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HERZOG AND KNITTLE FLEX SOME MUSCLE AT MADERA
Madera, CA. (6-15-19) – Austin Herzog is the point leader in the Nut Up Pro Late Model Series and he is also the overall late model point leader at the Madera Speedway for the 2019 racing season. Buddy Shepherd is one of two of the most decorated late model drivers that has competed on Madera Racing on MAVTV with two televised championships, the other driver at the top of the list is Matt Erickson.
On June 15th, 2019 young Austin Herzog sent a clear message to all competitors that he intends for this year to be his year in the spotlight. Herzog lead the 40 lap club race early and then engaged in an intense battle with Shepherd that put Shepherd in the lead for the middle portion of the race, but Herzog charged past Shepherd late in the race and drove to victory lane. Herzog is also headed to the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame at Sonoma as a special guest.
Tyler Herzog fought his way to second place, followed at the checkers by Jarret Gilmer, Trevor Schlundt, Mike Shipero, Elliot Stjerne, Del McIntosh, Henk Gaalswyk Jr., Loren Kutz, Matt Kutz, Nathen Casillias, Eloy Bazan, Kent Cam, Buddy Shepherd, Jeremy Davis and Alex Mead.
Robbie Knittle has taken full advantage of the opportunity to drive for one of the most successful modified teams on the West Coast as he added another victory to his resume on Saturday night. But it took Knittle all the way to lap 31 to find the lead in what turned out to be a very good modified race. Knittle was followed by Cameron Austin, Darren Knight, Jason Philpott, Keith Bloom Jr., Brian Collins, Darrin Sullivan, Terry Deal, Sal Lopez, Dale Didoha, and Rick Avila.
Steve Schermerhorn took home the big bucks in the Hobby Stock Challenge race against some tough competition. Richard Herzog was second followed by mark Blanton, Mike Nicks, Dylan Blanton, Chuck Aguirre, and Howard Holden.
Sheldon Crouse won the Legends of Pacific race followed by Eddie Garone and Josh Fleming for the top three.
Shaun Reynolds won the MST race with Ryan Reynolds and and Smokin Dirt Bert Stephens rounding out the top three. Andrew Davidson, Kurt Davidson and Andrew Parr made up the top three in the Toyota Sedan race.
Next up for the Madera MAVTV crew is the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame where Madera Stars Austin Herzog and Joey Iest will be special guests.
The next race at the Madera Speedway is round number five of the MAVTV televised series featuring a huge fireworks show!
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.
AUSTIN EDWARDS JOINS AUSTIN HERZOG MOTORSPORTS FOR JR LM
CLOVIS, CALIFORNIA (June 14, 2019) – 14 year-old Austin Edwards of Mentone, CA will join Austin Herzog Motorsports for the 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model Series race on June 29th in an exciting announcement for both parties. Austin Herzog, 16, is a six-time winner in the Jr. Late Model Series and currently leads Madera Speedway’s Nut Up Pro Late Model Series standings. Austin Herzog Motorsports and its crew chief Charlie Wilson will be fielding Edwards in the 70 lap race that is televised for MAVTV.
Edwards burst onto the scene in the inaugural 2016 season of the Jr. Late Models, winning the second race in series history in April of that year. Including that victory at age 11, the former Southwest Tour Truck and INEX Bandolero standout has accumulated 27 career starts with third place championship finishes in both 2016 and 2017. He has five total podium finishes over his career in the division.
Herzog is savoring the opportunity utilize his equipment to develop an up-and-coming talent while Edwards will get the opportunity to race outside of his family’s team. The combined team is eager to hit the track to show what they are capable of.
Austin Herzog Motorsports has fielded cars for other drivers in the past, with a best finish of second with Anthony Guaimano in last year’s season finale for the Jr. Late Models. Edward’s car will be powered by a 602 crate engine that is the most commonly used engine package for the series for drivers ages 10-16.
Edwards’ 2019 campaign included two Jr. Late Model starts and several appearances in Mazda Miatas on the road course. Herzog leads the Pro Late Model standings with one win and also has an additional win in the non-televised Madera Late Model series. He recently finished second in the SPEARS Southwest Tour race at Madera on June 8th.
Austin Herzog Motorsports would like to thank his sponsors Superior Door, WDF Concrete, Castech Pest Control, Vandoor Racing, Richard Herzog Construction, and Wilson Motorsports for their support.
For more information, check out Austin Herzog Motorsports at www.AustinHerzogMotorsports.com Austin Herzog Motorsports can also be found on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
THORN GRABS CAREER WIN 37 WITH SPEARS 125 VICTORY AT MADERA
MADERA, CALIFORNIA (June 8, 2019) – Four-time SPEARS Southwest Tour champion Derek Thorn of Bakersfield added to his long list of accomplishments with his 37th victory and 53rd fast-time in Saturday’s 125 lap event at Madera Speedway, presented by 51FIFTY LTM. Thorn’s win did not come easy as he withstood challenges from current Nut Up Pro Late Model points leader Austin Herzog, age 16 from Clovis, CA.
With MAVTV cameras rolling, Thorn was one of only two cars into the 13 second range on the one-third mile asphalt oval. His 13.839 topped Linny White’s 13.999. The redraw of the top eight qualifiers placed White on the pole underneath rookie Tyler Fabozzi with Thorn starting third.
Fabozzi used the outside to grab the lead position off the start. September Madera winner Jacob Gomes went up in smoke to end his night early for a caution on lap 12. After a red flag for clean-up, racing resumed with Fabozzi picking the outside and maintaining the lead. White stayed glued to Fabozzi’s bumper with the battle intensifying by lap 29. The battle ended when White tagged Fabozzi into turn three, sending him spinning for a lap 34 caution. Fabozzi blended into fourth while White was penalized to the rear in the 20th position.
The incident thrust Thorn into the lead while 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model graduates Jesse Love and Austin Herzog, with 15 wins between them at Madera, battled for third. A caution flew when Bob Lyon spun out of a three-wide battle for eighth in turn one.
1999 Madera NASCAR Southwest Tour winner Craig Raudman entered the fold, running the outside line to pass both Cole Moore for second and then tag the rear of Thorn in a bid for the lead. Herzog had a good view for the battling and started to edge inside Raudman by lap 75 for the second position.
During the extended green flag run, lapped traffic became a factor by lap 84 which erased Thorn’s sizeable lead. Love’s night ended up abruptly when his car retired to the infield with white smoke. The race stayed under green, however, and the lapped traffic continued to affect Thorn. Side-by-side traffic allowed Herzog to close within a car length of the top spot. Suddenly, Carlos Vieira spun from 12th at the tail end of the lead lap and Thorn narrowly avoided him before the caution fell.
The race restarted with 18 to go with Thorn leading Herzog and White, who had climbed up to third after the earlier incident. Thorn managed to drive away from Herzog, who engaged in a side-by-side duel with White for second.
A caution flew again on lap 120 which gave Herzog one last shot at Thorn. Herzog got slightly sideways coming to the line, and Thorn dashed away for the $5,000 victory. Herzog had a career-best Southwest Tour finish of second ahead White, 2018 Rookie of the Year Cole Moore, and two-time Madera Pro LM winner Blaine Rocha.
The co-feature on Saturday night saw the Spears Manufacturing Modifieds presented by Lucas Oil in a 75 lap MAVTV-televised contest, presented by K&N Filters. Las Vegas’ Peyton Saxton grabbed his first career series win in just his second start, claiming the $3,300 win.
Out of state drivers Jeff Longman of Lehi, UT and William Guevara of Lake Havasu, AZ led the field to the green flag. After a spin by Travis McCullough slowed the initial start, things got underway with Guevara leading the way. Fast-time qualifier Hunter Corbitt of Sacramento spun for a yellow on lap three. Saxton used the caution to take the lead on lap four from Guevara.
McCullough’s misfortune continued when he crashed hard into the front stretch wall to end his night. His teammate Eric Nascimento, Jr. pitted multiple times for repairs to right side damage as well. When the racing resumed, Longman fell backwards to outside the top-five. 11th starting Ryan Schartau, the most recent winner on May 4th at Las Vegas, drove into fourth by lap 12. Tenth starting Cody Kay of Reno, NV was up to fifth as well.
Eddie Second started his attempts to get around former series champion Dylan Cappello of Peoria, AZ for second. Meanwhile Las Vegas’ Kyle Keller retired with mechanical issues on lap 28. A multi-car incident slowed the action when Corbitt tagged 18 year-old recent High School graduate Jeremy Kay in turn two, with Kay spinning to collect both Nascimento and Doug Carpenter. Carpenter was done for the evening as a result of the damage.
Cappello looked inside Saxton on the restart before taking the lead on lap 44 after some sliding and contact. Saxton grabbed it back on lap 45 and they remained side-by-side for the next three laps before Saxton was solidly ahead. Secord ran all over Schartau for third behind them.
Secord finally managed to get past Schartau on lap 65, but couldn’t close down on the leaders. Saxton took the comfortable lead ahead of Cappello, Second, Corbitt, and Schartau. Schartau and Cappello will be locked in a near dead-heat for the points lead when the series heads to its next race at Kern County.
The supporting Hobby Stocks race was a satisfying one for Steve Schermerhorn as the 2018 champion stamped his authority on the pack by lapping the entire field. Schermerhorn was the only driver to complete all 30 laps while another recent High School graduate Manny Gonzales, Jr. defeated Dean Gould, driving a Late Model truck, for the second position.
Up next for Madera Speedway is a huge night of racing on June 15th. The North State Modifieds and North State / Madera Hobby Stock Challenge will be competing plus the Madera Late Models, Jr. Late Model Series 30 lap exhibition race, Southwest Truck Series, Toyota Sedans, MSTs, and Legends of the Pacific
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 first round of the 2019 51FIFTY Energy Drink Jr. Late Model Series airs on June 20th.
HOLMES BECOMES FOURTH DIFFERENT WINNER IN PRO LATE MODELS AT MADERA
MADERA, CALIFORNIA (May 25, 2019) – Three-time Short Track Shootout champion Eric Holmes stood tall on Saturday night, leading all 80 laps for the Military Tribute Night victory at Madera Speedway. The MAVTV-televised win in the Nut Up Pro Late Model Series paid $2,000 during a patriotic weekend at the one-third mile speedway.
Driving a car that Holmes described in victory lane as the “best he’s ever driven” for Nascimento Motorsports, Holmes became the fourth different winner of the year in the hotly contested series. He won time trials then drew the pole position after the top-ten redraw.
The initial start served as a precursor for the wild race as third starting Racin Vernon spun Ross Strmiska entering turn one. Both drivers had to restart at the back of the field. Incoming points leader Austin Herzog battled with Jason Aguirre for third while Carlos Vieira and Blaine Rocha battled for fifth behind them. An engine failure for Tyler Herzog slowed the action again on lap 11.
Aguirre and Rocha ended up tangling in turn two on lap 16 for another caution period. On the restart, Vieira used the first of several strong outside maneuvers to take third from Erickson. Vernon’s attempt to come back through the field ended when he had a hard crash in turn one. The incident involving Glen Cook damaged both ends of Vernon’s car to end his evening. Rocha pitted with issues under the caution as well. On a lap 34 caution, opening night winner Dylan Zampa pitted with a flat right rear tire to surrender fifth position.
Erickson answered back to Vieira on the restart, using the outside to re-take third. Ryan Hart charged from 15th to seventh throughout the series of early cautions. Hart ended up in the middle of a three-wide battle that brought out the caution when Ross Strmiska and Eric Nascimento, Jr. made contact. The field battled to the lap 50 MAVTV break with Holmes leading Herzog, Erickson, Vieira, and 13 year-old Tanner Reif.
The field only completed one lap before the caution fell again on lap 51. The following restart was a wild one, as Vieira got sideways down the backstretch. Hart was turned from behind into the backstretch wall, then hit hard by both Erik Woods and Tim Skoglund. Hart remarkably continued on after extensive repairs. The scrambling shuffled Herzog back to fifth.
Holmes had a strong restart from the outside of Erickson while Vieira drifted as low as seventh position. Hart was involved in another skirmish in turn three with Rick Thompson forcing a lap 60 caution. Toni Breidinger spun with contact that sent Howard Holden’s hood flying through the air for an additional caution flag.
Holmes again out dueled Erickson on a restart while Blaine Rocha emerged as a challenger. Vieira spun out in turn four but was able to continue. Vieira ended up in the path of Holmes which caused some grief for the leader over the final five laps. Holmes managed to get around Vieira in the closing stages to take a six-car length over Rocha, Dylan Zampa, Erickson, and Herzog.
Tanner Reif added to his remarkable season with his third victory in the 51FIFTY Jr. Late Model Series. The Las Vegas 13 year-old has now led 210 laps over the course of the four races and has recorded fast-time in all four events as well.
Reif followed his fast-time with drawing the pole position over the 16 car field. The initial start was tumultuous just like in the Pro Late Models. Bakersfield’s Kercie Jung ended up on top of Jake Bollman’s car in turn one. Both managed to continue after repairs. A caution on lap seven involved Braden Connor of Las Vegas and Washington’s Kasey Kleyn spinning.
The evening saw a series of back-and-forth action as the outside line suffered on each successive restart. Joey Iest restarted outside Reif but fell into the clutches of Bakersfield’s Seth Wise. They battled side-by-side for several laps for second before the next caution on lap 20 for Connor spun again in turn one. Wise and Iest continued their action for the second spot and had some brief contact that sent Wise sliding.
Kleyn had additional spins on lap 26 and 34 that ended his night prematurely. Iest, Wise, and Jay Juleson battled for second through lapped traffic before a lap 38 spin for Olivia Manke brought the lap 40 scheduled break two laps early.
With adjustments complete and MAVTV interviews recorded, racing continued with Tyler Reif beginning to enter the fold. Tanner Reif built up a 2.5 second lead that was erased for a caution when Kabe McClenny’s car littered turn two with debris. Wise and Iest continued battling for second with Wise sliding up the race track to yield third to Tyler Reif.
Tyler Reif then took over second from Iest before a lap 63 caution set up a seven lap sprint between the brothers. Tanner Reif started inside brother Tyler and charged away for the victory with Tyler narrowly defeating Iest for second. Wise and McClenny rounded out the top-five.
Bakersfield’s Hank Hall returned to the Mini Cups vs. Bandoleros and won the Bandolero portion by leading 19 of the 20 laps of competition. Hall started fourth but quickly moved past opening winner Ethan Nascimento for the top spot. Round #2 winner Dylan Baptista challenged 2018 champion Riley Massey for second position before he spun on lap 14.
Massey chased Hall over the final six laps but couldn’t manage to get the lead. Hall led Massey and Nathaniel Edwards for an all-Bakersfield podium while Aiden Phillips of Atwater was the top Mini Cup finisher.
Sheldon Cooper climbed aboard former Toyota Sedan champion Jillaun Holden’s #14 car to take a narrow victory over Jason Lawton. The pair ran side-by-side for several laps before Cooper grabbed the lead for good on lap 23. Lawton finished second with Bakersfield’s Damien Leininger in third.
Ryan Reynolds topped a strong field for the Modified Super Toyota 25 lap victory. Patrick Geiger led the opening lap before Reynolds took over. A heated battle developed for second position between Geiger and Shaun Reynolds that lasted the duration of the event. Coming to the finish, the pair came together into turn three with Geiger spinning. Ryan Reynolds was victorious with rookie Kyle Labrie scored second while John McCullum overcame an early spin to finish third.
Up next for Madera Speedway is the MAVTV televised Lucas Oil Summertime Horsepower Nationals with the Spears Southwest Tour and the Spears Modified Series, Madera Hobby Stocks, and Legends of Kearney Bowl
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. 2018 episodes will continue airing until the late spring, before 2019 episodes hit the airwaves on June 6th
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