The World Series of Asphalt kept delivering at New Smyrna Speedway, and Race 3 might’ve been the most chaotic, momentum-swinging show yet. When the dust settled after 35 laps, Doug Welch came out on top with a massive late-race surge, officially locking up the Mini Stock World Series Championship in the process. It was a veteran-style win built on survival, timing, and execution—because this one was anything but straightforward.
Early on, the pace belonged to Michael Mennenga, who controlled the opening laps and looked capable of turning the race into a wire-to-wire kind of night. That plan didn’t last long. Brayden E. Carter made his move and took control by lap 2, and from there the first half of the event turned into a high-speed chess match between Carter and Kaleb Smith2. The two traded pressure, traded lanes, and traded momentum—each run to the corner feeling like the start of a potential lead change.
Smith eventually found a way through and took the lead from Carter, flipping the race’s storyline again. But the front never stabilized—Smith later relinquished the top spot back to Mennenga, setting up another twist right when the race felt like it might settle. While leading, Mennenga tagged the front stretch wall, and what followed nearly erased the three biggest factors in the race. Mennenga, Carter, and Smith all came together in a near-disaster moment that threatened to wipe out the entire lead battle in one shot.
Carter managed to regroup and regained the lead, and for a stretch it looked like he might be able to finally put the chaos behind him and close it out. Carter’s pace was undeniable—he led 26 laps, the most of anyone, and spent much of the night as the driver everyone had to beat. Smith was right there too, leading 5 laps and posting the fastest lap of the race at 20.707, proof that he had winning speed even if the finish didn’t fully reflect it.
Then came the closer: Doug Welch. With roughly five laps to go, Welch arrived at Carter’s bumper and made it clear he wasn’t there to settle for second. Welch had been building speed as the race progressed, and once he caught Carter, the two went to war the way New Smyrna demands—door-to-door, inch-by-inch, neither driver giving an inch on exit. They raced side-by-side to the checkers, and Welch edged ahead at the line to take the win and secure the division crown as Mini Stock World Series Champion. It was the kind of finish where the “best car” and the “best moment” aren’t always the same thing—Welch nailed the moment.
The points picture also tightened up in a big way. With the World Series format paying 12 points to win and stepping down one point per position (plus 1 point for qualifying fastest time), every spot is meaningful. Welch’s win not only secured the Mini Stock title, it also pulled him closer in the overall World Series of Asphalt standings. After three races, Carter still leads the overall championship at 34 points, but Welch’s victory cuts the margin to five points (29). With three rounds remaining in this six-division gauntlet, the overall title is still wide open—especially with drivers like Smith (23) and Mennenga (22) close enough to swing the battle with one big night in an upcoming division.
WHAT NEXT
Trucks are up next for the World Series of Asphalt.
RESULTS (Plain Text): 1) Doug Welch, 2) Brayden E Carter, 3) Michael Mennenga, 4) Kaleb Smith2, 5) BJ Mitchell, 6) Brandon Burns3, 7) Bryan Beech
STANDINGS – TOP 10 (Plain Text): 1) Brayden E Carter (34), 2) Doug Welch (29), 3) Kaleb Smith2 (23), 4) Michael Mennenga (22), 5) Joey Conner (13), 6) Caleb Oliver (11), 7) Carson Southern (11), 8) Jack Watts (10), 9) Chris Allison2 (9), 10) BJ Mitchell (8)
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