BOONE, Iowa — The first night of the NAPA Auto Parts Double Down Prelude brought a massive field of competitors to Boone Speedway on Saturday, with Karl Kustoms IMCA Modifieds, Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars, and Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compacts taking center stage.
Collen Winebarger survived a wild final lap to capture the second 25-lap Sunoco IMCA Stock Car feature by 0.128 seconds.
Troy Jerovetz drove the Tracy Thrun-owned No. 01 to the early lead while Winebarger, a two-time Oregon Modified State champion wheeling the Terminator Chassis No. T1 house car, applied the pressure.
Winebarger eventually worked his way to the front and began pulling away before a caution on lap 13 changed the complexion of the race.
Jerovetz regained the lead on the restart, while Jimmy Gustin used a strong restart to move into second. Gustin began pressuring Jerovetz on lap 16 and took command one circuit later.
The two-time defending Marshalltown Speedway track champion and 2010 Modified Super Nationals winner appeared to be in control until trouble in turn four on lap 21 allowed Winebarger to reclaim the top spot.
Gustin refused to go away and spent the final circuits running down the Corbett, Ore., racer.
Winebarger bobbled on the final lap, opening the door for Gustin to pull alongside. The two drag raced to the checkered flag, with Winebarger winning by a slim margin for his first career Prelude victory..
Gustin finished second after starting 20th, with Jerovetz, the 2018 Sports Park Raceway champion, taking third. Two-time Nebraska State champion Austin Brauner was fourth. Three-time reigning Iowa State champion and 12-time reigning 34 Raceway track champion John Oliver Jr. charged from 21st to fifth.
Trent Nolan came out on top of a lengthy battle with Jim Horejsi to earn his first Prelude victory in the opening 25-lap Stock Car feature which went stoppage free.
Horejsi led the opening circuit after battling Nolan for the top spot and secured the position on lap four. The two-time Redwood Speedway track champion had Nolan stalking him throughout the opening half of the contest.
Nolan turned up the pressure on lap 13, and the pair raced side-by-side for several circuits with Horejsi narrowly maintaining the advantage at the stripe.
The battle finally swung Nolan’s way when he beat Horejsi to the line on lap 15.
Horejsi remained glued to Nolan’s bumper, and the leaders caught lapped traffic on lap 20. Nolan successfully negotiated the traffic and used it to create some separation before racing to the checkered flag.
The Shawano, Wis., driver and two-time Shawano Speedway track champion collected his first relude victory.
Horejsi finished second, followed by 2005 National champion and 2018 Super Nationals winner Damon Murty in third. Cole Suckow, the 2024 Independence Motor Speedway SportMod track champion, was fourth, while three-time defending Merced Speedway track champion Paul Stone completed the top five.
187 Sunoco IMCA Stock Cars were in attendance.
Joel Rust made a late charge to the front to capture the second 25-lap Karl Kustoms IMCA Modified feature.
Ethan Braaksma put the Trent Guest and Danny Meier-owned No. 11E out front on the initial start. The 2026 IMCA TV Clash on the Coast champion and last year’s Harris Clash winner quickly checked out and caught the tail end of the field on lap 12.
A caution one circuit later erased Braaksma’s advantage, but he took off again on the restart while 2026 Harris Clash winner Rust and two-time National champion Chaz Baca Jr. battled hard for second.
Rust secured the runner-up position on lap 16 and began closing in on Braaksma. A misstep on lap 20 briefly cost Rust ground and gave Braaksma some breathing room, but both Rust and Baca soon began reeling the leader back in.
Rust completed the pass for the lead with two laps remaining. Ricky Thornton Jr. also came charging through the field late aboard the Whitney and Jordan Grabouski-owned No. 20RT and grabbed second.
Grundy Center’s Rust held on to score his second career Prelude victory after previously winning in 2019.
Thornton, an Arizona transplant and two-time Modified Super Nationals champion, finished second after starting 21st. Baca was third, while 2020 Close Racing Supply Eastern Region champion Mitchell Hunt rallied to fourth. Braaksma completed the top five.
Thornton shared hard charger honors with Wisconsin’s Cole Czarneski, the 2026 Clash at the Creek winner, who charged from 25th to sixth.
Nick Meyer made an even bigger charge through the field to capture the first 25-lap Modified feature.
Cody Brill led the opening circuit before Meyer began challenging for the top spot on lap five. Once Meyer took command, he and Logan Veloz separated themselves from the rest of the field.
Meyer, the 2018 track champion at both Kossuth County Speedway and Hancock County Speedway, reached lapped traffic on lap 11 and handled it without issue.
A caution on lap 23 set up a green-white-checkered finish and gave the field one final opportunity.
Austen Becerra made a last-lap bid, but the Whittemore racer, Meyer, won the race to the line to complete his charge from 18th starting.
Becerra, a two-time IMCA TV Clash on the Coast champion, finished second. Veloz, last year’s Sunoco IMCA Late Model National Rookie of the Year, crossed the line third but was penalized two positions for a droop rule infraction.
That moved 2024 IMCA Stock Car National Rookie of the Year Colby Fett to third and two-time defending Super Nationals champion Tim Ward, driving the Doug and Amy Eckrich-owned No. 151W, to fourth. Veloz was scored fifth.
Tim Schnathorst took command early and never looked back in the caution free 20-lap Mach-1 IMCA Sport Compact feature.
