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Rick Thoennes Named New WISSOTA Head Technical Advisor

WISSOTA Auto Racing is proud to welcome Alexandria, Minnesota-native Rick Thoennes, who will serve as the new Head Technical Advisor for WISSOTA beginning with the 2026 racing season, to the WISSOTA team.

Thoennes, who grew up in the heart of WISSOTA-country in west central Minnesota, has a vast background in motorsports, including racing himself, spanning from running Go Karts to Modifieds to Late Models to racing in the ARCA Series for a better part of thirty-five years. Along with his racing accomplishments, Rick also brings a deep knowledge of race car set-up, front end geometry, engine tuning as well as suspension dynamics to the role, which will assist him in this position moving forward.

Rick is a highly accomplished and results driven leader with 35 plus years of experience in the racing industry. He has worked with countless race teams in all different capacities, building hundreds of high performance rearends and transmissions as well as worked directly with teams on chassis set up and helped them improve their overall race programs.

This experience, plus Rick’s tenure in the racing industry, has equipped him with hands-on experience and technical acumen that align perfectly with the position and undoubtedly will be an asset to WISSOTA. Rick’s education in machining and fabrication, as well as many years of building, driving, and owning race cars, has provided him with the knowledge necessary to provide immediate expertise to this position. Working with racers daily over the years has allowed him to have a good understanding of what is working and what is not within the industry, including having a deep grasp at the costs associated with participating in this sport we all love so much.

We look forward to welcoming Rick to the team and are excited to see what he brings to WISSOTA into the future.

For more information on WISSOTA Auto Racing, log on to www.WISSOTA.org.

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