SWEA CITY — Matthew Looft wasn’t kidding when he said the points chase was not in the plans for 2021.

Looft and his wife Brittney were expecting their third child, and as a result, he would run for fun and support the trails closest to their rural home in Swea City, Iowa.

A career best feature in one season, 27 wins later, however, Looft won his fourth career Karl Kustoms Northern SportMod National Championship and best of the division.

“We never thought that would happen. Everything worked out, ”said Looft, who watched the Salute to Veterans race at Kossuth County Speedway (which turned out to be a scoreless night) on the delivery room TV before his daughter arrived. at 1:33 a.m. on July 30. Brynlee. “The whole season has been pretty crazy, really. A separate memory I will never forget was winning the Salute to Veterans race at Clay County Fair Speedway as my wife struggled on her way to victory. I suggested that she stay home that night, but I didn’t win that battle. Brynlee was born a day later.

Kicking off his first season in a Skyrocket by B & B chassis, Looft took home the opening night victory at Kossuth County Speedway. Six more trips to the victory lane followed before his very first controllers at the SportMod National Championships at Hancock County Speedway.

“We got used to the car straight away. It’s really easy to drive and it works well on slippery trails, ”he said. “When you have a car that can go anywhere, it’s easier to pass. Kelly Shryock, Jason Briese, and Paul Burger were great to work with. We exchanged ideas on how to make the car better and faster. “

“When the car wasn’t running I would take it over there and Kelly would drive through it,” Looft added. “A lot of it was little things that we were trying out, maybe a different scale of the car or different springs. It was a team effort. “

He was track champion at Arlington Raceway, Murray County Speedway and Kossuth County Speedway, where he won 12, six and five times, respectively. Looft also won three feature films at Clay County Fair Speedway.

The career-best $ 2,500 MaxYield Seeds SportMod National Championship paycheck – Brittney landed her first outside pole start and was credited with helping to win – kicked Looft’s season into high gear. He’s won 19 of his last 30 starts and nine of his last 12 starts.

“We really started to hit our stride after Britt. We broke in the lead a few nights, ”he said,“ but we had no downside in the playoffs or the specs and there were quite a few nights we had no warnings and there was no wreckage. All of these things make a big difference.

First national champion in 2013, Looft won again in 2014, the year Brayden’s eldest child was born, and in 2018, when he and Brittney welcomed their son Brysen.

“To keep up with Mike Nichols (10-time IMCA Sunoco Stock Car National Champion) we have to have six more children,” Looft said, noting that every year a child is born they win a national championship.

He will start the 2022 season with a total of 194 career wins and 31 track and special series championships, also division best.

“We like to support our local trails and don’t travel a lot,” Looft said. “The championships are hard to come by. You have to dedicate yourself to an entire season and we are racing with some of the best competitions in the country. “

Matt looft
Debut: 51
Wins: 27
Additional Top 5: 21
His crew: his wife Brittney, his sons Brayden and Brysen, Greg Sidles, Zach Schleininger, Tyler Schleininger, Nate Sukalski and Roger Schroeder.
Its sponsors: Skyrocket Chassis by B & B and Shryock Racing Components, both from Joice; MB Auto Clinic LLC, Looft Tankwagon Service and Craig Deim Seeds, all of Swea City; Greg Penning & Co. LLC and S & B Farms Distillery, both of Bancroft; Armstrong RL Ag Sales-Wyffel Hybrids; Ellsworth Brothers Manure Pumping, Mabus Feed Lot and Lofstrom-Krantz Farms, all of Lakota; Big D’s Trucking from Estherville; Des Moines rapid well; Mitchell Machine of Webster City; CPD Racing Shocks of Fort Dodge; S&S Machine of Belle Plaine, Minn .; Cave Construction of Fairmont, Minn .; Photograph of broken arrows from Alpha, Minn .; Guitar Man of East Chain, Minn .; Moonlite Race Parts of Good Thunder, Minn .; Brent Prouty and REMAX Realty Plus of Redwood Falls, Minn .; Esser Distribution of Blue Earth, Minn .; Snap Graphics of Mapleton, Minn .; Keechinator Photograph by LeSeuer, Minn .; AFCO of Boonville, Indiana; Swift Springs in Chino Hills, California; and Engine Quest of Las Vegas, Nevada.