Motorsports, Sports

Welch takes King of the Mountain championship

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N. WOODSTOCK, N.H. – Perfect fall weather made for a finale to the 2025 season at White Mountain Motorsports Park. Everything started with the second annual King of the Kids challenge for the Kids Division. It was a wild finale to the season for the kids with several drivers forced to drive back to front after getting caught up in cautions. Through it all, young Owen Dupuis took his time to get to the front and never looked back, for the win over Gracen Gorham and Cameron Beattie at the finish.

Quinny Welch and crew celebrate their 10th King of the Mountain Late Model track championship at White Mountain Motorsports Park, Sunday afternoon.
Johnny Racer photo

The Late Models were first on the field with Quinny Welch having already clenched the 2025 King of the Mountain track championship in heat race qualifying action. During the feature, it was Brian Whalley and Mike Bailey at the front throughout the first half, both dogging plenty of challenges from Richie Brown before a pair of late race restarts. The restarts saw the team cars of Kyle Goodbout and Kasey Beattie, along with 2024 track champion Tanner Woodard on a rare visit, join the front after a slow climb to the top. On the final restart Woodard got the jump and the win just two laps later over Goodbout and Beattie.

The Late Models returned for an exciting new twist with the 20-20 $hootout, a pair of twenty lap segments as a replacement for the semi-feature of old. Fourteen cars were eligible based on their 80% or higher participation during the 2025 season and lined up by handicap for the first segment. It was a pair of sophomores in Thomas Smithers VI and Colin Cornell who put on a show to finish one, two in segment one but the invert found them dead last in the second segment. Using knowledge gained by decades on the highbanks, Quinny Welch powered back to take the 20-20 $hootout and the $1,000 grand prize with a combined six points over Cornell, Beattie, Bailey and Smithers in the top five.

Shane Sicard and company celebrate a fourth career Flying Tiger track championship at White Mountain Sunday night, clinching the title by taking the green in their final 35-lap main event of the year.
Johnny Racer photo

The Dwarf Cars and Mini Late Models rounded out the season in twin 20 lap, segment competition. Jason Wyman went wire-to-wire, driving up through both Dwarf Car segments to claim the final win and the championship in grand style. Ethan Tyrrell hard-charged his way through both segments to claim second in the overall with Dave Gyger rounding out the Dwarf Car podium.

Like Tyrrell, Cody LeBlanc found himself at the bottom of the handicap sheet and drove up through both 20 lap segments in the Mini Late Model season finale. LeBlanc’s two runner-up finishes earned him the tiebreaker over teammate and 2025 Mini Late Model champion Nick Miller, while Garrett LaBounty rounded out the top three.

McKenna Merchant did everything she could, including taking the final win in the Bar Harbor Bank & Trust Strictly Minis to claim her first career White Mountain track championship point by just one point!
Johnny Racer photo

It was the closest battle of the night to the very end in the Strictly Minis with Tyler Thompson, Jacob Roy and McKenna Merchant within five points of each other. The three raced side-by-side, inside and outside of each other for laps on end with Nick Pilotte and Donnie Baumgardner joining the fight at times as officials dulled their pencils keeping track of the championship chase. In the end, McKenna Merchant powered through to her fifth win of the season and, with Jacob Roy stuck in third behind Nick Pilotte at the line, it was enough to earn a one point advantage and take the season long track championship to boot!

It took over 100 laps of clawing their way to the top, but fans were treated to a battle of the ages between D.J. Shaw and Johnny Clark over the final 25 circuits until Clark eventually came out on top to claim the $7,000 winner’s share of the PASS Super Late Model 150.
photo by Johnny Racer

The Flying Tigers wrapped up the season with their 35-lapper following Saturday’s race during their doubleheader weekend. Rookie of the Year Todd Derrington had a rear-view mirror full of two track chaser Logan Powers right from the get-go until Powers made his move to the front prior to the halfway point. From then on Powers was dogged by Shane Sicard until five laps to go when Owen Cheney motored to the outside and took a veteran move to claim second around the 2025 track champion. At the line Logan Powers made it win number three on the season with Owen Cheney second and four-time track champion Shane Sicard in third.

UNOFFICIAL RESULTS

Late Models – (50 Laps)

17. 92VT, Jaden Perry, Hardwick, Vt.

Late Model 20-20 $hootout – (Twin 20 Lap Segments)

(Fin. Position, Car #, Driver, Hometown (Seg. 1 Fin. + Seg. 2 Fin. = Overall Score))

13. 92VT, Jaden Perry, Hardwick, Vt., (13+14=27)

Flying Tigers – (35 Laps)

5. 23NC, Chandler Potter, Plainfield, Vt.

10. 23VT, Matt Potter, Marshfield, Vt.

12. 62VT, Jamon Perry, Hardwick, Vt.

Kids Division – King of the Kids Showdown (20 Laps)

8. 23, Madison Potter, Marshfield, Vt,

White Mountain Motorsports Park

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