By Bill Blumer
It was another new Lyco Manufacturing A-Main winner with the Advanced Fastening Supply Badger Midget Auto Racing Association as they made their last trip to Wilmot Raceway for 2026.
Nathan Crane who hales from Waukegan, IL, and calls Wilmot Raceway his home track scored his first win in Badger competition as he wheeled one of the Zach Boden Racing entries.
With a long season approaching its final events, point races coming more into picture and a nearly full moon, it was a wild night where racing became a full contact sport. Or as announcer Eric Huenenfeld put it after the heat races, “There may be a few discussions in the Badger pits.”
THE PRELIMINARIES
Rod End Supply Qualifying started the night with point leader Brandon Waelti setting the pace followed by rookies Karter Stark and Colin Sivia who was also in a Boden entry.
Auto Meter Heat One saw Brian Peterson and Dave Collins Jr. lead the field of six to the green. At the start, Eric Blumer and Jake Dohner made contact before they got to turn one. Dohner jumped Blumer’s right rear and nearly got his “Red Duce,” over. He managed to keep the car from flipping and narrowly missed hitting the frontstretch wall. He was out for the race though.
As they entered the first turn on the restart Peterson and Collins made contact. Sivia was charging on the outside and had nowhere to go as the Collins car was pushed up the track just enough that the left front of Sivia caught the back right of Collins. Sivia’s mount flipped, further assisted by the embankment and punctuated by a hard landing on all fours. The youngster was out of the car in short order. His first night in a midget at his home track was done.
Peterson flipped in the process too. He appeared to be uninjured and his night was also over.
This left three cars and Blumer (third in Badger points) lead every lap after the restart for the win. Cody Weisensel who was second in points going into the night, finished second. Collins, who was just outside the top ten in points, was able to restart after the crash and finished third.
Nick Kilian led the first lap of Hoosier Tire Heat Two. Stark was working the outside from the fourth row and charged to the lead as they crossed the line to complete lap two. There was more wheel banging behind him but everyone kept moving forward as Stark won by a straightaway over Kilian.
Harrison Kleven continued to impress as he took his new ride to the point in Behling Racing Products Heat Three. Tenth in points going into the night, Kleven led the first two laps as Waelti, RJ Corson (fourth in points) and Miles Doherty (sixth in points) went three wide beating wheels behind him.
Corson and then Waelti got by Kleven as they passed the line to complete the third lap. From there Waelti did everything he could to get by Corson to no avail. Corson went on to take the 14 points for the win while Waelti settled for second and the ten points it awarded. Kleven held on for third in the heat.
LYCO MANUFACTURING A-MAIN (THE FIRST TWENTY-ONE LAPS)
Weisensel led the field from the pole for the Lyco Manufacturing A-Main behind the wheel of the No. 20 car he has campaigned for so many years with his father Kevin. Crane was on his outside.
Weisensel got the jump at the start and led the first ten laps. Crane ran second and would gain or lose five lengths on Weisensel depending on the lap. He never quite got to the bumper of Weisensel at this point, but he was close. Behind them there was more beating and banging going on but everyone kept pointing down course.
On the next circuit they caught their first lapped car. That midget was running a consistent line on the cushion like everyone else and the top two cars dove under without issue.
As Weisensel crossed the line for the twentieth circuit this race had all the feel of so many others of late where Badger has gone green to checkers. If that was the case it was probably going to be another win for Weisensel as Crane wasn’t getting much closer than three lengths.
LYCO MANUFACTURING A-MAIN (THE LAST FOUR LAPS)
And then the whole complexion of the race changed. As Weisensel crossed the line to complete lap twenty-two of the twenty-five lap race, the red flag came out. Jake Goeglein was attempting to exit the track. Unless one can pull into the infield, the way this is done is by going straight off the front stretch continuing forward rather than turning left for turn one. Here, Mike Gebhard who had been battling Goeglein for position, didn’t catch that Goeglein was exiting and Gebhard contacted Goeglein’s left rear. This sent both cars flipping. Both cars were done for the night.
With just four laps left coming to the green it was Weisensel, Crane, Waelti, Doherty and Stark. As they came to the line it looked like Crane was literally touching the bumper of Weisensel’s machine. When Weisensel took off Crane was close and tried a slide job in turns one and two. On the exit he got next to Weisensel but that was it. Another attempt on the next corners was less successful and Crane filed in behind Weisensel. Just as the field completed a lap the racing was stalled for Luke Wackerlin whose car came to a rest on the backstretch with a broken rear end. He had been battling for a much needed top-five finish as he stood fifth in points.
The top-five line up for this restart was the same as the last. Now Crane was bumping Weisensel’s rear as they went through three and four to the green. This time Crane got a little more bite on his slider in one and he had Weisensel by the time they got to turn three. Now Weisensel was under attack from Waelti as he tried to put a slider on Weisensel when they exited turn four. They came close to getting together and may have touched but Weisensel was no worse for wear. He battled back, put some distance on Waelti and then dove low going into turn one and got next to Crane.
This allowed Waelti to join the fray again and he slid Weisensel coming out of turn two. At that point they were nearly bumper to bumper as Waelti and Weisensel may have made contact again and Crane had about a foot on Waelti who was now in second. Crane was safely ahead of the two Sun Prairie drivers as he went into three.
Waelti had a length or two on the charging Weisensel as they entered turn three. Waelti went low and Weisensel was not going to give an inch. At this point Weisensel dove lower than Waelti and his right rear hit the No. 3 in the midsection. This sent both cars up the track, to the embankment and into the darkness. Stark was behind them and had nowhere to go. He came to a rest with perhaps just some slight contact with Waelti.
Waelti stayed on his wheels while Weisensel tipped over. Once his car was righted Weisensel exited and went toward the Waetli machine. He was stopped from going any further by track personnel. Both Stark and Waelti would restart in the back. Weisensel’s night was done.
This set up a green, white, checkered finish. Coming to the green it was Crane, Doherty, Blumer, Sparks, Corson. Crane got a good start and had several lengths on Doherty when they finished the lap. With the white flag flying, Doherty spun in front of Sparks and then Blumer as they both went high enough to avoid contact in turn one. Derek Doerr was committed to the bottom as he was battling Corson for fifth. With nowhere to go Doerr’s nose nailed the broadside of the Doherty machine sending Doerr into a tip over. Their nights were both done.
Huenefeld announced that due to track rules regarding the amount of time a race can take the green would fly again, but be it a yellow, red or the checkers, the race would be done on the next flag. The remaining cars were able to finish the race without incident and Crane took the win.
With a cage stand, then a back flip off the right rear and a bow to the crowd, Crane celebrated his first AFS Badger Midget Series win. Sparks finished second, Blumer was next followed by Corson and Dohner.
Later Crane shared, “This win means a ton to me. I’ve been racing midgets part time for four years now. It was even more meaningful to get my first win at my hometown track, Wilmot Raceway. The incredible battle with Cody was awesome, his wreck was very unfortunate.” He went on to congratulate Sparks in his runner up drive, who was in the Sober Racing entry that Crane sometimes pilots.
AWARDS AND NOTES
High Performance Lubricants B-Main and 1855 Saloon and Grill Heat Four were not needed this night.
Schoenfeld Headers Invert Draw: Waelti
The Bob Tattersall Spankins Motorsports Hard Charger; Spankins Motorsports Rookie of the Race; The CASM Racing Products Hard Luck Award and the Last Place Bonus in Loving Memory of Addison Dahlke recipients were unavailable at press time.
INJURY UPDATES
Goeglein reports he had some tenderness in his knees and shoulders. It’s been a tough season for the Badger veteran and he indicated the team is done for the season and will set their sights on 2027.
Gebhard who’s had a solid second year in Badger indicated “The gear did its job and I’m good,” regarding his condition. He too is calling it a season due to damage to his car.
Peterson indicated he was fine.
Sivia was in good spirits and indicated he was doing well right after the race. The frame of his car was cracked however.
Doerr indicated he was alright and just disappointed in the way the night went. He said his dad Randy and he will go to work to get the car race ready for the Firemen’s Nationals.
Weisensel will be back in the No. 5 Jones-Spray car this weekend and will run the USAC portion of the Angell Park race in Bill Burrington’s car.
UP NEXT
Saturday, Sept. 5, the AFS Badger Midget Series will join the MARA cars in a co-sanctioned event at Sycamore Speedway.
Sunday, Sept. 6, Badger runs the fabled Firemen’s Nationals at Angell Park Speedway. Running their own show will also be the USAC National Midget Series. Expect several Badger drivers and teams to do double duty in this crown jewel event of midget racing.
MARA will start the weekend at Lincoln (IL) Speedway on Friday, Sept. 4 and it’s expected that several teams will attempt to run all three races making for a special string of midget racing.
UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
Lyco Manufacturing A – Feature (25 Laps): 1. 51-Nathan Crane[2]; 2. 31-Jace Sparks[9]; 3. 68-Eric Blumer[10]; 4. 15C-RJ Corson[8]; 5. 2-Jake Dohner[7]; 6. 92-Karter Stark[4]; 7. 17-Nick Kilian[13]; 8. 3W-Brandon Waelti[5]; 9. 29K-Mike Stroik[11]; 10. 59-Kyle Koch[16]; 11. 8D-Miles Doherty[3]; 12. 20D-Derek Doerr[14]; 13. 20-Cody Weisensel[1]; 14. 73W-Luke Wackerlin[6]; 15. 8-Jake Goeglein[15]; 16. 81-Mike Gebhard[17]; 17. 29-Harrison Kleven[12]; 18. 56-Mitchell Davis[18]; 19. (DNS) 51B-Colin Sivia; 20. (DNS) 40JR-Dave Collins Jr
Auto Meter Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 68-Eric Blumer[3]; 2. 20-Cody Weisensel[5]; 3. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr[2]; 4. 51B-Colin Sivia[6]; 5. (DNF) 2-Jake Dohner[4]; 6. (DNS) 56-Mitchell Davis; 7. (DQ) 7-Brian Peterson[1]
Hoosier Tire Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 92-Karter Stark[7]; 2. 17-Nick Kilian[1]; 3. 51-Nathan Crane[6]; 4. 73W-Luke Wackerlin[5]; 5. 31-Jace Sparks[4]; 6. 8-Jake Goeglein[2]; 7. 81-Mike Gebhard[3]
Behling Racing Products Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 15C-RJ Corson[4]; 2. 3W-Brandon Waelti[7]; 3. 29-Harrison Kleven[1]; 4. 8D-Miles Doherty[6]; 5. 29K-Mike Stroik[2]; 6. 20D-Derek Doerr[5]; 7. 59-Kyle Koch[3]
Rod End Supply Fast Time Qualifying (25 Laps): 1. 3W-Brandon Waelti, 15.036[14]; 2. 92-Karter Stark, 15.102[12]; 3. 51B-Colin Sivia, 15.184[17]; 4. 8D-Miles Doherty, 15.203[15]; 5. 51-Nathan Crane, 15.222[16]; 6. 20-Cody Weisensel, 15.285[18]; 7. 20D-Derek Doerr, 15.309[8]; 8. 73W-Luke Wackerlin, 15.575[7]; 9. 2-Jake Dohner, 15.854[4]; 10. 15C-RJ Corson, 15.953[3]; 11. 31-Jace Sparks, 15.961[2]; 12. 68-Eric Blumer, 16.064[9]; 13. 59-Kyle Koch, 16.140[19]; 14. 81-Mike Gebhard, 16.292[21]; 15. 40JR-Dave Collins Jr, 16.343[1]; 16. 29K-Mike Stroik, 16.414[6]; 17. 8-Jake Goeglein, 16.430[13]; 18. 7-Brian Peterson, 16.473[20]; 19. 29-Harrison Kleven, 16.566[11]; 20. 17-Nick Kilian, 16.648[5]; 21. (DNS) 56-Mitchell Davis; 22. (DNS) 3-Will Gerrits; 23. (DNS) 68E-Michael Weber