cjspeedway Archives

CJ Speedway crowns season champions

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (Aug. 11, 2023) – Friday night, CJ Speedway held its final Friday night race of the 2023 season as Midwest Frame & Axle of Iowa City hosted the season championship races. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds had a season high of 24 drivers. Kyle Madden led the majority of the race from his outside front row start but a late caution brought the field to his rear bumper for the restart. Madden was unable to hold off Jarrett Brown who came from a 12th position start to take the lead. The 88 team of Brown has had a terrific season at CJ and the win on Friday night earned him the 2023 season championship title. Madden ran second ahead of Brandon Banks and Kurt Kile. The IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars had another strong field of contenders. Norman Bean led the first couple laps before Matt Picray took over the top spot. Picray, in search of his first win of the year at CJ, drove a flawless race in scoring an [Read More]

Call him doctor! Brown puts on a Clinic at CJ Speedway

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (Aug. 4, 2023) – The CJ Speedway roared back to life with an action-packed night of racing on a perfectly prepared racing surface thanks to the efforts of promoter Larry Richardson. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds have provided great racing all season and the man to beat in the Modified has been Jarrett Brown and the Performer Chassis owned by Bill Failyer comes to the track dialed in every Friday night. Brown took the green for the main event in the ninth starting position and was battling for second before one lap was completed. Brown shot by Kolton Osborn on lap three and went on to record a convincing win in the feature. Brandon Banks advanced from the eighth starting spot to take second but finished well behind Brown. Dakota Simmons had a fine run in taking third. The IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars saw a strong field of 19 drivers take the green for their main event that would see several different drivers take their turn at the front. [Read More]

Close finishes highlight CJ Speedway racing action

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (July 21, 2023) – Friday night, fans at CJ Speedway were treated to a fantastic evening of IMCA racing on the perfectly prepared 4/10-mile dirt track with three of the five main event winners being determined on the final lap. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modified main event saw Anthony Guss lead the first couple circuits before Blaine Webster took over the point position. Ninth starting Jarrett Brown worked to the front and took over the top spot and with the year the Ainsworth driver has been having, it appeared as the race for the lead was over and the battle for second would be on. Brandon Banks, in his second night in his new car, chased down Brown and set up a late-race charge that would net him his first win of the year at CJ. Banks took the win by passing Brown on the white flag lap and came under the checkers with a car length win. Brown settled for second ahead of a fast-closing Dakota Simmons. IMCA [Read More]

Brown, Paris score big wins at CJ Speedway

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (July 14, 2023) – Racing resumed at CJ Speedway, following two consecutive nights of rainouts of regular IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing programs. Rain threatened to spoil Friday night as well but went on as scheduled and Patriot Fireworks provided a very nice display of pyrotechnics before rain moved in. The headliner of the night was the Friesen Performance IMCA Modified main event. Brandon Banks debuted his new car and the new car is going to be a very fast machine. Banks shot to the front from his fourth row start and built a comfortable lead only to have ninth starting Jarrett Brown chase down Banks and make what proved to be the winning pass with four laps remaining. Brown has been the man to beat all year and Friday night was no exception. Banks ran second ahead of Kurt Kile. A win in the Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMods would be very big for Shane Paris, currently fifth in national standings for the division, and that was exactly [Read More]

See saw win by inches in IMCA Stock Car thriller at CJ Speedway

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (June 23) – Another beautiful Friday night greeted a great crowd as the racing action was very exciting at the CJ Speedway. IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars continue to provide great racing each and every Friday night. The main event took the green with Kenny O’Donnell taking the lead and looking to break a recent string of bad luck at his hometown race track. O’Donnell stretched the lead out early in the race and appeared to be on his way to the win only to have Jason See make a late-race charge to the front. See went to the outside of O’Donnell as the two came off of turn four headed to the checkered flag. At the finish line, See took the win by no more than 12 inches over O’Donnell, who led all but the last few feet in the 16-lap feature. Norman Bean ran with the leaders the entire race and settled for a close third ahead of Dustin Griffiths. Jarrett Brown has had a great year at [Read More]

Kile, Strothman headline winners’ list at CJ Speedway

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (June 16, 2023) – The weatherman provided another beautiful night Friday for racing action at the CJ Speedway, located on the Louisa County Fairgrounds in Columbus Junction. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds took the green for their 18-lap feature with Kurt Kile splitting the front row starters, the Brau brothers, Kile took the lead that he would not relinquish. Outside fourth row starter Jarrett Brown worked to the front quickly and tried to catch the quick running Kile but although he was able to close on the leader, Brown was unable to mount a serious challenge for the lead. Kile took the win ahead of Brown and visitor Zach Dockter from Norwich, N.D. IMCA Sunoco Stock Cars never fail to provide great racing action and that was the case once again as the 16-lap main event saw plenty of wheel to wheel racing action. Corey Strothman scored the win after leading flag-to-flag from his outside front row start. Strothman held off the constant challenges of Johnny Spaw and Jason See. Those [Read More]

Simmons scores first CJ Speedway IMCA Modified win

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (June 9, 2023) – IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing returned to CJ Speedway on Friday night with near perfect weather conditions and a solid field of race cars were on hand to put on a great night of racing on a perfectly prepared race track in front of a nice crowd. It is always special to see a regular competitor score the first win of their racing career at the track and that was the case Friday night as Dakota Simmons, The Douds Missile, captured the win in the very tough Friesen Performance IMCA Modified feature. An early dust-up saw the cars of Troy Philpott and Brian Bushong retire to the pit area before one lap was completed. With the lineup reset, the race was on and the very racy track allowed plenty of action as the front runners came from deep in the field. Danny Brau led early before Tim Simpson took over the top spot for a couple of laps. The ninth starting Simmons took over the top [Read More]

Five IMCA feature winners decided on final laps at CJ

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (June 2, 2023) – All five IMCA feature events came down to the final laps, with winners being determined on the final straight away Friday at CJ Speedway. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modified main event came down to the final corner as race leader Kurt Kile encountered lapped traffic and shot to the extreme high line of the speedway in turn four. This allowed an opening on the bottom side of the track and Jarrett Brown was there to take advantage of the opening. Brown was able to get to the checkers less than a car length ahead of Kile. The 77 of Kile led the majority of the race only to be bested by Brown on the last lap. Kile took second ahead of Dakota Simmons. The IMCA Sunoco Stock Car main event was another action-packed event that saw close racing, some bumps and a driver racing from the back twice. When the checkers flew it was Adam Bell parking in victory lane for the first time this [Read More]

Richardson races to career first win at CJ

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (May 26, 2023) – Friday night saw a beautiful night for racing at the CJ Speedway. The program included great racing and a first-ever win on a night that saw the final checkered flag wave at 9:55 p.m. Tucker Richardson is a junior-to-be at Winfield-Mount Union High School and is in his first year of racing full-sized cars. Richardson, who comes from a racing family, made his sixth start in an IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock on Friday night. Richardson led the main event early and was overtaken by Luke Phillips, but misfortune struck Phillips, as he was forced to the pit area with mechanical issues. Young Richardson went on to lead the final laps in route to an impressive win taking the checkers first ahead of a vastly improving Billy Stanford. David Crimmins made his first ever visit to CJ on Friday night and ran third. The win, which will be the first of many for the 16-year-old Richardson, set off a big celebration in victory lane. Jarrett Brown [Read More]

Becerra breaks Brown win streak at CJ Speedway

By Jerry Mackey COLUMBUS JUNCTION, Iowa (May 19, 2023) – IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing was held on a blustery mid-May Friday night at the 4/10-mile dirt track, CJ Speedway. A solid field of drivers were on hand to provide another entertaining night of racing in five IMCA divisions. The Friesen Performance IMCA Modifieds saw CJ Speedway regular Jarrett Brown have his recent win streak come to an end at the hands of Carthage, Ill., driver Austin Becerra. Brown took the lead early but could not hold off Becerra, who had started the feature in the 10th position. Becerra took the win ahead of Brown and Dakota Simmons. Matt Lundry led the Friesen Performance IMCA Northern SportMod feature for several laps before ninth starting Logan Anderson took over the top spot. Anderson held the point for a few laps before 12th starting Dylan VanWyk shot into the lead with a slick move off of turn two. VanWyk has been a frequent visitor to the FOCO Victory Lane in 2023. VanWyk scored the win ahead of Anderson and [Read More]