PETERSEN MEDIA: Ryan Bernal had a wild weekend. Following an incident on the last lap on Saturday’s USAC/CRA feature, the Tom Dunkel Racing team and the Josh Ford Motorsports team decided to use the JFM entry in USAC competition on Sunday where Bernal ran second in the Louie Vermeil Classic and backed it up by winning at Petaluma Speedway on Monday night.

“Calistoga really didn’t go the way we hoped,” Ryan Bernal said. “After the issues in the USAC feature on Saturday night, nobody hesitated to get the JFM car ready for USAC on Sunday and really, I think we had the car to beat, but we had a tire going down and that let Logan Seavey get by late in the feature.”

Timing the NOS Energy Drink/Inland Rigging/JFM backed No. 17x in second fastest in qualifying time trials before finishing second in heat race competition.

Lining up fifth in the opening night feature event, Bernal was very sporty in the early goings of the feature as he quickly worked his way into second and turned his attention to race leader, RJ Johnson.

As the laps clicked off and the leaders worked through traffic, Bernal made a move coming to the white that saw him take over the race lead as they ran through turns one and two.

Heading into three and four, Johnson was right with Bernal and as they raced into the final set of corners contact ensued sending both cars up the track and into the wall.

With heavy damage to Bernal’s TDR entry, the team opted to scrap their wing efforts in the JFM No. 73 and convert that to their USAC car for Sunday’s finale.

Back for another shot for a ‘Louie’, Bernal got off to a quick start as he timed in sixth fastest in qualifying time trials before a wild heat race saw him score the win.

Lining up on the front row of the feature event, Bernal again hammered the throttle as the field was shown the green and jumped out to the early lead.

Looking very good out front, Bernal was strong though soon felt pressure from Logan Seavey. The two non-wing standouts thrilled the crowd amidst a fantastic side by side battle and while Bernal tried to hang on despite having a tire losing air, he ultimately gave the top spot up in the waning laps of the race.

Finishing second, Bernal and team made the decision to head to Petaluma Speedway on Monday night to compete with the USCS.

Timing in second fastest in his qualifying flight on Monday night, Bernal used his front row starting spot in heat race competition to pick up the win.

Lining up in the second row of the 30-lap feature event, Bernal jumped into second when the race came to life, and on lap two found himself out front.

Once out front, Bernal flexed his muscle and was the dominant force of the night. With only stoppages slowing him down, Bernal was able to power his way to the win, giving him four on the season in 2025.

“It was a huge effort by the TDR and JFM guys,” Ryan Bernal said. “Thankful to have some many great people in my corner and really happy to get them a win and a second place finish.”

Ryan Bernal and TDR would like to thank NOS Energy Drink, Inland Rigging, JFM, BOXO, Dunkel Farms, Keizer Wheels, BR Motorsports, Pacific Highway Rentals, King racing Products, HBC, Maverick, RB Inserts, Osborne Speed and Machine, SURECAN, MPe, and Woodland Auto Display for their support.

JFM would like to thank NOS Energy Drink, Inland Rigging, MPe, SURECAN, Woodland Auto Display, Beilman Motorsports, and 1Way Technologies for their support in 2025.

BY THE NUMBERS: Races: 30, Wins: 4, Top 5’s: 13, Top 10’s: 17

ON TAP: Bernal and JFM are TBD on their next event at this time.     

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