Detjens Memorial first night feature wins for Breitenfeldt, Weiler, Anderson and Thompson

Adam Glatczak | State Park Speedway track writer

WAUSAU, Wis. (July 26) – On a first night of the Larry Detjens Memorial where car counts were strong in every class, the Rockstar Energy Drink Mini Stocks brought the largest field of cars of all of them and also put on one of the best feature finishes at State Park Speedway.

As a full night of racing stretched into the early morning hours, Eric Breitenfeldt outlasted Luke Mikula in a battle of Wausau drivers to win the 20-lap mini stocks feature. The night’s other feature winners included Elliott Weiler of Marshfield in the legends class, Tim Anderson of Pittsville in the Snap-on Mini Mods and West Salem’s Bentley Thompson in the Bandoleros.

Breitenfeldt won his third feature of the season at State Park, getting by Mikula for good on the white flag lap after chasing him most of the second half of the race. The battle included a side-by-side battle for three laps, after Breitenfeldt got inside Mikula on lap 17 after several tries earlier.

Mikula came his closest yet to a first career feature win, taking the lead from Amanda Rowe of Mosinee after a lap 10 restart and leading a strong field behind him as laps wound down. Breitenfeldt moved into second right behind Mikula on lap 11 with Nick Kurth of Wausau third, fast qualifier Clayton Phillips of Marathon fourth and Garret Strachota of Wausau fifth.

Mikula continued to hold off Breitenfeldt with a good run on the straightaways, but Breitenfeldt continued to look inside and eventually got the inside on the leader on lap 17. Breitenfeldt led lap 18, and the defending SPS mini stocks champion cleared Mikula a lap later for his second straight feature win.

Mikula finished second with Kurth third, Phillips fourth and Strachota fifth. Kooper Guralski of Wausau was sixth with Rowe finishing seventh after leading eight laps early.

Mike Meharg of Auburndale won the 20-lap mini stocks semi-feature, holding off Jacob Hintze of Wausau for the win. Shawn Carpenter of Marshfield, Andy Rindfleisch of Wausau and Breitenfeldt all won heat races and Phillips was the night’s fastest qualifier.

A total of 27 mini stocks were on hand for the night, the largest number in the class in years and resulting in full fields for the feature and semi-feature. The heat races also included the night’s most spectacular accident, as Almond’s Dawson Knutson spun after contact in the third heat, hit the mound surrounding a light pole in turns 3 and 4 and got airborne, doing a single barrel roll before his car landed on all four wheels. Knutson got out of the car and was uninjured.

Weiler won what turned out to be an abbreviated legends feature, with a 25-lap race shortened to 19 laps after three cautions, two from accidents that necessitated lengthy cleanups.

Weiler took the lead from Eric Niemi of Belleville on lap 16 and then had to hold off perennial legends contender Ayrton Brockhouse of Shakopee, Minn., as Brockhouse tried Weiler on the inside on lap 18, again on lap 19, and was sizing up another try when the caution came out after Dirk Henry and Devin Dieringer got together in Turn 2 in an accident that wound up the end of the race.

Brockhouse finished second with Robby Carter of Lakeville, Minn., third, Cael Slater of Kendall fourth and Niemi coming back to finish fifth. Niemi had taken the lead on lap 5, held off the strong cars of Weiler and Brockhouse for a number of laps and was looking for his first feature win at State Park before slowing up on lap 16, dropping back to seventh before getting back to speed.

Russ Weiler of Marshfield won the legends semi-feature, a race also shortened from 20 laps to 15 after several cautions. Kyle Mitchell of Middleton, Russ Weiler and Dirk Henry of Blaine, Minn., all won heat races and Brockhouse was the class’s fastest qualifier.

Anderson won the final feature of the night, which also was the only main event to run caution-free. The defending mini mods champion got to the front early and won the 20-lap race for his third feature of the season at State Park.

Anna Malouf Price of Rhinelander took the lead from the pole and led early, but Anderson made quick work getting through the field from his eighth starting spot. He was up to fourth by the second lap and then made a three-lap power move on the top side, getting by Kamren Hill of Marshfield for third on lap 4, Tyler Muller of Sun Prairie for second one lap later, and overtaking Price for the lead on lap 6. He pulled out to a full straightaway lead over his nearest competition by lap 12 and cruised to the win.

Joe Kuehn of Wausau finished second with Zach Degner of Merrill third in his first appearance of the season in the car formerly driven by the late George Seliger, a four-time mini mods champion. Price finished fourth with Hill holding off Josh Willhite of Wausau for fifth.

Muller and Anderson won heat races. Mark Dewey of Janesville was fastest in qualifying.

Thompson won his second feature of the season at State Park in the Bandoleros class, and also foiled Paxton Benz’s bid for a first career feature win at the track. Thompson snuck inside Benz after a restart with two laps left and went on to win the 15-lap feature with Benz coming in second, Axel Oldenhoff of Lake Mills third, Mason Obermeyer of Union Grove fourth and Ace Oldenhoff of Lake Mills fifth.

Benz ended up done in at the end by too many caution flags. He built up a solid lead after taking the top spot from Axel Oldenhoff on lap 4, before a multi-car accident on lap 8 brought the field back together. Benz again towed the field after the restart and still was four car lengths ahead of Thompson late when another caution came out on lap 13 after Blake Michael of Evansville slid into the wall out of Turn 4. Benz drifted high out of the second turn after the restart and Thompson got inside for the lead and went on to the win to maintain his points lead in the class.

Michael won the Bandoleros semi-feature, while head winners included Mason Westphal of Farmington, Minn., Axel Oldenhoff and Thompson. Oliver Weinkauf of Merrill set fast time.

The Detjens Memorial continues Saturday with another full show highlighted by the ASA Midwest Tour super late model series 125-lap feature race. Pure stocks, mini mods, mini stocks and Bandoleros also will race. Menke Auto Group Qualifying begins at 4:30 p.m. with racing starting at 6 p.m.

Snap-on Mini Mods

Fast Qualifier: Mark Dewey, Janesville, 15.804 sec.

First Heat: 1. Tyler Muller, Sun Prairie; 2. Keagen Benz, Wausau; 3. Dale Louze, Mosinee; 4. Anna Malouf Price, Rhinelander; 5. Pat Dickman, Marshfield; 6. Brandon Sischo, Stratford; 7. Brian Marquardt, Weston; 8. Jeremy Whitman, Milwaukee

Second Heat: 1. Tim Anderson, Pittsville; 2. Joe Kuehn, Wausau; 3. Dewey; 4. Zach Degner, Merrill; 5. Josh Willhite, Wausau; 6. Jim Lietz, Mosinee; 7. John Lietz, Mosinee; 8. Kamren Hill, Marshfield

Feature: 1. Anderson; 2. Kuehn; 3. Degner; 4. Price; 5. Hill; 6. Willhite; 7. Dewey; 8. K. Benz; 9. Jim Lietz; 10. John Lietz; 11. Sischo; 12. Louze; 13. Marquardt; 14. Whitman; 15. Muller; 16. Dickman

Rockstar Energy Drink Mini Stocks

Fast Qualifier: Clayton Phillips, Marathon, 16.477 sec.

First Heat: 1. Shawn Carpenter, Marshfield; 2. Jenny Wegner, Wausau; 3. Trentyn Wanta, Wisconsin Rapids; 4. Austin Bohman, Wausau; 5. Joe Schoener, Wausau; 6. Kendra Baumann, Wausau; 7. Jim Schara, Hamburg; 8. Ashley Schoone, Gleason; 9. Monroe Weso, Eland

Second Heat: 1. Andy Rindfleisch; Wausau; 2. Dylan Henry, Gleason; 3. Mike Meharg, Auburndale; 4. Jacob Hintze, Wausau; 5. Amanda Rowe, Mosinee; 6. Trevor Schumann, Tomahawk; 7. Justin Boykins, Wisconsin Rapids; 8. Austyn Rauch, Stratford

Third Heat: 1. Eric Breitenfeldt, Wausau; 2. Garret Strachota, Wausau; 3. Nick Kurth, Wausau; 4. Tom Lecher, Wausau; 5. Luke Mikula, Wausau; 6. Kooper Guralski, Wausau; 7. Clayton Phillips; 8. Dawson Knutson, Almond

Semi-Feature: 1. Meharg; 2. Hintze; 3. Schumann; 4. Boykins; 5. Wegner; 6. S. Carpenter; 7. Wanta; 8. Bohman; 9. Schoener; 10. Schoone; 11. Schara; 12. Baumann; 13. Weso; 14. Dylan Henry; 15. Rindfleisch

Feature: 1. Breitenfeldt; 2. Mikula; 3. N. Kurth; 4. Clayton Phillips; 5. Strachota; 6. K. Guralski; 7. Rowe; 8. Meharg; 9. Hintze; 10. Lecher; 11. Schumann; 12. Rauch; 13. Chase Kurth; 14. Boykins

Legends

Fast Qualifier: Ayrton Brockhouse, Shakopee, Minn., 15.378 sec.

First Heat: 1. Kyle Mitchell, Middleton; 2. Daden Barclay, Marshfield; 3. Anthony Lashua, Mosinee; 4. Dalton Lee, New Lisbon; 5. Kevin Voelz, Merrill; 6. Kaleb Baumgart, New Lisbon; 7. Matt Schecklman, Marshfield

Second Heat: 1. Russ Weiler, Marshfield; 2. Devin Dieringer, Elroy; 3. Cam Panitzke, Lonsdale, Minn.; 4. Alex Haese, Manitowoc; 5. Justin Henry, Sauk Center, Minn.; 6. Devon Lee, New Lisbon; 7. Hayden Dieringer, Elroy

Third Heat: 1. Dirk Henry, Blaine, Minn.; 2. Elliott Weiler, Marshfield; 3. Robby Carter, Lakeville, Minn.; 4. Eric Niemi, Belleville; 5. Cael Slater, Kendall; 6. Ayden Brockhouse, Shakopee, Minn.; 7. Ayrton Brockhouse

Semi-Feature: 1. R. Weiler; 2. Panitzke; 3. Mitchell; 4. Barclay; 5. Schecklman; 6. Dalton Lee; 7. Lashua; 8. J. Henry; 9. Voelz; 10. Baumgart

Feature: 1. E. Weiler; 2. Ayrton Brockhouse; 3. R. Carter; 4. Slater; 5. Niemi; 6. H. Dieringer; 7. Ayden Brockhouse; 8. Haese; 9. Devon Lee; 10. D. Dieringer; DQ: Dirk Henry

Bandoleros

Fast Qualifier: Oliver Weinkauf, Merrill, 16.184 sec.

First Heat: 1. Mason Westphal, Farmington, Minn.; 2. Logen Carter, Lakeville, Minn.; 3. Brody Thompson, West Salem; 4. Jarrett Reynolds, Rockford, Ill.; 5. Blake Michael, Evansville; 6. William Carpenter, Marshfield

Second Heat: 1. Axel Oldenhoff, Lake Mills; 2. Mason Obermeyer, Union Grove; 3. Ace Oldenhoff, Lake Mills; 4. Gage Kubicz, Whitewater; 5. Mackenzie Maule, Hebron, Ill.; 6. Emily Billings, Waterloo

Third Heat: 1. Bentley Thompson, West Salem; 2. Weinkauf; 3. Paxton Benz, Wausau; 4. Wesley Baumeister, Beloit; 5. Cole Kurth, Wisconsin Rapids; 6. Carter Stein, Germantown

Semi-Feature: 1. Michael; 2. Westphal; 3. B. Thompson; 4. W. Carpenter; 5. L. Carter; 6. Reynolds

Feature: 1. B. Thompson; 2. P. Benz; 3. Axel Oldenhoff; 4. Obermeyer; 5. Ace Oldenhoff; 6. Weinkauf; 7. Cole Kurth; 8. Baumeister; 9. Kubicz; 10. Billings; 11. Stein; 12. Maule; 13. Michael; 14. Westphal