Just one ASA-sanctioned series is in action this weekend, as the ASA Midwest Tour crowns a 2023 champion on Sunday afternoon at LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway as part of Oktoberfest.
The 54th Annual Oktoberfest Race Weekend kicked off Thursday night with the Knights and Futures races for Super Late Models, along with championships for their quarter-mile divisions and a pair of weekly Late Model features. Jacob Goede held off ASA STARS National Tour points leader Ty Majeski for the win in the Knights race, while Max Kahler beat Kole Guralski for the Futures race wins.
Friday night plays host to perhaps the most popular race of the entire weekend. The Trickle 99 is broken into three 33-lap segments with points given based on where each driver finishes. The driver with the least amount of points after the final segments is declared the overall winner, similar to the Milk Bowl contested in Vermont. The weekly Late Models will run their final two races to crown a track champion, while the Area Sportsmen take to the track for their races.
Official ASA Midwest Tour on-track action starts Saturday with qualifying and preliminary races to set the field for Sunday’s 200-lap finale. The Big 8 Series headlines the night’s feature action with a 38-lap feature. The Mid-American Racing Series, Midwest Truck Series and Midwest Dash Series also join the card on Saturday night.
It all leads into Sunday, as the ASA Midwest Tour will crown their 2023 champion in the Oktoberfest 200 to close out the race weekend. The Cratetoberfest 602 feature returns in 2023, with the winner and a randolmly-drawed driver earns a free 602 crate motor courtesy of Gandrud Chevrolet. The Upper Midwest Vintage Series will also be in action, with Rich Bickle climbing back behind the wheel to race the Dick Trickle “SuperAmerica” tribute car.
Gabe Sommers holds a 79-point lead going into Oktoberfest, but his weekend has already gone off to a poor start after a wreck during the Knights race Thursday night. His team had to pull out the second car a night early for the Trickle 99, as he will be debuting a new Kwik Trip scheme.
While Sommers holds a substantial lead in the points standings, the championships still isn’t his just yet. Justin Mondeik (-79) and Levon VanDerGeest (-97) are both still mathematically eligible to win the title, but will need some help during the weekend.
For the full ASA STARS National Tour schedule, plus Super Late Model rules and other information, please visit the series website at starsnationaltour.com, or be sure to follow the series on social media (Facebook: STARS National Series | Twitter: @racewithstars | IG: @starsnational).
ASA STARS National Tour
The ASA STARS National Tour debuted in March 2023 for Super Late Model racing in America. Announced in October 2022, many of the best drivers in America will compete in the ten-race national tour with a minimum $100,000 point fund. The championship team will be guaranteed $25,000.
The ASA STARS National Tour is made up of three races from each of the regional pavement Super Late Model Series under the Track Enterprises banner – the ASA/CRA Super Series, the ASA Midwest Tour and the ASA Southern Super Series.
The Team Construction Winner’s Circle program has been announced as a part of the ASA STARS National Tour for licensed drivers/teams with perfect attendance. The program provides additional financial incentives to those teams who support the series.
Track Enterprises, a racing promotions company based in Illinois, will operate the ASA STARS National Tour. It announced the acquisition of Champion Racing Association (CRA) in January 2022 and followed that up with the purchase of the Midwest Tour in July. In October, Track Enterprises President Bob Sargent announced a partnership with the Southern Super Series, which set the table for the formation of the ASA STARS National Tour.
