Sanders wins $15,000 IMCA Western SportMod Nationals at Yreka

Feature, Northern SportMod

Matt Sanders led the last 26 circuits on the way to a big Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod payday at Treka Speedway’s Western SportMod Nationals. (Photo Courtesy of Blissful Moments Photography)

By Ben Deatherage

YREKA, Calif. (July 13, 2024) – Matt Sanders would be the first driver to the stripe of the 40-lap finale for the $15,000 to win Finley Farms Western SportMod Nationals at Yreka Speedway on Saturday, July 13.

The Siskiyou Golden Fairgrounds assembled some of the country’s best Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod pilots to the 1/4-mile clay over the weekend.

When the main event began, Friday night prelim winner Joe Docekal led the opening stanza after a brief battle with Ethan Killingsworth. Docekal tried to pull away from the runner-up as Tyler Bannister settled into third.

After eight laps were completed, things slowed down due to a chain reaction crash on the front stretch. When the green returned, Docekal had his hands full with Bannister overtaking Killingworth shortly followed by a claymaker toward Docekal for the lead in turn three.

Docekal countered with a bit better run off the bottom of the fourth corner, retaining the position. Sanders came to call on the ninth circuit with a move under Killingsworth to procure third.  

Docekal and Bannister tried to walk away from the main body of the field, but Sanders and company did not go away quietly. With a dozen laps in, Sanders began to challenge Bannister, but the second-place runner kept him in check.  

After completing 14 circuits, a massive plot twist occurred with Bannister and Docekal.

Bannister tried to slide Docekal in the first set of corners. Bannister got in front of the trailblazer but the two would get interlinked with each other and brought out a caution. Bannister was done for the night, Docekal went to the work area, and Sanders inherited the lead.

When the green light came back on, Thursday prelim victor and Trevor Points bolted to second, followed by Jason, Bannister in third and Ryan Peery sporting fourth. An incredible battle for fifth ensued between Fred Ryland and Jeffrey Hudson. The two exchanged the position back and forth for several laps before Ryland secured the position on lap 29.

With 10 to go, lapped traffic would enter the race for the first time. Unfortunately, the long green flag run came to an end on 26th circuit when the hard charger Hudson spun in the final set of corners.  

The late race restart set up a dash to the finish. Points would be pressured for second by Jason Bannister. He was briefly overtaken, but Points kept his composure and ripped a good lap on the final circuit to try and reclaim the position.

With all that said, Sanders checked out from all challengers and motored his way to the checkers to score the massive payday. He has five wins on the season; it is the first time in 2024 that he has hit pay dirt at Yreka.

The race for second was a photo finish, and Points beat out Jason Bannister by a narrow 0.038 seconds. Ryland made a late move to obtain fourth, while Peery placed fifth.

Related Articles

Modified

Trenchard, Killingsworth are fastest on Friday at Yreka

By Ben Deatherage YREKA, Calif. (July 5, 2024) – Yreka Speedway set the stage for an electrifying start to the month of July on Friday with the Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds and Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMods in action. Nick Trenchard would win the Modified main at Yreka for the third time this season while hometown hotshoe Ethan Killingsworth notched his ninth Northern SportMod victory, and fourth of 2024 at Yreka.  The Modified main event started with a three-wide battle between Mark Wauge, Trenchard and Jacob Mallet Jr. Trenchard beat both on the backstretch and was the pacesetter. Mallet stayed in Trenchard’s tire tracks but things slowed down with two down for a caution. On the restart, Trenchard was good, while Wauge, in third, felt a little bit of pressure from Monte Bischoff.   As the race stayed green, Mallet was close to Trenchard but could not find a way around. As the laps clicked away, Trenchard had just enough of an advantage to have some breathing room and continued to operate smoothly on the [Read More]

Feature

Ferrando banks $5,000 at Yreka’s Biehn Memorial

By Ben Deatherage YREKA, Calif. (June 14, 2024) – A threat to win wherever he tows, Grey Ferrando’s latest Friesen Performance IMCA Modified victory was good for $5,000 when Yreka Speedway hosted the inaugural Rich and Nicky Biehn Memorial Friday night. From Stayton, Ore., and newly eligible to qualify for the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational, led from the end of lap seven to the checkers in the headline race at the event dedicated to honoring the legacy of two beloved racing enthusiasts and car owners.  Kellen Chadwick initially took the lead and had a moment where he could have some breathing room as Ferrando was occupied with keeping back Collen Winebarger and Tyler Blankenship. Ferrando kept both in check, then went back on the offensive and poured more pressure on Chadwick. Ferrando overtook Chadwick at the wire as the seventh circuit was scored and led the rest of the distance in the caution-free main event to score his first win of the season at Yreka and his fourth victory in the Shaw Race Cars Western Region. [Read More]

Northern SportMod

Points paces opening night of Western SportMod Nationals

By Ben Deatherage YREKA, Calif. (July 11, 2024) – Thursday was the inaugural Western SportMod Nationals opening leg at Yreka Speedway for one of the country’s biggest paying Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod races. Over 50 entries from across the country journeyed to the Siskiyou Golden Fairgrounds ¼-mile clay oval. Buddy Kniss took an early lead at the start of the feature. The race heated up a few laps in as Ethan Killingsworth moved unsuccessfully to overtake the second-running Trevor Points. The tension was broken when a caution was raised after six circuits. Points launched a challenge for the lead against Kniss as the race resumed.  The two engaged in a fierce battle, with Points eventually seizing the top spot, on lap nine.  Meanwhile, a race for third unfolded between Killingsworth and Jeffrey Hudson, who eventually secured the position. On lap 11, Killingsworth rebounded beautifully with a brilliant double overtake past Hudson and Kniss to become the new runner-up. The field was slowed down for the final time when the yellow flag reemerged on the 13th [Read More]

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply