This Week in Monster Truck Racing - February 21-23, 2025

* Bari Musawwir closes in on Stadium East points lead

** Weston sweeps Wichita

*** Jacob Ladwig stays undefeated on Insanity Tour

CURRENT STANDINGS and WEEKEND RESULTS (PDF): https://tinyurl.com/3m8u4kn6

===== WEEKEND RECAP FOR FEBRUARY 21st – 23rd, 2025 =====

Bari Musawwir and Camden Murphy traded wins in Detroit after Murphy eliminated Tyler Menninga twice in racing. Those performances moved Musawwir and Murphy up further into the Top Ten in the Open Championship and also brought Musawwir and his Zombie nation to within 5 points of Menninga in Grave Digger for the top spot on the Monster Jam Stadium East tour.

Out west, Cole Venard became only the third driver to win more than once on the Stadium West tour. The series top two drivers—Ryan Anderson and Tristan England—are the only other two to do it. This past weekend in Minneapolis, Anderson won and England was runner-up twice.

Weston Anderson is the first driver on the Monster Jam Arena West tour to sweep a 3 race weekend as he dug graves for Brianna Mahon, Coty Saucier, and Devin Winfield in the finals and moves up to 7th place overall. The Arena East series had a long 5-race weekend in Allentown that saw 6 of the 8 drivers advance to the final round. Brandan Tuluchka took one of the wins and moved up into the Top 50.

Jacob Ladwig is 4-for-4 on the Insanity Tour this year after two more wins in Ada, Oklahoma. Steven Thompson just started his racing season and did so with two wins in Du Quoin with MOD. Carson Williams was in the finals all three nights, ending with a win on Sunday and moving up 5 spots in the standings.

Team USA-1 raced to three wins this weekend, with Rob Poutre taking two and Kaila Savage taking one at their respective events.

In Beaumont, Kylie Thurber and Daron Basl raced to a stalemate with 1 win each to start the Monster Nation weekend. The final event saw Tyler Groth edge out Jerry Beck in the finals and also edge out Beck in the standings, with Groth in 13th and Beck joining in 14th.

That’s not all that happened! Check below to see who’s got himself a 6-race winning streak, whether Kaley Engstrom maintained her final-round streak in Kenansville, and which two retired trucks made their returns in Hattiesburg!

Thank you to everyone who has helped us with reporting events this week: Lee Collins, Michael Terleski, Sean Green, Ben Wimp, Bryan Wagner, Preston Perez, Byron Cadigan, Josh Baumgartner, Richie Kiser, Mark Werner, Kirk Nagy, Phil Vicinanza, and everyone who posted videos and photos online!

===== CURRENT STANDINGS =====

RANK : DRIVER : PTS/AVG : SCORE : RACES/WINS

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1 ) Tyler Menninga - 4086/240.35 : 2+1=3 : 17/10

2 ) Coty Saucier - 6472/215.73 : 1+2=3 : 30/19

3 ) Ryan Anderson - 3807/190.35 : 5+3=8 : 20/7

4 ) Jon Zimmer Jr - 4074/177.13 : 3+5=8 : 23/8

5 ) Dalton Widner - 3000/166.67 : 6+6=12 : 18/5

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6 ) Bari Musawwir - 2985/157.11 : 8+7=15 : 19/1

7 ) Tristan England - 2652/189.43 : 13+4=17 : 14/4

8 ) Jimmy Creten - 2985/149.25 : 8+9=17 : 20/15

9 ) Weston Anderson - 2969/148.45 : 10+11=21 : 20/4

10) Matt Cody - 3818/127.27 : 4+19=23 : 30/7

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11) Triton Robbins - 2760/131.43 : 11+16=27 : 21/5

12) Colt Stephens - 2988/124.5 : 7+20=27 : 24/2

13) Tyler Groth - 2403/141.35 : 15+13=28 : 17/2

14) Camden Murphy - 2115/151.07 : 22+8=30 : 14/1

15) Preston Pérez - 2241/140.06 : 16+14=30 : 16/9

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16) Blake Granger - 2434/128.11 : 14+18=32 : 19/9

17) Armando Castro - 2658/120.82 : 12+21=33 : 22/1

18) Adam Anderson - 2184/128.47 : 19+17=36 : 17/1

19) Rob Poutre - 2037/135.8 : 23+15=38 : 15/10

20) Bryce Kenny - 1641/149.18 : 34+10=44 : 11/1

 ===== BIGGEST IMPROVEMENTS =====

+13 – Jon Zimmer Sr (Zombie) – 26th

+8 – MJ Solorio (El Toro Loco) – 51st

+7 – Cole Venard (Black Pearl) – 31st

+5 – Kaley Engstrom (Shark Attack) – 35th

+5 – Carson Williams (Velociraptor) – 44th 

+5 – Brandan Tulachka (Jus’ Get-Er-Done) – 50th 

===== NEW THIS WEEK =====

14th – Jerry Beck (Dirt Crew)

27th – Daron Basl (Block Head)

68th – Kylie Thurber (Smashosaurus)

69th – Thomas Kimmons (Kicking & Screaming)

73rd – Colton Kiser (The Boss)

77th – Cliff Turner (Kamikaze)

===== ABILENE, TX =====

2/22 Sat Aft: KAILA SAVAGE [USA-1] defeated Paul Strong [Quad Chaos]

2/22 Sat Ngt: GABE MONTOYA [Gruesome] defeated Thomas Kimmons [Kicking & Screaming]

Kaila Savage gives Team USA-1 three wins on the weekend with her Chicago-style victory on Saturday in Abilene. Gabe Montoya damaged his Misfit truck earlier in the day and had to move into his Gruesome truck for the night cap, but it worked out well as he took home the racing win.

===== ADA, OK =====

2/21 Fri Ngt: JACOB LADWIG [Rat Attack] defeated Rod Schmidt [Redneck Rampage]

2/22 Sat Aft: JACOB LADWIG [Rat Attack] defeated Josh Baumgartner [Bigfoot]

Jacob Ladwig is 4-0 on the Insanity Tour this year. Last season he had 13 wins and 6 runner-ups in his 20 Insanity Tour events.

===== ALLENTOWN, PA =====

2/21 Fri Ngt: BRANDAN TULACHKA [Just Get Er Done II] defeated Kurt Kraehmer [Rammunition]

2/22 Sat Aft: BLAKE GRANGER [Monster Mutt Dalmatian] defeated Mark Hall [Raminator]

2/22 Sat Ngt: KRYSTEN ANDERSON [Grave Digger] defeated Brandan Tulachka [Just Get Er Done II]

2/23 Sun Aft: BLAKE GRANGER [Monster Mutt Dalmatian] defeated MJ Solorio [El Toro Loco]

2/23 Sun Ngt: MJ SOLORIO [El Toro Loco] defeated Krysten Anderson [Grave Digger]

The Monster Jam Arena East series had a long weekend in Allentown that let them earn some big points. Six of the 8 drivers advanced to the finals at least. Only series points leader Blake Granger was able to win more than once. Kurt Kraehmer, Brandan Tulachka, and MJ Solorio are now all within 105 points of each other in the Open Championship rankings, although Granger continues to lead by a long shot with his 11 wins and 17th place ranking. Solorio’s two final round appearances also gave him an 8-rank jump in the standings, making him the 2nd most-improved driver this weekend.

===== BEAUMONT, TX =====

2/21 Fri Ngt: KYLIE THURBER [Smashosaurus] defeated Daron Basl [Block Head]

2/22 Sat Aft: DARON BASL [Block Head] defeated Kylie Thurber [Smashosaurus]

2/22 Sat Ngt: TYLER GROTH [The Veteran] defeated Jerry Beck [Dirt Crew]

Kylie Thurber won her first race since last May in Yakima, beating out 27th ranked Daron Basl in Block Head. Basl has been having a strong season again with the Toughest Tour and returned to the winner’s circle in race 2 after he and Thurber faced off again. We didn’t get to see a third and decisive showdown between the two on Saturday, but the twins did prevail as Tyler Groth won for the 3rd time this season. He’s now ranked 13th and just ahead of Jerry Beck who joins the rankings in 14th.

===== BILLINGS, MT =====

2/22 Sat Ngt: TRAVIS GROTH [Monster Moose] defeated Mark Andrew [Wicked Sickness]

Travis Groth won the annual CFP No Limits race in Billings in a race that featured a bunch of trucks that rarely run together. In fact, all 6 heats were the first time those two trucks met this season. For Groth, it was his 2nd win of the season.

===== DETROIT, MI =====

2/22 Sat Ngt: BARI MUSAWWIR [Zombie] defeated Camden Murphy [Classroom Crusher]

2/23 Sun Aft: CAMDEN MURPHY [Classroom Crusher] defeated Bari Musawwir [Zombie]

Detroit had big implications on all the points series as Bari Musawwir and Camden Murphy traded wins and closed in on Tyler Menninga for the Monster Jam Stadium West championship. Musawwir is now a slim 5 points behind Menninga on tour and also gained 2 spots in the Open Championship to reach 4th place. The Zombie driver has been in the finals in 5 of the last 6 Stadium events. Menninga has only 2 final round appearances in that time frame after having started the season with 5 consecutive wins. Murphy meanwhile is up 4 spots and now inside the Top Ten for the first time this season.

===== DU QUOIN, IL =====

2/21 Fri Ngt: STEVEN THOMPSON [Hurricane Force] defeated Carson Williams [Velociraptor]

2/22 Sat Ngt: STEVEN THOMPSON [Hurricane Force] defeated Carson Williams [Velociraptor]

2/23 Sun Aft: CARSON WILLIAMS [Velociraptor] defeated Cliff Turner [Kamikaze]

Steven Thompson took down Team Throttle Monster twice in the Monsters of Destruction finals in Du Quoin. This was his first weekend in action this year and he wasted no time scoring big points. Carson Williams finally figured out how to get around Thompson in the semi-finals on Sunday and went on to take his 4th win of the season. Runner-up Cliff Turner joins the rankings in 77th.

===== EDINBURG, TX =====

This Hot Wheels Live event did not include side-by-side racing and so points were not awarded.

===== HATTIESBURG, MS =====

Byron Cadigan won twice in Hattiesburg with the Monster TNT Tour but unfortunately the event did not use a bracket format. Instead, the fastest two trucks from qualifying were seeded directly into the final round, so sadly we could not score points for these events. Cadigan has 6 wins and 16 finals in his 26 scored events this season driving the famous Bear Foot. This event also saw the return of the Sudden Impact and Ground Pounder trucks driven by Roddy Fahnestock and Brandon Lagarde, respectively.

===== KENANSVILLE, NC =====

2/22 Sat Mrn: KALEY ENGSTROM [Shark Attack] defeated Mason Rife [Outlaw]

2/22 Sat Aft: MASON RIFE [Outlaw] defeated Kaley Engstrom [Shark Attack]

2/22 Sat Ngt: KALEY ENGSTROM [Shark Attack] defeated Aaron Basl [T-Rex]

2/23 Sun Aft: JUSTIN MURPHY [Sheriff] defeated Mason Rife [Outlaw]

Kaley Engstrom competed in his 20th final round in only 24 races to close out a 3-show DAY on Saturday in Kenansville. Her final round streak finally came to end on Sunday as Justin Murphy and Mason Rife battled for the win with Murphy grabbing his 2nd win of the season.

===== LITTLE ROCK, AR =====

2/22 Sat Ngt: TRITON ROBBINS [Krazy Train] defeated Matt Cody [Grave Digger]

2/23 Sun Aft: JON ZIMMER SR [Zombie] defeated Fernando Martinez [El Toro Loco]

Triton Robbins becomes the 2nd driver on the Monster Jam Arena Central tour to start a weekend with a win after ending the previous weekend with a win. Jon Zimmer Jr did it twice (Milwaukee to Newark, and Newark to Brooklyn) but Zimmer Jr has—surprisingly—not been to the final round in the past 7 events. He drops down to 6th place in the rankings. Matt Cody loses a spot in the rankings despite a runner-up finish on Saturday thanks to Camden Murphy’s big weekend in Detroit. Fernando Martinez was in the finals for the 6th time but still has only 1 win. Jon Zimmer Sr won for the 4th time this year and moved up 13 spots which was the biggest improvement of the weekend.

===== MESQUITE, TX =====

2/22 Sat Aft: We do not have results from this event

2/22 Sat Ngt: We do not have results from this event

===== MINNEAPOLIS, MN =====

2/22 Sat Aft: RYAN ANDERSON [Son-Uva Digger] defeated Tristan England [JCB DIGatron]

2/23 Sun Aft: COLE VENARD [Black Pearl] defeated Tristan England [JCB DIGatron]

Tristan England’s pair of runner-up finishes earned him 471 points and has him with the 3rd best Average Points of all drivers at 195.19. He’s up two spots into the Top 5 now. Ryan Anderson has been no stranger to the winner’s circle this year and he adds his 8th while maintaining his third place ranking in the Open Championship. Cole Venard is the only other driver on tour to have more than one racing win this season, with wins in Miami and now Minneapolis. Either Tristan or Ryan has been in the final round in every event on the Stadium West tour this season.

Minneapolis ended up being a bad weekend for Adam Anderson. He was undefeated in racing, but both nights got knocked out due to damage suffered after his races, including a bad tumble in the shut-down area after rear-steering problems caused him to hit the final race ramp with only 3 tires. Anderson also took a hard hit later in freestyle but is reported to be doing well now. In points, however, not as well, as the undeserved eliminations have knocked him down into 20th place overall.

===== REDMOND, OR =====

2/22 Sat Aft: ROB POUTRE [USA-1] defeated Donny Hebert [Temporarily Insane]

2/22 Sat Ngt: ROB POUTRE [USA-1] defeated Donny Hebert [Aftershock]

Rob Poutre now has the 3rd most wins in the sport this season with 12 after taking home both wins in Redmond, Oregon with the Nitro Tour. Donny Hebert drove double-duty in his two trucks and got them each into the final round on different nights.

===== SANTA MARIA, CA =====

2/22 Sat Aft: JIMMY CRETEN [Bounty Hunter] defeated Dan Dahlgren [Shark Bite]

2/23 Sun Aft: JIMMY CRETEN [Bounty Hunter] defeated Kory Kinal [Jekyll & Hyde]

Six wins in a row now for Jimmy Creten plus he’s won 17 times in 22 races. No doubt about it that the veteran still has lots of speed. Creten stays within the Top Ten even after big weekends from Bari Musawwir and Weston Anderson.

 ===== SASKATOON, SK =====

2/21 Fri Ngt: BILL PAYNE [Rock Star] defeated Jared Vogel [Crude Behavior]

2/22 Sat Aft: We do not have results from this event

2/22 Sat Ngt: MARVIN ANDERSON [Identity Theft] defeated Bill Payne [Rock Star]

We finally got some results from the RAM Spectacular tour! We’re still missing Saturday afternoon, but we know that Bill Payne won on Friday and Marvin Anderson took home the win on Saturday.

===== TURIN, ITALY =====

This Hot Wheels Live event did not include side-by-side racing and so points were not awarded.

===== WICHITA, KS =====

2/22 Sat Aft: WESTON ANDERSON [Grave Digger] defeated Brianna Mahon [Scooby Doo]

2/22 Sat Ngt: WESTON ANDERSON [Grave Digger] defeated Coty Saucier [Dragon]

2/23 Sun Aft: WESTON ANDERSON [Grave Digger] defeated Devin Winfield [Velociraptor]

Weston Anderson has been dominating the Monster Jam Arena West series despite some strong-running opponents. Despite the points domination, his last racing win came over a month ago on January 17th in Tacoma. But the Digger driver nearly doubled his win total for the season during his stay in Wichita, scoring a 3-race sweep. This is the first weekend sweep on the Arena West tour this season.

Coty Saucier continues to be the top-ranked racer on tour, holding tight to his 2nd place ranking. Anderson is up to 7th place and rising. The other finalists from this weekend—Brianna Mahon and Devin Winfield—are both inside the Top 25 and each have 2 wins on tour this season.

===== WINDER, GA =====

This All Star Monster Truck Tour event did not include side-by-side racing and so points were not awarded.

====== EVENTS THIS WEEKEND =====

Camp Verde, AZ (Monster Truck Chaos)

Dothan, AL (Monster Truck Wars)

Edmonton, AB (RAM Motorsports Spectacular)

El Paso, TX (Monster Jam Stadium Championship Series West)

Klamath Falls, OR (Monster Truck Insanity Tour)

Martin, TN (Monster Truck Wars)

Medford, OR (Monster Truck Nitro Tour)

Orlando, FL (Monster Jam Stadium Championship Series East)

Portland, OR (Monster Jam Arena Championship Series West)

Rockford, IL (Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live: Glow Party Arena Event)

Rosemont, IL (Monster Jam Arena Championship Series Central)

Saginaw, MI (Toughest Monster Truck Tour)

Travelers Rest, SC (SC Monster Truck Madness Stunts & Thrills)

Victorville, CA (Monster Truck Thunder)

West Valley City, UT (All Star Monster Truck Tour)