RICE LAKE, Wis. – Second generation young gun Sam Mars, who recently turned 17 years old, won his first WISSOTA late model feature by topping the Trackside Collectibles 40 Saturday night at Rice Lake Speedway.
Mars took over the lead on lap 15 followed a tangle involving then-leader James Giossi, who got tied up with a car he was trying to lap and spun, triggering the only yellow flag of the 40-lap main event.
With Giossi sent to the tail of the field, Mars – who had run second up to that point after starting on the pole and chasing Giossi – took over the lead and held the top spot the last 26 laps to get the win.
Giossi had used the high side of the track to get the initial lead, with Mars and Pat Doar moving in behind him. Giossi was very fast and soon had opened up nearly a full straightaway lead on Mars and the rest of the field.
Meanwhile, Sam’s father Jimmy Mars, who started sixth on the grid, moved in to challenge Doar for third with Jeff Massingill on the move behind him. Jimmy Mars was able to slide under Doar for that spot after a previous side-by-side battle with Massingill before he moved in to challenge Doar.
Giossi was comfortably out front and starting to work his way through traffic when he caught the car of Aaron Wilson. While trying to press the issue with the slower car, Giossi got too quick coming off turn two and ran up the back of the slower car as he tried to squeeze under him and spun to a halt, triggering the yellow with fourteen laps complete. Giossi was sent to the tail for triggering the yellow and instead opted to pull off the track.
This left Sam Mars as the leader with his father Jimmy and Doar as his pursuers. On the green, Sam pulled away from his father and set a high speed pace, one that no one could keep up to.
With no slower cars to deal win, Sam Mars continued to maintain his pace as Jimmy Mars slipped back by 10 car lengths.
Sam’s only trying moment came with less than 10 laps to go when he finally caught traffic and had to try and get past the car of Scott Meeds. After making several attempts but being held up, he finally ducked under Meeds and into the clear and while his father Jimmy closed in, cutting the lead in half.
But Sam was in control and crossed under the line as the winner, earning $2,000 for his first ever win.
Jimmy Mars finished second and congratulated his son in victory lane, with Massingill coming home third ahead of Doar and John Kaanta.
Eleven of the 15 starters were still running at the finish.
Heat winners were Buddy Hanestad and Giossi.
The finish:
Trackside Collectables A Feature (40 Laps): 1. 28-Sam Mars [1]; 2. 28M-Jimmy Mars [6]; 3. 6M-Jeffrey Massingill [8]; 4. 11-Pat Doar [3]; 5. 85-John Kaanta [10]; 6. 44-Darrell Nelson [12]; 7. 71JR-Buddy Hanestad [5]; 8. 71H-Rick Hanestad [9]; 9. 519-Steve Laursen [7]; 10. 55C-Chad Mahder [11]; 11. 18L-Marcus Simonson [4]; 12. 89-Scott Meeds [13]; 13. 11G-James Giossi [2]; 14. 92-Aaron Wilson [14]; 15. T18-TJ Adams [15]; 16. 14J-James Kannegiesser.