Presented by Yamaha Motor Corp USA and Warrior Boats Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Feb 28, 2025
Contact: Denny Fox, 920-505-0122
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™)
Route to the 2025 National Championship Shootout: Minnesota and North Dakota
As we all get ready for the start of the 2025 AIM Weekend Walleye Series season, AIM Anglers have one goal in mind: qualifying for the 2026 National Championship Shootout. A quick look back on last season reveals the excitement and drama that led to the field of teams competing in the 2025 Shootout May 30th and 31st on the St. Louis River in Duluth/Superior the same kind of excitement and drama we look forward to this year.
Minnesota
Given the venue for the Shootout, Minnesota AIM Weekend Walleye Series anglers would seem to have a home-field advantage. It should be noted though that the last time AIM visited this location was three years ago and that was during the dog days of August, which will almost fish completely different than the post-spawn conditions anglers may face this time around.
If ever there was a favorite to win a National Championship Shootout held on a body of water in their own division, it would definitely be the team of Dylan Maki and Joe Bricko.
Maki and Bricko double qualified by winning the Minnesota State Championship on Lake of the Woods and also winning Team of the Year (TOY). Their qualification for the 2025 Shootout was never really in doubt, having won two of the four qualifiers in 2024, and then capping it off with the Minnesota State Championship.
Not too far off the pace set by Maki and Bricko were TOY runners-up Tyler Wolden and Nate Leininger. Wolden and Leininger also double-qualified by finishing in third place at the Minnesota State Championship.
However, drama and excitement are not only found at the top of the standings. One of the things that makes the AIM Weekend Walleye Series so great is the excitement generated by the fight for the last qualifying spot.
Just ask the team of David Askew and Jon Hunt, whose ticket to the Shootout was only punched when the teams of Maki / Bricko and Wolden / Leininger double-qualified and the 7th and 8th place TOY teams had already qualified with their top-five finishes in the Minnesota State Championship. This opened the door for Askew and Hunt who finished in 9th place only .60 points ahead of the tenth-place team of Nate Gilkey and Shawn Flemming.
Talk about drama! This is why every fish in every tournament matters. A seemingly inconsequential mid-range position change in one tournament can be the difference between qualifying for the Shootout or following it on your phone at home.
Now that they’re in, Askew and Hunt have the same chance as everyone else, and nobody will remember the winding path it took to get there if they win.
Yamaha Motor Corp USA T.O.Y. and Minnesota State Champions
Joe Bricko / Dylan Maki
Additional Qualifiers
Nate Gilkey / Shawn Flemming
Evan and Steven Rosemore
Tyler Wolden / Nate Leininger
Tim Juba / Brian Fenske
Caleb Buenger / Scott Moger
Brent Knutson / Shawna Erdmann
Matt and Mitch Weber
Kyle Manteuffel / Sean Nelson
David Askew / Jon Hunt
North Dakota
North Dakota AIM Weekend Walleye Series anglers may not have the same familiarity with the St. Louis River and Lake Superior as their other AIM competitors, but teams would be wise not to overlook them.
Two father / son duos – Ron Deutz and Spencer Deutz, and Brent Wendel and Jayden Wendel -qualified for the Shootout by finishing first and second respectively in the North Dakota State Championship on Devils Lake. Both teams held their positions wire-to-wire in the two-day event, but Team Deutz finished with an astounding 59.87 pounds, easily distancing themselves from Team Wendel (and the rest of the field), who in just their second AIM season landed a very respectable 44.92 pounds.
The results might actually have been even more lopsided had a dramatic wind shift not kept them from duplicating their 34-pound day one bag – a bag they caught before 8:30am – on day two.
Cullen Irey and Lucas Butts, in their first full AIM season, made it to the Shootout by finishing first in the 2024 TOY race. They did it by winning the first North Dakota event of the season on the Missouri River in Bismarck on April 28th, followed by a fourth-place finish on Lake Audubon on May 12th and then a third-place finish on Lake Sakakawea on August 11th.
Finishing in second for TOY, only 1.04 points ahead of the third-place team of Matt Ristow and Kyle Hertz, was Dylan Martell and Thomas Leintz. Martell and Leintz got there by finishing third on the Missouri, eighth at Garrison, second at Parshall, and eighth in the State Championship.
Four teams double-qualified by finishing in the top five of the state championship and TOY standings. This opened the door to four additional teams to make it to the Shootout. “AIM invariably has one or two teams that move up to be eligible to go to the Shootout because of teams that double-qualify by placing in the top five in the State Championship,” said Denny Fox, AIM national tournament director.
Yamaha Motor Corp USA T.O.Y.
Cullen Irey / Lucas Butts
North Dakota State Champions
Spencer and Ron Deutz
Additional Qualifiers
Brent and Jayden Wendel
Ross and Roger Grothe
Matt Ristow / Kyle Hertz
Lonnie Jacobs / Matt Lang
Brandon Van Dusen / Wyatt Wahl
Dylan Martell / Thomas Leintz
Rufus Hostetler / Daniel Miller
John and Chandler Aarfor
Anglers Insight Marketing LLC (AIM™) is a unique tournament organization created and owned by many of the most accomplished and recognizable professional walleye anglers, along with others who share the mission of advancing competitive walleye fishing and making it sustainable into the future.
AIM is committed to marketing excellence on behalf of its tournament competitors, the tournament host communities, and the brands that partner with it. AIM is also committed to maintaining healthy fisheries across the nation by the development of the exclusive AIM Catch-Record-Release™ format which is integral to its dynamic events and unparalleled consumer engagement. For more information about AIM™, AIM Pro Walleye Series™, AIM Weekend Walleye Series, AIM sponsors and AIM anglers, visit www.aimfishing.com.
AIM Presenting Sponsors: Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. and Warrior Boats Inc.
AIM Supporting Sponsors: Mercury Marine, Garmin, Worldwide Marine Insurance, Off Shore Tackle, JT Outdoors Products, McQuoids Inn, Rosemore Outdoor Gear, Adventure Recreational Finance, Oconto County WI., Forever Barnwood, The Bighorn Store