25 UNDER 25

Introducing the Inaugural Horizon Promotions 25 Under 25 List, encompassing drivers who competed during the 2025 racing season at dirt tracks in the state of New Mexico. This list may include drivers from areas such as El Paso, Texas, where the home track is located in New Mexico.

New Mexico has a lot of young talent in the local racing scene, and this ranking was created in order to highlight said talent, while also inspiring the community to continue pushing forward, ultimately trying to build the local racing scene and the environment that surrounds it with a roster of can't miss drivers. Racing is dependent on the next generation to keep it going, so let's celebrate the ones that will keep the sport alive for years to come.

Determined By:

Success in Racing (Championships + Wins) & Strength of Field / Level of Competition + "Impressive" Factor + Victory Legitimacy

Must Have Criteria:

Called any New Mexico track your home track in 2025

Ran at least 10 races OR 75% of a track schedule in 2024 or 2025

Inaugural Horizon Promotions 25 Under 25 List (2025):

1) Aydan Saunders

Aydan Saunders tops off the list in the inaugural publication of it. The El Paso, Texas driver tracks 67 wins on MyRacePass, which is more victories than most any combination of drivers you can put together on this list, and he's done all of this by just 20 years old. Arguably the greatest Legend Car driver in the history of this region, Saunders created a shift in the division that changed the landscape of it forever. Now, in 2025, Saunders finally cracked through with huge victories in the Winged Sprint Car world against stout competition, setting his sights on a future resume of elite level stuff.

2) Caleb Stelzig

It's a pair of Sprint Car standouts topping the list here, with Stelzig, the winningest driver in Non-Wing Sprint Car racing in the state over the last few years, making his mark at 2. Stelzig’s spot on the list is certainly due to the “Impressive” factor. While most of his victories have come in a division where the level of competition is heavily plagued, Stelzig was dominating the 360 motor competition with a 305. His most impressive career victory, in my opinion, came at Cocopah Speedway back in 2024, where he went from 12th to 1st against arguably the best level of competition he's won against. Stelzig has now set his sights on the world of 410 racing, and it's only a matter of time before we see what he has in his future.

3) Hunter Sandy

While he has only recently made it to the A-Mod world, and drivers behind him have significantly better A-Mod accomplishments, the 18 year olds ranking comes from a mix of accolades, with him becoming a double track champion at Vado Speedway Park this year, two previous titles at Sandia Speedway, a massive $2,000 B-Mod win earlier in the year, a Fall Nationals sweep, and bringing home an A-Mod victory in just his 6th start ever in the division. Sandy now has his sights set on a full USMTS campaign, and looks to join the list of New Mexico race winners in USMTS, which brings us to our next driver.

4) Mark Smith

Mark Smith has quite the impressive resume in terms of race wins. While he doesn't quite have the championship accolades that some other drivers have on this list, he does have a 10 win season back in 2019 at his home track in Vado, and in 2025, he broke through with a USMTS victory in Amarillo and an American Racer Modified Series victory at Arrowhead Speedway, and those wins were impressive enough to put the 23 year old A-Mod standout at number 4 on the list.

5) John Neal Reid

John Neal Reid is a driver that, while he didn't see victory lane in 2025, his past resume is impressive. He grabbed a couple IMCA Modified wins at Abilene Speedway in 2024, and in previous years, was arguably the best Limited Modified / Southern Sportmod driver in the West Texas and Eastern New Mexico circle of tracks. He hasn't yet grabbed a win in the Open Modified ranks yet, but there have been moments where the 37 looks poised to break through, and it's only a matter of time before the Loving, New Mexico native does.

6) Peyton Gallardo

There's national championship pedigree in the blood of Peyton Gallardo, and the 19 year old is starting to find his footing. After being thrown into the B-Mod ranks from the get-go in 2022, he quickly won a feature, and then sat winless through 2023 before picking up another B-Mod win in 2024. Gallardo slowly started traveling to other tracks to race, and had an impressive out-of-town run back in February. He was finally able to nab his first career A-Mod victory back in August, and he looks to continue to get better and better every year.

7) Lucas Ward

While he didn't see victory lane in 2025, it's what Ward has done in previous years that keeps him high on this list. Lucas Ward brought home an A-Mod win at Vado in 2024, and he has a couple B-Mod wins to his name from 2022. The El Paso, Texas native contested up front multiple times in 2025 while racing in his lowest feature count since 2020, and as long as he can continue making laps, he will continue getting better as the years progress.

8) Snowden Duke

2025 was a rough year for the 19 year old out of Albuquerque, but bad luck doesn't shape the career that he's already had. In 2024, Duke had a couple feature wins, a track championship, and had the most passing points at the Fall Nationals and was set to start from the pole for the big show, before a broken ball joint in hot laps would end his night prematurely. Duke won Modified Madness in a field of 18 cars in 2023, on top of 3 other wins on the year, and had a handful of wins in the Cruiser ranks prior, all of which give him the edge to be number 8 on the inaugural list.

9) Leo Chavez

Primed to move up to the Stock Car ranks, where there's a lack of a youth presence at the moment, Chavez first sealed the deal with back to back track championships in 2024 and 2025 in the Cruiser division to prove he's ready to move up. The 24 year old has 6 wins on top of his two championships, but it's not wins that necessarily put him in this spot on the list, but rather, his consistency. It's not often you find young drivers that can consistently put together results, but you were often going to find the 19 in the top 5.

10) Dawnica Minks

At just 16 years old, Dawnica Minks is already lighting the local racing scene on fire, and she hails as the top female driver on this list. Dawnica was able to steal the Vado Speedway Park track championship from her mom, Sharrii, and notch 3 victories in the Pure Stock division this year. With only two years of racing under her belt, Dawnica has a great opportunity to keep developing and becoming one of the next big things in the racing world.

11) Kasyn Mathews

Kasyn Mathews is another 16 year old driver to be on the lookout for. He started off in Sport Compacts before moving up to Micro racing, and he had a win in each division before 2025 came around. Mathews moved up to Northern Sportmods, while keeping the Micro Sprint active, and he had 3 wins and a championship in 2025. The most impressive win was a Northern Sportmod victory at Fairgrounds Speedway back on May 16th in a field of 17 cars, but that's not to knock his pair of Winged Micro wins plus the Winged Micro championship he won at Kart Kanyon Speedway in Aztec. Mathews could potentially be the next big thing from the Four Corners region, and with Aztec Speedway re-opening, there's a chance at more seat time coming his way in 2026 and beyond.

12) Jeff Brumfield III

Brumfield didn't notch his first victory until 2025, but the Micro Sprint driver was able to consistently wheel in the top 3-5, and he nabbed a 2025 track championship in his Non-Wing Micro Sprint on top of what would be a total of 3 wins, all while beginning his trek into the world of Sprint Car racing. While it's yet to be seen what he will truly be able to do behind the wheel of a Sprint Car with limited starts, he has proven himself as a contender in the Micro Sprint ranks, earning the 12 spot on the list.

13) Cale Riggs

It took 108 starts since 2020, but the 18 year old finally broke through in a big way in 2025, notching not just one, but four victories. He is a back to back track champion in the Legend Cars, where he earned three of his four wins, with the fourth win coming in the USRA Stock Car division on July 12th. After a full season of USRA Stock Cars under his belt, Riggs is destined to continue his racing development and, some day, to join his dad, Dusty, as one of the most successful racers from the Southern New Mexico region.

14) Chris Hooper

As mentioned previously in this article, consistency isn't always an attribute that younger drivers have obtained, however, after a top 5 points run at Vado Speedway Park in 2025, Chris Hooper has definitely proven that he can be a consistent driver. With a couple B-Mod victories under his belt in previous years, plus a great career in the Cruiser division, Hooper finds himself here on the list at 14. He continues to try to race with the best competition he can find in the state, and each lap he will continue to get better and better.

15) Diego Alvarado

Alvarado has a handful of Pure Stock wins and a B-Mod win on his resume, but he has spent the last couple seasons in some of the toughest environments, competition wise, by racing in both Sprint Cars and A-Mods. It's not easy to win in either, but they say you're only as good as your competition, so while Alvarado continues to race in the top divisions locally, you can expect the 18 year old to produce better results as the years go on.

16) Jacob Pape

Jacob Pape absolutely dominated the Cruiser division at a time where the class was stacked with tons of future talent. He has 16 career wins, including 3 wins the Modified ranks, but Pape hasn't won since 2022 and has run a limited schedule in the last couple years, which is why he's at 16 on the list. The talent is there, and if Pape can pick up a more consistent racing schedule, I firmly believe that the 21 year old will soon find himself running up towards the front again.

17) Forrest Duke

Personality is something that has become very rare in racing, but the 17 year old has one of, if not, the best personality in the local racing scene. His MyRacePass profile features hits like, “Children: Leo Chavez” (despite two championship losses to him), and “Spouse: Your Mom” (despite not dating your mom), and he backs up his humorous persona by being one of the most exciting drivers on the track. It took Duke until July of 2024 to win his first ever feature, but he now has 7 feature wins total and looks to have a bright future on the race track. If he can get a microphone in front of him, he just may be one of the next social media stars in the pit area as well.

18) Conner Morenus

Conner has a great story. Conner was a Make-a-Wish child, and his dream was to meet a race car driver, which was ultimately granted by one of the greatest race car drivers of all time, Jeff Gordon. Conner has been a determined racer, and after years of Quarter Midget racing, he jumped into the Micro Sprint ranks in 2023. Fast forward to 2025, and the now 16 year old driver was able to earn 4 feature victories and become a front runner in the division. If Morenus continues forward, there's certainly a bright future ahead.

19) Mel Romero

The 17 year old Romero was able to grab his first career win in the B-Mods in 2025. Couple that with a pair of victories in the Pure Stocks at Vado, in what was a competitive year for the class, and you have one of the 25 best drivers under 25 in the state of New Mexico. Mel continues to find his footing in one of the hardest divisions to win in the entire state, and as he began traveling in 2025, it's only assumed that the more he travels, the more he'll learn, and the more he will continue to see growth in his racecraft.

20) Kasen Stringfellow

One of the youngest drivers on this list at just 14 years old, Kasen Stringfellow already has a track championship and 3 feature wins to his belt. Starting out as young as he has may lead to him being one of the best wheelmen in open wheel racing in coming years.

21) Aiden Frazier

After a three win season back in 2022, racing between Sandia Speedway and Alien Motor Speedway, the 20 year old racer moved into a B-Mod and has come so close, yet so far, to breaking through with a victory. He did finally earn his first win in a Modified in 2025, racing his B-Mod with the A-Mods at Legacy Speedway in Grants back in April, and he finished 2nd a whopping four times in 17 features this year. Frazier is destined to keep chasing after wins in 2026 and beyond, hoping to soon finally knock out that elusive B-Mod victory that's escaped him thus far.

22) Luke Solis

Once a protege of Aydan Saunders, the number one ranked driver on this list, 18 year old Luke Solis out of El Paso, Texas made the bold move to Late Models after three wins over two seasons in the Legend Cars. He, instantly, out of the gate, was competing alongside some of the best drivers in the country at the Wild West Shootout, the only local driver that entered into competition in the 2025 edition of the mini series. While he was unable to win in 2025, and had a couple hiccups throughout the year, Luke Solis showed he was able to learn quickly and ultimately, those hiccups became learning experiences. You should expect the driver of the 99 to be running up front and competing for victories in 2026.

23) Isiah Mendoza

Isiah Mendoza just barely cracks the list because, as of writing this, it is the 25th birthday for the driver out of Albuquerque. He has been winless the last couple years, but he does have 3 wins behind the wheel of his B-Mod to his credit, and his Cruiser stats aren't tracked on MyRacePass, but from memory, he was pretty darn good there too. His 3 Modified wins though, are the main reason that he makes this list, ranked 23.

24) Carlos Garcia

Espanola, New Mexico's Carlos Garcia comes in at 24 on the list, and he makes this list mostly based on the raw talent that he has shown throughout his career. He was consistently a contender in Cruisers and Hobby Stocks before jumping into a Northern Sportmod, where he showed some potential before finally settling into the Stock Car ranks. He lacked a consistent racing schedule in 2025, running just 6 shows compared to his 17 in the previous year, but he did pick up a win at Legacy Speedway over his dad, Herman, plus two of the fastest Stock Cars in the state in Devon Jobin and RC Combs. If Garcia can get back behind the wheel and run more of a full schedule, the 18 year old is one of the best up-and-comers to look after.

25) Khloe Tenski

The final driver on this list is Khloe Tenski, who is also the youngest driver on the list at just 12 years old. The Farmington, New Mexico racer has been racing Go Karts at Kart Kanyon Speedway her entire career, with over 10 wins in the division to her credit, plus some championship gold, putting together a resume that you would perhaps consider to be one for the best youth kart racer in the state. In 2025, she moved into the Micro Sprint division, and will be competing at the Tulsa Shootout for the first time ever. With a few years of racing already under her belt, and the fact that she's only 12, Tenski is projected to continue to rise up this list as she continues to put together race season after race season.

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Honorable Mentions:

Ryder McCutcheon - The driver is from New Mexico, but did not meet the starts requirement at a local track that was outlined at the beginning of this list.

Mylee JoAnn - The driver is from New Mexico, but did not meet the starts requirement at a local track that was outlined at the beginning of this list.

Dennis Cosens III - The driver is from New Mexico, but did not meet the starts requirement at a local track that was outlined at the beginning of this list.

Bryce Archuleta - Multiple Pure Stock wins at Vado Speedway Park.

Caleb Smith - Multiple Pure Stock wins at Vado Speedway Park.

Ashlee Buck - Multiple wins in the Jr. Cyclones + Street Stocks at Alien Motor Speedway & West Texas Raceway.

Barrett Tenski - Multiple Kart Wins at Kart Kanyon Speedway.

Zachary Gallegos - Two career wins in Hobby Stocks.

Arthur Hurley IV - Two career wins in Cruisers.

Jayden Collins - Multiple wins in the Jr. Cyclones at Alien Motor Speedway.

Wyatt Calcote - Kart winner at Kart Kanyon Raceway, consistent points finishes.

Keep An Eye Out? Other Drivers Under 25 To Watch:

Deuce Teague, Conner Bell, Riella Fanning, Adrian Bojorquez, Maren Black, Ricardo Garcia, Brody Ward, Kodi Waldrop, Colton Polen, Aidan Zahn, Jaden Kibel, Mavery Holbert, Gracie Moore, Evan Bennett, Kailynn Hudson, Baby Brisco, Brendan McLaughlin, Garron Bandy, Ryder Brookes, Cruz Vigil, Zaiden Carson, Spencer Martinez

Divisions With Strongest Under 25 Presence (Entry Level Divisions Excluded):

B-Mods / Sportmods

A-Mods

Divisions With Notable Lack of Under 25 Presence:

Sprint Cars

Stock Cars

Late Models

Super Trucks