Evan Goetz Completes Wenatchee Valley Sweep With Neal Newberry 125 Win

Evan Goetz stayed hot on Saturday night at Wenatchee Valley Super Oval, winning the Northwest Super Late Model Series' Neal Newberry 125 to give him two wins in as many nights.

Goetz took the lead on lap 93 of the 125-lap race, working his way past Tayler Riddle for the top spot. Goetz stretched out his advantage over the final 32 laps, finishing ahead of Haeden Plybon by 2.6 seconds.

“I was just watching every move,” said Goetz in victory lane. “I saw [Riddle] was getting really loose off [the corner], so I would just wait and wait and wait. Then I felt a bumper behind me, so I said, ‘I’ve got to go right now and take it.’ That’s what we did and it worked out.”

Goetz sufferd a setback over the summer, breaking his wrist. Since he’s gotten back behind the wheel, however, Goetz has been nearly unstoppable. Goetz also won on Friday night at Wenatchee Valley in his Pro Late Model, giving him a sweep of the weekend.

“Earlier this year, I broke my wrist and only got to do a couple of races,” said Goetz. “I think I’m four-for-six or something like that right now. I don’t know, but we’re doing pretty good. Jefferson Racing, I love this car. I don’t ever want to get out of it.”

Plybon moved ahead of Riddle for second on lap 100, but those few laps behind Riddle allowed Goetz to stretch out a lead. Plybon settled for the second-place finish on the night.

“We could have been a little more aggressive with the power, but we dumbed it down a little too much and waited just a little too long. By the time I got by Tayler, [Goetz] was already checked out. I tried to bring him back in, but burned myself up in the process.”

While it is not official at this time, it is believed that Plybon’s second-place finish was enough to lock up the 2023 Northwest Super Late Model Series championship with one race remaining. Regardless, Plybon will be looking to pick up another win in the season finale at Tri-City Raceway’s Fall Classic.

“I’d like to have some more wins, so we’re fighting for more. We’re pretty good at Tri-City, so hopefully we get one there. [The championship] would be a pretty cool accomplishment to add to my list of accomplishments.”

Riddle admitted he “drove mad” most of the evening after a stack-up at the initial green flag. Still, Riddle took the lead on lap 41 and held that top spot until Goetz’s move to the front.

“We just stacked the field up on the restart for no reason. It is what It is. You expect a little more out of these guys. It’s all good, we’ll go on to the next one. I drove mad all night, so that was probably not the smartest thing, but it was fun.”

The season finale at Tri-City Raceway will take place on October 1.

-Photo credit: Shari Garber/Northwest Super Late Model Series

NORTHWEST SUPER LATE MODEL SERIES NEAL NEWBERRY 125 UNOFFICIAL RESULTS