An enormous blow to the hearts of stock car racing. Just one night after leading the most laps in the Martinsville Busch Bonanza stock car race on Friday, "Smokin" Joe Mersdorf was killed in a highway accident near his home in Cumberland, Virginia while returning from a sponsorship appearance at the Appomattox courthouse. Mersdorf turned 36 last Wednesday, finishing third in the the 2023 Busch Bonanza Championship and was a leading candidate for the title in 2024. He watched the race from Glenn Kaufmann's motor home, driving a Toyota owned by the former Extravaganza Series independent. "He was going east on highway 60, steered into a curve and apparently lost control," said Kal Buckner, a Virginia state trooper. "Apparently he was traveling at a high rate of speed, went sideways and couldn’t correct it." Coincidentally, Buckner attended the North Wilkesboro race in which Mersdorf finished 6th last fall. Mersdorf's sliding truck was struck on the driver’s door by a westbound car. The driver of that car Janet Duffy, 68, of Lynchburg, Virgina, was also killed. The accident occurred at about midnight, according to police. John Hidley of Conover North Carolina, Mersdorf’s car chief and jackman, was injured and was taken to the Centra Lynchburg Medical Hospital for treatment. Glenn Kaufmann, a multi-car team owner and former Extravaganza Series regular who owns Geer-5 Motorsports, picked up Mersdorf after his success at Motor Mile Speedway. He began competing in the Late Model SCUM (Super Crown Ultra Modified) Division just four years ago, winning the Championship for Kaufmann in 2021. "This is an enormous shock and is a loss we will feel even more in the days and weeks to come." said Kaufmann. A memorial service will be held Wednesday at Motor Mile, the site of Mersdorf's finest racing accomplishments. He won two track Championships there in 2015 and 2016. Although originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Mersdorf maintained a residence and racing shop in Farmville, Virginia and also owns a gas station there. "Joe was one of the most promising young drivers in the Extravaganza Series pipeline, so from that standpoint it’s a terrible loss for everyone who enjoys the sport,” said Dalton Lucas, owner of Lucas Hauling and the Bonanza Series teams for Rhamondre Diggs (#41) and Ronaldo Scott (#40). "Personally, it really hits hard because his cousin is one of my best friends in racing, and I know how badly he and the rest of the family are hurting right now. Someone that young, it’s a real tragic situation." Glenn Kaufmann, in addition to managing Mersdorf's career, was crew chief on the car since Bob Watkins left the team during the offseason. "I've always tried to hire the best people I can get for the team." Kaufmann said recently when asked about the #54 team. "I didn’t have much choice with Joe, but he’s turned out pretty good."

Adam Crapser pulls off a miracle 14.751 mile-per-hour lap, the only driver inside the 15-second bracket! He comes in 35th in the standings, needing to showcase his regular short track speed and finish it off, something the #4 team has struggled to do over their tenure. He and Markell Murphy occupy the front row.

Race Results

Points Standings

Race Recap

The high-line remains advantageous as Markell Murphy occupied the top-spot off of turn-2, leading the first 15 laps. Points leader Ken Pettit dropped from 6th to 30th during the same span with a racecar he deemed "demonic" during the first green flag run. Rookie of the Year contender and surprise of the season Steve Inkman took the lead from lap 15 to 20.

Markell Murphy took the lead from laps 21 to 37 while Imkman and Adam Crapser interchanged the second position. Chauncey Redmond Jr., Alex Crapser and Ryan Heuser caught up to the top-3 during the swaps, with the #47 back on top from laps 42 to 46. Steve Inkman led the ensuing two laps before Adam Crapser took over. Lapped traffic loomed ahead.

The Green Bay Packers #4 was unstoppable through lapped traffic. Only 23 cars were on the lead lap by lap 100, with points leader Ken Pettit, Craig Lee, Zach Michael, Timothy McDonnell, Scott Jackson, Rick Jackson and John Battista all falling to the wayside. By lap 142, only twelve cars remained. Adam's advantage over second-place Steve Inkman grew to a modest seven seconds. Unfortunately, contact between Johnny Reed Foley sent the #4 car hard into the outside turn-3 wall! John Tharp, Dakota Wilkins and Craig Lee smacked Adam in the front, turning the Packers Chevrolet into an acordion on wheels. A second crash after the restart rendered his car destroyed, losing several laps and unable to match the speed he previously occupied. Adam would finish 32nd after leading 98 laps. Jonathan Skrabacz, David Butterworth and Logan Sheets were also involved in the crash.

A speeding penalty took Chancey Redmond out of the lead, ending the reign of the NFL-sponsored cars. Saints-man Jimmie Stevens broke a gearbox on lap 211, finishing last on the day and dropping out of the top-35 in points. Up front, Markell Murphy remained up front through lap 169. Alex Crapser led from lap 170 through lap 194 before Ryan Heuser took the advantage. He, Crapser, Markell Murphy, Zakk Miller and William Perry swapped the top-5 positions for the remainder of the run.

Alex Crapser led the lap 220 restart after Jimmie Stevens' engine failure. He pulled away from the field in shades of his brother, leading the Halfway Bacon Bonus before lapped traffic pushed him back. Teammate John Battista earned his lap back after Adam's accident, working defiantly on his handling to take the lead on lap 265. William Perry earned the top-spot two laps later, with Jeremy Hebel earning five bonus points for his Rookie of the Year campaign. John Battista and Alex Crapser were back to 1-2 by lap 273.

The Pennzoil #04 and #138 NOS Energy Chevrolet's found their way past the Wendy's "Dave's Quadruple" #39. The immaculate lead changing brought the top-9 within two seconds of the leader, with William Perry and Zach Michael passing Heuser and the Lucas Racing duo. Michael took the lead outright on lap 280, pulling away from the field with Steve Inkman, Scott Jackson, Perry, Tony Pizzaro and John Tharp showcasing their long-run speed by passing the earlier contenders. Michael gaped to a five-second advantage over Steve Inkman before the next caution.

A Ben Geer spin took out Rick Jackson and Timothy McDonnell, with Rob Scarberry and Scott Jackson finding themselves sandwiched in the accident. Jackson continued on to finish 8th, with Scarberry limping to 36th on the day. Leader Zach Michael suffered a speeding penalty, handing William Perry the advantage on the restart. He, Inkman and Tharp occupied the top-3 before a Logan Sheets spin, followed by a Mark Heron, Jeremy Hebel, Scott Jackson and Bink Lucas accident in turn-1. Steve Inkman and Dan Johnston gambled by staying out on old tires, attempting to out-wit the other 11 lead lap cars in hopes of an upset victory!

Dan Johnston continued his 2024 late-race heroics by taking the lead away from Inkman with 112 laps-to-go. The four-tire armada rummaged through, with John Tharp and Alan Nesfeder swapping the top-spot through lap 415. Zakk Miller fl ... Read more »