Schmidt soars to sixth 2026 MSA score
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(PEDAL DOWN PROMOTIONS) July 25, 2026 – Three-time MMW Industrial Supply 360 Sprint Car champion Ben Schmidt of Plymouth racked up his sixth series triumph of the 2026 campaign during the Christmas in July Night of racing at The Plymouth Dirt Track in Plymouth, Wis., on Saturday, July 25.
After rolling off from the pole, Ben Schmidt outpowered defending PDTR 360 Sprint Car track champion Kevin Karnitz of West Bend, who started second, to secure the lead on the opening lap of the 25-lap main event.
Schmidt caught the rear of the field on lap 6, which allowed Karnitz to close the lead gap. Three laps later, the red flag flew for Justin Erickson’s flip in turn two.
Following the restart, fifth starter Tyler Davis of Franklin bolted in to pressure Karnitz for the runner-up spot. The two competitors engaged in a heated duel before making contact in turn two on lap 10. The collision sent Davis hard into the wall, while Karnitz also suffered considerable damage to end the night for both drivers.
Schmidt controlled the restart while third starter Tristan Furseth of Cambridge assumed second in the running order with Billy Kreutz of Kiel, who started eighth, settling into third.
On lap 15, the leaders hit slower traffic, which gave Furseth a chance to get a closer view of the back side of Schmidt’s No. 35 machine. While immersed in lapped cars, Schmidt received a push into the back stretch wall on lap 19.
However, the 27th-year veteran recovered swiftly to maintain the lead on the way to his 58th career MSA victory. The win was also the 33rd A-main victory of Schmidt's Plymouth Dirt Track Racing 360 Sprint Car career to place him in a tie with Brandon McMullen at the top of the division’s all-time main event victory list.
Furseth earned a career-best runner-up showing, Kreutz was third, T.J. Smith of Greenville moved up from the 15th starting spot to place fourth, and Joseph Hintz of Burnett placed fifth after starting fourth.
Tristan Furseth earned fastest overall qualifier honors with a lap of 12.310 seconds in the 13th MSA event of the 2026 campaign, which attracted a field of 25 cars.
The MSA is set to run alongside the Bumper to Bumper Interstate Racing Association 410 Sprint Car Series this Saturday, Aug. 1 at The Plymouth Dirt Track.
Spectator gates open at 4:30 p.m. with “on-track action” commencing at 5:30 p.m.
On Sunday, Aug. 2, the MSA will travel to Angel Park Speedway in Sun Prairie, Wis. for the series' second and final appearance of the 2026 campaign at the venerable third-mile clay oval.
Spectator gates open at 4 p.m. with hot laps at 5 p.m. and opening ceremonies at 6 p.m.
MMW Industrial Supply
Midwest Sprint Car Association
The Plymouth Dirt Track
Plymouth, Wis.
Saturday, July 25, 2026
A Main (25 Laps): 1. 35-Ben Schmidt [1]; 2. 57-Tristan Furseth [3]; 3. 3BK-Billy Kreutz [8]; 4. 69S-TJ Smith [15]; 5. 14J-Joseph Hintz [4]; 6. 20W-Weston Finke [7]; 7. 69-Bill Taylor [11]; 8. 59S-Hayden Schmuhl [12]; 9. 59-Ethon Stear [10]; 10. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski [18]; 11. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach [16]; 12. 11-Tony Wondra [22]; 13. 5-Chad Stouthamer [6]; 14. 51C-Brok Clifcorn [20]; 15. 30-Blake Wondra [19]; 16. 68P-Frank Perko [23]; 17. 5S-Kevin Seidler [21]; 18. 87R-Josh Rehberg [17]; 19. 55P-Brady Portschy [14]; 20. 68T-Tyler Davis [5]; 21. 63K-Kevin Karnitz [2]; 22. 3-Justin Erickson [13]; 23. 46-Steven Ruh [9]; 24. (DNS) 22B-Brandon Berth; 25. (DNS) 15-Carter Chevalier
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 68T-Tyler Davis[3]; 2. 22B-Brandon Berth[2]; 3. 55P-Brady Portschy[1]; 4. 59-Ethon Stear[4]; 5. 69S-TJ Smith[6]; 6. 11-Tony Wondra[5]; 7. 68P-Frank Perko[7]
Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 5-Chad Stouthamer[3]; 2. 20W-Weston Finke[2]; 3. 46-Steven Ruh[4]; 4. 30-Blake Wondra[1]; 5. 87R-Josh Rehberg[5]; 6. (DNS) 15-Carter Chevalier
Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 63K-Kevin Karnitz[1]; 2. 35-Ben Schmidt[3]; 3. 3BK-Billy Kreutz[4]; 4. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski[2]; 5. 3-Justin Erickson[6]; 6. 5S-Kevin Seidler[5]
Heat 4 (8 Laps): 1. 14J-Joseph Hintz[2]; 2. 57-Tristan Furseth[4]; 3. 69-Bill Taylor[1]; 4. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach[3]; 5. 59S-Hayden Schmuhl[6]; 6. 51C-Brok Clifcorn[5]
Qualifying 1: 1. 59-Ethon Stear, 12.888[7]; 2. 68T-Tyler Davis, 13.030[6]; 3. 22B-Brandon Berth, 13.095[3]; 4. 55P-Brady Portschy, 13.151[5]; 5. 11-Tony Wondra, 13.263[1]; 6. 69S-TJ Smith, 13.365[2]; 7. 68P-Frank Perko, 13.541[4]
Qualifying 2: 1. 5-Chad Stouthamer, 12.806[4]; 2. 15-Carter Chevalier, 12.853[3]; 3. 20W-Weston Finke, 12.853[6]; 4. 30-Blake Wondra, 13.420[5]; 5. 46-Steven Ruh, 13.455[2]; 6. 87R-Josh Rehberg, 13.663[1]
Qualifying 3: 1. 3BK-Billy Kreutz, 12.342[5]; 2. 35-Ben Schmidt, 12.457[4]; 3. 14AJ-Ryan Zielski, 12.583[3]; 4. 63K-Kevin Karnitz, 12.596[6]; 5. 5S-Kevin Seidler, 13.035[1]; 6. 3-Justin Erickson, 13.069[2]
Qualifying 4: 1. 57-Tristan Furseth, 12.310[4]; 2. 08-Katelyn Krebsbach, 12.452[1]; 3. 14J-Joseph Hintz, 12.498[2]; 4. 69-Bill Taylor, 12.516[3]; 5. 51C-Brok Clifcorn, 12.602[6]; 6. 59S-Hayden Schmuhl, 12.739[5]