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Structural Buildings WISSOTA Late Model Challenge Series Adds Staff Stepan to Direct; Tiefs to Announce Series’ 25th Anniversary Season in 2023

St. Cloud, Minnesota - January 18th, 2023

For Immediate Release - WISSOTA Auto Racing

WISSOTA Auto Racing Executive Director Rod Lindquist is extremely excited to announce that he has hired what he calls the ‘A Team’ to lead the Structural Buildings WISSOTA Late Model Challenge Series entering the series’ 25th anniversary season in 2023. Longtime promoter, announcer and race director Chris Stepan has been hired as the Series Director moving forward as well as longtime announcer Scott Tiefs, who has been hired to serve as the voice of the series during the 2023 campaign.

Lindquist said ‘I couldn’t be more excited to have both Chris and Scott on board for the series this year. We did great things last summer with the series and these two will certainly bring the series to the next level with what they both bring to the table. Tiefs, who announced several series events last season for us, is one of the best announcers in the business and will certainly add to the fan experience and excitement at our series races all summer and Chris is very well respected in the racing industry across the country, is very well versed on what the Challenge Series means to our region and has a great relationship with the majority of our drivers, so he should transition in seamlessly and be a great help to the stability of the series.

Stepan, who’s FYE Motorsports Promotions company hosts several high profile WISSOTA-sanctioned events throughout the summer, spent the first few years as the Director and Announcer for the series and has been involved in race directing and promoting several events since as well. Stepan will not only serve as the Series Director, but he will also assist in event promotion, marketing and pre and post event video work to further promote the series and it’s drivers.

Stepan said ‘it’s no secret that the Challenge Series is important to me. I was a part of starting the series back in 1999 and was heavily involved for the first ten years that the series was in operation. Being back involved in 2023 is exciting because we truly do have a great group of talent in the upper Midwest and it will be fun to be able to showcase those drivers to a national audience. Having Wally (Scott Tiefs) on board makes it extra fun as he and I have worked together for years on many projects, including running the Street Stock Little Dream Race every year, and he will be great to have on board full-time.’

Tiefs, who has a very familiar voice for calling many WISSOTA-sanctioned events year after year for over twenty years, is the current announcer at the Red Cedar Speedway in Menomonie, WI and often also calls races at the Ogilvie Raceway in Ogilvie, MN. He will continue those duties on nights where there are no series races throughout the summer. Tiefs will not only serve as the Series Announcer, but will also assist in pre and post event video work to further promote the series it’s drivers.

Tiefs commented ‘It’s exciting to be named the voice of the Challenge Series heading into the 2023 season. I’ve had the opportunity to call several series races over the past few seasons and the series really does have some great talent and produces some excellent racing, so to be able to call all those events and bring the action to the fans should be a great time. Chris and I work really well together and having him on board as well should make the series even bigger than it has been in recent years.’

After serving in the same role in 2022, Tom Ledin will return as the series flagman in 2023 as well.

The 2023 series kicks off with a Minnesota doubleheader on Friday, May 19th at the I-94 emr Speedway in Fergus Falls, MN and Saturday, May 20th at the Ogilvie Raceway in Ogilvie, MN.

18 additional events dot the Challenge Series calendar, including the second annual XR Northern Storm week, with stops at the KRA Speedway, the Fiesta City Speedway, the Madison Speedway, the Casino Speedway, the Granite City Motor Park, the Hibbing Raceway, the Halvor Lines Speedway, the ABC Raceway, the Gondik Law Speedway, the Red Cedar Speedway, the Rice Lake Speedway and the Grand Rapids Speedway throughout the season.

New Richmond, Wisconsin’s Pat Doar is the all-time winningest driver in Challenge Series history with 36 career victories heading into the 2023 racing season. John Kaanta (32 wins), Jake Redetzke (15), AJ Diemel (15) and Jimmy Mars (13) round out the top five in all-time series triumphs.

Huron, South Dakota’s Cole Searing is the defending series champion, winning his first career title in 2022 by 63 points over East St. Paul, Manitoba, Canada’s Shane Edginton in the final series tally.

Series title sponsor Structural Buildings has been constructing dreams throughout Minnesota and the surrounding five-state area since 1985. Structural Buildings is a General Contractor specializing in design build construction, including but not limited to architectural and engineering services, drafting and designing, site prep, framing, interior build outs, remodels, etc. Whether you are looking for someone to take your project from start to finish, or just take on parts of it, the Structural Buildings team is there for you and have helped hundreds of property owners each year bring their dreams to reality since 1985. Their commitment to quality stands out above the competition, whether you’re building a new race shop, a new office, new warehouse, new barn, or even a new home, the Structural team has the experience, drive-to-succeed, persistency, and integrity to meet and exceed your expectations. They are committed to providing an excellent customer experience at every point of contact.

Structural Buildings President Chad Stewart said "we are extremely excited to have partnered with WISSOTA for the next two seasons to be the title sponsor of the Structural Buildings WISSOTA Late Model Challenge Series. With the additions of Chris Stepan coming on board with us as the Series Director and Scott Tiefs as the Series Announcer, Rod Lindquist and the WISSOTA team continue to bring the series to the next level. We are proud to support such a great series and we couldn't be more pumped for what the 2023 season has in store. Chris and Scott are huge assets and will definitely make a head turning impact in the direction we continue to work on taking the Challenge Series. I can't wait to work with this team of professionals. It's going to be fun to continue to work together and watch Chris and Scott do what they do best along with our flag man Tom Ledin and the rest of the WISSOTA team. There is no doubt that the "A Team" that has been pulled together will propel the Challenge Series into becoming an even bigger and badder machine and we're just proud to be a part of it."

For more information on the Structural Buildings WISSOTA Late Model Challenge Series, check out www.WISSOTA.org.

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