June 16, 2023

Carter wins USMTS thriller at Cedar Lake

Fans watching from the grandstands of the Cedar Lake Speedway and those watching from afar on RacinDirt were treated to a barnburner Friday night that ended with Oskaloosa, Iowa’s Cayden Carter in victory lane on the second night of the 24th Annual Masters.

Headlining the event at the state-of-the-art high-banked clay oval in New Richmond, Wis., the racers in the Summit USMTS National Championship put on a show with five drivers sharing a straightaway over the final dozen laps of the main event.

Young gun Ryan Gierke took the lead from polesitter and defending USMTS national champ Dustin Sorensen and paced the first 16 laps before Sorensen was able to steal the lead after a spirited side-by-side battle for several laps.

Meanwhile, following close behind were Tom Berry Jr., Carter, Jake O’Neil and Joe Chisholm with all six drivers within striking distance of first place.

Berry moved into second on the fifth lap and then Sorensen took it away on lap six before tracking down Gierke and taking control.

Things got really interesting when Chisholm—making just his fifth USMTS start—jogged by Berry for third place. Berry, however, battled back and took it back one lap later while O’Neil and Carter made it a four-car tussle for third place on lap 25.

Running the extreme high side, O’Neil looked to be headed for the front when Carter had to slide up in front of O’Neil to dodge lapped traffic. That chance encounter showed last year’s Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year a more preferred line.

Carter used a longer way around the racetrack to run down Sorensen, taking the lead with five to go. From there he split two lapped cars perfectly before speeding away from the pack for his third career USMTS triumph.

“I think Jake O’Neill won me that race,” Carter revealed as confetti rained down on the 29-year-old in victory lane. “I saw him and heard him out there and I moved up and it (the racing surface) was cleaned up and was starting to rubber up, so I’m like ‘I got to go or I’m going to lose.’ I knew my car was pretty good. I just bided my time there the first 20 some laps and then once it finally slicked all the way off we were getting better and better.

“Once I got to the lead I caught them two lapped cars running side by side and they just opened up. I knew I had to go for it and happened to get by. That definitely helped me out… Just a great win here tonight.”

While Carter pocketed five grand for the win, Sorensen had to settle for the runner-up paycheck with O'Neil, Berry and tenth-starting Tanner Mullens the first five to cross the finish line. Both Sorensen and O’Neill are two-time USMTS winners here.

Will Krup, Jake Timm, four-time USMTS national champion Jason Hughes, Darrell Nelson and Chisholm (Joe, not Jim) rounded out the top ten.

Of note, points leader Rodney Sanders finishing 11th after starting 16th in the caution-free feature race, and the seven-time Cedar Lake winner continues to hold a somewhat comfortable lead over O’Neil in the race for a $100,000 title.

Saturday’s finale pays a whopping top prize of $11,000 for both the Summit USMTS Modifieds and Super Late Models while USRA Late Models go for $1,100 to win.

On Saturday, general admission spectator tickets are $40, students are $20 and pit passes are $45. Kids ages 5 and under get in for free each day. The pits open at 2 p.m., grandstands open at 5, hot laps and USMTS qualifying begin at 6:30 and racing starts at 7.

The Cedar Lake Speedway is a state-of-the-art 3/8-mile high-banked clay located 1.0 mile east of SR 35 on SR 64, then 4.2 miles north on CR C to CR CC, then left 1.8 miles to 2275 County Rd CC, New Richmond, WI 54017. For more information, call (612) 363-0479 or visit cedarlakespeedway.com.

For its Silver Anniversary season, the Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt currently features 45 nights of racing at 15 of America's premier dirt track racing venues in nine states. The winners of those events are set to earn more than $300,000 with nearly $2 million in purses and prize money earmarked for the 2023 campaign.

Watch every USMTS event online live and on-demand from anywhere on any device with RacinDirt. Download the app at Roku, Amazon Fire, iOS, Apple TV or on Google Play.

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OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt
24th Annual Masters – Night 2 of 3
Cedar Lake Speedway, New Richmond, Wis.
Friday, June 16, 2023

Showing finishing position, starting position in parentheses, car number, driver and hometown. Heat race lineups are determined via group qualifying. The top 12 in heat race passing points advance to the Summit Racing Equipment “A” Main.

SIMPSON RACE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (1) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
2. (2) 30 Matt Leer, Bruce, Wis.
3. (4) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
4. (5) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
5. (3) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
6. (7) 14W Clayton Wagamon, Ramsey, Minn.
7. (6) 44 Darrell Nelson, Hermantown, Minn.
8. (9) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville, Kan.
9. (8) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa

FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (2) 26G Ryan Gierke, Villard, Minn.
2. (4) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
3. (1) 96 Taton Hansen, Spicer, Minn.
4. (7) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
5. (6) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
6. (5) 38T Dylan Thornton, Orcutt, Calif.
7. (3) 55H A.J. Hoff, Mantorville, Minn.
8. (9) 8S Tony Schill, Oakdale, Minn.
9. (8) 71 A.J. Roschen, Somerset, Wis.

EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (2) 28 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
2. (4) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
3. (6) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa
4. (1) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
5. (7) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
6. (8) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
7. (5) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
8. (9) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo.
9. (3) 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis.

WIELAND HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (2) 19 Joe Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
2. (4) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
3. (5) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
4. (1) 45 Chase Holland, Success, Miss.
5. (3) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn.
6. (6) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
7. (7) 89 A.J. Diemel, Elk Mound, Wis.
8. (9) 747 Colton Eck, Goddard, Kan.
9. (8) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa

VP RACING HEAT RACE #5 (8 laps):
1. (1) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
2. (3) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
3. (6) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
4. (5) 5K Tyler Kaeter, St. Cloud, Minn.
5. (9) 44H Adam Hensel, Baldwin, Wis.
6. (7) 04JR Adam Ayotte, Elk River, Minn.
7. (2) 51W J.T. Wasmund, Pine Island, Minn.
8. (8) 24 Brandon Dolman, Evansville, Minn.
9. (4) 18A Landon Atkinson, Little Falls, Minn.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (15 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
2. (4) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
3. (2) 30 Matt Leer, Bruce, Wis.
4. (6) 38T Dylan Thornton, Orcutt, Calif.
5. (7) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
6. (11) 65 Tyler Davis, Haysville, Kan.
7. (3) 96 Taton Hansen, Spicer, Minn.
8. (9) 14W Clayton Wagamon, Ramsey, Minn.
9. (5) 10B Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
10. (12) 16 Austin Siebert, Grandview, Mo.
11. (16) 99L Steve Lavasseur, River Falls, Wis.
12. (13) 51W J.T. Wasmund, Pine Island, Minn.
13. (14) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa
14. (10) 89 A.J. Diemel, Elk Mound, Wis.
15. (8) 15W Alex Williamson, Rushford, Minn.
16. (15) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (15 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (2) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
2. (4) 44H Adam Hensel, Baldwin, Wis.
3. (3) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
4. (1) 5K Tyler Kaeter, St. Cloud, Minn.
5. (6) 45 Chase Holland, Success, Miss.
6. (7) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
7. (8) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
8. (13) 24 Brandon Dolman, Evansville, Minn.
9. (5) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
10. (9) 04JR Adam Ayotte, Elk River, Minn.
11. (11) 8S Tony Schill, Oakdale, Minn.
12. (10) 55H A.J. Hoff, Mantorville, Minn.
13. (12) 747 Colton Eck, Goddard, Kan.
14. (14) 71 A.J. Roschen, Somerset, Wis.
DNS – 18A Landon Atkinson, Little Falls, Minn.

SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT “A” MAIN (45 laps):
1. (6) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
2. (1) 28 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
3. (7) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
4. (4) 11X Tom Berry Jr., Des Moines, Iowa
5. (10) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
6. (5) K9 Will Krup, Mt. Carmel, Ill.
7. (11) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
8. (8) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
9. (13) 44 Darrell Nelson, Hermantown, Minn.
10. (3) 19 Joe Chisholm, Osage, Iowa
11. (16) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
12. (15) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
13. (2) 26G Ryan Gierke, Villard, Minn.
14. (14) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
15. (9) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
16. (17) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
17. (19) 30 Matt Leer, Bruce, Wis.
18. (20) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
19. (26) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
20. (24) 45 Chase Holland, Success, Miss.
21. (27) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
22. (21) 38T Dylan Thornton, Orcutt, Calif.
23. (22) 5K Tyler Kaeter, St. Cloud, Minn.
24. (25) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
25. (18) 44H Adam Hensel, Baldwin, Wis.
26. (28) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
27. (12) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
28. (23) 24C Jim Chisholm, Osage, Iowa

Lap Leaders: Gierke 1-16, Sorensen 17-40, Carter 41-45.
Total Laps Led: Sorensen 24, Gierke 16, Carter 5.
Margin of Victory: 1.369 seconds.
Time of Race: 12 minutes, 43.762 seconds (no cautions).
Provisional Starters: Ramirez, VanderBeek.
Emergency Provisionals: Ahumada, J. Nelson.
FK Rod Ends Hard Charger: Carter (started 6th, finished 1st).
Entries: 45.
Next Race: Saturday, June 17, Cedar Lake Speedway, New Richmond, Wis.
Summit USMTS National Championship Points: Sanders 1605, O'Neil 1532, Hughes 1496, Ebert 1479, Berry 1456, Jim Chisholm 1446, Ramirez 1423, Mullens 1419, Wolff 1393, Phillips 1393.
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Points: Berry 1456, Krup 1363, J. Nelson 1175, Gary Christian 1060, Holland 1039.
FK Rod Ends USMTS Hard Charger Points: O'Neil 86, Sanders 82, Jim Chisholm 81, Givens 64, Hughes 58.
Miller Welders USMTS Manufacturers Championship Points: MBCustoms 142, Mullens 137, Hughes 118, VanderBuilt 102, LG2 98.
Callies/JE Pistons USMTS Engine Builder of the Year Points: Mullins 152, Cornett 144, Stoen 137, Hatfield 128, KSE 104.

Contingency Awards:
Aero Race Wheels – Lavasseur.
American Racer – Mari.
Beyea Custom Headers – Berry.
BigDeal Car Care – Carter.
Bryke Racing – Mari.
BSB Manufacturing – Ahumada.
Champ Pans – Mullens.
Collins Brothers Towing – Ebert.
Deatherage Opticians – Wasmund.
Edelbrock – Sorensen.
Fast Shafts – Gierke.
FK Rod Ends – Carter.
Hooker Harness – Phillips.
Hyperco – Ebert.
Integra Racing Shocks & Springs – Ebert.
Keyser Manufacturing – Joe Chisholm.
KSE Racing Products – Carter.
MD3 – Sorensen.
Mel Hambelton Racing – Sorensen.
Midwest Wrap Co. – Thornton.
MSD Performance – O’Neil.
Penske Racing Shocks – Gierke.
PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain – Ayotte.
QA1 – Krup.
Quarter Master – Hughes.
RacerWebsite.com – Atkinson.
Salty’s BBQ & Catering – Carter.
Simpson Race Products – Carter.
Summit Racing Equipment – Atkinson, Diemel, Dolman, Gierke, Schill.
Super Clean – Carter.
Swift Springs – D. Nelson, D. Nelson, Carter.
Sybesma Graphics – Sorensen.
VP Racing – Carter.
Wehrs Machine & Racing Products – Diemel.
Willy's Carb & Dyno Shop – D. Nelson.
Wilwood Disc Brakes – Timm.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Beyea Headers, Callies Performance Products, Chevrolet Performance, Fast Shafts, FK Rod Ends, KSE Racing Products, Malvern Bank, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Nitroquest Media, PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt, Summit Racing Equipment, Super Clean, VP Racing, Wieland.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: ARMI Contractors, Boomtest Well Service, Boubin Tire & Automotive, Brodix Cylinder Heads, Collins Brothers Towing, D&T Marriott Enterprise, LLC, DAY Motorsports, Duvall Electric, Gunshepherd.com, Hacienda Mechanical, Kenny's Tile, Mel Hambelton Racing, Midwest Wrap Co., Miller Welders, PBM Performance Products, Rancho Milagro Racing, S&S Fishing & Rental, Salty's BBQ & Catering, Shocker Hitch, Shop Quik Stores, YouDirt.com.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AERO Race Wheels, AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, BigDeal Car Care, Bryke Racing, BSB Manufacturing, Champ Pans, Deatherage Opticians, Edelbrock, Hooker Harness, Hyperco, Integra Racing Shocks and Springs, JE Pistons, K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, Keyser Manufacturing, MD3, MSD Performance, Penske Racing Shocks, Performance Bodies & Parts, QA1, Quarter Master, RacerWebsite.com, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Sybesma Graphics, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Willy’s Carb & Dyno Shop, Wilwood Racing.

USMTS RACETRACKS: 81 Speedway, Ark-La-Tex Speedway, Arrowhead Speedway, Cedar Lake Speedway, Deer Creek Speedway, Fayette County Speedway, Hamilton County Speedway, Humboldt Speedway, I-70 Speedway, Lakeside Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway Dirt Track, Lucas Oil Speedway, Mason City Motor Speedway, Ogilvie Raceway, Rocket Raceway Park.