Recapping the 2025 racing regular season

Cole Greseth won four track titles this summer.

The regular season is over in local racing and invitational season is here, and one thing I like to do with the blog is recap track championships from the region.

I don’t know what I will do about covering racing in the region over the next few weeks. I am not a huge fan of invitationals with too many classes that last 5-6 hours and then having to write about it after, but it’ll all depend on what mood I am in.  I think I have hit several tracks plenty hard this year with race reports, either live or via remote.

Anyway, some highlights from the 2025 season:

--If I did an award for local Driver of the Year, it would have to go to Cole Greseth of Harwood. In his Wissota Street Stock this summer, he has 27 wins in 50 starts and won four track titles: Sheyenne Speedway, River Cities Speedway, Jamestown Speedway and Buffalo River Speedway.  He is second in the Wissota Street Stock national points in what is easily the best season of his career.

--Todd Stark of Watertown won three track championships this summer in his #33 Wissota Midwest Modified: Casino Speedway, Brown County Speedway and Miller Central Speedway. Mike Stearns of Aberdeen won three track championships at those same three tracks -- in the Wissota Mod at Casino and Brown County and in his late model at Miller.

--Christian Kast of Fairmount, N.D. won three track titles this year in his #03 Hornet – Casino Speedway, KRA Speedway and Madison Speedway.

--Hunter Goulet of Fargo won Short Tracker/Hornet titles at I-94 EMR Speedway, Sheyenne Speedway and Buffalo River Speedway. He has 32 top five finishes in 33 starts, a pretty remarkable feat.

--Tyler Peterson of Hickson won the Wissota Late Model track championship at Ogilvie Raceway, sharing the title with Dave Mass of East Bethel. TPO is the national point leader in the class and is poised to win a third straight national title.

--Zach Flickinger of Madison won his first Wissota Street Stock track championship at Madison Speedway.  He has two wins and 23 top fives in 32 starts this year and is one of the most improved drivers in that division in recent years in western Minnesota.

--With the rainout of the Prelude to the Johnny at River Cities Speedway being rained out on Thursday, it means the NLRA Late Model season is complete, and Dustin Strand of East Grand Forks was crowned the series champion for a record sixth time.

--Scott Oeltjen of Villard won his first track championship of his career by claiming the Wissota Midwest Modified title at I-94 EMR Speedway. Travis Engebretson of Cyrus did the same in his 1X Wissota Midwest Modified at Viking Speedway.

--Trevor Walsh of Watertown won Gen X Late Model titles at I-94 EMR Speedway and Madison Speedway and leads the Gen X overall point standings as of Aug. 25.

--Kyle Anderson of Jamestown won two Wissota Midwest Modified titles this summer, winning at Jamestown and Sheyenne Speedways. He has five feature wins this summer.

--70-year-old John Corell of Jamestown was the 2025 IMCA Modified track champion at his home track, Jamestown Speedway. Tim Church, 61, won the IMCA Hobby Stock title at Red River Valley Speedway.

--Bailey Rosch of Alexandria won his second straight Wissota Super Stock track title at Viking Speedway.

--Kyle Dykhoff of Starbuck won the Dirt Race Central Street Stock tour title this summer.

--Joe Martin of Willmar won two street stock championships this year, one at Viking and one at Redwood Speedway. He finished second to Justin Vogel at KRA.

Viking Speedway

Wissota Modified: Dusty Bitzan, Evansville

Wissota Midwest Modified: Travis Engebretson, Cyrus

Wissota Street Stock: Joe Martin, Willmar

Wissota Super Stock: Bailey Rosch, Alexandria

Wissota Hornet: Kreg Anderson, Alexandria

I-94 EMR Speedway

Wissota Late Model: Travis Saurer, Elizabeth

Wissota Modified: Brady Gerdes, Villard

Wissota Midwest Modified: Scott Oeltjen, Villard

Wissota Street Stock: Eric Riley, Morris

Gen X Late Model: Trevor Walsh, Watertown

Wissota Hornet: Hunter Goulet, Fargo

Norman County Raceway

Wissota Midwest Modified: Aaron Blacklance, Thief River Falls

IMCA Sport Mod: Andy Wagner, Ada

IMCA Stock Car: Rob VanMil, Barnesville

INEX Legends: Howie Briss, Glyndon

IMCA Hobby Stock: Reid Randall, Park Rapids

IMCA RaceSaver Sprint: Brandon Rekow, Ellendale

Red River Valley Speedway

IMCA Modified: Jesse Skalicky, Fargo

IMCA Sport Mod: Ryan Restad, West Fargo

IMCA Stock Car: Kalvin Kesselberg, Ada

IMCA Hobby Stock: Tim Church, Fargo

IMCA RaceSaver Sprint: Tye Wilke, Detroit Lakes

INEX Legend: Sean Johnson, Kindred

Sheyenne Speedway

Wissota Street Stocks: Cole Greseth, Harwood

Wissota Midwest Modified: Kyle Anderson, Jamestown

Short Tracker: Hunter Goulet, Fargo

Gen X Late Model: Jarrett Huus, Fergus Falls

INEX Legends (tie): Regan Reinke and Dusty Mund, Lisbon

Hobby Stock: Billy Carow, Jamestown

Casino Speedway

Wissota Late Model: Chad Becker, Aberdeen

Wissota Modified: Mike Stearns, Aberdeen

Wissota Midwest Modified: Todd Stark, Watertown

Wissota Street Stock: Maria Broksieck, Goodwin

Gen X Late Models: Curt Kranz, Watertown

Wissota Hornet: Christian Kast, Fairmount

Jamestown Speedway

IMCA Modified: John Corell, Jamestown

Wissota Midwest Modified: Kyle Anderson, Jamestown

Wissota Street Stock: Cole Greseth, Jamestown

INEX Legends: Andrew Bargmann, Bismarck

Hobby Stock: Travis Edinger, Jamestown

River Cities Speedway

Wissota Street Stock: Cole Greseth, Harwood

Wissota Midwest Modified: Austin Hunter, Winnipeg

Wissota Late Model: Dustin Strand, East Grand Forks

NOSA Sprint: Jade Hastings, Grand Forks

Buffalo River Speedway

Wissota Late Model: Mitch Johnson, Hickson

Wissota Midwest Modified: Phil Christlieb, Fargo

Wissota Street Stock: Cole Greseth, Harwood

IMCA Sport Mod: Jayden Pavlicek, Casselton

IMCA Hobby Stock: Caleb Gardner, Glyndon

INEX Legend: Joshua Wiest, Jamestown

IMCA RaceSaver Sprint: Ty Hanten, West Fargo

Lightning Sprints: Matthew Taves, Detroit Lakes

Short Tracker: Hunter Goulet, Fargo