Gilpin & Lodge Casino Sprint Car Spectacular Fires Off On Friday Night At CNS

Alexandra Purcell
Jul 8
11 min read

July 4, 2025 - Dacono, CO

Colorado National Speedway doesn’t usually do Friday nights – but we switched things up on July 4th, 2025, packed the grandstands, and let the Winged Sprint Cars rip under the lights. It was a wild ride from start to finish, and at the risk of sounding cliché, there were fireworks both on and off the racetrack from green to checkers. Of course, the Winged Sprint division was the headline of the night, but they were supported by our Grand American Modifieds, Legends, Bandoleros, Trains – and even spectator cars in the Circle Drags. Speaking of the Circle Drags, the bracket culminated in a victory by Stephen driving a white Subaru WRX, who managed to outrun the competition.

We had a hell of a show on Friday night! If you couldn’t celebrate the Fourth of July with us (or just want to revisit what went down), keep reading, and we’ll get you caught up on all the action!

Winged Sprint Cars

Fast Dash – 10 Laps

Bobby Santos III set the blistering pace in his No. 22A machine, taking the green flag for the Fast Dash right alongside the No. 6G of Bryan Gossel. Santos assumed the point and opened up a massive lead over the second-place car in just a few laps. After a brief three-wide battle, the No. 50M of Kody Swanson overtook the No. 14W of Aaron Willison for P4, reeling in the No. 1S of Sammy Swindell, who clung to third. Santos continued to lay down some distance, whipping around the track to grab the Fast Dash victory over Gossel.

Dash – 10 Laps

The No. 15 of Eric Humphries ditched the No. 02 of Hunter Stanley to claim the lead on the first lap. The field settled into a single-file hurricane on just lap 2, and though Humphries had ditched him at the drop of the green, Stanley rallied back and began to reel him in. He had a shot when Humphries was held up by lapped traffic, but Humphries deftly navigated the slower race cars and continued to lead, taking the victory as Stanley settled for the runner-up position.

Feature – 40 Laps

With a $10,000 purse on the line, 26 Winged Sprints headed to the green flag following Gossel, who launched to the front of the pack with Santos right behind him. Gossel couldn’t shake Santos, who stayed glued to him until he finally completed the pass four laps in. The No. 14 of Davey Hamilton Jr. settled into fourth, running down Willison. With clear track in front of him, Santos dropped the hammer and began to gap Gossel with ease. On Lap 9, a caution waved for a vehicle stalled in the pit entrance, putting Gossel and Santos on equal ground up front again. As Santos reclaimed the lead, Willison claimed P3, chasing Gossel and Santos as they laid down some distance once more.

Santos ran down the tail end of the field with just 13 laps completed, but after a few more circuits, a yellow waved over a stalled race car. Once the racing surface was clear, Santos and Gossel lined back up alongside each other as the green flag waved. Unsurprisingly, Santos took control of the race, leaving Gossel to fend off Hamilton, who passed Willison for the third position. Gossel soon fell to Hamilton, all chasing Santos, who had taken off with the lead. He faced the obstacle of slower traffic as he once again caught the tail end of the field. While Santos was unphased by lapped cars, Hamilton was held up, allowing Santos to gap him even more. After a brief yellow flag to address a competitor spinning to the infield, Santos fended off Hamilton and reassumed the lead; Willison, meanwhile took sole possession of P3.

Willison then turned his attention to Hamilton, attempting to track him down as the laps ticked off. Up front, Santos continued to dominate the race, picking his way once again through traffic. Willison finally gained the upper hand on Hamilton, slotting into P2. Then, a multicar incident prompted officials to display the red flag, setting the stage for a five-lap sprint to the finish. When the race restarted, Willison kept right on Santos’ bumper, but Santos drove a flawless race. Nothing stood in his way – not even lapped traffic – as he rounded the track for the final time, securing the Feature win and the prize. Willison finished P2, followed by Hamilton completing the podium. Once again, Santos swept the night – that is, both the Fast Dash and the Feature – for his sixth win at CNS. He left the track with eyes on the prize, looking to take every Sprint event over the weekend, just like he did in 2019 and 2023.

Quick Time: No. 22A, Bobby Santos III, 13.663

Fast Dash: No. 22A, Bobby Santos III

Dash: No. 15, Eric Humphries

Feature: No. 22A, Bobby Santos III

Sunoco Race Fuels Grand American Modifieds

Fast Dash – 10 Laps

Jordon Smith put the No. 13S up front right away, slicing in front of the No. 4X of Lynn Hardy to make it happen. Scotty Scott’s No. 6 duked it out with the No. 21 of Ryan Jones for a few laps for fourth place, completing the pass. Smith continued to show the way, ditching the rest of the field and leading them across the line.

Dash – 10 Laps

Frank Denning and the No. 90 took the top spot as soon as the green flag fell. Behind them, the pack went three-wide, allowing the No. 69 of Forest Smith the chance to sneak to the front of the pack after starting near the rear of the field. Smith and Denning raced door-to-door for a few corners before Smith gained the advantage, lunging past Denning and taking the lead. Smith kept up the pace and picked up the win over Denning.

Feature – 30 Laps

Seventeen GAMs followed the No. 51F of Cade Fox as he dove down in front of the pack and assumed the top spot. Jones, who started on the front row next to him, fell off the pace, plummeting to fourth place, battling the No. 66R of Eric Rhead. Jordon Smith, eager to pick up his pace after his Fast Dash win, just about wore out Hardy for second place as the field settled into a tense single-file formation – at least until a pair of race cars made contact and drew a yellow flag. Fox and Jordon Smith took the restart from the front row, but Fox dropped the hammer and took off as Scotty Scott’s No. 6 began to track down Rhead for P3. Jordon Smith continued to chase Fox, but the latter began to slip from his grasp as the laps ran down. Lapped traffic became a factor, giving hope to Jordon Smith as he gained some ground on Fox. After they cleared traffic, it was a straight shot to the finish. Fox would not be denied, picking up his second Feature victory of the 2025 season.

Quick Time: No. 69, Forest Smith, 17.370

Fast Dash: No. 13S, Jordon Smith

Dash: No. 69, Forest Smith

Feature: No. 51F, Cade Fox

AC Transmissions Legends

Fast Dash – 10 Laps

Wyatt Dent showed early speed, throwing his No. 68 machine to the lead, but he couldn’t hold off the No. 15 of Danny Medina, who pulled a crossover move and took control of the race at the stripe. However, before they could get up to speed, a multicar incident caused a caution to wave. Medina reassumed his lead on the restart, but he had a new competitor: the No. 78C of Colton Crocker, who challenged him for control of the race. Another caution waved for another wreck, setting the stage for another restart – when several race cars made contact. Crocker caught the worst of it. In a green-white-checkered finish, Dent, who never strayed far from the front, defended his position from the front row, taking home the victory.

Fast Feature – 25 Scheduled Laps; 8 Completed

After Austin Steinke took the lead in his No. 14S machine, chaos struck on just the second lap, sending several cars spinning in Turn 2. Steinke lined up alongside Dent to take the green flag when the race resumed; Steinke launched into the lead, leaving Dent behind to fight with the No. 6 of Scotty Scott for second. Scott demoted and assumed control of P2 with the No. 03 of Darrell Stewart in hot pursuit. However, after another multicar incident and ensuing red flag on Lap 6, officials elected to bump the race to a green-white-checkered finish. At the drop of the green, Stewart and Scott split Dent for the lead. Behind them, a few more race cars got together on the last lap. The wreck ultimately ended the race, and the checkers fell in Stewart’s favor, giving him his first Feature victory after over 23 seasons of competition at CNS.

Dash – 10 Laps

Marc Karashinski’s No. 17K assumed the lead after a tense start, demoting the No. 73 of Mike Markison as he took control of the race. The No. 5R of Regan Fruge quietly assumed P3, while Karashinski continued to show the way – that is, until the No. 17 of Jeremy Krueger reassumed control of the race, leading to the checkered flag.

Feature – 20 Laps

Fruge stuck like glue to the No. 75 of Austin Hackenberg, who shot ahead of the pack to lead the first lap. Markison tried to get a hold of Fruge for P2, while Hackenburg had his hands full of a slower car, causing him to slow up and allowing Hackenberg and Fruge to cut the distance. The top three broke free of the field and made it a three-way battle for the top spot, dodging heavy lapped traffic as they completed lap after lap. They never broke formation, even as a slower car spun out in front of them. Fruge finally ditched Markison and ran right up on Hackenberg’s rear bumper. He swung low and put Hackenberg in the rearview, and once he had the lead, he set sail. Hackenberg and Markison now began a fight for P2; Markison barely claimed the position at the line as Fruge cruised to his first Legends victory.

Quick Time: No. 78C, Colton Crocker, 18.538

Fast Dash: No. 68, Wyatt Dent

Fast Feature: No. 03, Darrell L. Stewart

Dash: No. 17, Jeremy Kreuger

Feature: No. 5, Reagan Fruge

Puzzle Effect Bandoleros

At CNS, the Bandoleros division showcases the youngest racers on the track - some just eight years old! The pint-sized drivers cut their teeth at 30 to 50 mph on a shortened course that loops through Turns 1 and 2 of the “big” track before diving into the infield and circling back around. Like the drivers themselves, the races may be small, but they pack a punch, and they’re a vital part of the CNS family.

Outlaws

Dash – 12 Laps

The No. 23 of Peyton Opperman took the lead with the No. 61 of Lillian Tuttle hot on his heels. Tuttle bided her time and swerved around Opperman and the No. 2 of Dutch Vanderwal to take the lead just three laps in, while the No. 60 of Liam Hammond steadily marched toward the front. Tuttle maintained a large lead, completing a clean race to win with Opperman and Hammond in tow.

Feature – 12 Laps

Tuttle and Hammond renewed their battle from the Dash by fighting side-by-side for P2 almost as soon as the green flag dropped. That was bad news for the No. 89 of Justin Barnard, who held the lead briefly – until Tuttle and Hammond brought the battle to him, making it a three-way conversation for the lead. Tuttle got the bad end of the deal after contact with a competitor sent her spinning, allowing Hammond to take the lead. Barnard and Vanderwal fought for P2. Hammond extended his lead and crossed the finish uncontested.

Bandits

Dash – 10 Laps

Izaak Mead guided the No. 23M to the lead right away, opening up a massive lead as the rest of the Bandit pack jostled for position behind him. He continued to lead over the second-place No. 07 of Madison Stanley, leading a single file freight train across the line for the victory.

Feature – 10 Laps

Stanley swung wide at the drop of the green to take the lead. Mead, after starting in the third row, was already in contention for P2 on just the second lap, and once he’d picked off the No. 44 of Emersyn Weitzel, he made short work of Stanley, too. Now in the lead, Mead continued to set the pace. Stanley used every trick in the book to pass him but couldn’t find a way to make it stick. Mead, navigating through lapped cars, continued to lead and won back-to-back races.

Jr. Bandits

Dash – 10 Laps

After a clean start, Maverick Arechiga put his No. 35 machine right on the heels of Adalynn Smith’s No. 8, giving her a run for her money. The two held formation until three laps to go, when Arechiga made a daring pass on the inside as Smith went a little too wide. Once he had the lead, Arechiga did not look back, continuing to lead and racking up the win.

Feature – 10 Laps

The No. 03 of Leah Almaswari launched ahead of the rest as Smith snaked through the field to challenge her from P2. Their battle gave Arechiga the chance he needed to pass them both, swinging out in front and laying down some distance on Almaswari in short order. While Almaswari managed to chip into Arechiga’s lead, there wasn’t enough time to do anything with it, and Arechiga cruised to the win.

Outlaw Dash: No. 61, Lillian Tuttle

Outlaw Feature: No. 60, Liam Hammond

Bandit Dash: No. 23M, Izaak Mead

Bandit Feature: No. 23M, Izaak Mead

Jr. Bandit Dash: No. 35, Maverick Arechiga

Jr. Bandit Feature: No. 35, Maverick Arechiga

Lowry Insurance Trains

Feature – 8 Laps

The No. 91 Train – Friday Night Special – took an early lead, but the No. 80HD SNAFU began to stalk them by muscling into P2 early on. Friday Night Special ran for their lives with SNAFU in their rearview, dodging other Trains and debris as they swerved through The X. Friday Night Special had to check up in The X to avoid incident, giving SNAFU the opening they needed to pull alongside them. Once they nosed ahead, they never fell out of the lead and galloped to the victory.

It’s great to see our Trains division steadily growing, and a friendly reminder that they’re racing for a double purse on July 19^th.