Championship Battles Settled

CAMBRIDGE, WI (Saturday, September 7, 2019)               Four Late Model pilots entered Season Championship Night with hopes of claiming the 2019 track championship. The Griffin Ford Lincoln of Fort Atkinson 60 lap main event would be the setting to determine which of those four drivers would achieve their season long goal of championship glory. When the dust settled, the man who entered as the point leader would leave with the spoils as the 2019 Late Model champ. After years of trying, and coming very close, Shaun Scheel of Lake Mills finally attained that elusive title at Wisconsin’s Action Track. While Scheel was putting the finishing touches on his championship, it was fellow Lake Mills driver, Kyle Smith, picking up the feature victory by holding off yet another Lake Mills product for the win.

Don Gaserude and Smith led the stout field of competitors to the green flag with Smith grabbing control of the top spot on lap one. Gaserude fell back to second with Will Rece charging up alongside him on lap five. Rece completed the pass for second on lap six, bringing Stephen Scheel along for third. Jason Erickson got by Gaserude for fourth while Smith continued to lead. The first of two cautions slowed the action on lap 15 when Rece made contact with a lapped machine. Rece was forced to restart from the rear after his involvement in the yellow flag, moving Stephen Scheel up to second. Meanwhile, Shaun Scheel and his closest rival in the standings, Riley Stenjem, were making their way through the pack. The second caution period came on lap 19 with Smith still out front and Stephen Scheel in his rear view mirror. Once racing resumed, the leaders ran nose to tail for several laps while Shaun Scheel and Stenjem continued to make their way toward the top five. On lap 31, Stephen Scheel began to apply heavy pressure to Smith at the front while Erickson and Michael Grueneberg watched closely from third and fourth. Stephen Scheel drew even with Smith on lap 35, allowing Erickson to close in closely behind them. Grueneberg joined Erickson behind the battle for the lead as they began to fight for third. Smith moved back out front alone on lap 41, but not for long as Scheel continued to apply heavy pressure on the leader. The top four jockeyed for positions throughout the final 20 lap of the race. Each time, Smith would keep Scheel at bay while Erickson and Grueneberg searched for an opening to take advantage of. With five laps to go, the top four raced under a blanket with none of them ready to give an inch. On lap 58, Smith got out front alone once again with Grueneberg firing up alongside Scheel for second. Smith held the advantage to the stripe to claim the win with Grueneberg overtaking Scheel for second. Erickson was fourth with Dale Nottestad rounding out the top five. With his sixth place feature finish, Shaun Scheel sealed the deal as the 2019 Late Model track champion by a 28 point margin over Stenjem.

Fort Atkinson’s Mark Deporter entered the 35 lap Sportsman feature event holding a 44 point margin in the standings over Bobby Selsing Jr. But it was Robert Hansberry Jr of Beloit running down the feature win in the closing laps of the race. Mike Lambert led lap one as fellow front row starter, Russ Nicholson,  dropped into the pack at the start. On lap two, Jim Taylor slipped by Jake Biever for second and quickly moved up to challenge Lambert. Taylor drew even with Lambert on lap three, clearing for the lead a lap later and immediately began to pull away from the field. Biever took his turn alongside Lambert, stealing the second position away on lap eight. On lap 15, Hansberry entered the top three, using the high side to get by Steven Sauer while Taylor continued to stretch his advantage. Lap 17 saw Hansberry dive under Biever, claiming the runner up spot a lap later. Meanwhile, Deporter and Selsing stuck close by each other in a battle for seventh. Once Hansberry got free of traffic, he began to chip away at Taylor’s lead. Lap after lap, Hansberry closed in on the leader. Finally, with four laps to go, Hansberry closed in on Taylor’s rear bumper. After taking a shot at the high side, Hansberry switched to the low groove. With two laps remaining, the duo raced wheel to wheel for control. On the final circuit, Hansberry gained the advantage as they raced off turn two. Hansberry held the lead through the checkered flag to capture the win. Taylor settled for second followed by Biever, Jason Thoma and Deporter. With his top five finish, Deporter claimed his third career Sportsman championship at Jefferson Speedway.

Marshall driver, Kyle Stark, dominated the 25 lap International feature to get the win. Josh Tanguay and Tyler Edmundson led the field to green with Tanguay grabbing the early lead as they battle raged behind him. Stark emerged with the second position on lap two as he charged up next to Tanguay. As they exited turn four, Stark held the top spot. While Stark quickly separated himself from the pack, Scott Hoeft raced up to second on lap three. Josh Marx followed into third a lap later as the top three began to cruise. Stark stayed strong on the point as the caution free event ended with him out front. Hoeft was second followed by Marx, Mark English and Tanguay. Entering the evening, Edgerton’s Mark English had already sewn up the championship, his sixth title in the International division.

Waunakee’s Brandon Riedner put a bow on his Hobby Stock championship as he laid claim to the 30 lap feature event on the evening. Mike Bollinger took the lead on lap one from the pole. After a caution on lap three, Bollinger continued to show the way with Jessica Breunig in second. Breunig fell off the pace on the restart, allowing Nick Bruley to charge up to second. On lap ten, Bruley dove under Bollinger, stealing the lead for himself a lap later. Meanwhile, Riedner was slicing his way into the top five and up to third by lap 13. Riedner got to second just before the second yellow flag slowed the pace on lap 15. As racing resumed, Riedner began to peek under Bruley for the lead. Riedner drew even with Bruley on lap 16. After a brief battle, Riedner found himself out front. Riedner cruised to the checkers from there to secure the win and his first Hobby Stock track championship. Jim Tate Jr raced up to finish second followed by Chester Williams, Kolton Guralski and Scott Riedner.

Janesville’s Mark Dewey claimed the 20 lap Road Warrior feature while Jordan Lamb tried to hang on to a nine point lead in the standings entering the race. Kevin Zimmerman took the initial lead on lap one with Garrett Meister in second. Zimmerman began to fall off the pace on lap three, allowing Bill Bush to fire past into the lead. The ensuing jumble behind Zimmerman lead to Lamb and his closest competitor in the standings, Bill Sweeney to race for position in heavy traffic. Contact between Sweeney and Jasper Gronert force Sweeney to check up, letting Lamb get by and charge toward the front. Meanwhile, Dewey slipped past Bush for the top spot, bringing AJ Accardi along for second. Lamb ran down Accardi by the midway point of the race. After a two lap battle, Lamb was clear for second while Sweeney tried to stick close behind. Dewey hung on to the lead through the checkers to claim the win with Lamb coming home in second. Accardi was third followed by Sweeney and Bill Reynolds. With his second place finish, Lamb secured the Road Warrior title, his first such championship.

With the Bandit championship already in his grasp, Milton’s Bryan Gottschalk also captured the 20 lap feature event on the evening. Rianne Remsik led lap one with Gaven Smothers trying to stick to her high side. On lap four, Gottschalk charged under Smothers as they raced into turn one. Gottschalk continued forward, drawing even with Remsik on lap five. Gottschalk cleared for the lead with Travis Rose in his tracks for second. But Rose spun to the infield on lap seven after contact with Chris Gottschalk down the backstretch. Bryan Gottschalk and Nick Schmidt paced the field back to green with Gottschalk regaining the lead on the restart. Gottschalk stayed out front, cruising to the checkers to get the win. Schmidt was second followed by Josh Lenz, Chris Gottschalk and Smothers.

Next Friday and Saturday, September 13-14 is the 39^th annual Wisconsin State Championships. Two days of intense racing action get started on Friday with time trials at 5pm and racing at 7:30pm. Racing on Saturday begins at 6pm. Jefferson Speedway is located halfway between Jefferson and Cambridge on Hwy 18. Please visit jeffersonspeedway.com for more information.

JEFFERSON SPEEDWAY RACE SUMMARY

Late Model-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Last Chance

Feature

Sportsman-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Feature

International-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Feature

Hobby Stock-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Feature

Road Warrior-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Feature

Bandit-

Qualifying

Heat Races

Feature