Loberger passes nephew on last lap to win IMCA stock feature

Rain on Friday made for a wild Saturday at Shawano Speedway. A very fast track was hard on cars and drivers, and track workers used an intermission grading session to try to keep the racing surface smooth.

Dustin Loberger came out on top over his nephew in a wild finish in the IMCA Stock Car ranks. Engine problems in the heat race forced Travis VanStraten to scratch from the feature, putting an end to his 11-race win streak.

Doug “The Blaze” Blashe lived up to his moniker by winning his second Late Model feature of the year. Jerry Wilinski scored his second straight IMCA Modified feature and fourth overall.

Jordan Barkholtz rolled to his second win of the year in the IMCA Sport Mod division, while Calvin Stueck brought the night to a close with a front-straightaway pass to win his fourth Mighty Four feature.

Late Models

The Late Model feature was the first race to hit the track after the intermission. Jeff Curtin shot from his starting position on the outside of row one and into the lead on lap one. Blashe and Jared Siefert moved past Curtin into first and second, respectively, on lap five.

Blashe quickly began to power away from Siefert, who began to receive pressure from Troy Springborn for the second spot.

On lap 11, Tom Naeyaert and Nick Anvelink began a side-by-side battle for fourth position that lasted nearly six laps. Over the closing laps of the race, Blashe was unchallenged on his way to victory lane. Siefert finished second, holding off Springborn. Anvelink took fourth, while Naeyaert finished in fifth.

IMCA Modifieds

John Peters set the early pace in the IMCA Modified feature. He led until lap seven when Eddie Muenster and Wilinski ducked to the inside on Peters to move to first and second, respectively. Jeremy Christians raced to third. Muenster and Wilinski battled side by side on lap nine with Muenster still holding the lead. Wilinski made the pass for the lead stick on lap 14. Muenster gave chase for the rest of the race, but Wilinski won for the second week in a row and extended his points lead. Muenster finished second, and Marcus Yarie finished third. Mechanical woes forced Christians to pit on lap 17. Mark Weisnicht and Matt Oreskovich completed the top five.

IMCA Stock Cars

Steven Stewart took the initial lead on the first lap of the race and continued to enjoy a comfortable margin out in front of the field as the white flag waved. It looked as though he had the race won, but exiting turn four on the final lap, with the checkered flag in sight, Stewart’s car shot right and into the front stretch wall, riding along the wall toward the green flag. Stewart was passed by Loberger for the win. Stewart crossed the line in second. Mike Schmidt was third. On lap seven, Loberger raced to second behind Stewart, putting him in position to pass Stewart after the wreck. Joe White charged from 12th to finish fourth, and Kyle Frederick advanced from 11th to finish fifth.

IMCA Sport Mods

Barkholtz led all 20 laps of the IMCA Sport Mod feature for his second win of the year, but it did not come easy. Barkholtz faced early challenges from Brandon Nygaard and Jordan Bartz, and late-race pressure from Lucas Lamberies. Lamberies, Bartz, Nygaard and Jason Jach rounded out the top five behind Barkholtz.

Mighty Fours

Stueck took the lead on lap one of the Mighty Four feature and was quickly joined by Carl King at the front of the field. On lap five, King pulled even with Stueck in a battle for the lead, but Stueck emerged ahead of King by a car length exiting turn two to hold the lead. Two laps later, Brad Wedde and Grant Kastning joined the lead pair to make it a four-car race for the lead. On lap eight, Kastning, King, and Stueck went three wide for the lead into turn one. Contact between Kastning and Stueck forced Kastning pitside. King and Stueck again raced side by side out in front of the field. Entering turn three for the final time, it was King ahead by a car length. As the pair pulled out of turn four, racing toward the checkered flag, Stueck pulled inside of King and was able to win the race by a fender over King. Wedde took third, Dustin Urban fourth and Dalton Nelson fifth.

RACE SUMMARY

Shawano Speedway

Aug. 8

Late Model Feature: 1. Doug Blashe, 2. Jared Siefert, 3. Troy Springborn, 4. Nick Anvelink, 5. Tom Naeyaert, 6. Ron Berna, 7. Brett Swedberg, 8. Jeff Curtin, 9. Tim Buhler, 10. Joe Reuter.

Heat 1: 1. Aaron Holiday, 2. Naeyaert, 3. Berna.

Heat 2: 1. Anvelink, 2. Siefert, 3. Curtin.

Heat 3: 1. Springborn, 2. Tim Rothe, 3. Reuter.

IMCA Modified Feature: 1. Jerry Wilinski, 2. Eddie Muenster, 3. Marcus Yarie, 4. Mark Weisnicht, 5. Matt Oreskovich, 6. Lance Arneson, 7. John Peters, 8. Mitch Stankowski, 9. Jerry Muenster, 10. John Berna.

Heat 1: 1. Wilinski, 2. Peters, 3. Kevin Feck.

Heat 2: 1. Jeremy Christians, 2. Beetle Bailey, 3. Eddie Muenster.

IMCA Stock Car Feature: 1. Dustin Loberger, 2. Steven Stewart, 3. Mike Schmidt, 4. Joe White, 5. Kyle Frederick, 6. Scott Stewart, 7. Tom Riehl, 8. Harley Simon, 9. Vern Stedjee, 10. Larry Buckwheat.

Last Chance Qualifier: 1. Travis Springstroh, 2. Josh VanHaren, 3. Ray DePew, 4. Larry Buckwheat, 5. Chris Loewenhagen.

Heat 1: 1. Schmidt, 2. Simon, 3. White.

Heat 2: 1. Steven Stewart, 2. Dan Michonski, 3. Brian Ambrosius.

Heat 3: 1. Loberger, 2. Stedjee, 3. Riehl.

IMCA Sport Mod Feature: 1. Jordan Barkholtz, 2. Lucas Lamberies, 3. Jordan Bartz, 4. Brandon Nygaard, 5. Jason Jach, 6. Brock Saunders, 7. Kyle Raddant, 8. Austin Carter, 9. Les Yaeger, 10. Brandon Tegen.

Heat 1: 1. Jach, 2. Barkholtz, 3. Carter.

Heat 2: 1. Nygaard, 2. Bartz, 3. Lamberies.

Mighty Four Feature: 1. Calvin Stueck, 2. Carl King, 3. Brad Wedde, 4. Dustin Urban, 5. Dalton Nelson, 6. Cody Bierman, 7. Heidi Meverden, 8. Hollie Welch, 9. Grant Kastning, 10. Clint Hatterman.

Heat 1: 1. Stueck, 2. Welch, 3. Wedde.