Madison International Speedway
Official Press Release
Contact John Wells 608.225.1913
Nottestad, Hansberry Jr., and Jones are Track Champions
Johnson, Wutke and Talaska Get the Checkered Flags
Oregon, WI- Friday, August 17th– Dale Nottestad, Robert Hansberry Jr., and Andy Jones won track championships tonight as part of the Bob Schmelzer Memorial Season Championship Night at MIS.
Casey Johnson (Late Models), Tommy Wutke (Sportsman), and Cory Talaska (Legends) took home the checkered flags for winning their features tonight.
Dale Nottestad Wins Late Model Track Championship
Fueled by his second place finish in the feature, Dale Nottestad won the 2012 MIS Track Championship for the Rockweiler Insulation Late Models. Nottestad finished with 1048 points with Zack Riddle in second place with 1012 and Bobby Wilberg in third with 955. This was the second track championship for Nottestad who won the 2004 Super Late Model title.
Robert Hansberry Jr. and Andy Jones Repeat as Track Champions
Robert Hansberry Jr. won the 2012 MIS Track Championship for the Ho Chunk Gaming Madison Sportsman and successfully defended his title from a season ago. Hansberry Jr. finished with 1235 points to win the title with Matt Lundberg in second with 1158 and Tommy Wutke taking home third with 1147.
Andy Jones took home the 2012 MIS Track Championship in the Pellitteri Waste Systems Legends. Jones finished the season with 1207 points while Cory Talaska was second at 1165 and Kevin Griffin in third with 946.
Casey Johnson Drives to Victory Lane at MIS
Casey Johnson saved his best effort for the final night as he won a thriller in the Rockweiler Insulation Late Models.
Going into the final event of the night all eyes were on Dale Nottestad and Zack Riddle. Riddle had gained six points on Nottestad after qualifying and their qualifying races but still trailed by twenty-one points. This meant that Riddle needed to finish at least five positions ahead of Nottestad in the feature if he was to win the track championship.
“Gentlemen, start your engines,” was the command given by Darlene Schmelzer following out of car introductions.
Ryan Goldade and Don Wickstrum brought the field of sixteen Late Models to the green flag. Goldade jumped to the early lead with Casey Johnson charging up to second. From his seventh starting position Zack Riddle was quickly up to third place before three laps were in the books. Meanwhile, Dale Nottestad was caught in traffic and running in ninth place.
On lap six Riddle moved to the outside of Goldade and the two raced side by side for the lead with Johnson and Bobby Wilberg close behind.
Riddle gained a slight advantage on the outside of Goldade by lap 12 while Nottestad was working his way up to fifth. Riddle grew his lead to two car lengths with Goldade, Johnson, Wilberg, and Nottestad nose to tail in the top five. By the half-way mark Riddle’s lead had grown to six car lengths over Goldade and if the race finished at this point it would put him one point behind Nottestad.
However, a spin in turn two on lap 23 brought out the first caution of the race and took away Riddle’s lead over the field.
It was time for drama as the restart cone came out on the track. Riddle had the inside position but as for the rest…time would tell. As the cars approached the cone it was time to choose a lane. Goldade stayed inside behind Riddle with Johnson choosing to go outside. Wilberg and Nottestad also elected to stay on the inside.
Riddle and Johnson raced side by side after the green flag waved followed by Goldade, Wilberg, and Nottestad. Riddle and Johnson took time sharing the lead with no change in positions three through five. On lap 30 the leaders made contact with Johnson able to hang on for the lead while Riddle dropped all the way back to sixth one postion behind Nottestad.
Johnson had clear sailing out front, but the last thing he wanted to see was a caution flag while the rest of the field was hoping to see yellow. The caution did come out on lap 36 for a spin behind the leaders in turn four.
This meant the drama continued as Johnson took the inside position for the restart while Wilberg chose to go to the outside of the front row with Nottestad and Goldade lining up in row two. The race didn’t stay green for long due to major issues with the Goldade car before one lap could be completed and ending a great night for Goldade who was making his first start of the season.
Johnson again had the inside while both Nottestad and Riddle moved to the outside of rows one and two. Johnson easily regained the lead on the restart while Wilberg and Nottestad raced side by side for second place leaving Riddle behind.
Johnson was able to lead the rest of the way to pick up his first feature win of the season while Nottestad edged Wilberg for second place. Kevin Knuese finished in fourth place while Riddle had to settle for fifth place. Nottestad’s second place finish coupled with Riddle’s fifth meant the championship belonged to Nottestad and Clifcorn Motorsports.
But probably one of the hottest drivers at MIS as the year progressed was Johnson who spoke from victory lane.
“We’ve been close so many times here, this is awesome,” said Johnson from victory lane. “I had nothing to lose tonight.”
In the Morrison’s Auto Parts Dash Series six lap race it was Casey Johnson winning for the second week in a row with Dale Nottestad finishing in second and Bobby Wilberg third. Nottestad was the overall winner in the Dash Series for 2012.
Kevin Knuese and Bobby Wilberg were the winners in the ten lap qualifying races.
Kevin Knuese wasted no time getting out to a big lead in the first ten lap qualifying race for the Late Models. Nate Oppliger and Jason Hicks raced side by side for second while Zack Riddle and Casey Johnson were doing the same for fourth. Nobody could catch Knuese who picked up the win while Zack Riddle made things interesting on the final lap passing both Oppliger and Jason Hicks while entering turn three to pick up the runner-up position.
Dale Nottestad passed Andy Evraets on the third lap to take the lead in the second ten lap qualifying race. But Bobby Wilberg was not going to let Nottestad to run away with things as he was quickly up to join him to race for the lead. Nottestad maintained the lead until the final lap when Wilberg edged him coming out of turn four to pick up the win.
Zack Riddle topped the qualifiers in the Late Model division with a lap of 18.666. Riddle set fast time eight of the nine points events. Bobby Wilberg was second (18.789) followed by Jason Hicks (18.803), Dale Nottestad (18.804), and Casey Johnson (18.828).
40 Lap Feature:1. Casey Johnson (Stoughton, WI), 2. Dale Nottestad (Cambridge, WI), 3. Bobby Wilberg (Beloit, WI), 4. Kevin Knuese (Waukesha, WI), 5. Zack Riddle (Brooklyn, WI), 6. Don Wickstrum (Monroe, WI), 7. Chuck Garetson (Albany, WI), 8. Jason Hicks (Elkhorn, WI), 9. Chad Stevens (Orfordville, WI), 10. Nathan Oppliger (Oregon, WI), 11. Rusty Hansen (Deerfield, WI), 12. Andy Evraets (Menomonee Falls, WI), 13. Casey Strese (Johnson Creek, WI), 14. Ryan Goldade (Edgerton, WI), 15. Pat Richgels (Middleton, WI), 16. Cory Skolaski (Evansville, WI),
Morrisons Auto Parts Dash:1. Casey Johnson (Stoughton, WI), 2. Dale Nottestad (Cambridge, WI), 3. Bobby Wilberg (Beloit, WI), 4. Jason Hicks (Elkhorn, WI), 5. Don Wickstrum (Monroe, WI), 6. Zack Riddle (Brooklyn, WI),
Qualifying:1. Zack Riddle (Brooklyn, WI), 2. Bobby Wilberg (Beloit, WI), 3. Jason Hicks (Elkhorn, WI), 4. Dale Nottestad (Cambridge, WI), 5. Casey Johnson (Stoughton, WI), 6. Don Wickstrum (Monroe, WI), 7. Nathan Oppliger (Oregon, WI), 8. Chuck Garetson (Albany, WI), 9. Ryan Goldade (Edgerton, WI), 10. Chad Stevens (Orfordville, WI), 11. Kevin Knuese (Waukesha, WI), 12. Andy Evraets (Menomonee Falls, WI), 13. Rusty Hansen (Deerfield, WI), 14. Casey Strese (Johnson Creek, WI), 15. Pat Richgels (Middleton, WI), 16. Cory Skolaski (Evansville, WI),
Qualifying Race 1:1. Kevin Knuese (Waukesha, WI), 2. Zack Riddle (Brooklyn, WI), 3. Nathan Oppliger (Oregon, WI), 4. Jason Hicks (Elkhorn, WI), 5. Casey Johnson (Stoughton, WI), 6. Ryan Goldade (Edgerton, WI), 7. Rusty Hansen (Deerfield, WI), 8. Pat Richgels (Middleton, WI),
Qualifying Race 2:1. Bobby Wilberg (Beloit, WI), 2. Dale Nottestad (Cambridge, WI), 3. Chuck Garetson (Albany, WI), 4. Chad Stevens (Orfordville, WI), 5. Don Wickstrum (Monroe, WI), 6. Andy Evraets (Menomonee Falls, WI), 7. Casey Strese (Johnson Creek, WI), 8. Cory Skolaski (Evansville, WI),
Tommy Wutke Finishes Off a Big Night at MIS
Tommy Wutke won his second feature of the season in the Ho Chunk Gaming Madison Sportsman.
A pair of sevens, Brandon Skolaski and Greg Baxter ushered the field of twelve Sportsman cars to the line for their twenty lap feature. A spin on the first lap brought out the caution flag. On the restart Baxter took the lead followed by Tommy Wutke and Matt Lundberg. Behind Lundberg and Wutke were Will Rece and Todd Ambrose racing side by side for fourth.
On lap 5 Wutke found space to the inside of Baxter to take over the point. Lundberg passed Baxter one lap later for second. A close battle for third between Baxter, Rece, Hansberry Jr., and Ambrose allowed the top two to get away from the pack. Rece took the third position on lap twelve with Hansberry Jr. in tow.
Out front Wutke maintained a three length lead over Lundberg while Rece and Hansberry Jr. were fighting it out for third. A spin on lap 16 brought out the caution and the restart cone.
Wutke lined up on the inside with Hansberry Jr. taking the dare going to the outside and go for the win. Wutke took the lead but drifted up the track ahead of Hansberry Jr. allowing Lundberg to move into second. The race only stayed green for one lap due to a spin on the backstretch.
Now it was restart time again with Wutke choosing the inside. Lundberg elected to follow suit while Hansberry Jr. went to the outside. A great start by Wutke put him back out front with Lundberg, Hansberry Jr. and Rece fighting for second place before an incident involving several cars brought out yet another caution and sent Hansberry Jr. to the back of the field while Rece and Dan Snyder were unable to continue due to damage to their cars.
TJ Goldade chose the outside on the restart and raced side by side with Wutke for one lap before a multi-car melee on the backstretch brought out the caution flag ending the race and giving the win to Wutke. Ambrose finished in second place followed by Baxter, Hansberry Jr. and Brandon Skolaski.
“This is great,” said Wutke who confirmed that this was his biggest night in racing. “There was a lot going on behind me and I’m just happy I was where I was.”
Robert Hansberry Jr. and Todd Ambrose won the ten lap qualifying races for the Sportsman.
Will Rece and Robert Hansberry Jr. took the lead on the restart after a spin on the first lap brought out the caution. On lap 6 Hansberry Jr. pulled to the inside of Rece to take the lead while coming out of turn four and led the rest of the way to pick up the win. Rece finished second followed by Tommy Wutke.
In his first start of the season, Rick Coppernoll took the early lead in the second qualifying race and was able to hold it for the first three laps before Todd Ambrose went to the high side to make the pass for the lead. The speedy Ambrose wasted no time checking away from the field to easily pick up the win. Matt Lundberg was able to edge Coppernoll for second place.
Tommy Wutke turned the fastest lap in qualifying for the second time this season with a lap of 20.735 followed by Todd Ambrose (20.824), Robert Hansberry Jr. (20.844), Matt Lundberg (21.045), and Will Rece (21.079).
20 Lap Feature:1. Tommy Wutke (Stoughton, WI), 2. Todd Ambrose (Sauk City, WI), 3. Greg Baxter (Brodhead, WI), 4. Robert Hansberry Jr. (Beloit, WI), 5. Brandon Skolaski (Fitchburg, WI), 6. TJ Goldade (Stoughton, WI), 7. Matt Lundberg (Rockford, IL), 8. Rick Coppernoll (Cottage Grove, WI), 9. Will Rece (Stoughton, WI), 10. Dan Snyder (Stoughton, WI), 11. Jon Coker (Oregon, WI), 12. Matt Vaade (Stoughton, WI), 13. Paul Marti (Albany, WI)- DNS
Qualifying:1. Tommy Wutke (Stoughton, WI), 2. Todd Ambrose (Sauk City, WI), 3. Robert Hansberry Jr. (Beloit, WI), 4. Matt Lundberg (Rockford, IL), 5. Will Rece (Stoughton, WI), 6. TJ Goldade (Stoughton, WI), 7. Greg Baxter (Brodhead, WI), 8. Rick Coppernoll (Cottage Grove, WI), 9. Matt Vaade (Stoughton, WI), 10. Jon Coker (Oregon, WI), 11. Brandon Skolaski (Fitchburg, WI), 12. Dan Snyder (Stoughton, WI), 13. Paul Marti (Albany, WI),
Qualifying Race 1:1. Robert Hansberry Jr. (Beloit, WI), 2. Will Rece (Stoughton, WI), 3. Tommy Wutke (Stoughton, WI), 4. Greg Baxter (Brodhead, WI), 5. Brandon Skolaski (Fitchburg, WI), 6. Matt Vaade (Stoughton, WI), 7. Paul Marti (Albany, WI),
Qualifying Race 2:1. Todd Ambrose (Sauk City, WI), 2. Matt Lundberg (Rockford, IL), 3. Rick Coppernoll (Cottage Grove, WI), 4. TJ Goldade (Stoughton, WI), 5. Jon Coker (Oregon, WI), 6. Dan Snyder (Stoughton, WI),
Cory Talaska Leads the Way in Legends
Cory Talaska won the twenty five lap feature for the Pellitteri Waste Systems Legends.
Kyle Jusits and Kevin Griffin brought the ten car field to the green flag in the Legends feature. Jusits gained the lead but only for the first two laps when Cory Talaska squeezed by on the inside. Vince Bartolotta and Andy Jones were up to second and third one lap later and began to hunt down the leader. The trio was able to break away from the pack with Jones trying to pass Bartolotta on the outside for second.
Bartolotta and Jones continued to apply pressure on Talaska. Jones made the pass of Bartolotta on lap 23 to take second but Bartolotta was able to catch him at the stripe for second but both would come up short behind Talaska who won his second feature of the season.
“I did everything I could, but we just came up short,” said Talaska from victory lane. “I watched Andy and Vince fighting it out behind me.”
Bartolotta’s car failed post race inspection and lost his position and points for the feature.
Andy Jones and Chris Lishamer won the qualifying races.
The first twelve lap qualifying race included the two drivers battling for the track championship, Andy Jones and Cory Talaska. Jones took the lead on the first lap with Talaska right on his bumper in hot pursuit. On lap 7 Jones got loose coming out of turn four which allowed Talaska to gain some ground, but it wouldn’t be enough as Jones hung on for the win. Kyle Jusits took home third place honors.
Chris Lishamer jumped out to the early lead in the second qualifying race while Kevin Griffin and Vince Bartolotta were battling it out for second. Their battle allowed Lishamer to build a sizeable lead that he would never relinquish on his way to victory lane. Bartolotta nipped Griffin at the stripe for second.
Fast qualifier for the Legends division was Cory Talaska with a lap of 13.991 followed by Vince Bartolotta (14.124), Kyle Jusits (14.277), Kevin Griffin (14.285), and Andy Jones (14.320).
Pellitteri Waste Systems Legends 8/17/2012
25 Lap Feature:1. Cory Talaska (Campbellsport, WI), 2. Andy Jones (Gurnee, IL), 3. Kevin Griffin (Green Oaks, IL), 4. Chris Lishamer (Elgin, IL), 5. Kyle Jusits (Kenosha, WI), 6. Todd Schmitz (Verona, WI), 7. Brian Griffin (Elk Grove, IL), 8. Jordan Wendt (Stoughton, WI), 9. Tim Narr (Raymond, WI), 10. Vince Bartolotta (West Allis, WI),
Qualifying:1. Cory Talaska (Campbellsport, WI), 2. Vince Bartolotta (West Allis, WI), 3. Kyle Jusits (Kenosha, WI), 4. Kevin Griffin (Green Oaks, IL), 5. Andy Jones (Gurnee, IL), 6. Chris Lishamer (Elgin, IL), 7. Todd Schmitz (Verona, WI), 8. Brian Griffin (Elk Grove, IL), 9. Tim Narr (Raymond, WI), 10. Jordan Wendt (Stoughton, WI),
Qualifying Race 1:1. Andy Jones (Gurnee, IL), 2. Cory Talaska (Campbellsport, WI), 3. Kyle Jusits (Kenosha, WI), 4. Todd Schmitz (Verona, WI), 5. Tim Narr (Raymond, WI),
Qualifying Race 2:1. Chris Lishamer (Elgin, IL), 2. Vince Bartolotta (West Allis, WI), 3. Kevin Griffin (Green Oaks, IL), 4. Brian Griffin (Elk Grove, IL), 5. Jordan Wendt (Stoughton, WI),
During pre-race ceremonies fans of all ages received bus rides around the track compliments of Wayne Ace Bus and Limo Service of Oregon. Nearly twenty-five young fans also received a free bicycle during intermission from the Quest Industrial Turn One Kids’ Club. MIS would like to thank the many drivers and sponsors who donated bikes for the kids.
It’s a big weekend on August 25th and 26th at MIS as the ARCA Racing Series comes to Wisconsin’s Fastest Half-Mile with practice and qualifying on Saturday and the Herr’s Live Life with Flavor 200 on Sunday afternoon. Advance tickets are on sale at the track or at nineteen area Menard’s locations.
The Fireworks Extravaganza will take place at MIS on Friday, August 31st with ThunderCat returning to light up the skies over the speedway. It will also be Round Three of the Super Late Model Triple Crown Challenge and an appearance by the Mid American Stock Car Series.
For more information checkout the track website at madisoninternationalspeedway.com or call the track office at 608.835.9700.