Latest RaceSaver Nationals crown is career third for Bubak

News, Results, Sprint Car

His string of even numbered year triumphs continued Sunday night as Jake Bubak followed 2020 and 2022 victories with the plush 2024 RaceSaver Nationals checkers. (Photo by Joe Orth)
His string of even numbered year triumphs continued Sunday night as Jake Bubak followed 2020 and 2022 victories with the plush 2024 RaceSaver Nationals checkers. (Photo by Joe Orth)

By Greg Soukup

EAGLE, Neb. (Sept. 1, 2024) – The 2024 IMCA Racesaver Nationals is in the books, and what a story it was as Jake Bubak’s career third crown came with an event record $12,000 check.

Bubak led Joey Danley across the Sunday night stripe at Eagle Raceway to add another trophy and custom made belt to his collection from 2020 and 2022 triumphs.

Third in the Saturday qualifier and winner of the BlueMax Pay Race of Champions the same night, Bubak passed John Carney and then Danley following the scheduled stoppage on the 30th of 50 laps.

“It took us a little while to get going. I’m actually glad that it was a long race because it benefited the way our car was,” Bubak said, during the combined victory celebration and birthday party for car owner Ben Aufill that followed the 12th annual event. “I think the biggest part of the win was getting up to third and being able to choose our line on the restarts during the two-wide restarts in the second stage.”

There was a change in the main event this year as the lap count jumped from 35 to 50 with the stop after 30 circuits to allow teams to fuel up and check air pressure in the tires or grind them. There was an option for drivers to go to the back stretch and make any and all changes that they wished to.

All this was done within a five minute time limit and only two crew members per car were allowed to do the necessary work with no jacks allowed. In addition, the driver on the pole, in this case Gunnar Pike, chooses where to start; either inside, in the middle or outside the starting grid.

Pike had put his no. 25 in the lead after lap one with Danley second, Brandon Bosma and 2015 RaceSaver Nationals winner John Carney hot on his push bumper.

Debris slowed action on lap two. The restart saw Ethan Barrow pass Carney for fourth and then move up to third on lap four. Danley passed Pike to take over the top spot on lap 10. Bosma got past Barrow for third on lap 12 but lost the position back to him on lap 15.

Carney again joined the top four on lap 17 as Bosma fell back several spots. Lap 20 saw Barrow pass Pike on the low side to move up to second. Carney got past Pike for third on lap 23.

The yellow lights were lit in the corners the next time around when Jack Thomas slowed and then stopped by the back stretch pit entrance.

Carney passed Barrow for second on the restart. Lap 25 saw Trevor Serbus and Maverick Elkins come to a halt after Elkins hit the Armco in turn three, started flipping and collected Serbus.

Carney passed Danley for the lead on lap 28 as Bubak got past Pike for fourth place. Danley retook the top spot after another lap. 

The following circuit saw Trevor Grossenbacher go for a spin after making contact with Pike’s push bumper. Bubak got past Barrow on the restart to move to third. Brandon Bosma spun out in turn three to end the first stage of the race and may have been the luckiest driver on the track at the time because the yellow flag had already come out and he didn’t lose his position.

The two-wide restart saw Bubak pass Carney for second and grab the lead from Danley the next lap. 

Barrow jumped past Carney on lap 37 to advance to third but lost the spot back to Carney the following circuit. Jason Danley stopped on the front stretch on lap 40 and the yellow was thrown and from the restart to the checkers it was just a matter of how much Bubak was going to win by.

The final change in the top four came with nine to go when Pike got past Barrow for fourth place. The top four were Bubak by nearly three  seconds over Joey Danley with Carney third and Pike in fourth.

Making the transfer to the main event grid from the “B” feature earlier in the program were Jeremy Huish, Bosma, Joey Danley, Carson Bolden, Elkins, Steven Richardson, Thomas, Koby Werkmeister and 2018 race winner Kevin Ramey.

Kyle Vanover was the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car winner.

Race Saver Nationals main event results – 1. Jake Bubak, Lincoln; 2. Joey Danley, Martell; 3. John Carney, Amarillo, Texas; 4. Gunnar Pike, South Bend; 5. Ethan Barrow, Bloomington, Ind.; 6. Jeremy Huish, Ness City, Kan.; 7. Brandon Bosma, Rock Rapids, Iowa; 8. Steven Richardson, Liberal, Kan.; 9. Trevor Grossenbacher, Panama; 10. Carson Bolden, Quinlan, Texas; 11. Chase Brewer, Waxahachie, Texas; 12. Kevin Ramey, Fort Worth, Texas; 13. Cole Vanderheiden, Papillion; 14. Ryder Laplante, Calera, Okla.; 15. Koby Werkmeister, Armour, S.D.; 16. Cole Wayman, Lincoln; 17. Gene Ackland, Martell; 18. Claud Estes, Godley, Texas; 19. Dusty Ballenger, Harrisburg, S.D.; 20. Chad Koch, Murdock; 21. Jason Danley, Lincoln; 22. Mike Boston, Lincoln; 23. Clint Benson, Papillion; 24. Maverick Elkins, Bryan, Texas; 25. Trevor Serbus, Olivia, Minn.; 26. Jack Thomas, Bates City, Mo.; 27. Cody Ledger Omaha.

Related Articles

Hobby Stock

Eagle win is career first for Cook

By Greg Soukup EAGLE, Neb. (Aug. 3, 2024) – Score a career-first Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod feature win at Eagle Raceway for Lauren Cook. The third-year hotshoe out of Lincoln led the distance of the Saturday show, and while competition for third through fifth places behind her was hot and heavy, Cook was in control green to checkers. “It does help starting on the front row. The track was really slick in (turns) three and four and really good in one and two,” she said. “I could get the car to turn and hit some good moisture but I was a little slow in three and four because it was so slick. I felt like I was going really slow like somebody should have been passing me, but they didn’t”. McLain Reed, Josh Pfeifer, Cole Wayman and Adam Vrbka completed the top five on the Stumpy’s Custom Creations and A1 Iron-presented Conquer the High Banks program. Chad Andersen topped the Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds and Jason Danley took the IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car checkers [Read More]

Results

Bryan sprints to Eagle checkers 

By Greg Soukup EAGLE, Neb. (July 28) – Nick Bryan led every lap in winning Saturday’s IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car feature at Eagle Raceway. The victory came in just his second visit to the Nebraska speedplant this season. “Somebody showed their nose a few times, but at the same time I just kept watching the score­board, counting down the laps and trying to stay out front,” he said. Mike Densberger collected Runner Freight IMCA Modified feature win number three this year, racing from eighth starting to the lead with seven laps left. Shawn Harker won his sixth Hoosier Racing Tire IMCA Northern SportMod feature of the season while Roy Armstrong raced to his third local checkers of 2018 from the 11th starting spot in the Valentino’s IMCA Hobby Stock finale. His ATV Motorsports IMCA Sport Compact victory was Justin Callender’s second of the year. He took charge with four circuits to go.

Feature

Grabouski soars to Topless Nationals win at Eagle

EAGLE, Neb. (April 2, 2023) – New car, same results. Jordan Grabouski made his first start in a new JGR Chassis a winning one, topping the Sunday feature for Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds at Eagle Raceway’s inaugural Topless Nationals. The five-time and defending national champion battled Jeremy Mills in the late going before capturing the $1,000 victory, his career 278th in the division. “I was a little nervous. This is a new design and Justin Clark, Josh Houseman and Robert Brinkman have spent hundreds of hours in the shop,” Grabouski said. “Winning the first night out is always your goal but you don’t always achieve that.”  Mills, the Saturday winner at RPM Speedway’s Mike Hughes Sunflower Classic, had the fastest car much of the night while Grabouski worked his way up from fifth starting. The two traded sliders before Mills’ engine expired late in the race. Grabouski went on to get the W ahead of Ryan Jenkins and Cole Wayman. “One hundred percent, it’s tough to win at Eagle,” said Grabouski, already Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational qualifying [Read More]

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply