First Arizona shows for Wild West Tour see Baca, Hibdon top IMCA Modifieds at Cocopah

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Defending Shaw Race Cars Western Region champion Chaz Baca started his pursuit of the Pitt Stop Mo­torsports Wild West Tour title with the opening night IMCA Modified win at Cocopah Speedway. (Photo by Bobby McMorris)

SOMERTON, Ariz. (March 19-20) – The first visit to Arizona by the Pitt Stop Motorsports Wild West Tour saw two IMCA Modified drivers race to career-first tour wins at Cocopah Speedway.

Defending Shaw Race Cars Western Region, state and track champion Chaz Baca topped the Friday show, then ran second to Kollin Hibdon under the Saturday lights at Somerton. Both feature events on the opening weekend for the 11th annual tour paid $1,000 to win. 

Baca started on the pole Friday, tangled with Hibdon racing for the lead near midway and went on to lead all 25 laps. Darrell Hughes II was second and Steve McCollough third. 

“It was definitely a good way to start the tour. It was nice to pick up a tour win at one of my home tracks with my sponsors there to watch,” said Baca, who plans to chase the WWT crown. “I haven’t won a tour title before. It would be cool to get this one.” 

Scored 19th after his early exit on night one, Hibdon led green to checkers on night two, pulling away from the rest of the field and getting the win at a home track of his own that’s six hours from his Nevada home.

“I’ve been racing at Cocopah since I started racing a SportMod. I won one there in a Modified (the Corning Memorial) last year,” Hibdon said. “To win a Wild West Tour race is like icing on the cake. I know a lot of people follow this series.”

Baca and Hibdon were both on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot going into the weekend. Hughes ran third on Saturday.

Kollin Hibdon earned his career first Pitt Stop Motorsports Wild West Tour victory in the night two feature for IMCA Modifieds at Cocopah Speedway. (Photo by Melissa Coker, Melissa’s Out On A Limb Photog­raphy)

Zane DeVilbiss and Michael Johnson maintained their tour winning ways, sweeping IMCA Sunoco Stock Car and Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod features, respectively. 

DeVilbiss had won the final two Wild West events of 2020 and became the Stock Car tour wins leader with his career fifth victory on Friday. 

A broken ball joint and three late restarts made that win more exciting than DeVilbiss liked; he battled visibility issues after a hood pin came out on Saturday.

Scott Sluka start 11th and finished second and defending champion Chase Berkeley was third on Friday. DeVilbiss won ahead of Bubba Stafford Jr. and Sluka on Saturday.

Johnson had won sixth of eight features en route to capturing the 2020 tour crown: He ran his record to six wins in nine Cocopah starts, charging to the front and checking out both nights.

“Cocopah is usually smooth and slick. It’s a track that fits my driving style,” he said. 

Ty Rogers was runner-up both nights. Chris Toth was third on Friday, Taylor Kuehl third on Saturday. 

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Baca reigns at IMCA.TV Winter Nationals, night six wins to Ryland, Johnson, Olson

By Ben Deatherage SOMERTON, Ariz. – The defending Shaw Race Cars Western Region champion parked in victory lane Friday, night six of the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals at Cocopah Speedway.  Chaz Baca took the lead in the opening stages of the IMCA Modified feature. Baca eventually was tracked down and passed on lap 13 by Tim Ward. Ward attempted to construct a sizable interval over Baca and the rest of the field but ran into heavy lapped traffic.  In the closing stages of the feature Ward and Baca dueled one another for the win. Baca made a decisive pass in slower traffic that gave him the advantage on the final circuit and held on for the $1,000 win in the non-stop race. It was his first of the season and marked the fourth different winner in six races at the Winter Nationals.  Baca was already of the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Ward was second with two-time Winter Nationals winners Tanner Black and Ethan Dotson next across the stripe. Kollin Hibdon was fifth IMCA entries in four divisions from 15 [Read More]