By Ben Deatherage
STUART, Iowa (Apr. 13, 2025) — The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds headlined the 64th season opener at Stuart Speedway, and Norwalk’s Todd Shute powered to victory in the 20-lap feature.
California transplant Trevor Fitz jumped out to the early lead and held back two-time defending national champion Chaz Baca Jr. of Arizona during the opening laps. A lap seven restart brought new challengers, as Shute and Tanner Black joined the fray.
Shute, the 2007 Speedway Motors IMCA Super Nationals fueled by Casey’s winner and three-time defending Stuart track titlist, made a decisive move on lap 11 to edge out Fitz at the line. A couple of mid-race cautions couldn’t slow him down, and Shute dominated the closing circuits to collect his second Razor Chassis North Central Region win of the season.
Fitz held on to finish second, while 2019 Arizona State champion Kelsie Black, wife of Tanner, completed the podium in third.
Schafroth Scores First Stock Car Victory of 2025
Buck Schafroth wasted no time in taking command of the 20-lap Sunoco IMCA Stock Car feature.
The Orient driver took off from the drop of the green, with Austin Meiners soon arriving at his back bumper. Despite multiple challenges, including a pair of cautions on laps six and seven, Schafroth remained steady and quick around the bottom of the track.
Meiners worked every lane to find a way around the leader, but a late yellow with six to go gave Schafroth another clean restart. He remained unfazed and led the rest of the way to earn his first EQ Cylinder Heads Northern Region victory of the season.
Meiners settled for second, while Oregon native, now living in Iowa, Dillon Solum made his way to third.
Elmquist Impressive in SportMod Triumph
Eighteen-year-old Josalyn Elmquist led wire-to-wire in the 18-lap Karl Chevrolet IMCA Northern SportMod feature for her second career win.
The Boone racer showed poise beyond her years, pacing the field after a lap one caution and holding off a talented group of challengers.
Among those in pursuit were 2009 Modified Super Nationals winner Randy Havlik, a two-time Modified track champion, and three-time SportMod track champ Brayton Carter.
Elmquist navigated lapped traffic masterfully in the closing laps to seal the victory. The battle for second came down to the wire, with Havlik edging Carter for runner-up honors.
Richards Rallies Late for 14th Hobby Stock Victory
The 16-lap Sunoco IMCA Hobby Stock finale delivered a thrilling finish, with Beatrice, Nebraska standout Dillon Richards charging to his 14th win of the season.
The early laps featured a spirited duel between 2021 Iowa State champion Solomon Bennett and 2016 Super Nationals winner Andrew Burg. A lap two caution reset the field, with Burg taking control on the restart.
Richards and 2021 track champion Eric Stanton soon worked their way forward, with Richards applying pressure to the leader by lap eight. Meanwhile, Keith Burg surged to the front via the high side and took the lead on lap 10.
Coming to the white flag, Keith Burg brushed the wall, allowing Richards to seize the moment. He completed the pass out of turn four and won the drag race to the checkers for his sixth B&B Racing Chassis Northern Region victory of 2025.
Keith and Andrew Burg finished second and third, respectively.
The entire event was streamed live on IMCA.TV. Full replays are now available to subscribers through the IMCA.TV Replay Subscription for just $24.99. Already subscribed? Be sure not to miss the highly anticipated Season 2 of the Boone Docuseries, coming soon exclusively to the IMCA.TV Replay platform.
