Battle for 2024 Kulwicki Cup Tightens Heading Toward Finish

Heading into the final month of competition for the 2024 Kulwicki Cup Championship, the battle is shaping up to be the tightest in program history. As of the second segment cut-off date, only 39 points separate leader Levon Van Der Geest from third-place Derek Gluchacki. Ty Fredrickson is in between, sitting 26 points behind Van Der Geest and 13 points ahead of Gluchacki.

At the end of the second reporting period (through September 15), here’s how the point standings look:

“The month of October promises to be full of excitement and drama as all of our 2024 finalists rally to score all the points they can – both on and off the track,” said Kulwicki Driver Development Program (KDDP) Executive Director Tom Roberts. “All of our drivers have done such an amazing job in representing Alan and our program this season and we’re so proud of them.

“Looking back at this point during recent seasons, the numbers showed eventual champions Max Cookson (2023), Dylan Zampa (2022) and Luke Fenhaus (2021) all with sizeable leads over the runner-up,” said Roberts. “But this season, we have three drivers who are poised to take the battle down to the wire. It’s a true testament to our unique points system, which places importance on both on-track and off-track performance. It could come down to bonus points earned that decides this year’s championship.”

The 2024 KDDP team of drivers has achieved several historical marks in the organization’s record book. It’s only the second season that all seven drivers have won races (also occurred in 2023). This season marks only the second time all the drivers competed in at least 15 races (also in 2017). 2024 is the only season that ALL drivers have won at least one race AND competed in at least 15 races.

Overall, the 2024 team has accounted for 21 wins, 70 top-five finishes and 112 top-10s in 155 total races. Here is the on-track performance (competition points) breakdown:

COMPETITION POINTS TABULATED FROM DRIVER’S BEST 15 FINISHES (as of 9/15/24):

Here are some of the highlights for each of the seven 2024 finalists so far this season:

LEVON VAN DER GEEST:

Although he has not visited Victory Lane since May, Levon has established a lead in the KDDP standings with his consistent on-track performances, plus his stellar off-track and social media engagement. He is still in the mix for the 2024 ASA Midwest Tour points title, currently second and 16 points out of the lead heading into the season finale at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway.

TY FREDRICKSON:

A seven-time winner in 2024, Ty fought back from a couple of mid-season setbacks to rattle off five straight top-five finishes since Labor Day Weekend. His first victory back in the spring gave him the honor of being the youngest winner in KDDP history. His run to the 2024 TUNDRA Series Championship was proof of his ability to quickly adapt to new race tracks. He has finished in the top ten in 25 of the 30 races he has run in 2024.

DEREK GLUCHACKI:

Probably the hottest driver in the Kulwicki program, Derek scored four wins in the month of August, including a huge ACT Tour win at Oxford Plains during the Oxford 250 weekend. He has finished in the top five in half of the 22 races he has run in 2024. He is still in the battle for the ACT series season championship.

EVAN GOETZ:

Evan picked up the first track or series championship in the 2024 KDDP season, earning the season Pro Late Model title at Stateline Speedway in Idaho in his family-owned car. Goetz has scored four wins so far this season, including a huge victory in the Wenatchee 200, behind the wheel of the Jefferson Racing Super Late Model.

MAX KAHLER:

After years of trying, the Illinois driver scored his breakthrough ASA Midwest Tour victory, dominating the Jim Sauter 200 at Dells Raceway Park over Labor Day Weekend. While Max has competed in only 16 races this season, he has scored top-five finishes in more than half of them.

CHASE BURDA:

Chase embarked on the most ambitious schedule of his young career this season and continues to challenge himself against the top Pro and Super Late model racers in the country. Tackling the full JEGS/CRA Tour and running several prestigious Super Late Model touring series races, he has finished in the top 10 in 75 percent of his races this season.

BRANDON VARNEY:

Brandon successfully made the transition from the Modifieds to the Super Late Models this year and posted a big victory in late spring at Oxford Plains Speedway. Race winners have to start from the rear in the New England races and that has hampered him. He has returned to the Modifieds a couple of times this year and posted big wins.

The KDDP points system is based on a combination of judging input from members of the voting panel and the drivers’ on-track performance. Voters are asked to rank the drivers from first to seventh in their job of representing Alan and the organization. Points (from 70 for first to 10 for seventh) are awarded for those rankings.

While the manner that judging points are awarded is discretionary, the criteria the seven voters utilize includes:

• Wins/Competition
• Effort & Work Ethic
• Setup/Hands-On & Car Knowledge
• Charity & Giving Back
• KDDP Publicity Generated
• Social Media & Self Promotion
• Presentation Skills

Each voter is also given 10 discretionary “bonus” points to award the drivers for “exceptional contributions” to the program. Community engagement, program representation and social media activities account for much of those points. The remainder of the points come from actual racing statistics (based on each driver’s best 15 race finishes). Race wins award 10 points, with 2^nd through 5th-place finishes getting 6 points, 6^th through 10^th 4 points, 11^th through 15^th 2 points and 15th-plus 1 point.

During the annual competition, two regular season rounds of judging points are averaged (however, bonus points continue to accrue) and added to a final round of voters’ judging points. The overall competition points (maximum 150 points for 15 wins) are applied and the driver with the largest points total will be the Kulwicki Cup Champion.

When the KDDP voting panel members reconvene early next month, they will cast their final votes which will award one of the 2024 drivers a check for $54,439 and the unique and prestigious Kulwicki Cup champion’s trophy that goes with it. They will join the illustrious list of KDDP champions which includes Ty Majeski (inaugural 2015 season), Alex Prunty (2016), Cody Haskins (2017), Brett Yackey (2018), Jeremy Doss (2019), Luke Fenhaus (2021), Dylan Zampa (2022) and Max Cookson (2023). There was no 2020 program due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our KDDP board and voting panel members have continued to do such an exemplary job this year,” said Roberts. “I’m confident that Alan, Gerry and Thelma would all be so proud of our organization today and would have so much fun cheering on our 2024 group of drivers.

“All of the drivers have been so supportive of each other throughout the season and their camaraderie has been very impressive,” added Roberts. “They are all winners on and off the track. We’re really looking forward to getting them all together in Charlotte in December for our annual KDDP awards banquet and celebrate Alan’s birthday and the great season we’ve had.”

* * *

The 2024 season marks the ninth fully-functioning year for the KDDP, which was established in 2014 by the Kulwicki estate for the purpose of helping worthy drivers toward reaching their dreams while at the same time keeping Alan’s memory and legacy alive.

The seven drivers in each KDDP class receives a one-time stipend of $7,777 to cover operational expenses. The organization works to provide the drivers assistance in important aspects such as publicity, marketing, sponsorship development and industry networking during the season as they compete for the grand prize “Kulwicki Cup.” That award winner will pick up an additional check worth seven times the initial prize ($7,777 x 7 = $54,439) and a special unique trophy.

Entering the 2024 racing season, the KDDP had assisted a total of 41 different promising young drivers representing 17 states & two Canadian provinces. The Kulwicki Family had provided $871,024 in combined stipend and championship award funding to those worthy competitors, in addition to immeasurable support with publicity, marketing, sponsorship development, industry networking and relationship building. Through the first eight seasons, those 41 drivers had competed in a total of 1,260 races; recording 205 wins, 640 top-five finishes and 892 top-10 finishes.

“While our organization is currently financially solid, our funding is depleting and we have launched a full-scale effort to unite with a major presenting marketing partner for the future,” Roberts said. “We’re confident that with the foundation we’ve laid over the years, our program can be an extremely effective marketing tool for a corporate partner to utilize.”

* * *

The Kulwicki Cup competition runs from April 1 through October 31. The final voting is targeted for the first week in November, with the 2024 Kulwicki Cup Champion (and final point standings) expected to be announced on Tuesday, November 19, exclusively on RacingAmerica.com. The champion and all the other competitors will be honored at the organization’s annual awards banquet, scheduled for Thursday, December 12, in The Speedway Club at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The celebration will feature a live RacingAmerica.TV broadcast.

The KDDP urges you to keep up with all of its news and activities by regularly visiting RacingAmerica.com, the organization’s official media partner.

-Kulwicki Driver Development Program Release