LUCAMA, NC – Ethan Johnson dominated in Bandolero competition at Southern National Motorsports Park, clinching the championship by virtue of his six wins.
The 14-year-old from Apex, North Carolina made a statement on the offset, scoring wins in the first three races of the season. Emily Day and Parker Frazier were each able to pick up mid-summer victories before the Ethan Johnson steamroller was firing on all cylinders once again in August as he went on to win-out and pick up the division championship.
“All year, we had a fast car from the beginning,” Johnson said. “We never thought about winning the championship until we went out there and won the first race. After we did that, we decided we had a shot, won three in a row in the first three races and were pretty fast. We had a couple races where we got downhill and got in trouble with our car, but we came back strong and won the next three races.”
A championship season can be defined not by Johnson’s wins, but by his results during that summer slump. Even when his car was off, Johnson finished no worse than second during the regular season.
“At the end of the year, we were able to beat the faster cars,” Johnson remarked. “We knew we didn’t have the best car there but we had a decent car and it was depending on me being able to drive it. I’m just really happy.”
Winning a championship at Southern National was a significant milestone for Ethan Johnson. His father, Jeffrey, raced Modifieds at Southern National so Southern National is a home track to the younger Johnson.
“It means a lot,” Johnson said. “After racing there for three years, that’s pretty big to me seeing as my dad used to race Modifieds there. It means a lot. It’s an amazing track to win at and we’re thankful that there are amazing people there to support us.”
Next year, Johnson plans to step up to the Charger division.
