cocopahspeedway Archives

Brown wheels borrowed car to big IMCA Hobby Stock payday

SOMERTON, Ariz. – Expectations were more than exceeded when Brian Brown made his first-ever IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock start March 6 at Cocopah Speedway. With a $1,600 check on the line, Brown proved to be a fast learner in the full-bodied class, getting a break from a timely yellow and parking friend and fellow Ramona, Calif., resident Brian Fitzgibbons’ car in victory lane. Fitzgibbons, off the track while undergoing chemotherapy, had suggested Brown try his luck in the 2020 Charger Chassis wheeled last season by former national champion Jeff Ware. Friends and sponsors had helped Fitzgibbon’s wife Amanda buy the car with the ultimate goal of getting him racing again. It was parked in their garage before Brown put the final race-ready touches on at his house and booked hotel rooms for the trip to Cocopah. “Our fathers were best friends in high school and we live like 20 houses away,” said Brown, who also races a Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod. “We’d seen the to-win (amount at Cocopah) bumping up and were sitting around and [Read More]

IMCA Hobby Stock winner cashes $1,600 check Saturday at Cocopah

SOMERTON, Ariz. – With money added from top to bottom of the purse, the winner of Saturday’s IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock feature at Cocopah Speedway goes home $1,600 richer. Included in the expanded purse are $200 prizes for a mystery position finisher and the hard charger of the Bobby’s Territorial Harley Davidson Night at the races event. IMCA Modifieds, Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods and Mach-1 Sport Compacts complete the March 6 card, with IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Shaw Race Cars Western and Big Daddy Race Cars Southern region, KMJ Performance State and track points to be awarded. Pit gates open at 4 p.m. and the grandstand opens at 5 p.m. Racing starts at 7 p.m. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors 55 and over and military, and free for kids 12 and under. Pit passes are $35. Saturday’s show at Somerton will be broadcast by IMCA.TV.

Forster doubles up at Cocopah, Ward and West are also IMCA winners

By Ben Deatherage SOMERTON, Ariz. (Feb. 20) – Once more three Speedway Motors IMCA Weekly Racing sanctioned classes were in competition at Cocopah Speedway on Saturday. IMCA Modifieds, Karl Kustoms Northern Sport Mods, and IMCA STARS Mod Lites complimented the card of the final night of the Western States Dwarf Car Nationals at the ⅜-mile track. For the IMCA Modified main event, Marvin Mueller got the front on the drop of the initial green flag. He did his best to keep his car ahead of the competition but would be overtaken on lap three by Jerry Flippo. Flippo steered his vessel ahead of the rest of the pack but was eventually caught. Arizona native Tim Ward overtook Jerry Flippo on lap 14. Ward was by no means out of the woods as he had to deal with some thick lapped traffic and pressure from Flippo. The seventh starting Ward held on to capture his first win of the 2021 campaign in the caution-free affair, earning $1,000 and a spot on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot. Flippo ended [Read More]

Mari, Pitt, Forster collect Friday wins at Cocopah

By Ben Deatherage SOMERTON, Ariz. (Feb. 19) – Lance Mari, David Pitt and a defending national champion all took care of business Friday at Cocopah Speedway. Mari topped the $1,000 to win main event for IMCA Modifieds and Pitt paced the Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods, while Zack Forster won the first event for IMCA STARS Mod Lites in Arizona. Forster, who started fifth, obtained the top spot entering the first corner on the opening start. A lap three caution bunched the field up and turned out to be the lone stoppage of the race. On the restart, Forster experienced some immense pressure from fellow Californian Kaden Cochrun. Cochrun managed to maneuver his way around Forster to beat him out at the line on lap five. However, Forster held his composure and reclaimed the position on the following circuit. As the long green flag run continued to develop Forster had a brief scare in lapped traffic. Kaden Cochrun did his best to get around Forster, but Forster made some key moves. Forster went on to win the main event and became [Read More]

IMCA STARS Mod Lites make Cocopah Speedway debut

SOMERTON, Ariz. – IMCA STARS Mod Lites make their 2021 Arizona debut this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 19 and 20 at Cocopah Speedway. IMCA Modifieds run for $1,000 to win along with Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational berths and Karl Kustoms Northern SportMods run for $500 to win, while top prize for the Mod Lites is $250 each night during the Western States Dwarf Car Association Nationals. IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing National, Shaw Race Cars Western Region, KMJ Performance Arizona State and track points will be awarded. Pit gates open at noon, the grandstand opens at 2 p.m. and racing starts at 4 p.m. both days. Spectator admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors and military and free for kids ages 11 and under. Pit passes are $35. An open practice runs from 6-9 p.m. on Thursday. Pit passes that evening are $25. More information is available at cocopahspeedway.com, on Facebook and on Instagram.

Mari, Black are best at Cocopah’s Winter Nationals Hangover

SOMERTON, Ariz. (Jan. 29-30) – Lance Mari outran everybody on opening night for his first IMCA Modified feature win of the season before Tanner Black collected his third Cocopah Speedway checkers of the month, on night two of the Winter Nationals Hangover. Mari drew Friday’s pole start and led all 25 laps in Friday’s $1,000 Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifying victory at Somerton. The final caution waved with eight to go and Darrell Hughes II chased fellow Californian Mari across the stripe. “Everything ran pretty well. The track was good and I could get past lapped traffic when I got to it,” Mari said. “It was a good showing for us, our sponsors, everybody.” Tim Ward was third and Kollin Hibdon rounded out the top four. Fifth on Friday, Black went back to the setup drawing board to find some extra speed on Saturday. He started outside the front row and led the distance, holding off the tenacious Hughes after getting caught in traffic. “It’s hard to get one feature win,” said Black, already [Read More]

Dotson dominates finale for IMCA.TV Winter Nationals

By Ben Deatherage SOMERTON, Ariz. (Jan. 16) – Ethan Dotson dominated the seventh and concluding round of the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals Saturday at Cocopah Speedway, topping another $1,000 to win main event and wrapping up the IMCA Modified series point title. Casey Arneson grabbed the initial race lead and held onto the position until the fourth lap when Dotson made the pass on him. Dotson soared on the high side of the racing surface and was able to construct a large lead over the rest of the competition. Two stoppages put pressure on Dotson when it came to restarts. They turned out to be the only thing to slow him down as he dominated the rest of the distance to pick up his third Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational ballot qualifying win of 2021. Jeff Larson ended in second with 12th starting Brandon Beckendorf third. The rest of the top five finishing order included Kollin Hibdon and Chaz Baca. The Somerton oval wrapped up the series with another night of sensational races with more than 150 IMCA competitors in [Read More]

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]

Bombardo, Partain, Dotson, Spangler get wins in fast-paced IMCA.TV Winter Nationals features

SOMERTON, Ariz. (Jan. 14) – Brandon Bombardo, Bo Partain, Ethan Dotson and Aaron Spangler all took their turns in victory lane during the course of 85 consecutive caution-free laps on night five of the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals at Cocopah Speedway. Bombardo led start to finish in an IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock feature last interrupted by a caution with 10 laps to go. Partain and Dotson duplicated that flag-to-flag feat in 25-lap Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod and IMCA Modified main events, respectively. Spangler then inherited the front spot 11 laps into the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car feature after leader Kyle Heckman drove off with a flat tire. He held off Andy Altenburg to the end of a third consecutive green to checkered 25-lapper. Joshua Cordova and then Matt Olson headed the pursuit of Bombardo before 10th starting Mitchell Mohler Sr. charged into second with seven laps left. Olson ended in third. Partain had his hands full with Josh Most before his challenger slowed and exited for the infield in the late going. Shane Paris and Fred Ryland [Read More]

Two repeat at IMCA.TV Winter Nationals, Osantowski, Olson get first Cocopah wins

SOMERTON, Ariz. (Jan. 9) – Tanner Black and Kyle Heckman were repeat winners while Brian Osantowski and Matt Olson both made first visits to victory lane Saturday, on night four of the IMCA.TV Winter Nationals at Cocopah Speedway. Black led every lap of the IMCA Modified feature but had to hold off the hard-charging Ethan Dotson for the $1,000 checkers. Heckman made his way to the front following a lap six restart, then outran Blake Adams and Michael Sheen as the IMCA Sunoco Stock Car feature stayed green the last 19 circuits. Osantowski checked out on the rest of the Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod field before encountering lapped traffic and three late cautions, finally running away from Miles Morris and Austen Becerra in a one-lap dash to the finish. And Olson led all 25 laps of the IMCA Sunoco Hobby Stock feature before ending Eric Knutson’s streak of three straight Winter Nationals wins by the width of his bumper. Knutson made his charge toward the front from 16th starting. Already on the Fast Shafts All-Star Invitational [Read More]