Volusia Speedway Park | Karnac Racing News

David Whitener Takes Powell Memorial Victory At Volusia

BY JOE VANHOOSE – JULY 23, 2019

You can’t tell the story of the Powell Memorial without Mark Whitener.

Whitener, known as “The Magic Man,” rolled into Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Florida Saturday night looking to win Central Florida’s biggest Pro Dirt Late Model race for the fifth time – and the fourth time in a row.

At the end of the 67-lap feature, a Whitener climbed out of a black No. 5 car in victory lane. But this time, it was brother David Whitener jumping on the roof of his car and waving the checkered flag with gusto. Together, the Whitener Brothers from Middleburg, Florida led every lap of the Powell Memorial, but David led the last 50 circuits in a dominating performance.

“I won a Powell! Yeah!” David Whitener exclaimed in victory lane. “I tell you, this is the best race – this is the best race of the year. This is 100-percent the biggest win of my career!”

David Whitener led the 26-car field to the green flag, but Mark Whitener quickly moved up from his fourth-place starting spot to grab the lead on lap 10. But on a lap-17 restart, David Whitener banged doors with his brother and got the lead back, a lead that he would not relinquish.

For most of the race, it seemed that the Whiteners would finish 1-2, even as David Whitener continued to pull away from the field as he pushed the cushion of the track higher and higher, running closer to the outside wall than anyone on the half-mile clay track.

Considering that Mark Whitener, Jr. – “Lil Magic,” as the 16-year-old is known – had already won the 602 Late Model feature earlier in the evening, the Whitener family looked to have a dream night in hand as the main event progressed. Jason Fitzgerald gave chase to the brothers but could not overtake them. Powell Memorial past champion Ivedent Lloyd started and stayed near the front but suffered a mechanical failure on lap 57.

The late caution brought a new cast of contenders closer to the Whiteners, including Dalton Cook who had passed several cars on the very bottom of the race track to move up from ninth to third.

Cook tangled with Mark Whitener on the restart, the clash sending Whitener’s car spinning down the frontstretch and into the pit side wall. Officials sent Cook to the rear of the field, but not before Whitener spun his car toward Cook as the pack passed by under caution and ultimately retired to the pits – he finished 15th.

“(Dalton) could have calmed down on that restart there,” Mark Whitener said afterward. “I couldn’t believe it.”

On the final restart, David Whitener again broke free from his chasers and cruised to his first Powell Memorial win. Fitzgerald held onto second, with Trynt Lloyd – son of Ivedent Lloyd — finishing third in just his third pro late model start. Trey Pearson and Jamie Carter rounded out the top five, while Cook rallied back through the field to claim sixth.

Afterward, David Whitener was quick to thank his brother, who happens to be his car owner, who joined him after the win in the frontstretch celebration.

“My brother, he gives me a good ride and lets me race for him – our cars are badass,” David said, still excited.

“He was the class of the field tonight,” Mark Whitener said. “I’m glad his name gets to be on this trophy.”

“I’m glad my name gets to be on top of his,” David Whitener interjected. “This is such a good feeling. This is the best feeling in the world!”

Fans, Friends, Family Come Together

Even in the face of a rainy forecast and a brief interruption of a pesky Florida summer shower, race fans filled the grandstands at Volusia Speedway Park as race cars filled the pits. In all, 97 cars raced in the four divisions.

The $10,000 payday brought out many racers. But everyone came to support the family that has been connected with Central Florida motorsports for generations.

“It still gives you chills,” said James Powell III, who won his family’s race in 2003. “We all come out here and reminisce a little, cry a little and celebrate and go on about it.”

The race honors Powell’s his twin daughters, mother and father, aunt and uncle, who died in a plane crash in 1994. The Powell family owned Ocala Speedway in Central Florida for several years and were regularly the drivers to beat at Volusia.

On Saturday, Powell’s RV was parked outside turn 4, his shirt stained from pulling pork for a BBQ dinner with a long receiving line of family and friends.

“I grew up 10 miles from here – my dad raced here, my first race was here,” Powell said. “It’s just awesome how (track promoter) Tom Whipple and his team have gone above and beyond to elevate this event.

“I think it’s a testament to our family that we’re all still here having this race after 24 years, and it’s getting bigger.”

Volusia Speedway Park – Barberville, FL
Powell Memorial – July 20, 2019

1. David Whitener
2. Jason Fitzgerald
3. Trynt Lloyd
4. Trey Pearson
5. Jamie Carter
6. Dalton Cook
7. Richard Ferry
8. Bo Allen
9. Chad Tuten
10. Ryan Halliday
11. Travis Vardadore
12. Ryan Vansickle
13. Howard Stalls
14. John Baker
15. Mark Whitener
16. Ivedent Lloyd
17. Steven Mathis
18. Stanton Mills
19. Joe Kump
20. Brandon Catto
21. Donnie Chappell
22. Nevin Gainey
23. Wayne O’Neal
24. Tyler Crowder
25. Shan Smith
26. Dennis Williams

*Thanks to JOE VANHOOSE at www.raceweekillustrated.com for the report.

By Scott|2019-08-05T19:55:00-04:00August 5th, 2019|Local, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

New Show Brenden Smith “Parks It” in VSP Victory Lane

13 year old Brenden Smith takes home his first ever win in the 602 Late Model division. AJ Maddox bests a field of 20 Top Gun Sprints and turns a fast lap of 15.1 seconds on the big half mile! One Shot Mike Tovet brings home the Thunder Stock win in his first race back in the 2019 season and Mark Whitener visits a place he is very familiar with, Victory Lane in the Pro Late Model division. The stands were packed, the car counts were great with three heats each in the top three classes and the racing was nothing short of awesome. Thanks to all the racers and fans that turned out Saturday Night at Volusia Speedway Park.

THUNDERSTOCKS
Finish	Nbr	Driver	Start
1	1Shot	Mike Tovet	4
2	98	Kent Corbin	2
3	118	Ron Adams	17
4	77	Mark Chicca	5
5	13	Shaun Daugharty	8
6	2XC	Freddy Corey	19
7	31	Donnie Birdwell	3
8	52	Hank Baker	16
9	88	James Parrish	10
10	X	Erick Armino	9
11	4	Rj Glaser	18
12	8	Mike Harrison	14
13	42	Dale Kump	13
14	73	David Szczepanik	12
15	18	Raymond Showers	7
16	21	Henry Lanier	11
17	18T	Will Taylor	15
18	119	Joe Belkey	6
19	72	Karlin Ray	1
PRO LATE MODELS
Finish	Nbr	Driver	Start
1	5W	Mark Whitener Sr	3
2	25	Donnie Chappell	6
3	66	Kyle Chappell	1
4	3K	Kyle Van Sickle	5
5	15	Joe Kump	10
6	5D	David Whitener	7
7	4	Michael Whipple	2
8	59	Brandon Catto	9
9	9W	Jimmy Waldrop	12
10	9	Mikey Kopka	4
11	24	Dennis Williams	16
12	51	Larry Anderson	15
13	41	Jack Williams	13
14	77	Treveor McKinley	8
15	9X	Josh Peacock	14
16	10	Mark Steube	17
17	X	Erick Armino	18
18	7	Dusty Sparkman	11
19		Justin Merry
TOP GUN SPRINTS
Finish	Nbr	Driver
1	3a	Aj Maddox	2
2	5	Hayden Campbell	4
3	19	Keith Butler	8
4	41	Luke Hill	6
5	6S	Robbie Smith	11
6	30	Dj Peeples	10
7	12B	Bryan Eckley	12
8	52	Shane Kreidler	14
9	1	Tim George	9
10	G6	Brandon Grubaugh	5
11	11B	Billy Bridges	19
12	32	Andrew Griffin	13
13	20C	Frank Carlsson	16
14	44A	Mike Steinruck	17
15	1T	Dave Thomas	15
16	82	Garrett Green	1
17	0	Harley Zimmerman	3
18	20N	Cole Nichols	20
19	91	Kyle Connery	7
20	51X	Joshua Watkins	18
602 LATE MODELS
Finish	Nbr	Driver
1	17s	Brenden Smith	2
2	27	Bruce Harvey	4
3	9	Kody Jett	3
4	3	Eddy Gainey	5
5	B2	Robert Gast	6
6	28	Ben Hutto	1
7	61	Lisa O Connor	7

By Scott|2019-04-29T19:13:07-04:00April 29th, 2019|Local, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Winter Freeze IX, Night Two Goes to the Second Georgian in Two Races

SYLVANIA, GA – Feb. 9, 2019 – Georgia native Shane Clanton broke a year-and-a-half winless streak by dominating the World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series 50-lap Feature Saturday night at Screven Motor Speedway.

Clanton, the 2015 Series champion from Zebulon, GA, had gone 51 races without a win before earning his fourth victory at Screven and 43rd all-time in World of Outlaws competition, holding off Kyle Hardy and Chase Junghans to the checkered flag.

According to “The Georgia Bulldog” himself, going winless last season never actually bothered him as much as most fans thought it would have. In fact, he used the dry spell as fuel to get better. Now that the monkey is off of his back, Clanton will look to build on this momentum as the current points leader heading into Volusia, where he has been so dangerous in past years with five wins since 2015.

“It feels real good,” Clanton said. “To go almost a year and a half… like I said at the banquet [last year], it just makes you mad. And the guy who wins, it just makes him more determined to come back and win again, and that’s what we’ve done. We’ve worked awful hard over the winter to build a new racecar here.”

In what was almost a perfect night, Clanton qualified second overall out of 39 cars, won his heat race and redrew the pole for the Morton Buildings Feature. Taking the lead on lap 1, he faced several long strings of lapped traffic, as the race’s first caution didn’t fly until lap. But Clanton was able to handle the pressure from those behind him, much like all great veterans of the sport do.

“I guess it’s lucky to get number one but I think our car was good enough to pass a couple of cars,” Clanton said with the biggest smile on his face. “I was just biding my time, trying not to get into too much lapped traffic, just didn’t want to get myself in a bind. We rode a long way, and to come up with the win, it’s pretty special.”

And how special it was for Clanton and the Capital Chassis stable this weekend, with Chris Madden putting his Capital on the podium in Friday night’s race and a top-10 on Saturday. Clanton said Madden’s help has been and will continue to be instrumental in Capital’s success on the tour this season.

“I’ve had some help when Chris came along after Charlotte [last year] and we went and tested my car, then we built this car,” Clanton said. “We’ve changed some things on it and evidently we’re going in the right direction, so that’s the good thing.”

Another special finish came right behind Clanton – the Viper Motorsports entrant of Rookie contender Kyle Hardy. The Virginian had a solid night on Friday, coming from 17th to finish 11th after winning his Late Chance Showdown. But Saturday night was a much different story, as he set fast time in Group B, won his heat and redrew third.

Hardy made the pass for second around Jason Covert on lap 12 and chased Clanton down the rest of the way but was never able to make the pass. However, he held his own through lapped traffic, staying right with Clanton the entire way and closing a two-second gap before the lap 45 caution. Overall, a great showing by the new Barry Wright Race Cars house driver.

“It turned out to be great,” Hardy said. “We’ve got a greatly prepared car by Lance and Barry Wright, and that means the world. We ran decent last night, wasn’t the greatest, but second place tonight was, by far, great for us.”

After the 11th-place on Friday night and the runner-up finish on Saturday, Hardy now leads in Rookie points by 20 markers over Ricky Weiss, who fell back to 15th in Saturday’s Feature. This gives him a big boost of confidence, heading into Volusia for the DIRTcar Nationals.

“Absolutely, it’s a huge boost of confidence,” Hardy said with a grin. “We didn’t have two bad nights, we had a decent and a great night. We’re just super happy about it and ready to get going.”

Hardy’s previous experience at Screven played right into his favor on Saturday night, as his three prior starts seemed to give him the edge over his fellow Rookie competitors.

“It definitely helped, I’ve raced here three times before and it was the fifth time over the weekend, so it turned out to be great,” Hardy said.

In what should have been another Rookie in the top five, Cade Dillard seemed to have a great fourth-place run going before tangling with Jason Covert in turn three with just two laps remaining. Dillard was obviously disappointed by the incident and the resulting 19th-place finish, but it gave him plenty to build off of heading into Volusia next week and was a great rebound, just one night after having to fight for a 14th-place run after taking a provisional.

“I had a good car in the feature,” Dillard said. “I was just riding, trying to stay out of trouble. Had a chance there at the end, got under [Covert], I’d say nearly nose-to-nose with him. I’m not sure if he didn’t see us there or saw us and just turned left… Unfortunately, it killed our good run for us.”

Up Next…
The 48th Annual DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park is the site of the next four Series races, Feb. 13-16. Two DIRTcar Late Model shows will preceed the Outlaws invasion on Monday and Tuesday. Get you tickets now and don’t miss this exciting event by clicking here, or order your Late Model Fast Pass on DIRTVision and watch every lap LIVE!

Abbreviated results (click here for full results)

Morton Buildings Feature (50 Laps) 1. 25-Shane Clanton [1][$10,000]; 2. 36v-Kyle Hardy [3][$5,000]; 3. 18-Chase Junghans [4][$3,000]; 4. 1-Brandon Sheppard [6][$2,500]; 5. 72-Mike Norris [8][$2,000]; 6. 3s-Brian Shirley [10][$1,700]; 7. 29-Darrell Lanigan [9][$1,400]; 8. 2x-John Henderson [11][$1,300]; 9. 44-Chris Madden [13][$1,200]; 10. 1D-Brent Dixon [12][$1,100]; 11. 28-Dennis Erb [16][$1,050]; 12. 2-Brandon Overton [17][$1,000]; 13. 99jr-Frank Heckenast [20][$950]; 14. 1x-Chub Frank [15][$900]; 15. 7-Ricky Weiss [14][$850]; 16. 9-Billy Moyer [22][$800]; 17. B1-Brent Larson [23][$770]; 18. 72c-Jason Covert [2][$750]; 19. 97-Cade Dillard [5][$730]; 20. 6-Blake Spencer [24][$700]; 21. 27+1-Tyler Carpenter [19][$700]; 22. 6m-Mike Marlar [18][$700]; 23. 22x-G.R. Smith [25][$110]; 24. 58-Ivedent Lloyd [7][$700]; 25. 99B-Boom Briggs [21][$700] – Hard Charger Award: 99jr-Frank Heckenast[+7] – Lap Leaders – Shane Clanton – 50 Laps

Qualifying Flight-A: 1. 72c-Jason Covert, 14.558; 2. 25-Shane Clanton, 14.572; 3. 44-Chris Madden, 14.607; 4. 1-Brandon Sheppard, 14.688; 5. 29-Darrell Lanigan, 14.721; 6. 2x-John Henderson, 14.729; 7. 2-Brandon Overton, 14.829; 8. B1-Brent Larson, 14.867; 9. 58-Ivedent Lloyd, 14.876; 10. 42-Cla Knight, 14.935; 11. 22x-G.R. Smith, 14.945; 12. 1x-Chub Frank, 14.961; 13. 6-Blake Spencer, 14.991; 14. 8-Matt Sponaugle, 15.123; 15. 27+1-Tyler Carpenter, 15.18; 16. O-Ryan Scott, 15.233; 17. 99B-Boom Briggs, 15.271; 18. 27-Joe Denby, 15.354; 19. J8-Jadon Frame, 15.441; 20. 0K-Freddie Carpenter, 15.739

Qualifying Flight-B: 1. 36v-Kyle Hardy, 14.622; 2. 18-Chase Junghans, 14.625; 3. 72-Mike Norris, 14.652; 4. 97-Cade Dillard, 14.652; 5. 3s-Brian Shirley, 14.679; 6. 1D-Brent Dixon, 14.692; 7. 7-Ricky Weiss, 14.72; 8. 28-Dennis Erb, 14.745; 9. 99jr-Frank Heckenast, 14.849; 10. 6m-Mike Marlar, 15.004; 11. 16-Tyler Bruening, 15.045; 12. 77-Brian Connor, 15.045; 13. 9-Billy Moyer, 15.058; 14. 53-Ray Cook, 15.071; 15. 24D-Michael Brown, 15.08; 16. 83-Scott James, 15.15; 17. 11B-Stacy Boles, 15.223; 18. C9-Steve Casebolt, 15.412; 19. 25h-Chuck Hummer, 17.722

—World Racing Group Press Release

By Scott|2019-02-13T05:57:54-05:00February 13th, 2019|Late Models, National, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Two Last Chance Showdowns & Feature will start the show on Monday, February 11

DELEON SPRINGS, FL — Feb. 9, 2019 — The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds were to race in the first of two Big Gator Championship Qualifier Nights on Saturday, February 9 at Volusia Speedway Park. It was to be Night #5 of the 48th annual DIRTcar Nationals for the Ironmen of the DCN. Half of the 104 teams that had competed in the DIRTcar Nationals through the first four nights got through their Heat Races with threatening skies all around the half-mile high-banked dirt oval in DeLeon Springs, FL.

As post-race ceremonies were happening on the front stretch at the conclusion of the World of Outlaw NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series Feature, Mother Nature made her second appearance of the night. Unfortunately, enough moisture had fallen and continued to drench the facility, forcing DIRTcar Racing & DIRTcar Nationals Officials to postpone the two Last Chance Showdowns and Feature for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds to Monday, February 11.

Prior to, and in between rain delays, Lucas Lee scored his first Fast Qualifier award of the week with an 18.358 = 98.050mph and he won his Heat Race. Ryan Fowler, Brandon Green and David Stremme picked up the other Heat Race triumphs. In the Redraw of the Heat Race winners, Stremme and Lee drew the front row with Fowler and Green drawing the third and fourth spots.

The second half of the field, those who did not participate on Saturday night, will take over for the second (now first) Big Gator Championship Qualifier Night on Sunday, February 10. The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series will race in their final night at Volusia also on Sunday to complete Sprint Car Week at the DCN and crown the first 2019 DCN Big Gator Championship.

Then on Monday, February 11, the show will start with the conclusion of Saturday’s program for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds with two Last Chance Showdowns and a 20-Lap Feature. Once those are over, DCN Late Model Week begins at Volusia with the first of two nights of action for the DIRTcar Super Late Models. It’s also the 15th annual Big Gator Championship Night and the crowning of the 2019 DCN Big Gator Champion for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds.

The World of Outlaws Morton Buildings Late Model Series take over on the Late Model side starting on Wednesday, February 13 while the Super DIRTcar Big Block Modified Series take over for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds starting on Tuesday, February 12.

For more information about the remaining seven nights of the 48th annual DIRTcar Nationals and to order tickets, please call: 1 (844) DIRT-TIX or log onto the event website at: dirtcarnationals.com

You can also follow the DIRTcar UMP Modified portions all week long, as well as the DIRTcar Super Late Model portion of the DCN starting on Monday throughout race week by visiting the DIRTcar Racing Social Media outlets. Just search for “DIRTcar Racing” on both Facebook and Twitter as well as the DIRTcar Nationals Twitter page at: @DIRTcarNats for the very latest updates from Volusia Speedway Park and the 48th annual DIRTcar Nationals.

Last Chance Showdown Starting Lineups

Big Gator Championship Qualifier 1 Feature Starting Line-Up

Row 1: 35 David Stremme – 40b Lucas Lee
Row 2: 6f Ryan Fowler – 51 Brandon Green
Row 3: 7 Justin Allgaier – 2h Nick Hoffman
Row 4: 98 Shon Flannery – 90 Jason Beaulieu
Row 5: 22k Dale Kelley – 17t Tyler Evans
Row 6: 41 Brad Goff – 5cs Curt Spalding
Row 7: 1 Brenden Rassel – 14s Steve Stevenson9
Row 8: 4uw Bobby Regot – 95 Michael Altobelli Jr.
Row 9: 15 Joey Miller – 05 David Wietholder
Row 10: 36 Kenny Wallace – 00d David Reutimann
Row 11: LCS 1 Winner – LCS 2 Winner
Row 12: LCS 1 Runner-Up – LCS 2 Runner-U

By Scott|2019-02-10T05:08:30-05:00February 10th, 2019|National, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park, World of Outlaws|Comments Off

RACE REPORT: Daryn Pittman Powers to Opening Night Victory at Volusia Speedway Park

BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 8, 2019 — The largest Friday night crowd in DIRTcar Nationals history witnessed Daryn Pittman win a caution-free thriller in the World of Outlaws NOS® Energy Drink Sprint Car Series opener at Volusia Speedway Park’s DIRTcar Nationals. Pittman, who led two sprint car races this week at Volusia only to finish second, reversed his fortune Friday when he chased down Shane Stewart with five laps to go and held him off to the checkered flag. NASCAR Xfinity star Christopher Bell raced to a third-place finish, completing the Outlaws’ first all Oklahoma-native podium in the series’ 41-year history.

NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps): 1. 83-Daryn Pittman [3][$10,000]; 2. 5-Shane Stewart [1][$5,500]; 3. 39-Christopher Bell [2][$3,200]; 4. 49-Brad Sweet [5][$2,800]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [10][$2,500]; 6. 41-David Gravel [17][$2,300]; 7. 21-Brian Brown [4][$2,200]; 8. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [6][$2,100]; 9. 2-Carson Macedo [8][$2,050]; 10. 26-Cory Eliason [11][$2,000]; 11. 87-Aaron Reutzel [12][$1,500]; 12. 1S-Logan Schuchart [14][$1,200]; 13. 71-Parker Price-Miller [16][$1,100]; 14. 13-Paul McMahan [13][$1,050]; 15. 11K-Kraig Kinser [23][$1,000]; 16. 70X-Spencer Bayston [7][$900]; 17. 18-Ian Madsen [9][$800]; 18. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [25][$]; 19. 17W-Shane Golobic [19][$800]; 20. 7S-Jason Sides [22][$800]; 21. 7K-Cale Conley [21][$800]; 22. 19-Brent Marks [26][$]; 23. 70-Brock Zearfoss [15][$800]; 24. 1A-Jacob Allen [24][$800]; 25. 33M-Mason Daniel [20][$800]; 26. 49X-Tim Shaffer [18][$800]; Lap Leaders: Shane Stewart 1-15, Daryn Pittman 16-30; KSE Hard Charger Award: 41-David Gravel[+12]

Qualifying : 1. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.024; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman, 13.097; 3. 70X-Spencer Bayston, 13.11; 4. 39-Christopher Bell, 13.121; 5. 2-Carson Macedo, 13.133; 6. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.188; 7. 21-Brian Brown, 13.225; 8. 1K-Kyle Larson, 13.238; 9. 13-Paul McMahan, 13.302; 10. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.309; 11. 26-Cory Eliason, 13.341; 12. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.405; 13. 5-Shane Stewart, 13.433; 14. 15-Donny Schatz, 13.439; 15. 7K-Cale Conley, 13.441; 16. 33M-Mason Daniel, 13.52; 17. 41-David Gravel, 13.501; 18. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 13.535; 19. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.552; 20. 5W-Lucas Wolfe, 13.598; 21. 9-Kasey Kahne, 13.601; 22. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.634; 23. 17W-Shane Golobic, 13.706; 24. 71-Parker Price-Miller, 13.752; 25. 19-Brent Marks, 13.77; 26. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.771; 27. 48-Danny Dietrich, 13.786; 28. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 13.859; 29. J4-John Garvin, 13.875; 30. 84-Tom Harris, 13.898; 31. 70-Brock Zearfoss, 14.055; 32. K4-Chad Kemenah, 14.079; 33. 47-Brant O’Banion, 14.259

Heat #1 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer: 1. 2-Carson Macedo [2]; 2. 5-Shane Stewart [4]; 3. 18-Ian Madsen [1]; 4. 13-Paul McMahan [3]; 5. 41-David Gravel [5]; 6. 9-Kasey Kahne [6]; 7. 19-Brent Marks [7]; 8. 47-Brant O’Banion [9]; 9. J4-John Garvin [8]

Heat #2 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer: 1. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [1]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [4]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3]; 5. 49X-Tim Shaffer [5]; 6. 7S-Jason Sides [6]; 7. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [7]; 8. 84-Tom Harris [8]

Heat #3 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer: 1. 70X-Spencer Bayston [1]; 2. 21-Brian Brown [2]; 3. 26-Cory Eliason [3]; 4. 70-Brock Zearfoss [8]; 5. 17W-Shane Golobic [6]; 6. 1A-Jacob Allen [5]; 7. 7K-Cale Conley [4]; 8. 48-Danny Dietrich [7]

Heat #4 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer: 1. 39-Christopher Bell [1]; 2. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [5]; 3. 87-Aaron Reutzel [7]; 4. 71-Parker Price-Miller [6]; 5. 33M-Mason Daniel [4]; 6. K4-Chad Kemenah [8]; 7. 11K-Kraig Kinser [3]

DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps): 1. 5-Shane Stewart [2]; 2. 39-Christopher Bell [1]; 3. 83-Daryn Pittman [5]; 4. 21-Brian Brown [3]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [4]; 6. 5W-Lucas Wolfe [6]; 7. 70X-Spencer Bayston [8]; 8. 2-Carson Macedo [7]

Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer: 1. 7K-Cale Conley [2][-]; 2. 7S-Jason Sides [5][-]; 3. 11K-Kraig Kinser [1][-]; 4. 1A-Jacob Allen [3][-]; 5. 9-Kasey Kahne [4][-]; 6. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [7][-]; 7. 19-Brent Marks [6][$300]; 8. 48-Danny Dietrich [8][$250]; 9. 84-Tom Harris [10][$225]; 10. 47-Brant O’Banion [12][$200]; 11. K4-Chad Kemenah [11][$200]; 12. J4-John Garvin [9][$200]; 13. 1K-Kyle Larson [13][$200]

SEASON WINNERS:

Daryn Pittman: 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb 8)

By Scott|2019-02-09T19:45:46-05:00February 9th, 2019|National, Racing News, Sprint Cars, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Three-Time Champion Nick Hoffman Leads Stellar Field of Modifieds to Florida

BARBERVILLE, FL – Jan. 25, 2019 – As usual, the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds will kick off 12 straight nights of racing at Volusia Speedway Park on Tuesday, Feb. 5. The busiest division in Florida during the month of February, and perhaps the most competitive of all, will take on the legendary half-mile, high-banked dirt oval for seven straight nights from February 5-11. The UMP Modifieds will race in 10 total features in the chase for the 2019 DIRTcar Nationals title while celebrating their 15th year at the event.

Over the past 14 years, the UMP Modified division has produced 46 different feature winners along with 10 different champions. Car counts have averaged in the 70s with 111 feature races conducted. Only three drivers have captured more than one championship, and it wasn’t done for the first time until 2013, when NASCAR legend Ken Schrader accomplished the feat.

No driver, though, has been more successful at DIRTcar Nationals than three-time defending Champion Nick Hoffman. The 26-year-old has ascended to the status of “Best Gator” with a record 14 wins. The Mooresville, NC resident scored his first ever DIRTcar Nationals feature on February 20, 2012, the inaugural Gator Championship night, and the first of what would be three Gator Championship night wins for him.

Single victories in 2013 and 2015 set the stage for the past three seasons of domination by the driver originally from Belleville, Illinois. Four feature wins each in both 2016 and 2017, as well as three more in 2018 have propelled the driver of the popular #2 Elite Chassis entry to the last three DIRTcar Nationals titles.

“Man, this is so awesome. To win a Big Gator is pretty special no matter how many times you do it,” said Hoffman on stage at Volusia in 2018 after winning his third consecutive DIRTcar Nationals title. “These championships are so hard to come by, and to be able to do it three years in a row says a lot about this car and this team. There’s so many people that make this happen, and I truly can’t thank everyone enough.”

Hoffman stands alone as a three-time DIRTcar Nationals champion in his division. Only Schrader (2008 & 2013) and NASCAR shoe Ty Dillon (2012 & 2014) have more than one DIRTcar Nationals title. Seven other drivers have single championships.

The 2018 battle for the Big Gator was a good one between Hoffman and Kyle Strickler. On opening night, NASCAR star David Stremme ended a winless streak that stretched back to 2015 with his second career DIRTcar Nationals victory. Hoffman responded by winning the next two nights. A pair of first-time feature winners emerged in Larry Mott and Frank Paladino; Tyler Nicely ended a two-year drought with a feature win; and Strickler closed out the busy schedule ending another three-year winless streak with his first Gator since 2015.

Big Gator Qualifier nights would see Nicely strike first with his second feature win of the week and third of his career, while Hoffman bagged win #3 and career victory #14 the next night. On the final night of competition, Strickler stopped Hoffman’s bid for a third straight Gator Championship night win by scoring the final night feature payday, his second feature win of the week and fourth overall of his career. However, Hoffman had accumulated enough points over the seven straight nights of racing to secure his third straight overall championship.

Heading into the 48th annual DIRTcar Nationals, Hoffman will once again lead the charge, with plenty of competition from two-time 2018 feature winners Strickler and Nicely. With a single win in 2018, Stremme will look to add to his totals and chase after his first DIRTcar Nationals title, while Clarklake, MI veteran Brian Ruhlman, who went winless in 2018 after collecting single victories in 2017 and 2016, works to end a mini-slump and compete for his first championship at Volusia.

Two former NASCAR stars who always make life difficult for the UMP Modified contingent are Schrader and Kenny Wallace. Schrader has two career victories at the DIRTcar Nationals, but it’s been a long time — six years to be exact — since the two-time DIRTcar Nationals Champion (2013 & 2008) took the checkered flag. It’s been even longer for Wallace. After his three-win year of 2012, the Arnold, MO veteran has gone winless at Volusia but is still tied for seventh all-time in career DIRTcar Nationals feature wins with four. He shares that mark with Strickler.

NASCAR Xfinity Series star Justin Allgaier also has a single win at Volusia in 2016, and he would love to snap that skid as his Daytona schedule allows. Two-time NASCAR Gander Mountain Truck Series Champion Matt Crafton has made infrequent appearances at Volusia over the years and is still in search of his first Gator. So is Stanley, NC rising star Taylor Cook, a two-time winner in the Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals, as that elusive first Volusia victory has also, so far, eluded him.

After DIRTcar Nationals, the UMP Modified teams turn their attention to the remainder of the 2019 racing season and the widely popular Summit Modified Nationals.

Tickets for the 48th Annual DIRTcar Nationals can be purchased here.

By Scott|2019-01-26T17:35:00-05:00January 26th, 2019|Racing News, Upcoming Events, Volusia Speedway Park, World of Outlaws|Comments Off

Davenport Finally Captures First Gator Trophy at DIRTcar Nationals

BARBERVILLE, FL– Feb. 12, 2018– Jonathan Davenport dominated the first night of Late Model competition at the 47th annual DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park by leading flag-to-flag for all 30 laps of the feature event. Davenport smiled from ear-to-ear holding his first ever Gator trophy in Victory Lane at the historic half-mile.

“You don’t know how much this gator [trophy] means to me,” said Davenport. “I’ve been wanting one of these things for so long. We’ve been close a few times but we’ve never got it done. This one here is definitely for my crew. We stayed up all night last night. We put a new body on this thing. We changed motors. We went all through the car. It was raining on us and we were soaking wet… Winning here is unbelievable. It sure is.”

Davenport, of Blairsville, GA, started on the pole for the event and never looked back. Despite two cautions, the driver of the No.49 owned by Lance Landers was never seriously challenged for the lead spot. Chris Madden of Gray Court, SC was the only driver to reach the bumper of Davenport throughout the race.

“It rubbered up so catching somebody and passing them is a different thing to do here,” said Madden. “We had a good car once we went low in one and two but I didn’t even realize it until two [laps] to go so I dove down there and I was able to carry some speed off the corner there.

“So maybe I should’ve made the charge down there a little earlier and tried to move around a little more sooner than I did,” Madden continued. “But overall, for the first night out with this team, with a new car from Barry [Wright] and a new power plant from Clements. All and all I think we’ve done a good job.”

Clanton and Madden swapped for second and third once throughout the race but the Georgia Bulldog was only able to hold on to the spot for two laps before the No. 44 Barry Wright House Car reclaimed the position for the remainder of the race.

“We are just glad to be here in sunny Florida as cold as it has been back at the house, it feels good to get down here. Mother Nature laid off tonight and gave us the night to race. Hopefully she is calmer the rest of the week and we can race five more nights. It is consistency here that matters so hopefully we get back in Victory Lane and keep it up front.”

The DIRTcar Late Models return to the track on February 13 for their second and final night of competition during the 12-day short track event before the World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series takes center stage on Feb. 14-17.

Additional Race Notes:

Mike Marlar claimed quick time during qualifying with a 16.293 lap time at the World’s Fastest Half-Mile
The two cautions during the feature including one on lap 6 for Chase Junghans who slowed on the track and on lap 12 for Dennis Erb Jr. who spun in turn four and suffered right rear cosmetic damage
The DIRTcar Racing Modifieds completed a seven-night stretch of DIRTcar Nationals competition concluding with the crowning of the Big Gator Champion, Nick Hoffman. The entire Modified event took place before the Late Models hit the track for hot laps because of the threat of rain.
Donny Schatz won the Sprint Car Big Gator Championship and Nick Hoffman won the Modified Big Gator Championship. Both drivers entered into Late Model competition.

DIRTcar Late Model Results:

Feature (30-Laps): 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport; 2. 44-Chris Madden; 3. 25-Shane Clanton; 4. 0-Scott Bloomquist; 5. 157-Mike Marlar; 6. 17M-Dale McDowell; 7. 16-Tyler Bruening; 8. 40B-Kyle Bronson; 9. 54-David Breazeale; 10. 7-Rick Eckert; 11. 116-Brandon Overton;12. 15-Donny Schatz; 13. 1-Brandon Sheppard; 14. 9-Devin Moran; 15. 72-Mike Norris; 16. B1-Brent Larson; 17. 2-Nick Hoffman; 18. OF1-Coleby Frye; 19. 28-Dennis Erb Jr; 20. C8-Timothy Culp; 21. 22s-Brian Shirley; 22.1star-Chub Frank; 23.31-Tyler Millwood; 24. 18c-Chase Junghans;

Last Chance Showdown 1: 1. 1star-Chub Frank; 2. 22s-Brian Shirley; 3. OF1-Coleby Frye; 4. 18c-Chase Junghans; 5. 7mm-Michael Maresca; 6. 11B-Stacy Boles; 7. 84-Austin Smith; 8. 16H-Mike Hammerle; 9. 14z-Zack McMillan; 10. 12-Jason Jameson; 11. CJ1-Rusty Schlenk; DNS. C02-Mark Whitener;

Last Chance Showdown 2: 1. 15-Donny Schatz;2. 2-Nick Hoffman;3. B1-Brent Larson;4.31-Tyler Millwood;5. 2c-Joey Coulter;6. 21jr-Billy Moyer Jr;7. 27-Jeff Beyers; 8. 6-Blake Spencer; 9. 14r-Reid Millard; 10. 7F-Jason Fitzgerald; DNS.115-Trey Beene; DNS. 91-Tyler Erb;

Heat 1: 1.44-Chris Madden; 2. 40B-Kyle Bronson; 3. 7-Rick Eckert; 4. 72-Mike Norris; 5. OF1-Coleby Frye; 6. 7mm-Michael Maresca; 7. 1star-Chub Frank; 8. 14z-Zack McMillan; 9. 22s-Brian Shirley; 10. 84-Austin Smith.

Heat 2: 1. 49-Jonathan Davenport; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening; 3. 17M-Dale McDowell; 4. 9-Devin Moran; 5.18c-Chase Junghans; 6. CJ1-Rusty Schlenk; 7. 11B-Stacy Boles; 8. 12-Jason Jameson; 9. 16H-Mike Hammerle; DNS. C02-Mark Whitener;

Heat 3: 1. 25-Shane Clanton; 2. 0-Scott Bloomquist; 3. 1-Brandon Sheppard; 4. 28-Dennis Erb Jr; 5. 7F-Jason Fitzgerald; 6. 15-Donny Schatz; 7. 31-Tyler Millwood; 8. 21jr-Billy Moyer Jr; 9. 2c-Joey Coulter; 10. 91-Tyler Erb;

Heat 4: 1. 54-David Breazeale; 2. 157-Mike Marlar; 3. C8-Timothy Culp; 4. 116-Brandon Overton; 5. B1-Brent Larson; 6. 2-Nick Hoffman; 7. 6-Blake Spencer; 8. 27-Jeff Beyers; 9. 115-Trey Beene; 10. 14r-Reid Millard.

Group A Qualifying: 1. 44- Chris Madden 17.138; 2. 40B- Kyle Bronson17.269; 3. 72- Mike Norris 17.324; 4.7- Rick Eckert 17.838;5. 1star- Chub Frank 17.846; 6. 14z- Zack McMilla18.127; 7. OF1- Coleby Frye 18.156; 8. 22s -Brian Shirley 18.322; 9. 84- Austin Smith 18.388; 10. 7mm- Michael Maresca 18.846;

Group B Qualifying: 1.49-Jonathan Davenport,16.658; 2. 16-Tyler Bruening,17.037; 3. 17M- Dale McDowell,17.352; 4. 9- Devin Moran, 17.355; 5. 18c-Chase Junghans, 17.361; 6. CJ1- Rusty Schlenk, 17.421; 7. 12- Jason Jameson, 17.604; 8. 11B- Stacy Boles, 17.616; 9. 16H- Mike Hammerle, 18.874; 10. C02- Mark Whitener, NT

Group C Qualifying: 1. 25- Shane Clanton, 16.312; 2. 7F- Jason Fitzgerald, 16.314; 3. 1- Brandon Sheppard,16.478; 4. 0- Scott Bloomquist, 16.563; 5. 21jr- Billy Moyer Jr, 16.827; 6. 15- Donny Schatz, 16.849; 7. 28- Dennis Erb Jr, 17.014; 8. 91- Tyler Erb, 17.097; 9. 2c- Joey Coulter, 17.329; 10. 31- Tyler Millwood, 18.258

Group D Qualifying: 1. 157- Mike Marlar, 16.293; 2. 54- David Breazeale, 16.510; 3. C8- Timothy Culp, 17.082; 4. B1- Brent Larson, 17.103; 5. 116- Brandon Overton, 17.225; 6. 2- Nick Hoffman, 17.623; 7. 6- Blake Spencer, 17.658; 8. 115- Trey Beene, 18.024; 9. 27- Jeff Beyers, 18.179; 10. 14r- Reid Millard, 18.978

By Scott|2018-02-13T17:07:34-05:00February 13th, 2018|DIRTcar, National, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Strickler Wins The Money; Hoffman Wins His Third Consecutive DIRTcar Nationals Title

BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 11, 2018 — The $5,000-to-win Big Gator Championships for the ironmen of the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals, the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds was on Monday, February 12^th. For the past seven days, the Modifieds have raced every night of the week as their marathon week of races within the DIRTcar Nationals came to an end. Two-time defending DIRTcar Nationals Champion, Nick Hoffman came into the night needing to finish fourth or better to claim his third straight DIRTcar UMP Modifieds Gator Championship. Hoffman would go on to finish second to Big Gator Championship Feature winner, Kyle Strickler who earned a $5,000 payday while Hoffman won his third straight DIRTcar Nationals title.

“We had a good racecar all week long. We battled some adversity earlier in the week with the car falling off the trailer. But we never finished out of the top three the whole time. We didn’t win the Championship, but we got the Big Gator for winning five grand,” Smiled the 33-year-old driver of the #8 Longhorn Chassis entry. “We’ve been surrounded by Elite cars are week long. But we never gave up. These guys are just so good, but the results showed how good we are too. It takes some long hours to do this. It’s nice though to put this Longhorn ahead of all those Elites, especially tonight.” Added the driver originally from Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania. For the week, Strickler won, finished second and third twice each.

For Hoffman, the 25-year-old driver who is originally from Belleville, IL, the driver of the #2 Elite Chassis entry would become the first driver in DIRTcar Nationals history to win three championships in the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds. “Man, this is so awesome. To win a Big Gator is pretty special no matter how many times you do it. These are so hard to come by and to do this three years in a row says a lot about this car and this team. There’s so many people that make this happen and I truly can’t thank everyone enough.” Through the week, Hoffman recorded three wins as well as two seconds and a third to win the DIRTcar Nationals title by 13 points (458-443) over Strickler.

NASCAR Xfinity Series star, Justin Allgaier and Zeke McKenzie brought the stellar 28-car field to Chief Starter, Dave Farney’s green flag. It would be McKenzie shooting out to the early lead while Allgaier and the rest of the pack scrambled for position. McKenzie would extend his lead early in the event as Nick Hoffman, who started eighth, quickly worked his way into the top five by following fellow fourth row starter, Kyle Strickler, who started seventh. By Halfway, Strickler and Hoffman were second and third and slowly reeling in the race long leader, McKenzie.

On lap 16, Strickler was able to slip past McKenzie to take over the top spot as Hoffman also followed him through to grab second. The two drivers who both now call Mooresville, NC home, pulled away from the rest of the field and began slicing through lapped traffic while in the midst of their battle for the $5,000 payday. Strickler would lose Hoffman in traffic, but Hoffman was able to get through it to set up a late battle with Strickler. As the laps clicked off, both drivers got away from everyone, but it would be Strickler who would fight off a late charge from Hoffman to secure his second Gator of the week, his fourth career win at Volusia Speedway Park and first Big Gator trophy.

Hoffman settled for second but would officially clinch his third consecutive DIRTcar Nationals title. Will Krup rounded out the podium finishers in third. Two-time Gator winner this week, Tyler Nicely finished fourth as Allgaier completed the top five. Ryan Ayers scored his best finish of the week in sixth as Mark Whitener, two-time NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion, Matt Crafton, opening night winner, David Stremme and Jason Beaulieu rounded out the top-10.

The DIRTcar Late Models continue Late Model week on Tuesday, February 13^th before the World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series finish out the week over the last four nights from February 14-17^th. The Super DIRTcar Big-Block Modifieds take over for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and begin their stretch of five nights of racing also on Tuesday, February 13^th and will also close out the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals.

For more information about the 47^th annual DIRTcar Nationals and to order tickets, please call: 1 (844) DIRT-TIX or log onto the DIRTcar Nationals website located at: dirtcarnationals.com. You can also follow the DIRTcar Nationals by visiting the Social Media outlets. Just search for “DIRTcar Nationals” on both Facebook and Twitter for the very latest updates.

DIRTcar UMP Modified Results:

Feature (30-Laps): 1. 8- Kyle Strickler; 2. 2 – Nick Hoffman; 3. K9 – Will Krup; 4. 25-Tyler Nicely; 5. 7- Justin Alligaier; 6. 6a – Ryan Ayers; 7. 5 – Mark Whitener; 8. 88- Matt Crafton; 9. 35- David Stremme; 10. 90- Jason Beaulieu; 11. 96m – Mike McKinney; 12. 67 – Garrett Stewart; 13. 36 – Kenny Wallace; 14. 24z- Zeke McKenzie; 15. 17T – Tyler Evans; 16. 99H – Justin Haley; 17. 9- Ken Schrader; 18. 49- Brian Ruhlman; 19. 1- Blake Spalding; 20. 2×4 – Chase Collins; 21. 23- Ryan Cripe; 22. 18L- Michael Long; 23. 15c – Jamie Carter; 24. 14c – Rick Conoyer; 25. 4 – Rick Arms; 26. 77- Ray Bollinger; 27. 61 – Allen Weisser; 28. 22T – Tony Anderson.

Last Chance Showdown 1: 1. 67- Garrett Stewart; 2. 1. Blake Spalding; 3. 01- Brendan Rassell; 4. 22T – Tony Anderson; 5. 14c- Rick Conoyer; 6. 13- Todd Souza; 7. 71N- Will Norris; 8. 96-Matthew Johnson; 9. D4- Dave Jamison; 10. 27-Frank Paladino; 11. 45-Will Long; 12. 11T-Dugan Thye; 13. 07-Jeff Thomas; 14. 4s-Craig Shaw; 15. 85E- Jesse Stange; 16. 11N- Gene Nicholas; 1. 27G – Jason Garver; 17. 6B- Dave Baldwin.

Last Chance Showdown 2: 1. 49- Brian Ruhlman, 2. 9- Ken Schrader, 3. 17T- Tyler Evans, 4. 3- Steve Stevenson, 5. 15- Joey Miller, 6. 2J- Troy Johnson, 7. A1- Gary Bentley, 8. 54- Larry Burkins, 9. 99H- Justin Haley, 10. 21- Sean Monaghan. DNS: 71 Jessie Hoskins, 10T Dustin Thayer, 6P Marvin Barton

By Scott|2018-02-13T17:04:21-05:00February 13th, 2018|DIRTcar, National, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Three Little Gators: Nick Hoffman Picks Up Third Win of DIRTcar Nationals

Hoffman Clinches Spot In Gator Championship With Third Gator Of The Week

BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 11, 2018 — It was the second and final Gator Qualifying Night for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds at Volusia Speedway Park (FL) on Sunday, February 11^th. The second half of the 79 total Modified teams who had made at least one appearance during the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals had their shot at racing their way into the $5,000-to-win Big Gator Championships on Monday, February 12^th. Two-time defending DIRTcar Nationals Champion, Nick Hoffman returned to his winning ways as the Mooresville, NC resident took the lead with six laps to go and pulled away to his third Gator of the week and a starting spot in the Big Gator Championship Feature.

“We had problems all day today, didn’t even get to Qualify and that really put us behind the eight-ball. So, had our work cut out for us,” Stated the 25-year-old Modified standout who started 10^th in the Feature. “We still struggled in the Heat Race, then in the Feature it started raining, so I knew I had to get going. That caution with a few laps to go really helped us out and here we are.” Added the 2016 Summit Racing Equipment Modified Nationals Champion.

Will Krup and Ryan Cripe would bring the field down to the green flag after a complete restart and it would be Krup beating Cripe to the first corner to grab the early advantage. As the rest of the field scattered for position, Krup would build his lead up. Hoffman, who started 10^th, quickly and methodically picked his way through the field and was in second by the halfway point and began picking apart Krup’s lead.

As the laps continued to click off, a caution flag with seven laps to go bunched up the field. This was all Hoffman needed as on the restart, his #2 Elite Chassis machine worked its way around Krup to grab the lead a lap after the restart and pulled away to his third Gator of the week and his 14^th career win at Volusia in the DIRTcar Nationals. For the driver, originally from Belleville, IL, he’s the all-time career leader in wins in the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds by four checkered flags over the closest competitor.

Krup settled for second for his highest finish of the week while Zeke McKenzie also recorded his highest finish of the week by completing the podium finishers. NASCAR Xfinity Series star, Justin Allgaier also picked up his highest finish of the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals with a fourth as Ryan Cripe completed the top five for his best finish of the week. Allen Weisser scored his third sixth place finish of the week while Kenny Wallace was seventh over Jason Beaulieu who grabbed his best finish of the DIRTcar Nationals with an eighth. Jamie Carter was ninth as Mark Whitener finished off the top 10.

The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds close out their ironman status within the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals with their seventh and final night of action. The $5,000-to-win Big Gator Championships are on Monday, February 12^th as the top 10 finishers from the past two Gator Qualifying nights are locked into the big Feature. The rest of the field will race in a series of Last Chance Showdowns in an effort to get themselves added to the field.

The DIRTcar Late Models kick off Late Model week on Monday and return for their second and final night on Tuesday, February 13^th before the World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series finish out the week over the last four nights from February 14-17^th. The Super DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds Tour take over for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds and begin their stretch of five nights of racing on Tuesday, February 13^th and will also close out the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals.

FEATURE 1: 1.Nick Hoffman (2) 2. Will Krup (K9) 3. Zeke McKenzie (24z) 4. Justin Allgaier (7) 5. Ryan Cripe (23) 6. Allen Weisser (61) 7. Kenny Wallace (36) 8. Jason Beaulieu (90) 9. Jamie Carter (15c) 10. Mark Whitener (5) 11. Brian Ruhlman (49) 12. Troy Johnson (2J) 13. Justin Haley (99H) 14. Larry Burkins (54) 15. Rich Pratt (78) 16. Tyler Evans (17T) 17. Ken Schrader (9) 18. Jessie Hoskins (71) 19. Sean Monaghan (21) 20. Kc Burdette (44KC) 21. Gary Bentley (A1) 22. Austin Holcombe (8A) 23. Joey Miller (15) 24. Steve Stevenson (3) 25. Dustin Thayer (10T)

Last Chance Showdown: 1. Larry Burkins (54) 2.Gary Bentley (A1) 3. Tyler Evans (17T) 4. Sean Monaghan (21) 5. Joey Miller (15) 6. Steve Stevenson (3) 7. Dustin Thayer (10T) 8. Ryan Beckett (58) 9. Marvin Burton (6p) 10. Michael McGee (11m)

Heat 1: 1. Will Krup (K9) 2. Zeke McKenzie (24z) 3. Jason Beaulieu (90) 4. Nick Hoffman (2) 5. Allen Weisser (61) 6. Jessie Hoskins (71) 7. Dustin Thayer (10T) 8. Joey Miller (15) 9. Sean Monaghan (21) 10.Michael McGee (11m)

Heat 2: 1. Brian Ruhlman (49) 2. Kenny Wallace (36) 3. Justin Allgaier (7) 4. Jamie Carter (15c) 5. Kc Burdette (44KC) 6. Austin Holcombe (8A) 7. Larry Burkins (54) 8. Steve Stevenson (3) 9. Ryan Beckett (58)

Heat 3: 1. Ryan Cripe (23) 2. Troy Johnson (2J) 3. Mark Whitener (5) 4. Rich Pratt (78) 5. Justin Haley (99H) 6. Ken Schrader (9) 7. Tyler Evans (17T) 8. Gary Bentley (A1) 9. Marvin Burton (6p)

Qualifying 1: 1. Joey Miller (15) 2.Zeke McKenzie (24z) 3. Michael McGee (11m) 4. Allen Weisser (61) 5. Dustin Thayer (10T) 6. Sean Monaghan (21) 7. Jessie Hoskins (71) 8. Will Krup (K9) 9. Jason Beaulieu (90) 10. Nick Hoffman (2)

Qualifying 2: 1.Justin Allgaier (7) 2.Larry Burkins (54) 3.Brian Ruhlman (49) 4. Steve Stevenson (3)5. Austin Holcombe (8A) 6. Jamie Carter (15c) 7. Ryan Beckett (58)8. Kc Burdette (44KC) 9. Kenny Wallace (36)

Qualifying 3: 1.Ryan Cripe (23) 2.Rich Pratt (78) 3.Troy Johnson (2J) 4.Mark Whitener (5) 5.Tyler Evans (17T) 6.Ken Schrader (9) 7.Gary Bentley (A1) 8.Justin Haley (99H) 9.Marvin Burton (6p)

By Scott|2018-02-12T17:29:17-05:00February 12th, 2018|DIRTcar, National, Racing News, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

Four Little Gators: Quad-15’s for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds

Strickler’s Hauler Mishap Motivates Him to First Gator of the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals

BARBERVILLE, FL — Feb. 9, 2018 — Night number four of the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals would see the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds race in the popular Quad-15s format. Every driver on hand raced in a feature with a chance at winning a coveted Gator. Highlighting the night was the victory in the final Quad Feature by Mooresville, NC standout, Kyle Strickler who’s day started with his car falling off the hauler earlier in the afternoon while unloading his #8 Longhorn Chassis entry. The 33-year-old and his crew worked feverishly on his damaged ride and the hard work paid off with the win.

“Hell of a way to start the day that’s for sure.” Laughed the driver originally from Sinking Spring, Pennsylvania after getting up on stage for his post-race interview. “The car coming down off the hauler may have turned out to be a blessing for us. We fixed the damage, which was only cosmetic on the left rear. Then when we went out for Practice, the car felt good. Then in the feature, the car was really fast and we were able to get the lead early and drive away.” He added. With the win, his first at Volusia Speedway Park of 2018, was his third career Gator.

Allen Weisser and Mike McKinney brought the final Quad Feature to the green flag and it as Weisser pacing the pack early on. Strickler, who started ninth, wasted no time getting to the front and by lap three, grabbed the lead away from Weisser and immediately pulled away from the rest of the pack. A single caution bunched up the field, however, on the restart, Strickler got away from the field again and drove away to his third career Gator and first since February 11^th, 2015.

Two-time defending DIRTcar Nationals Champion, Nick Hoffman, the current DIRTcar Nationals Gator Points leader, kept that lead with a runner-up showing ahead of McKinney as night number one winner, David Stremme and Zeke McKenzie wrapped up the top five with his second fifth place finish of the week. Weisser was sixth as Michael Long, Kenny Wallace, Brian Ruhlman and Jason Beaulieu completed the top 10.

Earlier in the night, the third Quad Feature would see Owensboro, KY driver, Tyler Nicely take the lead away from Ken Schrader with five laps to go to give the driver of the #25 Elite Chassis machine his second career Gator. The 23-year-old’s victory was his first since February 11^th, 2016 and it was over Tyler Evans who finished a week high second. Mark Whitener, who started 18^th (last) and making his first appearance of the DIRTcar Nationals, grabbed third as a pair of NASCAR competitors, Justin Allgaier (Xfinity Series) and Matt Crafton (Camping World Truck Series) were the final top five. Another NASCAR driver, Justin Haley was sixth while 13-year-old Hunt Gossum, Ray Bollinger, Troy Johnson and Austin Holcombe, from 15^th, were the final top 10.

The second Quad Feature of the night saw Lima, OH driver, Frank Paladino, a former Eldora Speedway Stock Car Track Champion, start on the pole. The driver of the #27 Mid-American Cleaning Contractors ride would make no mistake the whole race and survived numerous cautions to lead the whole way en route to his first career DIRTcar UMP Modified Feature Win. Jason Garver finished in second while Michael McGee, Dugan Thye and Dave Baldwin were the top five. Gene Nicholas was sixth as 76-year-old Florida legend, Buzzie Reutimann, who started 17^th, came home in seventh. Will Long, Blake Spalding and Will Norris rounded out the top 10 finishers.

The first Quad Feature of the evening would Leesburg, FL veteran, Larry Mott start on the pole and the 65-year-old driver of the #07z Mott Concrete entry would lead all 15 laps to score the emotional victory, his first career Gator. Rich Pratt started last (18^th) and would come through the field but ran out of time to challenge Mott and settled for second with Craig Shaw, Gary Bentley and Brenden Rassel were the top five. Steve Stevenson scored a sixth place finish as Jesse Strange, Dustin Thayer, John Baker and Todd Souza were the final top 10 in the rundown.

Next up for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds will be the first of two Gator Qualifying Nights on Saturday, February 10^th. The 74 cars that have appeared during the 47^th Annual DIRTcar Nationals after four nights of racing, will be split into two groups with the first group racing on Saturday, then the second group goes on Sunday, February 11^th. The top 10 finishers from each night’s feature will be locked in to the Big Gator Championship Feature paying $5,000 to win on Monday, February 12^th. The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series will race in their second of three nights on Saturday before completing Sprint Car Week on Sunday.

DIRTcar UMP Modified Results:

Feature 1: 1.Larry Mott (06Z) 2.Rich Pratt (78) 3.Craig Shaw (4s) 4.Gary Bentley (A1) 5.Brendan Rassell (01) 6.Steve Stevenson (3) 7.Jesse Strange (85E) 8.Dustin Thayer (10T) 9.John E Baker (22J) 10.Todd Souza (13) 11.Matthew Johnson (96) 12.Rick Weitekamp (89w) 13.Marvin Barton (6P) 14.William Cevaal (27c) 15.Ryan Beckett (58) 16.Robbie Evans (17) 17.Joey Miller (15) 18.Timmy Near (71x)

Feature 2: 1. Frank Paladino (27) 2. Jason Garver (27G) 3. Michael McGee (11m) 4. Dugan Thye (11T) 5. Will Long (45) 6. Dave Baldwin (6B) 7. Gene Nicholas (11N) 8. Buzzie Reutimann (00) 9. Blake Spalding (1) 10.Will Norris (71n) 11. A.j. Fike (10) 12. Dave Jamison (D4) 13. Jason Brookover (28B) 14. Ryan Ayers (6A) 15. Jesse Rupe (11R) 16. Lee Hobbs (22JH) 17. Brad Goff (41) 18. Jeff Thomas (07)

Feature 3: 1.Tyler Nicely (25) 2. Tyler Evans (17T) 3. Mark Whitener (5) 4. Justin Allgaier (7) 5. Matt Crafton (88) 6. Justin Haley (99H) 7. Hunt Gossum (99) 8. Ray Bollinger (77) 9. Troy Johnson (2J) 10. Austin Holcombe (8A) 11. Ryan Cripe (23) 12. Rick Conoyer (14C) 13. Tony Anderson (22T) 14. Jessie Hoskins (71) 15. Ken Schrader (9) 16. Todd Neiheiser (72) 17. Garrett Stewart (67) 18. Jamie Carter (15c)

Feature 4: 1.Kyle Strickler (8) 2.Nick Hoffman (2) 3. Mike McKinney (96m)4. David Stremme (35) 5. Zeke McKenzie (24z) 6. Allen Weisser (61) 7. Brian Ruhlman (49) 8. Michael Long (18L) 9. Jason Beaulieu (90) 10. Kenny Wallace (36) 11. Shon Flanary (98) 12. Kc Burdette (44KC) 13. Larry Burkins (54) 15. Chase Collins (2×4) 16. Will Krup (K9) 17.]Ricky Arms (4) 18. Josh Rice (11)

By Scott|2018-02-12T17:02:58-05:00February 12th, 2018|DIRTcar, National, Volusia Speedway Park|Comments Off

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