Third generation driver Justin Philpott was cruising around the quarter-mile paved oval at Stockton 99 Speedway on Saturday night, Aug. 9 under a caution flag, right beside the legendary pink and black No. 90J car, and the memories came roaring back.

“My dad, Ronnie (Strmiska) Jr., Ronnie Sr., my grandfather racing with senior, it was just super cool,” said Philpott, who piloted the equally legendary white and orange No. 50 family car from Tracy through restart after restart in the first half of the race before finishing the last half of the main event under a green flag.

Philpott beat Oakdale’s Blaine Rocha, driving the Strmiska family No. 90J, to the checkered flag by .663 of a second in the 74-lap feature, so numbered in honor of another Stockton 99 legend on the Night of Champions tribute to Harry Belletto Racing Stables.

In addition to the Philpott and Strmiska entries, the 17-car field was sprinkled with familiar cars from the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s – teenager Hayden Stepps driving the yellow and white Taco Bell machine out of Modesto, driven back in the day by Allen Beebe and Troy Beebe; Henk Gaalswyk of Ripon in the No. 28 car; and of course Nic Belletto at the wheel of the popular Havoline Oil sponsored No. 74 Monte Carlo, in which his grandfather, Harry Belletto, drove to three track championships.

The race was also in tribute to Harry’s two sons, Steve Belletto, a former two-time track champion who passed away after battling COVID in 2021, and Rick Belletto, the crew chief for the family-operated race cars, who passed away in 2023.

Before the main event, longtime family friend Ken Clapp, a former part owner and promoter at the 99, gave a moving speech from the front straight to the large crowd on hand in the grandstands, in praise of the Belletto family.

“I want to thank the Belletto’s for all their contribution to motorsports in the greater valley and especially here at the 99 Speedway,” said Clapp, who, along with Harry, is a member of the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame. “I was just talking to Wayne (track announcer Wayne Pierce) that we should select the greatest drivers in the history of the 99, and Harry would be way up on that list.”

Jeff Belletto, Harry’s youngest son, gave the command to “Start your engines,” and after waving the green flag, Philpott and Rocha took off running 1-2 with no idea what was about to transpire – nine yellow caution flags through 38 laps, meaning nine restarts. The restarts resulted in numerous multi-lap, door-to-door battles, in which Philpott somehow managed to emerge with the lead on each occasion.

“I’ve done so many restarts here and been racing here for so long, you never get two of the same. You’re trying to get forward bite, trying to outsmart the guy that’s next to you. And we had to do it over and over and over. It was getting frustrating, especially when you’re in the lead,” Philpott explained. “I tried to be as close to the (start) cone as possible and get a good jump on him. They (track officials) didn’t like it, and I was warned I would be put to the back if it happened again, so I had to play fair.”

Philpott officially surrendered the lead to Rocha once – from laps 33-35 – when Rocha was able to inch ahead of him by about half of a car length, but Philpott was able to fight back to regain the top spot and lead the rest of the race. He was happy for the final 36 laps of green-flag racing and after the race, credited Rocha with a clean run.

“I have raced with a lot of people here, and for him to run me that clean, I was shocked. There ain’t no way in hell 30 years ago they would have run that clean,” Philpott said to laughter in Victory Lane, the left side of his car virtually clean after the race. “We raced hard and clean, and that is what it is all about.”

Philpott credited his car’s setup “100 percent” to Derek Thorn. Philpott said the car was fast on Friday, and they trailered it and “didn’t touch a thing” before Saturday.

Shelden Cooper of Madera, who won at Stockton 99 on May 17, started fourth, fell no lower than sixth, and finished a consistent run in third. Modesto’s Mike David, another well-known name and driver at Stockton 99, overcame a couple of trips to the infield for repairs to finish fourth in Sammy Solari’s car while Glenn Cook of Mariposa started 13th, and moved through the field to round out the top five.

As Philpott celebrated his win with family and crew on the main straight, he also acknowledged the Belletto family, including driver Nic, who finished 12th.

“I have nothing but the utmost respect for his whole family … maybe not some nights,” Philpott said to laughter, recalling the Belletto-Strmiska-Philpott rivalries of the past, “but as I get older, I understand how much work goes into these cars and how hard they work on their stuff. Nic and I have been buddies for years. I love seeing (the No. 74 car) here. It just brings back all the memories.”

Philpott also spoke about what the Night of Champions victory meant to him.

“After winning the Strmiska race on the Fourth of July, which was huge, I checked this one on my calendar because this is the one I wanted,” Philpott said. “I’ve come close the last couple years, but it never worked out. I wanted this one to kind of cap off my crown jewel races.”

Following the race, back in the pits, Jeff and Nic Belletto were surrounded by fans and friends who relished the chance to discuss the night’s race and reminisce about old times.

“Tony (Noceti) does such an excellent job putting this on; he rolls out the red carpet for us. It was an emotional night, and it is really hard to come back without my dad and brothers, but I was really glad to see all the fans and competitors show up, and I know they would be too,” admitted Jeff Belletto, who is also a two-time 99 track champion. “Nic had a bit of a rough night tonight, but what a great deal for a Philpott to win it. David was one of my dad’s biggest rivals, and they have always been a first-class family.”

Nor Cal Mini Stock: Joe Flowers of Manteca led wire to wire in the 20-lap feature to score a 1.424-second victory over division points leader Ethan Rumsey and Natalie Harper, both of Stockton.

Starting from the front row in the seven-car lineup, Flowers immediately shot straight into the lead as Rocklin’s John Sproule attempted to track him down. Sproule was able to stay close to Flowers until he limped into the pits with a mechanical failure that ended his night.

The victory ended months of frustration for Flowers and his son-in-law/teammate, Josh Cross, who have blown through eight engines this year between them due to a variety of problems.

“I really wanted to win this one because of all the problems we have had. Those guys all have big motors, and we have a little one, but these little motors right here can run,” said Flowers, dedicating his victory to his nephew Joel, who recently passed away. “These little motors will tear it up. At the finish she was humming. She sounded good!”

NorCal Legends: Jeremy Doss of Upper Lake took the lead on lap 21 and led the rest of the way to capture the 50-lap main event, a qualifier for the INEX Asphalt Nationals, which Doss won in 2023.

There was plenty of jostling for position in the 22-car field – 20 of which finished. Runner-up Trey Daniels of Fort Bragg and Doss, starting ninth and 10th, weaved through the field until Daniels first took the lead on lap 19 before Doss moved in front two laps later. Doss and Daniels then crisscrossed just beyond the flag stand on the next lap.

Doss said his crew “wholesaled” the car before the main event, and it was the right decision. He recorded the quick lap of the race at 15.187 seconds.

“I felt pretty confident from the get-go,” Doss said in Victory Lane. “Fifty laps is a long race. I just felt like I needed to be patient. I had a couple breaks. Lining up on the outside, that’s for me where I like to start, and it kinda helped me get to the front. And a hell of a show with Trey Daniels, that was fun. He’s been killing it lately.”

Daniels finished 1.453 seconds behind Doss, with Travis McCullough of Galt third and Ethan Nascimento of Manteca fourth after starting 21st. CJ Dizney of Madera rounded out the top five. Daniels also was the No. 1 qualifier at 15.218 seconds.

The INEX Asphalt Nationals are Oct. 23-25 at The Bullring in Las Vegas.

Fast Kar Solutions Mini Modified: Patrick Geiger of Clovis passed Kyle Labrie of Merced for the lead on the 13th of 20 laps and drove to a win by 1.146 seconds in the main event. Early leader Ty Carlson of Stockton finished third, just ahead of his wife, Mikala, which probably earned him a night on the couch.

Labrie had a little more speed in the straights during their side-by-side duel until Geiger made the pass.

“Ty was flying up front and Kyle was flying. Next race (Kyle) will be a lot faster. He was right there with me for a long time,” Geiger said. “I’m excited about this class. It gets better and better each week. We are hoping to have about 16 cars next season.”

Geiger’s win moved him past Modesto’s Freddie Irvin, who came home sixth Saturday, for the class points lead by a 374 to 365 margin, despite missing a race due to a friend’s wedding.

Next up at the 99, on Saturday, Aug. 23 will be the Johnny Brazil Memorial with the Speed Tour Super Modifieds, NCMA Sprint Cars, Legends of Kearney Bowl, and Grand American Modifieds.

Racing Correspondent Dale Bosowski contributed to this report.