10/15/2026
SIXTH ANNUAL PACIFIC COAST HOBBY STOCK NATIONALS COMES TO ANTIOCH SPEEDWAY SATURDAY
Antioch, CA...With the championship now decided in the Pacific Coast Hobby Stock division, Antioch Speedway is preparing for the biggest race of the year for the division. It's the Sixth Annual Pacific Coast General Engineering Hobby Stock Nationals, and it's the biggest race of the year for this division anywhere on the West Coast.
The IMCA Stock Cars get the opportunity to race for some extra money with a $1,000 to win race, and the Mini Stocks will be competing in their third of four October point races.
For several years, the Hobby Stocks have fielded some of the biggest car counts at the speedway, but it was a rarity to see them compete for extra money payouts. In 2021, Larry Adams suggested the track give him a chance to build up a big purse for this division. He was given the green light and brought in over $15,000 in purse money that year. The race attracted almost 50 competitors.
With the success of the 2021 event, won by Dylan Wilson of Bakersfield, Adams again brought in purse money for another big event. In this case, he dedicated it to Jim Pettit Sr. Once again, Wilson left town with the winner's share of the purse. When Adams left California to work at the now NASCAR sanctioned Willamette Speedway in Oregon, there was some question as to whether this race would continue.
The question was answered immediately when Pacific Coast General Engineering signed up not just to be the division's title sponsor but also to sponsor the race itself. Since then, the Hobby Stock Nationals has continued to thrive with a big car count and payout at the end of the evening.
Buddy Kniss of Oakley, much like his father, has driven in just about every division through the years and been victorious multiple times. The 2019 IMCA Modified champion got behind the wheel of the Dave Baca owned car in 2023 and proceeded to score his biggest victory in the Hobby Stock Nationals.
The lure of the big money attracts some of the top drivers from throughout the state, and it was too much for Brian Cooper of Yuba City to resist. He came to town in 2024 and added his name to the Nationals winner's list. Mechanical issues derailed Cooper's attempt to repeat, but it was Bakersfield star Nicholas Johnson picking up the victory last year.
The stellar purse offers any driver able to make the Main Event a minimum of $300 at the pay window. The victory is a season maker for whoever can claim it at $3,000. Even second place leaves with $1,200, while third receives $1,000. With that kind of money on the line, most of the locals, even some who don't race full-time, will be on hand along with top competitors from other racing venues.
The format will again be based on heat race passing points. Each driver gets two sets of heat races to determine the Top 10 competitors, who then go into a Fast Dash to set the first five rows of the Main Event. The rest of the field will be lined up based on points in the B Mains and Last Chance Qualifier. From the moment the night starts, the drivers are in stiff competition with little room for error if they want to have a shot at the big victory.
Fresh off of her 2026 championship season, Jewell Crandall of Antioch will be racing. She is a two-time winner this year and hopes to improve on her best Nationals performance of fourth. Likewise, championship runner-up Hunter Hammett of Oakley will be in action. Hammett lost the championship to Crandall by a mere two points despite leading the division with 15 Top 5 finishes and six Main Event wins
James Thomson of Pittsburg had a solid season at Antioch with three wins and the final podium position in the standings in third. The past Antioch Speedway and Petaluma Speedway champion will be out to get his biggest victory yet. Among the others who are coming include Josh Appelbaum of Antioch, Trevor Clymens of Brentwood and Taylor DeCarlo of Martinez. DeCarlo had a feature win earlier this season and has done well in her visits to other California, Oregon and Nevada venues this year.
Last year, Charlie Bryant of Oakley came close to scoring the big victory with his impressive runner-up finish. Bryant has been closing in on his first Hobby Stock triumph, and he'd love to earn it on the biggest stage of them all. Others to watch for include two-time champion Grayson Baca of Brentwood, Nicky Skidmore of Benicia, Brentwood's Jesse Paladino and Nicholas Garner of Antioch.
The IMCA Stock Cars got to compete for $1,000 to win at the Bill Bowers Memorial. That race was won by Troy Foulger of Oakley after a thrilling last lap pass on leader Kenneth Robles of Rio Vista. Robles may have came up a few inches short in his first attempt to win $1,000, but he'll be gunning for his third win of the season this week.
Kenneth's father Jason Robles of Rio Vista ended up second in the standings for the fourth time and also had several seconds in the Main Event. Though he won the most heat races during the season, it seemed like every time Jason was close to a feature win, mechanical gremlins thwarted his efforts.
After winning his second-consecutive division championship and leading the class with five feature victories, Brentwood's Fred Ryland would seem to be the driver to beat. Ryland has won over 90 combined Main Events at Antioch Speedway in his career. Other drivers to watch for this week include Dave Hill of San Francisco, top rookie Nick Friend of Galt and Scott Foster of Oakley.
After picking up his division-leading sixth Main Event win of the season last week, Tom Brown of Santa Rosa knows he's already won the championship. When he became the car owner of his fast Pinto, Brown went with the , highlighting his goal of winning both the Antioch and Petaluma Speedway championships. Both goals were accomplished.
Last week, Brown made a thrilling move in traffic with two laps to go to steal the victory away from rookie Brandon Rogerson of Napa. For Rogerson, this was his fifth runner-up finish of the year and the second time he lost what could have been a victory late in the race. He's hoping three times will be the charm this week, and he's also slowly closing in on Ryder Holmen of Antioch for second in points. He trails by 46 points after Holmen had his best finish of the year last week in third.
Some of the other drivers to watch for this week include fourth ranked Matt Wirth of Oakland and newcomer Andre Woods of Pittsburg. After this race, the Mini Stocks will run their championship finale on October 31st.
Antioch Speedway has been blessed to offer some big prize money during its final month of the season. The first $3,000 victory went to Andrew Pearce of Brentwood after his stellar effort in the Bill Bowers Memorial IMCA Modified race. The third race for a $3,000 prize will be on October 31st with the Workman Communications 50 for the Tri State Pro Stocks.
This Saturday, it's all about the Hobby Stocks and who will get the big payday. Most of the top locals you'd expect will be there, and Brian Cooper is confirmed as well. There will likely be others. With some great Hobby Stock racing along with the $1,000 to win show for the IMCA Stock Cars and the Mini Stocks, this will be an event you won't want to miss.
The gates will open at 5:00 with the first race starting at 6:00.
Adult tickets are $20, Senior/Military $15, Kids (5-12) $15 and kids four and under free.
For further information, go to http://www.raceantiochspeedway.com or check out the Antioch Speedway by PROmotions page.
Photo Info:
Article Credit: Candice Martin, Photos by Katrina Kniss
