Late pass gives O’Neil second USMTS Nordic Nationals title

A winner in 2019 when the 1/4-mile dirt oval in Decorah was called the Upper Iowa Speedway, Jake O’Neil notched his second USMTS Nordic Nationals in three seasons at the Winneshiek Raceway.

The hard-earned win was his fourth of the 2022 campaign, and his 24th victory in Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt competition, breaking a tie with Al Hejna—also a two-time winner of this event—on the all-time wins list.

Starting at the tail of a stacked Simpson Performance Products Heat Race #1, O’Neil was only able to get to the fifth spot. That put him in the second Real Racing Wheels “B” Main which he promptly won to give himself the 14th starting spot in the 40-lap feature race.

Hoping to snap a winless drought dating back to Sept. 3, 2017, four-time USMTS National Champion Jason Hughes beat polesitter Darron Fuqua to the flagstand to lead the opening lap and then paced the next 16 circuits before Fuqua found a way around to lead lap 18.

A trio of cautions between laps 20 and 24 kept the field within striking distance for the final 16 laps, but it was the 30-year-old from Tucson, Ariz., battling his way to the front with points leader Dustin Sorensen, who started 15th, following O’Neil to the front.

Continuing to charge toward his career-first USMTS triumph, Fuqua pace laps 18-35 before bobbling in turn 4 and handing the lead over to Tanner Mullens on lap 36.

O’Neil followed into second place and Mullens mirrored Fuqua’s error, handing the lead over to O’Neil who cruised the final three laps to his fourth win of the season and another $10,000 payday.

A half-inch of rain earlier in the day forced officials to spend the day getting the facility in tip-top racing condition. The track’s general manager, Chuck Ihde, performed some magical dirt work during intermission and delivered a super surface to the drivers and fans for the 40-lap main event.

Mullens held off Fuqua for second while Sorensen snuck into fourth place late in the race. Jake Timm finished fifth with Dereck Ramirez, Lucas Schott, 24th-starting Cayden Carter, Dan Ebert and 20th-starting Lance Mari rounded out the top 10.

O’Neil’s final margin of victory was 1.127 seconds in the 20-minute affair.

Three down, one to go: The four-night Memorial Day Weekend wraps up Monday at the Mason City Motor Speedway in Mason City, Iowa, with a huge field featuring the Best of the Best expected to be on hand for a Memorial Day spectacular.

The 8th Annual USMTS Double Down Showdown will also see Medieval USRA Stock Cars, USRA B-Mods and USRA Hobby Stocks joining the card.

Ryan Ruter won the first USMTS event in Mason City on June 24, 2009. Mike Steensma, Kelly Shryock and Jason Hughes also won on the half-mile oval previously called I–35 Speedway.

Rodney Sanders and Cade Dillard picked up wins in 2016 while Ryan Gustin won twice on Aug. 13, 2017, in a regularly-scheduled show and another which was postponed from June 11. He remains the only two-time winner here.

Since then, Terry Phillips has joined Dereck Ramirez, Tanner Mullens and Lucas Schott as USMTS winners on the current 1/3-mile action track at the North Iowa Fairgrounds. Ramirez and Mullens both have two wins here, along with Gustin.

The pits will open at 3 p.m., grandstands open at 4, hot laps begin at 6 with USMTS qualifying at 6:30 and racing to follow.

The Mason City Motor Speedway is located just off I-35 at exit 194, then 5.1 miles east on SR 122, then left on 4th St. SW (at the North Iowa Events Center). For more information call (515) 832-6000 and check out MasonCityMotorSpeedway.com. Get social with us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

For times, tickets and all the information you need, read all about it at usmts.com/memorialday2022.

If you can’t be there in person, witness all the action from anywhere with your RacinDirt subscription. In addition to RacinDirt, you can access exclusive content on your desktop and laptop computers, as well as a suite of apps for added convenience including Roku, Amazon Fire, iOS, Apple TVGoogle Play.

Visit usmts.com for schedules, points, photos, souvenirs, videos and more. Follow our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Click here to get USMTS news delivered to your inbox.

OFFICIAL RESULTS
United States Modified Touring Series
Summit USMTS National Championship presented by RacinDirt
15th Annual USMTS Nordic Nationals
Winneshiek Raceway, Decorah, Iowa
Sunday, May 29, 2022

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 PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS HEAT RACE #1 (8 laps):
1. (2) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
2. (1) 55H A.J. Hoff, Mantorville, Minn.
3. (3) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
4. (5) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
5. (6) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
6. (4) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn.
7. (8) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
8. (9) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield, Minn.
9. (7) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa

FAST SHAFTS HEAT RACE #2 (8 laps):
1. (4) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
2. (2) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
3. (3) 44S Shane DeVolder, Pacifica, Calif.
4. (5) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
5. (6) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
6. (1) 38T Dylan Thornton, Santa Maria, Calif.
7. (7) 56 Colton Horner, Houston, Texas
8. (8) 2G Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.

EDELBROCK HEAT RACE #3 (8 laps):
1. (3) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
2. (1) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
3. (4) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
4. (5) 19 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
5. (7) 85 Jayson Good, Watertown, S.D.
6. (2) 50III Brandon Davis, Hayfield, Minn.
7. (6) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
8. (8) 17 Jon Plowman, Woodbine, Iowa

MSD PERFORMANCE HEAT RACE #4 (8 laps):
1. (4) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
2. (2) 45 Chase Holland, Saucier, Miss.
3. (1) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
4. (3) 1M Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis.
5. (5) 77T Tripp Gaylord, Lakewood, Colo.
6. (7) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa
7. (8) 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark.
8. (6) 8C Chris Clark, Jackson, Wyo.

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #1 (12 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (1) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
2. (2) 19 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
3. (4) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
4. (5) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn.
5. (9) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield, Minn.
6. (7) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
7. (10) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
8. (8) 56 Colton Horner, Houston, Texas
9. (3) 85 Jayson Good, Watertown, S.D.
10. (6) 50III Brandon Davis, Hayfield, Minn.
DNS — 17 Jon Plowman, Woodbine, Iowa

REAL RACING WHEELS “B” MAIN #2 (12 laps, top 5 advance):
1. (3) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
2. (1) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
3. (2) 1M Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis.
4. (8) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
5. (5) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa
6. (6) 38T Dylan Thornton, Santa Maria, Calif.
7. (9) 2G Brandon Givens, Wichita, Kan.
8 17 Jon Plowman, Woodbine, Iowa
9. (7) 11N Gene Nicholas, Lowell, Ark.
10. (10) 8C Chris Clark, Jackson, Wyo.
11. (4) 77T Tripp Gaylord, Lakewood, Colo.

SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT “A” MAIN (40 laps):
1. (14) 0 Jake O'Neil, Tucson, Ariz.
2. (7) 02 Tanner Mullens, Wichita, Kan.
3. (1) 87 Darron Fuqua, Mayetta, Kan.
4. (15) 19 Dustin Sorensen, Rochester, Minn.
5. (8) 49 Jake Timm, Winona, Minn.
6. (6) 4R Dereck Ramirez, Woodward, Okla.
7. (19) 69 Lucas Schott, Chatfield, Minn.
8. (24) 10C Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa, Iowa
9. (3) 60 Dan Ebert, Lake Shore, Minn.
10. (20) 19SB Lance Mari, El Centro, Calif.
11. (10) 33Z Zack VanderBeek, New Sharon, Iowa
12. (17) 75 Terry Phillips, Springfield, Mo.
13. (16) 4 Jeremy Nelson, Alexandria, Minn.
14. (21) 21 Jacob Bleess, Chatfield, Minn.
15. (23) 20 Rodney Sanders, Happy, Texas
16. (9) 21K Kyle Brown, Madrid, Iowa
17. (25) 8C Chris Clark, Jackson, Wyo.
18. (4) 45 Chase Holland, Saucier, Miss.
19. (2) 12 Jason Hughes, Watts, Okla.
20. (11) 44S Shane DeVolder, Pacifica, Calif.
21. (13) 4W Tyler Wolff, Fayetteville, Ark.
22. (5) 55H A.J. Hoff, Mantorville, Minn.
23. (12) 65X Carlos Ahumada Jr., El Paso, Texas
24. (22) 7 Al Hejna, Clear Lake, Iowa
25. (18) 1M Curt Myers, Cameron, Wis.

Lap Leaders: Hughes 1-17, Fuqua 18-35, Mullens 36-37, O’Neil 38-40.
Total Laps Led: Fuqua 18, Hughes 17, O’Neil 3, Mullens 2.
Margin of Victory: 1.127 seconds.
Time of Race: 20 minutes, 27.362 seconds (3 cautions).
Provisional Starters: Sanders, Carter.
Emergency Provisional: Clark.
FK Rod Ends Hard Charger: O’Neil (started 14th, finished 1st).
Entries: 33.
Next Race: Monday, May 30, Mason City Motor Speedway, Mason City, Iowa.
Summit USMTS National Championship Points: Sorensen 1025, Mullens 960, Ramirez 906, VanderBeek 897, Sanders 891, Timm 888, Schott 866, Phillips 865, Hughes 848, Bleess 820.
Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Points: Carter 742, Brown 664, Thornton 649, DeVolder 635, Horner 597.
Miller Welders USMTS Manufacturers Championship Points: Action 82, Cornett 79, Stoen 69, Hatfield 58, Durham 55.
Compstar/JE Pistons USMTS Engine Builder of the Year Points: MBCustoms 101, Mullens 85, Hughes 80, VanderBuilt 73, LG2 60.

Contingency Awards:
American Racer – Bleess.
Beyea Custom Headers – Sorensen.
BigDeal Car Care – O’Neil.
Bryke Racing – Sanders.
BSB Manufacturing – Wolff.
Champ Pans – Timm.
Deatherage Opticians – Bleess.
Edelbrock – Ramirez.
Fast Shafts – Mullens.
FK Rod Ends – O’Neil.
Hooker Harness – Phillips.
Integra Racing Shocks & Springs – Hughes.
Keyser Manufacturing – Mari.
KS Engineering – VanderBeek.
KSE Racing Products – Ebert.
Mel Hambelton Ford Racing – Mullens.
Midwest Wrap Co. – Hoff.
MSD Performance – Ebert.
Penske Racing Shocks – Nelson.
PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain – Nelson.
QA1 – Timm.
RacerWebsite.com – DeVolder.
Simpson Performance Products – Timm.
Summit Racing Equipment – Gaylord, Hoff, Holland, Nelson.
Super Clean – O’Neil.
Swift Springs – Mullens, O’Neil, Brown.
Sybesma Graphics – Fuqua.
Tire Demon – Davis.
VP Racing Fuels – O’Neil.
Wehrs Machine & Racing Products – Davis.
Wilwood Disc Brakes – Hughes.

USMTS OFFICIAL SPONSORS: American Racer Racing Tires, Beyea Headers, Chevrolet Performance, Compstar, Fast Shafts, FK Rod Ends, Intercomp, K1 RaceGear by Ryan Bowers Motorsports, KS Engineering, KSE Racing Products, Malvern Bank, Mesilla Valley Transportation, MSD Performance, Nitroquest Media, PEM Racing Gears & Drivetrain, RacinDirt, Summit Racing Equipment, Super Clean, VP Racing Fuels, Wrisco Industries.

USMTS PARTICIPATING SPONSORS: ARMI Contractors, Boubin Tire & Automotive, Brodix Cylinder Heads, DAY Motorsports, Hacienda Mechanical, Mel Hambelton Racing, Midwest Wrap Co., Miller Welders, PBM Performance Products, Rancho Milagro Racing, RHRSwag.com, S&S Fishing & Rental, Salty's BBQ & Catering, YouDirt.com.

USMTS CONTINGENCY SPONSORS: AFCO Racing Products, Allstar Performance, BigDeal Car Care, Bryke Racing, BSB Manufacturing, Champ Pans, Deatherage Opticians, Edelbrock, Hooker Harness, Integra Racing Shocks and Springs, JE Pistons, Keyser Manufacturing, Penske Racing Shocks, Performance Bodies & Parts, QA1, RacerWebsite.com, Real Racing Wheels, Simpson Performance Products, Swift Springs, Sybesma Graphics, Tire Demon, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood Racing.

USMTS RACETRACKS: 81 Speedway, Arrowhead Speedway, Belleville High Banks, Casino Speedway, Cedar Lake Speedway, Chateau Speedway, Dallas County Speedway, Deer Creek Speedway, Fayette County Speedway, Humboldt Speedway, I-70 Speedway, Lakeside Speedway, Lucas Oil Speedway, Mason City Motor Speedway, Mississippi Thunder Speedway, Ogilvie Raceway, Red Dirt Raceway, Rocket Raceway Park, Tri-State Speedway, Winneshiek Raceway.