By Marty Czekala
Zach Sobotka’s jump from Sportsman Modifieds to Sprint Cars couldn’t have gone any better.
In his first full season behind the wheel of a 305, the Parish driver capped off a dream rookie campaign by winning the 2025 CRSA Sprints championship, becoming the first rookie to do so since John Virgilio in 2011.
Before turning his focus to Sprint Cars, Sobotka was already a proven winner in the dirt racing world, collecting Sportsman track championships at Brewerton, Outlaw and more, along with a Super DIRT Week victory in 2021 and even a Big Block Modified win in 2023.
“I felt like I could drive the Sportsman cars similar to Sprint Cars and I feel like that’s why we’re as good as we are,” Sobotka said.
Flash back to last year, when Sobotka tried a sprint car for the first time, he pulled off top 10 after top 10 after top 10. When the No. 38 showed up at Utica-Rome last year, Sobotka came across the line first. However, the car came up light on the scales.
Fast forward to when the series returned to “The Home of Heroes” and the one that got away came back to Sobotka for his first series win, passing tech after the race.
A week later and Sobotka proved he was the man to beat, scoring the win at Fulton with a late race pass on Bobby Parrow and becoming the first back-to-back winner in two years.
“To win two in a row? That feels good,” Sobotka said at the time.
Who was gonna challenge him for the championship?
Enter Dillon Paddock. Throughout the early portions of the second half of the season, the two would go back and forth for the points lead and race win. From July 4 to Oct. 18, they won eight of the 14 A-Mains. Sobotka scored wins at Woodhull, Brewerton and Land of Legends while Paddock won at Ransomville twice, Albany-Saratoga, Weedsport and Outlaw.
It all came down to “The Port” Sept. 28 to determine who would get the championship advantage. Sobotka needed a 13th-place finish or better to clinch.
In the closest finish of the season, while Paddock won by just about a tenth, Sobotka’s second-place run was good enough to clinch.
“We don’t ever touch each other, we’ve been racing side-by-side for 18 to 19 races,” Sobotka said. “I can’t really ask for a better person to race against.”
“Racing Zach has been great all year,” said Paddock on Sobotka. “He’s a really good racecar driver. When things get strung out, it’s hard to get racing, but he has been rolling really good.”
It was a dream season for Sobotka, who captured five wins and an incredible 19 top-fives in 20 starts, setting a record for most top-five finishes in a single CRSA Sprints season.
His success didn’t stop there. Outside of CRSA competition, Sobotka scored his first career Empire Super Sprints victory at Brewerton and turned heads with a ninth-place finish in his World of Outlaws debut at Weedsport.
Sobotka will be recognized alongside the rest of the miniseries champions and award winners during the CRSA Sprints Awards Banquet Dec. 6 at Vernon Downs Hotel Casino, a well-earned celebration of a season that will be remembered as one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in series history.
The CRSA Sprints are celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2025 and are brought to you by A-Verdi Storage Containers. Associate sponsors include Pit Stop Convenience Stores, DisBatch Brewing Company, Dandy, Joe’s Garage, Westward Painting Company, Elab Smokers Boutique, iFreeze Storage & Distribution Center, Maguire Automotive Group, Powdertech Powdercoating, Ruggles World of Auto Body, PJC Business Ventures, Profab Enterprises, Magsarus Ignitions, Highside Racewear, Hoosier Racing Tire, Insinger Performance with their Stinger Race Fuel, My Race Pass and is owned and operated by Mike Emhof Motorsports.
For more information on the series, results and points, please visit our website, www.crsa.myracepass.com.
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