With five weeks of racing complete, the 2014 racing season is nearly a third over. Now is a great time to take a look back and also a look forward.
In Late Model action, Navarino racer Nick Anvelink has already scored three wins, including last week’s 40-lap, $2,000-to-win feature race.
Shawano racer Troy Springborn has two wins.
In the point standings, though, defending track champion Ron Berna is again leading the way.
The veteran Abrams racer is the track’s only eight-time track champion. Berna has won three titles in IMCA Modified competition and has won five titles in the Late Model class.
Rookies Rob Krull, Kurt Moeller, Jeremy Kazynski and Steve Petri Jr. are also off to good starts.
In IMCA Modified racing, Wausau racer Marcus Yarie has two feature wins and holds a four-point edge over Seymour’s Jerry Wilinski. Wilinski, Lance Arneson and rookie Cody Hudson each have one win on the year.
Look for another rookie, Mitch Stankowski, to pick up his first career IMCA Modified win this season.
Up until this past weekend, Kyle Frederick had been undefeated in feature racing in the IMCA Stock class. Travis VanStraten has made a return to racing this summer after taking a few years off and put an end to Frederick’s streak.
Frederick, with his hot start, sits atop the point standings, but Shawano racer Mike Schmidt has finished no worse than fourth in a feature this year and is only six points behind Frederick.
Former track champions Nate Michonski and Shawn Wagner returned to action last week, and it should make for great IMCA Stock Car racing with big money on the line this week.
The IMCA Sport Mod class has had some great racing this season, and things should stay the same for the duration of the year.
Shawano pilot Tracy Wassenberg has won three features, while Mackville’s Joey Taycher and Shawano’s Jason Jach each have one win each.
Third-generation racer Lucas Lamberies holds the lead in the point standings. The Clintonville teenager almost certainly will make a trip to victory lane soon.
Lamberies is followed in the standings by Jach and second-generation Shawano racer Jordan Bartz.
In the Mighty Four class, Shawano’s Scott Blanke has won two features while Jasper Drengler, Calvin Chapin and Dalton Nelson have one win apiece.
Blanke holds a single point advantage over Nelson, but Blanke had engine problems a week ago and might not be back out this week.
Other names poised to pick up their first Shawano Speedway wins include Brock Saunders, Josh Moesch, Trent Nolan, Tristan Peebles, Derek Jahnke and Carl King.
Throw in the Spectator Eliminators and one thing is certain: the rest of the season should be very interesting.
See you at the track.
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