton and Drueke to move into second and begin his charge to run down the high-flying Cranston, who had already built up a 15-20 car lead over the field. As each lap progressed, Williams began cutting into Cranston’s lead and by lap 15 was within two car lengths and on lap 17 was on his bumper. Catching Cranston was the easy part, passing him was another, however. Williams tried one last move, driving down to the bottom hard on the final corner to pull [Read More]

$1,000 awaits Sprint Series of Oklahoma winner Saturday in Enid

By David Smith Jr. OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The Sprint Series of Oklahoma IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car Series presented by Smiley’s Racing Products rolls on Saturday night, Aug. 12 as the tour will make its first and only scheduled appearance at Enid Speedway. Courtesy of co-promoter Kip and Heidi Hughes, this event will pay $1000 to win, up from the standard $750 to win. This event will be the fifth weekend in-a-row the IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car series, presented by Smiley’s Racing Products, will be in action. After the conclusion of this event at the Garfield County Fairgrounds, three more dates are scheduled before the end of August. Jake Martens comes in as series point leader but is looking over his shoulder as inaugural series champion Danny Shouse, winner of a tour-best four features thus far this season, is closing the gap. Coming into last Saturday night’s event in Ada, Oklahoma (won by Shouse), Martens had a slim 18-point-lead. With Shouse’s win and Martens sixth place finish, unofficially the lead is now down to 13. [Read More]

Paris prevails in IMCA Stock Car special at 34

By Brian Neal WEST BURLINGTON, Iowa (Aug. 5) – It was kids’ night at the track but Shane Paris wasn’t kidding around when it came to the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car special Saturday at 34 Raceway. Paris proved the fastest in a one-lap dash to the checkers, edging Jake Wenig by inches to take the $1,000 victory, his first this season at West Burlington. John Oliver Jr. led much of the way before ending in third. Completing the top five were Dane Fenton and Tom Bowling Jr. Oliver made the most of his front row starting spot, pulling away from the rest of the field after a succession of cautions. Challenger Dean Kratzer’s run up front came to an end on lap 15 when his engine expired. Paris and Wenig, who had started 14th, stayed close to Oliver through the next two restarts. Coming off turn four to take the white flag, Oliver drifted high and allowed both Paris and Wenig to go by. After the lap was scored complete, the yellow came out again and [Read More]