PLOVER, Wis. (September 1, 2025) – While other drivers were jockeying for spots on the inside groove, Jeremy Lepak dared to take the high lane. It paid off.

Lepak cruised the high side and snagged the lead after a duel with John Beale to take the Cleaver Classic 108 TUNDRA Super Late Model Series feature on Monday at Golden Sands Speedway. The win was Lepak’s first in the series.

From Jim Carlson (Late Model Digest)

Among the people Jeremy Lepak praised heavily after his victory in the annual TUNDRA Super Late Model Series Labor Day event at Golden Sands Speedway were those at Advanced Engine Concepts in Green Lake, Wis. That was the case even though an engine problem was what sidelined Lepak for much of the first half of the season.

A few laps into practice for the TUNDRA opener in May at Wisconsin International Raceway, the powerplant in the #40 let go. The problem was with a lifter, and even though AEC repaired it in a few weeks, the dent in his budget kept him out of two GSS races and

prevented him from making a run at a championship.

“They treat me really good there,” Lepak said.

“You can’t fault part failures; they happen every day.”

Under full power for this 108-lap Cleaver Classic, named in memory of longtime TUNDRA supporter David Kronberger who passed away almost two years ago, Lepak captured his first victory of any kind since 2021. He took the lead from area fixture John Beale with 12 laps remaining to win with TUNDRA for the first time in 30 starts. That winning move capped off a climb from 13th on the grid, one off of the maximum inversion number for the event’s top qualifier.

“The fans were excited; it was a pretty good old school race,” said Lepak, from Wausau, Wis. “We were running fourth, and the only caution came out with 23 to go. I got to the outside and got around the top three guys on the outside (Jordan DeVoy was third at the time and Ty Fredrickson was second). Then me and John were side by side for at least six or seven laps.

“When we rolled the car in the trailer after the race, I was like, ‘Man, there’s not a tire mark on it. It’s pretty crazy to come from that far back and not have a mark on it. That’s pretty crazy for Plover on a hot, slick day. And we hit on that little bit that we needed.”

This was the first win on this #40, built by Toby Nuttleman before the 2022 season. Nuttleman was at the track with longtime TobyCar customer Justin Mondeik, who fell out early with his own engine trouble, but he and Lepak will likely talk at their next race.

“I texted a little bit with Justin … it sounded like he broke a lifter also,” said Lepak, supported by R&J Auto, GFL Environmental, FRS Shocks and Furo Headers. “I feel bad for him, but I’m kinda glad that it started with him in his warmup laps, instead of having that thing grenade in front of us in the race. That probably saved a few cars.”