Gomez wins 23rd annual Montana 200
Jonathon Gomez of Twins Falls, Idaho, won the 23rd annual Montana 200 at Raceway Park in Kalispell on July 20. More then 5,000 fans packed the stands for the final night of racing.
Gomez, who took the lead for keeps with 76 laps remaining, held off a determined late charge by Kalispell’s Alex Lessor to take the checkered flag.
The victory was worth $15,000 for Gomez, who started in the No. 4 spot. He also led for 20 laps during the first 100. The total purse for the two-days of super late model racing was more than $50,000.
“It’s the biggest race in the Northwest,” Gomez said. “The Daytona 500 of the Northwest, the whole West Coast. Everybody knows what the Montana 200 is.”
Owen Riddle of Naches, Wash., finished third, while Cameron Hayley of Calgary, Alberta, was fourth and Kalispell’s Bodie Morton came in with an impressive fifth-place showing.
Morton made it to the main event by winning the 40-lap Last Chance Qualifier held earlier Saturday evening.
23rd annual Montana 200
Montana Raceway Park
Saturday, July 20
1. Jonathon Gomez
2. Alex Lessor
3. Owen Riddle
4. Cameron Hayley
5. Bodie Morton
6. Trevor Emond
7. Ryan Wells
8. Dave Garber
9. Nicole Behar
10. Agni Howell
11. Jason Fraser
12. Greg VanGool
13. Eric Schmidt
14. Jeff Jefferson
15. Cory Wolfe
16. Jay Sauls
17. Braeden Havens
18. Shane Mitchell
19. Brian Johnson Jr.
20. Giles Thornton
21. Gary Lewis
22. Mike Longton
23. Blake Williams
24. Mark Sundberg.