BROWNSTOWN
On Saturday night, six champions were crowned and over $26,000 in awards were handed out at the annual Brownstown Speedway Awards Banquet held at Pewter Hall.
Devin Gilpin, Matt Boknecht, Marty O’Neal, Jamey Wilson, Tim Rivers, and Donnie Modesty all received top honors in their respected divisions.
Gilpin, a Brownstown Speedway Hall of Fame member, etched his name once more into the record books after earning his first Super Late Model Track Championship at the Speedway.
The three-time Modified track champion scored four Super Late Model feature wins at Brownstown in 2017, including the $5,000-to- win “Born Free 40” event in July.
Gilpin finished in the bridesmaid spot during the Friday night portion of the “Jackson 100” Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event.
After winning his heat race Saturday night, Gilpin was forced to retire early from the marquee event due to mechanical failure.
Matt Boknecht, a Seymour resident and Brownstown Speedway Hall of Famer, became a seven-time Modified track champion at the Speedway, breaking his own record of six championships.
Boknecht finished the season with five feature wins in the division.
Consistency paid dividends for Martinsville’s Marty O’Neal, as he topped the points standings in the Indiana Pro Late Model Series.
O’Neal finished the season with seven wins and 20 top-5 finishes in the 23 race schedule.
Seymour’s Tyler Cain finished second in the standings behind O’Neal.
Jamey Wilson, from Seymour, defended his track title in the Super Stock division, tallying his second championship at Brownstown.
Wilson’s efforts also earned him runner up honors in the national points standings for the division.
Former Super Late Model track champion, Tim Rivers, scored his first Pure Stock points title at the Speedway.
Rivers, who also competes on asphalt, finished fifth in the points standings at Salem Speedway in the Lucas Oil Great American Stocks division.
Donnie Modesty dominated the ranks in the Hornet division, ultimately securing the track championship title for the Seymour native.
Rookie of Year Honors went to John Baker Jr, Lucas Wehmiller, Tyler Collins, Jaden Mayhan, Jim Walter Jr, and Daniel Hobbs.
Wehmiller, from Seymour, finished fourth in the points standings in the Modified division.
The former GNCC UTV standout and 2016 national champion made the transition from off-road competition to circle track in 2017.
Wehmiller and Gilpin are currently competing in Modified action together in Florida. as they await the season opener at Brownstown in March.
Track promoter Jim Price enters his fifth year at the helm of Brownstown Speedway and hopes to have one of his best seasons in 2018.
“I’ve got to thank our great staff for making 2017 another successful year for our facility,” Price said. “The 2018 schedule will be released soon and we are anxious to get things started as we have another big year ahead.”
The 2018 season is set to kick off on March 17, as the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series returns for the “Indiana Icebreaker”.