Ringing in the Year at the Hometown Automotive Solutions 2026 Kickoff

January 4, 2026

Montgomery, AL — The new year got off to an exciting start on Saturday, Januray 3rd with the running of the Hometown Automotive Solutions 2026 Kickoff. The evening featured local racing in the form of three separate Crown Stock races as well as the always-unique Madd Maxx Enduro race.

The Madd Maxx Enduro took place on a “roval” circuit on the grounds of Montgomery Motor Speedway. The circuit featured chicanes in various places from the frontstretch to the backstretch, as well as an infield section comprised of infield roads and sections of the grass in the MMS pit area.

The Crown Stocks had a typical feature event in addition to two other races. The 25-lap main event featured regular Crown Stock competitors from around the region, but a Non-Winners feature and a Powder Puff race made for a nice change of pace.

Blake Wilson Picks Up Another Madd Maxx Enduro Win

For Blake Wilson, the 2026 running of the Madd Maxx Enduro went just about as smoothly as one could ask for. Despite starting towards the rear of the field, Wilson quickly jumped to the lead after a less than ideal start by the leaders.

The caution flag flew on a few occasions during the event, but only one machine was sidelined entirely. The no. 1776 of Steve Sidner was forced to bring his machine to the garage area after just one lap due to a broken axle. The no. 30 of Joey Stephens, who was in the process of hunting down leader Blake Wilson, hit the inside wall on the back straightaway towards the latter half of the race. Despite the incident, Stephens would return to action, albeit one lap down.

Blake Wilson and his no. 07 machine ultimately prevailed in the Madd Maxx Enduro, establishing a 15-second lead during the final run of the race en route to victory lane. Wilson came into this year’s Enduro as the only driver who had previously won the event, giving him a plethora of confidence and experience. Behind Wilson, Falcon Sidner and Joey Stephens secured second and third places respectively. Josh McElhone and Steve Sidner rounded out the 5-car field.

Madd Maxx Enduro Results

Blake Wilson
Falcon Sidner
Joey Stephens -1 lap
Josh McElhone -1 lap
Steve Sidner -27 laps

Chris Salter Prevails Over Brother Adam in Crown Stock Photo Finish

It’s no secret that the BMR Racing Team’s Crown Stock machines are fast wherever they go, and they’ve proven to exhibit the same speed to start off 2026. This time, the defending Crown Stock champion at MMS prevailed, with Chris Salter beating his brother Adam to the line by the closest of margins.

The Crown Stock portion of the evening started with a unique qualifying format. Cars would line up two at a time on the backstretch, starting from a dead stop and making their way around the track for just one qualifying lap, sharing the track with the other car. Chris Salter prevailed in the qualifying session, scoring the fastest lap time. The invert would move Salter’s machine back to sixth place for the start of the feature.

Adam Salter took the early lead, looking like he was the dominant car of the night for the first 17 laps of the event. However, Chris would take the lead away on Lap 18, making things interesting for the final stretch of the 25-lap contest. The two brothers swapped the lead on multiple occasions, both making their case for a potential victory.

Taking the white flag side-by-side, it remained unclear which brother had the true advantage. Ultimately, Chris prevailed over Adam by a margin of just 0.010 seconds at the line. Behind them, Tyler Young rounded out the podium in third. Chris Mitchell and Jonathan Johnson rounded out the top five.

Crown Stock 25 Results

Chris Salter
Adam Salter
Tyler Young
Chris Mitchell
Jonathan Johnson
Trey Grimes
Chris Landers
Brian Musgrove
Jeremy Sanders
Tim Richardson
Marty Bean
Sydni Bean -1 lap
Ronen Harris -1 lap
Okie Mason -6 laps
Austin Reeves -7 laps
Brandon Parker -7 laps
Garrett Wainwright -8 laps
J.R. Hartley -9 laps
Kyle Gray -9 laps
Daniel Parker -11 laps
Andy Stanfield -12 laps
Anthony Lilla – DNS

Jonathan Johnson Picks Up Victory in Non-Winners Feature

The Crown Stock Non-Winners race featured, as the name suggests, racers who had yet to pick up a feature win in the MMS Crown Stock division. Many racers who participated were fresh off of running the 25-lap main event, while some cars whose owners had won before were piloted by new drivers.

The event proved to be easy work fot the no. 08 of Jonathan Johnson, who led all 15 laps of the contest en route to his first Crown Stock victory at Montgomery Motor Speedway. Behind Johnson, Chris Landers and Brandon Parker finished in second and third places respectively. Phillip Griffin and Tim Richardson rounded out the top five.

Crown Stock Non-Winners Feature Results

Jonathan Johnson
Chris Landers
Brandon Parker
Phillip Griffin
Tim Richardson
Jeremy Sanders
Greyson Mitchell -1 lap
Ronen Harris -1 lap
Marty Bean -2 laps
Garrett Wainwright -10 laps

A Familar Face Returns to Victory Lane in Crown Stock Powder Puff Race

Race fans at Montgomery Motor Speedway are probably familiar with Jolynn Wilkinson Jones, as Jones has been a regular Show Me The Money Pro Late Model competitor in recent years. While not in a Pro Late Model, Jones did return to racing this weekend when she ran the Crown Stock Powder Puff event on Saturday.

The field of female racers took the green flag for the final feature of the night, participating in a 10-lap contest. Jones took the lead just three laps into the event, never looking back on her march to victory lane. Maddison Bragg, a short track racer in her own right, finished in second place. Stefany Wesley rounded out the podium, with Natalie Ellis and Shelby Reuse Cropper rounding out the top five.