Champions Updates

Episode 410

October 9, 2022

WAR wins internationally

For the first time, Wyatt Alexander Racing (WAR) competed for an international track/driver’s championship. It was decided sometime after coming home from a race in Hickory, North Carolina that they would concentrate on winning a championship at Speedway 660, Geary Woods, New Brunswick.

WAR driver Wyatt Alexander with girl friend Madison Greenlaw at Speedway 660 after finishing second in season finale and clinching the 2022 championship. (WAR photo)

Speedway 660 action at Pro Stock season finale September 25, 2022.  WAR #96 leading eventual winner #1 RYAN Motorsports driven by Ryan Messer. After a frustrating season Messer finished second in season championship. (Mike Francis photo)

Spud Speedway track owner, Troy Haney, served as “Gas man” at Speedway 660 22nd Pro Stock 250 with WAR September 4, 2022. One way to maintain contact with a sport Haney loves. Like to think his work played a part in the team winning the championship. (HTF Motorsports photo)

Showing his diverse talents, Spud Speedway owner Troy Haney served as the jackman on this Wyatt Alexander pit stop during the September 4th Speed Weekend 250 at Speedway 660, Geary Woods, New Brunswick. Being a part of a race crew certainly changes one’s perspective on a race. Alexander dropped out of the race due to transmission issues. (HTF Motorsports photo)

Ryan Motorsports for the WIN!

An excited Ryan Messer begins the team’s celebration in Speedway 660 Winner’s Circle. After a season of dnf’s and being in the wrong place at the wrong time, Messer dominated the season finale and sewed up second in points. (Mike Francis photo)

Later on in the same race on the backstretch at Speedway 660, #96 Wyatt Alexander was passed by eventual winner Ryan Messer in the season finale. As mentioned prior, Alexander finished first in the points race with Messer in second. Former Spud Speedway racer Ian Rasmussen placed third in points race. (Mike Francis photo)

After a tough race, third place finisher Ian Rasmussen, New Denmark, New Brunswick proudly displays his trophy. He also finished third in the season points race. Rasmussen is a former Spud Speedway regular. (Mike Francis photo)

CORE autosports for the IMSA championship 2022

CORE autosports’ Colin Braun lights up the tires on the team Ligier JS P320 LMP3 racer while leaving the pits during the Petit LeMans IMSA season finale at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia. The team is headquartered at Rock Hill, South Carolina. (CORE autosports photo)

From CORE autosports press release:

A fifth-place finish at Petit Le Mans earned CORE autosport its sixth IMSA team championship. The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship finale at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta was a difficult race for CORE, but ultimately the team stayed the course and did what it needed to do to win the LMP3 team and driver championships.

CORE came into the final race with an 83-point lead over the No. 74 Riley Technologies entry. That was shaved to 74 points after qualifying; a comfortable, but by no means safe margin.

Starting from fifth, CORE did what it needed to do by steadily moving up the field as drivers Jon Bennett, Colin Braun and George Kurtz all cycled through their first stints. The team even led briefly, but in the third hour of the race, Kurtz got knocked around in a pack of traffic and ended up in the Turn Six gravel. Safety crews were able to extricate Kurtz quickly during a full-course yellow, but the team lost a lap in the process.

It looked like it would be an uphill battle to secure the championship since the No. 74 was running up front, but three hours later that car experienced its own problems in Turn Six and was now only one position ahead of CORE. If Bennett, Braun, Kurtz and crew could simply stay in the shadow of their rival, the championship was theirs.

CORE ultimately finished fifth in the 10-hour race, which was more than enough to collect the title. This is CORE’s sixth team championship in IMSA competition and the third drivers’ championship for the Bennett/Braun driver pairing.

Team owner/driver Jon Bennett said, “Today is a good example of how we have won and lost as a team. We have a great team with great chemistry. It was all the work and all the effort and success earlier in the season that allowed us a little breathing room today that we needed. I think everyone was smart in the race car today. We had fantastic pit stops with great over-the-wall guys. Jeff [Braun] and Josh [Foley] have done a great job with our strategy and understanding where the race is going. Hats off to the team. I couldn’t be happier.

CHAMPIONS! “Winning never gets old. It’s always a pleasure, especially when the team chemistry is good and everyone is having a good time and that’s what we did this year.” said Jon Bennett. Bennett has close ties to northern Maine so I consider him a “County ” man. (CORE autosports photo)

Sting Ray finishes second in Indy Lights

Starting in 2019, UpNorth Motorsports has been following the career of 21-year-old Sting Ray Robb (Payette, Idaho). I think it is because he is from potato country in Idaho.

In 2019 he placed 4th in Indy Pro followed by a championship in 2020. The move to Indy Lights in 2021 resulted in an 8th place finish in the championship. This season Robb finished 2nd behind Linus Lundqvist.

Sting Ray Robb receives his 2nd place championship trophy from an unidentified Road to Indy official at the NTT IndyCar Series Victory Lap Celebration. (Indy Lights photo)

Sting Ray Robb leads the pack at the famous Corkscrew at Laguna Seca. Robb led all 35 laps and had a winning margin of 11 plus seconds!  (Indy Lights photo)

Coming in to the final two races of the 2022 Indy Lights season at Laguna Seca, Monterey, California, Sting Ray Robb was in fourth place. He proceeded to win the first race which was his first in the Indy Lights Series. On Sunday Robb placed second which vaulted him to second place in the driver’s championship 12 points ahead of third place Matthew Brabham. (SR2 photo)

Sting Ray Robb’s Andretti Autosports team. Left to right Cameron Reed, Dave Meehan, Sting Ray Robb, and Derek Waldrep. Sting Ray has yet to announce his 2023 season plans. All the best to him! (SR2 photo)

Mixed bag for Kody Swanson’s championship efforts

USAC Silver Crown

Going into the USAC  4-Crown Nationals at Eldora Speedway, Eldora, Ohio, Kody Swanson held a 57-point lead over Logan Seavey. After a first lap first turn incident, Swanson was unable to continue. The 27th place finish was the worst in Swanson’s USAC Silver Crown career.

When Logan Seavey saw that this was his chance to move closer to Swanson in the points race, he led laps 9 through 50. With the win, he and Swanson are in a tie with 540 points apiece. The next race is October 15, 2022 at Illinois State Fairgrounds, a one-mile dirt track in Springfield, Illinois. This is the 59th Bettenhausen 100 Presented by Hunt Brothers Pizza.

500 Sprint Car Tour 

The inaugural season for the ten-race 500 Sprint Car Tour held at four different tracks in Midwest has had six different winners with close racing at each venue. Going into the season finale at Indianapolis Raceway Park Kody Swanson holds a narrow 17- point lead over Dakoda Armstrong.

By virtue of his fourth-place finish and Armstrong’s seventh place finish, Swanson took over the points lead at Anderson Speedway October 6. Bobby Santos III won the race. This was Santos III first win in the 500 Sprint Car Tour Series. Stay Tuned

Help Needed

Just two days after his 91st birthday, Wallace “Elky” Ellsworth Woodman II died peacefully on September 24, 2022. Elky owned Woodman’s Garage in Washburn, Maine which with the help of his brother Chester opened in 1957.

Woodman sponsored the #24 Maynard brothers stock car at Spud Speedway and was well known for his tuning abilities. That is where you come in. I need your stories of Elky so I might feature him in a future episode of UpNorth Motorsports.

Simply sent your thoughts and/or photos to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. in the next couple weeks so I might compile them please.

Next week a high school girl starts her own business rebuilding Edelbrock carburetors. You won’t want to miss episode 411. Till then…

Let’s go racing

Tom Hale

Soli Deo Gloria (Matthew 5:16)