Casey Johnson Wins Fourth Straight State Title

CAMBRIDGE, WI (Saturday, September 14, 2019)              One man has dominated the Late Model portion of the annual Wisconsin State Championships at Jefferson Speedway in recent years. That trend continued in 2019 as Casey Johnson once again asserted himself as one of the best pilots in the state. Johnson set the pace in qualifying on Friday evening and paired that with top finishes in all three features during the two day event to claim the overall championship. This marks his fourth consecutive title and fifth in the last six years at Wisconsin’s Action Track.

The first of two 60 lap feature events began with Jacob Nottestad and Jordan DeVoy on the front row.  After a great side by side battle to open the action, DeVoy cleared for the lead on lap seven. Nottestad fell in line behind DeVoy but continued to apply heavy pressure to the leader. On lap 12. Nottestad dove under DeVoy to launch another battle for the lead between the duo. This time, it was Nottestad taking command of the top spot, clearing for the lead on lap 15. Casey Johnson moved up to challenge DeVoy next, this time for second. Johnson got underneath DeVoy on several occasions with DeVoy holding him off each time. But on lap 31, Johnson got his best run under DeVoy, drawing even while Nottestad stretched his lead. Johnson claimed the second position on lap 37. Johnson began to close in Nottestad at the front. A caution onlap 49 aided his cause, closing up the field for the final 11 laps. Johnson began to pressure Nottestad on the restart, trying to get alongside the leader. As the raced off turn two on the final lap, Johnson got a good run under Nottestad. They raced side by side down the backstretch and through turns three and four. But Nottestad held the very slight advantage as the raced under the checkers to score the win. Johnson settled for second with DeVoy, Michael Grueneberg and Dale Nottestad rounding out the top five.

The second 60 lapper started with Jerry Eckhardt and Kyle Smith battling for control of the lead. Two early cautions on lap three handing the lead to Smith. Luke Westenberg moved to the high side of Eckhardt, taking over second on lap seven. Westenberg continued forward, using the outside groove to draw even with Smith. Westenberg claimed the lead on lap nine with Riley Stenjem moving up to battle Smith for second. After clearing Smith, Stenjem charged up alongside Westenberg on lap 14. Two laps later, Stenjem was out front and pulling away. Meanwhile, Casey Johnson was picking his way into the top five. Johnson took over third from Jason Erickson on lap 40. A late race pass of Westenberg netted him the second position. But Stenjem was well on his way to scoring the win. Johnson was second followed by Westenberg, Erickson and DeVoy. As mentioned earlier, with his combined finishes, Johnson was crowned the 2019 Wisconsin State Champ.

Twin 35 lap features highlighted the evening for the Sportsman division. The first feature began with Josh Thiering and Trevor Robinson fighting for the lead from the front row. Robinson eventually took the position for himself on lap eight when Thiering dropped off the pace and retired from the race. Tim Coley moved up to challenge Robinson for the top spot on lap ten. After drawing even, Coley grabbed the lead on lap 11 with Tyler Deporter in tow for second. Deporter moved up to battle with the new leader on lap 13. Two laps later, Deporter took over the top spot with Robert Hansberry Jr following into second. Hansberry began to apply heavy pressure to Deporter, searching for an opening. But contact between the two on lap 31 ended with Deporter spinning in turns three and four to force a yellow flag. Both drivers were forced to restart in the rear, handing the lead to Jason Thoma. Thoma ran the final laps unchallenged to pick up the win with Mark Deporter, Coley, Bobby Selsing Jr and Robinson rounding out the top five.

Jim Taylor grabbed the lead of the second Sportsman feature from his front row starting spot after an early caution on lap three. After another yellow on lap five, Bobby Selsing Jr moved up to battle Bryce Miller for second. Taylor slipped away from the pack while Selsing and Miller waged war for second. Selsing eventually claimed the spot on lap 12. But Taylor ran the remainder of the race unchallenged to secure the win. Selsing was second followed by Tim Coley, Tyler Deporter and Jason Thoma. Thoma combined his two to finishes to claim the overall Sportsman championship, his second in a row.

Twin 25 lap feature highlighted the action in the International division with Kyle Stark of Marshall claiming both wins as well as the overall title. Neil Higgins lead the first feature with Scott Hoeft and Nick Cina battling for second behind him. Cina took the spot and moved up to challenge Higgins on lap four. After taking the lead on lap six, contact between the two ended with Cina going around to force the first of two cautions. Hoeft and Stark led the pack back to green with Stark moving out front on the restart. Stark held the lead through one more caution on his way to picking up the win with Hoeft, Mark English, Josh Marx and Jason Uttech completing the top five.

Higgins once again grabbed the early lead in the second 25 lapper with Josh Marx up to second on lap four. A caution slowed the pace setting up Higgins and Marx on the front row for the restart, Marx moved out front as racing resumed with Kyle Stark charging up to second. Stark continued forward, getting to the lead on lap 13. Scott Hoeft followed into second before a caution on lap 19 set up a six lap shootout to the finish. Stark and Hoeft led the field back to green with Stark once again claiming the top spot. Stark drove to the checkers to secure the win and the overall title. Hoeft finished the feature in second followed by Brandon DeLacy, Mark English and George Sparkman.

The first of twin 30 lap Hobby Stock features began with Jared Vike and Scott Riedner battling for the lead. Vike took the point on lap four with Riedner dropping back in a battle for second with Phil Wuesthoff. Riedner reclaimed the second position before the first of four cautions on lap ten. Vike led the field back to green followed by Riedner and Kolton Guralski. Brandon Riedner entered the top five on lap 14 and continued to slice his way toward the front. By lap 20, Riedner was up to second. Riedner began to use the outside groove to challenge Vike at the front. But a caution with six laps to go slowed the pace. As the field took the green on the restart, Brandon Riedner fell off the pace and pulled off the racing surface. Vike ran to the checkers from there to get the win followed by Scott Riedner, Wuesthoff, Chester Williams and Dustin Ward.

Jim Tate Jr charged into the lead to begin the second Hobby Stock feature with Dustin Ward in his tracks for second. Tate continued to lead over Ward and Phil Wuesthoff until the caution waved on lap 15. On the restart, Wuesthoff and Ward began to battle for second while Brandon Riedner once again made his way forward. On lap 23, Riedner dove to the low side to launch a three wide battle for second with Wuesthoff and Ward. Riedner cleared for the position a lap later but ran out of time to catch the leader Tate. At the checkers, it was Tate for the win followed by Riedner, Wuesthoff, Ward and Chris Flairty. With his two top five finishes, Phil Wuesthoff claimed the overall title for the Hobby Stock division.

Twin 25 lap features for the Legends started with Jared Apel leading on lap one. Gary Lamonte moved past Apel on lap two with Dillon Schwanbeck in tow for second. Schwanbeck got by Lamonte on lap three with Max McNamara on his heels. McNamara quickly stole the lead from Schwanbeck while Aaron Moyer moved up to challenge Lamonte for third. Moyer completed the pass of Lamonte on lap six and pulled up behind Schwanbeck. On lap 12, Moyer cleared Schwanbeck for second as he began to cut into McNamara’s advantage. After catching the leader, both drivers began searching for the quickest way around the quarter mile track. On the final lap, Moyer got a great run under McNamara as they raced off turn two. They raced side by side into turn three and off turn four. At the stripe, it was Moyer with a slight advantage to claim the win. McNamara settled for second followed by Schwanbeck, James Lynch and Jared Deming.

The second Legends feature once again began with Jared Apel on the point. Apel and Gary Lamonte got together on lap three to force a caution. On the restart, Dave McCalla charged into the lead with James Lynch in tow. Another quick yellow set up McCalla and Lynch on the front row for the second restart. McCalla took the lead into turn one, but Lynch crossed over to grab the top spot. Max McNamara moved up to challenge McCalla for second. After clearing for the spot, McNamara moved up to challenge Lynch. McNamara moved out front alone on lap eight. Meanwhile, Aaron Moyer was charging through the field and into the top five. By lap 16, Moyer was up to third and challenging Lunch for second. Moyer got by Lynch with five laps remaining, but couldn’t catch McNamara at the front. McNamara saw the checkers first followed by Moyer, Lynch, Jared Deming and Dillon Schwanbeck. Aaron Moyer combined his first and second place finishes to claim the overall title for the Legends division.

Twin 15 lap Bandolero features started with Anna Price taking the early lead on lap one. Price led kept the lead through two cautions with Robbie Rucks up to second. Michael Guderski dove under Rucks on lap eight and continued forward next to Price. Guderski cleared for the lead on lap nine and drove away to pick up the win. Jevin Guralski crossed the line second followed by Price, Karter Stark and Rucks.

Chase Wangsness and Robbie Rucks battled for the lead to begin the second feature. Rucks claimed the position on lap two with Anna Price up to second and Guderski in tow for third. On lap four, Jevin Guralski joined Price and Guderski in a three wide battle for second. Guralski emerged with the spot and drove up alongside Rucks for the lead. Guralski cleared on lap eight while Rucks dropped back in a fight for second with Guderski. Guralski crossed the stripe first, but following post race inspection, was forced to vacate his finishing position. Guderski was awarded the win with Rucks, Price, Karter Stark and Tucker Bodendorfer rounding out the top five. With his two wins, Guderski was crowned the overall champion for the Bandoleros.

Jefferson Speedway is located halfway between Jefferson and Cambridge on Hwy 18. Please visit jeffersonspeedway.com for more information.

JEFFERSON SPEEDWAY WISCONSIN STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS DAY TWO SUMMARY

Late Model-

Last Chance

Feature #1

Feature #2

Sportsman-

Last Chance

Feature #1

Feature #2

International-

Last Chance

Feature #1

Feature #2

Hobby Stock-

Feature #1

Feature #2

Legends-

Qualifying

Feature #1

Feature #2

Bandoleros-

Qualifying

Qualifier #1

Qualifier #2

Feature #1

Feature #2