ALL WINGS, ALL NIGHT: AN EXCITING AND FUN NIGHT OF SHORT-TRACK RACING IN ILLINOIS DURING THE BATTLE AT BELLE-CLAIR WITH CARSON MACEDO DELIVERING AN IMPRESSIVE RUN TO FINISH IN SIXTH PLACE IN THE ALBAUGH – YOUR ALTERNATIVE #41
BELLEVILLE, ILLINOIS (October 17, 2026) – From one bullring in Indiana on Friday night to another one in Illinois on Saturday night, Carson Macedo and the Jason Johnson Racing (JJR) #41 team pulled into the pit area at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway for the World of Outlaws Battle at Belle-Clair. Carson timed in second quick overall in time trials at Lincoln Park Speedway last night, but rain moved into the area washing out the remainder of the Cushion Capital Clash show right before the first Heat race was pushing out onto the track to start the weekend. The Lemoore, California native grew up racing on these small bullring style tracks, so he was more than ready to get back in the saddle for another night of excitement on another short, bullring type track. After trucking Mesilla Valley Transportation (MVT) style to Belleville, Indiana the team pulled through the pit gates to find their temporary workspace for the night at Belle-Clair. When each of the teams parked, there were 39 stout cars sitting at the back of the trailers waiting for their drivers to partner with them to make speed. The crew members were busy preparing their machines for a competitive night of racing – World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink style – in the great state of Illinois!
Following Race//Ready Hot Laps it was time for the drivers and teams to get down to business in Honest Abe Roofing Qualifying. One stopwatch. Two timed laps around the bullring. Four or five numbers separated by a decimal after the first or second digit would represent their best lap. Set to hit the track 20th in Flight A after drawing the “153” pill, Carson Macedo climbed into his office aboard the Border International/LogoDaddy/Smiley’s Racing Products #41 Maxim as he finalized his speed strategy. After Spencer Bayston in the NOS Energy Drink #17 ended his timed session of speed, it was Carson’s turn to turn up the wick in his Kistler Engines power. He quickly got engaged and got to work when the push truck tapped his rear nerf bar. Hustling by the flagstand, Carson had his right foot planted on the speed button and zoomed around this bullring in 9.995 seconds for the first time around this place. He stayed focused and continued to execute his vision pushing hard as he hit his mark the next time around Belle-Clair. This time the numbers on the stopwatch reported 10.146 seconds, with the first lap being the better of his two attempts at speed creation. Carson’s time was sixth quick overall in Flight A with Colton Robinson #71x speeding around Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway in that session in just 9.740 seconds to earn the Simpson Quick Time Award. Zach Daum was sitting at the top of the speed charts in Flight B circle Belle-Clair in 9.983 seconds.
When time trials concluded, World of Outlaws Timing and Scoring officials tabulated the starting lineups for each of the four 10-lap Heat races. Each of these races were stacked with talent but only the top five in each race would earn a transfer spot into the A-Main feature for the night. Based on his best time trial lap, Carson would get started from the third position behind the wheel of the Complete Parts & Equipment Solutions/Xtreme Body & Paint/Team Jack Foundation #41 Maxim in The Greatest Store on Dirt Heat Race #2. He shared row two with the ten-time World of Outlaws champion Donny Schatz #15 as they made their way around the track directly behind front row starters Karter Sarff #21K and Buddy Kofoid #83. Behind and sharing row three were Sheldon Haudenschild #18 and Bryce Lucius #6 with Steven Snyder Jr. #51 and Shane O’Banion #33$ looking at their tail tanks from row four. Row five featured Brayton Lynch #29 and Korbin Keith #28 as they were set to battle forward when the green flag waved.
The field seemed to move at a snail’s pace as they worked their way towards turn four for the start of the race. When they arrived they immediately became jaguars as they darted down the front straightaway and through the first set of turns. Polesitter Karter Sarff seized the early race lead with Kofoid and Macedo doing their best to keep him within striking distance. The driver of the Roth Enterprises #83 looked underneath him, but Sarff maintained the top spot.
Carson was just behind the top two in the running order in his Albaugh – Your Alternative #41 hotrod. He was working the bottom lane through turns three and four while searching for some speed around the top in the first set of turns. He was firmly in the show position hoping to find speed to close in on Kofoid’s Mobil 1/Toyota Racing #83.
When the checkered flag flew over the second qualifying race it was Karter Sarff taking the win over Buddy Kofoid by 0.763 seconds with Carson behind them in third place. The last two transfer spots went to Donny Schatz and Byrce Lucius with positions six through ten going to Snyder Jr., Haudenschild, Lynch, O’Banion, and Keith.
Up until this point in the night, the action at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway had been fantastic with tight racing, slide jobs, lots of passing, and unbelievable action everywhere. Just what you would expect on a racy bullring. The air horns sounded alerting the race teams they had eight minutes left to finish their work and roll their cars out onto the racetrack to stage for the start of the 40-lap World of Outlaws Battle at Belle-Clair A-Main. Fitting 24 cars on the track at the same time is mind tingling for sprint car fans. Seeing them race at speed is a different sensory stimulation that leaves people in awe.
The eight drivers that advanced out of the Toyota Dash would make up the first four rows of the feature field. That put Parker Price-Miller #71 on the pole with Garet Williamson #23 to his outside on the front row with Buddy Kofoid #83 and Karter Sarff #21K in the second row. Lining up together in row three were David Gravel #2 and Zach Daum #92 as Bill Balog #17B and Spencer Bayston both tucked in behind in row four. Starting together in row five were Will Armitage #7A and Cole Macedo #2c with Carson Macedo #41 and Skylar Gee #16c pacing alongside each other in row six.
As the JJR boys finished their work, Carson climbed into the cockpit of his Maxim Racing machine ready to get to work. He rolled the Albaugh – Your Alternative/Sander Engineering/Bandy & Associates #41 out onto the track as race officials coordinated the engines firing for the race. With those beasts rumbling under the hood, the drivers went four-wide to salute all the fans in the stands at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway.
It was now time to go racing in Illinois as the green flag waved. Garet Williamson moved the Fischer Motorsports #23 into the lead ahead of Parker Price-Miller and Buddy Kofoid as Carson gained a spot during the opening lap and was now running in tenth place.
The racers recorded two laps before the first race slowdown occurred for Will Armitage #7A who slowed just out of turn two on the backstretch. When they tried to restart, it was short lived as seventh running Zach Daum got sideways leaving Cole Macedo nowhere to go sending him flipping in turn two. Both drivers went to the Federated Car Care Work Zone, made repairs, and tagged the back of the field.
When they got back going it was Garet Williamson in the lead, but Karter Sarff was applying a ton of pressure vying for the top spot. Carson lost a position on the restart to Logan Schuchart and was now running in the ninth position with four laps down and thirty-six more to go when the yellow came out for seventh place running Bill Balog who stopped up near the wall.
Back to green flag racing it was Garet Williamson again with Buddy Kofoid wrestling the runner-up position away from Karter Sarff. The top three drivers were going at it on this entertaining racetrack. Carson gained two more spots moving into the seventh position just behind Parker Price-Miller and ahead of Emerson Axsom and Logan Schuchart.
The driver of the Roth Motorsports #83 firmly planted himself in contention for the lead and on lap ten he was scored as the race leader. Over the course of the next eight laps. Buddy Kofoid and Garet Williamson swapped the race lead between themselves like it was a hot potato. These two talented speed chauffeurs were giving the fans a show for the hard earned money they spent to see this race. Wow!
Carson was still holding down the seventh spot, but lurking behind him was twenty-fourth starting Sheldon Haudenschild in the KCP Racing/Bobcat/Logan Contractors Supply #18. On lap 22, the Wooster, Ohio born wheelman raced by the driver of the forty-one on the low side, but Carson stayed close in the eighth spot. Two laps later, Carson maneuvered up to sixth place passing Haudenschild back as David Gravel began sliding down the race order.
On lap 29, the red flag came out halting the action when second place running Garet Williamson flipped entering turn one after contact with Will Armitage. He was ok, but his fantastic night of racing for the lead was unfortunately over.
The restart order would be Buddy Kofoid out front followed by Parker Price-Miller, Karter Sarff, Spencer Bayston, Carson Macedo, and Sheldon Haudenschild. They lined up for the double file restart with 11 laps to go with Kofoid showing the way as Haudenschild used the outside lane to his advantage gaining two spots as he was now running in fourth place.
On a mission, Buddy Kofoid kept his right foot planted and was never contested the remainder of the race as he collected his series leading 16th victory over Parker-Price Miller and Karter Sarff. Sheldon Haudenschild finished fourth with Spencer Bayston rounding out the top five.
Carson raced across the finish line in sixth place with Logan Schuchart, Emerson Axsom, Donny Schatz, and David Gravel completing the top ten at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway in the World of Outlaws Battle at Belle-Clair. A good run for Carson and the forty-one!
After the race, Philip Dietz, Robby McQuinn, and Adam Zimmerman loaded up their speed machine and had a short trip back to the shop in Rocky Mount, Missouri. That was a good thing though as the next race on the World of Outlaws race schedule was a special one for the JJR #41 team – the seventh running of the Jason Johnson Classic at Texarkana 67 Speedway in Arkansas. We hope to see as many of you as possible at the track to honor our hero, but if you cannot make it out we understand but please tune in on DIRTVision to watch the racing and see who will win this year’s edition of the Jason Johnson Classic. #JJClassic
An Entertaining Battle of Speed and Stars at Belle-Clair Fairgrounds Park Speedway! Photo Credit: Tyler Carr
JJR’s Valued Sponsorship Partners for 2026: Albaugh, LLC; Mesilla Valley Transportation (MVT); Border International; Scott Boyd Family; Saich Family; Tarlton and Son Inc.; Complete Parts & Equipment Solutions; Durst Inc.; High Performance Lubricants, LLC; Kistler Racing Engines; Maxim Racing; Sander Engineering; Bandy & Associates Accountancy Corporation; Boltz Family; Pro Powder Coating (PPC); Team Jack Foundation; Mark Burch Motorsports; T-FAB Custom Metal Fabrication; Xtreme Body and Paint; All Pro Aluminum Cylinder Heads; AutoMeter; Bell Helmets; Ben Cook Race Car Products; BlackBeard LTD; BMRS (Brown & Miller Racing Solutions); BR Motorsports; CASM Safety Products; Crow Enterprizes; CS Productions; Dale “Mickey” Snyder; Engler Machine & Tool, Inc.; Factory Kahne (FK Shocks); Fibreworks Composites; FK Rod Ends; Greber Racing Components (GRC); Hoosier Racing Tire; ISC Racers Tape; Jansen Transportation; K1 Race Gear; KSE Racing Products; LogoDaddy; Motor State Distributing; Mr. Jim’s Racing; Prime Composite Innovations; PWR Advanced Cooling Technology; Saldana Racing Products; Sam I Am; Schoenfeld Headers; Smiley’s Racing Products; Smith TI; Vortex Racing Products; Walker Performance Filtration; Wilwood Racing; and Winters Performance Products.
To stay connected with Jason Johnson Racing (JJR) and Carson Macedo go to www.jasonjohnsonracing.com.
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