Twenty Champions Ready for Oktoberfest 200 Challenge on Sunday

West Salem, WI- Twenty drivers representing over 60 Championships have entered this Sunday’s 51st annual Oktoberfest 200 for the ARCA Midwest Tour at LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway. Heading into the four day racing weekend, a total of 38 Champions and Challengers from seven states have entered the Championship event at the 5/8 mile paved oval.

5 Casey Johnson- The defending ARCA Midwest Tour Champion and current point leader just wrapped up his fourth Tundra Series Championship last weekend. He is a three time Jefferson Speedway Champion where he is also a six time Wisconsin State Champion. He has backed up his home track success with a pair of titles in Big 8 Series action, Madison Triple Crown and in the Fox River Racing Club at Wisconsin International Raceway where he is also a former Red, White and Blue State Champion.

5 Johnny Sauter- The most recent ARCA Midwest Tour feature fought tooth and nail to best Casey Johnson and Gabe Sommers at Dells Raceway Park over Labor Day Weekend to win the Joe Shear Classic 200. Now the 2001 ASA National Champion and 2016 NASCAR Truck Champion looks to record a second Oktoberfest 200 win to go along with his 2017 Fest victory.

7 Paul Shafer, Jr- He bested three time Oktoberfest winner Eddie Hoffman to record his second Chicagoland Track Championship just last month. The 2020 Grundy County Speedway Champion finished second at Fest two years ago and won the Tour’s visit to Grundy for the Wayne Carter Classic in August. His first Chicagoland Championship came in 2013 at Illiana Motor Speedway.

9 Derek Kraus- Now a NASCAR Truck Series front runner, Kraus wowed them at Fest last year picking up The Futures victory on Thursday Night. With over a dozen ARCA West/East wins in 3 seasons following his victory at age 15 in Midwest Tour competition in 2016, making him the youngest winner in series history, Kraus became the 2019 ARCA (NASCAR K&N) West Champion.

10 Andy Monday- Always a front runner on Thursday night’s at Wisconsin International, the 2017 Fox River Racing Club Champion will attempt to make his third Midwest Tour start of the season on Sunday at Oktoberfest.

11 Bobby Kendall- He was a two time Red, White and Blue State Champion at Wisconsin International Speedway. After early domination in 2020, the second generation driver garnered his first Fox River Racing Club title at WIR.

12 Nick Murgic- He was last year’s Dick Trickle 99 winner at Oktoberfest and all indications are the he will be crowned the LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway Track Champion at the conclusion of their four feature events during Fest. His father Steve was a thirteen time Champion at Minnesota’s Raceway Park.

26 Mark Lamoreaux- The record books will show him as the final CWRA Champion at LaCrosse Fairgrounds Speedway. That was in 1991, now the veteran whose career spans into the mid-seventies returns to LaCrosse for Oktoberfest after having a third place showing at the 5/8 mile oval in July.

32 Brett Yackey- Returning to Oktoberfest this season is the 2018 Kulwicki Driver Development Program’s 2018 Champion Brett Yackey. His father Bruce ‘The Moose’ became a regular ARTGO Challenge Series visitor at Fest each year and now Brett, a four time Champion at Colorado National Speedway will again pull from the base of the Rocky Mountains to LaCrosse.

36 Dan Fredrickson- In search of a fifth Oktoberfest win which would tie him with Joe Shear, Fredrickson is always a threat to win and came up just shy at Fest a year ago. The 2008 and 2013 Midwest Tour Champion also leads all other drivers with three Dick Trickle 99 checkered flags. He was the 2017 Triple Crown Champion at Madison International Speedway and the 2003 Champ at his home track, Elko Speedway.

39 Andrew Morrissey- Your 2011 Midwest Tour Champion and 2018 Oktoberfest winner has posted the best average finish out of any Super Late Model driver over the past five seasons in Sunday’s Oktoberfest Championship feature.

44 Justin Mondeik- In what has been a breakout year for him, he just posted win number fourteen on the season. Claiming the Championships at both State Park Speedway and Golden Sands Speedway, he also notched multiple wins at Norway Speedway and in Tundra Series competition. In July, he won his first ARCA Midwest Tour feature, the Detjens Memorial at State Park.

45 Rich Bickle, Jr- Recently it was announced that 2021 would be his final year behind the wheel of a Super Late Model. He is a five time Snowball Derby Winner and has collected four Slinger Nationals wins and has twice worn the wreath following Rockford Speedway’s National Short Track Championships. The former top tier NASCAR driver was the 1985 and 1986 Track Champion at Madison International which was then known at Capital Super Speedway.

52 Brock Heinrich- His only Tour start of 2020 saw this former two time State Park Speedway Late Model Champion lead laps in the Detjens Memorial before finishing a Tour career best third in July. Having won a preliminary feature at Fest last year, many eyes are on this young up and comer.

72 Jacob Goede- The 2019 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series National Champion was last year’s Big 8 Series Oktoberfest winner. Just last weekend, the former Bristol Motor Speedway winner recorded his seventh straight Track Championship at Elko Speedway. Goede has two wins this season at LaCrosse.

76 Jason Weinkauf- Returning to Tour competition will be Jason Weinkauf who has one tour win coming at Marshfield Motor Speedway where he was the back to back Track Champion in 2009 and 2010. His first track title came at Golden Sands Speedway in 2007.

77 Jonathan Eilen- Over the past two seasons, he has recorded feature victories at Dells Raceway Park and Madison International Speedway along with winning the final segment of last year’s Dick Trickle 99 on Friday night of Oktoberfest. The 2012 ARCA Midwest Tour Champion has posted two top five efforts in Tour action this year and finished fourth in the 50th Oktoberfest 200.

80 Ryan Farrell- He is becoming one of the more popular drivers on Tour and rightfully so. He and his ‘Best Unpaid Crew In All of Racing’ are continuously fast wherever they go and have a winning attitude. He got the most out of his equipment and raced his way to the 2018 Wisconsin Challenge Series Crown.

91 Ty Majeski- Last year’s Oktoberfest 200 winner Ty Majeski will be making his first ARCA Midwest Tour start since his $10,000 payday in August’s Gandrud Auto Group 250 at WIR. The four time Midwest Tour Champion was also victorious on Sunday of the 2016 Oktobefest Race Weekend. Having won major Super Late Model events across the country, he is

119 Dalton Zehr- In search of his first Oktoberfest win, Zehr overcame all odds in 2018 at Oktoberfest. After having wrecked in Friday night’s Dick Trickle 99, he and his team rebuilt their Super Late Model overnight and laid claim to the Midwest Tour Championship. He is the 2013 Norway Speedway Track Champion and won three consecutive Tundra titles from 2015-2017.

The ARCA Midwest Tour Super Late Models will qualify and contest preliminary events on Saturday October 10 followed by a Last Chance event and 200-lap Championship Feature on Sunday afternoon October 11. A total of 17 divisions of racing action will make up the 51st Oktoberfest Race Weekend October 8-11, 2020. For additional information including Schedules, Rules, Camper Village information, Registration and more, visit www.oktoberfestraceweekend.com or call 608-786-1525.