CAMBRIDGE — Wisconsin Dells driver Michael Grueneberg nailed down his second feature victory of the 2024 season at Jefferson Speedway on Saturday evening.
Grueneberg drove to the front of the field and hung on through multiple late restarts to secure the win and close the gap in the season standings, with only three points nights remaining until champions are crowned.
Steven Sauer and Kyle Smith led the field to green as they battled for control of the top spot in the West Side Monona Tire Late Model 50-lapper. Smith held the slight advantage at the conclusion of lap one, but Sauer fought back to drive into the lead alone on lap three. The first of several yellow flags flew on lap four when Seth Reamer spun in turn two, collecting Dale Nottestad.
Sauer and Mark Deporter made up the front row for the restart. As racing resumed, Penn Sauter initiated a three-wide fight for third on the inside of Shane Radtke and Smith. Meanwhile, Sauer reclaimed the point with Deporter dropping to second. Radtke won the battle for third and quickly dove under Deporter, looking for second. Radtke completed the pass on lap 11, driving up alongside Sauer for the top spot.
Radtke moved out front on lap 12, with Sauter trying to follow him under Sauer. Sauter made the pass for second and drew in behind the new leader. While Sauter searched for an opening, Gruenberg made his way through the top five and into third. Grueneberg joined the battle for the lead around the halfway point of the race as they three drivers raced under a blanket.
The trio traded some paint as they raced hard looking for an advantage. On lap 30, Grueneberg got good run on the high side, drawing even with Radtke. Two laps later, Grueneberg powered into the lead while Sauter pulled alongside Radtke. Sauter and Radtke leaned on each other as they raced hard for second. But contact on lap 34 ended with Radtke spinning, forcing the caution.
Both drivers were relegated to the rear of the field on the restart with Grueneberg and Deporter out front.
Grueneberg reclaimed the lead with Stephen Scheel challenging Deporter for second. Scheel drew alongside Deporter on lap 43, but immediately began to show signs of an issue as he slowed and began to slip back. Lap 45 saw another caution, this time for leaking fluid from the machine of Scheel.
Grueneberg and DePorter once again led the field back to green with Grueneberg retaking his lead while Deporter tried to fend off Shaun Scheel for the second spot. Grueneberg maintained his lead through one final yellow to secure the win. Deporter was second followed by Shaun Scheel, Michael Guderski and Carson Phillips.
Jefferson’s Jason Thoma took top honors in the 35-lap Sportsman feature event. Patrick Featherston led lap one from the front row with Brock Behnke up to second. After a caution on lap ten, Featherston and Behnke paced the field to green with Featherston once again taking control on the restart.
Tytus Helgestad moved past Behnke to claim second and begin to pressure Featherston at the front. Helgestad spent several laps searching for a way around the leader, finally drawing even on the outside on lap 21. After a brief battle, Featherston moved back into the lead with Helgestad trying to hold off Kyle Chwala for second.
Helgestad mounted another challenge on the high side of the leader, this time making the pass for the top spot while Thoma joined the battle for the lead on lap 30. Thoma moved past Featherston for second on lap 32. The caution waved shortly afterwards when Featherston spun, setting up a three-lap shootout to the finish. Helgestad and Thoma led the field to green with Thoma beginning to gain momentum.
Thoma inched forward, moving into sole possession of the lead on lap 34. Matthew Thoma moved up, looking to take second from Helgestad while Jason Thoma cruised to the checkers for the win. Helgestad hung on to claim the second spot with Matthew Thoma, Chwala and Evan Leahy rounding out the top five.
Earlier in the evening, the Sportsman division competed in a 50-lap makeup feature from a previous rainout. Chris Jones of South Beloit, Ill., picked up his second feature win of the season in the event. Evan Leahy led lap one with Jones moving up to battle Mike Lambert for second. Jones made the pass on lap four and looked to close in on Leahy out front.
A caution on lap eight closed up the field for the restart with Leahy and Jones on the front row. Leahy jumped back out front as racing resumed with Jones trying to hold off Jake Biever for second. Jones moved back into control of the runner-up spot on lap 12 as he looked to close back in on Leahy. Jones chipped away at Leahy’s lead until finally catching him on lap 27.
Jones dove under Leahy entering turn one. The duo battled side by side until Jones claimed the advantage on lap 30. One more caution on lap 43 pitted Jones and Leahy against each other for the restart. But Jones reclaimed his lead and hung on through the checkers for the win. Biever came home second followed by Jason Thoma, Matthew Thoma and Leahy.
Watertown’s Mason Wilcott claimed the 20-lap Bandit feature. Caden Pankow led early from the pole with Wilcott quickly up to second. Wilcott shadowed Pankow until lap seven with Pankow drifted high exiting turn four. Wilcott pounced on the opening, grabbing the lead and never looking back. At the checkers it was Wilcott for the win followed by Landon Peterson, Nick Newton, Tom Schuette and Trent Rueth.
Dillon Schwanbeck of Poynette captured the 25-lap Legends main event. Schwanbeck drove to the front of the field quickly, taking the lead on lap five. Meanwhile, Ayrton Brockhouse was making his way to the front as well. A caution on lap 12 placed Schwanbeck and Brockhouse on the front row for the restart.
Brockhouse charged into the lead as racing resumed. Lincoln Cain followed under Schwanbeck, taking second on lap 18. The leaders ran single file until the second caution flew, slowing the pace. Brockhouse and Cain made up row one for the restart. But after two failed restart attempts, both drivers were relegated the rear of the field, handing row one to Schwanbeck and Ayden Brockhouse.
Schwanbeck retook the lead as racing resumed, hanging on through one final caution to claim the win. Jacob Stark moved up to finish second with Travis Rose, Ryan Laatsch and Ethan Ross rounding out the top five.
Bentley Thompson of West Salem captured the 15-lap Bandolero feature event. After an early caution on lap two, Carter Stein led the field to green. Thompson dove to the low side of the speedway, charging up alongside Stein to take the lead on lap seven. Harley Johnson joined the battle a lap later. Johnson got under Thompson, stealing the lead on lap nine.
But Thompson hung close, looking to reclaim his lead. Thompson got a good run, pulling alongside Johnson as they raced even under the white flag. Thompson drove into the lead on the final lap, flying past the checkers first to get the win. Johnson settled for second ahead of Teegan Wangsness, Stein and Emily Billings.
Racing resumed next Saturday, Aug. 17, with time trials at 4 p.m. and racing at 6 p.m. Visit jeffersonspeedway.com for more information.
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