<p>For most 14-year-olds, a summer job means toiling for minimum wage at a local business.</p><p>Emerson Axsom, meanwhile, has been pulling in four-figure checks just about every week at his.</p><p>Still about a month away from the start of his freshman year at Franklin Community High School, Axsom has won more than $15,000 this year racing 600 micro sprint, three-quarter midget and midget cars.</p><p>His biggest payday to date came on June 15, when he claimed $8,000 for winning The Big Dance at US 24 Speedway in Logansport.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]<p>Axsom moved up from 19th over the two rounds of qualifying, starting the main event in third. He took the lead on the third lap and held it for the remainder of the race, which was scheduled for 40 laps but shortened to 27 due to rain.</p><p>Axsom, who won 26 of 49 starts last year in his second season racing against adult drivers, has finished first 17 times in 28 tries this season heading into tonight’s non-wing race at Circus City Speedway in Peru.</p><p>As he’s become more of a regular at the front of the pack, he’s earned more respect from his peers — many of whom are at least 10 years older than he is. Axsom feels like he’s become one of the guys now and not some punk kid just out there for novelty’s sake.</p><p>"At the local shows, it was last year that I kind of noticed it, but at the bigger shows this is the year that I’ve started to notice it," he said of the respect from other drivers. "Really, when you go to a big show it’s always the same guys running up front, and usually I’m up there with them, so that’s when they start to notice."</p><p>Axsom followed up his $8,000 triumph last week with first-place finishes in the winged A-Class feature at Circus City and in the Outlaw and non-wing features in Logansport.</p><p>In between those wins, Axsom drove a TQ midget car for Jason and Mindy Setser at the Rush County Fair. Though he finished third and 10th in the two main events, the runs were notable for who he was racing against; the two main event winners were USAC standout C.J. Leary and former NASCAR legend Tony Stewart, one of Emerson’s role models.</p><p>Axsom actually beat Stewart on the first of the two nights despite having never driven the car before. He’ll have another opportunity to battle the Hall of Famer next week in the TQ midget races at the Bartholomew County Fair in Columbus.</p><p>"Sometimes the places and people you put your kid around are more important than chasing the money," said Joe Axsom, Emerson’s father.</p><p>But there are times for chasing money, too. Axsom has a couple of bigger-payout races on his summer itinerary, and he’s eyeballing a stock race at Oklahoma’s Arkoma Speedway in late October where the winner will pocket a cool $25,000.</p><p>The main goal for Emerson right now, though, is to continue improving and preparing to move up the racing ladder. He’s doing anywhere from seven to 10 midget races this year to gear up for 2020, when he’ll be running at that level for Petry Motorsports.</p><p>"It’s definitely going to be tough with the bigger tracks and the bigger car," Axsom said. "More motor, and just everyone getting to know you again, starting back over, basically."</p><p>Starting over is nothing new for Axsom at this point, though. He’s been moving into bigger cars and excelling at every stop ever since he finished his quarter midget career in 2016 with a pair of national championships.</p><p>As he continues piling up the wins, his confidence — and his earnings — keep on growing.</p><p>"I feel like every race that we get in, we get better and better," he said.</p>
