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BADGER MIDGET SERIES INLAND WINGED SPRINTS SOCAL LIGHTNING SPRINTS NATIONAL PAVEMENT SPRINT CAR RANKINGS

Midget Auto Racing Association

SOCAL LIGHTNING SPRINTS

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BADGER MIDGET SERIES

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www.bmara.com

Badger Midget Auto Racing Association (BMARA), the oldest midget organization in the world. Some events are co-sanctioned by the United States Automobile Club (USAC). BMARA sanctions several midget car events at other nearby tracks.

RJ Corson Takes AFS Badger Midget Series/MARA Co-Sanction At Sycamore Speedway

The Advanced Fastening Supply Badger Midget Auto Racing Association and Midget Auto Racing Association (MARA) joined forces for the Alexander/Schuck Memorial co-sanctioned event at Sycamore Speedway.

Thanks to Ken Alexander the purse was increased by $2,000 for Badger and MARA. This extra support brought the winner’s share to $1,500 and the rest of the Lyco Manufacturing A-Main starters would take home at least $200. In a battle between running the top or the bottom, RJ Corson in the low groove, took home the big check.

THE HEATS

Auto Meter Heat One saw Jake Dohner take to the point only to have the Edgerton, WI driver get completely sideways in front of the field. Cody Weisensel, currently second in Badger points and Charles Kunz were collected in the stack up. Both cars restarted.

When the green flew, Dohner amassed a big lead. Weisensel broke away from the pack to follow in a distant second. With just a couple of laps left Weisensel caught Dohner employing a slide job in turn two. Dohner countered but couldn’t hold the line and his car took a spin toward the infield and came to a rest without further incident. When racing resumed it was Weisensel over Miles Doherty and Kevin Battefeld.

Chet Gehrke led every lap of Hoosier Racing Tire/CASM Safety Products Heat Two and just nipped a charging Nick Kilian to take the checkers. Of note, Badger point leader Brandon Waelti was relegated to third. Waelti could have used every point a better heat position would pay with Weisensel taking his preliminary race.

The six starters for Behling Racing Products/High Performance Lubricants Heat Three went into turn one in a tight pack. They couldn’t help but go three wide. As they exited turn two it was Daltyn England (second in MARA points) who popped out and into the lead as they went down the back stretch.

On lap six Matt Rechek got sideways in turn two collecting Harrison Kleven. The hit was hard enough that the red flag was thrown. Both drivers were alright though. From there England took the win over Mitchell Davis. England gained 14 points on MARA point leader Tyler Roth who was sixth in his heat.

LYCO MANUFACTURING, ALEXANDER/SCHUCK A-MAIN

Waelti and England led the field to the green to start the Lyco Manufacturing feature event. It came as no surprise this would be a battle of set ups as both the cushion and huggy pole had their advantages depending on how the car was prepared.

Waelti got the advantage at the start and put five lengths on England early in the race. At this point Waelti’s line was hard to define as he was primarily running the middle of the track. England followed suit for a bit.

Dohner and Kleven got together and brought out the first yellow of the night just two laps in. On the restart it was Waelti, England, Davis, Corson and Weisensel. Within the next two laps Waelti on the top, England in the middle and Corson low, went three wide as they crossed the start/finish line. The trio repeated the three-wide action on the next lap. Corson was pat on the bottom but England and Waelti were still sorting the track out.

On the sixth circuit they were still insisting on three-wide racing with England being scored in the lead by a bit. By the eighth lap this battled allowed Weisensel to join the fray as the top four separated themselves from the field. Just as Corson took to the point the yellow flew.

Moving back to the previous lap it was England, Corson, Waelti, Weisensel and Eric Blumer when the racing restarted. Now it was England high and Corson low separating themselves as the three behind them battled each other.

Twelve laps in Corson nipped England at the line only to have England retake the lead on the next round. With eight laps left England was catching lappers while Weisensel passed Corson for second by running the rim.

Badger and MARA has seen this scenario before. In the first turns the cushion was a reasonable distance from the bottom, about half way up. In the second set it was about a car width from the wall and getting closer to it by the lap. The question would be whether the top would become a groove too far.

The bottom had it’s own issue as there was a hump at the the exit of turn four. It wasn’t anything resembling a rut, rather it was a textbook drumlin. You could hear the RPM’s change as the cars crossed over it.

On lap 20 of the 25 lap event England had almost a straightaway on Weisensel. Corson was that far behind in third and then the yellow flew.

England led Weisensel, Corson, Waelti and Blumer to the five lap shootout. When they gassed them up Weisensel immediately threw a slider at England. Upon the exit of turn two they were three wide with Corson quietly minding his own business on the bottom while England made it three wide as he battled back at Weisensel. England had the lead by turn three only to be dealt another slide job by Weisensel. Corson was still steady on the bottom. At the line it was England once again with Corson on his inside half a car back and Weisensel a length behind on England’s outside.

With three laps left the yellow flew for the last time. England lead Corson, Weisensel, Blumer and Waelti to the line. When the green light lit England won the drag race down the back straightaway and had several lengths on Corson.

The corners were the difference however and Corson gained ground staying steady running low and he pulled away in the waning laps for the convincing win. Blumer running the bottom, nipped Weisensel who was on higher ground, to take third. It was the second win of the season for Corson.

NOTES AND AWARDS

Local favorite Luke Wackerlin continued to be snake bitten by the track just minutes from his home. After setting Rod End Supply Quick Time to start the night, an ignition switch caused him to exit early in his heat. He was still in the top-five for that race and got to make the Schoenfeld Headers Invert Draw. In the feature an issue with the rear end of his No. 73 caused another early exit from Sycamore Speedway. He also received the Last Place Bonus in Loving Memory of Addison Dahlke.

Weisensel nibbled at Waelti’s point lead as did Corson who is closing in on Blumer for third in the standings.

Likewise, England gained on Roth in the MARA chase as the point leader finished 13th.

The High Performance Lubricants B-Main and 1855 Saloon and Grill Heat Four were not utilized.
The Bob Tattersall Spankins Motorsports Hard Charger was Dave Collins Jr.
The CASM Racing Products Hard Luck Award went to Mike Stroik.

There was no Spankins Motorsports Rookie of the Race.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

Lyco Manufacturing A - Feature (25 Laps): 1. 15C-RJ Corson[3]; 2. 19E-Daltyn England[2]; 3. 68-Eric Blumer[6]; 4. 5X-Cody Weisensel[5]; 5. 3W-Brandon Waelti[1]; 6. 21-Chet Gehrke[11]; 7. 31-Jace Sparks[9]; 8. 17-Nick Kilian[14]; 9. 8D-Miles Doherty[15]; 10. 42-Kevin Battefeld[10]; 11. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr[18]; 12. 49P-Carl Peterson IV[12]; 13. 18-Tyler Roth[16]; 14. 29-Harrison Kleven; 15. 00-John Heitzman[20]; 16. 11K-Charles Kunz[17]; 17. 2-Jake Dohner[19]; 18. 57-Matt Rechek[8]; 19. 56-Mitchell Davis[4]; 20. (DNS) 73W-Luke Wackerlin; 21. (DNS) 29K-Mike Stroik

Auto Meter Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 5X-Cody Weisensel[6]; 2. 8D-Miles Doherty[7]; 3. 42-Kevin Battefeld[3]; 4. 15C-RJ Corson[5]; 5. 49P-Carl Peterson IV[2]; 6. 11K-Charles Kunz[4]; 7. 2-Jake Dohner[1]

Hoosier Tire Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 21-Chet Gehrke[2]; 2. 17-Nick Kilian[1]; 3. 3W-Brandon Waelti[4]; 4. 31-Jace Sparks[3]; 5. 68-Eric Blumer[6]; 6. 18-Tyler Roth[5]; 7. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr[7]

Behling Racing Products Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 19E-Daltyn England[5]; 2. 56-Mitchell Davis[6]; 3. 29K-Mike Stroik[2]; 4. 73W-Luke Wackerlin[7]; 5. 57-Matt Rechek[4]; 6. (DNF) 29-Harrison Kleven[3]; 7. (DNS) 00-John Heitzman
Rod End Supply Fast Time Qualifying (25 Laps): 1. 73W-Luke Wackerlin, 14.745[3]; 2. 68-Eric Blumer, 14.821[1]; 3. 5X-Cody Weisensel, 14.822[11]; 4. 56-Mitchell Davis, 14.939[17]; 5. 18-Tyler Roth, 15.030[6]; 6. 15C-RJ Corson, 15.033[20]; 7. 19E-Daltyn England, 15.065[14]; 8. 3W-Brandon Waelti, 15.091[13]; 9. 11K-Charles Kunz, 15.147[12]; 10. 57-Matt Rechek, 15.253[16]; 11. 31-Jace Sparks, 15.280[15]; 12. 42-Kevin Battefeld, 15.336[18]; 13. 29-Harrison Kleven, 15.414[2]; 14. 21-Chet Gehrke, 15.456[19]; 15. 49P-Carl Peterson IV, 15.522[10]; 16. 29K-Mike Stroik, 15.529[5]; 17. 17-Nick Kilian, 15.589[9]; 18. 2-Jake Dohner, 15.731[7]; 19. 00-John Heitzman, 15.881[21]; 20. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr, 15.974[4]; 21. (DNS) 8D-Miles Doherty; 22. (DNS) 3-Will Gerrits; 23. (DNS) 68E-Michael Weber

Photo by Dan Simpson
Article by Bill Blumer Jr.

Nathan Crane Takes Wild Wilmot Win For His First In AFS Badger Midget Series

It was another new Lyco Manufacturing A-Main winner with the Advanced Fastening Supply Badger Midget Auto Racing Association as they made their last trip to Wilmot Raceway for 2026.

Nathan Crane who hales from Waukegan, IL, and calls Wilmot Raceway his home track scored his first win in Badger competition as he wheeled one of the Zach Boden Racing entries.

With a long season approaching its final events, point races coming more into picture and a nearly full moon, it was a wild night where racing became a full contact sport. Or as announcer Eric Huenenfeld put it after the heat races, “There may be a few discussions in the Badger pits.”

THE PRELIMINARIES
Rod End Supply Qualifying started the night with point leader Brandon Waelti setting the pace followed by rookies Karter Stark and Colin Sivia who was also in a Boden entry.

Auto Meter Heat One saw Brian Peterson and Dave Collins Jr. lead the field of six to the green. At the start, Eric Blumer and Jake Dohner made contact before they got to turn one. Dohner jumped Blumer’s right rear and nearly got his “Red Duce,” over. He managed to keep the car from flipping and narrowly missed hitting the frontstretch wall. He was out for the race though.

As they entered the first turn on the restart Peterson and Collins made contact. Sivia was charging on the outside and had nowhere to go as the Collins car was pushed up the track just enough that the left front of Sivia caught the back right of Collins. Sivia’s mount flipped, further assisted by the embankment and punctuated by a hard landing on all fours. The youngster was out of the car in short order. His first night in a midget at his home track was done.
Peterson flipped in the process too. He appeared to be uninjured and his night was also over.

This left three cars and Blumer (third in Badger points) lead every lap after the restart for the win. Cody Weisensel who was second in points going into the night, finished second. Collins, who was just outside the top ten in points, was able to restart after the crash and finished third.

Nick Kilian led the first lap of Hoosier Tire Heat Two. Stark was working the outside from the fourth row and charged to the lead as they crossed the line to complete lap two. There was more wheel banging behind him but everyone kept moving forward as Stark won by a straightaway over Kilian.

Harrison Kleven continued to impress as he took his new ride to the point in Behling Racing Products Heat Three. Tenth in points going into the night, Kleven led the first two laps as Waelti, RJ Corson (fourth in points) and Miles Doherty (sixth in points) went three wide beating wheels behind him.

Corson and then Waelti got by Kleven as they passed the line to complete the third lap. From there Waelti did everything he could to get by Corson to no avail. Corson went on to take the 14 points for the win while Waelti settled for second and the ten points it awarded. Kleven held on for third in the heat.

LYCO MANUFACTURING A-MAIN (THE FIRST TWENTY-ONE LAPS)

Weisensel led the field from the pole for the Lyco Manufacturing A-Main behind the wheel of the No. 20 car he has campaigned for so many years with his father Kevin. Crane was on his outside.

Weisensel got the jump at the start and led the first ten laps. Crane ran second and would gain or lose five lengths on Weisensel depending on the lap. He never quite got to the bumper of Weisensel at this point, but he was close. Behind them there was more beating and banging going on but everyone kept pointing down course.

On the next circuit they caught their first lapped car. That midget was running a consistent line on the cushion like everyone else and the top two cars dove under without issue.

As Weisensel crossed the line for the twentieth circuit this race had all the feel of so many others of late where Badger has gone green to checkers. If that was the case it was probably going to be another win for Weisensel as Crane wasn’t getting much closer than three lengths.

LYCO MANUFACTURING A-MAIN (THE LAST FOUR LAPS)

And then the whole complexion of the race changed. As Weisensel crossed the line to complete lap twenty-two of the twenty-five lap race, the red flag came out. Jake Goeglein was attempting to exit the track. Unless one can pull into the infield, the way this is done is by going straight off the front stretch continuing forward rather than turning left for turn one. Here, Mike Gebhard who had been battling Goeglein for position, didn’t catch that Goeglein was exiting and Gebhard contacted Goeglein’s left rear. This sent both cars flipping. Both cars were done for the night.

With just four laps left coming to the green it was Weisensel, Crane, Waelti, Doherty and Stark. As they came to the line it looked like Crane was literally touching the bumper of Weisensel’s machine. When Weisensel took off Crane was close and tried a slide job in turns one and two. On the exit he got next to Weisensel but that was it. Another attempt on the next corners was less successful and Crane filed in behind Weisensel. Just as the field completed a lap the racing was stalled for Luke Wackerlin whose car came to a rest on the backstretch with a broken rear end. He had been battling for a much needed top-five finish as he stood fifth in points.

The top-five line up for this restart was the same as the last. Now Crane was bumping Weisensel’s rear as they went through three and four to the green. This time Crane got a little more bite on his slider in one and he had Weisensel by the time they got to turn three. Now Weisensel was under attack from Waelti as he tried to put a slider on Weisensel when they exited turn four. They came close to getting together and may have touched but Weisensel was no worse for wear. He battled back, put some distance on Waelti and then dove low going into turn one and got next to Crane.

This allowed Waelti to join the fray again and he slid Weisensel coming out of turn two. At that point they were nearly bumper to bumper as Waelti and Weisensel may have made contact again and Crane had about a foot on Waelti who was now in second. Crane was safely ahead of the two Sun Prairie drivers as he went into three.

Waelti had a length or two on the charging Weisensel as they entered turn three. Waelti went low and Weisensel was not going to give an inch. At this point Weisensel dove lower than Waelti and his right rear hit the No. 3 in the midsection. This sent both cars up the track, to the embankment and into the darkness. Stark was behind them and had nowhere to go. He came to a rest with perhaps just some slight contact with Waelti.

Waelti stayed on his wheels while Weisensel tipped over. Once his car was righted Weisensel exited and went toward the Waetli machine. He was stopped from going any further by track personnel. Both Stark and Waelti would restart in the back. Weisensel’s night was done.

This set up a green, white, checkered finish. Coming to the green it was Crane, Doherty, Blumer, Sparks, Corson. Crane got a good start and had several lengths on Doherty when they finished the lap. With the white flag flying, Doherty spun in front of Sparks and then Blumer as they both went high enough to avoid contact in turn one. Derek Doerr was committed to the bottom as he was battling Corson for fifth. With nowhere to go Doerr’s nose nailed the broadside of the Doherty machine sending Doerr into a tip over. Their nights were both done.

Huenefeld announced that due to track rules regarding the amount of time a race can take the green would fly again, but be it a yellow, red or the checkers, the race would be done on the next flag. The remaining cars were able to finish the race without incident and Crane took the win.

With a cage stand, then a back flip off the right rear and a bow to the crowd, Crane celebrated his first AFS Badger Midget Series win. Sparks finished second, Blumer was next followed by Corson and Dohner.

Later Crane shared, “This win means a ton to me. I’ve been racing midgets part time for four years now. It was even more meaningful to get my first win at my hometown track, Wilmot Raceway. The incredible battle with Cody was awesome, his wreck was very unfortunate.” He went on to congratulate Sparks in his runner up drive, who was in the Sober Racing entry that Crane sometimes pilots.

AWARDS AND NOTES

High Performance Lubricants B-Main and 1855 Saloon and Grill Heat Four were not needed this night.
Schoenfeld Headers Invert Draw: Waelti
The Bob Tattersall Spankins Motorsports Hard Charger; Spankins Motorsports Rookie of the Race; The CASM Racing Products Hard Luck Award and the Last Place Bonus in Loving Memory of Addison Dahlke recipients were unavailable at press time.

INJURY UPDATES

Goeglein reports he had some tenderness in his knees and shoulders. It’s been a tough season for the Badger veteran and he indicated the team is done for the season and will set their sights on 2027.

Gebhard who’s had a solid second year in Badger indicated “The gear did its job and I’m good,” regarding his condition. He too is calling it a season due to damage to his car.

Peterson indicated he was fine.

Sivia was in good spirits and indicated he was doing well right after the race. The frame of his car was cracked however.

Doerr indicated he was alright and just disappointed in the way the night went. He said his dad Randy and he will go to work to get the car race ready for the Firemen’s Nationals.

Weisensel will be back in the No. 5 Jones-Spray car this weekend and will run the USAC portion of the Angell Park race in Bill Burrington’s car.

UP NEXT

Saturday, Sept. 5, the AFS Badger Midget Series will join the MARA cars in a co-sanctioned event at Sycamore Speedway.

Sunday, Sept. 6, Badger runs the fabled Firemen’s Nationals at Angell Park Speedway. Running their own show will also be the USAC National Midget Series. Expect several Badger drivers and teams to do double duty in this crown jewel event of midget racing.

MARA will start the weekend at Lincoln (IL) Speedway on Friday, Sept. 4 and it’s expected that several teams will attempt to run all three races making for a special string of midget racing.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

Lyco Manufacturing A - Feature (25 Laps): 1. 51-Nathan Crane[2]; 2. 31-Jace Sparks[9]; 3. 68-Eric Blumer[10]; 4. 15C-RJ Corson[8]; 5. 2-Jake Dohner[7]; 6. 92-Karter Stark[4]; 7. 17-Nick Kilian[13]; 8. 3W-Brandon Waelti[5]; 9. 29K-Mike Stroik[11]; 10. 59-Kyle Koch[16]; 11. 8D-Miles Doherty[3]; 12. 20D-Derek Doerr[14]; 13. 20-Cody Weisensel[1]; 14. 73W-Luke Wackerlin[6]; 15. 8-Jake Goeglein[15]; 16. 81-Mike Gebhard[17]; 17. 29-Harrison Kleven[12]; 18. 56-Mitchell Davis[18]; 19. (DNS) 51B-Colin Sivia; 20. (DNS) 40JR-Dave Collins Jr

Auto Meter Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 68-Eric Blumer[3]; 2. 20-Cody Weisensel[5]; 3. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr[2]; 4. 51B-Colin Sivia[6]; 5. (DNF) 2-Jake Dohner[4]; 6. (DNS) 56-Mitchell Davis; 7. (DQ) 7-Brian Peterson[1]

Hoosier Tire Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 92-Karter Stark[7]; 2. 17-Nick Kilian[1]; 3. 51-Nathan Crane[6]; 4. 73W-Luke Wackerlin[5]; 5. 31-Jace Sparks[4]; 6. 8-Jake Goeglein[2]; 7. 81-Mike Gebhard[3]

Behling Racing Products Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 15C-RJ Corson[4]; 2. 3W-Brandon Waelti[7]; 3. 29-Harrison Kleven[1]; 4. 8D-Miles Doherty[6]; 5. 29K-Mike Stroik[2]; 6. 20D-Derek Doerr[5]; 7. 59-Kyle Koch[3]

Rod End Supply Fast Time Qualifying (25 Laps): 1. 3W-Brandon Waelti, 15.036[14]; 2. 92-Karter Stark, 15.102[12]; 3. 51B-Colin Sivia, 15.184[17]; 4. 8D-Miles Doherty, 15.203[15]; 5. 51-Nathan Crane, 15.222[16]; 6. 20-Cody Weisensel, 15.285[18]; 7. 20D-Derek Doerr, 15.309[8]; 8. 73W-Luke Wackerlin, 15.575[7]; 9. 2-Jake Dohner, 15.854[4]; 10. 15C-RJ Corson, 15.953[3]; 11. 31-Jace Sparks, 15.961[2]; 12. 68-Eric Blumer, 16.064[9]; 13. 59-Kyle Koch, 16.140[19]; 14. 81-Mike Gebhard, 16.292[21]; 15. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr, 16.343[1]; 16. 29K-Mike Stroik, 16.414[6]; 17. 8-Jake Goeglein, 16.430[13]; 18. 7-Brian Peterson, 16.473[20]; 19. 29-Harrison Kleven, 16.566[11]; 20. 17-Nick Kilian, 16.648[5]; 21. (DNS) 56-Mitchell Davis; 22. (DNS) 3-Will Gerrits; 23. (DNS) 68E-Michael Weber

Photo left to right, Blumer, Crane, Sparks
Photo by Dunn Family Photography
Article By Bill Blumer Jr.

Midget Auto Racing Association

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www.mararacing.com

“The original MARA series, known as the Midwest Auto Racing Association, was conceived in the summer of 1977 in Springfield, IL. Under the direction of its first President, Dean Helmick, and a six member Board of Directors, MARA sanctioned its first auto race that summer at the Champaign County Fair, Champaign, IL. At that event, which featured 27 competing drivers, the thrust of MARA originated. Only one more race would be held that first year, but from that basic beginning, MARA rose to the one of the top midget organizations in the United States.