ETHERIDGE WINS $10,000 AT THE 13TH VERSION OF THE MADERA PUMPKIN SMASH

 

MADERA, CALIFORNIA (October 19th, 2019) – The Madera Speedway hosted the final event of the 2019 racing season this Saturday night with the 13th Annual $10,000.00 to win Pumpkin Smash presented by iPull-uPull. The action was filmed for Lucas Oil on the Edge on MAVTV at the fastest 1/3 Mile in the West!

The headliner of the season finale was the 400 lap or four hour $10,000.00 to win Pumpkin Smash Enduro, but before the big event fans enjoyed a full line up of racing action, a barrel race, a trick or treat through the pits for the little ones, an on track pumpkin smash for the kids and a costume contest.

 

The 10k to win Pumpkin Smash race was made up of four 100 lap segments where drivers took a pit stop at each break for driver changes and fuel. It was Craig Mastropierro that established himself as the driver to deal with for the big paycheck as he set a strong pace on the slippery soaped pumpkin surface during the first segment.

Richard Herzog, Ryan Hart, Gene Etheridge, and Dan Myrick among other drivers chased Mastropierro to the end of the first segment.

 

During the pit stop many driver changes were made and most notably Nut Up Pro Late Model 2019 champion Austin Herzog jumped behind the wheel of the number seven entry and when the green flag flew both Herzog and Ryan Hart were flying through traffic and putting on a show for the fans in the big crowd. By the end of segment two Herzog had made up several laps putting team Herzog in a good position for the second half of the race, but it was Mastropierro that held a strong multi lap lead over Gene Etheridge and Dan Myrick going into the pit stop for the halfway break at lap 200.

After the pit stop drivers set out on the journey to make the 300 lap mark at the end of segment three and everything was going according to plan for the 73 car of Mastorpierro to become $10,000.00 richer until he ran into trouble while navigating traffic that was as heavy as being on a five lane LA freeway. Mastropierro was involved in an accident that sent him to the pits for several laps while changing a tire and refueling the car so they could skip the pit stop at lap 300 and stay on the track during the break. While Mastropierro was in the pits making repairs Etheridge made up all of the laps he was down and ended up on the same lap and leading the race at the 300 lap mark.

 

Bryan Herzog took the driver’s seat at the 200 lap mark for team Herzog making it a three generation effort for the Herzog’s. Bryan drove their racing machine all the way to third place setting up what looked like a three way battle for the $10,000.00 payday, but late in segment three Herzog hit a spinning car and took out the radiator ending their chances for victory.

 

The 300 lap mark came and it was time for the last pit stop, so Etheridge took his number 80 Chevy into the pit for service but Mastropierro remained on the track due to some fast thinking and he regained the lead under caution with the chess match like move. The break for this segment took nearly 25 minutes instead of the planned 5 minute break due to a crew member that required medical attention, and this cut the final segment down to just a 30 minute run verses the one hour time frame.

 

When the green light came back on Masrtopierro was leading with Etheridge stuck in traffic a ¼ of a lap behind. Etheridge sliced and diced his way through traffic as did Mastropierro and with just ten minutes remaining in the four hour endurance race the two competitors were nose to tail on the track and fighting each other for the lead. Etheridge took the lead in traffic with the crowd going wild and then he lost the lead the following lap and then regained it for the final time a few laps later with just a handful of laps remaining.

 

The checkers flew at the four hour mark on lap 355 and Gene Etheridge won the $10,000.00 check with Craig Mastropierro taking home the $1,000.00 second place money. Dan Myrick is one of the kings of mini stocks in California and he proved it once again bringing home third place in his non v-eight ride, followed by Wes Brown and Ken Windland to round out the top five from the 36 car field.

 

The Barrel race was won by Richard Cook, the Toyota Sedan race was won by Jillaun Holden, the MST winner was Ryan Reynolds, Howard Holden won the Hobby Stock race, and Ronnie Davis won the Southwest Tour truck race.

Next up for the Madera Speedway is the 2019 Championship Awards banquet on 11-16-19. Sign up information will be out this week for the banquet.

 

For more information about Madera Racing on MAVTV please visit www.racemadera.com or www.mavtv.com. For more information on Nut Up Industries please visit www.nutupindustries.com and for more information about 51FIFTY Energy Drink visit www.51fiftyenergydrink.com

 

Madera Speedway is presented by major partners Nut Up Industries, 51FIFTY Energy Drink, iPull-uPull, and Color Fast Industries. Contingency sponsors include Five Star Bodies, Maita Motorsports, McAllister Precision Marketing, Shenanigan’s Restaurant and StopTech Brakes.

 

Madera Racing on MAVTV airs Thursdays every week. The show airs at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. PST and is also available on the Lucas Oil Racing TV app.

DOSS IS THE BOSS WITH $10,000 SHORT TRACK SHOOTOUT WIN AT MADERA

 

MADERA, CALIFORNIA (October 5, 2019) – Jeremy Doss of Upper Lake added his name to a prestigious list of Nut Up Short Track Shootout champions, fending off numerous challengers for $10,000 in Saturday’s 150 lap classic at Madera Speedway.  Doss was followed home on MAVTV by seventh finishing Austin Herzog, with the third-generation driver winning the 2019 Nut Up Pro Late Model championship.

 

After a record-shattering pace in time trials and a C and B Main event, the 43 cars on hand were narrowed to 26 starters for the feature.  Cole Moore and Matt Erickson occupied the front row with side-by-side racing early on.  Erickson led the first three laps from the outside before Moore took over on lap four from the inside.  Doss used a lap seven caution to knife inside Erickson for second position.  A lap 13 caution period allowed Doss a shot at Moore for the lead.  A brief side-by-side battle ended with Doss in the lead on lap 18.

 

Erickson drifted to eighth while two-time Pro Late Model champion Buddy Shepherd fell as low as 16th during the run.  Jacob Gomes and Carlos Vieira tangled into turn three to draw the next caution on lap 38.  Ninth starting Jason Romero, the 2019 Roseville champion, took over second position from Moore on lap 42.  2019 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model Series champion Joey Iest charged from 18th on the grid into the top-ten by that point.  Doss maintained the lead over Romero over a series of restarts although Romero kept Doss within arm’s length.

 

Battery issues ended up unhinging Romero’s night on lap 80.  John Moore entered the fray, sliding in front of incoming second in points Dylan Zampa for second position.  Moore then reeled in Doss for the lead by lap 88.  Doss and Moore ran the top line in close formation before an incident involving Carlos Vieira and Erickson on lap 98 incident brought out the scheduled break two laps early.

 

With 52 laps to go, Doss and Moore continued their battling for the top spot after the break.  Championship leader Herzog was shuffled backwards to 11th after a grinding three-wide restart that sent him briefly through the turn one infield.  15th starting Blaine Rocha started to make gains on the field, challenging outside of John Moore for second position on a lap 109 restart.

 

Moore hounded Rocha for many laps, unable to complete a pass for second.  The battle allowed Doss to increase his lead over the pack.  Dylan Zampa’s championship hopes were ended when he had a flat right front tire that drew the yellow flag on lap 131.  A bottleneck on the restart caught out Cole Moore and allowed John Moore to remain in third position.

 

One additional restart on lap 134 saw Doss continue to lead Rocha and John Moore.  Rocha ran a series of his best laps of the race, with the trio running lap times in the 15.1s and 15.2s all the way to the finish line on a sizzling fast evening.  Doss ripped underneath the checkered flags .620 seconds ahead of Rocha, John Moore, Cole Moore, and Jacob Gomes.  Cole Moore was later disqualified for refusing engine tech.

 

Shepherd came back for sixth ahead of the new 2019 champion Austin Herzog in seventh.  Herzog is the first Jr. Late Model graduate to win the Pro Late Model title and avenges his father Bryan finishing second in the inaugural televised season in 2015. Shelden Cooper won the $1,000 to win B Main as well.

 

51FIFTY Jr. Late Model fans were treated to a feature worthy of headline status on its own.  21 of the best young drivers ages 10-16 concluded the fourth season of the division in a 70-lap romp.  Champion Joey Iest drew the pole position which he used to lead the entire opening 40 lap segment.

 

Jay Juleson started seventh and made the most maneuvers, advancing to third after several battles with Jake Bollman over the course of the run.  Iest led Seth Wise, Juleson, Bollman, and Jadan Walbridge into the break.  Mobile, Alabama’s Grant Thompson, winner of the Jr. Late Model Challenge Camp, made his debut and ran sixth by that point as well.

 

After the break for adjustments and MAVTV interviews, Wise pounced on Iest.  He swept past Iest on lap 41 from the outside.  The caution flew and Wise picked the inside for the following restart.  The choice worked well beforee a big pileup on the backstretch required another resart attempt.  Wise again went inside Iest and again outfoxed the champion.

 

A wild restart on lap 60 saw Walbridge drive up onto the left side of Bollman’s car with debris strewn across the backstretch.  Both drivers had to restart at the rear of the field.

 

Wise picked the outside on the restart for a lap 63 caution.  The move proved troublesome with Iest taking the lead back on lap 64.  Wise fought back to lead lap 65 from the outside.  Iest led lap 66 as the field crossed the stripe before the caution came out again.

 

Iest picked outside on Wise, which set up a thrilling side-by-side duel.  The duo raced door-to-door for the remaining four laps.  Wise finally edged Iest coming out of turn four to the checkered flag, with the Bakersfield driver getting his first win by just .021 seconds.  The thrilling conclusion earned Iest the championship and Wise a popular victory.  Jay Juleson finished third to wrap up third in the standings.  Bradley Erickson and Kyler Berry from the 13th starting position rounded out the top-five finishers.

 

Ethan Nascimento won his second Bandolero vs. Mini Cup main event of the season, taking the lead on lap nine from Kenna Mitchell.  Mitchell drove to a second-place finish ahead of Jeffrey Erickson.  Despite a DNF, Riley Massey won the 2019 championship for back-to-back titles in the division.  Joey Kennealy won the Mini Cup championship as well.

 

Madera Speedway’s returns on October 19th for the iPull-UPull 400-lap, $10,000 to win Pumpkin Smash Enduro!

 

For more information about Madera Racing on MAVTV please visit www.racemadera.com or www.mavtv.com. For more information on Nut Up Industries please visit www.nutupindustries.com and for more information about 51FIFTY Energy Drink visit www.51fiftyenergydrink.com

 

Madera Speedway is presented by major partners Nut Up Industries, 51FIFTY Energy Drink, iPull-uPull, and Color Fast Industries.  Contingency sponsors include Five Star Bodies, Maita Motorsports, McCallister Precision Marketing, and StopTech Brakes.

 

Madera Racing on MAVTV airs Thursdays every week.  The show airs at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. PST and is also available on the Lucas Oil Racing TV app.  The fifth round of the 2019 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model Series airs on October 10th!

 

Grant Thompson Earns Jr. Late Model Challenge Camp Top Prize; Will Race at Madera October 5

MADERA, Calif., September 5, 2019 (Newswire.com) -

 

Thirteen-year-old Mobile, Alabama racer Grant Thompson was announced as the grand prize winner of the 1st Annual

Jr. Late Model Challenge Camp for aspiring young racers aged 11 through 15, held recently at Madera Speedway in Madera,

California. The winner was announced via a special reveal video on the camp’s website. Thompson was awarded the

opportunity to compete in the 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model race at Madera on the track’s championship night on Saturday,

October 5, in a fully funded ride prepared by Naake-Klauer Motorsports.

 

Twelve finalists and three alternates from as far away as England spent two days at Madera getting seat time and training in a 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model under the guidance of the Naake-Klauer team and several other top motorsports insiders. The aspiring young racers also participated in workshops covering a variety of on and off-track topics.

 

The camp was the result of the combined efforts of Madera Speedway, Race Face Brand Development and Naake-Klauer Motorsports, as well as main sponsors I Pull-You Pull, JM Environmental Inc. and the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. A panel of industry expert judges awarded the opportunity to Thompson, who competes throughout the Southeast in the Southern Pro-Am Truck Series.

 

The youngster was overcome by emotions when he watched the video announcement, which ended with a tarp being removed from the car the winner will drive to reveal the winning name above the driver’s door. “We were at a high school football game on the night they announced the winner. We went inside the school to watch, but the video was buffering and wouldn’t play well on our phones. Fortunately, we saw the principal going into her office and she was kind enough to allow us to use her desktop computer to watch it. When I saw that it was my name on the car the winner would drive in the race, I was shocked and so happy. I didn’t know how to react. I ran to my father, and we shared a long hug. Both of us were crying. I cannot thank everyone who had even a small role in putting the camp together and giving all of us drivers the chance to learn so much and meet new lifelong friends. It was an amazing experience. I’m definitely looking forward to racing in October at Madera and learning even more.”

 

John Thompson, Grant’s father, was equally amazed at both the experience and the chosen

winner. “The experience at the challenge camp was way beyond anything I have ever been involved with," he said. “In fact, it was a couple of days after we returned home before it all really sank in. I have to say this challenge camp restored hope for me as a parent of a driver who may reach the highest level of racing based on talent and the willingness to be dedicated to a team and a marketing partner who is willing to invest their time and effort on talent. For the first time in any competition, I would have truly been happy and supportive of whoever won. When they pulled the tarp off the car to reveal the winner’s name and I saw it was Grant’s, we were both overcome by emotion. I am truly grateful for this unbelievable opportunity for my son.”

 

The camp was filmed for a future MAV-TV broadcast in November. The Championship night race action will also be filmed for broadcast on MAV-TV.

 

Naake-Klauer Motorsports co-owner Mike Naake said he is excited to work with Thompson under race conditions. "I had the opportunity to work with 15 different drivers in two days. I am amazed at the talent of these young racers. It makes me really excited to play a role in the future of our sport, and I look forward to having Grant in my car on October 5.”

 

Madera Speedway Owner Kenny Shepherd added, “We have directed our passion for the sport towards the youth with our Jr. Late Model program, and with each step we take, we seek to provide more opportunities for our young drivers. I feel we are helping the sport get stronger and building the future of racing. The Jr. Late Model Challenge Camp was a big success. It will be fun to watch Grant have his opportunity to compete at our track on the fifth of October. I can’t wait to see where we go with the 2.0 version of the camp in 2020.”

 

Rod Wortham, Founder and CEO of Race Face Brand Development and a co-organizer of the camp, paid respect to everyone who was involved. "The camp was a huge success and it was a pleasure to work with so many great kids. I am so proud of Grant Thompson for winning. It was so close between the top five, and it was a hard decision. I want to thank everyone who worked so hard for the last couple of months to put this camp together, and I want to congratulate all the drivers and parents who participated. You are all winners!"