ROCK SPRINGS — Two nights of racing during the Ken Hansen Memorial Modified Spectacular tightened some championship races while creating separation in others over the Fourth of July weekend.
Green River’s Braxton Yeager extended his lead in the IMCA Modified standings, Cody Poll held onto the Sport Compact points lead despite a pair of runner-up finishes, and Josh Pate climbed into second in the IMCA SportMod Championship after a strong weekend.
Friday’s IMCA Modified feature saw Utah’s Michael Hale charge from fifth to earn the victory. Chase Hansen advanced from 10th to finish second, while Kade Dimick climbed from 12th to complete the podium.
Justen Yeager led the local contingent with a fourth-place finish after starting seventh and was the only Wyoming racer to finish in the top 10 for night one, though the Yeager family responded Saturday.
Braxton Yeager started second and led the majority of the way, driving to victory in the feature. He held off younger brother Bryson Yeager, who charged from 10th to finish second. Wyatt Howard from Utah rounded out the podium after starting on the pole, while Justen Yeager finished sixth. Rock Springs’ Casey Delp finished 10th, giving Sweetwater County four racers in the top 10.
The weekend helped Braxton increase his championship lead to 15 points over Bryson, while Justen moved to third in the standings, with the Yeager family leading the standings halfway through the season.
The IMCA Sport Compact Division featured two different winners, but consistency allowed Cody Poll to remain atop the standings.
On Friday, Travis Bott produced one of the night’s biggest drives, advancing from 10th to win the feature. Poll worked his way from 13th to finish second, while Joe Renfro earned a podium finish after charging from sixth to third.
Saturday belonged to Rock Springs’ Marc Hammond, who drove from sixth to his first feature victory of the weekend. Poll finished second for the second consecutive night after starting 11th, while Ethan Poll stormed from 19th to third. Green River’s Kaleb Clark added a fourth-place finish after starting seventh.
The pair of runner-up finishes kept Cody Poll atop the Sport Compact standings with 231 points, four ahead of Bott. Ethan Poll sits third, while Renfro moved into ninth in the championship standings following his podium finish Friday.
Green River’s Josh Pate highlighted the IMCA SportMod Division with a feature victory Friday, charging from sixth to the front. Points leader Slade Pitt rallied from 11th to finish second, while Kendrick Chapman completed the top three.
Saturday’s feature belonged to Rock Springs’ Jason Wright, who led every lap from the pole. William Valdez finished second and Cole Marlatt placed third, while Pate capped off the weekend with a fifth-place finish.
Pate’s weekend moved him into second in the SportMod standings, seven points behind leader Slade Pitt. David Pitt, JD Renfro and Marlatt round out the top five.
The IMCA Hobby Stock Division split feature victories between Jeff Danos and Jeramy Johnson.
Danos charged from 10th to win Friday’s feature, followed by Green River’s Brady Barlow in second and Johnson in third.
Johnson answered Saturday by driving from sixth to victory. Danos finished second, while Barlow recorded his second straight podium with a third-place finish. Race Vasquez was disqualified from Saturday’s feature after originally starting fifth.
Johnson now leads the Hobby Stock standings by 13 points over Preslie Thorne, while Rock Springs rookie Danica Delp sits third. Barlow climbed to sixth in the standings after back-to-back podium finishes.
The IMCA Stock Car Division saw Dillon Lawrence sweep the weekend. Lawrence won Friday’s feature after starting third before leading every lap from the pole Saturday. Brad Ostler and Josh Schweitzer completed Friday’s podium, while Cory Wilder and Schweitzer rounded out the top three on Saturday.
Lawrence exits the holiday weekend atop the Stock Car standings with a four-point advantage over Schweitzer as Sweetwater Speedway turns its attention to the second half of the racing season.
