1st Timers at Badger

all pics – Route 66 Sprint Series

The penultimate round of the 2026 Route 66 Sprint Series presented by MG Tires was held at the Mill-Rite Raceway over the July 17-19 weekend. The home of Badger Kart Club hosted Round Three, welcoming 190 entries across 11 categories. The two days of racing led to seven of the classes recording a third different winner over the first three rounds of the championship.

It was a near sweep for Wisconsin driver Brady Schad in the KA100 Senior presented by BBS Racing Engines. Acen Dramaliev was the spoiler, setting fast time of 46.756 to clear the 38 driver field in qualifying. Schad was fourth in the session, driving to the win in the opening heat race to hold off Dramaliev. Schad led 13 of the 14 laps in the second heat race with Dramaliev once again runner-up. The 18-lap Final was all Schad, going wire-to-wire and pulling out to a five-second advantage. Alexander Kardashian was promoted to second after Round Two winner Mick Gabriel was penalized two spots for pushback bumper. Charles Ropke stood on the podium in third with Wyatt Leslie ending up fifth.

206 Senior presented by Lawson Speed Shop was the largest category of the weekend at 40 drivers. River Carlson became the third different driver to top the charts in qualifying, posting a 52.830 lap time. Jack Fieber was fourth in the session and came away with the win in Heat One. Shane Ready was fourth in the race, and drove to the win in Heat Two ahead of Brady Schad. The first half of the feature was led by Schad before he was shuffled outside the top five. Round Two winner Cale Zimmermann took over and led to the white flag. On the final circuit, Ready took the lead and the victory, becoming the third different winner on the season. Round One winner Marc Stehle pushed through to second, coming up short at the line by 45 thousandths. Zimmermann ended up third ahead of Brayden Zirves and Nick Ksobiech.

KA100 Junior presented by P1 Engines category also welcomed its third different winner on the season. Ezekiel Haight was the first to strike, securing fast time of 47.373 to lead the way for the 21 drivers in qualifying. The top three were separated by only 48 thousandths, including Round One winner Jackson Baldus and Easton Kubinski. An issue for Haight took him out of the race on the opening lap with Baldus and Kubinski going 1-2. Round Two winner Tucker Trieb was third, and was awarded the win in Heat Two after provisional winner Eryk Wojciechowski was penalized two spots for a pushback bumper. Trieb and Baldus led the first four laps of the 18-lap Final before an issue dropped them down the order, allowing Kubinski to take control. He led the remainder of the race, securing his first series victory of the season. Haight worked his way back up into second with Wojciechowski landing third. Audrina Row and Jacob Modjeski rounded out the top five.

Ezekiel Haight was able to record a third straight victory in the 206 Junior presented by Bobby Krug Racing Services division. The performance was his first full round sweep, setting fast time in qualifying, winning the two heat races and the main event. The Final was a wire-to-wire victory, taking the checkered flag by over four seconds. Giana Lunski recorded her best finish of the year in second while Jude Lunski did as well, placing third on the podium. Evan Benoit was fourth with Pierson Gulseth in fifth.

Evan Liesch was the only driver on the weekend with two victories. The first came in the 206 Sportsman presented by MAC Paving division. Liesch set fast time of 53.094 to clear the 17 driver field in qualifying before winning both heat races. Liesch led from green flag to checkered flag for the 18-lap Final, securing his second victory on the season by over five seconds. Liam Fohr recorded a second straight runner-up finish with Martinas Karosas on the podium for the first time in 2026. Cameron Apel and Jackson McNeely completed the top five.

The second win of the weekend for Liesch came in Mini Swift presented by BBS Racing Engines. Liesch led the way in qualifying but was shuffled to the back of the field at the start of the opening heat. Two-time race winner Michael Tsyupka grabbed the win and repeated in Heat Two. Tsyupka led the first 16 of 18 laps of the Final before Liesch took over the point. Leading the final two laps, Liesch recorded his first victory in the category on the season. Tsyupka settled for second with Dylan Braun in third. Darius Zaremba and Yakov Shiriaev completed the top five.

Micro Swift presented by Top Kart USA was one of four sweeps on the weekend. Round Two winner Harrison Apel was able to clear the nine driver field by over four tenths of a second in qualifying. He won both heat races by over seven seconds and drove to a 10-second margin of victory in the Final to claim his first weekend sweep of the season. James Laser was runner-up in his season debut while Lukas Kopko was third for a second straight podium result. James Lamanna and Blake Learman were fourth and fifth.

Defending series KA100 Masters presented by Mill-Rite Inc. champion Adam Crepin recorded the first sweep of the season in the category. Crepin edged the 12-driver field by two tenths in qualifying and won the heat races by three seconds and six seconds. Getting away early in the 18-lap Final, Crepin maintained a comfortable lead to go wire-to-wire for the race and the weekend for his first victory of the season. Round Two winner TJ Koyen was second with Thomas Shereck earning his first podium of the season. Bill Vorpagel and Christian Vega completed the top five.

The action in the 206 Masters presented by Greyhound Racing Seats class was a two driver fight. Round Two winner Troy Toney was quickest in qualifying, edging out Lucas Rennick and Buddy Dailey. Rennick got the better of Toney in the opening heat race before they swapped positions in the second moto. Toney led the first 17 of the 18-lap Final as Rennick was able to complete a last lap pass for the lead and the victory, his first of the season. Toney settled for second with Jackson Hirn third on the podium in his season debut. Dailey was fourth with Lucas Hart in fifth.

Total number of winners for the new Shifter Senior presented by FZ Shifter has grown to three after the Dousman weekend. California driver Theo Kekati led the way in qualifying with a 45.472. He kept the top spot through the opening heat race before Chase Pflughaupt took the win. The Final was all Pflughaupt, leading all 18 laps for his first victory of the season. Kekati was second in his series debut with Dylan North on the podium for his first time in 2026. Max Gal and Szymon Kusper were fourth and fifth.

Shifter Master presented by FZ Shifter was won by Maciej Kusper. After James Petke set fast time in qualifying and won the opening heat race, Kusper took control in the second heat and came away with the victory in the Final.

The 2026 series finale for the Route 66 Sprint Series is scheduled for the August 14-16 weekend from the Briggs & Stratton Motorplex inside the historic Road America facility outside Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.