LaCrosse claims World IMCA title

LOCUST GROVE — Benji LaCrosse of Green Bay, Wis., held off Batesville’s Peyton Taylor in a two-lap shootout to win the inaugural World IMCA Stock Car Championship on Saturday night at Batesville Motor Speedway.

“I’m just speechless,” LaCrosse told imca.com. “We had a good car all week and I thought if a guy could get through quick enough he had a good chance of holding the spot. It was better than I thought to start off and it worked out pretty well.”

LaCrosse and Taylor traded the lead four times during the 71-lap event, but LaCrosse stretched his margin to more than two seconds in the late going, only to have it taken by cautions on lap 56 and the final one with two laps remaining.

With the victory, LaCrosse earned $50,000, the richest payout ever in the stock car division of the Iowa-based IMCA.

“We’re building a garage at home,” LaCrosse said. “Some of that is going to go to that, for sure.”

Dallon Murty of Chelsea, Iowa, led the opening six laps, but the seventh-starting LaCrosse was in second place by lap 2. Taylor, who started 15th, had charged to third by the third lap.

After LaCrosse moved into the lap on lap 7, Taylor took over to lead on laps 17-20 and again on laps 36-40 after the mid-race fuel stop. LaCrosse regained the lead for good on lap 41 and held off Taylor’s charge to claim the victory.

Taylor earned $15,000 for second and Wednesday night’s preliminary winner, Dylan Thornton of Santa Maria, Calif., pocketed $10,000 for third.

Derrick Agee of Huntsville, Mo., was fourth, while Westin Abbey of Comanche, Texas, finished fifth after starting 26th. Zane DeVilbiss of Farmington, N.M., who was running third when he had to pit with a flat tire on lap 17, charged back through the field to finish sixth.

Tyler Tipton of Weskan, Kan., was seventh, and Murty faded to finish eighth. Rounding out the top 10 were Tim Johnson of Brainerd, Minn., and Jake Timm of Winona, Minn.

Three other Arkansans had top-20 finishes. Little Rock’s Randy Weaver was 16th. Cave City’s Jeff Taylor, Peyton’s older brother, was 19th and Greenbrier’s Jack Sullivan was 20th.