SLINGER – Andrew Morrissey was angry with Carson Brown for running him into the wall and wrecking him. Brown was upset with Morrissey for running him over.
Ty Majeski was mad at Gabe Sommers for rooting him out of the groove and spinning him. Sommers had a different viewpoint and was at least as livid; he appeared ready to ram Majeski’s car, and Majeski was worried about getting jumped in the pits.
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But clear of the chaos, out of the crosshairs of any competitors and not annoyed with any of them either, was Casey Johnson, proving nice guys sometimes do finish first.
In the 47th Slinger Nationals, he scored the biggest win of his racing life and in the process became one of the storied events most popular winners.
“It means everything to me,” the sweat-soaked but beaming Johnson said as July 14 crept toward the 15th. “I’m not gonna lie. There was a lot of emotion for me when I crossed that line.
“I’ve finished second in this race before in a car that I thought should have won this race, and that’s a dagger in your back, you know?
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“So to be able to win one … I’m not doing this for that much longer. Who knows how much longer? But I didn’t want to quit without having this one in my hand.”
The veteran from Edgerton is the consummate, old-school Wisconsin competitor. He works as hard as anyone and gets more out of less. He races the right way. He’s patient and smart.
Johnson has been a driver capable of winning races anywhere for a decade, give or take. He has Midwest Tour titles, an Oktoberfest 200 win at La Crosse Fairgrounds Speedway and a Dixieland 250 at Wisconsin International Raceway.
He’s just easy to overlook in a state that produces NASCAR champions. It didn’t help that he lost a season-plus due to vertigo resulting from crashes and returned at less than full strength.
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Oh, and as deeply passionate as Johnson is about his sport, he’s similarly dedicated to his family. Johnson’s girls celebrate his wins with vigor.
Casey Johnson celebrates with one of his daughters after winning the 47th Slinger Nationals on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at Slinger Speedway in Slinger, Wisconsin.
There were hugs all around on the Slinger Speedway’s front stretch. The $20,000 top prize will go a long way to helping him race in 2026, as will a few more thousand in lap leader bonus money.
The funny thing about this Nationals feature is that for 195 laps of 200, Johnson was never in the conversation.
He was, however, persistent.
“I mean, we had a decent car,” Johnson said. “We could run top-10 all day, and I knew if I just kept my nose in there, kept the car clean, that we could do something at the end.
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“I’ve been in the race so many times, and I’ve seen it won by the guy that was not supposed to win the race. … I wasn’t that guy today. I should not have won this race.”
Maybe Majeski should have won.
Already a four-time Nationals winner, Majeski appeared to be on his way to becoming the first driver to repeat since all-time wins leader Matt Kenseth did in 2008 and ’09.
Looks can be deceiving, though. Majeski’s car wasn’t as strong as his sizable lead made it seem. A caution with 25 laps to go brought the leaders together. He got away but not far enough, and Sommers closed to his bumper with six laps left. That didn’t go well and a lap later they were both nonfactors.
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Maybe Sommers should have won.
He had the fastest car in time trials and then again with the checkered flag practically in sight. That doesn’t matter when the car’s parked in the pits, though.
Maybe Morrissey should have won.
Remember, he finished first in the 2024 Nationals, only to be stripped of the win in postrace inspection. With Majeski and Sommers gone, the door was open until Brown slammed it, and him.
Casey Johnson (5) passes Carson Brown for the lead after a restart with four laps to go in the 47th Slinger Nationals on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at Slinger Speedway in Slinger, Wisconsin.
Or maybe Brown should have won.
The 18-year-old Richard Childress Racing development driver beat Majeski when the ASA STARS National Tour visited in June. His car was quick in practice and it came on in the second 100 laps after he treaded water through the first 100. But Brown drove like a desperate 18-year-old when matched up with Morrissey.
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“Heat will do that to a guy,” Johnson said. “We’re fighting for our life in there a little bit.
“Our cars are so close that you’re just trying to get five inches on a guy, every lap when you’re trying to pass them. Eventually you just want to loosen them up a bit. And I think there was a lot of that going on.”
But there wasn’t when Johnson lined up aside Brown with four laps to go. Brown chose the inside lane for the restart, which played into Johnson’s hands. He got the jump, quickly cleared Brown and pulled out by more than half a second over Austin Nason at the checkered flag.
The final twist of the evening was that Johnson found himself thanking Brown. There wasn’t exactly a long line for that.
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“Actually I just thanked him for racing me clean,” Johnson said. “He could have ran me up. He could have drilled me in the door. He could have done a million different things, but we raced clean.
“We scrubbed a little bit coming to the flag, which I was totally ready for, and it was a great race. He’s gonna be racing on TV on Sundays here real shortly, I’m sure. So it’s pretty cool to say at least I beat him in the Nationals though.”
Johnson deserves that much.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Slinger Nationals gets a surprise, popular, deserving winner | Kallmann
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