Balog, Sivia, Heinert post A-main triumphs in Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 30, 2023 – In one of his infrequent starts behind the wheel of an Akright Auto Plymouth Dirt Track Racing – Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car, Scotty Thiel of Sheboygan outdueled newly crowned three-time PDTR 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh to capture the 25-lap Fuzzy Fassbender Tribute A-main, during the sixth annual Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships Presented by A-Main Apparel at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 30.

Despite falling just short in his A-main victory bid, Brandon McMullen celebrated his third career Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car title by wrapping up the 2023 PDTR 360 Sprint Car championship to go along with the titles he captured in 2020 and 2017.

Ten-time Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series champion Bill Balog of Hartland notched a flag-to-flag victory in the 30-lap Rick Schmidt Memorial IRA 410 Sprint Car main event, while rookie Brenham Crouch of Lubbock, Texas closed out his first career IRA 410 Sprint Car Series championship.

Jimmy Sivia of Winthrop Harbor, Ill. recorded his first career victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track in the 20-lap Autometer Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car A main as Clayton Rossmann of Wadsworth, Ill. racked up his second career Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car Series title.

Mark Heinert of Waukesha earned the 20-lap IRA Lightning Sprints A-main triumph to wrap up his first career IRA Lightning Sprints championship.

On the initial start of the 25-lap Akright Auto PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car main event, contact in turn two resulted in the machine of Brandon Berth of Cascade flipping in turn two.

Following a complete restart, Bill Taylor of Boltonville grabbed the lead from the pole with outside front row starter Alex Pokorski of West Bend following in second. On lap 5, Pokorski made contact with the back stretch wall, which brought out the second caution flag of the event and ended the fourth-year 360 Sprint Car driver’s night.

When the race resumed, Taylor again bolted in the lead, while 2011 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing and Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car champ Ben Schmidt of Plymouth moved into second after starting fifth and ninth starter Scotty Thiel vaulted in third on lap 6.

Two laps later, the high riding Thiel bolted around Schmidt to advance into the runner-up spot before the now five-time Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen worked his way past Schmidt to seize third on lap 9.

One lap later, Thiel closed to within striking distance of Taylor for the top spot before surging into the top spot along the high groove in turn one on lap 12.

Thiel, who launched his Sprint Car career by earning the PDTR 360 Sprint Car Rookie of the Year Award in 2008, caught lapped traffic on lap 13, which allowed McMullen to gradually reel in the leader. After following in Thiel’s tire tracks for several laps, McMullen utilizing the inside groove to briefly surge into the top spot exiting turn four on lap 24.

In his first PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car start of the 2023 season, Thiel was not to be denied as he powered Randy Sippel’s 39s car back around McMullen in turn two on the final lap en route to his third career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 13^th career MSA 360 Sprint Car main event triumph.

With the victory in the 24^th and final event of the 2023 MSA season, Thiel became the eighth driver to post an MSA A-main triumph this season.

“I felt comfortable in the car and I thought we were getting through lapped traffic pretty good,” Thiel said in victory lane. “I was kind of falling out of the seat there near the end of the race, but then I saw [Brandon McMullen] pass me on the second-from-last lap and I had to get up on the wheel. It was a pretty fun night with the 360 Sprint Car. I have to thank Randy Sippel for everything he does to get this 39s 360 car on the track and providing me with a fast car all night.”

McMullen had to settle for second, Schmidt placed third, Taylor wound up fourth and eighth starter Kevin Karnitz of West Bend rounded out the top five.

Bill Balog grabbed the lead on the drop of the green flag in the 30-lap IRA 410 Sprint Car Series A-main from the pole, while outside front row starter Austin McCarl of Altoona, Iowa followed in second.

On lap 3, the first of two caution flags appeared when debris was spotted on the track. When the race resumed, sixth starter Scotty Thiel worked past J.J. Hickle of Quilcene, Wash., who started third, to take over third in turn three on lap 4.

Balog caught the rear of the field on lap 7. However, he did not let the traffic slow his momentum as he maintained a strong half-lap lead over McCarl, who had Hickle and Thiel hot on his heels.

On lap 14, the second caution flag appeared when Tyler Tischendorf of Waupaca flipped in turn four following a multi-car incident in turn four, which prompted the second place car of Austin McCarl to retire from the event.

Following the restart, Thiel charged into second and quickly set his sights on the lead. With Balog mired in thick lapped traffic, Thiel reduced the gap on lap 18. However, Balog again worked expertly through a maze of lapped machines to maintain the lead, while Brenham Crouch, who started fifth, slipped past Thiel to grab second on lap 29.

Balog went on to notch his seventh A-main win in his last 11 IRA 410 Sprint Car Series starts at The Plymouth Dirt Track, along with his sixth IRA A-main victory of the 2023 season and series-best 140^th overall career IRA main event triumph.

Crouch placed second, Thiel was third, Hickle took fourth and fourth starter Mike Reinke of Howards Grove finished fifth.

Polesitter Rusty Egan of Round Lakes Heights, Ill. took the lead on the opening lap of the 20-lap Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car A main with third starter Chris Klemko of Bristol falling into second. On lap 2, fifth starter Allen Hafford of Beach Park, Ill. moved into third before surrendering the spot to Jimmy Sivia, who started sixth, on lap 5.

One lap later Klemko pulled in to pressure Egan for the top position before the top five cars of Egan, Klemko, Sivia, Hafford and Ryan Zielski of Oconomowoc ran in tight nose-to-tail formation along the low groove starting on lap 12.

Three laps later, Sivia rode the high line into second, before taking advantage of lapped traffic to cut the lead gap on Egan significantly. On lap 18, Egan drifted high in turn one, which allowed Sivia to pounce and grab the lead in turn two.  Meanwhile, fourth starter Ryan Marshall of Kansasville powered into second on the second-to-last circuit of the race.

Sivia went on to claim his first career victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track and fourth A-main triumph of the 2023 Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car season in the caution-free race.

Marshall placed second, Klemko was third, Egan wound up fourth and Hafford rounded out the top five.

In the 20-lap IRA Lightning Sprints A main, polesitter Mike Neau of Pleasant Prairie took the early lead before newly crowned 2023 IRA Lightning Sprints champion Mark Heinert, who started fourth, slipped past Neu to take the lead on lap 10.

Heinert then pulled away to notch his eighth IRA Lightning Sprints A-main triumph of the 2023 season, while putting a ribbon on the 2023 IRA Lightning Sprints championship.

Neu finished second, Brian Strane Jr., who started sixth, placed third, Nick Petska of Spring Grove, Ill. finished fourth after starting third and Tim Brannam of Holiday Hills, Ill. finished fifth after starting fifth.

Justin Erickson of Plymouth won the 15-lap PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car B main.

Jake Neumann of New Berlin, Ill. captured the 10-lap IRA 410 Sprint Car B Main.

Trinity Uttech of New Berlin won the 10-lap Wisconsin wingLESS B main.

J.J. Hickle earned fast qualifier honors in the Bumper to Bumper IRA 410 Sprint Car division with a lap of 11.249 seconds.

Kevin Karnitz of West Bend recorded the fastest lap in the Akright Auto Plymouth Dirt Track Racing – Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car division by touring the third-mile clay oval in 12.194 seconds.

Mark Heinert turned in a lap of 14.517 seconds to claim the IRA Lightning Sprints fast qualifier award.

The 18^th and final event of the 2023 campaign at The Plymouth Dirt Track, which was sponsored by Jensen Sales & Service, drew a season-high total of 117 cars, including a season-high 33 Akright Auto Plymouth Dirt Track Racing-Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Cars, 38 Bumper to Bumper IRA 410 Sprint Cars, 28 Autometer Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Cars and 18 IRA Lightning Sprints.

The 2023 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Awards presentation will take place on Saturday, Oct. 14 at Racers Hall in Plymouth, Wis. starting at 7 p.m. The top three finishers and special award winners in the 360 Sprint Car, Grand National, B Mod and Late Model divisions will be honored during the event.

The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds is located at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth, Wis. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

 

AKRIGHT AUTO PLYMOUTH DIRT TRACK RACING 360 SPRINT CARS

A Main (25 Laps): 1. 39S-Scotty Thiel [9]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [4]; 3. 35-Ben Schmidt [5]; 4. 69-Bill Taylo r[1]; 5. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [8]; 6. 69S-TJ Smith [7]; 7. 85J-Logan Julien [13]; 8. 2-Chris Clayton [15]; 9. 16-Anthony Knierim [6]; 10. 10V-Matt VanderVere [10]; 11. 3-Justin Erickson [16]; 12. 44-Hayden Johnson [17]; 13. 51-Chris Larson [19]; 14. 11-Tony Wondra [11]; 15. 21H-TJ Haddy [14]; 16. 30-Doug Wondra [21]; 17. 66-Nick Daywalt [20]; 18. 52-Cody Schlafer [22]; 19. 6K-Kurt Davis [3]; 20. 12P-JJ Pagel [18]; 21. 4-Alex Pokorski [2]; 22. (DNF) 22B-Brandon Berth [12]

B Main (15 Laps): 1. 3-Justin Erickson [1]; 2. 44-Hayden Johnson [5]; 3. 12P-JJ Pagel [2]; 4. 51-Chris Larson [4]; 5. 66-Nick Daywalt [3]; 6. 30-Doug Wondra [6]; 7. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [9]; 8. 66T-Tristan Koenings [10]; 9. 53A-Spyder Akright [14]; 10. 54-Randy Post [8]; 11. 22-Greg Alt [7]; 12. 38-Ben Doak [11]; 13. (DNF) 7-Kristian Wagner [13]; 14. (DNF) 25-Kasey Schlafer [12]; 15. (DNS) 29J-Ralph Johnson; 16. (DNS) 26-Al Schlafer; 17. (DNS) 55S-Ryan Sawusch

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 16-Anthony Knierim [1]; 2. 6K-Kurt Davis [2]; 3. 4-Alex Pokorski [4]; 4. 21H-TJ Haddy [3]; 5. 3-Justin Erickson [5]; 6. 30-Doug Wondra [6]; 7. 54-Randy Post [8]; 8. 7-Kristian Wagner [7]; 9. (DNS) 26-Al Schlafer

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 69S-TJ Smith [2]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [3]; 3. 35-Ben Schmidt [6]; 4. 44-Hayden Johnson [1]; 5. 66-Nick Daywalt [5]; 6. 52-Cody Schlafer [8]; 7. (DNF) 66T-Tristan Koenings [4]; 8. (DNF) 55S-Ryan Sawusch [7]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 39S-Scotty Thiel [4]; 2. 53A-Paul Pokorski [1]; 3. 11-Tony Wondra [2]; 4. 85J-Logan Julien [3]; 5. 2-Chris Clayton [5]; 6. 22B-Brandon Berth [8]; 7. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [6]; 8. 38-Ben Doak [7]

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [4]; 2. 69-Bill Taylor [1]; 3. 10V-Matt VanderVere [3]; 4. 51-Chris Larson [2]; 5. 12P-JJ Pagel [5]; 6. 22-Greg Alt [6]; 7. 25-Kasey Schlafer [8]; 8. (DNS) 29J-Ralph Johnson

Qualifying 1: 1. 4-Alex Pokorski, 12.238 [1]; 2. 21H-TJ Haddy, 12.249 [8]; 3. 6K-Kurt Davis, 12.269 [7]; 4. 16-Anthony Knierim, 12.326 [3]; 5. 3-Justin Erickson, 12.557 [5]; 6. 30-Doug Wondra, 12.740 [4]; 7. 7-Kristian Wagner, 13.203 [9]; 8. 54-Randy Post, 13.511 [2]; 9. 26-Al Schlafer, 14.590 [6]

Qualifying 2: 1. 66T-Tristan Koenings, 12.296 [1]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen, 12.334 [3]; 3. 69S-TJ Smith, 12.376 [7]; 4. 44-Hayden Johnson, 12.506 [2]; 5. 66-Nick Daywalt, 12.602 [6]; 6. 35-Ben Schmidt, 12.704 [4]; 7. 52-Cody Schlafer, 15.020 [8]; 8. 55S-Ryan Sawusch, 15.043 [5]

Qualifying 3: 1. 39S-Scotty Thiel, 12.218 [3]; 2. 85J-Logan Julien, 12.275 [7]; 3. 11-Tony Wondra, 12.361 [5]; 4. 53A-Paul Pokorski, 12.484 [6]; 5. 2-Chris Clayton, 12.507 [2]; 6. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach, 12.560 [4]; 7. 38-Ben Doak, 13.204 [8]; 8. (DNS) 22B-Brandon Berth, 13.204

Qualifying 4: 1. 63K-Kevin Karnitz, 12.194 [3]; 2. 10V-Matt VanderVere, 12.447 [6]; 3. 51-Chris Larson, 12.528 [1]; 4. 69-Bill Taylor, 12.791 [7]; 5. 12P-JJ Pagel, 13.010 [5]; 6. 22-Greg Alt, 13.065 [4]; 7. 29J-Ralph Johnson, 13.386 [2]; 8. 25-Kasey Schlafer, 16.515 [8]

BUMPER TO BUMPER 410 SPRINT CARS

A Main (30 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog [1]; 2. 1-Brenham Crouch [5]; 3. 73-Scotty Thiel [6]; 4. 50-JJ Hickle [3]; 5. 10W-Mike Reinke [4]; 6. 25-Danny Schlafer [14]; 7. 65-Jordan Goldesberry [7]; 8. 2W-Scott Neitzel [8]; 9. 16C-Tylar Rankin [13]; 10. U2-Jack Vanderboom [15]; 11. 49-Josh Schneiderman [12]; 12. 21-Will Gerrits [16]; 13. 5J-Jeremy Schultz [19]; 14. 9K-Kyle Schuett [10]; 15. 23-Russel Borland [18]; 16. 47-Todd King [24]; 17. 3N-Jake Neuman [21]; 18. 13-Van Gurley Jr [23]; 19. 85M-Steve Meyer [22]; 20. 87A-Austin Hartmann [20]; 21. 16-Anthony Knierim [9]; 22. (DNF) 79-Blake Nimee [17]; 23. (DNF) 88M-Austin McCarl [2]; 24. (DNF) 26-Tyler Tischendorf [11]

B Main (10 Laps): 1. 3N-Jake Neuman [4]; 2. 85M-Steve Meyer [1]; 3. 13-Van Gurley Jr [3]; 4. 47-Todd King [5]; 5. 85J-Logan Julien [12]; 6. 4K-Kris Spitz [10]; 7. 25T-Travis Arenz [18]; 8. 99-Tyler Brabant [6]; 9. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski [9]; 10. 43-Jereme Schroeder [14]; 11. 7A-Will Armitage [8]; 12. 24-Scott Conger [16]; 13. 88-Chris Flick [13]; 14. 38-Allen Hafford [11]; 15. 17W-Dylan Winkel [15]; 16. 39V-William Huck [17]; 17. (DNF) 19CW-Ion Stear [7]; 18. (DNF) 68-Dave Uttech [2]

Dash 1 (4 Laps): 1. 17B-Bill Balog [1]; 2. 50-JJ Hickle [2]; 3. 1-Brenham Crouch [3]; 4. 65-Jordan Goldesberry [4]; 5. 16-Anthony Knierim [5]

Dash 2 (4 Laps): 1. 88M-Austin McCarl [2]; 2. 10W-Mike Reinke [1]; 3. 73-Scotty Thiel [4]; 4. 2W-Scott Neitzel [3]; 5. 9K-Kyle Schuett [5]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 1-Brenham Crouch [1]; 2. 26-Tyler Tischendorf [2]; 3. 50-JJ Hickle [4]; 4. 16-Anthony Knierim [3]; 5. 79-Blake Nimee [5]; 6. 13-Van Gurley Jr [7]; 7. 47-Todd King [6]; 8. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski [8]; 9. 88-Chris Flick [9]; 10. 39V-William Huck [10]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 65-Jordan Goldesberry [1]; 2. 17B-Bill Balog [4]; 3. 16C-Tylar Rankin [3]; 4. U2-Jack Vanderboom [2]; 5. 5J-Jeremy Schultz [7]; 6. 85M-Steve Meyer [5]; 7. 19CW-Ion Stear [6]; 8. 38-Allen Hafford [8]; 9. 17W-Dylan Winkel [9]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 88M-Austin McCarl [3]; 2. 49-Josh Schneiderman [2]; 3. 21-Will Gerrits [5]; 4. 23-Russel Borland [6]; 5. 10W-Mike Reinke [4]; 6. 3N-Jake Neuman [7]; 7. 4K-Kris Spitz [8]; 8. 43-Jereme Schroeder [9]; 9. 25T-Travis Arenz [10]; 10. (DNS) 68-Dave Uttech

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 73-Scotty Thiel [1]; 2. 25-Danny Schlafer [2]; 3. 2W-Scott Neitzel [4]; 4. 9K-Kyle Schuett [3]; 5. 87A-Austin Hartmann [6]; 6. 99-Tyler Brabant [7]; 7. 7A-Will Armitage [5]; 8. 85J-Logan Julien [8]; 9. 24-Scott Conger [9]

Qualifying A: 1. 50-JJ Hickle, 11.249 [1]; 2. 17B-Bill Balog, 11.261 [4]; 3. 16-Anthony Knierim, 11.364 [10]; 4. 16C-Tylar Rankin, 11.396 [6]; 5. 26-Tyler Tischendorf, 11.471 [18]; 6. U2-Jack Vanderboom, 11.474 [13]; 7. 1-Brenham Crouch, 11.475 [5]; 8. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 11.511 [14]; 9. 79-Blake Nimee, 11.513 [16]; 10. 85M-Steve Meyer, 11.553 [8]; 11. 47-Todd King, 11.589 [7]; 12. 19CW-Ion Stear, 11.685 [17]; 13. 13-Van Gurley Jr, 11.690 [15]; 14. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 12.08 0[9]; 15. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski, 12.106 [11]; 16. 38-Allen Hafford, 12.180 [3]; 17. 88-Chris Flick, 12.369 [19]; 18. 17W-Dylan Winkel, 12.464 [12]; 19. 39V-William Huck, 12.471 [2]

Qualifying B: 1. 10W-Mike Reinke, 11.251 [15]; 2. 2W-Scott Neitzel, 11.286 [19]; 3. 88M-Austin McCarl, 11.351 [18]; 4. 9K-Kyle Schuett, 11.375 [5]; 5. 49-Josh Schneiderman, 11.396 [11]; 6. 25-Danny Schlafer, 11.408 [10]; 7. 68-Dave Uttech, 11.460 [7]; 8. 73-Scotty Thiel, 11.540 [2]; 9. 21-Will Gerrits, 11.616 [17]; 10. 7A-Will Armitage, 11.640 [14]; 11. 23-Russel Borland,  11.648 [12]; 12. 87A-Austin Hartmann, 11.696 [8]; 13. 3N-Jake Neuman, 11.717 [6]; 14. 99-Tyler Brabant, 11.762 [13]; 15. 4K-Kris Spitz, 11.812 [4]; 16. 85J-Logan Julien, 11.823 [9]; 17. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 12.024 [1]; 18. 24-Scott Conger, 12.166 [16]; 19. 25T-Travis Arenz, 12.269 [3]

Hot Laps: 1. 88M-Austin McCarl, 11.596 [37]; 2. 49-Josh Schneiderman, 11.661 [30]; 3. 2W-Scott Neitzel, 11.724 [38]; 4. 10W-Mike Reinke, 11.740 [34]; 5. 23-Russel Borland, 11.744 [31]; 6. 9K-Kyle Schuett, 11.984 [24]; 7. 7A-Will Armitage, 12.010 [33]; 8. 73-Scotty Thiel, 12.061 [21]; 9. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, 12.115 [14]; 10. 25-Danny Schlafer, 12.213 [29]; 11. 1-Brenham Crouch, 12.235 [5]; 12. 13-Van Gurley Jr, 12.328 [15]; 13. 43-Jereme Schroeder, 12.400 [20]; 14. 50-JJ Hickle, 12.419 [1]; 15. 19CW-Ion Stear, 12.506 [17]; 16. U2-Jack Vanderboom, 12.517 [13]; 17. 21-Will Gerrits, 12.563 [36]; 18. 24-Scott Conger, 12.656 [35]; 19. 17B-Bill Balog, 12.682 [4]; 20. 68-Dave Uttech, 12.693 [26]; 21. 26-Tyler Tischendorf, 12.751 [18]; 22. 87A-Austin Hartmann, 12.773 [27]; 23. 99-Tyler Brabant, 12.775 [32]; 24. 38-Allen Hafford, 12.913 [3]; 25. 16C-Tylar Rankin, 12.935 [6]; 26. 79-Blake Nimee, 12.997 [16]; 27. 85J-Logan Julien, 13.078 [28]; 28. 47-Todd King, 13.118 [7]; 29. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 13.147 [9]; 30. 16-Anthony Knierim, 13.149 [10]; 31. 3N-Jake Neuman, 13.211 [25]; 32. 25T-Travis Arenz, 13.239 [22]; 33. 88-Chris Flick, 13.302 [19]; 34. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski, 13.323 [11]; 35. 85M-Steve Meyer, 13.368 [8]; 36. 4K-Kris Spitz,  13.426 [23]; 37. 39V-William Huck, 14.171 [2]; 38. 17W-Dylan Winkel, 14.863 [12]

WISCONSIN WINGLESS SPRINT CARS

A Main (20 Laps): 1. 91-Jimmy Sivia [6]; 2. 7X-Ryan Marshall [4]; 3. 70-Chris Klemko [3]; 4. 50-Rusty Egan [1]; 5. 38-Allen Hafford [5]; 6. 24-Eric Wilke [9]; 7. 14Z-Ryan Zielski [7]; 8. 09-Clayton Rossmann [8]; 9. 40-Tim Cox [2]; 10. 0-John Fahl [10]; 11. 11D-Zach Raidart [15]; 12. 14AJ-Derek Crane [18]; 13. 57F-Tristan Furseth [13]; 14. 11-Austin Hansen [16]; 15. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse [14]; 16. 24J-Ralph Johnson [11]; 17. 17-Bryce Andrews [12]; 18. 41-Dennis Spitz [22]; 19. 4-Jordan Paulsen [24]; 20. 12-Shawn Swim [19]; 21. 29OG-Tom Eller [17]; 22. 7D-Josh Davidson [23]; 23. 99J-Seth Johnson [20]; 24. 7-Trinity Uttech [21]

B Main (10 Laps): 1. 7-Trinity Uttech [2]; 2. 41-Dennis Spitz [3]; 3. 7D-Josh Davidson [1]; 4. 4-Jordan Paulsen [8]; 5. 22-Greg Alt [7]; 6. 4G-George Gaertner III [4]; 7. 66-Will Lynn [5]; 8. (DNS) 4L-Lance Thompson

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 24J-Ralph Johnson [2]; 2. 57F-Tristan Furseth [3]; 3. 11D-Zach Raidart [7]; 4. 29OG-Tom Eller [5]; 5. 12-Shawn Swim [8]; 6. 7D-Josh Davidson [4]; 7. 41-Dennis Spitz [6]; 8. 66-Will Lynn [9]; 9. (DNF) 22-Greg Alt [1]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 17-Bryce Andrews [2]; 2. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse [6]; 3. 11-Austin Hansen [4]; 4. 14AJ-Derek Crane [5]; 5. 99J-Seth Johnson [1]; 6. 7-Trinity Uttech [3]; 7. 4G-George Gaertner III [7]; 8. 4L-Lance Thompson [8]; 9. 4-Jordan Paulsen [9]

A-Feature Lock In Hot Laps: 1. 91-Jimmy Sivia, 13.738 [3]; 2. 14Z-Ryan Zielski, 13.796 [2]; 3. 24-Eric Wilke, 13.850 [9]; 4. 70-Chris Klemko, 13.889 [6]; 5. 50-Rusty Egan, 13.889 [8]; 6. 40-Tim Cox, 13.959 [7]; 7. 0-John Fahl, 14.030 [10]; 8. 38-Allen Hafford, 14.698 [4]; 9. (DNS) 09-Clayton Rossmann; 10. (DNS) 7X-Ryan Marshall

All Other Hot Laps: 1. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse, 14.249 [11]; 2. 17-Bryce Andrews, 14.303 [2]; 3. 7-Trinity Uttech, 14.376 [18]; 4. 14AJ-Derek Crane, 14.447 [3]; 5. 4L-Lance Thompson, 14.514 [17]; 6. 99J-Seth Johnson, 14.544 [10]; 7. 11-Austin Hansen, 14.794 [8]; 8. 11D-Zach Raidart, 14.884 [14]; 9. 4G-George Gaertner III, 14.999 [7]; 10. 57F-Tristan Furseth, 15.040 [6]; 11. 4-Jordan Paulsen, 15.393 [13]; 12. 29OG-Tom Eller, 15.789 [5]; 13. 24J-Ralph Johnson, 15.996 [9]; 14. 41-Dennis Spitz, 16.013 [15]; 15. 12-Shawn Swim, 16.278 [16]; 16. 7D-Josh Davidson, 16.334 [4]; 17. 22-Greg Alt, 16.355 [1]; 18. 66-Will Lynn, 16.391 [12]

IRA LIGHTNING SPRINTS

A Main (20 Laps): 1. 55H-Mark Heinert [4]; 2. 16-Mike Neau [1]; 3. 22S-Brian Strane Jr [6]; 4. 18-Nick Petska [3]; 5. 74-Tim Brannam [5]; 6. 74M-Max Brannam [2]; 7. 87R-Josh Rehberg [12]; 8. 9-John Kirk [10]; 9. 63-Jacob Irwin [9]; 10. 17-Jordan Funderburk [16]; 11. 01-Ron Brannam [14]; 12. 0-Grant Harvey [13]; 13. 55X-Xander York [8]; 14. 23-Dominick Swierad [15]; 15. 33-Dakota Duncanson [17]; 16. (DNF) 18Q-Chris Quillman [7]; 17. (DNF) 6-Jeff Schmidt [11]; 18. (DNF) 7-Carl Stur t[18]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 55H-Mark Heinert [4]; 2. 74-Tim Brannam [2]; 3. 74M-Max Brannam [3]; 4. 18Q-Chris Quillman [1]; 5. 63-Jacob Irwin [6]; 6. 0-Grant Harvey [8]; 7. 6-Jeff Schmidt [5]; 8. 23-Dominick Swierad [7]; 9. 33-Dakota Duncanson [9]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 22S-Brian Strane Jr [2]; 2. 18-Nick Petska [4]; 3. 16-Mike Neau [3]; 4. 9-John Kirk [6]; 5. 55X-Xander York [1]; 6. 87R-Josh Rehberg [5]; 7. 01-Ron Brannam [7]; 8. 17-Jordan Funderburk [8]; 9. (DNF) 7-Carl Sturt [9]

Qualifying: 1. 55H-Mark Heinert, 14.517 [18]; 2. 18-Nick Petska, 14.681 [13]; 3. 74M-Max Brannam, 14.903 [5]; 4. 16-Mike Neau, 15.236 [12]; 5. 74-Tim Brannam, 15.383 [7]; 6. 22S-Brian Strane Jr, 15.396 [6]; 7. 18Q-Chris Quillman, 15.438 [10]; 8. 55X-Xander York, 15.636 [17]; 9. 6-Jeff Schmidt, 15.701 [14]; 10. 87R-Josh Rehberg, 15.710 [15]; 11. 63-Jacob Irwin, 15.760 [3]; 12. 9-John Kirk, 15.892 [4]; 13. 23-Dominick Swierad, 16.208 [2]; 14. 01-Ron Brannam, 16.382 [8]; 15. 0-Grant Harvey, 16.547 [9]; 16. 17-Jordan Funderburk, 17.316 [1]; 17. 33-Dakota Duncanson, 24.124 [11]; 18. (DNS) 7-Carl Sturt

Zielke, Schmidt, Eisel notch Plymouth A-main victories

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) September 23, 2023 – Nick Anvelink of Bonduel outdueled 2014 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model champion Mitch McGrath of Waukesha to collect the 30-lap Jim Wildman Watson Classic Presented by Galloping Ghost Motorsports and Transportation main event victory and wrap up his sixth career WABAM Dirt Kings Late Model Tour championship at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis. on Saturday, Sept. 23.

Ryan Zielski of Oconomowoc turned back a late challenge from Zach Raidart of Gurnee, Ill. to post a victory in the 20-lap Autometer Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car A main.

Jayden Schmidt of Seymour rode the high groove to victory lane in the 20-lap A Modified main event and Jason Eisel of Rhinelander was victorious in the 20-lap Street Stock A main.

In the sixth annual Jim Wildman Watson Classic Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A main, outside front row starter Mitch McGrath jumped into the lead in turn two on the opening lap with polesitter Sawyer Specht of Sheboygan Falls settling into second.

The first of six caution flags appeared on lap 3 for debris. When the race resumed, third starter Nick Anvelink worked past Specht to take over second with fourth starter Jordan Yaggy of Rochester, Minn. in tow.

The second caution flag was displayed on lap 4 when Paul Niznik of Medford and five-time Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Late Model champion Brad Mueller of Random Lake spun in turn two. On the restart, Yaggy slipped past Anvelink to assume the runner-up spot on lap 5 before Anvelink battled back to regain second from Yaggy on lap 7.

A two-car incident involving Niznik and Chris Engels of Green Bay in turn three brought out the third caution flag of the race on lap 8. McGrath bolted away from Anvelink on the ensuing restart as he held his 74M machine tight to the inside lane of the smooth, wide and multi-groove third-mile clay oval racing surface. Meanwhile, sixth starter Kyle Raddant of Shawano used the high groove to power around fifth starter Justin Ritchie of New London into fourth on lap 14.

Three laps later, McGrath caught the rear of the field and began to work his way through lapped traffic as Anvelink cut into the lead gap. On lap 23, Raddant spun along the cushion in turn three to bring out the fourth caution flag.

After choosing to restart the race in the outside lane, Anvelink worked the high and middle grooves to pull off what proved to be the winning move as he charged past McGrath coming to the start-finish line to begin lap 24.

The fifth caution flag was displayed on lap 25 for the slowing car of Joel Bennett Hortonville. McGrath restarted in the outside lane and attempted to use the outside groove to challenge Anvelink for the top spot. However, Anvelink pulled away from McGrath along the inside lane before the sixth and final caution period on lap 26 for an incident involving Justin Ritchie and Jayden Schmidt in turn two.

Anvelink controlled the final restart to pull away from McGrath over the final four laps en route to his second career Late Model A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track, which was worth $2,500.

“I knew it was going to be a tough race with Mitch [McGrath] starting in front of us,” Anvelink said. “Mitch was really good on the bottom in the early part of the race. I had a really good restart after finding something in the middle of the track and everything played to our favor to get the lead.”

McGrath had to settle for second, Yaggy took third, Bill Edler of Howards Grove charged from the 19^th starting spot to place fourth and 16^th starter Brett Swedberg of Shawano rounded out the top five.

In the 20-lap Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car Series A main, Bryce Andrews of Kenosha jumped into the lead from the pole before outside front row starter Ryan Zielski rode the high grove into the lead in turn two on lap 2.

As Zielski bolted out to a commanding lead, eighth starter Zach Raidart worked the high line to move into fourth on lap before pulling off a nifty two-for-one move to sweep past both Andrews and fifth starter Clayton Rossman of Wadsworth, Ill. and take over second in the running order.

On lap 14, Zielski was negotiating his way through dense lapped traffic when the lone caution of race appeared for the stalled car of Greg Alt of Watertown in turn two.

Following the restart, Raidart powered in to challenge Zielski for the top spot along the high groove on lap 15. Two laps later, Raidart pulled even with Zielski exiting turn two before pulling off a slide job entering turn three to take over the lead briefly in turn four.

However, Zielski battled back by turning under Raidart and regained the top spot heading down the front stretch on lap 18. As Zielski again powered away from the rest of the field, seventh starter Ryan Marshall of Kansasville worked his way into third along the high line.

Zielski cruised over the final two circuits to notch his third career Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car main event triumph at The Plymouth Dirt Track and fifth A-main victory of the 2023 Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car Series campaign, while collecting the $1,200 first-place prize.

Raidart placed second, Marshall finished third, Rossmann wound up fourth and fourth starter Jimmy Sivia of Winthrop Harbor, Ill. placed fifth after starting fourth.

Polesitter Joel Seegert of Sheboygan grabbed the lead of the 20-lap A Modified main event before the first of three caution flags appeared before one official lap could be completed when Mike Simons of Genoa City hit the front stretch wall.

Following a complete restart, Seegert again seized the top spot with third starter Jeff Steenbergen of Johnson Creek following in second. On lap 5, the second caution flag of the race was displayed when Steve Mueller of Eagle spun along the backstretch.

When the race resumed, fourth starter Jayden Schmidt used the high groove to move around Steenbergen into second. Two laps later, Schmidt, Steenbergen and Seegert went three wide in turn four with Schmidt emerging on top heading down the front stretch.

After dueling side by side over the next two laps, Steenbergen surged past Seegert into second on lap 10. The third and final caution flag appeared later on lap 10 when Steve Lorier of Sheboygan spun in turn four and Joel Crowbridge of Union Grove stalled in turn two.

Schmidt flexed his muscle following the final restart and pulled away from the field during the second half of the race to pocket $1,100 for his first career A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track in the A Modified division.

Steenbergen came home second, Seegert took third, Joe Huenefeld of Freeport, Ill. moved up from the ninth starting spot to place fourth and three-time Plymouth Dirt Track Racing B Mod champion Tim Warner of Malone rounded out the top five after starting fifth.

Polesitter James Fletcher of Beaver Dam led the opening lap of the 20-lap Street Stock A main before outside front row starter Jason Eisel used the outside line to take over the top spot in turn four on the second circuit.

With Eisel riding comfortably at the front of the field, sixth starter Jon Schultz of Waunakee moved into third place by passing fourth starter Kelly Brown of Beaver Dam on lap 8.

On lap 17, Eisel found himself negotiating voluminous lapped traffic as Schultz worked his way into second in turn three on lap 18 before Fletcher struck back to regain second in turn four on lap 19.

Eisel went on to pocket $700 for his first career Street Stock A-main victory at The Plymouth Dirt Track in the caution-free event.

Fletcher placed second, Schultz placed third, fourth starter Kelly Brown of Beaver Dam wound up fourth and Jesse Krahn of Beaver Dam moved up from the seventh starting spot to complete the top five.

Eric Wilke won the 10-lap Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car B main and Brad McGuire of New Berlin earned the victory in the 10-lap A Modified B main.

Mitch McGrath earned top overall WABAM Dirt Kings Late Model Tour qualifying honors with a fast lap of 14.172 seconds.

Chris Klemko claimed the fast qualifier award in the Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car division with a lap of 14.302 seconds.

Jayden Schmidt was the top qualifier in the A Modified division with a lap of 15.480 seconds.

Kelly Brown earned fast qualifier accolades in the Street Stock division with a time of 16.777 seconds.

The 17^th event of the 2023 campaign at The Plymouth Dirt Track drew a total of 110 cars, including 23 Dirt Kings Late Model Tour cars, 28 Autometer Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Car Series cars, 36 A Modifieds and 23 Street Stocks.

The 2023 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing season will conclude with the Wisconsin Sprint Car Championships on Saturday, Sept. 30 featuring the 2023 season finales for the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Cars, Plymouth Dirt Track Racing – Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Cars, Wisconsin wingLESS Sprint Cars and IRA Lightning Sprints.

Pit gates open at 2 p.m. with spectator gates opening at 4:30 p.m. and on-track action at 4:45 p.m., followed by hot laps, qualifying and racing.

The 2023 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing awards presentation will take place on Saturday, Oct. 14 at Racers Hall in Plymouth, Wis. starting at 7 p.m. The top three finishers and special award winners in the 360 Sprint Car, Grand National, B Mod and Late Model divisions will be honored during the event.

The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds is located at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth, Wis. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

WABAM DIRT KINGS LATE MODEL TOUR

Galloping Ghost Motorsports Transportation 6th Annual Watson Classic (30 Laps): 1. 15-Nick Anvelink [3]; 2. 74-Mitch McGrath [2]; 3. 77Y-Jordan Yaggy [4]; 4. 77-Bill Edler [19]; 5. 3-Brett Swedberg [16]; 6. 10P-Paul Parker [8]; 7. 66-Ron Berna [9]; 8. 81-Troy Springborn [22]; 9. 22-Charlie Schmidt [7]; 10. 9N-Tom Naeyaert [11]; 11. 99-Sawyer Specht [1]; 12. 55-Joe Bongiorno [13]; 13. 24-Turk Letizia [14]; 14. (DNF) 70-Justin Ritchie [5]; 15. (DNF) 24S-Jayden Schmidt [20]; 16. (DNF) 7-Joel Bennett [10]; 17. (DNF) 03-Kyle Raddant [6]; 18. (DNF) 5-Lukas Postl [15]; 19. (DNF) 14-Travis Jellum [18]; 20. (DNF) 89-Brad Mueller [21]; 21. (DNF) 33E-Chris Engels [12]; 22. (DNF) 42N-Paul Niznik [17]; 23. (DNS) 29-Spencer Diercks

Klink Equipment Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 15-Nick Anvelink [1]; 2. 70-Justin Ritchie [2]; 3. 22-Charlie Schmidt [3]; 4. 66-Ron Berna [5]; 5. 33E-Chris Engels [6]; 6. 5-Lukas Postl [4]; 7. 14-Travis Jellum [7]; 8. (DNS) 89-Brad Mueller

Ken’s Sports Inc. Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 74-Mitch McGrath [1]; 2. 77Y-Jordan Yaggy [2]; 3. 29-Spencer Diercks [3]; 4. 7-Joel Bennett [4]; 5. 55-Joe Bongiorno [5]; 6. 3-Brett Swedberg [6]; 7. 77-Bill Edler [8]; 8. 81-Troy Springborn [7]

Wehrs Machine Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 99-Sawyer Specht [1]; 2. 03-Kyle Raddant [2]; 3. 10P-Paul Parker [3]; 4. 9N-Tom Naeyaert [4]; 5. 24-Turk Letizia [5]; 6. 42N-Paul Niznik [6]; 7. 24S-Jayden Schmidt [7]

Klink Equipment Qualifying 1: 1. 15-Nick Anvelink, 14.205 [8]; 2. 70-Justin Ritchie, 14.692 [6]; 3. 22-Charlie Schmidt, 14.794 [7]; 4. 5-Lukas Postl, 14.822 [2]; 5. 66-Ron Berna, 14.867 [5]; 6. 33E-Chris Engels, 15.159 [4]; 7. 14-Travis Jellum, 15.559 [3]; 8. (DNF) 89-Brad Mueller, 15.559 [1]

Ken’s Sports Inc Qualifying 2: 1. 74-Mitch McGrath, 14.172 [6]; 2. 77Y-Jordan Yaggy, 14.346 [3]; 3. 29-Spencer Diercks, 14.401 [1]; 4. 7-Joel Bennett, 14.510 [7]; 5. 55-Joe Bongiorno, 14.646 [2]; 6. 3-Brett Swedberg, 14.837 [8]; 7. 81-Troy Springborn, 14.857 [4]; 8. 77-Bill Edler, 15.050 [5]

Wehrs Machine Qualifying 3: 1. 99-Sawyer Specht, 14.367 [6]; 2. 03-Kyle Raddant, 14.451 [3]; 3. 10P-Paul Parker, 14.667 [1]; 4. 9N-Tom Naeyaert, 14.689 [5]; 5. 24-Turk Letizia, 14.775 [7]; 6. 42N-Paul Niznik, 14.835 [4]; 7. 24S-Jayden Schmidt, 14.840 [2]

WISCONSIN WINGLESS SPRINT CARS

A Main (20 Laps): 1. 14Z-Ryan Zielski [2]; 2. 11D-Zach Raidart [8]; 3. 7X-Ryan Marshall [7]; 4. 09-Clayton Rossmann [5]; 5. 91-Jimmy Sivia [4]; 6. 14AJ-Derek Crane [10]; 7. 17-Bryce Andrews [1]; 8. 40-Tim Cox [11]; 9. 38-Allen Hafford [3]; 10. 70-Chris Klemko [6]; 11. 11-Austin Hansen [13]; 12. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse [9]; 13. 24-Eric Wilke [19]; 14. 7D-Josh Davidson [15]; 15. 50-Rusty Egan [14]; 16. 66-Nathan Crane [12]; 17. 29OG-Tom Eller [17]; 18. 12-Shawn Swim [20]; 19. 24J-Ralph Johnson [18]; 20. 71-Andy Dei [22]; 21. 57F-Tristan Furseth [23]; 22. 7-Trinity Uttech [21]; 23. 00-Jason Young [24]; 24. (DNF) 22-Greg Alt [16]

B Main (10 Laps): 1. 24-Eric Wilke [3]; 2. 12-Shawn Swim [1]; 3. 7-Trinity Uttech [4]; 4. 71-Andy Dei [7]; 5. 57F-Tristan Furseth [9]; 6. 00-Jason Young [8]; 7. 99J-Seth Johnson [5]; 8. 4L-Lance Thompson [2]; 9. 4G-George Gaertner III [10]; 10. 52-Craig Lager [6]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 11D-Zach Raidart [1]; 2. 7X-Ryan Marshall [2]; 3. 38-Allen Hafford [3]; 4. 70-Chris Klemko [4]; 5. 50-Rusty Egan [5]; 6. 24J-Ralph Johnson [8]; 7. 24-Eric Wilke [7]; 8. 12-Shawn Swim [6]; 9. 57F-Tristan Furseth [10]; 10. 4G-George Gaertner III [9]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse [1]; 2. 09-Clayton Rossmann [4]; 3. 14Z-Ryan Zielski [3]; 4. 40-Tim Cox [2]; 5. 7D-Josh Davidson [5]; 6. 22-Greg Alt [6]; 7. 7-Trinity Uttech [8]; 8. 71-Andy Dei [9]; 9. 00-Jason Young [7]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 14AJ-Derek Crane [1]; 2. 91-Jimmy Sivia [4]; 3. 17-Bryce Andrews [3]; 4. 66-Nathan Crane [5]; 5. 11-Austin Hansen [2]; 6. 29OG-Tom Elle r[7]; 7. 99J-Seth Johnson [9]; 8. 52-Craig Lager [8]; 9. 4L-Lance Thompson [6]

Qualifying: 1. 70-Chris Klemko, 14.302 [25]; 2. 09-Clayton Rossmann, 14.375 [24]; 3. 91-Jimmy Sivia, 14.415 [23]; 4. 38-Allen Hafford, 14.439 [21]; 5. 14Z-Ryan Zielski, 14.459 [12]; 6. 17-Bryce Andrews, 14.479 [20]; 7. 7X-Ryan Marshall, 14.593 [19]; 8. 40-Tim Cox, 14.605 [17]; 9. 11-Austin Hansen, 14.691 [7]; 10. 11D-Zach Raidart, 14.695 [26]; 11. 711-Tyler Kuxhouse, 14.705 [9]; 12. 14AJ-Derek Crane, 14.784 [13]; 13. 50-Rusty Egan, 14.943 [1]; 14. 7D-Josh Davidson, 14.956 [4]; 15. 66-Nathan Crane, 14.980 [16]; 16. 12-Shawn Swim, 14.989 [28]; 17. 22-Greg Alt, 15.006 [3]; 18. 4L-Lance Thompson, 15.072 [10]; 19. 24-Eric Wilke, 15.081 [15]; 20. 00-Jason Young, 15.107 [18]; 21. 29OG-Tom Eller, 15.150 [6]; 22. 24J-Ralph Johnson, 15.174 [14]; 23. 7-Trinity Uttech, 15.222 [22]; 24. 52-Craig Lager, 15.230 [8]; 25. 4G-George Gaertner III, 15.649 [5]; 26. 71-Andy Dei, 15.683 [11]; 27. (DNF) 99J-Seth Johnson[2]; 28. (DNS) 57F-Tristan Furseth

A MODIFIEDS

A Main (20 Laps): 1. 24-Jayden Schmidt [4]; 2. 62S-Jeff Steenbergen [3]; 3. 3S-Joel Seegert [1]; 4. 33J-Joe Huenefeld [9]; 5. 03W-Tim Warner [5]; 6. 17-Mike Klenz [6]; 7. 3M-Randy Markwardt Jr. [2]; 8. 18-Matt Klenz [11]; 9. 47G-Ben Godlewski [10]; 10. 15S-Don Scheffler [15]; 11. 11-Bart Sievert [13]; 12. 52M-Brad McGuire [17]; 13. 10G-RJ Gerber [19]; 14. 66-Steve Lorier [16]; 15. 2J-Jason Wirth [14]; 16. 26-David Paskiewicz [20]; 17. (DNF) 28C-Joel Crowbridge [12]; 18. (DNF) 17W-Mitch Webber [7]; 19. (DNF) 2M-Steve Mueller [18]; 20. (DNF) 25-Mike Simons [8]

B Main (10 Laps): 1. 52M-Brad McGuire [1]; 2. 2M-Steve Mueller [3]; 3. 10G-RJ Gerber [5]; 4. 26-David Paskiewicz [7]; 5. 13-Don Paskiewicz [6]; 6. 17B-Scott Barnharst [2]; 7. 68-Tom Neubauer [10]; 8. 19-Gary Glander [4]; 9. 29P-Chris Pigeon [17]; 10. 28-AJ Izzo [15]; 11. 11B-Brad Buchman [16]; 12. 51J-Dustin Jackson [14]; 13. 6W-David Wirth [12]; 14. 21T-Mark Mikos JR [18]; 15. 64-Cory Lightfield [9]; 16. 117-Tom Barnharst [13]; 17. 22M-Barry Maas [8]; 18. A11-Ashley Stevens [11]; 19. (DNS) 88J-Jeremy Johnson; 20. (DNS) 30-John Dost

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 17W-Mitch Webber [1]; 2. 24-Jayden Schmidt [4]; 3. 3S-Joel Seegert [3]; 4. 66-Steve Lorier [6]; 5. 10G-RJ Gerber [9]; 6. 17B-Scott Barnharst [2]; 7. 68-Tom Neubauer [7]; 8. 51J-Dustin Jackson [8]; 9. 29P-Chris Pigeon [5]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 25-Mike Simons [1]; 2. 62S-Jeff Steenbergen [4]; 3. 03W-Tim Warner [3]; 4. 15S-Don Scheffler [5]; 5. 2M-Steve Mueller [2]; 6. 13-Don Paskiewicz [6]; 7. 6W-David Wirth [8]; 8. 117-Tom Barnharst [7]; 9. 88J-Jeremy Johnson [9]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 33J-Joe Huenefeld [1]; 2. 17-Mike Klenz [3]; 3. 3M-Randy Markwardt Jr. [4]; 4. 11-Bart Sievert [2]; 5. 19-Gary Glander [5]; 6. 22M-Barry Maas [7]; 7. 64-Cory Lightfield [6]; 8. 28-AJ Izzo [8]; 9. (DNS) 30-John Dost

Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 47G-Ben Godlewski [1]; 2. 18-Matt Klenz [3]; 3. 28C-Joel Crowbridge [5]; 4. 2J-Jason Wirth [2]; 5. 52M-Brad McGuire [4]; 6. 26-David Paskiewicz [6]; 7. A11-Ashley Stevens [7]; 8. 11B-Brad Buchman [9]; 9. 21T-Mark Mikos JR [8]

Qualifying: 1. 24-Jayden Schmidt, 15.480 [2]; 2. 62S-Jeff Steenbergen, 15.720 [34]; 3. 3M-Randy Markwardt Jr, 15.835 [27]; 4. 52M-Brad McGuire, 15.845 [16]; 5. 3S-Joel Seegert, 15.930 [23]; 6. 03W-Tim Warner, 15.949 [29]; 7. 17-Mike Klenz, 15.972 [20]; 8. 18-Matt Klenz, 15.999 [9]; 9. 17B-Scott Barnharst, 16.037 [19]; 10. 2M-Steve Mueller, 16.061 [18]; 11. 11-Bart Sievert, 16.094 [4]; 12. 2J-Jason Wirth, 16.097 [14]; 13. 17W-Mitch Webber, 16.134 [32]; 14. 25-Mike Simons, 16.152 [7]; 15. 33J-Joe Huenefeld, 16.214 [8]; 16. 47G-Ben Godlewski, 16.281 [33]; 17. 29P-Chris Pigeon, 16.366 [3]; 18. 15S-Don Scheffler, 16.383 [15]; 19. 19-Gary Glander, 16.576 [17]; 20. 28C-Joel Crowbridge, 16.619 [30]; 21. 66-Steve Lorier, 16.717 [25]; 22. 13-Don Paskiewicz, 16.762 [1]; 23. 64-Cory Lightfield, 16.861 [22]; 24. 26-David Paskiewicz, 16.874 [13]; 25. 68-Tom Neubauer, 16.884 [5]; 26. 117-Tom Barnharst, 16.889 [6]; 27. 22M-Barry Maas, 16.982 [36]; 28. A11-Ashley Stevens, 16.994 [10]; 29. 51J-Dustin Jackson, 17.056 [26]; 30. 6W-David Wirth, 17.090 [28]; 31. 28-AJ Izzo, 17.149 [11]; 32. 11B-Brad Buchman, 17.553 [35]; 33. 21T-Mark Mikos JR, 18.330 [12]; 34. 10G-RJ Gerber, 39.377 [24]; 35. (DNF) 88J-Jeremy Johnson, 39.377 [31]; 36. (DNS) 30-John Dost, 39.377

STREET STOCKS 

A Main (20 Laps): 1. 838-Jason Eisel [2]; 2. 75-James Fletcher [1]; 3. 11X-Jon Schultz [6]; 4. 44B-Kelly Brown [4]; 5. 55K-Jesse Krahn [7]; 6. 71-Edward Anschutz [5]; 7. 24S-Austin Steinke [3]; 8. 8M-Mike Meier [9]; 9. 95-Robby Olson [10]; 10. 99-Rob Maule [8]; 11. 1X-Nate Gross [14]; 12. 64Z-Mike Zitzer [11]; 13. 87-Parker Derks [17]; 14. 5-Todd Berzowski [13]; 15. 21S-John Sidesky [19]; 16. 65-Mark Baker [16]; 17. 55-Keith Stich [21]; 18. 28-Chuck Gilbertson Jr. [20]; 19. 52-Ernie Herlt [15]; 20. 14-Benjamin Mccoy [18]; 21. (DNF) 46A-Courtney Atkinson [22]; 22. (DNF) 83-Roman Blank [12]

Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 11X-Jon Schultz [2]; 2. 99-Rob Maule [1]; 3. 838-Jason Eisel [3]; 4. 44B-Kelly Brown [4]; 5. 5-Todd Berzowsk i[5]; 6. 87-Parker Derks [7]; 7. 21S-John Sidesky [6]; 8. 55-Keith Stich [8]

Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 55K-Jesse Krahn [2]; 2. 8M-Mike Meier [1]; 3. 75-James Fletcher [3]; 4. 83-Roman Blank [5]; 5. 52-Ernie Herlt [7]; 6. 14-Benjamin Mccoy [8]; 7. (DNF) 46A-Courtney Atkinson [4]; 8. (DNF) 52W-Jack Wiroll [6]

Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 71-Edward Anschutz [3]; 2. 64Z-Mike Zitzer [6]; 3. 24S-Austin Steinke [4]; 4. 95-Robby Olson [1]; 5. 1X-Nate Gross [5]; 6. 65-Mark Baker [2]; 7. 28-Chuck Gilbertson Jr [7]

Qualifying: 1. 44B-Kelly Brown, 16.777 [13]; 2. 46A-Courtney Atkinson, 16.812 [20]; 3. 24S-Austin Steinke, 16.815 [23]; 4. 838-Jason Eisel, 16.895 [4]; 5. 75-James Fletcher, 16.912 [9]; 6. 71-Edward Anschutz, 17.080 [8]; 7. 11X-Jon Schultz, 17.091 [1]; 8. 55K-Jesse Krahn, 17.124 [11]; 9. 65-Mark Baker, 17.156 [7]; 10. 99-Rob Maule, 17.190 [10]; 11. 8M-Mike Meier, 17.380 [3]; 12. 95-Robby Olson, 17.398 [12]; 13. 5-Todd Berzowski, 17.399 [19]; 14. 83-Roman Blank, 17.440 [14]; 15. 1X-Nate Gross, 17.524 [18]; 16. 21S-John Sidesky, 17.589 [6]; 17. 52W-Jack Wiroll, 17.617 [5]; 18. 64Z-Mike Zitzer, 17.628 [22]; 19. 87-Parker Derks, 17.644 [2]; 20. 52-Ernie Herlt, 17.651 [21]; 21. 28-Chuck Gilbertson Jr, 17.654 [15]; 22. 55-Keith Stich, 17.776 [17]; 23. 14-Benjamin Mccoy, 18.402 [16]

McMullen, Schumacher, Koenig capture PDTR A-main wins

By Jeff Pederson – Pedal Down Promotions

(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) August 25, 2023 – After finishing in a season-ending points deadlock, Will Sorce of Franklin and 2010 Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National champion Brian Gilles of Plymouth wrapped up the 2023 season as co-champions in the PDTR Grand National division, while two-time PDTR B Mod champion Tim Warner of Malone erased a 20-point deficit in the final points event of the season to add a third division title to his collection, during an eventful 2023 PDTR Grand National and B Mod championship night racing program Friday, Aug. 25 at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis.

Two-time Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car champion Brandon McMullen of Oshkosh nailed down his third straight and fifth overall Akright Auto PDTR 360 Sprint Car A main victory of the 2023 campaign to remain on top of the division point standings by 14 points over 2011 PDTR 360 Sprint Car champ Ben Schmidt of Plymouth with two events remaining in the season.

In the 20-lap Oostburg Automotive Plymouth Dirt Track Racing Grand National main event, Nick Schumacher of Eagle collected his first A-main victory of the 2023 season.

Elijah Koenig of Fox Lake notched his initial triumph of the 2023 campaign in the Next Step Insurance 20

-lap B Mod A-main victory of the 2023 campaign.

The scheduled 30-lap WABAM Dirt Kings Late Model Tour A main was cancelled due to rain.

The initial start of the Akright Auto PDTR – Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Car A main was aborted when Katelyn Krebsbach of Cascade spun in turn two. Following a complete restart, outside front row starter Chris Larson of Franksville jumped into the lead in turn two on the opening lap with polesitter Brandon McMullen following in second.

On lap 2, McMullen dove low to secure the top spot exiting turn four. With McMullen in control at the front of the field, Ben Schmidt worked his way up from the seventh starting position to take third from fourth starter Alex Pokorski of West Bend on lap 9.

One lap later, Schmidt shot past Larson to gain the runner-up spot as McMullen began to work his way through slower traffic. Schmidt cut into McMullen’s lead as the laps wound down and was within sight of the top spot when the second and final caution flag of the race was displayed on lap 24 after Chris Clayton of Waldo spun in turn three.

Following a single-file restart, McMullen held off Schmidt’s challenge over the final two laps en route to his division-topping 32nd career PDTR 360 Sprint Car A-main victory and 44th career MSA 360 Sprint main event triumph, along with his third consecutive and fifth overall PDTR A-main victory of the 2023 season.

Schmidt had to settle for second, Pokorski pulled off a final corner pass to finish third, Larson earned a career-best fourth place showing and rookie Tristan Koenings of Van Dyne, who started third, claimed a career-best fifth place finish.

Outside front row starter Donny Kulow of Plymouth grabbed the lead on the opening lap of the 20-lap PDTR Grand National A main with 2019 PDTR Grand National champ Tyler Kulow Plymouth, who started fourth, settling into second.

The first of three caution flags appeared on lap 2 when Vince Bartolotta of Muskego spun in turn two. On the restart, Tyler Kulow rode the high groove to sweep into the lead on lap 3 before the second caution flag flew when Seth Westimayer of Horicon spun in turn two.

Following the restart, Donny Kulow and 2008 PDTR Grand National champion Matt Yancey of Sheboygan, who started on the pole, waged a spirited duel for the top spot.

On lap 5, the third and final caution flag appeared when Bartolotta spun in turn four. When the race resumed Donny Kulow remained in the lead while Yancey, Tyler Kulow and Nick Schumacher, who started 10th, dueled in three-wide fashion for second.

Schumacher emerged in second place on lap 7 and quickly set his sights on the lead. On lap 9, Schumacher ventured up to the high groove to pressure Donny Kulow before taking control of the top spot in turn one on lap 10.

Eighth starter Justin Pearson of Horicon moved into second on lap 11 and worked the high line to cut the gap on Schumacher in the closing laps. Six laps later, Pearson moved in to pressure Schumacher for the lead starting on lap 17.

However, Schumacher successfully fended off Pearson’s challenge on the way to his second career PDTR Grand National A-main victory and first main event win of the 2023 season at The Plymouth Dirt Track.

Pearson wound up second, Will Sorce of Franklin moved up from the ninth starting spot to place third, Donny Kulow finished fourth and Brian Gilles, who started seventh, placed fifth.

Sorce and Gilles closed out the final Grand National points race program of the 2023 PDTR season tied at the top of the point standings with 855 points apiece to end up as division co-champions. It marked the first PDTR Grand National championship of Sorce’s career. Gilles claimed his second PDTR Grand National title and seventh overall Plymouth track championship (five Eastern Wisconsin Stock Car Super Stock, two PDTR Grand National) to move into second on the track’s all-time track championship list behind Gary Laack, who has nine Plymouth track titles to his credit.

It is the first time two drivers have secured co-championship honors at The Plymouth Dirt Track since the 1995 season when Rick Hed and Tim Thompson shared the Eastern Wisconsin Stock Car Hobby Stock track title.

Outside front row starter Steve Lorier of Sheboygan Falls grabbed the lead on the opening lap of the 20-lap PDTR B Mod main event with fourth starter Elijah Koenig trailing in second.

After a spirited duel with Lorier, Koenig used the outside groove to power into the top spot in turn two on lap 5. On lap 8, with his eyes set firmly on securing another B Mod track title, Tim Warner, who started sixth, moved past Lorier into second in turn two on lap 8.

While Warner gradually reeled in Koenig during the second half of the race, seventh starter Travis Schmidt of Plymouth moved in to take third on lap 17. Warner cut the gap significantly on the final lap. However, Koenig held on to rack up his fourth career PDTR B Mod A-main victory and first main event triumph of the 2023 campaign at Plymouth.

Warner secured his third PDTR B Mod championship with a second place finish, Schmidt placed third, Lorier wound up fourth and eight starter Shane Long of Sheboygan Falls placed fifth.

After entering a car in 10 of the 11 PDTR Mod events held during the 2023 campaign, Warner came into the night 20 points behind PDTR B Mod points leader Barry Maas of Cascade. Warner used a heat race victory and a second place finish in the A main to edge Travis Schmidt by two points (863-861) in the chase for the 2023 title. Maas encountered a mechanical issue in heat race action, which prevented him from starting the A main and competing for a B Mod championship.

Brett Swedberg of Shawano was the WABAM Dirt Kings Late Model Tour fast qualifier with a lap of 13.691 seconds.

Brandon McMullen earned the Akright Auto PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Car division fast qualifier award with a lap of 12.783 seconds.

The 15^th event of the 2023 PDTR campaign, which was sponsored by Kriete Truck Center, drew a total of 78 cars, including 25 WABAM Dirt Kings Tour Late Models, 21 PDTR-MSA 360 Sprint Cars, 19 Grand Nationals and 13 B Mods.

The next Plymouth Dirt Track Racing program will take place during the 2023 Sheboygan County Fair on Saturday, Sept. 2, featuring an all-Sprint Car event with the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series and Plymouth Dirt Track Racing-Midwest Sprint Car Association 360 Sprint Cars.

On-track action is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.

The Plymouth Dirt Track at the Sheboygan County Fairgrounds is located at 229 Fairview Drive in Plymouth, Wis. For more information, visit www.plymouthdtr.com or check out Plymouth Dirt Track Racing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

WABAM DIRT KINGS LATE MODEL TOUR

Klink Equipment Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 3-Brett Swedberg [1]; 2. 74-Mitch McGrath [3]; 3. 81-Troy Springborn [2]; 4. 10S-Taylor Scheffler [6]; 5. 22-Charlie Schmidt [4]; 6. 55-Joe Bongiorno [5]; 7. 24S-Jayden Schmidt [7]; 8. 03-Kyle Raddant [9]; 9. 5-Lukas Postl [8]

Ken’s Sports Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 99M-Mike Mullen [2]; 2. 89-Brad Mueller [1]; 3. 33E-Chris Engels [4]; 4. 99-Sawyer Specht [6]; 5. 21M-Shawn Miller [3]; 6. 9N-Tom Naeyaert [5]; 7. (DNS) 9Z-Jayme Zidar; 8. (DNS) 7-Joel Bennett

Wehrs Machine Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 15-Nick Anvelink [1]; 2. 42-Terry Casey [2]; 3. 70-Justin Ritchie [3]; 4. 24-Turk Letizia [4]; 5. 25-Jared Siefert [6]; 6. 77-Bill Edler [5]; 7. (DNF) 66-Ron Berna [7]; 8. (DNF) 19J-Justin Green [8]

Klink Equipment Qualifying 1: 1. 3-Brett Swedberg, 13.691 [2]; 2. 81-Troy Springborn, 13.917 [3]; 3. 74-Mitch McGrath, 13.950 [8]; 4. 22-Charlie Schmidt, 13.972 [6]; 5. 55-Joe Bongiorno, 14.195 [4]; 6. 10S-Taylor Scheffler, 14.227 [9]; 7. 24S-Jayden Schmidt, 14.430 [5]; 8. 5-Lukas Postl, 14.810 [7]; 9. (DQ) 03-Kyle Raddant, 14.141 [1]

Ken’s Sports Qualifying 2: 1. 89-Brad Mueller, 13.912 [3]; 2. 99M-Mike Mullen, 14.153 [6]; 3. 21M-Shawn Miller, 14.206 [4]; 4. 33E-Chris Engels, 14.400 [7]; 5. 9N-Tom Naeyaert, 14.459 [1]; 6. 99-Sawyer Specht, 14.529 [5]; 7. (DNS) 9Z-Jayme Zidar; 8. (DNS) 7-Joel Bennett

Wehrs Machine Qualifying 3: 1. 15-Nick Anvelink, 13.708 [7]; 2. 42-Terry Casey, 14.014 [4]; 3. 70-Justin Ritchie, 14.120 [2]; 4. 24-Turk Letizia, 14.194 [5]; 5. 77-Bill Edler, 14.195 [8]; 6. 25-Jared Siefert, 14.421 [6]; 7. (DQ) 66-Ron Berna, 14.541 [1]; 8. (DQ) 19J-Justin Green, 17.107 [3]

AKRIGHT AUTO PLYMOUTH DIRT TRACK RACING 360 SPRINT CARS

A Main (25 Laps): 1. 98-Brandon McMullen [1]; 2. 35-Ben Schmidt [7]; 3. 4-Alex Pokorski [4]; 4. 51-Chris Larson [2]; 5. 66T-Tristan Koenings [3]; 6. 7-Lance Fassbender [8]; 7. 69S-TJ Smith [5]; 8. 85J-Logan Julien [9]; 9. 22B-Brandon Berth [12]; 10. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [13]; 11. 11-Tony Wondra [11]; 12. 3-Justin Erickson [20]; 13. 53A-Paul Pokorski [14]; 14. 12P-JJ Pagel [16]; 15. 66-Nick Daywalt [18]; 16. 54-Randy Post [15]; 17. 69-Bill Taylor [17]; 18. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [6]; 19. 38-Jeffrey Neubert [21]; 20. 2-Chris Clayton [10]; 21. 21H-TJ Haddy [19]

Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 51-Chris Larson [2]; 2. 69S-TJ Smith [4]; 3. 35-Ben Schmidt [3]; 4. 53A-Paul Pokorski [1]; 5. 22B-Brandon Berth [5]; 6. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [7]; 7. 69-Bill Taylor [6]

Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 4-Alex Pokorski [2]; 2. 98-Brandon McMullen [4]; 3. 7-Lance Fassbender [3]; 4. 11-Tony Wondra [5]; 5. 66-Nick Daywalt [1]; 6. 54-Randy Post [6]; 7. 12P-JJ Pagel [7]

Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 66T-Tristan Koenings [2]; 2. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [4]; 3. 85J-Logan Julien [3]; 4. 2-Chris Clayton [5]; 5. 38-Jeffrey Neubert [7]; 6. (DNF) 3-Justin Erickson [1]; 7. (DNF) 21H-TJ Haddy [6]

Qualifying 1: 1. 69S-TJ Smith, 12.861 [4]; 2. 35-Ben Schmidt, 12.866 [1]; 3. 51-Chris Larson, 12.932 [6]; 4. 53A-Paul Pokorski, 13.004[5]; 5. 22B-Brandon Berth, 13.042 [7]; 6. 69-Bill Taylor, 13.045 [3]; 7. 63K-Kevin Karnitz, 13.106 [2]

Qualifying 2: 1. 98-Brandon McMullen, 12.783 [2]; 2. 7-Lance Fassbender, 12.914 [1]; 3. 4-Alex Pokorski, 13.002 [3]; 4. 66-Nick Daywalt, 13.013 [4]; 5. 11-Tony Wondra, 13.277 [6]; 6. 54-Randy Post, 13.323 [5]; 7. 12P-JJ Pagel, 13.474 [7]

Qualifying 3: 1. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach, 12.923 [6]; 2. 85J-Logan Julien, 13.050 [3]; 3. 66T-Tristan Koenings, 13.306 [5]; 4. 3-Justin Erickson, 13.308 [4]; 5. 38-Jeffrey Neubert, 13.523 [7]; 6. 2-Chris Clayton, 13.565 [2]; 7. (DNS) 21H-TJ Haddy, 13.565

OOSTBURG AUTOMOTIVE GRAND NATIONALS

A Main: 1. 47-Nick Schumacher [10]; 2. E85-Justin Pearson [8]; 3. 14X-Will Sorce [9]; 4. 95-Donny Kulow [2]; 5. 89-Brian Gilles [7]; 6. 80-Luke Scholten [3]; 7. 24K-Tyler Kulow [4]; 8. 54-Matt Yancey [1]; 9. 23-Matt Loehr [12]; 10. 38S-Aaron Streblow [13]; 11. 34-Steven Weber [6]; 12. 14-Seth Westimayer [5]; 13. 87-Eric Lingford [18]; 14. 3-Jim Wirtz [11]; 15. 6-Dick Hed [16]; 16. 67-Jeff Storm [17]; 17. 6B-Vince Bartolotta [14]; 18. (DNS) 70JR-Jason Schilling; 19. (DNS) 70W-Steven Wirtz

Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. E85-Justin Pearson [3]; 2. 80-Luke Scholten [1]; 3. 24K-Tyler Kulow [4]; 4. 95-Donny Kulow [5]; 5. 23-Matt Loehr [2]; 6. 3-Jim Wirtz [6]

Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 14-Seth Westimayer [1]; 2. 89-Brian Gilles [5]; 3. 54-Matt Yancey [2]; 4. 47-Nick Schumacher [3]; 5. 14X-Will Sorce [6]; 6. 38S-Aaron Streblow [4]

Heat 3 (10 Laps): 1. 34-Steven Weber [2]; 2. 87-Eric Lingford [6]; 3. 67-Jeff Storm [7]; 4. 70JR-Jason Schilling [5]; 5. 6B-Vince Bartolotta [1]; 6. (DNF) 70W-Steven Wirtz [3]; 7. (DNF) 6-Dick Hed [4]

NEXT STEP INSURANCE B MODS

A Main (25 Laps): 1. 1K-Elijah Koenig [4]; 2. 03W-Tim Warner [6]; 3. 3-Travis Schmidt [7]; 4. 66-Steve Lorier [2]; 5. 17S-Shane Long [8]; 6. 17-Brandon Knepprath [5]; 7. 73-Rory Welch [9]; 8. 59S-Spencer Long [11]; 9. 25-Jim Fischer [1]; 10. 19-Parker Glander [3]; 11. 117-Tom Barnharst [10]; 12. 54-Michael Strean [13]; 13. (DNS) 22M-Barry Maas

Heat 1 (10 Laps): 1. 03W-Tim Warner [4]; 2. 66-Steve Lorier [2]; 3. 1K-Elijah Koenig [7]; 4. 17S-Shane Long [3]; 5. 3-Travis Schmidt [6]; 6. 73-Rory Welch [5]; 7. 117-Tom Barnharst [1]

Heat 2 (10 Laps): 1. 17-Brandon Knepprath [2]; 2. 19-Parker Glander [3]; 3. 25-Jim Fischer [1]; 4. (DNF) 59S-Spencer Long [4]; 5. (DNF) 22M-Barry Maas [6]; 6. (DNF) 54-Michael Strean [5]