Fourteen different winners in 2025! Road-ringers Timothy McDonnell and John Tharp rejoice in their "California swag", wearing their tie dye pantaloons with pride. "We got to crush grapes yesterday" said Champion crew chief Mustard Mahoney. "It reminded me of the old days, smashing pumpkins in Matt's backyard in Vermont." We asked Mustard to point to Vermont on the mini-map. His finger covered the entire state! "Our house was next to the Hannaford's. We bought so much pastrami there the cows started to disappear." A victory at Sonoma will be their third, hoping to break the tie with Johnny Reed Foley and Chauncey Redmond Jr.. Alan Nesfeder will start on the pole, hoping to pull off a miracle victory at a track he's struggled at in the past.
Tony Gunk exemplifies the "zero to hero" mentality better than most, suffering through the European carting ranks with his brother Jim from 2016 through 2018. Their independent "stars and stripes" two-stroke Comet failed to compete with Cristiano de Sa's "Maxxis-Chassis Parilla" and Giuseppe Gastaldi's "Vivaldi-LeCont", heading back home for a future in the Carolina Late Model ranks. Tony joined pasta-sauce magnate Jim Solomon in a two-car effort with Champion Steve Inkman in the Super Crown Ultra Modifieds (SCUM). He and Inkman dominated the field, losing to Jared Mogard in 2019 with Inkman defeating Matt Bontempi for the title in 2020. 2021 was Gunk's time to shine, finishing second to the late Joe Mersdorf, and re-joining Inkman for a full-time expenditure in Bonanza. Neither were able to win in their two years together, but team owners Jim Solomon and Robert Tark were ready to head to Extravaganza. An early top-10 run at Nashville, a lap led at Michigan and two 18th-place efforts at Martinsville and Bristol were capped by a 14th-place masterpiece in the Eddie Money Classic. Gunk's "Kelpo Cam" Charger finished 47th in points, qualifying for 17 of the 36 races. Gunk made the field for his first Daytona 500 in 2025. He finished his first seven events, followed by a miraculous 7th-place effort in the Coca-Cola 600. Four weeks later, Gunk finally crossed the finish-line first.
Zakk Miller wins his third pole of 2025! An excellent start, propelling the #30 Team Danger Zone Bepis Mustang to "elite" status after his victory at Richmond. Miller had struggled under the lights previously, finishing 38th, 44th and 45th at Daytona, Darlington and Charlotte. A second-straight victory will help tamper their demons. Speaking of demons, a demonic start to the season puts Ken Pettit and Scott Jackson in the proverbial crows-nest. They need a top-10 finish to bounce themselves back into the top-35.
The green flag waves! Fans watch as "charcoal man" Geno Sphere attempts to pass Miller for the lead. The #444 Kingsford Chevrolet hasn't led a lap since Bristol, bettering his previous-best starting spot of 13th in hopes of his first career victory. Towards the back, contact from Alex Crapser sends Dalton Lucas flying through the backstretch infield! He'd slide up the track, devastating the turn-3 wall and into Mike Carroll. Both failed to continue.
Johnny Reed Foley and Ryan Heuser enter Gateway second and third in the standings. Both qualified towards the rear, with Heuser tapping the apron after 1 turn-3 check-up. The #138 NOS Energy Chevrolet lost the handling, sliding into the AC-Delco #3 radiator-first. Heuser would limp to a 24th place finish. Foley headed home for the third time in 2025. Up front, Ziggy Moonglow inherited the lead with Donald Stewart, Ben Geer and Tony Pizzaro the only four cars to stay out.
The #02 Coca-Cola Chevrolet led the field through lap 46. Points leader Tony Pizzaro took the helm, hoping to take advantage of Heuser and Foley's misfortune by leading his league-leading 13th race of the year. Hard charges from Donald Stewart, along with the fresh-tire duo of Zakk Miller and Geno Sphere were denied. A Ziggy Moonglow and Michael Henson crash brought out the caution on lap-76.
Up front, leaders Donald Stewart and Geno Sphere navigated through the men trapped one-lap down after a short-pit strategy gone awry. Sphere took the top-spot on lap-84. John Battista, Dan Johnston, Matthew Dominique and Molemar Diggs followed him through. Despite taking it easy, second-place man John Battista blew a piston, dropping to 19th in points after entering the year as a top-3 favorite for the title. Sophomore-man Molemar Diggs inherited the spot, eventually obliterating his camshaft and damaging the firewall. Scott Jackson also blew a piston, finishing outside the top-30 for the ninth time in seventeen races.
A hard-luck ride through the infield grass! Rob Scarberry and Steven Spears tangle, slamming the inside wall and nearly back into traffic. Spears would become the seventh casualty, with Rob limping to 33rd with a broken heim-joint. Allstate-man Dan Johnston gets tagged by Doug Spark, falling into Craig Lee's path with points leader Tony Pizzaro narrowly escaping on the inside. Lee would drop to 9th in the standings. Up front, Molemar Diggs stole the Halfway- Bacon-Bonus from Geno Sphere.
Devastation after a long green flag run. Zach Michael slams the pit wall, with Michael Henson spinning away from the demolished #20 Coca-Cola Mustang. Miraculously, both drivers came out okay, with Zach gaining a spot on Foley in points despite failing to finish. A Dan Johnston flip entering turn-1 ended both nights, with Henson failing to finish for a fourth-straight week. Johnston was unhurt, ending his 14-race top-30 streak in a shower of sparks! A Rod Weston, Rob Scarberry and Cristian Torres accident in turn-2 brought out the final caution flag.
All four Delta Sim Racing and Wizards of Speed teams enter Gateway inside the top-25! A combined four victories, leaving Trae Larkin's second-place performance at Darlington as the only winless entry. Names like McDonnell, Miller, Battista, Pettit and Pizzaro fall to the wayside for the up-and-coming organizations, as W.A.S.P. Motorsports and Shake N' Bake Racing struggle to keep pace. Scott Jackson and Geno Sphere turned finishing 27th into an art form, while Michael Henson's boom-or-bust strategy hopes to keep Black and Decker's sponsorship alive after 2025. Scott Jackson's retirement could bring W.A.S.P. Motorsports to an uncharismatic ending. A miracle top-5 at Gateway could re-set the tone.
Gateway's Best Drivers (2022-2024)
Three drivers set the standard. Veterans Rick Jackson, Ryan Heuser and Dave Miller have dominated the Gateway facility, gripping the asphalt better than a mop on a hardwood floor. Each driver earned a top-10 in all three Budweiser 400 attempts, with Miller winning the inaugural event during his 2022 Championship campaign. All three start outside the top-20. Race favorite Ryan Heuser hopes to replicate his 180 lap-led performance in 2024. Steven Spears hasn't finished better than 40th at the facility since 2022, hoping to improve by continuing his current eight-race top-32 streak. Winless-wonders John Battista, Craig Lee, Dakota Wilkins, Timothy McDonnell and Tony Pizzaro all have a realistic shot, hoping to claim the immaculate "Golden Arch" trophy!
Four drivers enter the fourth annual Budweiser 400 in a congested battle for regular season supremacy! Tony Pizzaro, Johnny Reed Foley, Ryan Heuser and Zach Michael each have a realistic shot of exiting Gateway with the points lead, hoping to continue their season-long dominance throughout the mid-summer stretch. Michael and Pizzaro struggle mightily at the facility, earning one top-22 finish in their six combined starts. Foley and Heuser led all but 28 laps in last years event; both starting deep in the field as the hot-lappers attempt to hold them at bay. Miracle-men Geno Sphere and Tony Gunk grid second and sixth, with Richmond winner Zakk Miller on the pole for the third time in 2025! The #30 Bepis team extends their average start to a whopping 7.23, hoping to make it two-in-a-row and top-10 in points for the first time since November.
There are four food groups in Extravaganza: sugar, grease, liquid and non-liquid. All are sold at the concessions, solidifying Richmond's reputation as "cuisine master" of the series, and a pinnacle reason we go there twice a year. "We used to sneak steak sauce into our shirts." said Elroy Hill, referring to the inferior cookery of years past. "Now the rib-eyes are tender, juicy, and fit for a king like me!" The 350-pound Elroy proceeded to chug a 2-liter of Canada Dry, staining his Steve Inkman hoodie into a gator-stained green.
Jeremy Hebel wins the Beach Boys "I Get Around" award for "getting around" Richmond faster than the rest, solidifying his status as an immaculate short track master. His Milwaukee Brewers Chevrolet pulled away from the field, leaving only Molemar Diggs in his wake as Alex Crapser and John Battista trickled towards the lead-duo during the later run. From the back, Richmond dominator Ryan Heuser jumps from dead-last to the 26th spot by lap-30.
Nobody loves a Wendy's Baconator more than John Battista! Crew chief Lew Money taped the signature burger into his dashboard, sniffing the "fumes of motivation" from the succulent patty, cheese and bacon combination. The strategy worked! Battista caught Hebel by the end of the fuel run, using the burger like a smoked ham in front of a treadmill. Matt Raboin sacrificed the sixth spot, coming in for tires first, beating everyone out of the pits while maintaining his advantage for the remaining run.
A Mike Carroll engine failure drops him to 38th in points, having to qualify for next week's race at Gateway. Up front, Matt Raboin nabs the Halfway Bacon Bonus! A lap-224 spin by Cristian Torres brings out the first caution. Unfortunately, he would play a major role in the next. The #26 GameStop Toyota slaps the wall off of turn-2, spinning out Chauncey Redmond Jr., Bink Lucas and Craig Lee towards the infield wall. Torres stays high, getting careened by points leader Tony Pizzaro into a series of barrel-rolls. The "IMPACTO" man came out unscathed, with Pizzaro losing 109 points to Johnny Reed Foley after his worst finish of the year. Redmond, Lucas and Lee came out relatively unscathed, with Torres waving his bent steering wheel to the crowd!
Jeremy Hebel re-takes the lead! A masterful pit stop, with Alex Crapser passing Matt Raboin for second place during the abbreviated green-flag stint. Alan Nesfeder goes for a wild-ride towards the back, colliding roof-first with Trae Larkin after a couple of flips. Both drivers failed to continue. Up front, Hebel maintains his advantage, holding off the remaining 15-cars on the lead lap.
Jeremy Hebel, Alex Crapser, Matt Raboin, Steve Inkman, Molemar Diggs, Johnny Reed Foley, Ryan Heuser, Zakk Miller, John Battista, Craig Lee, Ken Pettit, Adam Crapser, Donald Stewart, Chauncey Redmond Jr. and Dalton Lucas battle for ultimate supremacy for the Reese's Cup 400 crown! A giant Reese's Cup is thrown atop the car, ready to be savored by the winners' crew. Up front, Alex Crapser takes the lead with 140 to go, passing his former crew chief in a Wisconsin power slide!
A miraculous 5.3-second advantage on the field with 60-to-go! Chauncey Redmond Jr.'s pit-wall accident brings out the yellow during the fuel cycle, with Crapser, Zakk Miller, Jeremy Hebel and Ryan Heuser coming out ahead of the pace car. Donald Stewart and Dave Miller got their laps back by staying out, with Crapser's #04 Pennzoil Chevrolet leading the field to green once more. He would restart mid-pack behind the pitters, with Ken Pettit making a desperate move to stay on the lead lap. He and Michael Henson smacked the outside wall, with leader Crapser splitting the middle as Adam Crapser and Zach Michael pass underneath. Henson blew a tire in front of Dave Miller and Dakota Wilkins to bring out the caution. Matt Raboin, Steve Inkman, Johnny Reed Foley, John Battista, Molemar Diggs, along with Michael and Adam were back on the lead lap for the remainin
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Ken Pettit's longtime crew chief Slim Horton was fired this week. The #8 Bob Marley Race-2-Win organization enters Pocono with two top-15 finishes on the year, struggling to find speed even when they cross the checkered flag. The Pettit-Horton duo initiated in 2019, finishing 11th or better in the standings every year but one. Car chief and longtime friend Scott Nowacki will fill in as intern. "He made an alarm clock that rolls away so you can't shut it off!" said Pettit, referring to Nowacki's his mechanical ingenuity. "We found it under the fridge. Slim smashed it with a mallet, smelting the metal to build one of our A-frames." In 231 starts together, 95 top-10's, one Championship (2021) and two victories at Darlington are the highlights. The 2019 Folds of Honor 500 at Atlanta and 2024 Reese's Cup 400 amassed their four career wins, with two Daytona 500 poles (2020 and 2025) as their magnum opus.
*Ken and Slim at the 2021 Halloween pep rally outside Fayetteville Pep Boys.
Last year, Ken Pettit came into the sixteenth race as the points leader! This year, he's 38th. Seven DNF's have been the plague, firing crew chief Slim Horton last night after a late-race Pocono mishap. Miraculously, the team has made the field every race without provisionals since Martinsville. He's the reigning Reese's Cup 400 Champion, hoping to recapture similar success and turn his season from "wrapper" to "candy bar". Jeremy Hebel earns his second career pole, with sophomore-mate Molemar Diggs praying for his first victory since the Rebel 400. He'll start on the outside.
103 degrees at Pocono! Extravaganza Series record heat, with Aquafina bottles boiling atop the grandstands concrete. "My pulled pork sandwich caught on fire" said Amos Johnson, camping on the infield since Friday. "The bun turned black and scared away the mosquitos. Maybe it will scare away the sun!" The blistering heat scarred Rob Scarberry's fingers, driving without gloves since 1989. "It only burns if you choose to feel it." said Rob. Hopefully he will "choose" to win at Pocono!
Zakk Miller sits on the pole, tying Johnny Reed Foley with two while decreasing his average starting position to a Whiplash-Whopping 7.7! Neb Wayman takes the green flag out of the freezer as 250,000 fans anticipate the turn-1 bliss. Allstate-man Dan Johnston tries to beat Zakk Miller into the corner, failing as Dakota Wilkins drops underneath. Miller would lead lap-1, with Dakota stealing the spot on the ensuing circuit.
Two purple cars dominate the field! Rick Jackson and Dakota Wilkins swap the lead several times, with Ryan Heuser, Matt Raboin and Jeremy Hebel in tow. Towards the rear, Ken Pettit, Dave Miller and Zach Michael adroitly swerve their way through traffic after starting dead-last in the field, each reaching the top-30 by the twentieth lap. A Ziggy Moonglow cut tire was the only blemish during the stint.
Ryan Heuser takes the lead on lap-22! Rick Jackson steals it back, tag-teaming to pull Wilkins and William Perry away from the pack in a four-car cavalcade. Heuser broke the momentum on lap-40, wanting to pit from the lead and come out on top. He was unsuccessful, dropping to fourth with Jackson, Wilkins and Bink Lucas beating him out. William Perry joined the quartet in a five-car breakaway, with Lucas Racing's John Battista and Alex Crapser leading the second pack.
After a plethora of caution flags, accidents and fenders flying into the skies at Charlotte and Kansas, Nashville and Pocono kept the initial 2025 vibe in tact. Long green flag runs were the story again, hoping to join Texas as the second caution-free event of the year. Up front, John Battista, Alex Crapser, Matt Raboin, Jeremy Hebel and Trae Larkin erased half of their four-second gap on Heuser, Jackson, Lucas, Perry and Wilkins.
Battista's #39 Wendy's Chevrolet caught the front pack before halfway! He'd come out of the pits in a tango with Bink Lucas, hoping to pull away from the field despite older tires melting onto the asphalt surface. It was 2019 when Bink relieved Battista during the Pennsylvania 400, earning his first experience in Extravaganza Series racing. He's been with Lifesavers ever since.
Chauncey Redmond Jr. becomes the first casualty, blowing an engine while mowing both backstretch grasses in grand style! Worms and mosquitos equally feel the wrath, with fans enduring the wrath of the sun in the grandstands. 104 degrees combined with engine combustion was too tough for some. Some fans poured ice cream on their heads, wearing only a cone after 30 seconds of extreme melting. "My mint chocolate chip will make my hair grow back!" said Cole Donovan, reaching for the the silver-lining despite his obvious heat stroke.
The two leaders make contact! Bink Lucas sings the "tunnel-turn blues" after getting knocked out of the way by J
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Coca-Cola 600 winner Ziggy Moonglow enjoys all sporting action. "We bought a Nashville Sounds ticket on Amazon to celebrate our win last week. When it arrived, it was a photograph of the ticket! Our jack-man Biff used scissors to crop it out, but his fingers got jammed. We used a pruner to yank it off. Fortunately, his appendages are still in tact." Compared to Trae Larkin's jar accident last May, this is just par for the course at Delta Sim Racing.
Zach Michael earns his first pole since the 2024 Russ Charneski 500! A Coca-Cola sweep, with Moonglow sporting the vintage colors during last week's victory. Points leader Tony Pizzaro took the helm on lap 2. Craig Lee followed suit, with Chauncey Redmond Jr. leading his first laps since his Talladega victory in April. Wizards of Speed teammate Molemar Diggs never made it to the green flag, finishing dead-last with Redmond enduring battery issues throughout the day.
Redmond, Alex Crapser and Zakk Miller roared through the field as points leaders Michael and Pizzaro fell to mid-pack. Each took their turn at the helm, signifying their strength early as usual Speedway masters Donald Stewart and Dave Miller struggle to find prowess outside the top-30. Tony Gunk's usual "Kelpo Cam" failed to make the field, leaving Mike Carroll's "Spam Cam" to show Miller waddle violently through the corners as they race for 41st.
Bink Lucas, Zakk Miller and Dakota Wilkins dominated the ensuing 20-lap stint. All three search for their first victory of 2025, combining for seven last year with Dakota taking home the Bepis 400 trophy! Previous Nashville winners John Tharp and Rick Jackson stalked the front-runners early, hoping to capitalize on a veteran-style victory after enduring three first-time winners since the Rebel 400.
William Perry takes the lead! His motor ignites four laps later, failing to re-capitalize his fortune while dropping outside the top-20 in points. John Battista leads his first laps since Talladega in a surprisingly quiet year. Only one top-5 after a second-best fifteen in 2024, struggling with the handling while enduring three DNF's in the last five events. He, Rick Jackson, Zakk Miller and Bink Lucas led the field through green flag stops.
Battista's Wendy's #39 Chevrolet came out on top! He, Ryan Heuser, Bink Lucas and Zakk Miller scattered the top-4 positions, with Heuser and Lucas dominating the remaining run. Battista shuffled back to fourth, with Markell Murphy, Steven Spears and Jimmie Stevens crawling into the top-10 running similar lap times to the leaders. Towards the back, Kevin Corbat blew an engine, with Steve Inkman the first to drop a lap on speed.
Points leader Tony Pizzaro goes a lap down! He and teammate Ken Pettit failed to find grip, dropping the "Fenway Frank" machine to 39th and the third car to drop to the leaders. Zach Michael would finish only 118 points back. Michael Henson blows an engine while running mid-pack, dropping to 30th in the standings. Up front, Ryan Heuser pulled to a four-second gap out of the pits, cruising to the Halfway Bacon Bonus while tying Pizzaro for his tenth race led in 2025.
Markell Murphy takes the lead on lap 172! He, John Battista, Dave Miller, Bink Lucas, Jimmie Stevens, Dalton Lucas and Zakk Miller tag-teamed to the front with slightly fresher tires and cycloned towards the #47. Unfortunately, contact between Dalton and Timothy McDonnell sent the #88 Little Caesar's Chevrolet into the turn-3 wall, bringing out the first yellow with 105-to-go and
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Newspapers once banned red-ink due to the toxicity of cinnabar residue. It would soak into kicthen tables, corrupting the wholesome family meal as they breathed in the fumes. Fortunately, the digital era starts a new wave, with Ziggy Moonglow's #02 Coca-Cola Chevrolet dominating the headlines after a $10,000,000 night! Nicknamed the newfound "Crimson King", Ziggy ends the theory that red racecars can't find victory lane. Tony Pizzaro painted the back of his car green to disuade the voodoo. Cristian Torres and Kevin Corbat never won a race, prompting their sponsors to change the color of their company emblems. They were both denied that request. Zach Michael just pretends his car is not red, successfully defeating the gremlins with seven victories in the #20 Coca-Cola Mustang.
The riches of Extravaganza's new superstars have enhanced their spirit! "My new vacuum cleaner is diesel!" said Molemar Diggs, referring to the square footage of his Sudbury, Massachusetts mansion across from Willis Pond (where Babe Ruth dropped his piano). "I can finally afford a slim jim cannister!" said Chauncey Redmond Jr., forgetting that his father made more money than the Pope. "They no longer sell it, so I bought some jiffy pop instead." Ziggy Moonglow sold his Japanese Baseball board game to start Delta Sim Racing in 2023, hoping to buy it back after his Coca-Cola 600 victory. "It was my only hobby. I tried Chinese Checkers, but even our oriental gas man couldn't figure it out."
Still basking in his glory, William Perry bought a new hammock after his unprecedented Pizza Hut 400 victory! The "Flex Fuel" veteran currently stands 15th in points, just 68 back from Craig Lee who remains hindered from carbon monoxide poisoning. "Craig and I go way back. We used to visit the Woodbury catacombs at Williams Hill." said Perry "The crypt was darker than Scott Jackson's paint job, though he managed to find a rusted fishing pole. He still uses it today, calling it "Creeper"." Hopefully Perry and Lee can "creep" to the front at Nashville.
