Toland clinches third IMCA crown
Rob Toland of Hinsdale, Ill., ended a season-long run atop point standings for IMCA Late Models with his career third weekly points championship.
Toland adds the 2016 trophy to titles from 2001 and 2005. He won 10 features and local track crowns at his hometown Davenport Speedway and at Quad City Speedway. His Davenport title paid off with 15 bonus points, as Toland topped Luke Goedert of Guttenberg, Iowa, by an 800-797 margin for the national prize, worth a $5,500 share of the $21,300 point fund for the division.
Goedert won a division-leading 12 features and got 13 bonus points for winning the track championship at Maquoketa Speedway.
Rounding out the top five in the national points race were Iowans Darrel DeFrance of Marshalltown, Tyler Droste of Waterloo and Joel Callahan of Dubuque.
Also winning track championships were Jeff Aikey of Cedar Falls at the Iowa State Fair Speedway, Callahan at Farley Speedway and Dubuque Speedway, DeFrance at Hamilton County Speedway, Droste at Independence Motor Speedway, Chad Holladay of Muscatine, Iowa, at West Liberty Raceway and Jake Neal of Omaha, Neb., at Shelby County Speedway.
Toland paced Allstar Performance Illinois State standings and Goedert led the way in Iowa. IMCA’s Rookie of the Year was Kirby Schultz of Albia, Iowa.
Besides Toland, DeFrance, Ray Guss Jr. of Milan, Ill., and Justin Kay of Wheatland are also three-time IMCA Late Model national champs.
Final events of the 2016 IMCA Speedway Motors Weekly Racing point season for Late Models were held Aug. 28 and standings become official on Sept. 26. Point fund checks will be presented during the national IMCA banquet in Lincoln, Neb., on Nov. 26. — Bill Martin