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  1. McLaughlin Edges Decker for First Career DIRTcar Nationals Win Sweetener’s Plus racer wins by a half-second for first Gator trophy at Volusia BARBERVILLE, FL – Max McLaughlin raced home to his second Super DIRTcar Series win and his first trip to Volusia Speedway Park’s confetti-filled Victory Lane on Thursday night during the 50th DIRTcar Nationals. Jacy Norgaard photo The 20-year-old pilot of the #32C Sweetener’s Plus Big Block Modified was just barely able to box out future Hall of Famer Billy Decker in a wild finish where the two swapped lines on the track trying to block and slide each other at the same time. Hard charger Michael Maresca in the #7MM car cruised from 19th to third in an amazing run through the field. After a lengthy rain delay, drama built quickly in the 30-lap Feature as McLaughlin made contact with seven-time Series champion Matt Sheppard on the first lap, sending Sheppard’s #9S up the race track and into Peter Britten’s #21A. Sheppard made his displeasure with McLaughlin known during the caution flag, but was able to recover for a fifth-place finish. “I got into the water there on lap one,” said McLaughlin, of Mooresville, NC. “It was a bonehead move, I guess. They checked up and he [Matt Sheppard] started pushing and I figured I’d go right below him. The left front hit the water and pushed up and I got into Matt. I hate that. That’s kind of what I was thinking about the whole race.” When the race returned to green flag action, McLaughlin had to contend with some heavy hitters. “Mad Max” found a way around defending Series champion Mat Williamson as well as “The Baldwinsville Bandit” Jimmy Phelps, who started on the outside pole. However, once McLaughlin took the lead on Lap 15 there was no time to relax. Decker had his Gypsum Wholesalers #91 at full song around the top side of the speedway in pursuit during the closing stages. “I didn’t really know where he was but I knew he was coming around the top,” McLaughlin said. “I knew I had to change something and I saw the [signal] sticks get smaller and smaller. I had to do something different.” With an adjustment of his line, McLaughlin was able to hold Decker’s crimson #91 at bay. Decker did all he could to try and pass for the lead. “We had to go where he wasn’t,” said Decker, of Unadilla, NY. “I think we were as good as he was on the bottom, but he fired a little better on the restarts than we did. After a few laps, I think we got it rolling so it was one of those deals where he had to stick to his lane. I started hazing the outside and closing the gap. He obviously got the signal from the infield to move. If he didn’t, he was going to finish where I did. He had to move and I didn’t get him soon enough.” Decker will look to improve just one more position tomorrow night for a coveted 50th Anniversary DIRTcar Nationals win. Michael Maresca, from Pierrepont, NY, advanced 16 positions to capture his second consecutive third-place finish. The #7MM started the night behind the eight-ball. “We buried ourselves in a hole in qualifying,” Maresca said. “We had a really good car all night. I think with it being a little bit wetter, I think it threw me off on my gear selection. We were able to capitalize on good restarts.” A fast, widening race track gave him what he needed to work through two-thirds of the field in 30 laps. Unfortunately, for the pilot of the St. Lawrence Radiology Big Block Modified, Decker and McLaughlin were just a click faster. “Congrats to Max and Billy,” Maresca said. “I couldn’t keep up with them. I think I was just a little bit under-geared for that. But I know our car is good so we are just going to keep trucking and hopefully contend for a win tomorrow.” Catch all the action in person or on DIRTVision on Friday, February 12 at Volusia Speedway Park as the Super DIRTcar Series take on The World’s Fastest Half-Mile for the fourth night in a row alongside the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models. Keep up with the Super DIRTcar Series at SuperDIRTcarSeries.com and on social media on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Full results available here. Feature (30 Laps) — 1. 32C-Max McLaughlin [5][$4,000]; 2. 91-Billy Decker [11][$2,000]; 3. 7MM-Michael Maresca [19][$1,000]; 4. 88-Mat Williamson [4][$800]; 5. 9S-Matt Sheppard [3][$700]; 6. 25-Erick Rudolph [15][$650]; 7. 98H-Jimmy Phelps [2][$600]; 8. 23-Kyle Coffey [21][$550]; 9. 21A-Peter Britten [6][$500]; 10. 1D-Tyler Dippel [10][$450]; 11. 8-Rich Scagliotta [14][$400]; 12. 7F-Tim Fuller [12][$375]; 13. 4-Billy VanInwegen [23][$350]; 14. 16X-Dan Creeden [26][$325]; 15. 118-Jim Britt [9][$300]; 16. 19M-Jessey Mueller [13][$300]; 17. 17D-Marcus Dinkins [25][$300]; 18. 1-Darwin Greene [22][$300]; 19. 20-Brett Hearn [16][$300]; 20. 14-CG Morey [29][$300]; 21. 88T-Tyler Jashembowski [17][$300]; 22. 30-Ryan Godown [8][$300]; 23. 6-Matt Stangle [1][$300]; 24. 2-Jack Lehner [7][$300]; 25. 33T-Cass Bennett [27][$300]; 26. 01W-Justin Wright [24][$300]; 27. 17-Rob Pitcher [20][$300]; 28. B52-Brandon Hightower [28][$300]; 29. 26-Derrick McGrew [18][$300]. Hard Charger Award: 7MM-Michael Maresca[+16]. PHOTO CREDIT: Jacy Norgaard
  2. LITTLE GATOR, BIG WIN: Allgaier Wins Gator Championship, Hoffman Runner-Up and DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified Champ - Elite Chassis finishes 1-2, six-straight Big Gator points championships for Hoffman BARBERVILLE, FL – Feb. 8, 2021 – The Little Gator is now officially a Big Gator winner. Justin Allgaier cashed-in on his DIRTcar UMP Modified experience at Volusia Speedway Park Monday night for his second career DIRTcar Nationals victory and first in the division’s most prestigious event – the Gator Championship Feature. Josh James photo For his efforts, a $5,000 check in his pocket and one of the most coveted dirt track racing trophies in the world headed back to his race shop. Over 100 different drivers entered at least one event over the seven-day stretch, and Allgaier has now topped them all. Including his car builder and the newly crowned six-time Big Gator points champion, Nick Hoffman. “We’ve been coming down here for a number of years,” Allgaier said. “What this week means to all of us as racers… I really don’t think people understand what the DIRTcar Nationals is all about. “To have over 100 cars here this week and just to grind it out and battle some of the best racers in the country is truly special.” Hoffman started on the pole of the 30-lap main event and looked as strong as he ever had been before, opening up a solid gap over the other leaders until the lapped traffic hit on Lap 11. “I went into [Turn] one, and I don’t know what actually happened in front of me in the lapped traffic, but it was about four rows in front of me,” Hoffman said. “It looked like somebody was turned sideways and they were gonna wreck, so I checked-up because I didn’t know which way they were gonna go. “Then they were four-wide down the back-straightaway; I got tight getting into [Turn] 3, so Justin passed me, then [Michael] Altobelli passed me. I think [Spencer] Hughes was alongside me; luckily the caution came out and saved me right there.” With Hoffman now in his rearview, it was Allgaier’s time to shine. He picked up the pace throughout the rest of the race, keeping Hoffman, Altobelli and eventual third-place finisher Mike McKinney at bay behind him through several restarts. McKinney came from 12th on the starting grid and made big gains throughout the first half of the race, cracking the top-five by the halfway point. “There was a mud ring down on the bottom and some guys just weren’t really hitting it right,” McKinney said. “Once I hit it, I’d just wait for those guys to push up out of the groove and I was already set up to pounce on it when they made a mistake.” Hoffman tried mightily throughout the final laps to catch Allgaier after making his way back around Altobelli for second, but just could not muster the speed he needed to get by his fellow Elite Chassis driver in the end. However, he was proud to see so many of the cars be built have success at Volusia over the entire week. His sixth consecutive Big Gator points championship is just icing on the cake. “It’s one of the best years that I’ve had down here, for sure,” Hoffman said. “Very consistent every night. To run second to one of my team cars is pretty cool. I couldn’t ask for a better person to run second to.” In Victory Lane, Allgaier jumped atop his Elite Chassis #7 before the confetti cannon was even in position, displaying his excitement after winning one of the biggest and most meaningful dirt races of his career after so many attempts at it throughout the past several years. “I was able to win a [little] Gator on multi-Feature night one time, and I knew how much that meant to me. But this Big Gator, to add our name to the list, to beat the caliber of drivers we had here this weekend… there were a lot of teams that put on an all-out assault to try and knock Nick off, and we just got lucky enough that we were the ones to be able to do it,” Allgaier said. This concludes the DIRTcar UMP Modified action in the 50th DIRTcar Nationals, but the Late Models are just getting started. Night #2 of Late Model Week gets underway Tuesday night with the second show for the DIRTcar Late Models; watch all the action live on DIRTVision! Gator Championship Feature (30 Laps) 1. 7-Justin Allgaier [3]; 2. 2-Nick Hoffman [1]; 3. 96M-Mike McKinney [12]; 4. 11H-Spencer Hughes [11]; 5. 95-Michael Altobelli [5]; 6. 67-Garret Stewart [10]; 7. 12H-Jason Hughes [15]; 8. 88-Matt Crafton [2]; 9. 36-Kenny Wallace [22]; 10. 11J-Justin Haley [32]; 11. 77-Ray Bollinger [25]; 12. 17T-Tyler Evans [24]; 13. 5S-Curt Spalding [26]; 14. 17X-Richard Michael [17]; 15. 8S-Kyle Strickler [29]; 16. 51-Brandon Green [23]; 17. OOD-David Reutimann [21]; 18. 3L-Jeff Leka [18]; 19. 22T-Tony Anderson [27]; 20. OOEH-Steve Arpin [7]; 21. 18L-Michael Long [16]; 22. 25-Tyler Nicely [6]; 23. 45H-Kyle Hammer [8]; 24. 6A-Ryan Ayers [19]; 25. 44-KC Burdette [14]; 26. 12L-Lucas Lee [4]; 27. 4T-Zeke McKenzie [30]; 28. 25W-Allen Weisser [13]; 29. 7T-Drake Troutman [31]; 30. K19-Will Krup [20]; 31. 35-David Stremme [28]; 32. 21A-Nick Allen [9] Hard Charger: 11J-Justin Haley[+22]
  3. T-MAC TAKEOVER: McCreadie Masters Volusia on Night One of Late Model Week First of Six Nights Kick Off Pursuit of DIRTcar Nationals Big Gator BARBERVILLE, FL - Feb. 8, 2021 - It was all Tim McCreadie on Monday night when the DIRTcar Late Models rolled into Volusia Speedway Park for the 50th DIRTcar Nationals. Courtesy of DirtCar Racing PR T-Mac’s Monday masterclass gave him his 13th career DIRTcar Nationals feature victory in his third different series, extending his honor of being one of the most diverse drivers of his generation. He’s now got six DIRTcar Late Model wins, five Super DIRTcar Series wins, and two World of Outlaws Late Model wins at the #FLinFeb staple. Starting from the pole position aboard his Longhorn Chassis #39, the Watertown, NY native immediately scooted to the race lead and never let it go. He encountered one close call through lap traffic and had to survive a hungry Mark Whitener in the closing stages, but there was nothing to stop the former World of Outlaws champion from clinching the wire-to-wire win. “I know of knew what to do, I just had to lay into the cushion until somebody drove by me somewhere else,” McCreadie noted. “I kept seeing Phil and he gave me some great hand signals. It’s always nice to get a win down here during speedweeks.” Even with all of his success at the Barberville, FL half-mile, McCreadie has yet to score a DIRTcar Nationals Big Gator Championship. That’s a stat he could change this week, especially considering his strong start with a W. “I’m just lucky to do this, and I just appreciate what everyone does for me,” McCreadie said. “I don’t do as much as I used to, these guys they pick up all the slack if I need to take a nap because I’m getting old. It’s not easy. Every one of us is trying as hard as we can out here, but sometimes it’s not your night, so we’ll take this. We know we’ve got another day tomorrow.” Chasing McCreadie to the line and making it interesting down the stretch was Mark Whitener, who gave it his all in the #5. After starting fourth, Whitener went searching and slid by Devin Moran then Kyle Bronson to get to the runner-up spot. He kept his run alive by tracking down McCreadie, but the clock ran out and the 30-lapper went checkered before he could make a move. “I had to hunt something down to pass him, I found something when I got to second,” Whitener thought. “I started losing the ass end of the car getting into the corner though, and I just couldn’t hang with him on the top. I never could pull up to his bumper to get a slidejob on him. All in all, a really good finish for us against these guys. Rounding out the podium on night one of the DIRTcar Nationals was Devin Moran of Dresden, OH. “I wish we could’ve started on the front row to see what we could’ve given Timmy,” Moran said. “Mark moved around more than I did in the middle part and he just got up there sooner than me.” Closing out the top ten in Monday’s program, which included a 51-car field, was Kyle Bronson, Bobby Pierce, Brandon Sheppard, Brandon Overton, Josh Richards, Rick Eckert and Tyler Bruening. The action resumes at Volusia Speedway Park on Tuesday, Feb. 9 with the second night of Late Model Week at the 50th DIRTcar Nationals. The DIRTcar Late Models are again on the docket, this time alongside the Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds making their first appearance of the event. If you can’t be here in person, you can watch all the action LIVE on DIRTVision. Feature (30 Laps): 1. 39-Tim McCreadie; 2. 5-Mark Whitener; 3. 9-Devin Moran; 4. 40B-Kyle Bronson; 5. 32-Bobby Pierce; 6. 1-Brandon Sheppard; 7. 76-Brandon Overton; 8. 14-Josh Richards; 9. 0E-Rick Eckert; 10. 16-Tyler Bruening; 11. 3S-Brian Shirley; 12. 58-Ross Bailes; 13. 29V-Darrell Lanigan; 14. 19-Chase Junghans; 15. 97-Cade Dillard; 16. 20-Jimmy Owens; 17. 72-Mike Norris; 18. 2-Dan Stone; 19. 99B-Boom Briggs; 20. 7MM-Michael Maresca; 21. 6JR-Parker Martin; 22. 54-David Breazeale; 23. 21-Billy Moyer Jr; 24. 17M-Dale McDowell.
  4. Hoffman Gets DIRTcar Nationals Win No. 20, Arpin Bags First Win at Volusia Since ’07 - Both winners now with a chance to start on the pole of Monday’s Gator Championship BARBERVILLE, FL – Feb. 7, 2021 – Two of the biggest names in DIRTcar UMP Modified chassis building were shining bright on Gator Qualifier night. Nick Hoffman, representing his own Elite Chassis, stood tall in Volusia Speedway Park Victory Lane with his 20th career DIRTcar Nationals Feature win Sunday night in Gator Qualifier #2. The first Gator Qualifier from the rained-out portion of Saturday night was contested immediately following the Sunday Qualifier and saw the return of a former DIRTcar Nationals champion to Victory Lane for the first time in 14 years. Steve Arpin, representing Longhorn Modifieds by Loenbro Motorsports, was presented with his first Gator trophy as a DIRTcar Nationals Feature winner after leading flag-to-flag in Gator Qualifier #2. The top-10 finishers from each of the Qualifiers have now been locked into Monday’s $5,000-to-win Gator Championship Feature; the top-five will redraw for their starting spots before the Feature Monday. Everyone else will be placed into a Last Chance Showdown event to try and get one of eight remaining spots on the grid of the big show. Gator Qualifier #2 (Sunday’s program) – Nick Hoffman Nearly nine years ago, Nick Hoffman captured his first Gator trophy at Volusia with a Feature win, then an up-and-coming UMP Modified driver with no national championships, Summit Modified titles or Big Gators. Sunday afternoon, he stood in Volusia Victory Lane after his third victory of the week in the 50th DIRTcar Nationals, now a favorite to win the Big Gator a sixth time. On the track, it was another giant helping of Elite Chassis dominance, not only by Hoffman who led all 20 laps nearly unchallenged, but by many of Hoffman’s Elite customers. Four of the top-five drivers in the official finishing order are Elite pilots, including Hoffman himself, Garret Stewart, Matt Crafton and Justin Allgaier. Hoffman now has a shot for the pole on Monday as he’ll be one of ten drivers in the redraw before the $5,000-to-win Gator Championship Feature. Sunday’s Qualifier redraw could be a sign of things to come for the five-time and defending event champion. “Tonight, I was on my game on the redraw to draw the one, and I think that was crucial just to get out and set the pace and control the race myself,” Hoffman said. “My stuff’s just really good when it cleans up like that.” Regardless of where he starts, there’s plenty of time in the 30-lap Feature to get it done from almost anywhere on the grid. He’s got the car, confidence in the seat and success in the history books on his side as he chases another coveted trophy that he comes to Florida every year in search of. “[The Big Gator] is one of the most prestigious trophies in all of motorsports, and I’m lucky enough to have a bunch of them,” Hoffman said. Feature (20 Laps) 1. 2-Nick Hoffman [1]; 2. 25-Tyler Nicely [2]; 3. 67-Garret Stewart [11]; 4. 88-Matt Crafton [5]; 5. 7-Justin Allgaier [4]; 6. 11H-Spencer Hughes [3]; 7. 25W-Allen Weisser [13]; 8. 12H-Jason Hughes [8]; 9. 17X-Richard Michael [27]; 10. 6A-Ryan Ayers [9]; 11. 9-Ken Schrader [15]; 12. 8S-Kyle Strickler [12]; 13. OOD-David Reutimann [24]; 14. 51-Brandon Green [6]; 15. 21D-Danny Schwartz [29]; 16. 4T-Zeke McKenzie [20]; 17. 7D-Brad DeYoung [22]; 18. OO-Buzzie Reutimann [25]; 19. 77-Ray Bollinger [7]; 20. 11J-Justin Haley [10]; 21. 49-Brian Ruhlman [21]; 22. 22T-Tony Anderson [28]; 23. 2A-Matt Altiers [30]; 24. 6-Ryan Fowler [26]; 25. 24-Travis Dickson [17]; 26. T9-Ryan Thomas [16]; 27. 47-Collin Thirlby [23]; 28. 8A-Austin Holcombe [14]; 29. 80-Rich Dawson [19]; 30. 99-Hunt Gossum [18] Gator Qualifier #1 (from Saturday’s program) – Steve Arpin The last time Steve Arpin was in Volusia Speedway Park Victory Lane, he was a 23-year-old Modified ace who had just claimed his first DIRTcar Nationals championship on the back of five-consecutive Feature wins. On Sunday night, he made a big trip down memory lane with a dominant victory in the second of two Gator Qualifiers. “Honestly, I have never in my life had such a proud moment in my racing career,” Arpin told DIRTVision pit reporter Chase Raudman after the race. Arpin, the Rallycross racer and Longhorn by Loenbro pilot, started on the pole after a Heat Race win and cleaned-up in the Feature, leading all 20 laps for his first Gator trophy and first Volusia win since his event championship year in 2007. Three of the top-six drivers in the Feature finishing order were Longhorn by Loenbro cars, including Nick Allen and Mike McKinney who have been fast all week. “To have these Longhorn by Loenbro cars just so consistently fast for our first time out, honestly, the only thing I’m more excited about than standing here is coming back next year,” Arpin said. McKinney did try and swipe the lead from Arpin on one corner after a restart, attempting a big slide job as they dove into Turn 1. He was unsuccessful and later faded back to sixth, one spot out of the redraw, but gave those watching on DIRTVision a bit of mid-race excitement. The Longhorn by Loenbro bunch has been fast all week, notching several podiums, top-fives and top-10s. Arpin has been taking notice and expressed his gratitude for each of their new customers on the property. “I remember when my dad was out here watching me in 2007, and I could just see it in his eyes how proud he was of me,” Arpin said. “I feel like that now watching Tyler Nicely, Brandon Green, all these guys coming out here.” Feature (20 Laps) 1. OOEH-Steve Arpin [1]; 2. 95-Michael Altobelli [7]; 3. 21A-Nick Allen [3]; 4. 45H-Kyle Hammer [8]; 5. 12L-Lucas Lee [5]; 6. 96M-Mike McKinney [2]; 7. 44-KC Burdette [18]; 8. 18L-Michael Long [10]; 9. 3L-Jeff Leka [24]; 10. K19-Will Krup [14]; 11. 45-Johnny Broking [30]; 12. O5-Dave Wietholder [6]; 13. 36-Kenny Wallace [13]; 14. 17T-Tyler Evans [21]; 15. 15B-Dave Baker [26]; 16. 15L-Joey Logano [20]; 17. 11N-Gene Nicholas [11]; 18. 5S-Curt Spalding [4]; 19. 6B-Dave Baldwin [28]; 20. 463-Daniel Sanchez [17]; 21. 97-Mitch Thomas [15]; 22. 12-John McClure [25]; 23. 88B-Chris Bolyard [19]; 24. 32-Chad Roush [22]; 25. 22K-Dale Kelley [16]; 26. 60-Shannon Fisk [29]; 27. 7T-Drake Troutman [9]; 28. 72-Todd Neiheiser [12]; 29. M41-Steve Maisel [34]; 30. 21J-Clay Harris [32]; 31. 35-David Stremme [23]; 32. O1-Earnie Woodard [27]; 33. O2-Chris Cook [31]; 34. 21-Taylor Cook [33]; 35. 27C-Billy Cevaal [35] UP NEXT The seventh and final round of racing for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds at Volusia Speedway Park goes down Monday night in the 30-lap, $5,000-to-win Gator Championship. Last Chance Showdown races will kick things off before the redraw; catch all the action live on DIRTVision!
  5. Joey Logano joins DIRTcar UMP Modified field at Volusia -The NASCAR champion plans to run the April 8-10 World of Outlaws Bristol Bash in a DIRTcar UMP Modified BARBERVILLE, FL – Feb. 5, 2021 – Ryan Flores built a UMP Modified with full intentions of racing it himself until an unexpected voice spoke up with interest in the ride. That voice belonged to 2018 NASCAR Cup Series champion Joey Logano. Flores, a pit crew member for Team Penske, has been friends with Logano for several years, and Logano’s car chief Jerry Kelley helped him build the Modified. With the dirt race at Bristol Motor Speedway on the 2021 NASCAR schedule, Logano saw the opportunity to expand his dirt experience. Currently, that experience consists of two starts in the special Prelude to the Dream Late Model event at Eldora Speedway – finishing 20th and 13th, respectively. “He probably pushed it along more, Joey did,” Flores said. “Joey is a pretty hard worker. What he does for a living is drive race cars. Now that there’s a dirt race, he wants to be well prepared for it. That’s the ultimate goal. We went and tested a couple weekends ago. The first question I had (for him) is if this is going to help him at Bristol or not. That’s the ultimate goal, and he said, ‘Yeah.’ He said he feels like it’s going to cross over really well. He’s like, ‘Why don’t we go run a couple of nights at Volusia if we’re going to be down there.’ We’ll see how it goes.” With his schedule, Logano will run Friday (Feb. 5) and Saturday’s (Feb. 6) DIRTcar UMP Modified events at Volusia Speedway Park during the 50th DIRTcar Nationals. He’ll join fellow NASCAR-connected drivers Kenny Wallace, David Stremme, Ken Schrader, Justin Allgaier, Justin Haley and Matt Crafton who are also competing in the event. He’s also planning to run the April 8-10 Bristol Bash event at Bristol Motor Speedway in Flores’ car. To prepare for the event, Flores brought Logano to the 4/10-mile Friendship Motor Speedway in North Carolina. The track is D-shaped like Volusia, but a touch smaller than the half-mile track. Flores was impressed with what he saw from the rookie dirt racer and thinks Logano could have a good showing in his two races. “He took to it pretty quickly,” Flores said. “He really did a pretty good job. We learned a lot of things we can do with it. We know the car is good because we have (Kyle) Strickler’s notebook. I’ve been helping Strickler forever. Honestly, every lap that that car has run, it set Quick Time at Charlotte, [Strickler] won the Heat Race and won the Feature. So, it’s an undefeated car. No pressure, right? “That helps a ton. We know we have good equipment. That’ll help the learning curve pretty quickly. We’re just going to be down there getting laps. I think that’s going to be important for him to get comfortable.” Flores has known Strickler – an eight-time UMP Modified winner at Volusia Speedway Park – since 2007, when he first moved to North Carolina. That’s led him to make multiple trips to Strickler’s shop and find a wrecked car in the back of it. He fed the idea of building a crate Modified with Kelley and the two go to work pulling it out of the weeds. They rebuilt the car, powder coated it, but a bunch of used parts from Strickler on it and had it ready for Flores to pilot. But two weeks before the Drydene World Short Track Championship at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, Strickler asked if he could run it. Two weeks later, with Strickler’s #8 on the side of the black and white machine, they unloaded it for its maiden voyage. As Flores mentioned, the car won everything it entered. Now, with Flores’ #15 back on the side, Logano will try his best against the best UMP Modified drivers around the World’s Fastest Half-Mile. “First and foremost, it’s just going to be about getting comfortable with it,” Flores said about Logano’s learning curve. “But then having to line up to race, you just get four laps (of practice). I think that’s going to be the biggest difference for him. Then you’re qualifying and lining up for the Heat Race. Pulling tear-offs, things like that are going to be different for him. “It’s like when Kyle (Larson) goes and races. It’s what they do. These guys are high-level guys. It’s a big difference when you work a 40 hour a week job and then go race, versus racing for a living at the highest level. They have a lot of resources. When Kyle Larson won at Port Royal (in the Late Model), he knows how to manage a race. He’s done it for 500 miles. To manage a 50-lap race, keep your tires on it, like he did the other night. These guys are pretty good.” Logano could not be reached for comment. You can get tickets to the 50th DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park (Feb. 2-13) by clicking HERE.
  6. Nicely, Hoffman Find Victory Lane in Twin-20 DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified Features at Volusia - Strickler bags podium finish out of Last Chance Showdown after hospital visit just hours before BARBERVILLE, FL – Feb. 3, 2021 – A grand total of 94 DIRTcar UMP Modifieds packed Volusia Speedway Park’s pit area Wednesday for night #2 of competition at the 50th DIRTcar Nationals, prompting a format change that called for two separate, 20-lap Features before the night was out. Volusia’s reigning Reutimann Memorial winner Tyler Nicely, of Owensboro, KY, took advantage of another slick and smooth racing surface to grab the win in the first Feature, while the five-time and defending DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified champion Nick Hoffman, of Mooresville, NC, did the same to score the victory in Feature #2. Feature #1 – Tyler Nicely Tyler Nicely seems to be picking up right where he left off at Volusia last November. His then-brand-new Longhorn by Loenbro chassis powered him to his first career victory in the track’s marquee event, the Emil & Dale Reutimann Memorial, in November of last year. Less than three months have passed and he’s already back in Victory Lane. This time, making the pass for the lead on Lucas Lee and holding off another star-studded cast of competitors for his fourth career win in the event. “All Speedweeks I’ve been trying to get this win; I’m glad it’s on this stage at Volusia,” Nicely said. “It’s always nice to win it with a bunch of cars, standing on this stage and getting a gator.” Nicely’s been in action since the opening round of the Winternationals at East Bay Raceway Park two weeks ago and hadn’t been able to find Victory Lane through those five starts plus another last weekend at North Florida Speedway. But after a third-place finish in Tuesday night’s opener, Nicely cashed out with his momentum and advanced two spots higher to collect the $1,000 victory Wednesday night. Nicely started on the outside of the front row and immediately went to work on polesitter Lucas Lee, catching him in open track and making the pass to his inside on Lap 5. From there on out, it Nicely’s race to lose. Nobody seemed to have anything for the race leader by the end of 20 circuits as he crossed to collect the checkers. However, if there had been just one more caution later in the race, he may have had a familiar foe knocking on his door. Kyle Strickler, of Mooresville, NC, may have gone though one of the most bizarre, painful, yet most successful runs to the front in DIRTcar Nationals history Wednesday night. Earlier in the evening, Strickler was taken in an ambulance to a nearby hospital after severely cutting his left middle finger in the pit area while operating the lift his team uses to raise their car up. “When I was in the ambulance after almost cutting my finger off, they told me, ‘it’s a hard no on you racing tonight,’ because that was the first question I asked them,” Strickler said. “We ended up going to the hospital, getting it stitched up and making it back here in time.” Indeed, he did get back to the track on time. But only to tag the tail of Last Chance Showdown #1, where he snagged the final transfer spot into the first Feature. This set him up for a 23rd-place starting spot in that event, where he drove all the way back to finish third, making for what will surely be one of the most memorable nights of his career. Feature (20 Laps) 1. 25-Tyler Nicely [3]; 2. 5S-Curt Spalding [4]; 3. 8S-Kyle Strickler [23]; 4. OOEH-Steve Arpin [8]; 5. 25W-Allen Weisser [14]; 6. 12L-Lucas Lee [2]; 7. 21A-Nick Allen [1]; 8. 6A-Ryan Ayers [11]; 9. 88-Matt Crafton [15]; 10. 36-Kenny Wallace [6]; 11. 80-Rich Dawson [5]; 12. 3L-Jeff Leka [7]; 13. 7D-Brad DeYoung [17]; 14. 9-Ken Schrader [21]; 15. 2A-Matt Altiers [20]; 16. 7T-Drake Troutman [9]; 17. 32-Chad Roush [24]; 18. 23-Ryan Cripe [16]; 19. 114-Clayton Bryant [19]; 20. K19-Will Krup [13]; 21. A1-Gary Bentley [22]; 22. Z1-Zac Oedewaldt [18]; 23. 8A-Austin Holcombe [12]; 24. 21H-Clay Harris [10] Hard Charger: 8S-Kyle Strickler[+20] Feature #2 – Nick Hoffman Nick Hoffman has often preferred the slicker, slower racing surfaces at the big tracks like Volusia. That certainly showed again Wednesday night, as he took full advantage of it in collecting his 19th career DIRTcar Nationals Feature win. Compared to the Feature event previous, Hoffman wasted even less time in moving to the front, making the pass on polesitter David Stremme on Lap 3. From there on out, nobody had anything for the two-time and defending UMP Modified national points champion as he crossed the stripe for the win. He makes it look so simple on the DIRTVision cameras, but sometimes, much of the battle is won before the race even starts in the pit area. Like Tuesday night, it came down to a tire selection to help Hoffman pick up the win. “I knew it was probably gonna latch-up there in the second Feature, so I went with the hard tire again tonight,” Hoffman said. “Once it started to latch-up, I got really tight and just couldn’t maneuver quite like I needed to.” Hoffman’s Elite Chassis had yet another good showing with himself and Justin Allgaier finishing 1st and 3rd, respectively. “I know every nook and cranny on that racecar, so that really helps. Just running my own chassis for the last eight years; we’ve got a really good balance, obviously, at this place. It just suits my style, momentum racing, and when it gets dead slick like this, it’s really where I’m the best,” Hoffman said. Feature (20 Laps) 1. 2-Nick Hoffman [2]; 2. 96M-Mike McKinney [4]; 3. 7-Justin Allgaier [6]; 4. 35-David Stremme [1]; 5. 12H-Jason Hughes [3]; 6. 11J-Justin Haley [7]; 7. 49-Brian Ruhlman [9]; 8. 18L-Michael Long [5]; 9. 51-Brandon Green [14]; 10. 95-Michael Altobelli [8]; 11. 67-Garret Stewart [11]; 12. 11H-Spencer Hughes [12]; 13. 31G-Stephen Pedulla [17]; 14. T9-Ryan Thomas [21]; 15. O5-Dave Wietholder [19]; 16. 17X-Richard Michael [13]; 17. 77-Ray Bollinger [10]; 18. 4T-Zeke McKenzie [15]; 19. 4R-Ricky Thornton [24]; 20. 25P-Robert Poole [18]; 21. 45-Johnny Broking [22]; 22. 17T-Tyler Evans [16]; 23. 15-Joey Miller [23]; 24. 22K-Dale Kelley [20] Hard Charger: T9-Ryan Thomas[+7] The DIRTcar UMP Modified action continues Thursday night from Volusia Speedway Park’s 50th DIRTcar Nationals with Round #3 of racing. Catch all the action live on DIRTVision!
  7. GREEN-WHITE-BUZZY: Adams Beats Hughes in GWC by .037 to Win East Bay Winternationals Finale - Second-straight finale win for Adams, Burrows comes 23rd-to-3rd TAMPA, FL – Jan. 23, 2021 – With just two laps to go, it appeared Kevin Adams was setting up for a high-flying pass on Jason Hughes for the win. Then, the yellow flag came out. “I had him coming for the white, and then the yellow came out. I’ve got knuckle marks on my roof because I was so mad that it came out,” Adams said. Jim DenHamer photo A green-white-checkered finish was now all that stood between Adams, of Cameron, WI, and a DIRTcar UMP Modified Winternationals finale victory at East Bay Raceway Park. A great start for Hughes set Adams back a little, but he made the most out of the high line, powering around the outside of Hughes and just nipping him at the stripe by .037 seconds to win his second consecutive Winternationals finale. “I knew it was gonna be close,” Adams said. “Any racer that’s ever had a photo finish, you kinda just get his peripheral feeling if you got him or not. Sometimes the scoring loop isn’t where the finish line is, so I was thinking, ‘oh sh** oh sh**’ and then I looked up at the scoreboard and it had me ahead of him.” Hughes, of Watts, OK, was looking for his first win in the event and was devising a plan under yellow before the G-W-C finish to ensure he got it. “There was a lot of stuff going through my head,” Hughes said. “Whether I needed to hit the top and try to mess [Adams] up a little bit. I ran the top a little bit earlier and I wasn’t that good up there, but I probably wasn’t all the way up against the wall like he was.” The green flag dropped, and the field stomped on the gas. Hughes got a terrific start and put a bit of distance between he and Adams, but Buzzy was hammer-down on the cushion. Maybe even a little bit too much so. “I have a 9,000 [RPM] chip in it and it was on about 8,900 the last 16 laps, so it was either wreckers or checkers for this guy,” Adams joked. Coming back to the line to take the white flag, Adams closed the gap to just four-tenths of a second as he swung it hard into Turn 1. Hughes looked strong on the bottom, but Adams got a huge blast off Turn 2 and pulled even with him as they reached Turn 3. “I got a good start and thought, ‘well, if I don’t blow the cushion in [Turns] 1 and 2, I think we got a chance,’” Adams said. The two maintained their lines through the apex of the turn, and just when it looked as though Hughes was going to sneak on by, Adams was shot out of a cannon in Turn 4. He ramped-off the cushion and flew by the start/finish line as the infield scoreboard lit up with “40” at the top. Adams had pulled it off and won the $5,000 finale for the second year in-a-row. This time, by leading just one lap the entire race. “I’ve been trying for 12 years to win that finale, been second a few times, and last year was definitely pretty neat to do it,” Adams said. “This year was even crazier because, for one, it’s exciting to win a last-lap pass. I don’t care if it’s a Heat Race that pays nothing. It’s fun, it’s adrenaline.” The pass was indeed exciting, bringing the East Bay crowd to their feet at the checkers. But it was also clean; neither driver made contact with the other in the race to the line, displaying the true competitive spirit and professional conduct that exists between the two marquee dirt racers. “Jason Hughes is a class act. He could have drifted and pinched me, and I know he could hear me. That’s why he’s been a Mod racer for 30 years, he’s a professional and it shows. I gotta thank him for being so respectful,” Adams said. Both drivers ran up front the entire race and properly paced themselves in the 75-lap event. After the fuel stop at the halfway mark, Hughes was sitting third behind Tuesday/Friday night winner Drake Troutman and teammate Lucas Lee. Hughes made the pass for the lead on Lap 38 and held the spot until the final circuit. Hughes didn’t appear to have a rough Lap 75, but he was able to pinpoint one mistake he made that may have been the difference maker. “I didn’t get down the front-straightaway very good coming to the white flag. I missed the line just a little bit and it spun the tires. That would have been plenty enough to get me back up where I needed to be. It was my mistake,” Hughes said. “It’s kind of disappointing, but it happens.” After all was said and done, Hughes crossed in second while Shane Burrows brought it home third from his 23rd starting position. Drake Troutman wrapped up a stellar first trip to East Bay with yet another top-five finish, marking him overall Winternationals event champion. UMP Modified Feature (75 Laps) 1. Kevin Adams Cameron, Wi. 2. Jason Hughes Watts, Ok. 3. Shane Burrows Valrico, Fl. 4. Devin Dixon Brandon, Fl. 5. Drake Troutman Hyndman, Pa. 6. Seth Daniels Jackson, Oh. 7. Lucas Lee Paris, Tn. 8. Mike Potosky Guys Mills, Pa. 9. Spencer Hughes Meridian, Ms. 10. Jeff Mathews Riverview, Fl. 11. Brad Deyoung Wheatfield, In. 12. Dale Kelley Plant City, Fl. 13. Nick Allen Wheatfield, In. 14. Jimmy Lennex Jr Maysville, Ky. 15. Lj Grimm Seffner, Fl. 16. Devin Wright Rensselaer, In. 17. Travis Varnadore Plant City, Fl. 18. Eric Moon Zephyrhills, Fl. 19. Beau Deyoung Demotte, In. 20. Tyler Nicely Owensboro, Ky. 21. Chris Wilson Louisa, Ky. 22. Brayden Berry West Portsmouth, Oh. 23. Dave Hess Jr Waterford, Pa. 24. Mavrick Varnadore Dover, Fl. 25. Bryan Bernhardt Clearwater, Fl. 26. David Pollen Lakeland, Fl.
  8. CHASSIS WARS: Top DIRTcar UMP Modified Chassis Builders Ready for Battle at Volusia - Drivers hit Volusia Speedway Park for seven-straight nights, Feb. 2-8, in 50th DIRTcar Nationals BARBERVILLE, FL – Jan. 22, 2021 ­– Volusia Speedway Park will be the latest battleground of a chassis war among the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds during the 50th DIRTcar Nationals. Elite Chassis and Lethal Chassis have been among the most successful brands in recent UMP Modified history — accounting for 48 percent of all Feature wins recorded by the top-10 drivers in 2020 national points. But in 2021, a new challenger will look to end their reign. October 2020 brought forth the formation of Longhorn Modifieds by Loenbro Motorsports into the DIRTcar realm, featuring the 2007 DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified champion Steve Arpin and Longhorn Chassis proprietor Justin Labonte joining forces to start the production of Loenbro-unique chassis from within their shop in China Grove, NC. The brand immediately recruited several big-name drivers to their lineup, including a few of Elite’s biggest names. Longhorn by Loenbro made its first on-track appearance in the Drydene World Short Track Championship at The Dirt Track at Charlotte with 8-time DIRTcar Nationals Feature winner Kyle Strickler at the controls. A $4,000 Feature win Saturday night verified the brand’s projected competitiveness and gave a glimpse into the future of the battle forming between Elite and Longhorn. Two-time and defending Summit Racing Equipment American Modified Series champion Tyler Nicely, of Owensboro, KY, took the checkered flag in last November’s Emil & Dale Reutimann Memorial at Volusia, besting Elite Chassis owner/fabricator Nick Hoffman and NASCAR regular Justin Allgaier in a 50-lap, $5,000-to-win throwdown. Hoffman and Allgaier drove their Elite Chassis to a 2-3 finish Saturday’s night main event, but could not catch Nicely, a former Elite pilot, making his debut in a brand-new Longhorn by Loenbro. Their next heavyweight bout went down the very next weekend at 411 Motor Speedway in Seymour, TN, where Nicely took his Loenbro Longhorn to Victory Lane on Friday night with Allgaier and Hoffman again finishing 2-3. But Saturday night was Hoffman’s turn to get one for Elite, besting Nicely over 25 laps to keep the friendly rivalry going. While their competitiveness was on full display in the fall of last season, the Loenbro Longhorns will face some decorated Elite and Lethal drivers at Volusia come February. Hoffman, the two-time and defending DIRTcar UMP Modified national champion, has left Volusia in each of the last five DIRTcar Nationals with the Big Gator trophy and a total of 16 Feature wins in the event since his first in 2012. His triumph in 2020 kicked off one of the most dominant seasons in Elite’s history, featuring four of the top 10 drivers in DIRTcar UMP Modified national points standings at season’s end driving Elite Chassis – himself, Mike McKinney, Will Krup and Hunt Gossum. All four combined for 61 total Feature victories in DIRTcar-sanctioned competition. Former NASCAR veteran David Stremme founded Lethal Chassis in 2014, serving several big names in the UMP Modified community that always bring tough competition into the state of Florida. Stremme himself has two career DIRTcar Nationals Feature wins. Spencer Hughes pulled off a thrilling victory in last year’s Gator Championship on Monday night, passing Jason Hughes (no relation) on the final lap to bag the $5,000 prize. NASCAR Xfinity Series star Justin Haley scored his first DIRTcar Nationals victory in 2019, as did Michigan’s Curt Spalding last year. Floridian Modified veteran Devin Dixon and North Carolina’s Austin Holcombe are also projected to join Lethal’s roster at Volusia in 2021. The 50th DIRTcar Nationals will feature a stacked lineup from Elite, including the regulars Hoffman, Allgaier and Krup. Kenny Wallace, who switched to Elite last fall, makes his first Elite starts at Volusia this year. Garret Stewart, Volusia's winningest driver in 2020, and Kyle Hammer, the Illinoisan making his first trip south for Florida Speedweeks this year, also bring Elites for 2021. Longhorn by Loenbro will also bring a stellar lineup to Volusia in February, including Nicely and Strickler. Arpin will make his return to the seat of a UMP Modified for the first time since 2008, alongside Floridian Modified veteran Jeff Mathews. Plainfield, IL-wheelman Mike McKinney will also be making his very first trip south to compete at the 50th DIRTcar Nationals behind the wheel of a Longhorn after spending all eight of his first UMP Modified seasons with Elite, finishing second only to Hoffman in 2020 national points. The rosters for each side are set. Every driver knows the score. When the teams pull into Volusia to compete for seven-straight nights, the gloves will come off in search of dirt racing’s most prized trophies. There’s no telling what kind of history will be made in the 50th edition of DIRTcar Nationals when the ironmen hit the track. Don’t miss the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds in action at Volusia Speedway Park, Feb. 2-8. Tickets are on sale now at DIRTcarNationals.com or by calling 844-DIRT-TIX. If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live from the comfort of your home with a Platinum Fast Pass subscription to DIRTVision!
  9. Bronson Declared Sunshine Nationals Pro Late Model Feature Winner, McCarter Determined Champion After Page’s Disqualification at Volusia - McCarter goes 20th-to-second to win title by 5 points, Bronson collects another $10k for finale victory BARBERVILLE, FL – Jan. 16, 2021 – Kyle Bronson’s dominance at Volusia Speedway Park’s Sunshine Nationals continued Saturday night with an unexpected win. Michael Page was initially declared the winner of the DIRTcar Pro Late Model Feature, beating everyone to the checkered flag first, but faced a disqualification following a post-race technical inspection. It was determined by DIRTcar and Crate Racin’ USA officials that Page’s car had a valve spring installation height infraction, nullifying his victory. Upon a passing inspection of Bronson’s engine, Bronson was awarded the $10,000 check and declared the Feature winner. “Anytime you can make some money, it’s always good. You hate to win ‘em that way, but we all know how these deals are going in. You’ve got to be 100 percent right,” Bronson said. Mack McCarter was determined the overall Sunshine Nationals mini-series champion of the Pro Late Model division after back-to-back second-place finishes, beating Bronson 140 to 135 points over the two contested races. Bronson began his charge to the front from outside the third row, using the early caution flags to his advantage by doing some of his passing work on the restarts. By Lap 6, he had cracked the top-three and was hot on the trail of second-place Joseph Joiner and leader Page. Bronson was able to get by Joiner on Lap 13, setting him up for a charge through lapped traffic in pursuit of Page, who was a few car-lengths ahead. Bronson was able to close the gap to just over .3 seconds before Page pulled away again, and a final yellow was displayed with just eight laps remaining. When the checkered fell, Bronson was unable to get ahead of Page at the stripe, leaving him with a runner-up finish but only for a few hours. Page’s technical inspection wrapped up after midnight on Sunday; Bronson passed his and was declared the winner in the early morning hours. This victory now makes four Feature wins in five starts for the Brandon, FL-native in Sunshine Nationals Pro Late Model competition after sweeping all three Features last year, and two total on the weekend after his World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series triumph Thursday night. “We won $10,000, motor got torn down and was 100 percent right and everything passed. So, I’m more than happy with it. We won two races this week for $20,000 and it’s going to help us pay for Speedweeks a little bit,” Bronson said. Outside of Victory Lane was another unsung hero, making his Sunshine Nationals and Volusia Speedway Park debut, and he did not disappoint. Twenty-seven-year-old Mack McCarter put on a dazzling display of passing on both nights in his first-ever appearance, coming all the way from 20th to cross the line in third Saturday. He was later awarded a second-place finish following Page’s disqualification. McCarter, of Gatlinburg, TN, was awarded Hard Charger honors on both nights, passing 17 cars Thursday en route to his runner-up finish and 18 cars (17 on-track) Saturday. As impressive as the run was, he knew he may have had something for the leader had he started farther forward. “Our racecar is really good when [the track] blows off and gets kinda dirty,” McCarter said. “We qualified really well but the invert put us behind in the Heat and we didn’t tighten-up enough. I think if we would have started up front, I would’ve had a good shot to run, and possibly have won.” Overall, McCarter was pleased with his performance and that of his crew and car builder. Considering he made his first-ever laps on the track just two days prior, coming out of the weekend with two runner-up finishes and an overall mini-series title wasn’t too shabby. “Just to come down here and run with these guys like Kyle Bronson, outrun him Thursday night and then finish behind him tonight, it just speaks volumes to where our team is,” McCarter said. Feature (30 Laps) 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson [6][$10,000]; 2. 51-Mack McCarter [20][$5,000]; 3. 23-Cory Hedgecock [13][$3,000]; 4. O1-Jason Welshan [19][$2,000]; 5. 10-Joseph Joiner [3][$1,500]; 6. 385-Mark Whitener [4][$1,200]; 7. 14JR-John Baker [14][$900]; 8. 97-Cody Overton [18][$700]; 9. 66-Jake Knowles [25][$600]; 10. 30-Todd Cooney [8][$550]; 11. 83-Jensen Ford [10][$500]; 12. 121-Pearson Lee [22][$400]; 13. 7T-Trever Taylor [5][$400]; 14. 87R-Jake Rainey [7][$400]; 15. 5-John Collins [23][$400]; 16. 44C-Curtis Cline [24][$400]; 17. 33-Jeff Mathews [9][$400]; 18. 66K-Dylan Knowles [1][$400]; 19. K37-Drew Kennedy [26][$400]; 20. 2-Trynt Lloyd [12][$400]; 21. 7A-Corey Almond [17][$400]; 22. 6-Clay Harris [16][$400]; 23. OO-Richie Stephens [15][$400]; 24. T8-Steve Banal [11][$400]; 25. 66JK-Jody Knowles [21][$400] DQ – 18X-Michael Page [2] Hard Charger: 51-Mack McCarter [+18]
  10. Drydene World Short Track Championship Celebrates Nine Champions from Seven Divisions CONCORD, N.C. — Oct. 31, 2020 — All 335 Drydene World Short Track Championship drivers knew what was on the line Saturday night. Not just a victory. A victory on the biggest stage of the year for weekly racers from seven divisions. After Friday's Heat Races set the first rows of the Championship Features, Saturday's event kicked off with Last Chance Showdowns, giving drivers one last chance to qualify for the Features and shine on the 4/10-mile Dirt Track at Charlotte. Ultimately, nine champions found their way to Victory Lane. Ruggiero & Herrington Top FOX Racing SHOX Pro Late Models John Ruggiero Jr. of Lincolnton, N.C. walked away as top dog, banking $4,000 and becoming a World Short Track Champion with a dominating flag-to-flag performance. Redrawing the pole position with Thugg Nasty Logan Roberson to his outside, Ruggiero declined the Drydene Double Down Challenge to double his winnings from the tail, backing his decision up with an unchallenged 30-lap run. Summit Racing Equipment DIRTcar UMP Modifieds After setting Fast Time in Qualifying and running away with the Heat Race victory on Friday, Kyle Strickler pulled the outside pole position in the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment UMP Modified redraw on Saturday and went to work as the green flag dropped, snatching the lead from polesitter David Stremme and leading flag-to-flag for the $4,000 victory. Stremme came home in the fourth spot, getting passed by Hoffman for third with just two-to-go. He did, however, get the job done in the 20-lap All-Star Invitational Feature after initial leader Drake Troutman dropped out while leading on Lap 5. NEVER LOOK BACK: McLaughlin Claims Drydene Racing Formulas Street Stock Glory Calob McLaughlin, from Belmont, NC, held off all challengers to win the Drydene Racing Formulas Street Stock Feature. The new Drydene World Short Track Champion charged to the lead from fourth in a time-limited Feature, which completed only 15 of the 20 scheduled laps due to a streak of sheet metal-bending incidents. Trouille Loses Chevrolet Performance 602 Late Model Championship to Mullis on Post-Race Inspection Fourteen-year-old Colton Trouille raced his heart out in the Chevrolet Performance 602 Late Model Feature Saturday night at the Dirt Track at Charlotte, making it through the checkers and all the way to Victory Lane for the first time ever, only to have his Drydene World Short Track Championship trophy taken away from him and handed to second-place finisher Bryan Mullis after post-race technical inspection. Parsons Scores Third Hoosier Racing Tire Pro Modified Championship The Hoosier Racing Tire Pro Modifieds raced so hard they were plagued by cautions, ultimately resulting in an 11-lap Feature, less than half of the originally scheduled 25 lapper. While avid dirt racing fans often say that a good qualifying driver does not a winner make, tonight’s story told otherwise as the fast-timers in two flights of Qualifying finished first and second — and by no means due to single file racing. Union Grove, NC-driver Jeff Parsons ultimately scored his third Pro Modified World Short Track Championship victory, with Trey Stamper and Robert Poole in second and third. LADIES FIRST: Pruitt Makes History again with Back-to-Back COMP Cams Monster Mini-Stock Wins As the full moon rose over The Dirt Track at Charlotte, the COMP Cams Monster Mini-Stocks lived up to their Halloween themed moniker, putting on a 25-lap Feature event that thrilled fans and crews alike. Nick “Hotrod” Wallace took the lead in lap four and held onto it through the checkered flag. After an exuberant Victory Lane celebration the top three cars headed back to the pits for technical inspection, where an illegal floorpan was discovered on the 0 car, disqualifying Wallace. This unexpected turn of events handed the Feature win to Brayden Pruitt, making her the first back-to-back Champion of the prestigious event. HORNET CHAMPIONS: Windham, Kelly Sweep Weekend; Hoppe Claims First VP Racing Fuels Hornet Win Divided into three Features for the second night in a row, the VP Racing Fuels Hornets picked up where they left off on Friday by testing the limits of their four-cylinder chariots every lap around the 4/10-mile Dirt Track at Charlotte. John Windham was close; always so close to a World Short Track Championship win. Last year seemed like it would finally be his year as he had a car capable of winning each night. But each night, misfortune continued to plague his winning quest. Windham, of Lake City, FL, finally broke that curse Friday night with a dominating win and then backed it up Saturday night to claim back to back victories. Joey Kelly, a defending World Short Track winner, of Salem, SC, didn’t even know if he would be competing this year. His father was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease this and Kelly decided to cut back on racing and sold all of this race cars to spend more time with his dad. But when his father told him to go racing, Kelly couldn’t say no. About a week before the Drydene World Short Track Championship, Kelly bought a car and prepared it to compete. When he arrived at the Charlotte track, he picked up where he left off last year. Kelly led every lap Friday night to pick up his second consecutive World Short Track win and then did the same on Saturday night. Tears, heartbreak and joy were the remnants of the third and final VP Racing Fuels Hornet Feature of the night. Chase Hopper, of Stokesdale, NC, left with the trophy – his first Drydene World Short Track Championship win. The heartbreak came for Alan Carter, who led the first eight laps, and Eddie McGraw, while the tears and joy highlighted an exuberant victory lane for Hopper and his family.
  11. Drydene World Short Track Championship Features Take Shape after Night One Heat Races CONCORD, N.C. — The Drydene World Short Track Championship went into full swing Friday with 335 cars invading The Dirt Track at Charlotte for the epic two-day event that annually puts weekly racers on the big stage in a celebration of grassroots racing. Starting at 2PM ET to make up the previous day's Hot Laps, postponed by a tropical storm blowing through Concord on Thursday, six divisions blew through qualifying and Heat Races over the next eight hours to set the front rows of the starting fields for Saturday's Features, while the seventh division of the night, the VP Racing Fuels Hornets, capped off the night with three 15-lap Features. Chevrolet Performance 602 Late Models - 58 cars The heats started with fast qualifier John Ruggiero Jr punching his ticket to the Feature, winning his Heat unchallenged. Michael Smith and Justin Mintz took the other two transfer spots. Heat two winner Brian Mullis secured his spot in the Feature along with Rod Tucker and Chris Joyce. 13-year-old Carson Ruark was in the final transfer spot, but a caution on lap four closed the gap and he was unable to seal the deal. In the third heat Colton Trouille started inside second row and quickly found his way to the front to take the victory. A caution on lap five changed the transferring racers as Chuckie Duncan came from fifth to second in one lap, racing his way into the Feature along with Royce Bray, who took the final transfer spot. Heat number four had a couple of minor cautions, and when the dust settled Austin Mintz took the victory followed by Seth Wimpey and Mark Wilbanks. Heat five for the 602s will be the most talked about race tonight as Booger Brooks rolled his car in between turns one and two, turning it over multiple times. He was running second at the time and would likely have transferred to the Feature. Devon Morgan went on to win, followed by John Price and BooMan Galloway. The last heat of the night for the 602s was caution-free. Pole-sitter Dale Timms led flag to flag, winning while Blake Craft and Brandon Dockery took the final two transfer spots. FOX Racing SHOX Pro Late Models - 50 cars Thugg Nasty Logan Roberson bested Herrington in the opening Drydene Heat Race to slot his E-Z-GO No. 17 in prime position leading into Saturday’s finale. Wil Herrington and Donald Bradsher transferred. Killer Kyle Bronson was the only Heat Race winner to come from outside of the front row, putting on a remarkable drive to win the second Heat from fourth. Matt Long and Justin Hudspeth also made the transfer. Overton kept his perfect night rolling with a dominant win in the third Heat, with Dillon Brown and Gary Dillon behind him. Gray Parton followed Overton with a W in the fourth Heat. T. J. Salagango and Lucas Ruark secured their spots in Saturday's Feature. Ruggerio continued his hot streak by controlling the fifth Heat, with Jamison McBride and Bryan Mullis in second and third. And Brett Hamm brought the night to a close by taking the sixth and final eight-lap preliminary race. Justin Smith and Clay Harris also made the Feature. Summit Racing Equipment DIRTcar UMP Modifieds - 34 cars Two-time World Short Track Champion Kyle Strickler put away his DIRTcar Late Model for the weekend to come out and battle his old UMP Modified rivals, and for not having driven a Modified for the better part of the 2020 season, it looked as if he never left. Right to the top of the charts Strickler went in Qualifying with a lap of 17.149, a whole .200 faster than the second-fastest car, setting him on the pole for Heat Race #3. That second-fastest car was none other than the two-time and defending World Short Track winner and arguably Strickler’s biggest competition in this event, Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Champion Nick Hoffman. Hoffman opened up the Heat Racing action from the pole of Heat #1 and handed the UMP Modified crowd their most shocking and interesting storyline yet. Coming back to the stripe to complete Lap 1, Hoffman slowed dramatically and pulled down into the infield, out of harm’s way. Dan Davies was there to pick up the pieces in the caution-free race and took the checkered flag in convincing fashion over Maryland’s Justin Cullum, who joins Davies in Saturday’s redraw, Daniel Sanchez, Jesse Rocket and Clay Harris. A broken fuel pump valve was the culprit in Hoffman’s misfortune, which will now send the two-time DIRTcar national points champion into a Last Chance Showdown event on Saturday. An odd place to find the Mooresville, NC-driver at any race around the country. David Stremme came out on top of Heat Race #2, leading every lap on his way to a spot in Saturday’s redraw. Coming into this year’s event as the driver with the most top-fives without a win, Stremme’s chances to finally get it done in the Feature look pretty solid. Ty Rhoades, Jonathan Taylor, Ryan Toole and William Long also transferred into the Feature. Strickler gassed it up for Heat Race #3 and put a whooping on the field, opening an enormous gap – almost a full straightaway – between he and the others before the yellow erased it with just two circuits remaining. It was no problem for The Highside Tickler claiming his spot in the redraw, taking the win over Curt Spalding (redraw), Drake Troutman, Mike Franklin and Austin Holcombe. The fourth and final Heat Race saw Indianan Dylan Woodling grab the checkers in a very competitive bout around the 4/10-mile, with Chris Arnold joining him in the redraw, followed by transfer cars Brandon Kinzer, Jerry Foster and Cody Brightwell. Hoosier Racing Tire Pro Modifieds - 44 cars The first of four Heats went to the No. 44 of Jeff Parsons, who was fastest in Qualifying Group A and second overall. Wes Helms came out strong, piloting his No. 98 from P.7 to P.2 in the first lap, and then pressed on the leader when Patrick Field blew up, causing a restart with two laps to go. Helms stole the lead from Parsons for just a moment, ultimately finishing in second. Steve Axtell, AJ Belanger and Caleb Fulp all grabbed their spots in tomorrow’s Feature. Robert Poole dominated Heat 2 in the No. 25, taking the lead on the first lap and holding it to the checkers. Behind him, Chris Stowe took second from Justin Blevins, who started on the pole. Daniel Parker charged up from P.6 to challenge Blevins, but had to settle for fourth. Kevin Pangrazio, who lost a wheel during the first set of Hot Laps, took the final transfer spot. Ty Norder was not so lucky. Coming out for Heat 3 his front right wheel wasn’t spinning and he pulled off the track, ending his night before the race even begun. Trey Stemper led all six laps, after a charge from Buck Stevens had the two going wheel to wheel out of Turn 4 into the final lap. Preston Blalock, who had worked his way into fourth from his seventh starting position, lost four spots going into Turn 4 as he battled Kevin Dugger for third, but managed to work his way back up to a transfer position behind the 92 of Larry Martin. Jake Barneycastle, who spun out during Hot Laps, jumped to an early lead in the fourth and final heat, stealing the lead from Lawson Rogers on the backstretch. A number of hits, spins and cautions made for an exciting race, but the highlight was the final lap as Rogers made a charge on Barneycastle for the lead and the two came together, knocking doors in Turn 4 before Barneycastle took the checkers. Greg Brown, Ryan Morgan, and Chase Cardwell secured their spots in tomorrow’s Feature. Drydene Racing Formulas Street Stocks - 37 cars Tyler Love, from Lancaster, SC, took the win in Heat 1. Love took his Hamm-built Street Stock to the lead after starting on the outside pole position. The Johnson Racing chassis served him well as he drove off for the win. Damon Crump, Blake Pryor, Justin Morris and Kris Frost also transferred to the Feature. Pole-sitter Chris Rice was hammer down from the get-go. His Drydene Racing Formulas Street Stock was quick and handled well enough to bring him home in the top seed. Also transferring from Heat Race 2 was Ricky Greene, Joe Belkey, Johnny Westmoreland, and Earl Petty. Calob McLaughlin, out of Belmont, NC, took an impressive win in Heat 3. McLaughlin held off Thomas McCurdy. Bradley Weaver, Junior Johnson, and Tre Beaty, who also qualified for the Feature. Patrick Lyon roared to the lead in Heat Race 4 and never looked back. Lyon locked himself into an exceptional starring position for the Drydene Racing Formulas Street Stock Feature. Also transferring were Dalton Peavy, Timmy Smith, Jessie Gibson, and Greg Carroll. COMP Cams Monster Mini-Stocks - 49 cars Tack Brown [4B] took the lead in Turn 1 of the first heat from pole-sitter Spark Parris [43] and led to the finish, fending off several challenges from Parris who would go on to finish second. Pete Brew [12B] held his position to fill the final transfer spot and move on to tomorrow night’s feature. Matt Gilbert [117] snuck by pole-sitter Austin Brown [O4] on lap one of Heat 2, but Brown was able to regain the lead on lap 3. The two battled on the final lap, but Brown held off the attack to win Heat Race 2. Finishing third, in the final transfer spot, Casey Towell [97] advanced to start in Saturday night’s feature. Pole-sitter Nick Walker [O] led flag to flag to win Heat 3. On lap two Travis Mosely [19] moved into third place for the transfer, but a parts failure on the following lap sent him to the pits. With one to go Carl Currin was able to move into the third and final transfer spot. Logan Ritchey [10] finished second. Nick Broome [O7] won Heat 4 with Brandon Clements [7c] finishing second. The third and final transfer spot was swapped back and forth with Roger Nance [33] holding on to it for the final two laps. Last year’s feature winner Brayden Pruitt [13] started on the pole for Heat 5 and seemed to pick up right where she left off. Daniel Coffey [99] finished second, and after a three car battle Travis Sharpe [T2] was able to pick up the third and final transfer spot. And in the final Heat, lap one was quickly put under yellow for debris on the track. On the restart several cars were involved in an incident that sent cars spinning into the infield. When the race got underway Phillip Wilson [O4W] was able to lead the pack and win, with Jason Dickerson [12] finishing second. The third and final transfer spot went to Rod Tucker [8T]. VP Racing Fuels Hornets - 62 cars Sixty-two Hornet stars, ranging from New York to Florida, took to The Dirt Track at Charlotte for three showstopping races. The group of drivers were split into three 15-lap Features based on their qualifying laps and each race saw the drivers racing as though they were chasing a crown jewel win. John Windham, of Lake City, FL, was the class of the field all night and put a period on that in the first VP Racing Fuels Hornet Feature of the night. In the early stage of the day, Windham was the fastest in the first set of Hot Laps and then set Quick Time in Qualifying. That put him on the pole for the first Feature. Behind him were Payne Pickles and Eddie McGraw, who won at the World Short Track Championship last year. After watching his brother win the first VP Racing Fuels Hornet Feature of the night, Walker Windham, of Lake City, FL, knew the pressure was on to match that in the second Feature of the night. To get it, he had to go through Donavan Beacham, of Shelby, NC, and Beacham did not make it easy on him. He took the early lead with Windham on his tail the entire time. The two drivers then put on a show worth the price of admission, with Beacham ultimately handing the win to Windham after hitting the wall in Turn 4. In the third and final VP Racing Fuels Hornet Feature of the night, Joey Kelly became a World Short Track champion for the second year in a row. And he did it in dominant fashion by leading all 15-laps in a car he didn’t even have a week ago. UP NEXT: Drydene World Short Track Championship action continues Saturday, October 31 at 3PM ET with Last Chance Showdowns and Championship Features. Friday’s All-Star Invitational Features, postponed due to time contraints, will close Saturday’s program. Watch all of the action live on DIRTVision. James Brabson photo
  12. Record-High Car Count Passes Through Lernerville Speedway in Steel City Stampede Finale SARVER, PA – Oct. 17, 2020 – A record 332 cars total packed the Lernerville Speedway pit area Saturday night for the annual DIRTcar Roundup Steel City Stampede and put on some of the best racing the event has seen in its 12-year history, all for the first time live on DIRTVision presented by Drydene. Among those in Victory Lane were two first-time winners in DIRTcar competition, receiving the coveted genuine steel belt buckle trophy as victors in their respective divisions. 410 Sprint Cars He claimed his fourth Lernerville Speedway track championship just a few weeks ago. Saturday night was just one more reason to celebrate for the team from Apollo, PA, and their driver, AJ Flick, who scored his second career Stampede victory in the 25-lap event. Put simply, there was no stopping the Fence by Maintenance Service #2. After winning his Heat Race on Friday night to get into the redraw on Saturday, Flick jumped out to the lead from the outside pole in the Feature and simply checked out, opening up a near five-second lead over second-place Carl Bowser before the race’s only caution flag was displayed on Lap 20. The yellow may have erased his big lead, but it just didn’t matter. Flick gassed it up on the restart and pulled away again, leading the field back around to the checkered flag unchallenged for his first Stampede finale win since 2016. “It’s a real slick track, which we haven’t been accustomed to much this year,” Flick said of his drive in Victory Lane. “So, I just tossed something at it. We tossed some stuff at it yesterday; I still don’t think we were that good, but we were at least good enough to keep it up front.” Feature Results (25 Laps) – 1. 2-AJ Flick; 2. 11-Carl Bowser; 3. 08-Dan Kuriger; 4. 42-Sye Lynch; 5. 13-Brandon Matus; 6. 12-Darin Gallagher; 7. 4J-John Garvin; 8. 23JR-Jack Sodeman Jr.; 9. 33-Brent Matus; 10. 23-Darren Pifer; 11. 23F-DJ Foose; 12. 38-Leyton Wagner; 13. 76-David Jones; 14. 80JR-Kyle Colwell; 15. 10J-CJ Jones; 16. 4K-William Kiley; 17. G1-Mike Miller; 18. 86-Michael Lutz Jr.; 19. 55-Matt Sherlock DIRTcar Open Pro Stocks The DIRTcar Open Pro Stocks opened the night’s Feature racing action with one memorable battle between Curt Bish and Joey Zambotti. Back-and-forth the two polesitters raced, swapping the lead several times over the course of the caution-filled affair. Zambotti worked the low line while Bish hung it out up top, and the two put on one thrilling show as the laps clicked off. Unfortunately for the leaders, several cars further back in the field had some recurring issues keeping things rolling under green, forcing numerous yellow flag displays in the first half of the race. This put the Feature event at its maximum time limit with only 12 circuits complete, and the race was made official at the final caution. Bish was the leader at the time and was declared the winner. This was Bish’s first-ever triumph in the event, and he met a very excited crew in Victory Lane to help celebrate. “That was a lot of fun,” Bish said, almost out of breath as he climbed from his car. “I commend [Zambotti] for racing me clean. I accidentally got into him one time coming down the backstretch and I apologize that. But it was a lot of fun, he’s a tough competitor; he’s got a lot of laps here.” Feature Results (20 laps, 12 completed) – 1. 29-Curt Bish; 2. 948-Joey Zambotti; 3. 55-Chris Schneider; 4. 114-Daryl Charlier; 5. 45-Todd Weldon; 6. 27-Tyler Dietz; 7. 25-Brett McDonald; 8. 81-Mike Miller; 9. 72A-Mike Anderson; 10. 43JR-Blaze Myers; 11. 54J-Jimmy Combs; 12. 10-Nick Kocuba; 13. 24W-Erik Wise; 14. 19M-Ryan Maglione; 15. 22JR-Chase Lambert; 16. 28-Brandon Birdsall; 17. 3C-Barry Faris; 18. 310-Dale Tuche; 19. V2-Bob Connor; 20. 73-Jason Fosnaught; 21. 24-Tyler Wyant; 22. 5B-Jason Black; 23. 79-Tommy Dembowski; 24. 81D-Duke Davidson; 25. 36-AJ Poljak DIRTcar Late Models In what was likely the most exciting finish of the night, Jared Miley stole his second career Stampede victory in the final corners with a swift move to the inside of Dave Hess Jr. to score the $3,000 victory. Hess and Max Blair had been locked in the thick of a battle for the lead by the time Miley entered the picture. Hess led the first 11 laps before giving way to Blair’s hard charge from 11th, and soon Miley was headed for the podium. Blair held the lead on a Lap 20 restart as Hess made a power move to the outside to take the lead back. Now with Hess back in control, Miley zeroed-in on his targets as he moved to the third spot behind them. A final caution flag was displayed with 23 laps in the books, setting the field up for a green-white-checkered finish. Miley got a great run off the bottom of Turn 2 on the restart and challenged Hess for the top spot as Blair tried to make it three-wide out of Turn 4. But on the white-flag lap, it came down to a big move by Miley in Turn 4 as Hess slipped over the edge of the banking, opening the door for Miley to drive right on by and collect his first belt buckle since 2010. “That was just one of them deals where the early restart hurt me, lost a couple of spots,” Miley said in Victory Lane. “I knew the car was pretty good, not perfect, but that last restart – Max [Blair] missed the bottom a bit down here and I got under him. That last corner, or last two corners, we were all side-by-side, so everybody was just kinda going for it, and we were just in the right place at the right time.” Feature Results (25 Laps) – 1. 10M-Jared Miley; 2. 44-Dave Hess Jr.; 3. 111-Max Blair; 4. 4S-David Scott; 5. 111L-Matt Lux; 6. 72-Mike Norris; 7. 48-Colton Flinner; 8. 30-Bryce Davis; 9. 40-Clinton Hersh; 10. 77-Tyler Dietz; 11. 12-Ryan Montgomery; 12. X3-Wyatt Scott; 13. 10-Gary Lyle; 14. 9T-Will Thomas; 15. 18-Mike Wonderling; 16. 01W-Khole Wanzer; 17. 29-Ken Schaltenbrand; 18. 81-Mike Miller; 19. 3-Kyle Scott; 20. 14R-Clay Ruffo; 21. 1C-Mike Pegher Jr.; 22. 4-Alex Ferree; 23. 9Y-Levi Yetter; 24. 49-Brian Ruhlman DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds Only a few days removed from the completion of DIRTcar OktoberFAST on the tracks of New York, and the Big-Blocks are still putting on great shows. This time, between father and son. Rex King and his son Rex Jr. started the 25-lap Feature on the front row and combined for all 25 laps led. King jumped out to the early lead while King Jr. followed, eventually grabbing the lead down low on Lap 4. King came back at him on the high side and swiped the lead back on Lap 9; King Jr. kept the low line rolling and took it back on Lap 12. Cooter kept his momentum up on the smooth, slick racing surface and held the lead until after a restart on Lap 21, where his father had it wound-up on the top side and skated on by for the lead and eventually the Feature win – his first belt buckle in event history. “I noticed [about] 10 [laps or so] before the caution that I had a good run up on the top, and I thought, ‘that’s working pretty well, I better not show that off.’ So, I waited, and it worked out with four or five [laps] to go and I capitalized on it on the top,” King said of his decision to make the pass on the top late in the race. Feature Results (25 Laps) – 1. 65-Rex King; 2. 165-Rex King Jr.; 3. 37MD-Jeremiah Shingledecker; 4. 29-Garrett Krummert; 5. 32-Jim Rasey; 6. 61-Dave Murdick; 7. 4M-Greg Martin; 8. 96-Mike Turner; 9. 55-Rob Kristyak; 10. 64-Rodney Belte; 11. 13-Rick Regalski; 12. 03-Mark Frankhouser; 13. 5-Brian Sadler; 14. 22-Kevin Long; 15. 3K-Shawn Kozar; 16. 72M-Jacob Mcelravy; 17. 35-Steve Slater; 18. 83-Brian Swartzlander; 19. 75-Jeff Miller DIRTcar UMP Modifieds For a man pulling triple-duty this weekend, Brian Ruhlman sure made his third career Stampede victory with the UMP Modifieds well worth watching. Dan Davies jumped out to the early lead in the opening laps and held it through the halfway point while Ruhlman was making the pass for second on three-time race winner Jonathan Taylor. A caution flag was displayed on Lap 13, setting Ruhlman up for a shot at the lead on the restart. Back up to the high side went Ruhlman as he got by Davies on the restart. Another caution flew not long after, presenting Davies with a chance to grab the lead back, which he did down low on Lap 17. Only .016 was the gap between the two at the stripe as they neared the final lap. Ruhlman stepped on it over the last few circuits and opened up a small gap, just enough to sneak by for his second consecutive UMP Modified victory in the event. “With the momentum and [the fact that Davies] was down there, I figured this car is so drivable that you can just kinda pedal around top there and not have to worry about over-driving,” Ruhlman said of his car in Victory Lane. Feature Results (20 Laps) – 1. 49-Brian Ruhlman; 2. 71D-Dan Davies; 3. 11M-Mike McGee; 4. 27R-Steve Rex; 5. 5-Jonathan Taylor; 6. 2J-Troy Johnson; 7. 92-Joel Watson; 8. 68-Randy Hall; 9. 71L-Dennis Lunger; 10. 7-Evan Taylor; 11. 73C-Bill Pluta Jr.; 12. 83-Brian Class; 13. 2G-Jesse Gould; 14. 3-Denny Nakutis; 15. 17G-Brandon Grossman; 16. 15-Rick Potter; 17. 12R-Ty Rhoades; 18. 11-Dale Charlier; 19. 6M-Carl McKinney
  13. Sheppard Switches Cars and Wins Land of Legends OktoberFAST Cash CANANDAIGUA, NY – October 10, 2020 – Fans of Matt Sheppard were wondering where exactly where the “Super” has been during this week’s DIRTcar OktoberFAST presented by DIRTVision. Many had him pegged to win multiple Billy Whittaker Cars Super DIRTcar Series Features and certainly, a few podium finishes this week. But that did not materialize until tonight at Land of Legends Raceway. Matt Sheppard, from Waterloo, NY, held off repeated challenges from King Ferry, NY’s Mike Mahaney, who, with another third-place finish, is now on a four-race streak of top threes. That’s the best streak he and his Adirondack Auto, Tony Monaco Landscaping No. 35 team has ever had on the Super DIRTcar Series trail. Second-place finisher Mat Williamson, from St. Catharines, ON, passed Mahaney late for second and was reeling in race winner Matt Sheppard in the final ten laps. Unfortunately for the Buzz Chew Chevrolet race team, the lap counter was not their friend and the 60-lap SuperGen Products/Champion Power Equipment OktoberFAST Feature went to the seven-time Super DIRTcar Series Champion Matt Sheppard. The Hurlock Auto & Speed Supply No. 9s has been mired mid-pack most of this week. The team threw everything they had at the car setup-wise but couldn’t make it handle the way he needed it to. So they went with the most drastic change of all and prepared an entire car for Land of Legends Raceway, a track Sheppard has won a lot of races on. Like Clark Kent ducking in and out of a phone booth, “Super” Matt went back to the shop and reemerged with his $7,500 Feature-winning mount. “We’ve had a miserable week. We brought this new car out today and it was a Hail Mary,” Sheppard said. “We knew if there was any place that we could turn it around that it would be here tonight.” “I put the same setup in this car that I had in the other one all week and it was a rocket ship. The other one not so much,” Sheppard said grinning. “Thank God everything went our way. The car was flawless all night.” Matt Sheppard has won over 70 Feature races at Land of Legends Raceway in Canandaigua, NY. The 60-lap OktoberFAST Feature win was his 79th all-time Super DIRTcar Series victory. He is now ten wins away from equalling Danny Johnson’s second-place position on the all-time wins list. 2019 Super DIRTcar Series champion Mat Williamson has been in a similar situation as Sheppard for much of OktoberFAST and scoring a top-three finish was an important confidence boost going into the $10,000-to-win 75-lap OktoberFAST Feature at Weedsport Speedway. “We made a lot of changes and we’ve been working with Integra Shocks all week. We’ve been fast for a year and a half so we were really religious to our setup,” Williamson noted. “We were open to change today because obviously what we were doing wasn’t going to win us any races. The race track was favorable to passing tonight. We were there at the end.” Williamson was pleased with how racy they were in the Feature during the second half of the race. “We struggled for the first 30 laps, just hanging in there. We would have liked to see the cushion go away a little bit but you could throw some slide jobs,” said Williamson. “It was good hard racing with Mike [Mahaney] and we hope we put a show on for the fans.” Mike Mahaney isn’t tired of stepping on the podium but he would love to check out the view from the top step. “I am real happy with our consistency this week. We’re doing well. I can’t say enough about my team. They’ve been working hard.” said Mahaney. The Adirondack Auto race team competed in both the Billy Whittaker Cars Super DIRTcar Series races and the Bicknell Racing DIRTcar 358 Modified Series events. Despite all of that Mahaney has been the most consistent of all the drivers during OktoberFAST. But it takes a Herculean effort to make that happen. “I think they were all exhausted today. We got here at four in the morning and woke up at 9:30 to move in so it’s a lot. I’m happy to be doing it. I love driving race cars.” “Matt [Sheppard] was faster than us most of the race. I was really hoping the track would get a little slicker. It usually does but man it stayed fast around the top and he did an awesome job,” Mahaney said. “Congratulations to him and Mat Williamson. We had a good race for second at the end. I didn’t mean to get into him in the wall on the front stretch,” said Mahaney. “I didn’t see him coming. Once he got there we threw a couple of sliders at each other and hopefully made it exciting for the fans.” Like Williamson said, good hard racing. Fittingly, Justin Haers, from Phelps, NY, won the SuperGen Products/Champion Power Equipment Fast-Time Award. Haers has always called Canandaigua home and to be at the top of the charts of a premier Big Block Modified field was a special moment. Haers had some issues in the Feature and finished twentieth. Another Land of Legends Raceway regular had a huge night. Erick Rudolph, from Ransomville, NY, took the SuperGen Products/Champion Power Equipment Hard Charger Award for passing fifteen cars to finish fourth. Rudolph made it up to third but the inside line had a disadvantage on restarts and Mat Williamson reclaimed the position, ending his run to the front. Join us Sunday, October 11 at DIRTVision.com for the Stirling Lubricants OktoberFAST finale at Weedsport Speedway. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and SuperDIRTcar.com for OktoberFAST coverage. Feature (60 Laps) 9S-Matt Sheppard [2][$7,500]; 2. 88-Mat Williamson [7][$4,000]; 3. 35-Mike Mahaney [4][$2,500]; 4. 25-Erick Rudolph [19][$1,800]; 5. 91-Billy Decker [14][$1,600]; 6. 32C-Max Mclaughlin [5][$1,400]; 7. 99L-Larry Wight [11][$1,300]; 8. 19-Tim Fuller [12][$1,200]; 9. 98-Rocky Warner [8][$1,100]; 10. 98H-Jimmy Phelps [10][$1,000]; 11. 5H-Chris Hile [15][$800]; 12. 20-Brett Hearn [16][$700]; 13. 14J-Alan Johnson [24][$600]; 14. 3J-Marc Johnson [18][$575]; 15. 111-Demetrios Drellos [6][$550]; 16. 165-Rex King [9][$525]; 17. M1-David Marcuccilli [21][$500]; 18. 1Z-Jessica Friesen [26][$500]; 19. 2-Jack Lehner [22][$500]; 20. 3-Justin Haers [3][$500]; 21. 48TOO-Dave Rauscher [28][$]; 22. 121-Gary Tomkins [13][$500]; 23. 10S-Ryan Susice [25][$500]; 24. 42P-Pat Ward [1][$500]; 25. 44-Stewart Friesen [20][$500]; 26. 19W-Justin Wright [17][$500]; 27. 19M-Jessey Mueller [27][-]; 28. 49-Billy Dunn [23][$500] SuperGen Products/Champion Power Equipment Charger Award: 25-Erick Rudolph[+15]
  14. PERREGO DOUBLES UP AT OktoberFAST Anthony Perrego picks up second career Super DIRTcar Series victory and two of three Oktober FAST Features so far LAFARGVILLE, NY - October 9, 2020 - Anthony Perrego, from Montgomery, NY, wheeled a perfect 60-lap race to win his second career Billy Whittaker Cars Super DIRTcar Series Feature and second win of OktoberFAST. Hot on his heels, the No. 7mm of Michael Maresca crossed the finish line in second after a late-race charge fell short. And once again at OktoberFAST, Mike Mahaney, from King Ferry, NY, parked his No. 35 on the podium for the third time in three races. Tom Stevens photo Anthony Perrego pinned it right out of the gate. The No. 44 handled perfectly for the newly minted Series winner. At the drop of the green Perrego roared into Can-Am Speedway’s first turn with the holeshot on the field. From there it didn’t matter what happened behind him because all he saw was lapped traffic and Head Starter Dave Farney’s flags. Except for one resilient Michael Maresca from Pierrepont, NY. Perrego had to be perfect because a black and orange door made an appearance on his left side more than once. Maresca gave Perrego a good look at his St. Lawrence Radiology Big Block Modified entering turn one on a restart with nine laps to go. But Perrego slammed the door, Maresca yielded the low line, and the No. 44 parked in Victory Lane for the second time in four days. Perrego was proud of his team and thrilled to double up on OktoberFAST wins and his first two Super DIRTcar Series wins. “To not have a Series win coming into this week and get two is pretty cool,” said Perrego. “I wish we could do them all but who knows maybes next year we’ll do the whole Super DIRTcar Series.” Michael Maresca took his chance on a restart with nine laps to go. He dove deep into turn one, trying to secure the low line through the corner. “Anthony has raced me clean a lot so I lifted. I drove it in pretty deep and had to hit the brakes,” Maresca said of his final shot at the lead. Further challenges were hampered because Maresca clipped an implement tire and knocked the toe out in the final laps. Despite that, he was relieved to have a strong finish after struggling for the last two nights. “Pretty happy to get to second after starting sixth. We had a really terrible first two nights. We haven’t run the Big Block much and we were pretty far off,” said Maresca. Mike Mahaney has had an outstanding OktoberFAST nabbing podiums in every Super DIRTcar Series race so far. “It’s a great week for us. I can’t thank the team enough. Our car has been solid and very consistent,” said Mahaney. “I just keep thinking that if we keep running up front that one of these days we’ll win one,” he joked. Two OktoberFAST events remain so that’s two more chances for Mahaney to reach the top step. 200 DIRTcar Northeast stars packed the Can-Am Speedway pit area for night three of DIRTcar OktoberFAST presented by DIRTVision. The racing was nonstop all night which included the Bicknell Racing DIRTcar 358 Modified Series and Racing Electronics DIRTcar Sportsman Modifieds. St. Lawrence Radiology sponsored all of the special awards in all three divisions highlighted by Stewart Friesen’s lightning-quick lap to pick up the $500 Fast Time Award. Jimmy Phelps continued his OktoberFAST speed going second quick overall. Queensbury, NY’s Demetrios Drellos grossed nine positions up through the field for the St. Lawrence Radiology Hard Charger Bonus worth $250. Join us again tomorrow night on DIRTVision from the Canandaigua, NY half-mile Land of Legends Raceway where the Billy Whittaker Cars and Trucks Super DIRTcar Series and Racing Electronics DIRTcar Sportsman Modified Series pick up the action for night five of DIRTcar OktoberFAST presented by DIRTVision. Feature (60 Laps) 1. 44P-Anthony Perrego [1][$7,500]; 2. 7MM-Michael Maresca [6][$4,000]; 3. 35-Mike Mahaney [3][$2,500]; 4. 25-Erick Rudolph [4][$1,800]; 5. 44-Stewart Friesen [7][$1,600]; 6. 49-Billy Dunn [9][$1,400]; 7. 20-Brett Hearn [2][$1,300]; 8. 99L-Larry Wight [12][$1,200]; 9. 88-Mat Williamson [8][$1,100]; 10. 28-Jordan Mccreadie [13][$1,000]; 11. 98H-Jimmy Phelps [10][$800]; 12. 19-Tim Fuller [14][$700]; 13. 2-Jack Lehner [17][$600]; 14. 32C-Max Mclaughlin [21][$575]; 15. 83X-Tim Sears [20][$550]; 16. 42P-Pat Ward [5][$525]; 17. 1Z-Jessica Friesen [23][$500]; 18. 21A-Peter Britten [22][$500]; 19. 111-Demetrios Drellos [28][$]; 20. 19M-Jessey Mueller [24][$500]; 21. 62S-Tom Sears [26][$500]; 22. 98-Rocky Warner [18][$500]; 23. 2020-Tyler Trump [19][$500]; 24. 5H-Chris Hile [16][$500]; 25. 9S-Matt Sheppard [11][$500]; 26. 91-Billy Decker [27][$]; 27. M1-David Marcuccilli [25][$500]; 28. 3J-Marc Johnson [15][$500] St. Lawrence Radiology Charger Award: 111-Demetrios Drellos[+9]
  15. Phelps Victorious with 358 Modifieds in Round 3 of OktoberFAST at Fulton - Baldwinsville-native collects $4k and first 358 Modified victory of the season at Fulton FULTON, NY – Oct. 8, 2020 – One start for Jimmy Phelps in DIRTcar 358 Modified Series action in New York this year. One trip to DIRTcar OktoberFAST Victory Lane. The Baldwinsville Bandit took to the high banks of the Fulton Speedway Thursday night and put on a clinic for everyone watching live from their homes on DIRTVision presented by Drydene, leading the final 35 laps of the 358 Modified Series presented by Bicknell Racing Products Feature to claim his first OktoberFAST win of the six-race stretch. But one just wasn’t enough to satisfy the Baldwinsville, NY, driver. One hour later, he won again, putting his Heinke-Baldwin Racing #98H Big-Block Modified in Victory Lane with the Super DIRTcar Series presented by Billy Whittaker Cars. Truly, a night to remember. “We didn’t have all those big shows, we didn’t have all these opportunities,” Phelps said of his season to this point with an eye to his back-to-back wins. “So, to be able to come in and get two real big wins right here tonight… hopefully it gets the ball rolling for the rest of the week.” Phelps took the green in the 40-lap contest from outside the front row with Billy Decker to his inside. The two did battle for the first five laps before Phelps found the speed he needed on the low line to get a run underneath Decker into Turn 3 and take the spot away from him at the exit of Turn 4. From that point forward, it was all Phelps out front. He was never seriously challenged for the lead again. He was able to make his car work the best on the slick surface every lap, and it payed out a big $4,000 check in the end. However, there was one hoop Phelps had to jump through. A caution flag flew at the halfway point for a spinning Jessey Mueller in Turn 2, and the field was restacked nose-to-tail. “Those restarts… you just never know, because when you step on the gas after a couple of laps slow, you don’t really know what your tires did under the yellow. All it takes is to get them things spinning once and then he’s by you. So, I had to be careful there, but fortunately the car just took off and we were pretty good,” Phelps said about his approach to the restart. Making the most of the restart was Tim Sears Jr., who went from sixth to third in one lap. Andy Bachetti and Mike Mahaney made some contact on the restart to Sears’ inside at the drop of the green, allowing him to drive by on the top. He then got a great run back on the bottom under Stewart Friesen for third and took it away as they crossed the stripe. “We were really good. It’s just that once the cars get rolling, we kinda all even out, so you’ve got to get your spots off the starts and restarts. I was hoping for a few more so I could mix it up with Billy [Decker] and Jimmy [Phelps]… just, luck didn’t fall our way,” Sears Jr. said. Decker kept up the pressure all race long on Phelps but was unable to get the run he needed to make a serious bid for the lead. Still, he did come away with a runner-up finish. “It would have been nice to give it a shot. I don’t know if we were gonna have anything for him; [Phelps] fired really good too. But again, you always want that chance,” Decker said. The DIRTcar OktoberFAST action continues Friday night from the Can-Am Speedway in LaFargeville, NY, with the 358 Modifieds and Sportsman alongside the Super DIRTcar Series Big-Block Modifieds. Feature (40 Laps) 1. 98H-Jimmy Phelps [1][$4,000]; 2. 91-Billy Decker [2][$2,500]; 3. 62X-Tim Sears [7][$1,500]; 4. 35-Mike Mahaney [8][$1,200]; 5. 1Z-Stewart Friesen [6][$1,000]; 6. 25-Erick Rudolph [15][$800]; 7. 9S-Matt Sheppard [18][$700]; 8. 42P-Pat Ward [5][$600]; 9. 3-Justin Haers [16][$550]; 10. 4-Andy Bachetti [3][$500]; 11. 215-Adam Pierson [12][$450]; 12. 19-Tim Fuller [14][$400]; 13. 98-Rocky Warner [11][$375]; 14. 6-Mat Williamson [23][$350]; 15. 3J-Marc Johnson [17][$325]; 16. 247-Michael Maresca [29][$300]; 17. 2RJ-Ronnie Johnson [4][$275]; 18. 99L-Larry Wight [26][$250]; 19. 49-Billy Dunn [22][$250]; 20. 3B-Chad Brachmann [9][$250]; 21. M1-David Marcuccilli [19][$250]; 22. 36-Ben Bushaw [28][$250]; 23. 9-Tyler Meeks [30][$250]; 24. 32R-Ronnie Davis [10][$250]; 25. 15-Todd Root [20][$250]; 26. 1X-Willy Decker [24][$250]; 27. 69-Tyler Boniface [21][$250]; 28. 20S-David Schilling [27][$250]; 29. 19M-Jessey Mueller [13][$250]; 30. 83-Danny Johnson [25][$250] Hard Charger: 247-Michael Maresca[+13]
  16. Harris Capitalizes on Spinning Leaders to Win Hope for Harlie Finale at Cedar Ridge - Krup, Hoffman and Nicely tangle in Turns 1-2 after battling in lapped traffic MORGANTOWN, KY – Sept. 19, 2020 – After one of the wildest turn of events seen all year on the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals circuit, Utica, KY’s own Josh Harris pulled off his fourth career victory with the tour in Saturday night’s Hope for Harlie finale at Cedar Ridge Speedway. Harris had marched his way up from ninth to fourth and was riding with a sizable gap to Tyler Nicely as they rounded Turn 4 to complete Lap 26. By the time he reached the exit of Turn 2 on Lap 27, Harris was the race leader. Friday night’s Hope for Harlie preliminary Feature winner Will Krup had led since the drop of the green and was in the thick of a big battle for the lead with 2020 tour champion Nick Hoffman, deep in lapped traffic. The two frontrunners approached a pack of several slower cars, spread out across all three grooves, with Hoffman on the top and Krup on the bottom. Coming out of Turn 4 on Lap 26, Hoffman made a dive to the inside to try and get around the pack but hadn’t quite cleared Krup’s nose and made contact with it going down the frontstretch. Hoffman was able to gather it back in before entering Turn 1, but ended up sliding up the track right in front of Krup, who had switched to the high side. The contact that ensued sent both drivers around in the middle of Turns 1-2, leaving Nicely barreling through with no place to go, as he and another lapped car piled in and made substantial contact. “Nick went to the bottom there and I crossed lanes to go to the top, he slid from the top and I just had nowhere to go,” Krup said of the incident. “I tried to get on the brakes. Looking at the video, Tyler didn’t have anywhere to go, so he got into me, and it was just all a bang-bang deal, all three of us were out.” And just like that, all three leaders were taken out of the race. Nicely left the racing surface on the hook, Krup drove back to the pit area and Hoffman soon followed suit. “I’d seen Tyler [Nicely] right in front of me,” Harris said from his point-of-view. “I wasn’t really gaining on him and he wasn’t getting away from me. I was hoping we had a caution so we could race it out and see where we were with him, but I wasn’t expecting the caution to be for all three of them. “We got through that wreck; there were cars going everywhere, it was kinda like a Daytona crash.” With Harris now in the lead, it was his race to lose. The field went back to green as Danny Schwartz, Jimmy Payne and Gabriel Kirtley now moved into the picture. Try as they may, though, Harris’ Mark Bush Racing Chassis #22H was not to be beaten. He led the field the rest of the way home in the 40-lap contest to pick up his first Summit Modified victory of the season and the $3,000 top prize. “I have lost plenty the way that I won it tonight. Obviously [this is] not the way you want to win it, but you take them any way you can get them,” Harris said. Meanwhile, the Elite Chassis trio sat parked in the pit area, loading up after a sour conclusion to the weekend that ended with finishes of 13th (Hoffman), 14th (Krup) and 15th (Nicely). Through it all, Krup did come away with the one victory on Friday night, although he felt he could have completed the sweep on Saturday. “We were just kinda cruising there, trying not to burn up the tires,” Krup said. “Just trying to take our time, pick off the lapped traffic when we could. It got super racey there, and I think our car pretty good and definitely had a shot to win this deal.” Despite his gain from their expense on Saturday, Harris did tip his cap to the dominance of the Elite Chassis gang throughout the year. Hoffman, Krup, Nicely and Plainfield, IL-pilot Mike McKinney have combined for a significant number of Feature wins this year, and Harris will be gunning for them next season. “Our car was really good. We’ve been really working hard on chasing those guys. It’s no secret that those three and McKinney are the four fastest cars in the country right now. I believe we’re fifth right behind them,” Harris said. UP NEXT The 2020 DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals field jumps back into action one final time this year for the Modified portion of the Hooiser Dirt Shootout makeup race at Kokomo Speedway. Catch all the action live on DIRTVision. Feature (40 Laps) 1. 22H-Josh Harris [9]; 2. 21D-Danny Schwartz [11]; 3. 68-Jimmy Payne [4]; 4. K7-Gabriel Kirtley [13]; 5. 16C-John Clippinger [14]; 6. 59R-Jacob Rexing [5]; 7. 24-Zeke McKenzie [8]; 8. 37-Ty Shearon [21]; 9. 121-Caleb Slaughter [16]; 10. 62E-Kim Edington [23]; 11. 03-Zach Dennis [10]; 12. 1S-Brian Shaw [7]; 13. 7-Nick Hoffman [3]; 14. K19-Will Krup [2]; 15. 25-Tyler Nicely [6]; 16. 29S-Bill Sollers [20]; 17. 11-Dennis Vincent [19]; 18. 22-Wade Wenthe [1]; 19. R4-Ricky Arms [12]; 20. 55-Blaze Melton [15]; 21. 13-Charlie Mefford [18]; 22. 99-Teagan Embrey [17] 23. 8-TJ Armour [22]; 24. 46-Johnny Madden [24]
  17. "The Moweaqua Missile" Steals Eldora Preliminary Win from Josh Richards on Friday Night - "T-Mac" Tim McCreadie Edges Josh Richards by One Point for High Point Man Honors at Intercontinental Classic ROSSBURG, OH - It was Babb, then Richards, then Babb again on Friday night in a thrilling Intercontinental Classic preliminary feature at Eldora Speedway. Tyler Carr photo Swapping the lead on laps 22 and 24, Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill. and Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.V. traded big league blows in the closing stages with $10,000 and a trip to "The Big E" victory stage on the line. Acing the final restart with seven to go, Babb got the best of Thursday's winner and survived one last ditch effort to score his first victory at the Rossburg, Ohio half-mile in what he believes has been 20+ years. A triumphant Babb offered a rare display of pure jubilation and downright excitement in victory lane following his denial of a preliminary sweep for Richards. It wasn't just his first Eldora win in what seems like forever, but also a huge milestone in putting his Team Zero Race Car No. 18 at center stage for the first time in a race of such magnitude. "It's been a long time since I've been on this stage," Babb shouted victoriously after climbing out. "Gosh, it's probably been 20 years or so since I've been up here. This is amazing. I have to thank Cody Somner, he personally built this chassis for me and welded it up himself. The whole night really just came together. This thing was a lot of fun to drive, it's so fast right now." Taking the lead from the outside pole, Babb paced the opening 21 circuits before lap traffic spiced things up and added an extra element to Friday's 30-lapper. Caught in the dirty air behind lapper Ross Bailes, Babb's lead quickly diminished as Richards closed the gap and created a battle for the lead. Sliding his Clint Bowyer Racing No. 14 iRacing.com, Rocket/Cornett across turn one, Richards built his run and executed a slide job to steal the lead from Babb on lap 22. Darting to the bottom of turn three and cutting off Babb's momentum, Richards meticulously held off the four-time DIRTcar Summer Nationals champion before the caution flew and set up the final restart of the race with seven to go. While Richards struggled to light the tires and launch off turn four, Babb mastered the final restart and wheeled his way right back to the top spot on lap 24. Finding his rhythm over the closing laps, Richards chopped the gap away and reached Babb's rear bumper coming to the white flag with the win on the line. The slightest mishap in turn one proved costly, however, allowing Babb the breathing room he needed to survive and reach the checkered flag over Richards by just .694 seconds. "I knew I had a chance when Josh chose the top," commented Babb on the final restart. "I was just choosing the outside because of the cushion, so when I got the bottom I knew we would have a big run into turn one. I got a great launch and found traction that you wouldn't believe. It was fun racing with Josh, he's been fast all weekend. This thing we've got is bad to the bone though." "Absolutely; there's no doubt about it," Babb replied when asked if he could win Saturday's $50,000, 67-lap main event. "You know, 67 laps isn't really that long around here. These cars have been getting better and better as the laps go by. I've got all the confidence in the world right now." Richards, who topped Thursday's 30-lapper in a wire-to-wire run, settled for a second-place effort following his bobble on the final restart. Joining Babb and Richards on the preliminary podium was Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., who put the Longhorn Chassis No. 49 to third after a close duel with Chris Ferguson over the final few laps. "Fergy," of Mount Holly, N.C., was Friday's fourth-place finisher aboard his Team Zero Race Car No. 22, and "High Side Tickler" Kyle Strickler rounded out the top five with a 15th-to-fifth charge. Closing out the top ten on night two of Intercontinental Classic was Tim McCreadie of Watertown, N.Y. in sixth aboard the Longhorn No. 39; Kyle Bronson of Brandon, Fla. in seventh with the Rocket No. 40B; Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill. in eighth in his Rocket1 Racing ride; Dennis Erb Jr. of Carpentersville, Ill. in ninth driving the Rocket No. 28; and Darrell Lanigan of Union, Ky. in tenth representing the Barry Wright ICON No. 29V. Separated by merely one point, Tim McCreadie (1,436) edged out Josh Richards (1,435) for Intercontinental Classic high point man honors following his Thursday and Friday performances at Eldora Speedway. Trailing those two in the EVERY LAP MATTERS points format was Brandon Overton (-34), Jonathan Davenport (-55), Ricky Weiss (-62), Brandon Sheppard (-73), Jimmy Owens (-84), Chris Ferguson (-87), Dennis Erb Jr. (-96), and Shannon Babb (-104). The Intercontinental Classic concludes on Saturday night at Eldora Speedway with four heat races, two semis, and the 67-lap, $50,000-to-win championship feature on the docket. With expected weather in play on Saturday night, officials have already made the call to bump up the finale by one hour, putting hot laps on track at 5:30pm ET. FEATURE RESULTS (30 Laps): 1. 18B-Shannon Babb [2]; 2. 14-Josh Richards [1]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport [4]; 4. 22F-Chris Ferguson [6]; 5. 8-Kyle Strickler [15]; 6. 39-Tim McCreadie [10]; 7. 40B-Kyle Bronson [12]; 8. 1-Brandon Sheppard [3]; 9. 28-Dennis Erb Jr. [19]; 10. 29V-Darrell Lanigan [9]; 11. 32-Bobby Pierce [13]; 12. 157-Mike Marlar [17]; 13. 17M-Dale McDowell [16]; 14. 7-Ricky Weiss [8]; 15. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr. [20]; 16. 44-Chris Madden [24]; 17. 0-Scott Bloomquist [5]; 18. 76-Brandon Overton [11]; 19. 11H-Spencer Hughes [7]; 20. 58-Ross Bailes [23]; 21. 20-Jimmy Owens [14]; 22. 12J-Jason Jameson [22]; 23. 25Z-Mason Zeigler [21]; 24. 1G-Ryan King [18]
  18. CASHIN’ OUT: Hoffman Scores Third UMP Modified Win in Three Days for $22,500 in Winner’s Shares - AMS Wins at FCR, FALS propel national champion’s run to another $10,000 Sunday at Spoon River LEWISTOWN, IL – Sept. 6, 2020 – A maximum of $24,000 could be won in DIRTcar UMP Modified competition over the four major events contested in Illinois this weekend. Nick Hoffman claimed $22,500 of it. Brenden Bowman photo “It’s unreal to be able to even race for that kind of money in one weekend for Modifieds,” he said. Leading flag-to-flag in the 30th running of the Plowboy Nationals at Spoon River Speedway, Hoffman completed a Friday-Saturday-Sunday sweep with his third victory in three days at three different tracks, all while boasting yet another Elite Chassis top-four finish on Sunday. The Mooresville, NC, chassis-builder won back-to-back Summit Racing Equipment American Modified Series shows at Farmer City Raceway and Fairbury Speedway for the first two trophies, and now his third comes in the form of $10,000 – one of those two big checks he collected this weekend. “I think this is the biggest weekend in history for UMP Modifieds,” Hoffman said. “I don’t think we’ve ever got to race two ten-thousands back-to-back, plus $2,500 and $1,500. Labor Day weekend’s always a big weekend for Modified guys.” Hoffman began his night by setting quick time in his group Qualifying session, winning his Heat Race, redrawing the pole and going virtually unchallenged for 50 laps around the 3/8-mile high banks for what is now his 18th triumph overall in DIRTcar-sanctioned action this year. Hoffman did face the other leaders behind him on a few restarts and was forced to slice his way through lapped traffic at points, but nothing seemed to slow down the defending DIRTcar National points champion. Even Hoffman’s fellow Elite Chassis drivers were taking notice of the dominance. “It’s kinda like we’re racing an IMSA race out here, where he’s in one class and the rest of us are in another,” said Mike McKinney, lightheartedly. “We’re just kinda on the same racetrack as of right now. He’s just good everywhere you go.” Hoffman said a big key to his success is pace management when he gets to the lead. “When you’re able to start on the pole in a 50-lapper like this, and I can get out front and control the pace, that’s the biggest thing,” Hoffman said. “Last night, I started third and wanted to get to the lead and control that pace. When you’re running for 50 laps here, I wanted to just get to the lead and just save tires. That way, if we had a late-race caution, I could just hammer it.” With 11 victories coming on the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals tour in 2020, Hoffman’s winning so often now that it looks as though he’s developing a small following who now “yawn” at the sight of his next victory. But he just takes that negative energy and puts it back into his drive for victory, his product in the shop and thirst for accomplishment. “You’ve got to take all the naysayers or haters or whatever and put them to the side and use it to motivate you, work harder and get better. I’ll go back to my job tomorrow at Elite Chassis, which, some people complain about that… but I’m living my life and I’m very fortunate to do what I do, and I love every minute of it. I’m able to drive racecars for a living and build racecars during the week. It doesn’t get much better.” As a business owner and motorsports fabricator, Hoffman knows his customers’ successes on the track are just as important as his own. The top-four finishers Sunday night were all piloting cars built in Hoffman’s Elite Chassis shop, marking the second time in four nights they’ve swept at least the podium. Current DIRTcar UMP Modified National points leader Mike McKinney was a part of both of those and was very pleased about his performance this weekend, scoring the victory in the Farmer City 74 preliminary Modified Feature. “I’m happy about our entire weekend,” McKinney said. “We finished first and second at Farmer City, fifth last night at Fairbury, starting [25th of 26 cars]. Second tonight, it paid $5,000, and that’s huge for our team.” “I think we made a statement this weekend, that we’re one of the top contenders right now, and I’m super proud of our team.” Rounding out the podium was the third of four Elite Chassis drivers out front – Owensboro, KY’s own Tyler Nicely. The current DIRTcar American Modified Series points leader won a back-and-forth battle for position between he, Brody Pompe and David Stremme to settle into fourth with 34 laps complete. But he didn’t stop there. Three laps later, Nicely revved it up on the high side and went around Will Krup for third, which he held all the way back to the checkers. Krup settled back into fourth as Stremme gave him a challenge at the finish line, but wasn’t enough to advance position. While the DIRTcar UMP Modified National points battle rages on, Hoffman will soon set his sights on Morgantown, KY’s Cedar Ridge Speedway to cap-off the 2020 DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals season, Sept. 18-19, where he’ll try and tie his own single-season Feature wins record of 13. He’s at 11 right now and has all the momentum in the world to score the final two. For all further updates on this event and future DIRTcar Racing events, follow us on Twitter @DIRTcar_Racing, like us on Facebook at @DIRTcar and follow us on Instagram @dirtcar_official. Plowboy Nationals Feature (50 Laps) – 1. 7H-Nick Hoffman [1]; 2. 96-Mike McKinney [3]; 3. 25-Tyler Nicely [5]; 4. K19-Will Krup [6]; 5. 35-David Stremme [10]; 6. P27-Brody Pompe [8]; 7. 292-Josh Allen [9]; 8. 3L-Jeff Leka [14]; 9. 25W-Allen Weisser [16]; 10. 31-Mark Anderson [4]; 11. 32-Bobby Pierce [11]; 12. 5CS-Curt Spalding [7]; 13. A9-AJ May [25]; 14. 28M-Kevin Morrow [15]; 15. 36E-Dan Ems [19]; 16. 59R-Jacob Rexing [20]; 17. 3-Mike Brooks [26]; 18. 777-Trevor Neville [24]; 19. 77-Ray Bollinger [13]; 20. 99-Hunt Gossum [12]; 21. Z1-Zac Oedewaldt [21]; 22. 22-Josh Harris [2]; 23. 15-Chris Smith [23]; 24. 8-Kyle Steffens [17]; 25. 59B-Brent Weaver [22]; 26. 1D-Dean Hoffman [18]
  19. Sheppard Wins Third in Five in Days, Hoffman Clinches Second Eight-Win Season at I-55 DIRTcar Late Models PEVELY, MO – Aug. 15, 2020 – Patience has been an incredible virtue for Brandon Sheppard this week. In the DIRTcar Summer Nationals’ first visit to the hallowed high banks of the Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 since 2018, Sheppard timed his strike for the lead perfectly, riding top-five for most of the race before tracking down then-leader Daryn Klein and making the slide job stick en route to his third Hell Tour victory in five days. A sea of blue #B5 t-shirts on the backs of hollering race fans lined the fence during Sheppard’s Victory Lane interview with announcer Ruben Mireles, cheering him on after what is also his third consecutive I-55 Summer Nationals victory. “It was just an awesome night. Summer Nationals in the B5 – it feels really good to come out here and get some wins. I know the [Rocket1] boys are back home watching, and they’re probably proud of me, and it means a lot to me a lot to me to win on the Summer Nationals and be competitive, night-in and night-out,” Sheppard said. Sheppard began his hunt for the front from outside Row 2, keeping pace with Billy Moyer, Jason Feger and Dennis Erb in the opening circuits. He soon picked up the pace and a few positions, cracking the podium by Lap 9. From there on out, it was only a matter of time. Earlier in the night, Fairview Heights, IL-pilot Daryn Klein had set overall quick time in Qualifying, won his Heat Race and redrew the pole for the 50-lap Feature. He jumped out to the early lead and was setting a rapid pace on the high side, looking as though he had the competition covered. For 34 laps, he did. But Sheppard had other plans. A big slide job from the B5 came flying in Klein’s direction in Turn 3 as they came around to complete Lap 35. Klein answered back with a crossover move to Sheppard’s inside and returned the favor with a slide job of his own in Turns 1-2, but he couldn’t hold it. Sheppard got a great bite off Turn 2 and dove into Turn 3 with the lead, already pulling away as he hit the flag stand. “This thing was flawless, I could put it wherever I wanted to,” Sheppard said of his #B5 Rocket Chassis ride. “The bottom really wasn’t that good the whole race, but I could momentum across there pretty good. Really what won me the race was down here in [turns] one and two – I was able to turn down off the cushion really good and get a good run down the backstretch.” Meanwhile, defending champion Brian Shirley was busy putting on a passing clinic, having driven all the way up to second from the 11th starting spot. The Bob Cullen Racing #3s was very fast, but once it took second from Klein on Lap 43, Sheppard was almost five whole seconds ahead. Smoothly running the big I-55 cushion, Sheppard wheeled his #B5 Rocket Chassis all the way back to the stripe to pick up the win and $10,000 for his efforts. Shirley maintained the second spot while Shannon Babb kept his top-five finish streak alive with a third-place finish. Heckenast Jr. and Moyer rounded out the top-five. UP NEXT The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Model action continues Sunday from the Lincoln Speedway in Lincoln, IL for Round #21 – 40 laps and $5,000 to the winner. Catch every lap broadcasted LIVE on DIRTVision.com presented by Drydene. Feature (50 Laps) 1. B5-Brandon Sheppard [4][]; 2. 3S-Brian Shirley [11][]; 3. 18-Shannon Babb [7][]; 4. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr [9][]; 5. 21-Billy Moyer [2][]; 6. 91-Rusty Schlenk [20][]; 7. 25-Jason Feger [3][]; 8. 111-Steven Roberts [6][]; 9. 33M-Tim Manville [13][]; 10. 10-Daryn Klein [1][]; 11. 4G-Bob Gardner [17][]; 12. 15-Kolby Vandenbergh [12][]; 13. 33-Ricky Frankel [15][]; 14. 11H-Jeff Herzog [8][]; 15. 16-Rusty Griffaw [21][]; 16. 28-Dennis Erb [5][]; 17. 33T-Adam Tischhauser [14][]; 18. 30-Mark Voigt [18][]; 19. 78-Chad Zobrist [16][]; 20. 11T-Trevor Gundaker [22][]; 21. 6K-Michael Kloos [10][]; 22. 48-Tim Lance [19][] Hard Charger: 91-Rusty Schlenk[+14] DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds For the second consecutive season, Nick Hoffman has now eclipsed the eight-win mark in Feature racing action with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals. Only a driver’s eight-best finishes are taken into consideration for the overall points standings; Hoffman’s eight best will now all be wins in his quest for a third Summit Modified championship. Another dominant, flag-to-flag victory for the Mooresville, NC-driver came on Saturday night at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, as he drove the Federated Auto Parts Elite Chassis #7 to victory for his third Summit Modified victory in five days. “I spent a lot of nights up in these grandstands watching my dad win, and I stood right there as a junior flagman,” Hoffman recalled in Victory Lane about his aspirations as a young race fan. “It’s really cool to come back here and put the Federated Auto Parts car in Victory Lane at Federated Auto Parts Raceway.” Jumping to the lead right from the drop of the green, Hoffman held off the early challenges from one of his own customers at Elite Chassis, Will Krup. Krup displayed a very well-handling hot rod early, but Hoffman was just too strong. He led the field around through several cautions and restarts, even a red flag at one point. It just didn’t seem to matter what he got thrown at him, Hoffman was not going to be denied Saturday night. UP NEXT The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals action continues Sunday from the Lincoln Speedway in Lincoln, IL for Round #21 – 25 laps and $1,500 to the winner. Catch every lap broadcasted LIVE on DIRTVision.com presented by Drydene. Feature (25 Laps) 1. 7-Nick Hoffman [1][]; 2. K19-Will Krup [2][]; 3. 1A-Steve Meyer [4][]; 4. 14C-Rick Conoyer [5][]; 5. 1D-Dean Hoffman [8][]; 6. 36E-Danny Ems [7][]; 7. 99-Hunt Gossum [6][]; 8. 36-Kenny Wallace [11][]; 9. 10X-Jim Black [15][]; 10. 59R-Jacob Rexing [12][]; 11. 3L-Jeff Leka [13][]; 12. 327-Chuck Goodman [16][]; 13. 4T-Jake Trebilcock [17][]; 14. 24-Zeke McKenzie [10][]; 15. 4G-Paul Schremph [18][]; 16. 21-Randy Dickman [19][]; 17. 44-Rich Lentz [21][]; 18. OX-Steve Picou [14][]; 19. O-Tim Hancock [20][]; 20. P27-Brody Pompe [9][]; 21. 18L-Michael Long [3][]; 22. 14-Billy Smith [22][]; 23. 94-Austin Rettig [23][]; 24. 2-Jessy Snyders [24][]; 25. 77-Rick Stevenson [25][] Hard Charger: 10X-Jim Black[+6]
  20. Shirley and Hoffman Dominate at LaSalle for 30th Career Wins DIRTcar Late Models LaSALLE, IL – July 29, 2020 – They say to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Not only did the defending DIRTcar Summer Nationals champion Brian Shirley beat every driver on one of the best rosters the tour will compete against all season, but he dominated them on Wednesday night at LaSalle Speedway for the 30th Summer Nationals victory of his career. “This sport’s very humbling,” Shirley said in Victory Lane. “You can be good one night and be horrible the next. So, we’re just going to do the best we can do and take it as it comes.” Several big-name drivers from the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series and beyond came out to challenge the regulars and veterans of the Summer Nationals Wednesday night, and it made for one stacked roster heading into the evening’s action. Names like Chase Junghans, Boom Briggs, Tyler Erb, Kyle Bronson and more made the trip out to LaSalle for the track’s first event of 2020 to mix-it-up with former champions of the Hell Tour like Shannon Babb, Bobby Pierce and Dennis Erb Jr. But the name on the big check in Victory Lane at the end of the night was none other than the man who beat them all and led flag-to-flag in the 40-lap contest, Brian Shirley. Shirley opened the program by setting quick time in Qualifying, winning his Heat Race and redrawing the pole for his Feature starting spot. Right from the drop of the green, Shirley’s Rocket Chassis #3s took command out front. Not even the lapped traffic he faced while clicking off the laps could slow his pace. For each of the 40 Feature laps, Shirley drove virtually unchallenged and, by the time he had taken the while flag, had lapped the field up to ninth. Truly, an impressive feat for the defending champ. “To be honest, every race we go to – whether it’s a Summer Nationals, World of Outlaws… Heck, I don’t even care if we go to a $1,500-to-win local race, you’ve gotta go into every race as it’s as tough as it could be. Any more of the competition is tough, it doesn’t matter who comes in, where you go, what you do. It’s just super tough,” Shirley said of the deep competition he faces each year. As one of three drivers to sit with two-or-more wins on the tour so far this year, Tyler Erb had another terrific run on the podium in second, while Dennis Erb Jr. followed-up his Feature win at Clarksville last Sunday with a third-place effort. Feature (40 Laps) 1. 3S-Brian Shirley [1][]; 2. 1T-Tyler Erb [4][]; 3. 28-Dennis Erb [5][]; 4. 18-Shannon Babb [3][]; 5. 18J-Chase Junghans [7][]; 6. 24-Ryan Unzicker [6][]; 7. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr [11][]; 8. 99B-Boom Briggs [2][]; 9. 10S-Scott Schmitt [14][]; 10. 32-Bobby Pierce [8][]; 11. 25-Jason Feger [9][]; 12. 59-Garrett Alberson [16][]; 13. B1-Brent Larson [15][]; 14. 21B-Rich Bell [21][]; 15. 89-Mike Spatola [10][]; 16. 15S-Taylor Scheffler [12][]; 17. 4G-Bob Gardner [17][]; 18. 48-Tim Lance [19][]; 19. 1M-Mike Mataragas [18][]; 20. 58-Jeremiah Hurst [13][]; 21. B12-Kevin Weaver [20][]; 22. 48L-Tim Lance Jr [22][] Hard Charger: 21B-Rich Bell[+7] DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals He’s the two-time and defending tour champion, and now a three-time-straight Feature winner with the DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds. Needless to say, Nick Hoffman is on a roll. After sweeping the Modified action in Clarksville last weekend, Hoffman wasted zero time in getting right back to his ways with another flag-to-flag victory Wednesday night at LaSalle Speedway. The opening laps saw two of Hoffman’s biggest competitors retire early with issues right at the drop of the green. Will Krup brought out the caution on Lap 2 after breaking going through Turns 1-2, and Mike McKinney brought it back out on the restart as he spun in front of the field in the same corners. Both retired with just a single lap completed. Back out front, it was all Hoffman’s race to lose, until a caution with less than five laps remaining restacked the field and put the six-time Summit Modifieds champion Mike Harrison right on Hoffman’s rear bumper. Harrison showed Hoffman a wheel down low at first and then pulled-up alongside his Elite Chassis #7 but couldn’t make it stick. Hoffman shut the door on the inside after taking the white flag to seal the 30th Summit Modified race win of his career. “I just had to get up on the wheel and try and get it done,” Hoffman said in Victory Lane. “I know Mike [Harrison] probably could’ve took me out on that last lap blocking him, but I appreciate him running me clean there.’ Picking up the race’s honor charger honors was 15-year-old Hunt Gossum, as he came all the way from 18th to finish 5th. Feature (25 Laps) 1. 7-Nick Hoffman [1][]; 2. 24H-Mike Harrison [4][]; 3. 77-Ray Bollinger [5][]; 4. 25W-Allen Weisser [8][]; 5. 99-Hunt Gossum [18][]; 6. 45-Kyle Hammer [7][]; 7. 59-Travis Thresher [13][]; 8. 1-Nash Hilmes [16][]; 9. 1L-Dave Lilja [10][]; 10. 12-Richard Craven [12][]; 11. 3C-Dan Hahn [15][]; 12. 24-Zeke McKenzie [20][]; 13. 57-Tim Hamburg [9][]; 14. 5-Steven Brooks [11][]; 15. 1W-Bob Pohlman [6][]; 16. 17T-James Thompson [19][]; 17. 96M-Mike McKinney [2][]; 18. K19-Will Krup [3][]; 19. O-Travis Kohler [14][]; 20. 48-Casey Lappin [17][] Hard Charger Award: 99-Hunt Gossum[+13] UP NEXT The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified action continues Thursday night at the Peoria Speedway with the completion of the July 9 show that was postponed due to rain. Catch all the action LIVE on DIRTVision.
  21. NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS: Shirley Makes it Back-to-Back Late Model Wins, Hoffman Scores Second Summit Modified Win of 2020 at Clarksville DIRTcar Late Models CLARKSVILLE, TN – July 25, 2020 – A grand total of 90 Feature laps have been contested over the last two days with the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. Brian Shirley has led every single one of them. The three-time and defending champion put on another dominant display of car control and finesse in lapped traffic Saturday night at Clarksville Speedway, leading all 50 laps of the Feature for his third Summer Nationals victory of 2020 and 29th of his career. Shirley started on the pole of the Feature and took off immediately at the drop of the green, opening up a sizable advantage over Jason Feger and Jadon Frame. Over the course of 50 laps, Squirrel was forced to deal with several restarts, supplying his competition with more opportunities to get by him. “Being the leader helps a lot,” Shirley told tour announcer Ruben Mireles in Victory Lane. “With the way the corner was, it just worked out where I could just hit my mark right.” A big name amongst that competition was fellow Illinoisan Frank Heckenast Jr., who caught and passed Shirley for the win just three two nights prior at Springfield. Heckenast was right back at it on Saturday night after starting 11th and moving up as far as second before the final checkers, using both the high and low grooves to make moves on the head of the field. By the race’s final stages, Heckenast had been locked in the middle of a close battle with Dennis Erb Jr. for second, which he surrendered for good on Lap 42. Regardless, another great points night on the podium for the #99jr team. Back out front, it was simply another episode of Shirley’s domination, recorded. A couple late-race caution flags helped to restack the field in hopes of catching him, but to no avail. Shirley went on to collect the checkered and the check, worth another $10,000. Another great run for Erb Jr. in second who, over three races, hasn’t finished worse than sixth. Heckenast, Jason Feger, Jadon Frame rounded out the top five. UP NEXT The DIRTcar Summer Nationals Late Model action continues from Clarksville Speedway Sunday night, featuring a $5,000-to-win main event at the quarter-mile track. Live video coverage will be provided by DIRTVision – register for a Fast Pass subscription today and watch every race live! Feature (50 Laps) 1. 3S-Brian Shirley [1][$10,000]; 2. 28-Dennis Erb [5][$5,000]; 3. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr [11][$3,000]; 4. 25-Jason Feger [2][$2,000]; 5. J27-Jadon Frame [3][$1,500]; 6. 4G-Bob Gardner [7][$1,200]; 7. 54JR-Larry Barber [9][$900]; 8. 48-Tim Lance [10][$700]; 9. 27-Joe Denby [4][$600]; 10. 38-Dillon Tidmore [12][$550]; 11. 18-David Seibers [18][$500]; 12. 19-Gavin Schmidt [22][$500]; 13. 10J-Jordan Bauer [14][$500]; 14. O1-Steven Stehle [16][$500]; 15. 48L-Tim Lance Jr [21][$500]; 16. 21-Billy Moyer [8][$500]; 17. 11-Adam Elliott [13][$500]; 18. 127-Robert Ardry [17][$500]; 19. 4GR-Bobby Richey [15][$500]; 20. 61-Caleb Ashby [6][$500]; 21. 1A-Levi Ashby [20][$500]; 22. 16-Devin Black [19][$500] Hard Charger: 19-Gavin Schmidt[+10] DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds It’s shaping up to be an incredible battle to the finish for the coveted DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals trophy at season’s end. With the defending champion Nick Hoffman’s flag-to-flag win at Clarksville Speedway Saturday night, the race now gets a little closer. Hoffman started on the outside pole and made it look easy, going virtually unchallenged for 25 laps as he cruised to his 28th career Summit Modifieds victory. He knew the pressure to perform was on, lining up next to UMP Modified hot shoe Lucas Lee, but was able to get the jump he needed to get out front heading into the first corner. “When I drew the ‘2’ [pill], I felt like I could roll [Lee] on the start and then just try and protect getting into Turn 1, and it worked out,” Hoffman said of the initial start in Victory Lane. However, one of his closest competitors, Mike McKinney, did not have the night he was looking for behind the wheel of his Elite Chassis #96. He got caught in a pile-up with several other cars on Lap 6 and retired to the pit area immediately. With McKinney sitting at three wins and Hoffman now with two, the points battle is poised to go right down to the wire with 15 races still to go. Despite the fact that only the best eight finishes are counted toward a driver’s overall points total with the Summit Modifieds, they’re both fierce competitors and are each shooting for as many wins as possible by the end of the tour. If they both reach eight wins, it could come down to some math to decide a champion. UP NEXT The DIRTcar Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals action continues from Clarksville Speedway Sunday night, featuring a $1,000-to-win main event at the quarter-mile track. Live video coverage will be provided by DIRTVision – register for a Fast Pass subscription today and watch every race live! Feature (25 Laps) 1. 7-Nick Hoffman [2]; 2. 12-Lucas Lee [1]; 3. 99-Hunt Gossum [3]; 4. 15-Clayton Miller [6]; 5. O2-Chris Cook [9]; 6. 16C-John Clippinger [8]; 7. 24-Zeke McKenzie [13]; 8. 43-Ricky Knight [14]; 9. 7S-Pete Sabatino [17]; 10. 98-Zac Harris [11]; 11. 7D-Trent Young [4]; 12. 96M-Mike McKinney [5]; 13. 2-Peyton Walker [10]; 14. 55-Michael Lee [12]; 15. 94-Cory Balkey [16]; 16. 176-Scotty Owens [7]; 17. 74J-Jeff Sanford [15]; 18. K19-Will Krup [18]; 19. 188-Andy Elliott [19] Hard Charger: 7S-Pete Sabatino [+8]
  22. Sheppard Wins on Erb Jr.’s Penalty After Wild Whitener-Overton Battle - Six-straight World of Outlaws wins at DIRTcar Nationals for the defending champ BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 12, 2020 — Just when it looked like Mark Whitener was going to win his first World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series Feature on Wednesday night at Volusia Speedway Park, he and Brandon Overton started slamming into each other from Turn 2 to Turn 4, leaving a lane for Dennis Erb Jr. and Brandon Sheppard to claim the lead with eight laps to go. Erb was glued to the bottom, Sheppard blasted the top side. Erb’s groove proved to be just enough to edge Sheppard at the line by the blink of an eye. But following the Victory Lane celebration, Erb did not bring his car to postrace inspection as required, forcing officials to penalize him to last place and award Sheppard the victory, his first of the season. It was Sheppard’s second victory during this week’s DIRTcar Nationals presented by Bozard Ford. “The car was phenomenal again tonight,” Sheppard said. “We came from eighth and were able to get up through there and challenge Dennis. Unfortunately for him, things happen, and I sure hate to see that for him.” But before all of the post-race drama played out, original race leader Whitener and a hounding Overton reached their boiling points on lap 33, when the two made heavy contact in Turn 4 battling for the lead, leaving Overton in the outside clay-buildup and Whitener slowing at the top of Turns 1 and 2 – a flat left-rear tire on Whitener’s #5 and a crumpled nose on Overton’s #76. Overton pulled it into the pits and retired on the lap after the restart while Whitener changed his flat and finished the race in 25th. The battle began with Whitener taking the lead from Erb on lap three. Whitener almost immediately went on the defensive, switching from the high to the low side to protect the lead from Erb’s grasp. Overton entered the picture on lap 14, making the move to the low side of Erb as he set his sights on Whitener’s rear bumper. More intense battling took place between the top three in the following laps until a caution flag waved on lap 26. Overton made a great move around the outside of Erb for second into Turn 1 on the restart to take second and made the pass for the lead on Whitener at the line as they came back around. Whitener took it back on the outside one lap later before another caution flew with just 10 laps remaining. “I could see the bottom was starting to get dominant, so I had to get down there. It was starting to go away for me, but I could still blast the top and run it,” Whitener said. Whitener led the field back to the green and chose to slide up to the high line. Overton had the same idea as the two went into Turn 3 on the next lap and ran out of room on the top, forcing him to cross underneath. He slid up tight to Whitener as they passed by the flagstand and took the low line on Turn 1 entry, again drifting up the track in Turn 2. Whitener had already committed to powering around the top in an attempt to beat Overton out of Turn 2, and the two made contact with each other and the outside wall at corner exit. Overton shot to the lead into Turn 3 and again drifted to the top as Whitener did the same, and the two collided off of Turn 4, sending Overton way up over the heavy cushion, damaging the nose on the Wells Motorsports #76. The caution flag waived, and the two putted around the track as the field collected. Overton went right to the rear while Whitener went to the pits to change a flat tire. From his perspective, Overton said he initially left some room on the top side in Turn 2. “He ran me up the track two or three times, run me up into the fence, pretty much, in Turn 3. I kinda just got tired of messing with him. I slid him, and I left him a lane, I left him some room to get by. I just made it tight for him because I was trying to show him like ‘quit doing that.’ I guess he felt like I flattened his tire, I didn’t run in there and flatten his tire,” Overton said. However, Whitener said he saw the incident in Turn 2 differently. “He just wrecked me. He slid all the way into me, put me in the fence and flattened my left-rear tire. He just completely fenced me. I just got wrecked,” Whitener said. When asked about the contact in Turn 4 being retaliatory, Whitener said, “100 percent. And the bad part about it is, me and Brandon have raced Crates, we’ve raced spec for $3,000, $5,000, $10,000, whatever the case is. But this is a World of Outlaws $10,000-to-win race. You don’t wreck somebody leading the race. A Crate race, a local race, whatever. However he wants to race is good with me, I’ll rub doors all day long. But you don’t take someone’s first World of Outlaws win away from them by putting them in the fence. You don’t do that.” Overton was scored with a 27th-place finish and had this to say about the contact in Turn 4: “We got together, and I guess he felt like I ran him over, so he came back and ran me over. It is what it is, I just hate it for all these guys that work on this thing, but we’ll get it fixed up and go again,” Overton said. “It is what it is. We were both trying to win, he was driving hard, I was driving hard and we just came together.” With the two leaders now at the tail of the field, Erb inherited the lead and brought the field back around to the checkers, just .097 seconds ahead of Sheppard. But in the end, Erb was informed of his penalty and Sheppard was declared the winner. “Not the way we wanted to win it, Dennis did a really good job there,” Sheppard said. “He kept it out in front of us that whole race. We were right there, definitely slicing-and-dicing there and had a really good race.” With this victory, Sheppard earns his first Series win of 2020 and sixth consecutive World of Outlaws Feature at the DIRTcar Nationals. Coming from eighth, he stayed up front all race and will continue to be a favorite to repeat as Big Gator champion later this week. “My guys have been doing a really good job, our car’s been really good night-in and night-out, so hopefully we can just keep the good runs coming,” Sheppard said. UP NEXT The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series action continues from the DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park on Thursday night, where the field takes on another 40-lap, $10,000-to-win Feature. Catch all the action live on DIRTVision! Morton Buildings Feature (40 Laps) 1-Brandon Sheppard [8][$10,000]; 2. 29v-Darrell Lanigan [7][$5,000]; 3. 14-Josh Richards [13][$3,000]; 4. 20-Jimmy Owens [6][$2,500]; 5. 3s-Brian Shirley [10][$2,000]; 6. 25-Shane Clanton [9][$1,700]; 7. 39-Tim McCreadie [5][$1,400]; 8. 49-Jonathan Davenport [12][$1,300]; 9. 40B-Kyle Bronson [17][$1,200]; 10. 18-Chase Junghans [14][$1,100]; 11. 17M-Dale McDowell [16][$1,050]; 12. 157-Mike Marlar [3][$1,000]; 13. 25z-Mason Zeigler [22][$950]; 14. 12-Ashton Winger [15][$900]; 15. 0e-Rick Eckert [26][$850]; 16. 4G-Kody Evans [23][$800]; 17. 97-Cade Dillard [19][$770]; 18. 0M-Chris Madden [20][$750]; 19. 0-Scott Bloomquist [25][$730]; 20. 7-Ricky Weiss [11][$700]; 21. 99B-Boom Briggs [21][$700]; 22. 66c-Matt Cosner [27][$700]; 23. 6-Blake Spencer [29][$110]; 24. 5-Mark Whitener [4][$110]; 25. B1-Brent Larson [28][$700]; 26. 76-Brandon Overton [2][$110]; 27. 2s-Stormy Scott [24][$700]; 28. 21-Ivedent Lloyd [30][$700]; 29. 72-Michael Norris [18][$110]; 30. 28-Dennis Erb [1][$700]; Lap Leaders: Brandon Overton – 28; Mark Whitner – 3-27, 29-32; Dennis Erb – 1-2, 33-40; Hard Charger: 0e-Rick Eckert[+10]
  23. McCreadie Outruns Sheppard for DIRTcar Nationals Win - Sheppard’s 5-race win streak at Volusia snapped; McCreadie’s new team reaping rewards BARBERVILLE, FL – Feb. 11, 2020 – When a new driver-owner partnership comes about for the beginning of a new season, there’s normally a learning curve that each team member goes through before getting settled. In the case of Tim McCreadie, however, he and his new team at Paylor Motorsports made it look like they’ve been together for years as they scored a dominating victory in Tuesday night’s DIRTcar Late Model Feature at Volusia Speedway Park as part of the 49th DIRTcar Nationals presented by Bozard Ford. “I owe a lot to [car owners] Gena and Donald Bradsher,” McCreadie said. “They didn’t have to do this, and we’re reaping the benefits of it as a team. We’ve got a really, really good team, everybody gets along.” The Watertown, NY-native joined the Burlington, NC-based team this past December after more than 15 years behind the wheel of his well-known Sweetners Plus Racing ride. And on Tuesday night, he and the new team never missed a beat, besting the 48-car field by leading all 30 laps of the Feature for the $7,000 top prize. From the pole, McCreadie jumped to the lead right away and began playing tough defense from a streaking Brandon Sheppard, who had won the previous five Late Model races contested at the DIRTcar Nationals. A late restart gave Sheppard a final chance at McCreadie, but he was ultimately unable to catch the leader and crossed the line in second. Kyle Bronson held off a hungry Dennis Erb Jr. for the final podium spot, and Jonathan Davenport raced his way up to complete the top five from 10th. From the drop of the green, McCreadie seemed to have the answers to each of Sheppard’s challenges. Sheppard tried to get by T-Mac on the low side, pulling up alongside his Mega Plumbing #39 several times, but was ultimately unable to complete the pass. McCreadie just seemed to have a better car right in the middle of the racetrack, and he said it was all about what he learned from watching Sheppard drive to victory on Monday night. “I watched the night before, I ran the bottom, following Brandon for a little bit and he got away,” McCreadie said. “I just saw what he was doing. He started arching really wide and clipping the track in half.” At multiple points during the race, Sheppard was good enough on the bottom to nose his way into the lead, but only for a turn or two. When done correctly, McCreadie would power back around to The Rocket-Shepp’s outside, using that momentum in the high-middle groove. The two battled back-and-forth for multiple laps at a time before getting spread out as they eclipsed the halfway point. Kyle Bronson had made significant efforts on the top side, battling with Erb Jr. for third, and the two soon began to catch the leaders before the race’s only caution flag flew with 10 laps remaining. “The high line was definitely good for me, I’m comfortable up there racing,” Bronson said. “But when I moved down in the last couple of laps, I actually felt better on the bottom, really. It’s good to know our car is maneuverable.” On the restart, McCreadie said he could feel the pressure to get separation from Sheppard. “I’ve been around a long time, and there’s like a ‘money restart.’ And with under 10 [laps to go], it’s like, you better do something. Just something that gives you a little bit of room to breathe, and I feel like it happened, because the sticks were fairly wide when I went by.” He indeed get that separation, immediately opening up a few car-lengths lead. Again, using that middle groove, where most other drivers chose not to drive. “My crew chief Phil, he gave me one signal right after the yellow where Brandon was back beside me. It was a move of like, ‘hey, drive that thing right through the middle as hard as possible and roll to the cushion.’ And I just did it and I never saw Brandon again,” McCreadie said. Leading the field back to the checkered flag, McCreadie snapped Sheppard’s five-race win-streak at Volusia in style, doing something very rarely seen at Volusia, let alone at all – outrunning the Rocket1 Racing car. Even though he couldn’t catch McCreadie in the end, Sheppard said he was pleased with his car, just needed to get out in front early like he did the night before. “We had a good car, and we put ourselves in the right position early in the night,” Sheppard said. “[McCreadie] just got the jump on me at the start and it was pretty much over after that.” Much like some other teams do, Sheppard said he and the Rocket1 crew were testing out a few things to see the car’s capability on the final DIRTcar night before the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series shows begin on Wednesday. “I think our car was really good, and we tried a few things tonight, trying to make the car a little bit better. And that might have been some of it too, kinda got off-track from where we were last night, just trying some stuff before the Outlaws races,” Sheppard said. UP NEXT The 49th annual DIRTcar Nationals action continues with the arrival of the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Models on Wednesday night, as they run alongside the Super DIRTcar Series in the first of four 50-lap, $10,000-to-win shows. Hot Laps are scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. ET; catch all the action live on DIRTVision! DIRTcar Feature (30 Laps) 1. 39-Tim McCreadie [1]; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard [2]; 3. 40B-Kyle Bronson [3]; 4. 28-Dennis Erb [4]; 5. 49-Jonathan Davenport [10]; 6. 157-Mike Marlar [16]; 7. 17M-Dale McDowell [8]; 8. 29v-Darrell Lanigan [12]; 9. 7-Ricky Weiss [9]; 10. 72-Michael Norris [11]; 11. 20-Jimmy Owens [22]; 12. 76-Brandon Overton [5]; 13. 3s-Brian Shirley [6]; 14. 0M-Chris Madden [15]; 15. 97-Cade Dillard [13]; 16. 2s-Stormy Scott [14]; 17. 18-Chase Junghans [26]; 18. 0e-Rick Eckert [18]; 19. 14-Josh Richards [23]; 20. 8-Kyle Strickler [19]; 21. 25-Shane Clanton [20]; 22. 15-Donny Schatz [21]; 23. 31-Tyler Millwood [24]; 24. 36-Logan Martin [7]; 25. 5-Mark Whitener [17]; 26. 25w-Allen Weisser [25] Hard Charger: 20-Jimmy Owens[+11]
  24. Illinois Racer Charges to Victory in Volusia’s DIRTcar Nationals Opener - Long holds off Strickler to capture first Gator Trophy of 12-night event BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 4, 2020 — Michael Long surged to the lead on the opening lap of the DIRTcar UMP Modified Feature Tuesday night and fought off Kyle Strickler to the checkered flag for the first Gator Trophy of the 12-night DIRTcar Nationals presented by Bozard Ford at Volusia Speedway Park. Long, of Fowler, Ill., used the high side in Turns 1 and 2 to keep Strickler, who started eighth, pinned to the bottom and unable to maximize his horsepower. After a couple of cautions seven laps into the race, a 12-lap green-flag run forced Long to negotiate heavy lapped traffic on the high-speed half-mile dirt oval. “Luckily, they went to the bottom,” Long said of the lapped cars. “When you see the #8 of Strickler on the board it makes you nervous on restarts, especially going into Turn 1. I knew once I got rolling I was good. He had to out-motor me and I knew if I hit the restarts right I was going to be alright.” Ryan Cripe wound up third while defending DIRTcar Nationals champion Nick Hoffman started 21st and powered his way to a fourth-place finish. Zeke McKenzie was fifth after starting 28th to earn Hard Charger honors. NASCAR CONNECTIONS: Kenny Wallace raced to a ninth-place finish in the Feature while David Stremme went for a spin after contact with Cripe as they were battling for third, collecting last summer’s Daytona winner Justin Haley in the process. … Three-time NASCAR Truck Series champion Matt Crafton missed the Feature by one position in a Last Chance Showdown that also included Xfinity Series standout Justin Allgaier, who finished one spot behind Crafton, and Truck Series racer Sheldon Creed, who finished eighth. WINGED WARRIORS: World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars — including drivers like recent Chili Bowl winner and NASCAR star Kyle Larson — rolled onto the half-mile dirt oval for a final tune-up session before the high-powered, winged sprint cars compete at Volusia the next five nights. For more on the DIRTcar Nationals, go to DIRTcarNationals.com. DIRTcar Nationals Race Report; Volusia Speedway Park; Feb. 4, 2020 DIRTcar UMP Modified Feature (20 laps): 1. 18L-Michael Long [2][$1,000]; 2. 8KS-Kyle Strickler [8][$600]; 3. 23-Ryan Cripe [4][$400]; 4. 2-Nick Hoffman [21][$350]; 5. 24-Zeke McKenzie [28][$300]; 6. 5-Curt Spalding [3][$275]; 7. 2A-Donnie Moran [12][$250]; 8. 49-Brian Ruhlman [25][$225]; 9. 36-Kenny Wallace [9][$200]; 10. 7-Drake Troutman [20][$200]; 11. 99M-Mike Mullen [23][$175]; 12. 90-Jason Beaulieu [17][$140]; 13. 77-Ray Bollinger [11][$130]; 14. 7A-Shane Sabraski [22][$125]; 15. 95-Michael Altobelli [27][$125]; 16. 45J-Johnny Broking [15][$125]; 17. 22-Dale Kelley [19][$125]; 18. 2J-Troy Johnson [10][$125]; 19. O5-Dave Wietholder [16][$125]; 20. 7F-Bryan Foy [24][$125]; 21. 35-David Stremme [5][$125]; 22. 17TE-Tyler Evans [14][$125]; 23. 11JH-Justin Haley [18][$125]; 24. 7CT-Christian Thomas [26][$125]; 25. 8A-Austin Holcombe [13][$125]; 26. K19-Will Krup [1][$100]; 27. 75-Terry Phillips [7][$100]; 28. 65-Todd Sherman [6][$100]. Qualifying Flight-A: 1. 8KS-Kyle Strickler, 17.975; 2. 90-Jason Beaulieu, 18.063; 3. 8-Steve Stevenson, 18.336; 4. 36-Kenny Wallace, 18.445; 5. 7JA-Justin Allgaier, 18.497; 6. 96M-Mike McKinney, 18.742; 7. 1-Brenden Rassel, 19.463; 8. 82-Gary Dillon, 19.72; 9. 15-Rick Potter, 19.963; 10. A1-Gary Bentley, NT Qualifying Flight-B: 1. 5-Curt Spalding, 18.053; 2. 11JH-Justin Haley, 18.308; 3. 11-Jesse Rupe, 18.479; 4. 2J-Troy Johnson, 18.559; 5. 32-Chad Roush, 18.618; 6. 6A-Ryan Ayers, 18.68; 7. 71L-Dennis Lunger, 18.751; 8. 17T-Michael Tarlton, 18.919; 9. 22T-Tony Anderson, 19.077; 10. Z1-Zac Oedewaldt, 19.284 Qualifying Flight-C: 1. 22-Dale Kelley, 18.128; 2. 23-Ryan Cripe, 18.185; 3. 95-Michael Altobelli, 18.426; 4. 77-Ray Bollinger, 18.656; 5. 11Z-Zane Oedewaldt, 19.214; 6. 17-Rob Pitcher, 19.241; 7. 11M-Mike McGee, 19.264; 8. 11N-Gene Nicholas, 19.275; 9. O7-Curtis King, 20.178; 10. 3L-Jeff Leka, NT Qualifying Flight-D: 1. 2A-Donnie Moran, 18.088; 2. 75-Terry Phillips, 18.123; 3. 67-Garret Stewart, 18.129; 4. 12H-Jason Hughes, 18.129; 5. 24-Zeke McKenzie, 18.184; 6. 7-Drake Troutman, 18.198; 7. 25-Tyler Nicely, 18.437; 8. 20-Tyler Hendrix, 19.113; 9. Z06-Larry Mott, 19.187; 10. 12L-Lucas Lee, NT Qualifying Flight-E: 1. 35-David Stremme, 17.998; 2. 8A-Austin Holcombe, 18.023; 3. 49-Brian Ruhlman, 18.088; 4. 2-Nick Hoffman, 18.186; 5. 31G-Stephen Pedulla, 18.688; 6. 88-Matt Crafton, 18.822; 7. 9-Sheldon Creed, 19.015; 8. 5F-Jerry Foster, 19.532; 9. 89W-Rick Weitekamp, 20.144 Qualifying Flight-F: 1. 17TE-Tyler Evans, 18.1; 2. K19-Will Krup, 18.144; 3. 7CT-Christian Thomas, 18.351; 4. 7A-Shane Sabraski, 18.465; 5. 12-Jason Gross, 18.589; 6. 97-Mitch Thomas, 18.808; 7. 11H-Spencer Hughes, 18.886; 8. 52-Colin Green, 19.008; 9. 9PG-Percy Gendreau, 19.535 Qualifying Flight-G: 1. 18L-Michael Long, 18.17; 2. 99M-Mike Mullen, 18.25; 3. 45J-Johnny Broking, 18.295; 4. 19-Chad Bauer, 18.304; 5. 24D-Travis Dickson, 18.361; 6. 1M-Curt Myers, 18.489; 7. 4UW-Bobby Regot, 18.55; 8. 100-Scott Fritz, 19.021; 9. 1S-Brian Shaw, NT Qualifying Flight-H: 1. 65-Todd Sherman, 18.187; 2. O5-Dave Wietholder, 18.42; 3. 7F-Bryan Foy, 18.481; 4. 99-Hunt Gossum, 18.502; 5. 6-Ryan Fowler, 18.664; 6. 96-Cole Parker, 18.674; 7. OO-Buzzie Reutimann, 19.115; 8. O1-Bryce Nichols, NT; 9. 14J-John Baker, NT Heat #1 - Flight (A) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 8KS-Kyle Strickler [1]; 2. 36-Kenny Wallace [4]; 3. 90-Jason Beaulieu [2]; 4. 82-Gary Dillon [8]; 5. 7JA-Justin Allgaier [5]; 6. 8-Steve Stevenson [3]; 7. A1-Gary Bentley [10]; 8. 1-Brenden Rassel [7]; 9. 15-Rick Potter [9]; 10. 96M-Mike McKinney [6] Heat #2 - Flight (B) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 5-Curt Spalding [1]; 2. 2J-Troy Johnson [4]; 3. 11JH-Justin Haley [2]; 4. 11-Jesse Rupe [3]; 5. 6A-Ryan Ayers [6]; 6. 71L-Dennis Lunger [7]; 7. 17T-Michael Tarlton [8]; 8. 22T-Tony Anderson [9]; 9. 32-Chad Roush [5]; 10. Z1-Zac Oedewaldt [10] Heat #3 - Flight (C) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 23-Ryan Cripe [2]; 2. 77-Ray Bollinger [4]; 3. 22-Dale Kelley [1]; 4. 95-Michael Altobelli [3]; 5. 17-Rob Pitcher [6]; 6. 11M-Mike McGee [7]; 7. 11Z-Zane Oedewaldt [5]; 8. 11N-Gene Nicholas [8]; 9. O7-Curtis King [9]; 10. 3L-Jeff Leka [10] Heat #4 - Flight (D) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 75-Terry Phillips [2]; 2. 2A-Donnie Moran [1]; 3. 7-Drake Troutman [6]; 4. 24-Zeke McKenzie [5]; 5. 67-Garret Stewart [3]; 6. 25-Tyler Nicely [7]; 7. 12H-Jason Hughes [4]; 8. 12L-Lucas Lee [10]; 9. 20-Tyler Hendrix [8]; 10. Z06-Larry Mott [9] Heat #5 - Flight (E) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 35-David Stremme [1]; 2. 8A-Austin Holcombe [2]; 3. 2-Nick Hoffman [4]; 4. 49-Brian Ruhlman [3]; 5. 88-Matt Crafton [6]; 6. 31G-Stephen Pedulla [5]; 7. 9-Sheldon Creed [7]; 8. 89W-Rick Weitekamp [9]; 9. 5F-Jerry Foster [8] Heat #6 - Flight (F) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. K19-Will Krup [2]; 2. 17TE-Tyler Evans [1]; 3. 7A-Shane Sabraski [4]; 4. 7CT-Christian Thomas [3]; 5. 12-Jason Gross [5]; 6. 97-Mitch Thomas [6]; 7. 11H-Spencer Hughes [7]; 8. 52-Colin Green [8]; 9. 9PG-Percy Gendreau [9] Heat #7 - Flight (G) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 18L-Michael Long [1]; 2. 45J-Johnny Broking [3]; 3. 99M-Mike Mullen [2]; 4. 19-Chad Bauer [4]; 5. 24D-Travis Dickson [5]; 6. 1M-Curt Myers [6]; 7. 4UW-Bobby Regot [7]; 8. 100-Scott Fritz [8]; 9. 1S-Brian Shaw [9] Heat #8 - Flight (H) (8 Laps) - Top 3 Transfer: 1. 65-Todd Sherman [1]; 2. O5-Dave Wietholder [2]; 3. 7F-Bryan Foy [3]; 4. 96-Cole Parker [6]; 5. 6-Ryan Fowler [5]; 6. OO-Buzzie Reutimann [7]; 7. 99-Hunt Gossum [4]; 8. 14J-John Baker [9]; 9. O1-Bryce Nichols [8] C-Main 1 (8 Laps) - Top 8 Transfer: 1. 1-Brenden Rassel [1][-]; 2. 100-Scott Fritz [4][-]; 3. 11N-Gene Nicholas [2][$75]; 4. 5F-Jerry Foster [7][$75]; 5. O7-Curtis King [6][$75]; 6. 89W-Rick Weitekamp [3][$75]; 7. 96M-Mike McKinney [9][$75]; 8. 3L-Jeff Leka [10][$75]; 9. 1S-Brian Shaw [8][$75]; 10. 15-Rick Potter [5][$75] C-Main 2 ( Laps): 1. 22T-Tony Anderson [1][-]; 2. 12L-Lucas Lee [2][-]; 3. 52-Colin Green [3][$75]; 4. 32-Chad Roush [5][$75]; 5. O1-Bryce Nichols [8][$75]; 6. 9PG-Percy Gendreau [7][$75]; 7. 14J-John Baker [4][$75]; 8. 20-Tyler Hendrix [6][$75]; 9. Z06-Larry Mott [10][$75]; 10. Z1-Zac Oedewaldt [9][$75] Last Chance Showdown 1 (8 Laps) - Top 1 Transfer: 1. 49-Brian Ruhlman [2][-]; 2. 88-Matt Crafton [4][-]; 3. 7JA-Justin Allgaier [3][-]; 4. 31G-Stephen Pedulla [6][-]; 5. 8-Steve Stevenson [5][$75]; 6. A1-Gary Bentley [7][$75]; 7. 1-Brenden Rassel [9][$75]; 8. 9-Sheldon Creed [8][$75]; 9. 11N-Gene Nicholas [10][$75]; 10. 82-Gary Dillon [1][$75]; 11. O7-Curtis King [11][$75]; 12. 96M-Mike McKinney [12][$75] Last Chance Showdown 2 (Laps): 1. 7CT-Christian Thomas [2][-]; 2. 11-Jesse Rupe [1][-]; 3. 71L-Dennis Lunger [5][-]; 4. 6A-Ryan Ayers [3][-]; 5. 97-Mitch Thomas [6][$75]; 6. 100-Scott Fritz [9][$75]; 7. 17T-Michael Tarlton [7][$75]; 8. 12-Jason Gross [4][$75]; 9. 89W-Rick Weitekamp [11][$75]; 10. 11H-Spencer Hughes [8][$75]; 11. 5F-Jerry Foster [10][$75]; 12. 3L-Jeff Leka [12][$75] Last Chance Showdown 3 (Laps): 1. 95-Michael Altobelli [1][-]; 2. 24D-Travis Dickson [4][-]; 3. 19-Chad Bauer [2][-]; 4. 1M-Curt Myers [6][-]; 5. 11M-Mike McGee [5][$75]; 6. 52-Colin Green [10][$75]; 7. 22T-Tony Anderson [9][$75]; 8. 11Z-Zane Oedewaldt [7][$75]; 9. 14J-John Baker [12][$75]; 10. O1-Bryce Nichols [11][$75]; 11. 17-Rob Pitcher [3][$75]; 12. 4UW-Bobby Regot [8][$75] Last Chance Showdown 4 (Laps): 1. 24-Zeke McKenzie [1][-]; 2. 67-Garret Stewart [3][-]; 3. 96-Cole Parker [2][-]; 4. OO-Buzzie Reutimann [6][-]; 5. 25-Tyler Nicely [5][$75]; 6. 12H-Jason Hughes [7][$75]; 7. 99-Hunt Gossum [8][$75]; 8. 12L-Lucas Lee [9][$75]; 9. 32-Chad Roush [10][$75]; 10. 20-Tyler Hendrix [12][$75]; 11. 9PG-Percy Gendreau [11][$75]; 12. 6-Ryan Fowler [4][$75]
  25. Bronson Three-Peats, Leyendecker and Sparkman Win on Night #3 of Sunshine Nationals at Volusia BARBERVILLE, FL – Jan. 18, 2020 – Three days of Dirt Late Model racing in the Sunshine State came to an exciting finish on Saturday night at Volusia Speedway Park when Kyle Bronson completed the weekend sweep of the DIRTcar Pro Late Model class after a thrilling battle with Michael Page to capture the $10,000 Sunshine Nationals finale check. Completing Saturday night’s action were two other action-packed Features in which Colton Leyendecker traded in back-to-back third-place finishes for a win in the 602 Late Model division while Dusty Sparkman got his first career win at Volusia in the Florida Late Model Feature. DIRTcar PRO LATE MODELS – KYLE BRONSON A member of the invading “Super Late Model regulars” club this weekend, Brandon, FL’s Kyle Bronson was a big favorite to win it all right from the get-go. And he did just that. The 29-year-old wheelman known as Killer never lost his focus throughout the entire event. Not once. He was fastest overall on practice night, set fast time in Qualifying on Friday night, won all but one of his Heat races and was victorious in all three Features. Utter domination. One notable regarding his wins – each one was increasingly more challenging than the last. That notion really came to the forefront in Saturday night’s drive to Victory Lane, when he was forced to drive through fellow Super Late Model guru Michael Page to earn it. And make no mistake, Page really, really made Bronson work for it. Right at the drop of the green, Page made a beeline for the lead as he proceeded to grab it and lead the field around to complete the first lap. Starting right behind Page, Bronson followed him and broke away from the pack a few laps later to start their high-speed battle for the top spot. Bronson threw the first of many traded slide-jobs between the two on lap 10, clipping Page’s nose as he drove on by. On a restart just three laps later, Page returned the favor by getting into Bronson’s left-rear on a failed pass attempt in Turn 1. “I slid [Page] and he kinda got in the back of me, but it was just hard racing,” Bronson said. “He hit me in the left-rear, just trying hard, and when he did it bent my left-rear wheel.” “We’re both as hard of a racer as the other,” Page said. “I just felt that, on a racetrack that was wide, [Bronson] just kinda came in there and thought he had me cleared but he didn’t. It knocked the steering wheel out of my hands.” The next restart restacked the field and refocused Page, as he threw a slide-job of his own, which Bronson countered by crossing-over as they raced out of Turn 2. The second of two red flags was displayed as they entered turn three, and there the leaders sat, parked right next to each other amidst the stoppage, discussing their intentions. “It just rubbed me the wrong way because the last time we raced, [Bronson] did the same so I returned the favor, maybe a little worse, but we stopped down there and I told him,” Page said. “We talked for a minute and I said, ‘let’s race.’ And after that, we raced. I don’t know if you could have raced anybody harder after that.” “We were just telling each other how much we loved each other and were ready to drink a beer after the races,” Bronson joked. Sitting inside of his Baird Truck and Trailer Sales #18X, Page was dreading the time spent not moving, as the gamble he took on tire selection for the 30-lap Feature did not appear to be working to his advantage. “The red flags killed it. I went on hard tires so they kinda sealed-up on me. Every time the car would come back in, the yellow would come out,” Page said. Meanwhile, an unfortunate situation was developing right underneath Bronson’s #40B as they sat parked on the track, waiting for cleanup to conclude. The contact Bronson’s left-rear tire received from Page’s nose on the earlier restart resulted in a slow leak, and Bronson could hear the clock ticking as they awaited the next restart. “My tire was going flat since lap 14, and then we had the red flag after that,” Bronson said. “I was praying we went back green [quick] because I could hear my tire leaking. Then it finally blew out coming to the checkered.” “It didn’t officially blow all the way out until the last lap there, we were racing on probably a pound or two of air,” Bronson added. In the end, the tire held up… at least, as long as it needed to for Bronson to see the checkers. He battled with the Georgian for several more laps after the red, again trading slide-jobs for the lead before lap 20. Another restart with 13 laps remaining threw Brandon Williams into the mix, who Bronson was also able to put behind him as he drove to his third checkered flag in three nights. All-in-all, the Bronson v. Page battle was settled 100 percent on the racetrack. They may have beaten and banged their cars up quite a bit before all was said and done, but the greatest sight of all may have been in Victory Lane, where the two smiled and shook hands in front of the crowded Volusia bleachers and DIRTVision cameras. “He knows how I felt and I know how he felt,” Page said. “Instead of going around and talking to everybody else about it, we worked it out like you’re supposed to as a racer.” Williams brought out the final caution flag of the race with four laps remaining and dropped out due to an ill-timed mechanical failure, crumpling his best run of the weekend. Arthur Walked capped off his solid weekend with his first podium finish, and Jason Fitzgerald rebounded from being a part of the second red flag incident to come back and finish fifth. Randy Weaver was strong all weekend but couldn’t find his mojo when it mattered most; settling for seventh after starting outside pole in the finale. Ashton Winger joined the Pro Late Model field for a chance at the 10-grand on Saturday, and had a decent run going early, but was on the receiving end of a nasty barrel-rolling flip in Turn 2 that ended his night. He, and every other driver involved, walked away under his own power. Feature (30 Laps) 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson [5]; 2. 18X-Michael Page [3]; 3. 87-Walker Arthur [1]; 4. 5-Mark Whitener [21]; 5. 7-Jason Fitzgerald [4]; 6. 111-Max Blair [11]; 7. 116-Randy Weaver [2]; 8. 14H-Cory Hedgecock [23]; 9. 2-Trynt Lloyd [9]; 10. 6-Dillon Brown [7]; 11. 17-Nevin Gainey [24]; 12. 7A-Corey Almond [8]; 13. 71-Pierce McCarter [13]; 14. 11-Cruz Skinner [12]; 15. 74-Mike Franklin [17]; 16. 38P-Trey Pearson [20]; 17. 33-Jeff Mathews [15]; 18. 84-Sam Halstead [19]; 19. 95-Brandon Williams [10]; 20. 66-Jake Knowles [6]; 21. 9-Ashton Winger [22]; 22. J8-Jadon Frame [16]; 23. K37-Drew Kennedy [14]; 24. 7T-Trever Taylor [18]; 25. 4-Justin Litchford [26]; 26. 66K-Jody Knowles [25] Hard Charger: 5-Mark Whitener[+17] 602 LATE MODELS – COLTON LEYENDECKER After finishing third twice in the first two races over the weekend, Leyendecker finally pulled it off and picked up the win in the final 602 Late Model Feature of the inaugural Sunshine Nationals. Driving past Raymond Folwell on lap five, Leyendecker grabbed the lead and never looked back, holding off Thursday night’s winner, Cody Overton, for the $1,500 check. For his consistent efforts throughout the weekend, Leyendecker was also crowned the Sunshine Nationals miniseries champion of his division. Feature (20 Laps) 1. 33-Colton Leyendecker [1]; 2. 97-Cody Overton [21]; 3. 58-Tyler Clem [4]; 4. 5-Dustin Carter [3]; 5. 5B-Colby Boyett [8]; 6. 25-Wiley McDaniel [22]; 7. 32-Bud Chancey [2]; 8. M51-Mark Steube [17]; 9. 64-Craig Montesi [14]; 10. 97B-Garrett Bullington [13]; 11. 28-Brandon Elwood [19]; 12. 3-Raymond Folwell [6]; 13. 31-Donnie Birdwell [23]; 14. 27K-Timmie King [18]; 15. OO-Louis Ledlow [15]; 16. 388-Jackson Hise [12]; 17. 98-Cody Allen [10]; 18. 9X-Chad Evans [20]; 19. 17S-Brenden Smith [9]; 20. 78-Arthur Conquest [11]; 21. 14JR-Trey Mills [5]; 22. O7-Landon Lungren [7]; 23. O2-Sean Babcock [16] Hard Charger: 97-Cody Overton[+19] FLORIDA LATE MODELS – DUSTY SPARKMAN It was almost a three-peat in two different classes over the weekend, but Sparkman put a stop to that by winning the final Florida Late Model Feature in dominating fashion, leading the final 14 laps to earn his first-ever victory in a Late Model of any kind. Thursday and Friday night’s winner, David Showers Jr., finished sixth and was crowned the miniseries champion of the division by way of his three top-10 results. Feature (20 Laps) 1. OO7-Dusty Sparkman [4]; 2. 27-Bruce Harvey [10]; 3. 41-Derike Bennett [5]; 4. 1A-Richard Pratt [11]; 5. 26B-Adam Bedenbaugh [7]; 6. 18-David Showers [15]; 7. 29-Cameron Saunders [13]; 8. 6-Clay Bedenbaugh [1]; 9. 5MC-Robert Gast [8]; 10. 15-John Bledsoe [9]; 11. 10S-Steve Shead [17]; 12. 51-Holt Pipkin [14]; 13. 98-Johnny Allen [12]; 14. 45-Chuck Jackson [16]; 15. 54-Terry Bronson [3]; 16. 22-William Thomas [20]; 17. 17-Richard Ferry [2]; 18. 18A-Jared Allison [6]; 19. 68-Ken Ellefson [18]; 20. 11K-Josh Kunstbeck [19] Hard Charger: 18-David Showers[+9] UP NEXT DIRTcar Racing hits Volusia Speedway Park again on Feb. 4 with the UMP Modifieds to kick-off the 49th annual DIRTcar Nationals presented by Bozard Ford. Tickets are on sale now.
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