CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2026) – Life as a crew member with a World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series team is far from glamorous.

Sure, it’s a job many would love to have, but that doesn’t make the late nights and early mornings easy. Parking lot maintenance all through the summer, and often far from home. Quarter car wash trips beyond midnight. Long trips from track to track. It may be an occupation many aspire to have, but it doesn’t mean they’re all cut out for it. It’s easy to get worn down by the grind.

But Bill Rose Racing’s Jimmy Fitzwater refuses to have a bad day on the road. You won’t ever find him upset at the track. You’ll find a man who is always happy to be doing what he loves as he helps Kasey Jedrzejek navigate his first season on tour.

A military family meant Fitzwater moved often in his youth. He wound up in Georgia, and southern dirt tracks initially attracted him to Late Models. Eventually, Ohio became home and introduced him to Sprint Cars. The look. The sound. The racing. Fitzwater fell in love.

“I’d always wanted to work on them, always had a fascination with them. They’re the meanest machines on dirt,” Fitzwater said. “Seeing the big wing on top as a kid, I was like, ‘Wow.’”

Fitzwater got his shot to work on one when one of the “Buckeye State’s” most famed families needed a hand.

“In 2014, Lee Jacobs reached out to me over Facebook and said, ‘Hey, who wants to work on Sprint Cars?’” Fitzwater recalled. “And then ever since then it’s been full send.”

That stint even allowed Fitzwater to work with Cody Jacobs, who now turns the wrenches on the Big Game Motorsports No. 2 that David Gravel has driven to two consecutive championships.

Fitzwater moved around to various local teams over the next several seasons, soaking up as much knowledge as he could. One of those stops was Bryan Grove’s No. 28 with Tim Shaffer behind the wheel. Shaffer’s friendship with Jason Sides got Fitzwater acquainted with the 2003 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year presented by Five Star Bodies and opened the door for him to hit the road.

“Tim Shaffer and Jason Sides are pretty good friends,” Fitzwater said. “They asked me if I wanted to go to Florida, and I said yes. I got to work with Jason for the first time in 2021.”

That audition led to Fitzwater joining the Sides Motorsports crew full-time in 2022 and spending a few seasons with them as Sides stepped back from driving to operate as the crew chief on the No. 7S. Fitzwater worked with Robbie Price, Landon Crawley, and Chris Windom in his time with the team. Different drivers and different personalities, but Fitzwater enjoyed his time with each equally.

“Each driver has their unique characteristics and little quirks they do,” Fitzwater said. “I’ve never had a bad time with any driver I’ve worked with. Chris always said I was like Mr. Positive and never had a bad day.”

During the stretch with Sides, Fitzwater’s attitude was recognized with the Jason Johnson Sportsmanship Award in 2024.

Fitzwater’s career path brought him to Bill Rose’s operation for 2026 as they hired Kasey Jedrzejek to make a rookie run with The Greatest Show on Dirt. It hasn’t taken long for Fitzwater’s positivity to make an impact on the entire group.

“That means a lot because you’ve got to have fun doing this crap,” Rose said of Fitzwater’s personality. “I’ve told everybody, even Kasey getting into this deal, we got to have fun. If you’re not having fun, you got to do something different. He (Fitzwater) brings that to it. He likes to have a good time, and everybody knows that’s part of it… He does what he does, and he’s been doing really well.”

“It’s been a lot of fun working with Jimmy,” Jedrzejek echoed. “He’s never down or anything. He’s always there to have a good time, and I think he does a really good job at keeping everybody going if we’re having a bad day or something is just not going right. It just doesn’t affect Jimmy. He’s still having a good time and moving forward with the rest of the day.”

Fitzwater himself is enjoying this year just like all the others. Jedrzejek is showing promise with a pair of top 10s already this season, competing against the world’s best Sprint Car drivers every night. But whether they run up front, struggle, or the race rains out, Fitzwater’s disposition remains the same. You can catch him enjoying every moment of the ride in the pit area each week. And if Mother Nature permits a little playtime, you might even find him wowing patrons of a local beverage establishment with his unparalleled dance moves.

“If you’re having a bad time, I’m always down to crack a joke or make you smile a little bit and make the day a little better,” Fitzwater said. “I mean, we’re all out here for a long period of time. It gets hot and sticky and smelly and greasy. If I can make you smile a little bit, I feel like I did my job for the day.”

Jedrzejek, Fitzwater, and the Bill Rose Racing team continue the 2026 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car season next week in Pennsylvania at Lincoln Speedway on Tuesday, May 5 and Williams Grove Speedway on Friday-Saturday, May 8-9. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.

SMILE A LITTLE BIT: Meet One of the Pit Area’s Most Positive Personalities, Jimmy Fitzwater

CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2026) – Life as a crew member with a World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series team is far from glamorous.

Sure, it’s a job many would love to have, but that doesn’t make the late nights and early mornings easy. Parking lot maintenance all through the summer, and often far from home. Quarter car wash trips beyond midnight. Long trips from track to track. It may be an occupation many aspire to have, but it doesn’t mean they’re all cut out for it. It’s easy to get worn down by the grind.

But Bill Rose Racing’s Jimmy Fitzwater refuses to have a bad day on the road. You won’t ever find him upset at the track. You’ll find a man who is always happy to be doing what he loves as he helps Kasey Jedrzejek navigate his first season on tour.

A military family meant Fitzwater moved often in his youth. He wound up in Georgia, and southern dirt tracks initially attracted him to Late Models. Eventually, Ohio became home and introduced him to Sprint Cars. The look. The sound. The racing. Fitzwater fell in love.

“I’d always wanted to work on them, always had a fascination with them. They’re the meanest machines on dirt,” Fitzwater said. “Seeing the big wing on top as a kid, I was like, ‘Wow.’”

Fitzwater got his shot to work on one when one of the “Buckeye State’s” most famed families needed a hand.

“In 2014, Lee Jacobs reached out to me over Facebook and said, ‘Hey, who wants to work on Sprint Cars?’” Fitzwater recalled. “And then ever since then it’s been full send.”

That stint even allowed Fitzwater to work with Cody Jacobs, who now turns the wrenches on the Big Game Motorsports No. 2 that David Gravel has driven to two consecutive championships.

Fitzwater moved around to various local teams over the next several seasons, soaking up as much knowledge as he could. One of those stops was Bryan Grove’s No. 28 with Tim Shaffer behind the wheel. Shaffer’s friendship with Jason Sides got Fitzwater acquainted with the 2003 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year presented by Five Star Bodies and opened the door for him to hit the road.

“Tim Shaffer and Jason Sides are pretty good friends,” Fitzwater said. “They asked me if I wanted to go to Florida, and I said yes. I got to work with Jason for the first time in 2021.”

That audition led to Fitzwater joining the Sides Motorsports crew full-time in 2022 and spending a few seasons with them as Sides stepped back from driving to operate as the crew chief on the No. 7S. Fitzwater worked with Robbie Price, Landon Crawley, and Chris Windom in his time with the team. Different drivers and different personalities, but Fitzwater enjoyed his time with each equally.

“Each driver has their unique characteristics and little quirks they do,” Fitzwater said. “I’ve never had a bad time with any driver I’ve worked with. Chris always said I was like Mr. Positive and never had a bad day.”

During the stretch with Sides, Fitzwater’s attitude was recognized with the Jason Johnson Sportsmanship Award in 2024.

Fitzwater’s career path brought him to Bill Rose’s operation for 2026 as they hired Kasey Jedrzejek to make a rookie run with The Greatest Show on Dirt. It hasn’t taken long for Fitzwater’s positivity to make an impact on the entire group.

“That means a lot because you’ve got to have fun doing this crap,” Rose said of Fitzwater’s personality. “I’ve told everybody, even Kasey getting into this deal, we got to have fun. If you’re not having fun, you got to do something different. He (Fitzwater) brings that to it. He likes to have a good time, and everybody knows that’s part of it… He does what he does, and he’s been doing really well.”

“It’s been a lot of fun working with Jimmy,” Jedrzejek echoed. “He’s never down or anything. He’s always there to have a good time, and I think he does a really good job at keeping everybody going if we’re having a bad day or something is just not going right. It just doesn’t affect Jimmy. He’s still having a good time and moving forward with the rest of the day.”

Fitzwater himself is enjoying this year just like all the others. Jedrzejek is showing promise with a pair of top 10s already this season, competing against the world’s best Sprint Car drivers every night. But whether they run up front, struggle, or the race rains out, Fitzwater’s disposition remains the same. You can catch him enjoying every moment of the ride in the pit area each week. And if Mother Nature permits a little playtime, you might even find him wowing patrons of a local beverage establishment with his unparalleled dance moves.

“If you’re having a bad time, I’m always down to crack a joke or make you smile a little bit and make the day a little better,” Fitzwater said. “I mean, we’re all out here for a long period of time. It gets hot and sticky and smelly and greasy. If I can make you smile a little bit, I feel like I did my job for the day.”

Jedrzejek, Fitzwater, and the Bill Rose Racing team continue the 2026 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car season next week in Pennsylvania at Lincoln Speedway on Tuesday, May 5 and Williams Grove Speedway on Friday-Saturday, May 8-9. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.

Where can you see the World of Outlaws in 2026? Click to see the full schedule.

Davis Fisher (No. 67), Dallas Daniels (No. 1), Briar Bauman (No. 3), and Kody Kopp (No. 12) line up on the front row for the Mission AFT SuperTwins main event at the 2026 Ventura Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester/AMA Pro Racing] Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

Three-Way Grand National Championship Battle Arrives at Silver Dollar Speedway

Davis Fisher (No. 67), Dallas Daniels (No. 1), Briar Bauman (No. 3), and Kody Kopp (No. 12) line up on the front row for the Mission AFT SuperTwins main event at the 2026 Ventura Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester/AMA Pro Racing] Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 1, 2026) – The 2026 Progressive American Flat Track season, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, will complete its two-week West Coast tour with the Silver Dollar Short Track at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California, this Saturday, May 2.  With the first quarter of the ‘26 Mission AFT SuperTwins title race behind us and 12 rounds ahead, this year’s Grand National Championship tilt is coming into focus.  Three riders have risen above the rest: rookie points leader Kody Kopp (No. 12 Latus Motors Racing Harley-Davidson XG750R), reigning champion Dallas Daniels (No. 1 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07), and two-time Grand National Champion and this past weekend’s victor Briar Bauman (No. 3 RWR/Jacob Construction/Parts Plus Harley-Davidson XG750R).  Collectively, this power trio accounts for all four available Main Event wins and ten of twelve possible podiums. Generational talent abound, it’s nearly impossible to pick a winner among them. Each week is a new chance to redirect the trajectory of the season, and all three have a case to make at Silver Dollar Speedway.  It’s OnWhile currently ranked third in the points with some serious work to do, Bauman has both momentum and history on his side. The California native thrives in the spotlight with his friends and family rooting him on, a fact he’ll look to capitalize on again this weekend.  Bauman swept at Ventura and Chico a year ago and is on track to do so again. All the while, he continues his march up the all-time records list. Last Saturday’s triumph marked his 35th premier-class victory, moving him ahead of the iconic Bubba Shobert to take sole possession of eighth on the career wins list.  Kenny Coolbeth, Jr., and Ricky Graham are both realistically within reach yet this season. And he may need to eclipse them both in order to fight his way back into contention as he currently trails Kopp by 22 points and Daniels by 15.  That said, Bauman is extremely capable of stringing together wins and eating away at the gap.  Kopp, meanwhile, is on pace to redefine rookie success. In his young Mission AFT SuperTwins career, he has yet to finish worse than second. No rider has finished ahead of him more than once, and the only two to do so are the aforementioned current and former Grand National Champions performing at the peak of their powers.  However scary, Kopp should only get better. He’s still getting accustomed to his team, with his bike, and with his competitors. This is still the learning stage.   Silver Dollar Speedway is as good a place as any to continue his ascension. Kopp raced here once before, tracking down Tom Drane and Chase Saathoff to claim one of his more memorable KICKER AFT Singles wins during in 2024 season.  Meanwhile, Daniels is still the man with the #1 bolted to the front of his bike. And this is a venue he’d no doubt like to finally conquer.   In two prior attempts, Daniels led early, found himself overhauled, and then countered with a late charge. In ‘24, he came up just short of acing all-timer Jared Mees in the race’s final corner to steal away the win. Last year, he fell just 0.061 seconds short of overtaking Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing KTM 790 Duke) for second.   Fisher Angling for RevengeSpeaking of Fisher, while he ranks fourth in the points, he finds himself attempting to dig his way out of an early-season 38-point hole.  The Rackley Racing standout was set to continue his string of top fives with a podium performance before mechanical issues robbed him of that chance.  As a result, tangible success at Ventura Raceway continues to elude him despite his obvious speed. Silver Dollar Speedway, however, is another story, as evidenced by the second place he earned here a year ago.  Fisher was fired up and riding aggressively this past weekend. Another outing like that, and he may just increase the 2026 winners list to four.  Expect him to come out swinging.  Wild CardBronson Bauman (No. 37 Dick Ford Racing Yamaha MT-07) stepped away from full-time Progressive AFT competition following the 2024 season to focus on his family and other pursuits.   That decision seems to have re-energized him. Bauman made his 2026 debut with a fourth-place run in Ventura. Stacked onto his finishes at last year’s Peoria TT and Lake Ozark ST, he now boasts three successive finishes inside the top five.  He didn’t finish higher than sixth over his final two full seasons.   While we see less of him than we did before, the one we do is more reminiscent of the Bronson Bauman who raced in 2022 and before.  It’s worth remembering exactly what he’s capable of at his best. This is a rider who finished the 2019 season ranked third overall with a win among his five podium finishes. Bauman remains one of the best motorcycle dirt trackers in existence. Any time he lines up, he’s given another opportunity to remind the world of that fact.   And he’ll line up again this weekend at Silver Dollar Speedway.  Chaos is a LadderSeveral other premier-class contenders have demonstrated the ability to fight up front, even if only in fleeting moments. What’s been missing is the consistency to do so not just week-to-week, but session-to-session.   Some of the pilots who were expected to step forward and challenge with regularity are still looking to find their footing.   Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods Honda CB750 Hornet) has all the tools necessary to be in podium contention on a weekly basis. He’s flashed at times this season but hasn’t yet maximized his potential.   Meanwhile, teammates Declan Bender (No. 70 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07) and Brandon Price (No. 92 Memphis Shades/Vinson Construction Yamaha MT-07) have proven podium track records, but the luckless duo currently find themselves outside the championship top ten.   The flipside is a group of riders perfectly positioned to take advantage of the relative struggles of others in order to climb up the order.   Ben Lowe (No. 25 Rackley Racing/Roof Systems KTM 790 Duke) is trending in the right direction. He came out on top of a scrap with Aidan RoosEvans (No. 26 FRA Trust Advisors Harley-Davidson XG750R) and Lowe to claim a top five this past weekend.  Speaking of, despite being overshadowed by the historic rookie performance of Kopp, RoosEvans has also been outperforming all expectations in his debut premier-class campaign.   He now boasts back-to-back sixth-place finishes and has teased the speed to do far more than that. It appears as if his style may be better suited to the twin than a single, and he’s added depth and strength to the Harley-Davidson lineup in a real way already.  Another rider on the rise is Logan McGrane (No. 14 Schaffers MotorSports/RVR Racing KTM 790 Duke). McGrane is coming off his career best finish of eighth – a result which elevated him inside the top ten of the Grand National Championship rankings.  Sweet!The event will be overloaded with activities from start to finish, on and off the track. World of Outlaws legend and Silver Dollar Speedway co-owner Brad Sweet will serve as Grand Marshal. Fans will also be treated to multiple Thrashed Kids Freestyle Shows throughout the day.  Attendees can also expect a multitude of vendors, big screen viewing, designated motorcycle parking, and a variety of food and beverage options.   Your Ticket, PleaseGeneral Admission Grandstand tickets for the Silver Dollar Short Track are just $40 (kids 12 and under free) while Reserved Grandstand tickets ($65, all ages), Pit Grandstand tickets ($80, all ages), and Trackside Box tickets ($95, all ages) offer upgraded viewing experiences.    And if you use the promo code “RESERVED25” at checkout, you can get one Limited Reserved Grandstand Ticket discounted to $25.  And for $135 ($95 as a ticket add-on), you can get the Harley-Davidson VIP Experience, which includes dedicated VIP H-D motorcycle parking, access to an exclusive grandstand seating section, a meet-and-greet with the Harley-Davidson racers, and a guided tour of the infield podium and start/finish line, photos opps included.   Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-silver-dollar-short-track-168776 to reserve your seats today.  Gates will open for fans at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT with Opening Ceremonies scheduled to begin at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.

FOUNTAIN CITY, WI (April 30, 2026) – Two days ago, Bobby Pierce left Victory Lane at Independence Motor Speedway with a few final words:

“Let’s go get another one Thursday.”

He stayed true to his word. In Thursday’s opening night of the Dairyland Showdown at Mississippi Thunder Speedway, Pierce rallied to the front and never looked back for win number seven of 2026 with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision and his third in a row.

“It was challenging,” Pierce said. “I feel like that race, I could have ended up first, I could have ended up fifth or worse. I think with about 10 to go, I really stalled out, I was the same speed as the lap traffic. We had just enough to get the job done, luckily no cautions came out at the end.”

Mississippi Thunder has developed a reputation for producing some of the best racing on the World of Outlaws schedule, and the Fountain City, WI facility didn’t disappoint on Thursday. Bilstein Pole Award winner Drake Troutman pulled away early, but the race was on behind him between Tim McCreadie, Ryan Gustin and Pierce. The three drivers used every inch of the racing surface to throw sliders and swap spots while Nick Hoffman loomed behind. By the halfway point of the 30-lap contest, Pierce had gotten clear of all of them and had his sights locked on Troutman.

It was around that time that Troutman began exploring the middle groove as he caught traffic, leaving the cushion open for Pierce to hammer his signature line. With 12 to go, Pierce was on Troutman’s tail when he tried a short slider to get to the front off Turn 4. Troutman repaid the favor in Turn 1, but Pierce had enough momentum to pull the crossover and get to the lead for good. Troutman didn’t let Pierce get too far away, but he never got close enough to make another bid for the lead before the checkered flag.

“Started with Gustin, getting by him, I had to shoot it in there and get going,” Pierce said. “When I caught Troutman for the lead, I think he was starting to maybe try to switch around. I knew I had to get the lead before he changed his line too much and found that top side. Honestly, I don’t even remember how I passed him. Bottom, top, I don’t remember. Lot of stuff going on in that race.”

Troutman settled for second after leading the first 18 laps, bringing him to 65 laps led on the season, the most of any driver who has yet to win a race. Rounding out the podium was Gustin with his best result since Hendry County Motorsports Park in February, while Hoffman and McCreadie completed the top five.

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision remains at Mississippi Thunder Speedway for the second night of the Dairyland Showdown on Friday, May 1. Get your tickets in advance by clicking here.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

RACE NOTES:

Tyler Erb set the Dirt King Simulators Fastest Hot Lap.

Tim McCreadie won the Simpson Quick Time Award.

Tim McCreadie won Heat 1.

Drake Troutman won STAKT Products Heat 2.

Ryan Gustin won Keyser Manufacturing Heat 3.

Bobby Pierce won Jarrett Rifles Heat 4.

Derrick Stewart and Chad Simpson won the Last Chance Showdowns.

Drake Troutman won the Bilstein Pole Award.

Tyler Bruening won the FOX Factory Hard Charger Award.

Trey Mills won the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

Drake Troutman was the WELD Racing Second-Place Finisher.

Ryan Gustin was the WIX Filters Third-Place Finisher.

Nick Hoffman was the ARP Fourth-Place Finisher.

Tim McCreadie was the MSD Fifth-Place Finisher.

Trey Mills was the Swift Springs Sixth-Place Finisher.

Tyler Erb was the Penske Racing Shocks Seventh-Place Finisher.

Dustin Sorensen was VP Racing Fuels Eighth-Place Finisher.

Cade Dillard was the Lifeline Ninth-Place Finisher.

Ethan Dotson was the COMP Cams 10th-Place Finisher.

Michael Leach was the Quarter Master 11th-Place Finisher.

Jake Timm was the Cometic Gaskets 12th-Place Finisher.

Tyler Bruening was the Quarter Master 13th-Place Finisher.

Sam Mars was the ARP 14th-Place Finisher.

Chad Simpson was the Arizona Sport Shirts 18th-Place Finisher.

Pierce Scores Third-Straight World of Outlaws Win in Dairyland Showdown Opener

FOUNTAIN CITY, WI (April 30, 2026) – Two days ago, Bobby Pierce left Victory Lane at Independence Motor Speedway with a few final words:

“Let’s go get another one Thursday.”

He stayed true to his word. In Thursday’s opening night of the Dairyland Showdown at Mississippi Thunder Speedway, Pierce rallied to the front and never looked back for win number seven of 2026 with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision and his third in a row.

“It was challenging,” Pierce said. “I feel like that race, I could have ended up first, I could have ended up fifth or worse. I think with about 10 to go, I really stalled out, I was the same speed as the lap traffic. We had just enough to get the job done, luckily no cautions came out at the end.”

Mississippi Thunder has developed a reputation for producing some of the best racing on the World of Outlaws schedule, and the Fountain City, WI facility didn’t disappoint on Thursday. Bilstein Pole Award winner Drake Troutman pulled away early, but the race was on behind him between Tim McCreadie, Ryan Gustin and Pierce. The three drivers used every inch of the racing surface to throw sliders and swap spots while Nick Hoffman loomed behind. By the halfway point of the 30-lap contest, Pierce had gotten clear of all of them and had his sights locked on Troutman.

It was around that time that Troutman began exploring the middle groove as he caught traffic, leaving the cushion open for Pierce to hammer his signature line. With 12 to go, Pierce was on Troutman’s tail when he tried a short slider to get to the front off Turn 4. Troutman repaid the favor in Turn 1, but Pierce had enough momentum to pull the crossover and get to the lead for good. Troutman didn’t let Pierce get too far away, but he never got close enough to make another bid for the lead before the checkered flag.

“Started with Gustin, getting by him, I had to shoot it in there and get going,” Pierce said. “When I caught Troutman for the lead, I think he was starting to maybe try to switch around. I knew I had to get the lead before he changed his line too much and found that top side. Honestly, I don’t even remember how I passed him. Bottom, top, I don’t remember. Lot of stuff going on in that race.”

Troutman settled for second after leading the first 18 laps, bringing him to 65 laps led on the season, the most of any driver who has yet to win a race. Rounding out the podium was Gustin with his best result since Hendry County Motorsports Park in February, while Hoffman and McCreadie completed the top five.

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision remains at Mississippi Thunder Speedway for the second night of the Dairyland Showdown on Friday, May 1. Get your tickets in advance by clicking here.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

RACE NOTES:

Tyler Erb set the Dirt King Simulators Fastest Hot Lap.

Tim McCreadie won the Simpson Quick Time Award.

Tim McCreadie won Heat 1.

Drake Troutman won STAKT Products Heat 2.

Ryan Gustin won Keyser Manufacturing Heat 3.

Bobby Pierce won Jarrett Rifles Heat 4.

Derrick Stewart and Chad Simpson won the Last Chance Showdowns.

Drake Troutman won the Bilstein Pole Award.

Tyler Bruening won the FOX Factory Hard Charger Award.

Trey Mills won the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

Drake Troutman was the WELD Racing Second-Place Finisher.

Ryan Gustin was the WIX Filters Third-Place Finisher.

Nick Hoffman was the ARP Fourth-Place Finisher.

Tim McCreadie was the MSD Fifth-Place Finisher.

Trey Mills was the Swift Springs Sixth-Place Finisher.

Tyler Erb was the Penske Racing Shocks Seventh-Place Finisher.

Dustin Sorensen was VP Racing Fuels Eighth-Place Finisher.

Cade Dillard was the Lifeline Ninth-Place Finisher.

Ethan Dotson was the COMP Cams 10th-Place Finisher.

Michael Leach was the Quarter Master 11th-Place Finisher.

Jake Timm was the Cometic Gaskets 12th-Place Finisher.

Tyler Bruening was the Quarter Master 13th-Place Finisher.

Sam Mars was the ARP 14th-Place Finisher.

Chad Simpson was the Arizona Sport Shirts 18th-Place Finisher.

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[4]; 2. 22*-Drake Troutman[1]; 3. 19R-Ryan Gustin[3]; 4. 9-Nick Hoffman[7]; 5. 9M-Tim McCreadie[2]; 6. 14-Trey Mills[5]; 7. 1-Tyler Erb[11]; 8. 19-Dustin Sorensen[8]; 9. 97-Cade Dillard[14]; 10. 74X-Ethan Dotson[10]; 11. 09-Michael Leach[6]; 12. 49-Jake Timm[12]; 13. 16-Tyler Bruening[19]; 14. 28M-Sam Mars[9]; 15. 15D-Justin Duty[13]; 16. 43-Derrick Stewart[17]; 17. 38T-Dylan Thornton[16]; 18. 25-Chad Simpson[18]; 19. 11-Gordy Gundaker[20]; 20. B1-Brent Larson[26]; 21. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[24]; 22. 58V-Daulton Wilson[21]; 23. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[23]; 24. 1Z-Logan Zarin[25]; 25. 99JR-Frank Heckenast Jr[22]; 26. 32S-Chris Simpson[15]

CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2026) – Skylar Gee has joined forces with Greg Wheeler Motorsports for the remainder of the 2026 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series season.

The move comes after Wheeler and Scotty Thiel parted ways following the Premier Chevy Dealers Clash at Knoxville Raceway. Thiel’s best run aboard Wheeler’s No. 16C through 16 races this year was 11th at Volusia Speedway Park in March.

Gee returns to The Greatest Show on Dirt after completing his rookie campaign in 2025. The Leduc, AB, Canada driver tallied a pair of top fives and nine top 10s last season in the Logan Fenton Racing No. 99.

“I’ve known Greg for quite a while,” Gee said. “We actually used to have the same engine builder one time and were always chatting at the races. He’s one of the nicest guys in the pit area, and I always enjoy talking to him. I saw the news where him and Scotty parted ways, so I thought I’d reach out and see if he was interested in staying on tour and finishing the year out and going back racing. I jumped at the opportunity, and here we are.

“I’m really excited. Greg has some of the best equipment. I knew it was a great opportunity and everything. His shop only being an hour away from my house was huge too. I’m going to get to be home quite often and get to the shop a lot. I’ve worked really hard to get back to this spot and get back to racing with the Outlaws.”

The first appearances for Gee with Greg Wheeler Motorsports will come next week during a three-race trip to Pennsylvania with stops at Lincoln Speedway (May 5) and Williams Grove Speedway (May 8-9). For tickets, CLICK HERE.

Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.

Skylar Gee Teams with Greg Wheeler Motorsports for Duration of 2026 World of Outlaws Season

CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2026) – Skylar Gee has joined forces with Greg Wheeler Motorsports for the remainder of the 2026 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series season.

The move comes after Wheeler and Scotty Thiel parted ways following the Premier Chevy Dealers Clash at Knoxville Raceway. Thiel’s best run aboard Wheeler’s No. 16C through 16 races this year was 11th at Volusia Speedway Park in March.

Gee returns to The Greatest Show on Dirt after completing his rookie campaign in 2025. The Leduc, AB, Canada driver tallied a pair of top fives and nine top 10s last season in the Logan Fenton Racing No. 99.

“I’ve known Greg for quite a while,” Gee said. “We actually used to have the same engine builder one time and were always chatting at the races. He’s one of the nicest guys in the pit area, and I always enjoy talking to him. I saw the news where him and Scotty parted ways, so I thought I’d reach out and see if he was interested in staying on tour and finishing the year out and going back racing. I jumped at the opportunity, and here we are.

“I’m really excited. Greg has some of the best equipment. I knew it was a great opportunity and everything. His shop only being an hour away from my house was huge too. I’m going to get to be home quite often and get to the shop a lot. I’ve worked really hard to get back to this spot and get back to racing with the Outlaws.”

The first appearances for Gee with Greg Wheeler Motorsports will come next week during a three-race trip to Pennsylvania with stops at Lincoln Speedway (May 5) and Williams Grove Speedway (May 8-9). For tickets, CLICK HERE.

Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.

Where can you see the World of Outlaws in 2026? Click to see the full schedule. 

Jack Brucks (No.113) and Jaymes Arnaiz (No. 227) racing during the 2026 Ventura Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

KICKER AFT Singles Set for Silver Dollar Showdown

Jack Brucks (No.113) and Jaymes Arnaiz (No. 227) racing during the 2026 Ventura Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 30, 2026) – The KICKER AFT Singles championship fight that will continue with the Silver Dollar Short Track this Saturday, May 2, in Chico, California, is shaping up to be among the most competitive and compelling in years.   Silver Dollar Speedway stands as one of the West Coast’s most revered auto racing dirt track venues. Now set to host Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, for the third consecutive season, the track is fast building a similar reputation in the two-wheeled world. This weekend presents another opportunity to add to that budding legacy.  Four for Four As the KICKER AFT Singles campaign heads into the fifth round of the season, the class has yet to see a repeat winner.  Defending class champion Tom Drane (No. 1 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) holds down the early-season points lead. That comes as no surprise. However, the Australian has not been the dominant figure to start this season that he was to end last season.  Drane raised the bar a year ago, and his rivals have responded. But like his Estenson Racing teammate and fellow reigning champion, Dallas Daniels, Drane’s week-in, week-out consistency can be his hallmark even in stretches when the wins don’t come as readily as he’d prefer.   While that strength keeps Drane the firm title favorite, the spotlight has – at least for the moment – shifted to rising star Kage Tadman (No. 28 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R).  Tadman burst onto the scene in 2025 by winning his first two professional races, sweeping the West Coast double at Ventura Raceway and Silver Dollar Speedway.   The Salinas, California, native is attempting to pull off the same feat again in ‘26. He’s halfway there, now days removed from earning his third-career win after holding Drane at bay in last Saturday’s Ventura Short Track.  Senoia Raceway winner Trevor Brunner (No. 21 KMA Racing/March Equipment Yamaha YZ450F) was rolling at Ventura, at least until an imperfect launch in the Main dashed his designs of snatching consecutive victories. That missed opportunity was clearly chafing at Brunner, and he rides at his best when he’s got that edge.   Meanwhile, the season’s other winner, Bradon Pfanders (No. 83 Memphis Shades/Corbin Seats Yamaha YZ450F), could use a big result to add to his DAYTONA triumph.  While Pfanders is no doubt focused on adding a second (and third and fourth, etc.) win to his career tally as quickly as possible, even when he’s not battling at the front, he continues to serve as an example of the opportunity that exists for a rider to emerge and collect a maiden win on any given weekend.   On the ChaseFew would have predicted there would be four different KICKER AFT Singles race winners in the season’s first four races. Fewer still would have guessed that Chase Saathoff (No. 88 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450) would not be among those four.   There’s nothing wrong with Saathoff, as evidenced by his two podiums. But one can imagine the title hopeful is growing more than a little tired watching his rivals celebrate atop the podium, especially from the outside looking in as was the case following last weekend’s sixth.  Saathoff finished second to current Mission AFT SuperTwins championship leader Kody Kopp at Silver Dollar Speedway two years back. In other words, this might be a prime setting for the 1st Impressions Husvarna pilot to up the class’ winners run to five for five.   California Dreamin’Tarren Santero (No. 75 Roof Systems/Vinson Construction Honda CRF450R) was a dark horse pick to finally get his first career KICKER AFT Singles win this past weekend at Ventura Raceway.  It wasn’t to be. A crash in his heat race forced him through the Last Chance Qualifier and placed him on the back row for the Main Event. He completed the opening lap of the race outside the top ten and remained in that general vicinity for the opening quarter of the event.    Santero gradually picked up steam and picked off riders as he did, ultimately ending up a strong fifth. While impressive, Santero isn’t gunning for fifths. Fortunately for the Petaluma native, he has another shot to at last breakthrough in victorious fashion and do so with his friends and family cheering him on.  While racing much further from home, Indiana’s Jared Lowe (No. 63 Big R Racing/Vinson Construction Honda CRF450R) would be perfectly content to get his first win – or even podium – while the series completes its West Coast swing.   Lowe looked as strong as he ever has last weekend, running either first or second throughout practice, qualifying, and his heat race, before leading Main Event laps for the time in his KICKER AFT Singles career.  Lowe continued to race inside the top three past half-distance before settling into fourth. It was a shame he couldn’t celebrate that standout form on the podium. Still, it should serve as a confidence booster and provide him some real momentum to carry into this weekend’s rematch.  And Beyond…  There are plenty of other riders well poised to spring a surprise.   Justin Jones (No. 91 Fairway Ford Chevy GMC Yamaha YZ450F) is currently enjoying a career renaissance and hoping to cement that triumphant return to form with an actual triumph.   Meanwhile, there are several young riders looking to accomplish what Jones did back in 2015 when he got his first win. That long list includes the likes of Jack Brucks (No. 113 1st Impressions Race Team Husqvarna FC450), Walker Porter (No. 10 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), Logan Eisenhard (No. 66 Eisenhard Racing/Pags Powersports KTM 450 SX-F), Evan Kelleher (No. 31 Schaeffer’s Motorsports KTM 450 SX-F), Ryder Reese (No. 41 Fasthouse/Smoking Butcher Coffee KTM 450 SX-F FE) and Skylar Sentell (No. 60 R&D Racing/Hoffer Performance KTM 450 SX-F).  Future ProsThe Progressive American Flat Track paddock has immediately embraced the all-new AFT ProSport 450 class, which provides promising amateurs an opportunity to showcase their talent before a national audience of fans and insiders.   A number of the sport’s biggest and most influential teams have gotten involved, backing the efforts of some talented stars-in-the-making.   Estenson Racing’s Sam Drane (No. 7 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) has taken a pair of wins, while 1st Impressions Husqvarna’s Jett Katarzy (No. 17 1st Impressions Husqvarna FC450) was victorious last time out. And Turner Honda’s Adam Costan-Wood (No. 88 Turner Racing Honda CRF450R) finished 4th while making his debut this past weekend.   However, the beauty of the class is the fact that its tightly restricted, stock-based regs reduce the financial barriers associated with entry. This allows riders without the support of a powerhouse team to complete on level terms. Talent shines above all.  Nearly half of this year’s podiums have gone to racers whose team name is their own. That list includes Bitz-Hay Racing’s Ryder Bitz-Hay (No. 14 Bitz-Hay Racing KTM 450 SX-F), who is the only rider to finish on the box in all three rounds this season.   Sweet!The event will be overloaded with activities from start to finish, on and off the track. World of Outlaws legend and Silver Dollar Speedway co-owner Brad Sweet will serve as Grand Marshal. Fans will also be treated to multiple Thrashed Kids Freestyle Shows throughout the day.   Attendees can also expect a multitude of vendors, big screen viewing, designated motorcycle parking, and a variety of food and beverage options.  Your Ticket, PleaseGeneral Admission Grandstand tickets for the Silver Dollar Short Track are just $40 (kids 12 and under free) while Reserved Grandstand tickets ($65, all ages), Pit Grandstand tickets ($80, all ages), and Trackside Box tickets ($95, all ages) offer upgraded viewing experiences.    And if you use the promo code “RESERVED25” at checkout, you can get one Limited Reserved Grandstand Ticket discounted to $25.  And for $135 ($95 as a ticket add-on), you can get the Harley-Davidson VIP Experience, which includes dedicated VIP H-D motorcycle parking, access to an exclusive grandstand seating section, a meet-and-greet with the Harley-Davidson racers, and a guided tour of the infield podium and start/finish line, photos opps included.  Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-silver-dollar-short-track-168776 to reserve your seats today.

Kody Kopp riding his Harley-Davidson XG750R at Ventura Raceway. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

Sierra Steel Harley-Davidson Named Official Motorcycle Dealership of CRESCO CAT Silver Dollar Short Track

Kody Kopp riding his Harley-Davidson XG750R at Ventura Raceway. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 30, 2026) – Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, has announced that Sierra Steel Harley-Davidson has been named the Official Motorcycle Dealership of the CRESCO CAT Silver Dollar Short Track, set for May 2 at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California. Sierra Steel Harley-Davidson brings a strong local presence to the event, with deep ties to the Northern California riding community and a long-standing connection to the region’s motorcycle culture. The CRESCO CAT Silver Dollar Short Track will deliver a full night of bar-to-bar racing action, featuring the sport’s top competitors in both Mission AFT SuperTwins and KICKER AFT Singles competition at one of the West Coast’s most iconic venues. Fans attending the event will also have the opportunity to enhance their race day experience with the Harley-Davidson VIP Experience, a premium add-on designed to provide deeper access and exclusive behind-the-scenes moments. The Harley-Davidson VIP Experience includes general admission seating paired with full pit access, along with a guided infield tour featuring the podium and start/finish line, including photo opportunities in both locations. VIP guests will also receive dedicated Harley-Davidson motorcycle parking and access to an exclusive grandstand seating section. The package includes a meet-and-greet and photo opportunity with Harley-Davidson riders, as well as a private infield tour and track walk. Each VIP guest will also receive a Harley-Davidson fan bell to cheer on H-D riders along with additional branded gifts. For tickets and event information, including details on the Harley-Davidson VIP Experience, visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-silver-dollar-short-track-168776. For more information about Sierra Steel Harley-Davidson, visit https://sierrasteelhd.com. Next Up Progressive American Flat Track continues its 2026 season with a stop in Northern California, as the series heads to Chico for the CRESCO CAT Silver Dollar Short Track on Saturday, May 2 at Silver Dollar Speedway. Tickets for the CRESCO CAT Silver Dollar Short Track can be purchased at https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-silver-dollar-short-track-168776.

Event: Würth 400Date/Time: Sunday, May 3, 2026, 3:30 p.m. ETLocation: Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, TexasLayout: 1.5-Mile OvalTV/Radio: FS1, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR RadioAs the Würth 400 takes center stage at Texas Motor Speedway, Josh Berry’s No. 21 Ford Mustang Dark Horse will carry the same Würth look on track, with the Würth Group – a global leader in assembly and fastening materials – featured across both the race and the car.Texas Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile oval near Fort Worth, is one of several intermediate tracks on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule, but its layout presents a unique challenge with two distinctly different ends of the track.“Texas itself is definitely very unique,” Berry said. “Both ends of the track are so much different.“[Turns] One and Two is a good bit less banking and kind of a more disciplined-based corner in a way. It’s easy to get high, easy to get out of line.“Then Three and Four is just hammer down, but obviously you have that bump to navigate through off of Four, so it’s definitely a very interesting place.“It’s a unique mile-and-a-half for sure.”Berry will make his third NASCAR Cup Series start at Texas this weekend as the Wood Brothers Racing team looks to bounce back after getting caught in an accident at Talladega Superspeedway.Practice for the Würth 400 is set for Saturday at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by qualifying at 1:40 p.m. ET, with coverage on Prime Video.Sunday’s 267-lap, 400.5-mile race is scheduled to take the green flag just after 3:30 p.m. ET with television coverage on FS1. Stage 1 is set to end at Lap 80, with Stage 2 concluding at Lap 165.Saturday, May 2Berry will sign autographs at the Team Penske/Wood Brothers merchandise hauler beginning at 2:10 p.m. local time in the Texas Motor Speedway fan zone. 100 wristbands will be distributed on a first come, first-served basis.Josh BerryAge: 35 (Oct. 22, 1990)Hometown: Hendersonville, TennesseeCrew Chief: Miles StanleyIG: @joshberry88X: @joshberryAbout The Würth Group Würth is Quality. The Würth Companies of North America provide customers with everything they need to succeed in the Automotive, Industrial and Woodworking Industries. From body shops to fleet garages, Wurth USA is the leading supplier of high-quality products and services for the transportation maintenance and repair industry. Würth Industry of North America specializes in the creation and management of vendor managed inventory programs for industrial production. With 420,000 line items available, Würth Industry of North America is the most complete C parts supplier in the industry. Würth North American Wood Division companies build strong partnerships for the cabinet and woodworking professional by providing premier manufacturer brands combined with superior delivery systems through their own fleet. The Würth Group’s 400 companies throughout 84 countries proudly serve over 3 million customers every day.

CONCORD, NC (April 30, 2026) – Pete Willoughby is known among most people as the right-hand man to Keith Kunz in forming the most successful dirt Midget program of the modern era.  

Before that, he was once an Indiana racer trying to make it into the big leagues of dirt Late Models. 

Born and raised in Columbus, IN, Willoughby spent his childhood visiting tracks to watch his dad compete in the division. After graduating high school in 1976, he purchased his first Late Model and began competing around his “Hoosier State” home. 

“My dad ran dirt Late Models when I was growing up as a kid,” Willoughby said. “As soon as I got out of high school, I got myself one and started racing local-type races like Brownstown, Putnamville, Lincoln Park, Haubstadt, Mount Vernon, because most of it was all close by.” 

During the majority of Willoughby’s time racing in the division, he competed in the peak era of wedge-designed Late Models. While they were easier to drive compared to today’s Super Late Models, the costs of maintaining them became unreasonably high, resulting in dwindling car counts across the area. 

“The body rules were all over the map, but not so much tires, though,” Willoughby said. “(Bob Memmer) was the one that really stepped in with the standardized rules that everyone agreed to and gave it a try. A typical night at Brownstown was about 40 Late Models. It was dying away, and it went down to about 20, maybe 30 cars if you were lucky. Most of the locals jumped on board with it pretty quick. 

“The traveling guys like the Moyers and Jeff Purvis didn’t jump on it quite so quick. They kind of went to pick their own places where they could still get away with what they wanted. But it wasn’t too long before everyone started settling down. The first UMP-sanctioned race was at Brownstown in 1984, and I won that night, so that was my claim to fame.” 

Willoughby owns a prominent dirt Late Model victory on his resumé: the 1982 Herald & Review 100 at Macon Speedway. Before the DIRTcar Summer Nationals formed the race into an annual crown jewel event, Willoughby’s victory in the second running at the 1/5-mile Illinois bullring rewarded him with a $2,000 payday and two watermelons. 

“We were able to sneak over to Macon to run the Herald because it was always on Thursday,” Willoughby said. “We ran pretty good that year, but that was just one of our nights. We had Quick Time, started on the Pole, and I remember Russ Petro was dominating the season. I remember going down one straightaway, looking across to the other side, and seeing Russ running in second. It was a lot of fun, I remember we won $2,000 and two watermelons. We were over in farm country, and Russ got about $1,000 and three cantaloupes.” 

When funds and equipment started to run thin for Willoughby, he decided to hang up his helmet in 1984 and end his involvement in Late Model racing completely. 

“In ‘84, it was time to go buy a couple of motors and spend some money,” Willoughby said. “I ran a few races, and I thought my family sacrificed enough for me. I wasn’t going to get anywhere, and I didn’t know there was a way to get anywhere. So, I decided to quit cold turkey and build a new house for my family. I didn’t go to Brownstown, I never went and watched any Late Models.” 

To fill the void, he began constructing go-karts to keep a form of racing activity near his Indiana stable. When ESPN’s Thursday Night Thunder rose to popularity by highlighting drivers in the lower ranks of motorsports, dirt Midgets became Willoughby’s new passion. 

“A few years later, we ended up with a foster son, and I was looking for a way to control him,” Willoughby said. “So, I went and bought a couple go-karts. He was pretty good at that, but before long, I had a company that built go-karts. I met a kid that I wanted to help get him along because at the time, Thursday Night Thunder was a big deal. I bought a couple of Midgets for him, and it wasn’t long until he got hurt. While he was recuperating, I got bored and hired Jason Leffler.” 

While Leffler drove in select USAC races during 1996, Willoughby searched for more day-to-day help on the cars while he focused on his primary job at his parents’ trucking business. The man who stepped up to the plate was a Springfield, IL native named Keith Kunz. 

“I told John Godfrey from Stealth (Chassis) that I needed help,” Willoughby said. “I just need to go do my job and let somebody else take care of the cars and know what they’re doing. John pointed me to Keith, who was living in California at the time. So, I hired Keith, and he moved over (to Columbus) at the end of ‘96. From 1997 to 2000, he and I raced together under my name.” 

“LEFturn” won three consecutive USAC National Midget championships from 1997 to 1999 before stepping into NASCAR at the turn of the new millennium. Before the 2000 season, the family trucking company folded, forcing Willoughby to turn ownership over to Kunz, creating Keith Kunz Motorsports (KKM). 

“In 2000, my parents’ trucking company went bankrupt, so I was out of a job,” Willoughby said. “Keith said, ‘What are we going to do?’ I said, ‘Well, we got a couple Midgets and a Sprint Car. We’re fast. Let’s just go race till we can’t race anymore.’ 

“Jay Drake was driving for us at the time, and the first weekend, we won $17,000 at Terre Haute. It just kept going on and on, and at the end of the season, somebody asked us if we could take care of his daughter’s car. Well, when the trucking company closed, I transferred everything over to Keith’s name because I was going to get dragged into it. So that’s when Keith Kunz Motorsports was born.” 

With Kunz at the helm, Willoughby remained as CEO and used his position to recruit potential drivers to join the team. Amongst the countless names that have made stints with KKM are the late Bryan Clauson, NASCAR Cup Series stars Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell, and Winged Sprint Car standouts Michael (Buddy) Kofoid, Spencer Bayston, Rico Abreu, and Tanner Thorson.  

In the decade, Jade Avedisian won the 2023 Xtreme Outlaw Midgets presented by Toyota title before moving into the ARCA ranks, and 2025 National Midget champions Jacob Denney (Xtreme, POWRi) and Cannon McIntosh (USAC) have transferred into USAC non-wing competition for 2026. While KKM helps springboard their drivers up the ladder, they focus less on teaching and more on elevating what drivers already possess. 

“Keith and I are believers in that we can’t teach a guy how to be a race car driver,” Willoughby said. “Like Jacob (Denney), we haven’t taught him anything. He just needed to go to a place where he had Keith Kunz’s knowledge, then he could start to show what he actually could do.  

“I think we’ve had over 200 drivers over the years, and we can tell them what not to do. We can say, ‘Hey, here’s what you did right and what was wrong, what you should and shouldn’t have done.’ But as far as teaching them, they’ve either developed it by the time they get to us or they haven’t. We get credit for developing them, but teaching them is something I don’t think we can do.” 

Willoughby’s secret to finding talent for KKM is simple: how do they steer the car, and what do they do when the car loses front-end traction? 

“If they’ve got speed, it definitely speeds up that process,” Willoughby said. “But at that point, you start watching their hands. It’s hard to see it, so you watch the left front wheel to see what it’s doing. If it’s not a lot of movement, you know they’ve got some good hands. Then, I want to see them run over the berm. At the Chili Bowl, if they miss it on the bottom, where are the wheels when the thing comes back down? Are they behind the car? Are they ahead of the car? 

“Christopher (Bell) was always out ahead of the car. He knew when it came down and where he needed the wheels to be pointed before they touched the ground. That’s when I knew he was gonna be pretty special. It’s a little similar to Jacob (Denney). I wasn’t the one that found Jacob, but I knew he was fast.” 

Though Willoughby has left his Late Model past in the rear-view mirror, he cherishes the time spent behind the wheel and the experiences that shaped his handling of KKM, including helping drivers with special talents. 

“We used to race around Charlestown (Indiana) a good bit,” Willoughby said. “Mark Martin had just gotten out of NASCAR and was trying to work his way back up to there. The promoter called me and said, ‘Hey, would you consider letting Mark in your car one night? We’ll start him from the tail one lap down and let him race. 

“We did that, and Mark ended up winning the Feature from basically a lap behind, and that was pretty cool. Mark would call occasionally about wanting to go to other places, and I couldn’t always go. But, I think that woke me up to thinking, ‘Pete, you’re not good enough to be a driver.’ But, I enjoyed what we were able to do for him and what we accomplished.” 

Willoughby will continue serving his keystone role with KKM as the Xtreme Outlaw Midgets return in 2026 for the Ironman 55 at I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park on Aug. 7-8. The 40th anniversary of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals will begin at Brownstown Bullring on Tuesday, June 9. 

BROWNSTOWN INFO

IRONMAN INFO

Pete Willoughby: From Dirt Late Models to Keith Kunz’s Inseparable Partner 

CONCORD, NC (April 30, 2026) – Pete Willoughby is known among most people as the right-hand man to Keith Kunz in forming the most successful dirt Midget program of the modern era.  

Before that, he was once an Indiana racer trying to make it into the big leagues of dirt Late Models. 

Born and raised in Columbus, IN, Willoughby spent his childhood visiting tracks to watch his dad compete in the division. After graduating high school in 1976, he purchased his first Late Model and began competing around his “Hoosier State” home. 

“My dad ran dirt Late Models when I was growing up as a kid,” Willoughby said. “As soon as I got out of high school, I got myself one and started racing local-type races like Brownstown, Putnamville, Lincoln Park, Haubstadt, Mount Vernon, because most of it was all close by.” 

During the majority of Willoughby’s time racing in the division, he competed in the peak era of wedge-designed Late Models. While they were easier to drive compared to today’s Super Late Models, the costs of maintaining them became unreasonably high, resulting in dwindling car counts across the area. 

“The body rules were all over the map, but not so much tires, though,” Willoughby said. “(Bob Memmer) was the one that really stepped in with the standardized rules that everyone agreed to and gave it a try. A typical night at Brownstown was about 40 Late Models. It was dying away, and it went down to about 20, maybe 30 cars if you were lucky. Most of the locals jumped on board with it pretty quick. 

“The traveling guys like the Moyers and Jeff Purvis didn’t jump on it quite so quick. They kind of went to pick their own places where they could still get away with what they wanted. But it wasn’t too long before everyone started settling down. The first UMP-sanctioned race was at Brownstown in 1984, and I won that night, so that was my claim to fame.” 

Willoughby owns a prominent dirt Late Model victory on his resumé: the 1982 Herald & Review 100 at Macon Speedway. Before the DIRTcar Summer Nationals formed the race into an annual crown jewel event, Willoughby’s victory in the second running at the 1/5-mile Illinois bullring rewarded him with a $2,000 payday and two watermelons. 

“We were able to sneak over to Macon to run the Herald because it was always on Thursday,” Willoughby said. “We ran pretty good that year, but that was just one of our nights. We had Quick Time, started on the Pole, and I remember Russ Petro was dominating the season. I remember going down one straightaway, looking across to the other side, and seeing Russ running in second. It was a lot of fun, I remember we won $2,000 and two watermelons. We were over in farm country, and Russ got about $1,000 and three cantaloupes.” 

When funds and equipment started to run thin for Willoughby, he decided to hang up his helmet in 1984 and end his involvement in Late Model racing completely. 

“In ‘84, it was time to go buy a couple of motors and spend some money,” Willoughby said. “I ran a few races, and I thought my family sacrificed enough for me. I wasn’t going to get anywhere, and I didn’t know there was a way to get anywhere. So, I decided to quit cold turkey and build a new house for my family. I didn’t go to Brownstown, I never went and watched any Late Models.” 

To fill the void, he began constructing go-karts to keep a form of racing activity near his Indiana stable. When ESPN’s Thursday Night Thunder rose to popularity by highlighting drivers in the lower ranks of motorsports, dirt Midgets became Willoughby’s new passion. 

“A few years later, we ended up with a foster son, and I was looking for a way to control him,” Willoughby said. “So, I went and bought a couple go-karts. He was pretty good at that, but before long, I had a company that built go-karts. I met a kid that I wanted to help get him along because at the time, Thursday Night Thunder was a big deal. I bought a couple of Midgets for him, and it wasn’t long until he got hurt. While he was recuperating, I got bored and hired Jason Leffler.” 

While Leffler drove in select USAC races during 1996, Willoughby searched for more day-to-day help on the cars while he focused on his primary job at his parents’ trucking business. The man who stepped up to the plate was a Springfield, IL native named Keith Kunz. 

“I told John Godfrey from Stealth (Chassis) that I needed help,” Willoughby said. “I just need to go do my job and let somebody else take care of the cars and know what they’re doing. John pointed me to Keith, who was living in California at the time. So, I hired Keith, and he moved over (to Columbus) at the end of ‘96. From 1997 to 2000, he and I raced together under my name.” 

“LEFturn” won three consecutive USAC National Midget championships from 1997 to 1999 before stepping into NASCAR at the turn of the new millennium. Before the 2000 season, the family trucking company folded, forcing Willoughby to turn ownership over to Kunz, creating Keith Kunz Motorsports (KKM). 

“In 2000, my parents’ trucking company went bankrupt, so I was out of a job,” Willoughby said. “Keith said, ‘What are we going to do?’ I said, ‘Well, we got a couple Midgets and a Sprint Car. We’re fast. Let’s just go race till we can’t race anymore.’ 

“Jay Drake was driving for us at the time, and the first weekend, we won $17,000 at Terre Haute. It just kept going on and on, and at the end of the season, somebody asked us if we could take care of his daughter’s car. Well, when the trucking company closed, I transferred everything over to Keith’s name because I was going to get dragged into it. So that’s when Keith Kunz Motorsports was born.” 

With Kunz at the helm, Willoughby remained as CEO and used his position to recruit potential drivers to join the team. Amongst the countless names that have made stints with KKM are the late Bryan Clauson, NASCAR Cup Series stars Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell, and Winged Sprint Car standouts Michael (Buddy) Kofoid, Spencer Bayston, Rico Abreu, and Tanner Thorson.  

In the decade, Jade Avedisian won the 2023 Xtreme Outlaw Midgets presented by Toyota title before moving into the ARCA ranks, and 2025 National Midget champions Jacob Denney (Xtreme, POWRi) and Cannon McIntosh (USAC) have transferred into USAC non-wing competition for 2026. While KKM helps springboard their drivers up the ladder, they focus less on teaching and more on elevating what drivers already possess. 

“Keith and I are believers in that we can’t teach a guy how to be a race car driver,” Willoughby said. “Like Jacob (Denney), we haven’t taught him anything. He just needed to go to a place where he had Keith Kunz’s knowledge, then he could start to show what he actually could do.  

“I think we’ve had over 200 drivers over the years, and we can tell them what not to do. We can say, ‘Hey, here’s what you did right and what was wrong, what you should and shouldn’t have done.’ But as far as teaching them, they’ve either developed it by the time they get to us or they haven’t. We get credit for developing them, but teaching them is something I don’t think we can do.” 

Willoughby’s secret to finding talent for KKM is simple: how do they steer the car, and what do they do when the car loses front-end traction? 

“If they’ve got speed, it definitely speeds up that process,” Willoughby said. “But at that point, you start watching their hands. It’s hard to see it, so you watch the left front wheel to see what it’s doing. If it’s not a lot of movement, you know they’ve got some good hands. Then, I want to see them run over the berm. At the Chili Bowl, if they miss it on the bottom, where are the wheels when the thing comes back down? Are they behind the car? Are they ahead of the car? 

“Christopher (Bell) was always out ahead of the car. He knew when it came down and where he needed the wheels to be pointed before they touched the ground. That’s when I knew he was gonna be pretty special. It’s a little similar to Jacob (Denney). I wasn’t the one that found Jacob, but I knew he was fast.” 

Though Willoughby has left his Late Model past in the rear-view mirror, he cherishes the time spent behind the wheel and the experiences that shaped his handling of KKM, including helping drivers with special talents. 

“We used to race around Charlestown (Indiana) a good bit,” Willoughby said. “Mark Martin had just gotten out of NASCAR and was trying to work his way back up to there. The promoter called me and said, ‘Hey, would you consider letting Mark in your car one night? We’ll start him from the tail one lap down and let him race. 

“We did that, and Mark ended up winning the Feature from basically a lap behind, and that was pretty cool. Mark would call occasionally about wanting to go to other places, and I couldn’t always go. But, I think that woke me up to thinking, ‘Pete, you’re not good enough to be a driver.’ But, I enjoyed what we were able to do for him and what we accomplished.” 

Willoughby will continue serving his keystone role with KKM as the Xtreme Outlaw Midgets return in 2026 for the Ironman 55 at I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park on Aug. 7-8. The 40th anniversary of the DIRTcar Summer Nationals will begin at Brownstown Bullring on Tuesday, June 9. 

BROWNSTOWN INFO

IRONMAN INFO

How can you watch every lap of the Xtreme Outlaw Midgets and Summer Nationals? Live on DIRTVision.

INDIANAPOLIS (Thursday, April 30, 2026) – The 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X – a true American hypercar and America’s quickest production car– will

lead the field to the green flag for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 24 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 

The Corvette ZR1X Pace Car invites race fans to celebrate America’s semi-quincentennial anniversary with purpose-driven patriotism and American craftsmanship forged into this year’s bold livery. 

Indiana University Head Football Coach Curt Cignettii, in celebration of IU Football’s undefeated National Championship season, has been named honorary Pace Car driver and will pace the field of 33 drivers in the Corvette ZR1X to start “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” 

“America’s hypercar will be front and center at the Indianapolis 500, and it has the speed to stay there,” Executive Chief Engineer, Global Corvette and Performance Cars Team Tony Roma said. “The ZR1X is made for the race track. This Corvette, inspired by America’s 250th anniversary, will absolutely give   Coach Cignetti and the fans a thrill.”

The Corvette ZR1X delivers 1,250 horsepower across all four wheels, combining a 186 hp electric motor on the front axle with a 5.5L twin-turbo V8 putting 1,064 hp to the rear wheels. For Pace Car duty, the ZR1X is equipped with the Carbon Aero package, including dive planes on the front bumper, underbody aero strakes and the rear wing, which creates more than 1,200 pounds of downforce at top speed.

The Corvette ZR1X achieves incredible acceleration – capable of zero to 60 mph in under 2 seconds – and can reach 233 mph, approaching speeds seen by race cars in the field. 

“As we celebrate America’s 250th anniversary, this pace car design reflects both where we’ve been and where we’re headed,” Chevrolet Global Executive Design Director Phil Zak said. “Every element – from the badging to the colors – were deliberately crafted to honor this milestone while expressing a forward‑looking vision of Chevrolet design.”

Designed in tandem with the Stars and Steel Collection, the Pace Car features the stars‑and‑stripes decals running across the car. This exclusive ZR1X was custom painted, appearing Arctic White from the driver side and Admiral Blue from the opposite profile. Every detail was considered, including the painted striping running down the ZR1X’s carbon fiber spine on the rear hatch. 

Inside, Santorini Blue seats are paired with red accent seat belts and red stitched floor mats for a cohesive, performance‑driven interior.  

“Having America’s sports car, the Corvette, pacing the field feels especially fitting this year as we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary,” INDYCAR and IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “With race car-like performance, the Corvette ZR1X is the perfect choice to pace the field of 33 in the Indianapolis 500.”

Corvette is the longest-running car nameplate in automotive industry history, so it’s no surprise Corvette has paced “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” more times than any car. The 2026 race marks the 37th time for Chevrolet to pace dating back to 1948 and the 23rd time overall, all since 1978, for America’s favorite sports car.

Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X to Pace 110^th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge 

INDIANAPOLIS (Thursday, April 30, 2026) – The 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X – a true American hypercar and America’s quickest production car– will

lead the field to the green flag for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge on Sunday, May 24 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 

The Corvette ZR1X Pace Car invites race fans to celebrate America’s semi-quincentennial anniversary with purpose-driven patriotism and American craftsmanship forged into this year’s bold livery. 

Indiana University Head Football Coach Curt Cignettii, in celebration of IU Football’s undefeated National Championship season, has been named honorary Pace Car driver and will pace the field of 33 drivers in the Corvette ZR1X to start “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.” 

“America’s hypercar will be front and center at the Indianapolis 500, and it has the speed to stay there,” Executive Chief Engineer, Global Corvette and Performance Cars Team Tony Roma said. “The ZR1X is made for the race track. This Corvette, inspired by America’s 250th anniversary, will absolutely give   Coach Cignetti and the fans a thrill.”

The Corvette ZR1X delivers 1,250 horsepower across all four wheels, combining a 186 hp electric motor on the front axle with a 5.5L twin-turbo V8 putting 1,064 hp to the rear wheels. For Pace Car duty, the ZR1X is equipped with the Carbon Aero package, including dive planes on the front bumper, underbody aero strakes and the rear wing, which creates more than 1,200 pounds of downforce at top speed.

The Corvette ZR1X achieves incredible acceleration – capable of zero to 60 mph in under 2 seconds – and can reach 233 mph, approaching speeds seen by race cars in the field. 

“As we celebrate America’s 250th anniversary, this pace car design reflects both where we’ve been and where we’re headed,” Chevrolet Global Executive Design Director Phil Zak said. “Every element – from the badging to the colors – were deliberately crafted to honor this milestone while expressing a forward‑looking vision of Chevrolet design.”

Designed in tandem with the Stars and Steel Collection, the Pace Car features the stars‑and‑stripes decals running across the car. This exclusive ZR1X was custom painted, appearing Arctic White from the driver side and Admiral Blue from the opposite profile. Every detail was considered, including the painted striping running down the ZR1X’s carbon fiber spine on the rear hatch. 

Inside, Santorini Blue seats are paired with red accent seat belts and red stitched floor mats for a cohesive, performance‑driven interior.  

“Having America’s sports car, the Corvette, pacing the field feels especially fitting this year as we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary,” INDYCAR and IMS President J. Douglas Boles said. “With race car-like performance, the Corvette ZR1X is the perfect choice to pace the field of 33 in the Indianapolis 500.”

Corvette is the longest-running car nameplate in automotive industry history, so it’s no surprise Corvette has paced “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” more times than any car. The 2026 race marks the 37th time for Chevrolet to pace dating back to 1948 and the 23rd time overall, all since 1978, for America’s favorite sports car.

Visit IMS.com for tickets and more information on all Month of May events and activities at IMS.

Rice and McCowan Set for O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year Battle

BATAVIA, Ohio (April 30, 2026) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing is proud to announce Josh Rice and Dillon McCowan as the official candidates for the 2026 O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year Award. Both drivers bring proven talent, regional success, and rising national profiles into one of dirt late model racing’s most competitive honors. The O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year Award recognizes the top first-year full-time competitors on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series tour, highlighting consistency, performance, and commitment throughout the grueling national schedule. Hailing from Verona, Kentucky, Josh Rice has built a reputation as one of the most hard-charging drivers in the Midwest., Rice has accumulated numerous regional victories, and marquee wins at prestigious events. Rice’s career highlights include multiple triumphs in late model competition, including being a two-time winner of the Ralph Latham Memorial, along with standout performances against national-caliber fields. His ability to compete at a high level has made him a driver to watch as he steps onto the full Lucas Oil tour. “This is a huge opportunity for our team,” said Rice. “We’ve worked for years to get to this level, and to be in the Rookie of the Year conversation with a series like Lucas Oil means a lot. Our goal is to stay consistent, learn every night, and put ourselves in contention wherever we go.” Missouri’s Dillon McCowan enters the 2026 season with momentum and determination after establishing himself as a rising force in dirt late model racing. Among his accomplishments are two Lucas Oil Speedway track championships and earning MLRA Rookie of the Year honors, along with multiple feature wins and impressive runs in high-profile competitions. These achievements highlight his ability to compete against some of the sport’s top drivers. “It’s an honor to be competing for the Rookie of the Year award,” said McCowan. “This series is the toughest in the country, and we’re ready to take on the challenge. We’re focused on improving every race and representing our team and partners the right way.” With a demanding schedule that spans some of the most iconic dirt tracks in the nation, the Rookie of the Year battle between Rice and McCowan is expected to be one of the most compelling storylines of the 2026 season. Both drivers will be tested on performance, consistency, and endurance as they chase the prestigious honor. In addition to the prestige of the title, the O’Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Year will receive $20,000 in cash along with product certificates from various manufacturers valued at over $10,000, making it one of the most lucrative rookie awards in dirt late model racing. For the latest news, results, and championship standings from the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, please visit LucasDirt.com.

CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway ovalIndianapolis, IndianaOpen Test Day #2 ReportApril 29, 2026 Indianapolis (April 29, 2026) – Caio Collet, in the No. 4 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet, led the 33 drivers during the two-day open test for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  “No, no. I never expected that,” said the INDY NXT by Firestone graduate when asked if he expected to lead in his first appearance at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “Obviously, I knew that the team have a really good background here and they’ve done really well the last couple of years, especially last year. But, as a rookie, I was just trying to learn things and see how everything went, but I think we did a really good job. The team got me up to speed really quickly, and I got really comfortably, quickly, I have a lot of things that I still need to learn, especially on traffic, I need to understand how to manage traffic, and how to get by people. I think by myself, I felt really good. The team gave me a really good car as well. Both days, we were just improving step by step.” The Brazilian’s fastest lap of 226.381mph topped the combined timesheet that saw Josef Newgarden, in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet, Conor Daly in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet, to make it three for three for Chevrolet-powered cars after 4697 laps of testing.  The quickest driver without the aid of another NTT INDYCAR SERIES car was Team Chevy’s Jack Harvey in the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet, topping the Non-Tow timesheet with a lap of 221.112mph.  10:15 am – 1:15 am For the second straight night, thunderstorms rolled through central Indiana overnight. Unlike Monday night, they lingered into the morning, delaying the second day of the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge open test by 75 minutes.  The 32 drivers eligible to practice completed 829 laps over two hours, interrupted only by a scheduled track inspection after 30 minutes of running. Rookie Jacob Abel in the No. 51 Abel Motorsports Chevrolet and Rinus VeeKay in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet were the busiest of the Team Chevy drivers, completing 39 laps apiece.  Collet was the quickest driver, with a lap of 226.381mph on his sixth of 25 laps before lunch. Josef Newgarden, in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet (2nd), Conor Daly in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet (3rd), David Malukas in the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet (4th), Abel (7th) and Santino Ferrucci in the No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet (8th), making it six of the top ten Chevrolet-powered.  Jack Harvey, for the second straight session at the 2.5-mile oval, led the no-tow timesheet.  “Hopefully, it’s just validation for everybody on the team for their hard work in the off-season is bearing some fruit. Everybody needs to remember it was Day 1. We have no idea where anybody else was and we’ve got a decent amount left to come. This morning, was still some qualifying work for us. It’s really about trying to validate all of our tool sets, so throughout the rest of the month, we can trust our information. That’s a really huge thing, especially for a team as good as Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, we still have to trust all of the information and be confident in that as we move forward. I feel like we’ve had another really smooth morning and we’ll come back in the afternoon in race mode.” Legge Veteran Refresher After mechanical issues on Tuesday, Katherine Legge, in the No. 11 HMD Motorsports with A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet, was afforded the chance to work on her Veteran Refresher during a one-hour lunch break for the rest of the field. Legge worked up to speed, passing the first phase of her refresher, which allowed her to run with the rest of the day. It didn’t take the four-time starter much time to complete her refresher. She ran 82 laps today and finished the test with the 24th-quickest no-tow lap.  “We had a great day, said Legge after getting out of the E.L.F. sponsored machine. “We achieved everything that we set out to achieve, and the team did a fantastic job, getting everything prepared, and giving me a good car. “think we went through everything methodically at the right cadence, and I feel very comfortable. No tow speeds—I think we’re very competitive for the amount of downforce we have in. And I’m looking forward to playing in traffic next time we’re back.” 2:15 pm – 5 pm Newgarden led the final session of the second day of testing with a speed of 225.617mph, with Daly and Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet making it three of the top five from Team Chevy. “This is just the first step towards coming back here next month and trying to win another Indianapolis 500, said Newgarden after the test. “It’s the greatest race in the world and we have a good base to come back with. It was a pretty clean day for the Shell Fuel Rewards Chevy team and it’s always nice to see your number towards the top of the pylon. Team Chevy brought good power once again. It is a long month to get to the race but we are in a good place leaving the test.” **Note** – We will update what happened with the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet driven by Jack Harvey when practice for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge begins on Tuesday, May 12th. The team was taking the car back to the shop and pulling the Chevrolet Indy V6 to determine the cause of the smoke.

110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge test day #2 combined results

110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge test day #2 combined no-tow results

CHEVROLET IN THE NTT INDYCAR SERIES110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge2.5-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway ovalIndianapolis, IndianaOpen Test Day #2 ReportApril 29, 2026 Indianapolis (April 29, 2026) – Caio Collet, in the No. 4 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet, led the 33 drivers during the two-day open test for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.  “No, no. I never expected that,” said the INDY NXT by Firestone graduate when asked if he expected to lead in his first appearance at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “Obviously, I knew that the team have a really good background here and they’ve done really well the last couple of years, especially last year. But, as a rookie, I was just trying to learn things and see how everything went, but I think we did a really good job. The team got me up to speed really quickly, and I got really comfortably, quickly, I have a lot of things that I still need to learn, especially on traffic, I need to understand how to manage traffic, and how to get by people. I think by myself, I felt really good. The team gave me a really good car as well. Both days, we were just improving step by step.” The Brazilian’s fastest lap of 226.381mph topped the combined timesheet that saw Josef Newgarden, in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet, Conor Daly in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet, to make it three for three for Chevrolet-powered cars after 4697 laps of testing.  The quickest driver without the aid of another NTT INDYCAR SERIES car was Team Chevy’s Jack Harvey in the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet, topping the Non-Tow timesheet with a lap of 221.112mph.  10:15 am – 1:15 am For the second straight night, thunderstorms rolled through central Indiana overnight. Unlike Monday night, they lingered into the morning, delaying the second day of the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge open test by 75 minutes.  The 32 drivers eligible to practice completed 829 laps over two hours, interrupted only by a scheduled track inspection after 30 minutes of running. Rookie Jacob Abel in the No. 51 Abel Motorsports Chevrolet and Rinus VeeKay in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet were the busiest of the Team Chevy drivers, completing 39 laps apiece.  Collet was the quickest driver, with a lap of 226.381mph on his sixth of 25 laps before lunch. Josef Newgarden, in the No. 2 Team Penske Chevrolet (2nd), Conor Daly in the No. 23 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet (3rd), David Malukas in the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet (4th), Abel (7th) and Santino Ferrucci in the No. 14 A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet (8th), making it six of the top ten Chevrolet-powered.  Jack Harvey, for the second straight session at the 2.5-mile oval, led the no-tow timesheet.  “Hopefully, it’s just validation for everybody on the team for their hard work in the off-season is bearing some fruit. Everybody needs to remember it was Day 1. We have no idea where anybody else was and we’ve got a decent amount left to come. This morning, was still some qualifying work for us. It’s really about trying to validate all of our tool sets, so throughout the rest of the month, we can trust our information. That’s a really huge thing, especially for a team as good as Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, we still have to trust all of the information and be confident in that as we move forward. I feel like we’ve had another really smooth morning and we’ll come back in the afternoon in race mode.” Legge Veteran Refresher After mechanical issues on Tuesday, Katherine Legge, in the No. 11 HMD Motorsports with A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet, was afforded the chance to work on her Veteran Refresher during a one-hour lunch break for the rest of the field. Legge worked up to speed, passing the first phase of her refresher, which allowed her to run with the rest of the day. It didn’t take the four-time starter much time to complete her refresher. She ran 82 laps today and finished the test with the 24th-quickest no-tow lap.  “We had a great day, said Legge after getting out of the E.L.F. sponsored machine. “We achieved everything that we set out to achieve, and the team did a fantastic job, getting everything prepared, and giving me a good car. “think we went through everything methodically at the right cadence, and I feel very comfortable. No tow speeds—I think we’re very competitive for the amount of downforce we have in. And I’m looking forward to playing in traffic next time we’re back.” 2:15 pm – 5 pm Newgarden led the final session of the second day of testing with a speed of 225.617mph, with Daly and Pato O’Ward in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet making it three of the top five from Team Chevy. “This is just the first step towards coming back here next month and trying to win another Indianapolis 500, said Newgarden after the test. “It’s the greatest race in the world and we have a good base to come back with. It was a pretty clean day for the Shell Fuel Rewards Chevy team and it’s always nice to see your number towards the top of the pylon. Team Chevy brought good power once again. It is a long month to get to the race but we are in a good place leaving the test.” **Note** – We will update what happened with the No. 24 Dreyer & Reinbold Chevrolet driven by Jack Harvey when practice for the 110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge begins on Tuesday, May 12th. The team was taking the car back to the shop and pulling the Chevrolet Indy V6 to determine the cause of the smoke.

110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge test day #2 combined results

110th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge test day #2 combined no-tow results

NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceWednesday, April 29, 2026Conor DalyPress Conference THE MODERATOR: Joining us now, Conor Daly, looking to qualify for his 13th Indianapolis 500. Third quick today. Obviously very quick throughout this two-day test.Obviously Dreyer & Reinbold big focus, this is the Super Bowl. Do you feel like you knocked it out of the park the last couple days? CONOR DALY: Obviously we know how it is testing: you don’t really know. No one shows up here to not do any work, you know what I mean? Everyone is trying, trying to learn, trying to figure out things when we get to May. Yeah, I mean, clearly every day we kind of just went out and were fast. That makes life easier on me ’cause we weren’t like we’re going to be P1 every day. We had a list of things we wanted to do. We got through our list, a lot of lists. That’s what it’s all about. If we’re fast while doing that, then awesome. THE MODERATOR: Maybe a little validation of all the hard work the guys have been through the last several months. CONOR DALY: Yeah, I mean, they haven’t done anything since May (smiling). The race car hasn’t rolled since May. We’ve come out here and the car’s really fast. I can kind of feel that it has a little bit of that natural speed that you want and that you desire so badly here at the track. Even those last two runs I think were real telltale signs. Takuma, Santino, Palou and Pato, that’s a pretty solid group of people. It felt like we were able to tow up better than anybody else. I was like on the 20- to 30-lap tire window.It did feel pretty competitive. I kind of struggled in the middle of the day with the balance of the car. Encouraging signs for us. Just thankful that the team once again proves that they do a great job. THE MODERATOR: Takuma, have a seat. Two-time Indy 500 winner. Looking to qualify for his 17th 500 next month. Welcome back. Always good to see you back at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. What is your grade on these two-day test for you? TAKUMA SATO: Very happy. Very productive two days. I think it’s a statement to every single team was a similar feeling that fortunate to have a good weather. It’s been a little bit, like, nervous in overnight, torrential rain. Really good condition. IMS did a good thing to prepare for us. Exit turn two very good. We knew it from test. It’s been a pleasure to come back IMS and make us really happy. In terms of our team, over the course of the winter, I think the team did a really, really good job. Now four cars, meticulous quality control, build spec is very, very good. Everybody is happy. Me specifically, back in the car after six months absent, still happy place to be. Yeah, it’s been a very positive two days. THE MODERATOR: Open it up for questions. Q.  Are you two proof that you don’t necessarily have to run the full season to be fast at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway? CONOR DALY: Yeah, I think it’s probably harder on the crews and the folks that maybe don’t quite do it full-time. That’s tough, I mean, just thrown right into the Super Bowl, let’s get everything perfect all the time. That’s hard.For us, I think it’s just second nature. Experience I think is super crucial here and super important and super helpful. For me, I’m ready to go now. I will take every practice day possible because that is always helpful. I think it’s super helpful for all the crew members, as well. Q.  Conor, even though you’d love to be able to run every week, to come here, be among the fastest, do you ever sit back and say, I still got it?CONOR DALY: Been trying to prove that a while. I enjoy what I do. Very lucky to be here, very lucky to have a chance to do it. I obviously think I’m driving better in my career now, especially after last year. Yeah, we’re ready to go. We come here to try to win the race. I think the team is doing a great job. We’ve got a lot of information this week. Great partners in Kingspan and Arco. To be with Chevrolet, feels good in May. Yeah, we just got to do it one day at a time.Q.  What is the level of satisfaction after this open test compared to the one a couple years ago?CONOR DALY: I think it rained two years ago, so I did like three laps. I feel like we have a book of knowledge now compared to two years ago. I have seen what they did in the off-season, right? Compared to what we had in ’24, we had a pretty good shot at being in the front of the race in ’24, what I’ve seen them come back with, that should be fun, you know what I mean? I hope we get a chance to keep making it better every day. I think we have really strong car already. I think everybody else is going to show up with a little more juice as well when we get to May. Q.  The pit stop that you show on Instagram, the engineering meetings and everything like that, discussing setup changes, how has that been over the last weeks and months?CONOR DALY: I mean, there’s a lot of chatter and a lot of discussion. You can almost overthink things. At some point you have to be, We’re ready to go. We can talk each other’s ears off, but until you get to the track to start proving what you’ve done in the off-season. We’ve done all our homework, done everything we feel is necessary to show up prepared. We demonstrated it over the last two days. We are going to do the same thing when we come back for day one of practice. Q.  Conor, from the cheap seats, it looks like you have a rocket ship. Where do you think you’re going to stack up once everybody shows their hands?CONOR DALY: I mean, honestly I think we’ll be pretty similar. It’s not like worlds will change when we come back here in May. Ganassi will show up with their Speedway cars, some other people will show up with their Speedway cars. For the most part, yeah, mountains don’t move from now to May. You might be able to find a few small things here and there. We also will get better. We know immediately how to get better. I think that’s kind of what excites us most. Again, like I mentioned earlier, the last two runs were really encouraging just with heavy fuel, having tires degrade. Being able to run close to some good cars, that felt ideal. But I kind of already know what I want differently. I think my engineer does, too. Again, a lot of notes to take from here. Again, the setup book is massive at this place. You could go through so many different things to find kind of what suits you exactly right. I think that’s what our plan is. Q.  Conor, compared to the past races, how does the transition feel emotionally, physically from the previous races up to the 500 and the Grand Prix?CONOR DALY: I think INDYCAR is in a great spot. The ratings tell a story. If you’ve been to any of the races so far this year, which I have as a spectator, it feels awesome. There’s a ton of people. Everyone seems to be jacked up about INDYCAR. I don’t know how you can ignore that. It seems to be a really good progression. Obviously the Indy 500, we’re going to have a really strong field once again of so many cars that can probably compete for a win. As a race fan, which I have been all year, I’ve enjoyed it. We’ve had some great races, we’ve had some not-as-good races. That’s kind of what motorsport is. You can’t have one that’s always like every race isn’t going to be the best. I’ve been really pleased with what I’ve seen. Everyone seems pumped at the race weekend. A lot of people that have been to a first race weekend for them, which is really cool. I love to see that.

Dennis Pearson and Sherry Murrell accepting Harold Murrell’s Hall of Fame plaque. [Photo: Provided by Cheryl Pearson]

AMA Pro Racing Mourns the Loss of Former Track Builder Dennis Pearson

Dennis Pearson and Sherry Murrell accepting Harold Murrell’s Hall of Fame plaque. [Photo: Provided by Cheryl Pearson]

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 29, 2026) –  AMA Pro Racing is saddened to learn of the passing of longtime track builder and flat track supporter Dennis Pearson. Born September 10, 1954, in Indian River, Michigan, Pearson was part of a family deeply rooted in racing. His brothers Scott, Paul, and Gordon were all involved in competition, continuing a family tradition that spanned generations. After moving to California as a teenager, Pearson began working under renowned track builder Harold Murrell, at the age of 17, learning the craft of building and preparing race surfaces. Over the course of his career, he contributed to a wide range of racing disciplines, including flat track, Supercross, and NASCAR Sprint car events, helping construct and maintain tracks such as the San Jose Mile. Pearson later worked within the Progressive AFT paddock for several seasons, where he earned a reputation for his dedication to the sport and its competitors. Known affectionately as “Dr. Dirt,” he took great pride in delivering well-prepared, consistent racing surfaces, always with the riders’ best interests in mind. He was deeply passionate about flat track and the community surrounding it, treating riders and teams like family while bringing care and craftsmanship to every track he touched. Pearson is survived by his children, Denise and Kyle, and grandson Wyatt, along with their mother, Cheryl, his brothers Gordon, John, Paul, and Scott, his sisters Mary Lou, Paula, Susan, and Stacy, and his extended family. Plans for celebrations of life are being finalized, with a tentative gathering scheduled for May 30th in Oakdale, California, and a second memorial planned later this summer in Michigan.

KICKER AFT Singles opening lap during the 2025 Silver Dollar Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

CRESCO CAT Rentals Named Entitlement Sponsor of Silver Dollar Short Track

KICKER AFT Singles opening lap during the 2025 Silver Dollar Short Track. [Photo: Tim Lester for AMA Pro Racing]Download high-resolution photo from AMA Pro’s Digital Asset Management system

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 29, 2026) – Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, has announced that CRESCO CAT Rentals will serve as the entitlement sponsor of the Silver Dollar Short Track, set for May 2 at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California. As part of the partnership, CRESCO CAT Rentals will provide all heavy equipment for the event, which supports event setup and ongoing track preparation on race day to help ensure a smooth, well-executed event. A division of Cresco Equipment Rentals, CRESCO CAT Rentals has built a strong reputation across the western United States for delivering reliable equipment solutions and customer-focused service. With decades of experience supporting construction and industrial projects, the company delivers dependable equipment solutions for a wide range of applications. “Having the right equipment in place is critical to everything we do, from getting the event set up to maintaining the racing surface throughout the day,” said Chris Carr, Progressive AFT Series Director. “CRESCO CAT Rentals plays a key role in helping us deliver a track that’s consistent and ready when it matters most.” The company will also have a strong presence on-site, with employees and customers in attendance to experience the action and engage with the event. “CRESCO CAT has been providing gold standard service to our Northern California customers for nearly 30 years,” said Tyler Yarnell, Territory Manager for CRESCO CAT. “We’re looking forward to being part of the event and connecting with fans and customers on-site.” The CRESCO CAT Rentals Silver Dollar Short Track remains one of the most anticipated stops on the Progressive AFT calendar, combining a premier racing venue with a passionate Northern California fan base. Next Up Progressive American Flat Track heads to Chico, California, for the CRESCO CAT Rentals Silver Dollar Short Track on May 2. Tickets for the CRESCO CAT Rentals Silver Dollar Short Track are available at https://www.tixr.com/groups/americanflattrack/events/2026-silver-dollar-short-track-168776. For more series and event information, visit https://www.americanflattrack.com.

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – Jordan Vandergriff was born and raised in Southern California but, living in Atlanta the past few years, he’s accepted Georgia as his adopted home state and is looking for a little Southern “home cooking” to put the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team into the winner’s circle at the inaugural NHRA Southern Nationals, May 1-3 at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, Ga.

The 31-year -old Funny Car rookie continues to build on the list of positives achieved in just the first four races of 2026. Vandergriff earned semifinal finishes at Gainesville and Pomona, a second-round finish at last week’s three-round 4-Wide Nationals, a Friday No. 1 Qualifier at Pomona, and his first Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge win at Charlotte.

Vandergriff maintained his fifth-place position in 2026 Funny Car point standings after the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals. He’s just 14 points behind Chad Green in fourth place and 40 behind J.R. Todd in third.

In one previous NHRA Southern Nationals start (2019 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Vandergriff qualified fifth in Top Fuel, then defeated Pat Dakin and Leah Pruett in the first two rounds before losing his semifinal matchup against Brittany Force. He has a 2-1 overall event round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“The motivation for me is that it’s technically my home state race since I live up the road from Adel in Atlanta. It’s close to home and it’s close to my heart. It’s a new track so our Cornwall Quality Tools team will have to figure it out just like everybody else.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“I don’t think so. I think the transition is going to be fine. The four-wide race is such an anomaly, especially this year, with it being the only one. You really only have to focus for one race and then we go back regular two-wide racing in Georgia and the rest of the season so I think I’ll just catch it in stride.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“With every track, especially South Georgia this year, I do a couple of things. I always go up and look at the starting line. I get views down both lanes, kind of crouch down and see where my eye line’s going to be. A big thing, too, is going down to the top end of the racetrack, seeing where the turnoffs are, and what the shutdown area looks like if there’s anything tricky or different down there, how big the gap is to get off the track. It’s the shutdown area, too. Everything, not just the racing surface, comes into account.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“I ran Top Fuel in the Southern Nationals in 2019 with my family’s team and sponsorship from my family’s company, Hedman Hedders. My whole family was there, my parents, my grandfather, my uncle Bob so it means a lot. Georgia means a lot to the Vandergriff family so, racing again in Georgia means the world to me and my family. And like I said, I want to get it done there for everybody.”

Track & TV Schedules

 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

VANDERGRIFF DRIVEN BY ADOPTED HOME STATE OPPORTUNITY

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – Jordan Vandergriff was born and raised in Southern California but, living in Atlanta the past few years, he’s accepted Georgia as his adopted home state and is looking for a little Southern “home cooking” to put the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team into the winner’s circle at the inaugural NHRA Southern Nationals, May 1-3 at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, Ga.

The 31-year -old Funny Car rookie continues to build on the list of positives achieved in just the first four races of 2026. Vandergriff earned semifinal finishes at Gainesville and Pomona, a second-round finish at last week’s three-round 4-Wide Nationals, a Friday No. 1 Qualifier at Pomona, and his first Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge win at Charlotte.

Vandergriff maintained his fifth-place position in 2026 Funny Car point standings after the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals. He’s just 14 points behind Chad Green in fourth place and 40 behind J.R. Todd in third.

In one previous NHRA Southern Nationals start (2019 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Vandergriff qualified fifth in Top Fuel, then defeated Pat Dakin and Leah Pruett in the first two rounds before losing his semifinal matchup against Brittany Force. He has a 2-1 overall event round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“The motivation for me is that it’s technically my home state race since I live up the road from Adel in Atlanta. It’s close to home and it’s close to my heart. It’s a new track so our Cornwall Quality Tools team will have to figure it out just like everybody else.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“I don’t think so. I think the transition is going to be fine. The four-wide race is such an anomaly, especially this year, with it being the only one. You really only have to focus for one race and then we go back regular two-wide racing in Georgia and the rest of the season so I think I’ll just catch it in stride.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“With every track, especially South Georgia this year, I do a couple of things. I always go up and look at the starting line. I get views down both lanes, kind of crouch down and see where my eye line’s going to be. A big thing, too, is going down to the top end of the racetrack, seeing where the turnoffs are, and what the shutdown area looks like if there’s anything tricky or different down there, how big the gap is to get off the track. It’s the shutdown area, too. Everything, not just the racing surface, comes into account.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“I ran Top Fuel in the Southern Nationals in 2019 with my family’s team and sponsorship from my family’s company, Hedman Hedders. My whole family was there, my parents, my grandfather, my uncle Bob so it means a lot. Georgia means a lot to the Vandergriff family so, racing again in Georgia means the world to me and my family. And like I said, I want to get it done there for everybody.”

Track & TV Schedules

 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

Television coverage includes qualifying on FS1 from 9:30 – 11 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 2, a second qualifying show Sunday, May 3, from 1 – 2 p.m. ET and eliminations from 7 – 10 p.m. ET.

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – Josh Hart and the John Force Racing Speedmaster Top Fuel team look to bounce back from an early exit last week in Charlotte when they unload for the May 1-3 NHRA Southern Nationals, the inaugural national event at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, Ga.

The 2026 Gatornationals Top Fuel winner qualified second and ran a strong and competitive 3.753 seconds at 333.16 mph in his Round 1 quad at last Sunday’s NHRA 4-Wide Nationals. Unfortunately, Tony Stewart’s 3.727-second run and Billy Torrence’s 3.731-second pass prevented Hart from moving to the next round.

Hart and the Speedmaster Top Fuel team are fifth in the Top Fuel point standings, 31 behind Tony Stewart for fourth place and 34 behind Leah Pruett for third.

In one previous NHRA Southern Nationals Top Fuel start (2021 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Hart qualified fourth, then beat Arthur Allen in the first round before losing to Brittany Force in the second. He has a 1-1 overall event round record. He also earned the 2018 NHRA Southern Nationals Top Alcohol Dragster title at Atlanta Dragway.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel point standings after four of 20 races are: Doug Kalitta, 373; 2. Shawn Langdon, 350; 3. Leah Pruett, 297; 4. Tony Stewart, 296; 5. Josh Hart, 265; 6. Maddi Gordon, 238; 7. Justin Ashley, 208; 8. Billy Torrence, 187; 9. Antron Brown, 163; 10. Clay Millican, 146.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“Always, always. I like South Georgia Motorsports Park so I’m really happy that they’ve added it into the circuit. It’s just proof that NHRA is expanding. Nothing would be nicer than putting that inaugural trophy on my mantle.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“It’s really just muscle memory. Try to run your own race. Keep your eye on the bulb. Stay in your lane and it doesn’t matter who’s in the other lane.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“You can do as much research as you want, but until you make that first run, you don’t really know what the track’s going to be capable of so it really levels the playing field.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“I was one of the very few that was blessed in Top Alcohol Dragster to win the Southern Nationals and double up with Courtney Force (Funny Car) in the winner’s circle for Advance Auto Parts. I was proud that I was able to get one of those national event trophies before they closed the track where the Southern Nationals ran. So I’m very happy that they’re bringing this race on as the Southern Nationals so that I can pick up where I left off.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

HART HAS INAUGURAL SOUTH GEORGIA TF TITLE IN SIGHT

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – Josh Hart and the John Force Racing Speedmaster Top Fuel team look to bounce back from an early exit last week in Charlotte when they unload for the May 1-3 NHRA Southern Nationals, the inaugural national event at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, Ga.

The 2026 Gatornationals Top Fuel winner qualified second and ran a strong and competitive 3.753 seconds at 333.16 mph in his Round 1 quad at last Sunday’s NHRA 4-Wide Nationals. Unfortunately, Tony Stewart’s 3.727-second run and Billy Torrence’s 3.731-second pass prevented Hart from moving to the next round.

Hart and the Speedmaster Top Fuel team are fifth in the Top Fuel point standings, 31 behind Tony Stewart for fourth place and 34 behind Leah Pruett for third.

In one previous NHRA Southern Nationals Top Fuel start (2021 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Hart qualified fourth, then beat Arthur Allen in the first round before losing to Brittany Force in the second. He has a 1-1 overall event round record. He also earned the 2018 NHRA Southern Nationals Top Alcohol Dragster title at Atlanta Dragway.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel point standings after four of 20 races are: Doug Kalitta, 373; 2. Shawn Langdon, 350; 3. Leah Pruett, 297; 4. Tony Stewart, 296; 5. Josh Hart, 265; 6. Maddi Gordon, 238; 7. Justin Ashley, 208; 8. Billy Torrence, 187; 9. Antron Brown, 163; 10. Clay Millican, 146.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“Always, always. I like South Georgia Motorsports Park so I’m really happy that they’ve added it into the circuit. It’s just proof that NHRA is expanding. Nothing would be nicer than putting that inaugural trophy on my mantle.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“It’s really just muscle memory. Try to run your own race. Keep your eye on the bulb. Stay in your lane and it doesn’t matter who’s in the other lane.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“You can do as much research as you want, but until you make that first run, you don’t really know what the track’s going to be capable of so it really levels the playing field.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“I was one of the very few that was blessed in Top Alcohol Dragster to win the Southern Nationals and double up with Courtney Force (Funny Car) in the winner’s circle for Advance Auto Parts. I was proud that I was able to get one of those national event trophies before they closed the track where the Southern Nationals ran. So I’m very happy that they’re bringing this race on as the Southern Nationals so that I can pick up where I left off.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

Television coverage includes qualifying on FS1 from 9:30 – 11 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 2, a second qualifying show Sunday, May 3, from 1 – 2 p.m. ET and eliminations from 7 – 10 p.m. ET.

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – John Force Racing’s Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car team rolls into the May 1-3 NHRA Southern Nationals with minimal performance records to work from but South Georgia Motorsports Park, hosting its inaugural NHRA national event, is a facility driver Alexis DeJoria has fond memories of from early in her drag racing career.

The six-time NHRA Funny Car event winner competed at South Georgia Motorsports Park in March 2011 when she competed in the Top Alcohol Funny Car class of the NHRA Southeast Division meet. She qualified second (5.446 seconds at 267.91 mph) and won the first two rounds before her day ended in the semifinals against Mickey Ferro.

DeJoria’s first-round win at last week’s NHRA 4-Wide Nationals was the 200^th of her Funny Car career. Her first round win came at the 2012 NHRA Gatornationals where she defeated her current team owner and 16-time NHRA Funny Car World Champion John Force in Round 1 before losing to current John Force Racing teammate Jack Beckman.

Her NHRA 4-Wide Nationals performance moved the Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car team up one position, to sixth, in the NHRA Funny Car point standings. DeJoria is 30 points behind John Force Racing teammate Jordan Vandergriff for fifth place and 44 behind Chad Green in fourth.

In six previous NHRA Southern Nationals Funny Car starts (2012-2016, 2021 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), DeJoria earned one No. 1 Qualifier (2014) and a 1-6 overall round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“I raced at South Georgia Motorsports Park back when I was in Top Alcohol Funny Car so I do have a little bit of history there. But, with it being the inaugural national event, everybody’s gonna want to win the very first one there. I’m very excited to go back to South Georgia and to have a new track on the NHRA national event schedule.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“I raced there but that was a long time ago. I only can remember my grandmother leaning against the fence watching me, both my grandma and my grandpa, God rest his soul. My grandma is turning 98 next month and my lasting memory is my grandparents looking through the fence, watching me run that car down the racetrack.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four-wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“There really isn’t. It’s kind of like when you when we used to race in Denver. You have one setup for that race because that’s the only race like it. Same with the four-wide. I’m just looking forward to getting back to normal.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“The big races with lots of history like the Southern Nationals are important and we love them. We need more people to come see the race because once you see it, you’re hooked. There is absolutely nothing like it on the planet.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS FOR DEJORIA AT SGMP

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – John Force Racing’s Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car team rolls into the May 1-3 NHRA Southern Nationals with minimal performance records to work from but South Georgia Motorsports Park, hosting its inaugural NHRA national event, is a facility driver Alexis DeJoria has fond memories of from early in her drag racing career.

The six-time NHRA Funny Car event winner competed at South Georgia Motorsports Park in March 2011 when she competed in the Top Alcohol Funny Car class of the NHRA Southeast Division meet. She qualified second (5.446 seconds at 267.91 mph) and won the first two rounds before her day ended in the semifinals against Mickey Ferro.

DeJoria’s first-round win at last week’s NHRA 4-Wide Nationals was the 200^th of her Funny Car career. Her first round win came at the 2012 NHRA Gatornationals where she defeated her current team owner and 16-time NHRA Funny Car World Champion John Force in Round 1 before losing to current John Force Racing teammate Jack Beckman.

Her NHRA 4-Wide Nationals performance moved the Bandero Café Chevrolet SS Funny Car team up one position, to sixth, in the NHRA Funny Car point standings. DeJoria is 30 points behind John Force Racing teammate Jordan Vandergriff for fifth place and 44 behind Chad Green in fourth.

In six previous NHRA Southern Nationals Funny Car starts (2012-2016, 2021 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), DeJoria earned one No. 1 Qualifier (2014) and a 1-6 overall round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996), in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of the six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“I raced at South Georgia Motorsports Park back when I was in Top Alcohol Funny Car so I do have a little bit of history there. But, with it being the inaugural national event, everybody’s gonna want to win the very first one there. I’m very excited to go back to South Georgia and to have a new track on the NHRA national event schedule.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“I raced there but that was a long time ago. I only can remember my grandmother leaning against the fence watching me, both my grandma and my grandpa, God rest his soul. My grandma is turning 98 next month and my lasting memory is my grandparents looking through the fence, watching me run that car down the racetrack.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four-wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“There really isn’t. It’s kind of like when you when we used to race in Denver. You have one setup for that race because that’s the only race like it. Same with the four-wide. I’m just looking forward to getting back to normal.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“The big races with lots of history like the Southern Nationals are important and we love them. We need more people to come see the race because once you see it, you’re hooked. There is absolutely nothing like it on the planet.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

Television coverage includes qualifying on FS1 from 9:30 – 11 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 2, a second qualifying show Sunday, May 3, from 1 – 2 p.m. ET and eliminations from 7 – 10 p.m. ET.

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – The slow start to the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season for Jack Beckman took a sharp turn in the right direction last Sunday with his runner-up finish in the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals and it’s the spark from that strong showing that the PEAK SQUAD will carry to South Georgia Motorsports Park on May 1-3 for the renewal of the NHRA Southern Nationals.

The 37-time NHRA Funny Car winner finished third in his second-round quad at zMax Dragway near Charlotte, N.C. Dave Richards crossed the finish line second but was disqualified for his car making contact with the retaining wall before the finish line. That moved Beckman into the final round, where he had a 0.058 reaction time and ran 3.917 seconds at 329.50 mph to Ron Capps’ winning run of 3.905 seconds at 334.90 mph (0.054 reaction time).

The final-round appearance extended to 19 the number of consecutive seasons Beckman has raced in at least one final round in every season he has competed in the Funny Car class beginning in 2006.

Despite not taking the victory, the performance moved Beckman from 10^th to eighth in the Funny Car point standings. The PEAK SQUAD is 10 points behind Spencer Hyde in seventh place, 22 behind John Force Racing teammate Alexis DeJoria in sixth and 52 behind JRF teammate Jordan Vandergriff in fifth.

The 2012 NHRA Funny Car World Champion’s runner-up finish last Sunday qualified the PEAK SQUAD to participate in this week’s Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge. The race-within-qualifying event will take place Saturday, May 2, at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. ET during the third and fourth rounds of Funny Car qualifying.

In 13 previous NHRA Southern Nationals starts (2007-2019 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Beckman earned two wins (2009, 2011) a runner-up finish and No. 1 Qualifier in 2016, and an 18-11 overall round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996),  in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of only six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“There’s only one first but, in many cases, we’ve had a whole bunch of ‘last’ aces. But you know for a fact if you win the inaugural, that never changes. I won the inaugural race at zMax Raceway. In 2008. It’s an awesome trophy that can never be taken away. There’s only one first.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“It’s an un-adjustment, right? For a few years we had two 4-Wide races and, for a few years, they were back to back. So, there was a chance to get into a rhythm for 4-Wide. It’s a one and done now so there’s really no adjustment needed.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“I tested at South Georgia a couple times 15 years ago. A lot of people will ask about going into this certain racetrack, and the unique thing about drag racing is the racetracks aren’t all that unique. They’re all 60 feet wide with each of the two lanes 30 feet wide, excluding the four-wide tracks, straight, level, and one thousand feet long for the nitro categories. But they all have idiosyncrasies and unique characteristics.

“We have our tracks specialist, Lanny Miglizzy. When he gets to a track, he’s probably been there 20 times or more so he usually starts off with the notes he had last year. But we don’t have notes on Valdosta so the great thing about that is it’s equal for everybody. We’re going to roll in to South Georgia and it’s gonna be new to all of us. For the first time in NHRA’s 75-year history, we have four national events on tracks that we have not raced NHRA national events on before so it’s going to be really interesting.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“It’s a big deal. I raced in Atlanta (Commerce, Ga,.) multiple times until the track closed but, as a kid growing up reading National Dragster, those places seemed faraway and legendary. Atlanta was always a unique track because it had a wall on the right side. You can always tell from the starting line pictures that was the Southern Nationals. Now we’re going to have the Southern Nationals at a different venue but I think it’s important to be in that marketplace. There are a lot of friendly folks in that area so I’m glad we’re giving them an opportunity to not have to travel as far to see us race.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

BECKMAN’S SEASON LOOKING UP HEADING TO SOUTHERN NATS

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (APRIL 29, 2026) – The slow start to the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season for Jack Beckman took a sharp turn in the right direction last Sunday with his runner-up finish in the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals and it’s the spark from that strong showing that the PEAK SQUAD will carry to South Georgia Motorsports Park on May 1-3 for the renewal of the NHRA Southern Nationals.

The 37-time NHRA Funny Car winner finished third in his second-round quad at zMax Dragway near Charlotte, N.C. Dave Richards crossed the finish line second but was disqualified for his car making contact with the retaining wall before the finish line. That moved Beckman into the final round, where he had a 0.058 reaction time and ran 3.917 seconds at 329.50 mph to Ron Capps’ winning run of 3.905 seconds at 334.90 mph (0.054 reaction time).

The final-round appearance extended to 19 the number of consecutive seasons Beckman has raced in at least one final round in every season he has competed in the Funny Car class beginning in 2006.

Despite not taking the victory, the performance moved Beckman from 10^th to eighth in the Funny Car point standings. The PEAK SQUAD is 10 points behind Spencer Hyde in seventh place, 22 behind John Force Racing teammate Alexis DeJoria in sixth and 52 behind JRF teammate Jordan Vandergriff in fifth.

The 2012 NHRA Funny Car World Champion’s runner-up finish last Sunday qualified the PEAK SQUAD to participate in this week’s Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty Challenge. The race-within-qualifying event will take place Saturday, May 2, at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. ET during the third and fourth rounds of Funny Car qualifying.

In 13 previous NHRA Southern Nationals starts (2007-2019 at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga.), Beckman earned two wins (2009, 2011) a runner-up finish and No. 1 Qualifier in 2016, and an 18-11 overall round record.

John Force Racing Southern Nationals statistics

• Atlanta was the site of the first all-JFR final round (April 21, 1996),  in which Tony Pedregon dealt John Force one of only six losses he suffered over the course of a 19-race season.
• On April 27, 2008, Ashley Force Hood became the first woman to win a Funny Car race in the NHRA series when she beat her dad in the Atlanta final.
• Overall, five different JFR drivers won 14 times in the Atlanta version of the Southern Nationals, the last win in 2018 when Courtney beat Matt Hagan.
• John Force raced in the final round of the final race at Atlanta in 2021, losing to Bob Tasca III. 

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings after four of 20 races are: 1. Ron Capps, 369; 2. Matt Hagan, 327; 3. J.R. Todd, 299; 4. Chad Green, 276; 5. Jordan Vandergriff, 262; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 235; 7. Spencer Hyde, 221; 8. Jack Beckman, 213; 9. Daniel Wilkerson, 170; 10. Dave Richards, 138.

Quotes

Is there any extra motivation in trying to win an inaugural event?

“There’s only one first but, in many cases, we’ve had a whole bunch of ‘last’ aces. But you know for a fact if you win the inaugural, that never changes. I won the inaugural race at zMax Raceway. In 2008. It’s an awesome trophy that can never be taken away. There’s only one first.”

Is there any adjustment you have to make from four wide back to two, or is it just muscle memory?

“It’s an un-adjustment, right? For a few years we had two 4-Wide races and, for a few years, they were back to back. So, there was a chance to get into a rhythm for 4-Wide. It’s a one and done now so there’s really no adjustment needed.”

How do you prep for an inaugural NHRA national event with minimal or possibly zero information about the track to work with?

“I tested at South Georgia a couple times 15 years ago. A lot of people will ask about going into this certain racetrack, and the unique thing about drag racing is the racetracks aren’t all that unique. They’re all 60 feet wide with each of the two lanes 30 feet wide, excluding the four-wide tracks, straight, level, and one thousand feet long for the nitro categories. But they all have idiosyncrasies and unique characteristics.

“We have our tracks specialist, Lanny Miglizzy. When he gets to a track, he’s probably been there 20 times or more so he usually starts off with the notes he had last year. But we don’t have notes on Valdosta so the great thing about that is it’s equal for everybody. We’re going to roll in to South Georgia and it’s gonna be new to all of us. For the first time in NHRA’s 75-year history, we have four national events on tracks that we have not raced NHRA national events on before so it’s going to be really interesting.”

What are your thoughts on the Southern Nationals being part of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series again?

“It’s a big deal. I raced in Atlanta (Commerce, Ga,.) multiple times until the track closed but, as a kid growing up reading National Dragster, those places seemed faraway and legendary. Atlanta was always a unique track because it had a wall on the right side. You can always tell from the starting line pictures that was the Southern Nationals. Now we’re going to have the Southern Nationals at a different venue but I think it’s important to be in that marketplace. There are a lot of friendly folks in that area so I’m glad we’re giving them an opportunity to not have to travel as far to see us race.”

Track & TV Schedules

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 3 and 5:30 p.m. ET on Friday, May 1, with the final two rounds Saturday, May 2, at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 3.

Television coverage includes qualifying on FS1 from 9:30 – 11 p.m. ET on Saturday, May 2, a second qualifying show Sunday, May 3, from 1 – 2 p.m. ET and eliminations from 7 – 10 p.m. ET.

TEAM CHEVY ADVANC ETexas Motor SpeedwayMay 1-3, 2026

MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race AdvancesChevrolet Newsroom

Courtesy of a pair of first-time winners in their respective divisions, Chevrolet carries the momentum of a weekend sweep towards the next stop on the 2026 NASCAR schedule: Texas Motor Speedway. The 1.5-mile Fort Worth-based oval will celebrate its 30th anniversary weekend by welcoming all three NASCAR national series back to its facility for the sport’s first and only appearance of the season. The Bowtie brand has tallied a combined 52 victories across all three NASCAR national series at Texas Motor Speedway including 18 Cup Series wins, 14 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series wins and 20 Truck Series wins.

Chevrolet’s trek towards its series-leading 18 Cup Series triumphs at Texas Motor Speedway started in March 1999, the series’ third-ever appearance at the track, when Hendrick Motorsports and Terry Labonte earned the manufacturer’s first trip to victory lane. Throughout its three-decade history with NASCAR, the track has become home to an elite list of monumental moments for Chevrolet, highlighted by Jimmie Johnson’s 2012 victory that delivered the manufacturer its 700th all-time Cup Series win. Hendrick Motorsports also shares in the milestone memories at the Texas oval with William Byron’s 2023 victory marking the organization’s 300th all-time win in NASCAR’s premier series. Chevrolet’s most recent Cup Series win came in 2024 when Chase Elliott drove the Bowtie brand to its fourth-straight win at Texas Motor Speedway – a victory that also set the series’ record for the longest win streak by a single manufacturer at the track.

Chevrolet will head into the tripleheader weekend as the track’s defending winners in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Kyle Larson, the series’ most recent Texas winner, is slated to make his fourth start in the second-level division this weekend as the Team Chevy driver will reunite with crew chief, Mardy Lindley, and the No. 88 JR Motorsports team.

Both companion series will see a trio of Team Chevy Cup Series regulars on their respective entry lists. Joining Larson in Saturday’s Andy’s Frozen Custard 340 includes Connor Zilisch, who will return to the seat of the No. 1 Chevrolet to complete JR Motorsports’ five-car lineup. The 2013 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, Austin Dillon, will pilot a third entry for Richard Childress Racing for his first appearance in the series of the season. A familiar face will be calling the shots from atop the No. 3 pit box, with Dillon’s Cup Series car chief, Ryan Chism, set to make his crew chief debut.  In the Craftsman Truck Series, the two-truck Spire Motorsports lineup will feature the track’s 2023 and 2024 winners, Carson Hocevar and Kyle Busch. Fellow Team Chevy driver, Ross Chastain, will be back behind the reigns of the No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet for his third Truck Series start of the season.

WEEKEND OF FIRST-TIMERS Chevrolet is coming off its second NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series doubleheader sweep of the 2026 season – a feat accomplished by a pair of first-time winners.

In an always thrilling trip to Talladega Superspeedway, it was Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar that survived the ‘Big One’ and a three-lap dash to the finish to make his first career trip to victory lane at NASCAR’s highest level. Competing in his third full-time campaign in the division, it was only a matter of time before the Michigan native etched his name into history as a Cup Series winner. In 91 career starts, Hocevar has earned six top-five finishes, three of which have come just this season. The victory was enough to push Hocevar into the top-10 of the points standings for the first time this season with the No. 77 team ranked eighth heading into the Texas race weekend. The 1.5-mile oval has produced a set of ‘firsts’ for the young Team Chevy driver including his first career Cup Series pole (2025) and his first career Craftsman Truck Series win (2023).

O’Reilly Auto Parts Series ‘Rookie of the Year’ contender, Corey Day, led just one lap around the 2.66-mile Alabama superspeedway, but it was the most important one of the race. Sitting at the top of the leaderboard on the final lap when the caution came out, the California native went on to earn his first trophy in the NASCAR national ranks. His rookie campaign has been nothing short of impressive. In 11 races this season, Day has collected nine top-10s to lead the series with fellow Team Chevy drivers and series veterans, Justin Allgaier and Sheldon Creed.

TOP-10 TALLY Chevrolet’s second NASCAR Cup Series win of the season was celebrated by a strong contingency of drivers representing the Bowtie brigade among the top of the leaderboard. First time winner, Carson Hocevar, led Chevrolet to six top-10 finishes. It marked the second time this season a manufacturer has placed six cars in the top-10 of a Cup Series event, but Chevrolet took it one step further by achieving the highest representation of different organizations within those results. In addition to Spire Motorsports’ victory, Hendrick Motorsports earned two top-fives with Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott, while Hyak Motorsports’ Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch rounded out the top-10.

CHASTAIN LOOKING FOR A MOMENTUM-BUILDING WEEKENDA challenging start to the season took a turn in the right direction for Ross Chastain and the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet team at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend. Earning points in each stage, including the Stage Two win, the Florida native went on to take home a strong seventh-place finish and the team’s second top-10 of the season. Chastain carries that burst of confidence to a track where he’s seen success in recent history, including runner-up results in two of the past three Cup Series events. Chastain will also have extra seat time around the Texas oval under his belt when he takes the green flag for Sunday’s race with the Team Chevy driver also piloting a Silverado RST for Niece Motorsports in Friday’s Truck Series event.

DILLON SET FOR NOAPS RETURNThe 2013 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, Austin Dillon, will make his return to the series this weekend to pilot a third entry for Richard Childress Racing. The North Carolina native boasts a strong resume at the 1.5-mile oval, highlighted by top-10 results in each of his 11 career O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts and an average finish of 5.7. In the Cup Series, Dillon is one of eight active past Texas winners with his 2020 victory, and he has driven the No. 3 Chevrolet to top-eight results in the series’ past two visits to the track.

ECKES READY TO GO BACK TO BATTLE The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will resume its 2026 tour this weekend with the trip to Texas Motor Speedway marking the start of its seven-race stretch. Leading the charge for Chevrolet in the points standings is McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes, who was able to close the gap to the leader to just 17-points after a strong points day and his third top-five finish of the season at Bristol Motor Speedway. While Eckes is still looking for his first win of the season, his Texas stats prove that opportunity could very well come this weekend. In his five career starts at the track, the New York native has qualified in the top-10 in each event; earned seventh-place or better points in every stage; and collected a pair of runner-up finishes.

BOWTIE BULLETS:·        Chevrolet will serve as the official pace vehicle for the tripleheader weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, with the Corvette Stingray pacing the NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and the Silverado RST pacing the Craftsman Truck Series.  ·        Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Texas Motor Speedway: Kyle Busch – four wins (2020, 2018, 2016, 2013)Chase Elliott – one win (2024)William Byron – one win (2023) Kyle Larson – one win (2021)Austin Dillon – one win (2020) ·        In 45 NASCAR Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has recorded a series-leading 18 victories. The Bowtie brand has earned victories in five of the past seven Cup Series races at the 1.5-mile oval, including a record-setting streak of four-straight, recorded from 2021-2024.  ·        At Talladega Superspeedway, Chevrolet tallied six top-10 finishes, marking the second time this season a manufacturer has placed six cars in the top-10 of a Cup Series event. The Bowtie brand took it one step further by achieving the highest representation of different organizations within those results with five Chevrolet organizations placing drivers in the top-10.  ·        With seven-straight victories to start the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season, Chevrolet set the record for the longest season-opening streak by a single manufacturer in the division’s history.  ·        In 154 points-paying races in the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 69 victories – a winning percentage of 44.8%. ·        Chevrolet is coming off its 29th all-time sweep of the NASCAR Cup Series championship titles – capturing its 34th driver championship and 44th, and fifth consecutive, manufacturer championship in 2025.  ·        With its 44 NASCAR Cup Series manufacturer championships, 34 NASCAR Cup Series driver championships, and 883 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history. FOR THE FANS: Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Texas Motor Speedway, which features a variety of vehicles including: Tahoe Z71, Silverado EV, Silverado LD High Country, Equinox ACTIV, Corvette Z06, Colorado Trail Boss, Traverse Z71, Silverado HD LTZ and a Kyle Larson No. 5 Camaro ZL1 show car.  Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:Friday, May 1: 1:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Saturday, May 2: 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 3: 9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.  Team Chevy Driver Appearances at the Display:Friday, May 1 ·        Tyler Ankrum & Kris Wright: 4:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. ·        Grant Enfinger: 4:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. ·        Andres Perez de Lara & Conner Jones: 5:00 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. ·        Toni Breidinger & Dawson Sutton: 5:15 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 2 ·        Anthony Alfredo: 11:00 a.m. – 11:10 a.m. ·        Parker Retzlaff: 11:10 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. ·        Rajah Caruth & Carson Kvapil: 11:20 a.m. – 11:35 a.m. ·        Justin Allgaier & Sammy Smith: 11:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ·        Sheldon Creed & Sam Mayer: 12:00 p.m. – 12:15 p.m.  Sunday, May 3·        Ross Chastain: 9:50 a.m. – 10:05 a.m. ·        Austin Dillon: 10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. ·        Carson Hocevar: 10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. ·        Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: 10:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. ·        Alex Bowman: 11:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. ·        Shane van Gisbergen: 11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ·        Chase Elliott: 11:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

TUNE-IN:NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLYSunday, May 3, at 3:30 p.m. ETFS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90  NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts SeriesAndy’s Frozen Custard 340Saturday, May 2, at 3:30 p.m. ETCW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90  NASCAR Craftsman Truck SeriesSpeedyCash.com 250Friday, May 1, at 8 p.m. ETFS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

QUOTABLE QUOTES:Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletCan you explain why Texas has been there, has become so treacherous over the last couple of years? “They knocked the banking out of turns one and two, so they slid the apron way inward towards the infield, and now it’s like a one lane apron where it used to be five lanes wide. The outside wall is still at the same spot but when they brought the banking so far inside towards the infield, it flattened it out and to me it feels like a yo-yo. You go way down in speed in turns one and two, and then you’re way up in speed in turns three and four and it’s this constant give and take. The car goes through such a different load. In the end your car is pushed down to the ground harder in turns three and four and then it’s very up out of the racetrack, long one and two feels like with the open entry of turn one and just not as much angle in the asphalt. So yeah, in all the series it’s challenging.” Is Texas the most challenging track to race on?“For me, I would say New Hampshire Motor Speedway is the most challenging to make speed on and then probably Texas. Those two are on the top my list for me, personally.” Do you like going to Texas?“I like going to Texas Motor Speedway. The track is fun to drive and it’s very challenging. There’s also a lot to do in the area – good food, fun at the Stockyards and places like that. I’ve finished runner-up there a couple of times so I’m hoping for a strong weekend. It’s the home track for Kubota and they’re on my car this weekend so it would be awesome to get them into victory lane at their home track.”   Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletWhat are your thoughts on Texas Motor Speedway? “The place is fast and it’s big. You’ve got to go out there and commit to Turns 3 and 4. It’s one of the fastest tracks we go to all year long. I have confidence going in there for sure. We’ve just got to go out there, qualify well, execute, and make it happen when it counts.” What’s one moment at Texas Motor Speedway that sticks out to you? “There are a lot of memorable moments at Texas Motor Speedway, but one that really sticks out is winning against my teammate, Tyler Reddick, there a couple years back in the NASCAR Cup Series. We were battling out those restarts at the end. We weren’t a great car that day. We were probably a 10th-12th place car, and both of us decided to take two tires to get up front and tack control of the race. And then, with clean air our cars took off. My confidence was high. We just kept having restarts and were able to make it happen.”  What do you enjoy most about being in Texas? “I love Texas. I grew up hunting down here as a kid. I have a lot of memories deer hunting with my grandfather, so I fell in love with the state early on. I’ve had some success at Texas Motor Speedway. Texas is a cool place. I feel more like a cowboy when I’m there. Some of our bull riders on the PBR Teams Series are based in the Fort Worth area, so I get to visit them and do a little racing also.”    Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports ChevroletWhat do you like about Texas Motor Speedway and what is going to be a challenge for you?“Texas is definitely a good racetrack, It’s very fast. It gets tricky in Turns 1 and 2 because Turns 3 and 4 are so much different with the banking and load. Sometimes you have to make a compromise in one of the corners to be fast. It’s impossible to be perfect in both turns, so it’s going to be tricky, but good. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve had some success there in the past and I’m looking to carry that on with the No. 7 team.”   Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletHow do you balance each corner being so different at Texas Motor Speedway?  “Texas Motor Speedway is a tough place. Turns 1 and 2 being really wide, and kind of flat, and then Turns 3 and 4 being a little bit narrower, but also being really, really fast with a lot of banking. You’ve got to set up for Turns 1 and 2 and you’ve got to set up for the end of the racetrack where you’re off the throttle the most, and then just take what you can get at the other end. It’s a little bit of a compromise at that place, but it’s fun to race there. You’ve got to really work on your runs through Turns 3 and 4 and down the front straightway to make those moves getting into Turn 1.”  Turns 1 and 2 are very different from Turns 3 and 4. How do you approach that racetrack from a setup perspective with two very different turns? “At Texas Motor Speedway you have to sort of focus on Turns 1 and 2 because that’s the end of the racetrack where you’re out of the throttle, and you want to be out of the throttle the least amount possible, and then you just take whatever the car gives you in Turns 3 and 4. That’s how we focused our setups the last couple of years. Last year I felt like we were really good. We had a great car. We made some air pressure adjustments to it during the race, we got faster and we were up towards the front. I thought I had a shot to go race for the win, and I was like ‘this is my moment, Larson is slow, he’s vulnerable, I better go get him.’ I tried too hard in the middle of Turns 3 and 4, hit the bump and spun myself out. So, it’s hard to get it all right there all day long.”  What’s the toughest part about driving at Texas Motor Speedway? “The last couple of years, the bump in Turns 3 and 4 have certainly been the tricky part for us. We had some really good speed there last year. We were running in third place chasing down the leaders, trying to make some moves to win the race. I pushed pretty hard after a restart and the car bottomed out, spun out on me and we ended up backed in the fence. That’s the unfortunate part about Texas Motor Speedway, just how on edge you are and how tricky it is to just make sure you keep the grip in your racecar. Some of those bumps have gotten worse over time, which is fine. It’s character. It’s good to have some of that. You just got to be able to know how to attack, when to attack and how hard to attack. I misjudged that last year and put ourselves in a bad spot of spinning out. That’s something we’ll focus on this time around.” What’s the vibe when you come down to Texas for a race? “The party scene at Texas is like no other. It always has great camping, great nightlife—you can always hear everybody playing their music and having a good time, enjoying the camaraderie of the area and what that brings. We’ve been fortunate enough the last few years to have good weather. I’m hoping for that again.”   Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing ChevroletAfter Sunday’s season-best 13th-place finish at Talladega, what do you expect for Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway?“We needed a good finish, and we had to work hard to earn it at Talladega. We made some execution mistakes early, fell a lap down and spent most of the race working to get back on the lead lap. We came close a few times but finally got it done at the end. Nobody panicked and nobody gave up. We know we are better than our finishes this season, so maybe Talladega will be the turning point. We can get back on track Sunday at Texas.” What are your thoughts on Texas Motor Speedway?“We had a lot of success there in the Truck Series, and I would love to transfer that success to the Cup program. It’s a fast, tough track — just what you would expect in Texas. It also feels good to return to a track where we have had success and feel confident.”   AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing ChevroletAfter having speed at Kansas Speedway, how do you feel about Texas?“Texas is a unique 1.5-mile track. Turns 1 and 2 are very flat, while Turns 3 and 4 are high-banked, allowing you to run wide open in qualifying. It’s a place where we had a lot of speed last year. After Kansas and the speed we found there, we’re looking forward to this weekend and hoping to carry that momentum forward. I feel like we can be pretty competitive, but it’s definitely a tough racetrack. Track position is critical because passing is very difficult, so practice and qualifying will be especially important. Overall, it’s a track I enjoy, and after Kansas, it feels like our intermediate program is heading in the right direction. This is a race where we should have a solid shot at being competitive.”   Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet“Texas is always a place where track position and execution matter so much, and having a new partner like Ōnin Staffing on board makes this weekend even more exciting. It’s their first race with us, and we’re looking forward to putting together a strong run for them and our No. 47 team. The guys have been working hard, and hopefully we can give Ōnin Staffing a great first weekend with Hyak Motorsports.”   Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet“Texas is kind of like a hybrid between Kansas, Vegas and Charlotte. And to take it a step further, it’s kind of similar to Darlington where you’re probably not going to have your balance happy in both ends of the racetrack because they’re so wildly different. You might get the car handling well in (turns) three and four, but you’re not going to like what it’s doing in (turns) one and two. Track conditions are going to play a big part in whether you’re running the top or the bottom at Texas. If you focus on just running one lane, you’re probably going to get a bad read for what you need throughout the race as rubber builds up. And then, over in (turns) one and two, depending on the speed of the race, you may or may not be shifting, so there’s a lot of variables that you really have to be aware of and implement in practice to get a good balance, a good read for all the different scenarios that can happen in the race.”   Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports ChevroletHow have the challenges developed at Texas Motor Speedway over the years?“The bump in Turn 4 on the high side is a big challenge, especially during restarts. It took us out in 2024 so you just need to be aware of how you hit that bump. The track is very fast paced and can be intimidating to this day, even as it ages, because the speeds are so high and these cars are right on the razor edge. Now, you have some of that character with those bumps, and our cars are so low that when you bottom out, they can take off on you. I wasn’t the only car to back it into the fence there while trying to get clear in the past few years. You have to hit it just right in Turn 4. We saw a few other guys do that recently, as well. Traditionally, Cup guys don’t make a ton of mistakes, but we have seen a lot of hiccups at Texas. I think it really proves how challenging this track is. It’s still one of those places that can take your breath away.”   Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports ChevroletComing off you first win, how do you refocus on the task at hand this weekend?“I feel good about it. Obviously, we were on the pole last year and had speed, and I won my first ever truck race there. We have a lot of momentum and excitement behind us right now, while we go into a track that it is realistic to be up front and contend all day. We have been looking forward to and circling Texas for a couple weeks, so what happened last weekend is really an added bonus.” You won your first truck race, earned your first Cup Series top 10 and won your first Cup Series pole at Texas. Why has it been such a good track for you throughout your career?“I don’t really know, it just works out. The two ends are different, which makes you keep thinking about the line you are going to run and how you will make it through the corner. It is a really fast place with a high grip levels, and on the Cup Series side, we really excel at tracks with similar characteristics. It has just been a good place for me and I look forward to going every year.”   Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletThis is your first race at Texas Motor Speedway. What has the preparation been like?“I’m excited for this weekend. I’ve never raced at Texas before so I’m glad I’m getting some seat time with JR Motorsports before Sunday’s race in our Choice Privileges Chevrolet. It’s definitely a unique track. Both ends are very different and it’s one of the few tracks on the schedule that I haven’t been to. It’s certainly going to be a challenging weekend figuring it out on the fly, but I feel like I’ve had to do that quite a bit in the past 18 months. Texas is pretty much single groove. It widens out a little bit but for the most part you’re not getting up to the top of the racetrack at all. There are certainly a lot of nuances between the two corners. I look forward to the challenge of figuring it out. We’re making some changes with the cars and trying to do things differently this time around and hopefully we can see some results.”    How long will it be before you see some of those changes make it to the racetrack?“This weekend. We’ve been working really hard to make things different. If we keep showing up the racetrack the same, it’s not going to change and we know that. It’s certainly something that we must focus and work hard on.”  At the mile-and-a-half tracks, what is the major difference between the Cup car and the O’Reilly Series car? Is it difficult to go back and forth between the two cars?“I would say the amount of yaw that you carry through the corner in the O’Reilly car versus the Cup car. You can hang it out a little bit more, drive it over the limit and be able to make speed doing that whereas in the Cup car you’re toting that line the entire time. There certainly are a lot of differences, but for me, track time is track time. I don’t really struggle to go back and forth because they are so different. It’s almost tougher when you’re racing two race cars and they are very similar. That’s when it becomes tough and it’s hard to go back and forth between the two.”   Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletWhat are you looking forward to at Texas Motor Speedway?“Texas is a tough track, but I’m looking forward to getting better at it as the weekend goes on. It’s been tough for me in the past in the O’Reilly car and Cup car, so our focus has just been trying to see where we can improve from last year and what will make us the most competitive.” Do you approach this mile and a half track different than any other intermediate track?“No, but it’s difficult because one end of the track is so different from the other end. You have to compromise a little bit on set up. But trying to get the most out of your car every lap is important, so practice will be all about learning and getting the best feel for the car before the race.”

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCETexas Motor SpeedwayMay 1-3, 2026

MEDIA RESOURCES: Photo Gallery | Race AdvancesChevrolet Newsroom

Courtesy of a pair of first-time winners in their respective divisions, Chevrolet carries the momentum of a weekend sweep towards the next stop on the 2026 NASCAR schedule: Texas Motor Speedway. The 1.5-mile Fort Worth-based oval will celebrate its 30th anniversary weekend by welcoming all three NASCAR national series back to its facility for the sport’s first and only appearance of the season. The Bowtie brand has tallied a combined 52 victories across all three NASCAR national series at Texas Motor Speedway including 18 Cup Series wins, 14 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series wins and 20 Truck Series wins.

Chevrolet’s trek towards its series-leading 18 Cup Series triumphs at Texas Motor Speedway started in March 1999, the series’ third-ever appearance at the track, when Hendrick Motorsports and Terry Labonte earned the manufacturer’s first trip to victory lane. Throughout its three-decade history with NASCAR, the track has become home to an elite list of monumental moments for Chevrolet, highlighted by Jimmie Johnson’s 2012 victory that delivered the manufacturer its 700th all-time Cup Series win. Hendrick Motorsports also shares in the milestone memories at the Texas oval with William Byron’s 2023 victory marking the organization’s 300th all-time win in NASCAR’s premier series. Chevrolet’s most recent Cup Series win came in 2024 when Chase Elliott drove the Bowtie brand to its fourth-straight win at Texas Motor Speedway – a victory that also set the series’ record for the longest win streak by a single manufacturer at the track.

Chevrolet will head into the tripleheader weekend as the track’s defending winners in the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series. Kyle Larson, the series’ most recent Texas winner, is slated to make his fourth start in the second-level division this weekend as the Team Chevy driver will reunite with crew chief, Mardy Lindley, and the No. 88 JR Motorsports team.

Both companion series will see a trio of Team Chevy Cup Series regulars on their respective entry lists. Joining Larson in Saturday’s Andy’s Frozen Custard 340 includes Connor Zilisch, who will return to the seat of the No. 1 Chevrolet to complete JR Motorsports’ five-car lineup. The 2013 O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, Austin Dillon, will pilot a third entry for Richard Childress Racing for his first appearance in the series of the season. A familiar face will be calling the shots from atop the No. 3 pit box, with Dillon’s Cup Series car chief, Ryan Chism, set to make his crew chief debut.  In the Craftsman Truck Series, the two-truck Spire Motorsports lineup will feature the track’s 2023 and 2024 winners, Carson Hocevar and Kyle Busch. Fellow Team Chevy driver, Ross Chastain, will be back behind the reigns of the No. 45 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet for his third Truck Series start of the season.

WEEKEND OF FIRST-TIMERS Chevrolet is coming off its second NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series doubleheader sweep of the 2026 season – a feat accomplished by a pair of first-time winners.

In an always thrilling trip to Talladega Superspeedway, it was Spire Motorsports’ Carson Hocevar that survived the ‘Big One’ and a three-lap dash to the finish to make his first career trip to victory lane at NASCAR’s highest level. Competing in his third full-time campaign in the division, it was only a matter of time before the Michigan native etched his name into history as a Cup Series winner. In 91 career starts, Hocevar has earned six top-five finishes, three of which have come just this season. The victory was enough to push Hocevar into the top-10 of the points standings for the first time this season with the No. 77 team ranked eighth heading into the Texas race weekend. The 1.5-mile oval has produced a set of ‘firsts’ for the young Team Chevy driver including his first career Cup Series pole (2025) and his first career Craftsman Truck Series win (2023).

O’Reilly Auto Parts Series ‘Rookie of the Year’ contender, Corey Day, led just one lap around the 2.66-mile Alabama superspeedway, but it was the most important one of the race. Sitting at the top of the leaderboard on the final lap when the caution came out, the California native went on to earn his first trophy in the NASCAR national ranks. His rookie campaign has been nothing short of impressive. In 11 races this season, Day has collected nine top-10s to lead the series with fellow Team Chevy drivers and series veterans, Justin Allgaier and Sheldon Creed.

TOP-10 TALLY Chevrolet’s second NASCAR Cup Series win of the season was celebrated by a strong contingency of drivers representing the Bowtie brigade among the top of the leaderboard. First time winner, Carson Hocevar, led Chevrolet to six top-10 finishes. It marked the second time this season a manufacturer has placed six cars in the top-10 of a Cup Series event, but Chevrolet took it one step further by achieving the highest representation of different organizations within those results. In addition to Spire Motorsports’ victory, Hendrick Motorsports earned two top-fives with Alex Bowman and Chase Elliott, while Hyak Motorsports’ Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain and Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch rounded out the top-10.

CHASTAIN LOOKING FOR A MOMENTUM-BUILDING WEEKENDA challenging start to the season took a turn in the right direction for Ross Chastain and the No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet team at Talladega Superspeedway last weekend. Earning points in each stage, including the Stage Two win, the Florida native went on to take home a strong seventh-place finish and the team’s second top-10 of the season. Chastain carries that burst of confidence to a track where he’s seen success in recent history, including runner-up results in two of the past three Cup Series events. Chastain will also have extra seat time around the Texas oval under his belt when he takes the green flag for Sunday’s race with the Team Chevy driver also piloting a Silverado RST for Niece Motorsports in Friday’s Truck Series event.

DILLON SET FOR NOAPS RETURNThe 2013 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion, Austin Dillon, will make his return to the series this weekend to pilot a third entry for Richard Childress Racing. The North Carolina native boasts a strong resume at the 1.5-mile oval, highlighted by top-10 results in each of his 11 career O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts and an average finish of 5.7. In the Cup Series, Dillon is one of eight active past Texas winners with his 2020 victory, and he has driven the No. 3 Chevrolet to top-eight results in the series’ past two visits to the track.

ECKES READY TO GO BACK TO BATTLE The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series will resume its 2026 tour this weekend with the trip to Texas Motor Speedway marking the start of its seven-race stretch. Leading the charge for Chevrolet in the points standings is McAnally-Hilgemann Racing’s Christian Eckes, who was able to close the gap to the leader to just 17-points after a strong points day and his third top-five finish of the season at Bristol Motor Speedway. While Eckes is still looking for his first win of the season, his Texas stats prove that opportunity could very well come this weekend. In his five career starts at the track, the New York native has qualified in the top-10 in each event; earned seventh-place or better points in every stage; and collected a pair of runner-up finishes.

BOWTIE BULLETS:·        Chevrolet will serve as the official pace vehicle for the tripleheader weekend at Texas Motor Speedway, with the Corvette Stingray pacing the NASCAR Cup and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series and the Silverado RST pacing the Craftsman Truck Series.  ·        Active Chevrolet drivers with a NASCAR Cup Series win at Texas Motor Speedway: Kyle Busch – four wins (2020, 2018, 2016, 2013)Chase Elliott – one win (2024)William Byron – one win (2023) Kyle Larson – one win (2021)Austin Dillon – one win (2020) ·        In 45 NASCAR Cup Series races at Texas Motor Speedway, Chevrolet has recorded a series-leading 18 victories. The Bowtie brand has earned victories in five of the past seven Cup Series races at the 1.5-mile oval, including a record-setting streak of four-straight, recorded from 2021-2024.  ·        At Talladega Superspeedway, Chevrolet tallied six top-10 finishes, marking the second time this season a manufacturer has placed six cars in the top-10 of a Cup Series event. The Bowtie brand took it one step further by achieving the highest representation of different organizations within those results with five Chevrolet organizations placing drivers in the top-10.  ·        With seven-straight victories to start the 2026 NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series season, Chevrolet set the record for the longest season-opening streak by a single manufacturer in the division’s history.  ·        In 154 points-paying races in the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen era, Chevrolet leads all manufacturers with 69 victories – a winning percentage of 44.8%. ·        Chevrolet is coming off its 29th all-time sweep of the NASCAR Cup Series championship titles – capturing its 34th driver championship and 44th, and fifth consecutive, manufacturer championship in 2025.  ·        With its 44 NASCAR Cup Series manufacturer championships, 34 NASCAR Cup Series driver championships, and 883 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title as the winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history. FOR THE FANS: Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Texas Motor Speedway, which features a variety of vehicles including: Tahoe Z71, Silverado EV, Silverado LD High Country, Equinox ACTIV, Corvette Z06, Colorado Trail Boss, Traverse Z71, Silverado HD LTZ and a Kyle Larson No. 5 Camaro ZL1 show car.  Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation:Friday, May 1: 1:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Saturday, May 2: 10:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 3: 9:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.  Team Chevy Driver Appearances at the Display:Friday, May 1 ·        Tyler Ankrum & Kris Wright: 4:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. ·        Grant Enfinger: 4:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m. ·        Andres Perez de Lara & Conner Jones: 5:00 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. ·        Toni Breidinger & Dawson Sutton: 5:15 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 2 ·        Anthony Alfredo: 11:00 a.m. – 11:10 a.m. ·        Parker Retzlaff: 11:10 a.m. – 11:20 a.m. ·        Rajah Caruth & Carson Kvapil: 11:20 a.m. – 11:35 a.m. ·        Justin Allgaier & Sammy Smith: 11:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. ·        Sheldon Creed & Sam Mayer: 12:00 p.m. – 12:15 p.m.  Sunday, May 3·        Ross Chastain: 9:50 a.m. – 10:05 a.m. ·        Austin Dillon: 10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. ·        Carson Hocevar: 10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. ·        Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: 10:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. ·        Alex Bowman: 11:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. ·        Shane van Gisbergen: 11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ·        Chase Elliott: 11:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

TUNE-IN:NASCAR Cup Series Würth 400 presented by LIQUI MOLYSunday, May 3, at 3:30 p.m. ETFS1, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90  NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts SeriesAndy’s Frozen Custard 340Saturday, May 2, at 3:30 p.m. ETCW, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90  NASCAR Craftsman Truck SeriesSpeedyCash.com 250Friday, May 1, at 8 p.m. ETFS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90

QUOTABLE QUOTES:Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletCan you explain why Texas has been there, has become so treacherous over the last couple of years? “They knocked the banking out of turns one and two, so they slid the apron way inward towards the infield, and now it’s like a one lane apron where it used to be five lanes wide. The outside wall is still at the same spot but when they brought the banking so far inside towards the infield, it flattened it out and to me it feels like a yo-yo. You go way down in speed in turns one and two, and then you’re way up in speed in turns three and four and it’s this constant give and take. The car goes through such a different load. In the end your car is pushed down to the ground harder in turns three and four and then it’s very up out of the racetrack, long one and two feels like with the open entry of turn one and just not as much angle in the asphalt. So yeah, in all the series it’s challenging.” Is Texas the most challenging track to race on?“For me, I would say New Hampshire Motor Speedway is the most challenging to make speed on and then probably Texas. Those two are on the top my list for me, personally.” Do you like going to Texas?“I like going to Texas Motor Speedway. The track is fun to drive and it’s very challenging. There’s also a lot to do in the area – good food, fun at the Stockyards and places like that. I’ve finished runner-up there a couple of times so I’m hoping for a strong weekend. It’s the home track for Kubota and they’re on my car this weekend so it would be awesome to get them into victory lane at their home track.”   Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletWhat are your thoughts on Texas Motor Speedway? “The place is fast and it’s big. You’ve got to go out there and commit to Turns 3 and 4. It’s one of the fastest tracks we go to all year long. I have confidence going in there for sure. We’ve just got to go out there, qualify well, execute, and make it happen when it counts.” What’s one moment at Texas Motor Speedway that sticks out to you? “There are a lot of memorable moments at Texas Motor Speedway, but one that really sticks out is winning against my teammate, Tyler Reddick, there a couple years back in the NASCAR Cup Series. We were battling out those restarts at the end. We weren’t a great car that day. We were probably a 10th-12th place car, and both of us decided to take two tires to get up front and tack control of the race. And then, with clean air our cars took off. My confidence was high. We just kept having restarts and were able to make it happen.”  What do you enjoy most about being in Texas? “I love Texas. I grew up hunting down here as a kid. I have a lot of memories deer hunting with my grandfather, so I fell in love with the state early on. I’ve had some success at Texas Motor Speedway. Texas is a cool place. I feel more like a cowboy when I’m there. Some of our bull riders on the PBR Teams Series are based in the Fort Worth area, so I get to visit them and do a little racing also.”    Daniel Suarez, No. 7 Spire Motorsports ChevroletWhat do you like about Texas Motor Speedway and what is going to be a challenge for you?“Texas is definitely a good racetrack, It’s very fast. It gets tricky in Turns 1 and 2 because Turns 3 and 4 are so much different with the banking and load. Sometimes you have to make a compromise in one of the corners to be fast. It’s impossible to be perfect in both turns, so it’s going to be tricky, but good. I’m looking forward to it. I’ve had some success there in the past and I’m looking to carry that on with the No. 7 team.”   Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing ChevroletHow do you balance each corner being so different at Texas Motor Speedway?  “Texas Motor Speedway is a tough place. Turns 1 and 2 being really wide, and kind of flat, and then Turns 3 and 4 being a little bit narrower, but also being really, really fast with a lot of banking. You’ve got to set up for Turns 1 and 2 and you’ve got to set up for the end of the racetrack where you’re off the throttle the most, and then just take what you can get at the other end. It’s a little bit of a compromise at that place, but it’s fun to race there. You’ve got to really work on your runs through Turns 3 and 4 and down the front straightway to make those moves getting into Turn 1.”  Turns 1 and 2 are very different from Turns 3 and 4. How do you approach that racetrack from a setup perspective with two very different turns? “At Texas Motor Speedway you have to sort of focus on Turns 1 and 2 because that’s the end of the racetrack where you’re out of the throttle, and you want to be out of the throttle the least amount possible, and then you just take whatever the car gives you in Turns 3 and 4. That’s how we focused our setups the last couple of years. Last year I felt like we were really good. We had a great car. We made some air pressure adjustments to it during the race, we got faster and we were up towards the front. I thought I had a shot to go race for the win, and I was like ‘this is my moment, Larson is slow, he’s vulnerable, I better go get him.’ I tried too hard in the middle of Turns 3 and 4, hit the bump and spun myself out. So, it’s hard to get it all right there all day long.”  What’s the toughest part about driving at Texas Motor Speedway? “The last couple of years, the bump in Turns 3 and 4 have certainly been the tricky part for us. We had some really good speed there last year. We were running in third place chasing down the leaders, trying to make some moves to win the race. I pushed pretty hard after a restart and the car bottomed out, spun out on me and we ended up backed in the fence. That’s the unfortunate part about Texas Motor Speedway, just how on edge you are and how tricky it is to just make sure you keep the grip in your racecar. Some of those bumps have gotten worse over time, which is fine. It’s character. It’s good to have some of that. You just got to be able to know how to attack, when to attack and how hard to attack. I misjudged that last year and put ourselves in a bad spot of spinning out. That’s something we’ll focus on this time around.” What’s the vibe when you come down to Texas for a race? “The party scene at Texas is like no other. It always has great camping, great nightlife—you can always hear everybody playing their music and having a good time, enjoying the camaraderie of the area and what that brings. We’ve been fortunate enough the last few years to have good weather. I’m hoping for that again.”   Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing ChevroletAfter Sunday’s season-best 13th-place finish at Talladega, what do you expect for Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway?“We needed a good finish, and we had to work hard to earn it at Talladega. We made some execution mistakes early, fell a lap down and spent most of the race working to get back on the lead lap. We came close a few times but finally got it done at the end. Nobody panicked and nobody gave up. We know we are better than our finishes this season, so maybe Talladega will be the turning point. We can get back on track Sunday at Texas.” What are your thoughts on Texas Motor Speedway?“We had a lot of success there in the Truck Series, and I would love to transfer that success to the Cup program. It’s a fast, tough track — just what you would expect in Texas. It also feels good to return to a track where we have had success and feel confident.”   AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing ChevroletAfter having speed at Kansas Speedway, how do you feel about Texas?“Texas is a unique 1.5-mile track. Turns 1 and 2 are very flat, while Turns 3 and 4 are high-banked, allowing you to run wide open in qualifying. It’s a place where we had a lot of speed last year. After Kansas and the speed we found there, we’re looking forward to this weekend and hoping to carry that momentum forward. I feel like we can be pretty competitive, but it’s definitely a tough racetrack. Track position is critical because passing is very difficult, so practice and qualifying will be especially important. Overall, it’s a track I enjoy, and after Kansas, it feels like our intermediate program is heading in the right direction. This is a race where we should have a solid shot at being competitive.”   Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 Hyak Motorsports Chevrolet“Texas is always a place where track position and execution matter so much, and having a new partner like Ōnin Staffing on board makes this weekend even more exciting. It’s their first race with us, and we’re looking forward to putting together a strong run for them and our No. 47 team. The guys have been working hard, and hopefully we can give Ōnin Staffing a great first weekend with Hyak Motorsports.”   Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Chevrolet“Texas is kind of like a hybrid between Kansas, Vegas and Charlotte. And to take it a step further, it’s kind of similar to Darlington where you’re probably not going to have your balance happy in both ends of the racetrack because they’re so wildly different. You might get the car handling well in (turns) three and four, but you’re not going to like what it’s doing in (turns) one and two. Track conditions are going to play a big part in whether you’re running the top or the bottom at Texas. If you focus on just running one lane, you’re probably going to get a bad read for what you need throughout the race as rubber builds up. And then, over in (turns) one and two, depending on the speed of the race, you may or may not be shifting, so there’s a lot of variables that you really have to be aware of and implement in practice to get a good balance, a good read for all the different scenarios that can happen in the race.”   Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports ChevroletHow have the challenges developed at Texas Motor Speedway over the years?“The bump in Turn 4 on the high side is a big challenge, especially during restarts. It took us out in 2024 so you just need to be aware of how you hit that bump. The track is very fast paced and can be intimidating to this day, even as it ages, because the speeds are so high and these cars are right on the razor edge. Now, you have some of that character with those bumps, and our cars are so low that when you bottom out, they can take off on you. I wasn’t the only car to back it into the fence there while trying to get clear in the past few years. You have to hit it just right in Turn 4. We saw a few other guys do that recently, as well. Traditionally, Cup guys don’t make a ton of mistakes, but we have seen a lot of hiccups at Texas. I think it really proves how challenging this track is. It’s still one of those places that can take your breath away.”   Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports ChevroletComing off you first win, how do you refocus on the task at hand this weekend?“I feel good about it. Obviously, we were on the pole last year and had speed, and I won my first ever truck race there. We have a lot of momentum and excitement behind us right now, while we go into a track that it is realistic to be up front and contend all day. We have been looking forward to and circling Texas for a couple weeks, so what happened last weekend is really an added bonus.” You won your first truck race, earned your first Cup Series top 10 and won your first Cup Series pole at Texas. Why has it been such a good track for you throughout your career?“I don’t really know, it just works out. The two ends are different, which makes you keep thinking about the line you are going to run and how you will make it through the corner. It is a really fast place with a high grip levels, and on the Cup Series side, we really excel at tracks with similar characteristics. It has just been a good place for me and I look forward to going every year.”   Connor Zilisch, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletThis is your first race at Texas Motor Speedway. What has the preparation been like?“I’m excited for this weekend. I’ve never raced at Texas before so I’m glad I’m getting some seat time with JR Motorsports before Sunday’s race in our Choice Privileges Chevrolet. It’s definitely a unique track. Both ends are very different and it’s one of the few tracks on the schedule that I haven’t been to. It’s certainly going to be a challenging weekend figuring it out on the fly, but I feel like I’ve had to do that quite a bit in the past 18 months. Texas is pretty much single groove. It widens out a little bit but for the most part you’re not getting up to the top of the racetrack at all. There are certainly a lot of nuances between the two corners. I look forward to the challenge of figuring it out. We’re making some changes with the cars and trying to do things differently this time around and hopefully we can see some results.”    How long will it be before you see some of those changes make it to the racetrack?“This weekend. We’ve been working really hard to make things different. If we keep showing up the racetrack the same, it’s not going to change and we know that. It’s certainly something that we must focus and work hard on.”  At the mile-and-a-half tracks, what is the major difference between the Cup car and the O’Reilly Series car? Is it difficult to go back and forth between the two cars?“I would say the amount of yaw that you carry through the corner in the O’Reilly car versus the Cup car. You can hang it out a little bit more, drive it over the limit and be able to make speed doing that whereas in the Cup car you’re toting that line the entire time. There certainly are a lot of differences, but for me, track time is track time. I don’t really struggle to go back and forth because they are so different. It’s almost tougher when you’re racing two race cars and they are very similar. That’s when it becomes tough and it’s hard to go back and forth between the two.”   Shane van Gisbergen, No. 97 Trackhouse Racing ChevroletWhat are you looking forward to at Texas Motor Speedway?“Texas is a tough track, but I’m looking forward to getting better at it as the weekend goes on. It’s been tough for me in the past in the O’Reilly car and Cup car, so our focus has just been trying to see where we can improve from last year and what will make us the most competitive.” Do you approach this mile and a half track different than any other intermediate track?“No, but it’s difficult because one end of the track is so different from the other end. You have to compromise a little bit on set up. But trying to get the most out of your car every lap is important, so practice will be all about learning and getting the best feel for the car before the race.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series StatisticsManufacturer Championships:Total (1949-2025): 44First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15)Most recent: 2025 Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 Driver Championships:Total (1949-2025): 34First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most recent: Kyle Larson (2025)Driver and Manufacturer Championship Sweeps: 29 Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021, 2025 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007)                2026 STATISTICS:                                                                                                    Wins: 2Poles: 1Laps Led: 789Top-Fives: 18Top-10s: 34Stage Wins: 6 CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 883 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 767Laps led to date: 257,523Top-fives to date: 4,454Top-10s to date: 9,185                                                                                                          Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date:                    General Motors: 1,217           Chevrolet: 883           Pontiac: 154           Oldsmobile: 115           Buick: 65            Ford: 848                                                                                          Ford: 748           Mercury: 96           Lincoln: 4            Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467           Dodge: 217           Plymouth: 191           Chrysler: 59            Toyota: 210

Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Set for Doubleheader at Circle City and Florence

BATAVIA, Ohio (April 29, 2026) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing launches the month of May with a highly anticipated two-race swing, featuring events at Circle City Raceway in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Friday, May 1, followed by Florence Speedway in Union, Kentucky, on Saturday, May 2. On Friday, May 1, Circle City Raceway will host the series for a marquee event paying $15,000-to-win. Located at the Marion County Fairgrounds, the Indianapolis-area oval provides a challenging, multi-groove surface that is expected to produce thrilling side-by-side racing action. The evening’s program will also feature Crown Vic racing, adding a unique and entertaining support division to the card. The pit gates will open at 3:00 PM, followed by the general admission gates at 4:00 PM, and Hot Laps will begin at 7:00 PM. Circle City Raceway is conveniently located at 7300 East Troy Avenue on the Marion County Fairgrounds just off I-465 in Indianapolis. To purchase tickets in advance or find additional information, please visit CircleCityRaceway.com. The following night, the tour heads south to Florence Speedway for the 40th Annual Ralph Latham Memorial boasting a $25,000 top prize, continuing a long-standing tradition at one of the region’s most storied dirt tracks. Florence Speedway, situated just south of Cincinnati, has been a staple on the Lucas Oil schedule and routinely draws strong fields and enthusiastic crowds. In addition to the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series main event, fans will also see Modifieds and Pro Late Models in action as part of a full night of racing. The pit gate opens at 2:00 PM on Saturday, and the main and back gates open at 5:00 PM. Hot laps begin at 6:00 PM. Florence Speedway is in Northern Kentucky off Interstate 71/75, approximately 25 miles south of Cincinnati, Ohio. Take KY exit 180 off I-71/75; west on US 42, nine miles to the track on the left. To purchase advanced tickets or find more information, visit FlorenceSpeedway.com. Fans can expect full racing programs at both venues, including Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and feature events showcasing the best dirt late model drivers in the country. Entering the weekend, defending series champion Devin Moran leads the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series national standings, holding a narrow 25-point advantage over Hudson O’Neal. Moran, who recently captured another victory at Georgetown Speedway—his fifth win of the season—has continued his strong early-season form as he looks to defend his title. O’Neal sits second and remains within striking distance, while Brandon Overton (third), Brandon Sheppard (fourth), and Max Blair (fifth) round out the top five in what has been a tightly contested championship race through the opening stretch of 2026. Ricky Thornton Jr., Clay Harris, Garrett Alberson, Kyle Bronson, and Carson Ferguson complete the current top ten. The Sunoco Race Fuels Road to Wheatland continues with the top fifteen drivers in the Series point standings after the Show-Me 100 feature on May 23rd will receive cash bonuses based on where they are in the point standings with the point leader receiving a $2,500 bonus. For the latest news, results, and championship standings from the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, please visit LucasDirt.com. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Purses:Circle City Raceway: 1. $15,000, 2. $7,000, 3. $5,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,000, 6. $2,500, 7. $2,400, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,800, 13. $1,600, 14. $1,500, 15. $1,400, 16. $1,300, 17. $1,200, 18. $1,100, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000 = $63,400 Florence Speedway: 1. $25,000, 2. $10,000, 3. $6,000, 4. $4,000, 5. $3,500, 6. $2,700, 7. $2,500, 8. $2,300, 9. $2,200, 10. $2,100, 11. $2,000, 12. $1,900, 13. $1,800, 14. $1,700, 15. $1,600, 16. $1,500, 17. $1,500, 18. $1,500, 19. $1,500, 20. $1,500, 21. $1,500, 22. $1,500, 23. $1,500, 24. $1,500 = $82,800 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier (90) NLMT2, (90) NLMT3Right Rear – Hoosier (92) NRM NLMT3, (92) NRM NLMT4

INDEPENDENCE, IA (April 28, 2026) – Bobby Pierce’s meteoric rise through the record books reached another major milestone on Tuesday night.

The two-time champion of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision won for the sixth time in 2026 and the second time at Independence Motor Speedway. The win was also the 48th of his career with the Series, tying him with 2015 champion Shane Clanton for fourth on the all-time wins list.

The midweek clash was the Nick Hoffman show for most of the night, as “The Thrill From Mooresville” topped Hot Laps, Qualifying and his Heat Race before drawing the Bilstein Pole Award and leading the opening circuits. But a caution for a slowing Tyler Bruening gave Pierce the chance to pounce, and he took full advantage by diving to the bottom of Turn 1 on the restart and sliding up in front of Hoffman.

Once he was able to control the pace, Pierce remained strong around the cushion as the race wore on. Lap traffic looked to be Hoffman’s best chance of taking the lead back, but each time Pierce got close to the tail of the field, a caution put him back in clean air. At the end of 40 laps, Pierce was out front by a half-straightaway to score the victory and retake the points lead by four markers over Hoffman.

“I noticed [Hoffman] slipped just a little bit in Turn 1 on top,” Pierce recalled from his race-winning restart. “I had a good run coming off of [Turn] 4 on the restart. There was a lot of moisture down on the bottom of [Turn] 1 still, was able to get some grip down there and slingshot ahead of him. I was expecting to see him on my inside going into Turn 3, but luckily I pulled away down the backstretch. From then on, it was just hit my marks laps after lap on those restarts. Tried to get through lap traffic as best I could, but luckily I didn’t have to mess with that too much because the cautions kept coming out.”

Behind Pierce, the race was on for second when Tyler Erb ran down Hoffman. The duo was side-by-side at the white flag with Erb on the bottom and Hoffman up top, and Erb found enough grip down low to clear Hoffman exiting Turn 2 and hold him off for the final set of corners. His runner-up result was his best finish since finishing second in January at Volusia Speedway Park and his first podium since that night.

Fourth went to Drake Troutman, while Trey Mills finished in a career-best fifth for the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision will travel north for three nights at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in the Dairyland Showdown, Thursday-Saturday, April 30-May 2. Get your tickets in advance by clicking here.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

RACE NOTES:

Nick Hoffman set the Dirt King Simulators Fastest Hot Lap.

Nick Hoffman won the Simpson Quick Time Award.

Nick Hoffman won Heat 1.

Jonathan Davenport won STAKT Products Heat 2.

Dallon Murty won Keyser Manufacturing Heat 3.

Bobby Pierce won Jarrett Rifles Heat 4.

Ethan Dotson and Dustin Sorensen won the Last Chance Showdowns.

Nick Hoffman won the Bilstein Pole Award.

Eli Johnson won the FOX Factory Hard Charger Award.

Trey Mills won the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

Tyler Erb was the WELD Racing Second-Place Finisher.

Nick Hoffman was the WIX Filters Third-Place Finisher.

Drake Troutman was the ARP Fourth-Place Finisher.

Trey Mills was the MSD Fifth-Place Finisher.

Garrett Alberson was the Swift Springs Sixth-Place Finisher.

Jonathan Davenport was the Penske Racing Shocks Seventh-Place Finisher.

Ethan Dotson was VP Racing Fuels Eighth-Place Finisher.

Dustin Sorensen was the Lifeline Ninth-Place Finisher.

Cade Dillard was the COMP Cams 10th-Place Finisher.

Justin Duty was the Quarter Master 11th-Place Finisher.

Brent Larson was the Cometic Gaskets 12th-Place Finisher.

Dennis Erb Jr. was the Quarter Master 13th-Place Finisher.

Blair Nothdurft was the ARP 14th-Place Finisher.

Tim McCreadie was the Arizona Sport Shirts 18th-Place Finisher.

Pierce Ties Clanton With 48th World of Outlaws Win at Independence

INDEPENDENCE, IA (April 28, 2026) – Bobby Pierce’s meteoric rise through the record books reached another major milestone on Tuesday night.

The two-time champion of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision won for the sixth time in 2026 and the second time at Independence Motor Speedway. The win was also the 48th of his career with the Series, tying him with 2015 champion Shane Clanton for fourth on the all-time wins list.

The midweek clash was the Nick Hoffman show for most of the night, as “The Thrill From Mooresville” topped Hot Laps, Qualifying and his Heat Race before drawing the Bilstein Pole Award and leading the opening circuits. But a caution for a slowing Tyler Bruening gave Pierce the chance to pounce, and he took full advantage by diving to the bottom of Turn 1 on the restart and sliding up in front of Hoffman.

Once he was able to control the pace, Pierce remained strong around the cushion as the race wore on. Lap traffic looked to be Hoffman’s best chance of taking the lead back, but each time Pierce got close to the tail of the field, a caution put him back in clean air. At the end of 40 laps, Pierce was out front by a half-straightaway to score the victory and retake the points lead by four markers over Hoffman.

“I noticed [Hoffman] slipped just a little bit in Turn 1 on top,” Pierce recalled from his race-winning restart. “I had a good run coming off of [Turn] 4 on the restart. There was a lot of moisture down on the bottom of [Turn] 1 still, was able to get some grip down there and slingshot ahead of him. I was expecting to see him on my inside going into Turn 3, but luckily I pulled away down the backstretch. From then on, it was just hit my marks laps after lap on those restarts. Tried to get through lap traffic as best I could, but luckily I didn’t have to mess with that too much because the cautions kept coming out.”

Behind Pierce, the race was on for second when Tyler Erb ran down Hoffman. The duo was side-by-side at the white flag with Erb on the bottom and Hoffman up top, and Erb found enough grip down low to clear Hoffman exiting Turn 2 and hold him off for the final set of corners. His runner-up result was his best finish since finishing second in January at Volusia Speedway Park and his first podium since that night.

Fourth went to Drake Troutman, while Trey Mills finished in a career-best fifth for the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision will travel north for three nights at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in the Dairyland Showdown, Thursday-Saturday, April 30-May 2. Get your tickets in advance by clicking here.

Want to watch the World of Outlaws? Stream every race live on DIRTVision.

RACE NOTES:

Nick Hoffman set the Dirt King Simulators Fastest Hot Lap.

Nick Hoffman won the Simpson Quick Time Award.

Nick Hoffman won Heat 1.

Jonathan Davenport won STAKT Products Heat 2.

Dallon Murty won Keyser Manufacturing Heat 3.

Bobby Pierce won Jarrett Rifles Heat 4.

Ethan Dotson and Dustin Sorensen won the Last Chance Showdowns.

Nick Hoffman won the Bilstein Pole Award.

Eli Johnson won the FOX Factory Hard Charger Award.

Trey Mills won the MD3 Rookie of the Race Award.

Tyler Erb was the WELD Racing Second-Place Finisher.

Nick Hoffman was the WIX Filters Third-Place Finisher.

Drake Troutman was the ARP Fourth-Place Finisher.

Trey Mills was the MSD Fifth-Place Finisher.

Garrett Alberson was the Swift Springs Sixth-Place Finisher.

Jonathan Davenport was the Penske Racing Shocks Seventh-Place Finisher.

Ethan Dotson was VP Racing Fuels Eighth-Place Finisher.

Dustin Sorensen was the Lifeline Ninth-Place Finisher.

Cade Dillard was the COMP Cams 10th-Place Finisher.

Justin Duty was the Quarter Master 11th-Place Finisher.

Brent Larson was the Cometic Gaskets 12th-Place Finisher.

Dennis Erb Jr. was the Quarter Master 13th-Place Finisher.

Blair Nothdurft was the ARP 14th-Place Finisher.

Tim McCreadie was the Arizona Sport Shirts 18th-Place Finisher.

Feature (40 Laps): 1. 32-Bobby Pierce[4]; 2. 1-Tyler Erb[8]; 3. 9-Nick Hoffman[1]; 4. 22*-Drake Troutman[9]; 5. 14-Trey Mills[7]; 6. 58-Garrett Alberson[6]; 7. 49-Jonathan Davenport[3]; 8. 74X-Ethan Dotson[17]; 9. 19-Dustin Sorensen[18]; 10. 97-Cade Dillard[5]; 11. 15D-Justin Duty[11]; 12. B1-Brent Larson[19]; 13. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[14]; 14. 76-Blair Nothdurft[10]; 15. 55E-Eli Johnson[25]; 16. 13-Dallon Murty[2]; 17. 43-Derrick Stewart[15]; 18. 9M-Tim McCreadie[16]; 19. 25-Chad Simpson[21]; 20. 20TC-Tristan Chamberlain[23]; 21. 19R-Ryan Gustin[13]; 22. 58V-Daulton Wilson[20]; 23. 1Z-Logan Zarin[24]; 24. 32S-Chris Simpson[12]; 25. 16-Tyler Bruening[22]