September 30, 2025 - Elko, MN
By Jason D Searcy
Elko Speedway celebrated the American working class with a Labor Day weekend Eve of Destruction.
The NASCAR sanctioned Late Model division had 16 cars competing and raced two caution-free 25 lap feature events. The first race had #8 Billy Mohn take the lead off the waving of the green flag, he was quickly challenged by 10-time ELKO Champion #72 Jacob Goede from Carver (MN). Goede and Mohn raced hard side by side for numerous laps before Goede captured the lead on lap 8 and drove to the victory, his third win of the season at Elko Speedway. Chris Marek #3 started the race in the 8th position and raced up through the field to finish second place 0.759 seconds behind Goede. Mohen dropped back to the third position at the finish line followed by #32 Jeremy Wolff and pole-sitter #99 Tommy Peterson. The win was important to Goede not only for the trophy but also for NASCAR Division I Advance Auto Parts weekly series National points where Goede is only a few points out of the lead with two more NASCAR points nights remaining at ELKO. Goede has experience in this regard, he won the NASCAR Hometracks title in 2019.
The second Late Model feature event had #42 Ryan Kamish leading the first lap, #6 Owin Giles and #13 Bryan Wrolstad from Faribault (MN) battled for the second spot until Kamish bobbled coming out of corner #2 and Wrolstad pounced on the opportunity to take the lead. This was just the second night back to competing at ELKO for Wrolstad who has been racing elsewhere the previous three years. Wrolstad didn’t forget how to get it done at Elko Speedway, he won by 0.473 seconds. Hunter Paine #94, who just returned after recovering from knee surgery, finished second place. Jacob Goede #72 started 9th and finished third. Owin Giles set fast time in qualifying with a lap of 14.712, he finished the race fourth and #8 Billy Mohn was fifth. Point leader #3 Chris Marek was sixth of the 16 cars entered.
Chris Marek continues to lead in the race for the 2025 Late Model Championship at ELKO, he now has a 58 point lead over #14 Grant Brown, 65 point lead over #52 Chad Walen and 68 point lead over Owin Giles.
The Eternity Homes Thunder Cars had an impressive 20 car field of competitors Saturday night at Elko Speedway. The race got out to a rocky start with a caution occurring after just one lap completed, 7-time ELKO Champion #28 Conrad Jorgenson secured the top spot off the restart and then jumped out to a big lead. Great racing was taking place behind Jorgenson and he was cruising to the win but just as he was coming to the white flag he had mechanical problems, the car stalled and he was forced to drop from the race. Five-time Champion Brent Kane #99 from Lonsdale (MN) started this race in the 10th position, he weaved his way through the field towards the front of the pack and took advantage of the late caution. Kane took the lead off the Green-White-Checkers and won for the 6th time in 2025 at ELKO. Matt Wiebusch #09 was 0.721 seconds behind in second place, #16 Jim OMeara finished third, #27 Gary West got a hard-nosed fourth place finish and #29 Tommy Sorem was fifth. This was the 151st win in Brent Kane’s career and it also helps him in the race for the NASCAR Division II Advance Auto Parts weekly series National point standings, Kane not only gets maximum points available for getting the win because of the large car count at ELKO but also bonus points for starting the race way back in the 10th position. With that win Kane is now within striking distance of the National point title lead in division II.
The second NASCAR sanctioned Thunder Car 20 lap feature was drama from the start to finish, #18 Eric Montour from Rosemount (MN) led every lap but the excitement was building behind him throughout the race. Brent Kane #99 again started the race in the 10th position and all eyes were on him as he picked his way through this very stout field of cars, the race was only slowed by one caution mid-race. Kane was quickly making up ground on Montour the last few laps of the race, Kane finally caught Montour on the last lap and made a furious attempt at a pass on the high side in the last set of corners, Montour never wavered, Montour held his low line down the front stretch and won the drag race to the finish line by just 0.019 seconds as the crowd rose to its feet. It was the second win of the season at ELKO for Montour. Kane had to settle for second place, Julie Jorgenson #83 finished third, #29 Tommy Sorem was fourth and #16 Jimmy OMeara was fifth. Numerous top cars made the trip from neighboring states to race during this event including #1 Charles Vian Jr and #34 Mike Krueger from WI and #12 Brandon Herb from IA, this race also marked the return of #14 Darren Waltermann who has not raced in a few years at ELKO and it was the first ever Thunder Car race for long-time Power Stock racer #08 Mike Stoer.
Brent Kane now enjoys a huge 96 point lead over Tommy Sorem in the race for the 2025 Thunder Car title at Elko Speedway. Jimmy OMeara is third in points 109 back and Julie Jorgenson is fourth at 111 points behind Kane.
The NASCAR sanctioned Power Stocks raced two 20 lap feature events during Eve of Destruction at Elko Speedway. The first race saw #14 Brock Westermayer leading the opening lap until he brushed the wall down the backstretch hard enough to drop from the race. Jimmie Jorgenson #3 from Lakeville (MN), hot off his Hobbyfest VI win at Tomah-Sparta Speedway 6 days earlier, then acquired the lead and set sail to a huge advantage. The field was only bunched that one time for a yellow flag, Jorgenson dominated the race and won by 1.884 seconds, it was his fifth win of the season at ELKO. Mike Stoer #08 jumped up from his sixth starting position to finish second place, 16 year old #14 Clayton Dorner finished a strong third, #88 Nick Oxborough was fourth and Wisconsin driver #1 Matt Cleveland finished fifth.
The second Power Stock feature event had #27 Darin Patnode taking the lead off the start, five-time Champion #88 Nick Oxborough from Lakeville (MN) then took the top spot on lap two with #08 Mike Stoer right behind him. This race was run caution-free as Oxborough and Stoer battled for numerous laps for the lead a full straightaway ahead of the rest of the field. Oxborough was able to fend off the many advances of Stoer and he won by 0.365 seconds at the line, it was the fifth win of the season for Oxborough at ELKO. Clayton Dorner #14 finished in the third position again, #45 Gary Stokvis was fourth and #1 Matt Cleveland scored another Top 5 finish just like the first race. Point contender Jimmie Jorgenson #3 started the race 9th and was only able to make it up to 6th position at the finish.
Mike Stoer continues to lead the standings in the Power Stock division, he is now 14 points ahead of Jimmie Jorgenson with Nick Oxborough 52 points back in third.
The INEX sanctioned Legends division raced a 20 lap feature event on Saturday night at Elko Speedway. Mitch Peterson #22 led the strong 17 car field for the first couple of laps until a caution happened that ended up sending a few of the top competitors to the pits for repairs including the point leader #12 Ayrton Brockhouse, Brockhouse did return to the race at the back of the field. Veteran driver #15 Tyler Sjoman grabbed the lead off the restart, held on through another caution period and looked strong until Brockhouse shot up from the back and challenged Sjoman for the top spot. They raced wheel to wheel a few laps before Ayrton Brockhouse from Shakopee (MN) finally took the lead and held on to win for the third time this season at ELKO. Sjoman finished 0.479 seconds back for the runner up position, #2 Rob Thurston was third, #15 Andrew Borntreger fourth and Mitch Peterson held on for a career best finish in 5th place.
Veteran drivers #2 Rob Thurston and #87 Robby Carter were the heat race winners. Robby Carter and Dirk Henry #3 tied for the fastest lap in qualifying with a time of 15.799 seconds.
Ayrton Brockhouse extended his point lead as both of his closest competitors were not in attendance. He leads Cam Panitzke by 72 points and Tristan Swanson, who was gone racing a Midwest Truck by 82 points.
The INEX sanctioned Bandolero’s raced a 12 lap feature event during Eve of Destruction Saturday night at Elko Speedway on the flat ¼ mile track used as the pit lane during the ARCA series races.
Thomas Poretsky #8 led the first five laps of the race until a yellow flag slowed the field and #15 Justice Doubrava from Apple Valley (MN) took over the stop spot after the restart. Doubrava held on through another restart and never made a mistake as #5 Christopher Flynn was ready to pounce at any opportunity. Doubrava won by 0.702 seconds, it was his second win of the season at ELKO. Christopher Flynn finished second, #32 Mason Westphal was third, #57 Rev Heitkamp fourth and #26 Will Smith was fifth of the 14 cars competing.
Christopher Flynn and Mason Westphal won the heat races and #2 Anna Athmann from Olivia (MN) won the 10 lap Beginner Bando feature event.
All results and points are unofficial on this posting. Get more information on MyRacePass and search Elko Speedway or ElkoSpeedway.com <http://elkospeedway.com>
Action athletes from the ATV Big Air Tour and Mega Jump BMX performed for the large crowd in attendance.
Corey Sampson from St Paul (MN) won the Spectator drags in his 2015 Dodge Charger.
Willie B’s Blues band performed in Champions lounge and the evening ended with an exciting Figure 8 Bus race with 8 buses entertaining the crowd.
Up Next at Elko Speedway is an added night to the original schedule. Saturday September 6th it will be an invite only Drift competition plus AWF wrestling, High School Racing Association, Midwest Dash series and racing in the Legends car and Bando divisions. Gates open at 4:30pm followed by qualifying and then opening ceremonies at 6pm.
Elko Speedway is a NASCAR sanctioned 3/8th mile asphalt oval race track with stadium seating located 30 minutes South of the Twin Cities in Elko-New Market MN. Get more information at ElkoSpeedway.com <http://elkospeedway.com>
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