By Quinn McCabe
July 21, 2021, Sun Prairie, WI– The Badger midgets made their return to Angell Park Speedway on Sunday night for the third and final leg of the “Three for All” mini-series. Chase McDermand and Kurt Mayhew scored wins in the first two races at Gravity Park in Chilton, WI, and Tomahawk (WI) Speedway.
During pre-race ceremonies, officials were able to honor long-time BMARA announcer, historian, and friend Bryan Gapinski. Sadly the sport lost Gapinski to cancer last October. Gapinski’s passion for Midget racing came second only to his family who were present to accept the Bryan Gapinski Media Award renamed in his honor.
The track was heavy and smooth, ready for “Grip it and rip it” and the Schoenfeld headers qualifying did not disappoint. Zach Boden showed the way, securing another quick-time, his seventh of the season. Boden’s Mazda-powered Bullet chassis turned in a time of 14.404 seconds, a lightning-quick lap at Angell Park.
Chase McDermand rebounded from a qualifying mishap to score the Madison Extinguisher Service non-qualifier race. Andy Baugh took his Johnnies Garage Honda-powered Phantom Chassis to victory lane in Auto Meter Heat #1. Kyle Stark backed up his solid third-place run at Tomahawk, by scoring another heat win, wheeling his 1855 Saloon & Grill Mazda powered Spike to take top honors in Simpson Race Products Heat #2. In Behling Race Equipment Heat #3 is where things began to take a turn in the evening. On the opening lap, Jake Dohner and Kevin Olson came together exiting turn 2 sending Dohner for a wild ride over the billboards along the backstretch wall. Dohner was able to climb from his racecar and was taken by ambulance to the hospital for further evaluation. Zach Boden would charge through the field to win once the race resumed.
Several of the top drivers had issues early in the night, the High-Performance Lubricants B-Main was almost like getting a twin feature. Three cars with seven wins in 2021 were represented in the B-Main. Chase McDermand, Jeff Zelinski, and Jack Routson used the second lane to pick through traffic before Zelinski retired unexpectedly with mechanical issues. As the laps ticked off the battle for the transfer spot was intense. The field was entering turn three coming to the white flag when Miles Quandt clipped the car in front of him just enough to send him for a wild ride over the turn three wall. Quandt was responsive and talking to safety officials before being taken to a nearby hospital.
Unfortunately due to local time constraints officials from Angell Park Speedway and the Badger Midget Series were forced to postpone the remaining portion of the program. A twin feature will take place on August 15th to sort out the “Three for all” championship.
Teams will now begin preparations for Sycamore Speedway on Saturday, July 24 before returning to Angell Park on August 1st for the 85th reunion and the Fredenberg 50. The Fredenberg 50 was a long-standing tradition honoring the former Badger Midget Champion Al Fredenberg. The race will test the teams in a variety of ways, 50 laps is a grueling test of moxy and mental wherewithal.
Stay tuned to BMARA.com and the BMARA Racing Facebook page for additional announcements and information regarding events for the 2021 season.
Badger Midget Series 3-4-All Points Chase McDermand 215; 2. Kyle Stark 143; 3. Kurt Mayhew 140; 3. Kevin Douglas 140; 5. Zach Boden 130; 5. Andy Baugh 130. 7. Mike Stroik 125; 8. Jeremy Douglas 99; 9. Jim Fuerst 95; 10. Lamont Critchett 92
Badger Midget Series Points: 1. Chase McDermand 928; 2. Zach Boden 650; 3. Lamont Critchett 573; 4. Andy Baugh 547; 5. Kyle Stark 524; 6. Mike Stroik 518; 7. Kevin Olson 507; 8. Kurt Mayhew 457; 9. Kyle Koch 433; 10. Scott Hatton 417