MASON CITY, Iowa — Jake Timm used a late-race caution to set up leader Dereck Ramirez, taking the lead with three laps to go and scurrying away from the pack to win Wednesday night’s preliminary feature of the 25th anniversary USMTS Silver Jubilee at Mason City Motor Speedway.
Points were accumulated throughout the night for each driver’s performance in time trials, heat races and the 25-lap feature.
The top six in points locked themselves into the first six spots of the inside row for the start of Saturday night’s 33-car, 78-lap, $25,000-to-win championship contest.
Ramirez started Wednesday’s nightcap from the outside of the front row, and took command from polesitter Al Hejna to lead the opening lap.
The 2020 USMTS champion fought back early challenges from Hejna, Tyler Wolff, Lance Mari and Carlos Ahumada Jr. as they circled the super-fast third-mile using every inch of the racing surface.
While Mari and Ahumada drifted back a bit, Timm was clawing his way to the front and made it a three-car battle for the lead between himself, Wolff and the yet-to-be-passed Ramirez.
With eight laps to go, the top three were in lapped traffic, and at one point tried to make it four-wide with a back-marker but Timm though the better of it and saved his opportunity for another time.
Timm disposed of Wolff on lap 19, and then began to race door-to-door for the next four laps with Ramirez. Timm edged ahead in turns one and two, while Ramirez’s momentum carried his No. 4r Hughes Chassis around Timm as they exited turn four.
When the yellow flag waved with 22 of 25 laps in the books, Timm saw his window of opportunity cracked back open. Back under green, he remained low while Ramirez stuck with the high line, but this time Timm was able to complete the “slide job” out of turn four to lead the 23rd lap.
Ramirez drove back underneath Timm and tried to take the low line away, but Timm thwarted his effort and then drove away from the field to cross the finish line first.
The win was worth $1,000 to the 26-year-old. It was his eighth career USMTS triumph and a series-best fourth in 2023.
Ramirez wound up second with Mari crossing the stripe third. Wolff held on fourth, Dan Ebert took fifth.
Timm will start on the inside of the second row for Saturday’s championship race as Ramirez earned the most points on opening night and will be on the pole when the green flag flies in three days.
Also locking themselves in and bound for glory in Saturday’s explosive finale were Ebert, Ahumada, Mari and Wolff.
The finish:
Jake Timm, Dereck Ramirez, Lance Mari, Tyler Wolff, Dan Ebert, Cayden Carter, Carlos Ahumada Jr.., Zack VanderBeek, Ryan Gustin, Rodney Sanders, Al Hejna, Gary Christian, Kyle Brown, Ryan Wetzstein, Brandon Davis, J.T. Wasmund, Kelly Shryock, Aaron Benson, Darwin Karau, Joe Horgdal, Alex Williamson, Brandon Givens, Gunner Martin, Kelsie Foley, Josh Ruby, Jayden Larson, Rick Beebe, Lee Beemer, Dustin Brown, Ron Ver Beek.