Badgerland Challenge Invades Jefferson Speedway

JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, July 29, 2017) The 2017 version of the Badgerland Challenge made its way to Wisconsin’s Action Track on Saturday night. For the first time in its history, Jefferson Speedway was not the host for the championship round. Instead, the second of three nights of racing between Slinger Speedway and Madison International Speedway took place on the tricky quarter mile. Youngster Jacob Nottestad grabbed the lead early on and hung on through a late restart to capture the checkered flag. It’s the second feature win of the season for the budgeoning Late Model pilot from Utica.

Kyle Chwala and Nottestad paced the field to green to begin the Dean’s Helping Hands 50 lap feature event. After a good side by side battle to open the action, Nottestad took control of the point on lap four with Chwala dropping back to second. After an early caution on lap six for a chain reaction altercation, Brent Edmunds slipped by Chwala for second while Nottestad continued to show the way. On lap 15, Zack Riddle moved up to third behind Edmunds. The duo ran single file as they began to reel in Nottestad who had pulled away slightly. By the midway point of the race, the top three were running nose to tail with Nottestad the leader. On lap 30, contact entering turn one between Edmunds and Riddle resulted in Riddle muscling past for the second position. Riddle began to close in on Nottestad as the laps continued to tick away. With under ten laps to go, the leaders began to tiptoe through lapped traffic while Riddle searched for an opening. But on lap 43, Riddle made contact with one of those lapped cars, sending him around on the entrance to turn one to force a yellow flag. Riddle was forced to restart on the tail end of the field, moving John Ovadal up to second with Dale Nottestad now third. As racing resumed, Jacob Nottestad wiggled a bit coming to the green flag. Nottestad maintained the lead through turns one and two. Ovadal got sideways on the exit of turn two, allowing Dale Nottestad to draw even in a fight for second. But Ovadal managed to regain control of the second spot while Jacob Nottestad drove away to the checkers. At the finish, it was Jacob for the win followed by Ovadal, Dale Nottestad, and Edmunds. Jason Erickson won a spirited battle with Michael Grueneberg to claim the last spot in the top five.  Stoughton’s Jim Taylor also survived a late restart as he led every circuit of the 30 lap Sportsman main event en route to the victory. Paul Wagner and Taylor brought the field to green as they battled door to door for control. Taylor moved out into sole possession of the top spot on lap two with Josh Madell up to battle Wagner for the second position. Madell cleared for the spot on lap four, bringing Mark Deporter along for third. On lap 13, Terry Wangsness got under Deporter to grab third and continue forward under Madell. After a brief battle, Wangsness took over the second spot as he began to try and reel in the leader. As the laps wound down, it looked like Taylor was too far out front to catch. But a caution with only four to go slowed the pace and closed up the leaders for the restart. Once racing resumed, Wangsness pressured the leader, taking several looks on the bottom side of the speedway. But Taylor held off his advances to see the checkers first to score the win. Wangsness settled for second with Tony Ciano, Madell and Bobby Selsing rounding out the top five.
International point leader, Neil Higgins of Watertown, padded his advantage in the standings by winning his 20 lap feature event. Dillon Scott took the early lead on lap one from the outside of the front row with Joe Cross up to second. Scott quickly began to stretch his advantage over the field while Cross tried to hang on to second. On lap 12, Higgins got by Nick Schmidt for the third position as he pulled up behind Cross. While Scott was enjoying a large lead, a caution on lap 15 erased his advantage. Scott and Cross led the field back to green with Cross now gaining control of the top spot. Higgins got by Scott and motored up next to Cross on lap 17. A lap later, Higgins was out front alone and pulling away while Mark English worked over Cross for second. At the checkers, it was Higgins for the win. English completed the pass to finish second with Cross, Scott and Schmidt completing the top five.
Jim Tate Jr of Doylestown charged to the front and hung on to win the 25 lap Hobby Stock feature event. Korey Bengsch and Jordy Egli paced the field to green with Bengsch taking the initial lead. But Egli charged back alongside Bengsch on lap two and stole the lead for herself a lap later. Chuck Egli followed into second and closed in on Jordy. The pair of Egli family drivers raced wheel to wheel into turn one on lap five, with Chuck taking control of the point down the backstretch. Lucas Buckingham and Tate followed into second and third respectively on lap six. Buckingham and Tate got by Chuck Egli on lap seven as Egli began to fade. On lap nine, Tate drove to the high side of Buckingham, clearing for the lead a lap later. Meanwhile, AJ Lloyd was making his way to the front, finding himself in fourth by lap ten. Lloyd continued forward, taking over third on lap 11 and second on lap 12. Lloyd spent the remainder of the race trying to run down Tate out front. But Tate could not be caught, as he crossed the stripe first to secure the win. Lloyd was second followed by Buckingham, Dan Snyder and Phil Wuesthoff.
In Road Warrior action, Jefferson’s Chris Gottschalk scored another win in the 15 lap feature event. Rodger Stephenson led early with Bill Reynolds up to challenge him on lap two. Reynolds grabbed the lead just before a caution on lap five slowed the pace. Reynolds and Richie Nelson led the field back to green with Reynolds reclaiming the top spot and Craig Henning moving up to second. Gottschalk joined the leaders while Henning went to work on Reynolds for the point. On lap seven, Henning moved out front with Gottschalk in tow for second. With four laps to go, Gottschalk fired to the outside lane, drawing even with Henning. Gottschalk inched his mount out front, clearing for the point with only two laps remaining. From there, it was all Gottschalk as he picked up the win. Henning was second followed by Bill Sweeney, Reynolds and Nelson.
Fort Atkinson’s Tyler Deporter also survived a late restart to get the win in the 20 lap Bandit feature. DJ Hill led early on with Bill Kohn up to second. Kohn slid by Hill to grab control on lap four with Deporter following into second and Chad Olds in tow for third. The leaders ran single file until lap 15, when Deporter got a good run on the inside of Kohn exiting turn four. Deporter cleared for the lead with Olds in his tracks for second. A caution on lap 18 set up a green-white-checkered scenario with Deporter and Olds side by side on the restart. Deporter quickly regained the lead and held off Olds to cross under the checkers first. Olds settled for second with Kohn, Ross Lamont and Tom Pfeifer rounding out the top five.
Kolton Guralski of Wausau picked up the 15 lap Bandolero feature win. Kaeden Wangsness took the early lead on lap one from the pole. His brother, Chase powered back alongside and into the lead on lap two with Karter Stark in his tracks for second. Stark quickly dove under Chase Wangsness and into the lead on lap four. Guralski followed into second and immediately began to pressure the new leader, Stark. On lap eight, Guralski got under Stark as they raced through turns one and two. Guralski cleared off turn two with Stark staying close in second. But Guralski had the lead covered as they raced to the checkers for the win. Stark was second followed by Alex Hartwig, Jevin Guralski and Logan Taylor.
Next Saturday, August 5, is round three of the Tournament of Destruction. All the mayhem gets kicked off at 7pm. 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-
Feature Results- 1) Jacob Nottestad, Utica 2) John Ovadal Jr, Watertown 3) Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 4) Brent Edwards, Monticello 5) Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 6) Michael Grueneberg, Madison 7) Kody Hubred, Cambridge 8) Kyle Chwala, Johnson Creek 9) Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 10) Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 11) Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 12) Stephen Scheel, Lake Mills 13) Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 14) Steve Dobbratz, Rio 15) Don Gaserude, Fort Atkinson 16) Zack Riddle, Brooklyn 17) Kyle Taylor, Deerfield 18) Cody Erdmann, Horicon 19) Scott Patrick, Dousman 20) Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 21) David Malisch, Madison 22) Tom Jasinski, Pewaukee 23) Steven Sauer, Waterloo
Fast Qualifier- Luke Westenberg—14.234 seconds
Last Chance- Cody Erdmann, Scott Patrick, Kyle Taylor, Billy Baumeister
Consi- Greg Bowers, Terry Sauer
Qualifiers- 1) Steven Sauer, Kyle Smith 2) Jerry Eckhardt, Don Gaserude
Heat Winners- 1) John Ovadal 2) Michael Grueneberg

Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) Jim Taylor, Stoughton 2) Terry Wangsness, Jefferson 3) Tony Ciano, Janesville 4) Josh Madell, Mayville 5) Bobby Selsing, Johnson Creek 6) Paul Wagner, Iron Ridge 7) Michael Giloman, Northfield (MN) 8) Jason Thoma, Jefferson 9) Chris Chenoweth, Watertown 10) John Ovadal Jr, Watertown 11) Andy Welter, Cedarburg 12) Robert Hansberry Jr, Beloit 13) Jacob Schraufnagel, Slinger 14) Adam Bleskan, Menomonee Falls 15) Cody Houseweart, Machesney Park (IL) 16) Dustin Ward, Waterloo 17) Bryce Miller, Columbus 18) Dan Schmidt, Farmington 19) Dan Silberhorn, Fond du Lac 20) Jay Kalbus, Watertown 21) Mark Deporter, Fort Atkinson 22) Jim Tate Jr, Doylestown
Fast Qualifier- Robert Hansberry Jr—14.811 seconds
Last Chance- Dan Schmidt, Dustin Ward, Andy Welter, Cody Houseweart
Heat Winners- 1) Jim Tate Jr 2) Josh Madell 3) Bobby Selsing

International-
Feature Results- 1) Neil Higgins, Watertown 2) Mark English, Edgerton 3) Joe Cross, Sun Prairie 4) Dillon Scott, Rio 5) Nick Schmidt, Watertown 6) Josh Marx, Dousman 7) Jamie Kohn, Madison 8) Noah Pankow, Jefferson 9) Ashley Gottschalk, Fort Atkinson 10) Chris Gottschalk, Fort Atkinson 11) Jason Uttech, Watertown 12) Adam Schook, Palmyra 13) Chris Jackson, Jefferson 14) Perry Anderson, Machesney Park (IL)
Fast Qualifier- Mark English—16.132 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) Jamie Kohn 2) Josh Marx

Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) Jim Tate Jr, Doylestown 2) AJ Lloyd, Loves Park (IL) 3) Lucas Buckingham, Whitewater 4) Dan Snyder, Madison 5) Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 6) Chester Williams, Waukesha 7) Chuck Egli, Stoughton 8) Kenny Storkson, Indianford 9) Jared Vike, Sussex 10) Jim Wolf, Watertown 11) Jordy Egli, Stoughton 12) Eric Bennett, Beloit 13) Korey Bengsch, Fond du Lac 14) Jessica Breunig, Columbus 15) Jon Benninger, Windsor 16) Gary Paulick, Union Grove
Fast Qualifier- AJ Lloyd—15.554 seconds NEW TRACK RECORD
Heat Winners- 1) Lucas Buckingham 2) Kenny Storkson

Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) Chris Gottschalk, Fort Atkinson 2) Craig Henning, Helenville 3) Bill Sweeney, Lake Mills 4) Bill Reynolds, Watertown 5) Richie Nelson, Evansville 6) Rodger Stephenson, Cambridge 7) Mark Dewey, Janesville 8) AJ Accardi, Madison 9) Merek Pankow, Jefferson 10) Jim Wolf, Watertown
Fast Qualifier- Chris Gottschalk—16.573 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) Bill Reynolds 2) Chris Gottschalk

Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) Tyler Deporter Fort Atkinson 2) Chad Olds, Whitewater 3) Bill Kohn, Madison 4) Ross Lamont, Loves Park (IL) 5) Tom Pfeifer, Fort Atkinson 6) Jeremy Bredeson, Deforest 7) Nick Schmidt, Watertown 8) Tyler Edmundson, Janesville 9) Cade Watters, Sun Prairie 10) CJ Hemiller, Jefferson 11) Carter Watters, Sun Prairie 12) DJ Hill, Watertown
Fast Qualifier- Nick Schmidt—14.084 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) Tom Pfeifer 2) Nick Schmidt

Bandolero-
Feature Results- 1) Kolton Guralski, Wausau 2) Karter Stark, Marshall 3) Alex Hartwig, Portage 4) Jevin Guralski, Wausau 5) Logan Taylor, Watertown 6) Emma Hunstiger, Helenville 7) Chase Wangsness, Jefferson 8) Anna Malouf, Rhinelander 9) Michael Guderski, Markesan 10) Robbie Rucks, Deerfield 11) Kaeden Wangsness, Jefferson 12) Keagan Benz, Wausau
Fast Qualifier- Kolton Guralski—14.458 seconds
Heat Winners- 1) Karter Stark 2) Kolton Guralski