Daily | Conversations

When you aren't from a traditional dirt racing hot bed it can be difficult to get noticed on the national scene. You've got to win a lot, and shine on those rare opportunities you do get to race in front of important people. My guest this time on the show has done just that. Chance Crum is a sprint car and midget racer from the state of Washington who's won a ton on the west coast, and in 2021 got the opportunity to run at the Chili Bowl for Clauson Marshall with the Tony Elliott Foundation. He's hoping his impressive C-Main result will translate into more opportunities for racing this year, but for now is making some big changes. As we'll talk about, an upcoming move to Indianapolis will get him much closer to the action. He joins the show to chat about his background, running the Chili Bowl, getting sprint car opportunities, his education with digital media, and a lot more.

We've got a lot to talk about from the dirt racing weekend including Brad Sweet staying hot with the World of Outlaws, Buddy Kofoid making POWRi Midget League history, and more.

We've got a busy Friday show talking about both the World of Outlaws Sprint Car and Late Model weekends, plus driver announcements from Tanner Thorson, Chris Windom, and Gavan Boschele. We also dive in and talk about what to watch this weekend with NASCAR on the dirt at Bristol Motor Speedway.

The World of Outlaws released the sprint car entry list for Bristol, and we talk about it today, plus weekend previews for the ASCS National Tour and POWRi National Midgets, Knoxville bumped their 410 sprint car purses, and more.

On this episode of the show, I'm joined by long time late model announcer and owner of MSR Mafia, Ben Shelton. We talk a ton of late model stuff, including all the parity we've seen this season, what's up with Brandon Sheppard, how common it is to see someone like Brandon Overton give up a points lead, the upcoming FloRacing Night in America Series and much more. Ben is a guy that's super locked into the late model community and I knew he'd be a good one to pepper with my late model questions. A quick note, I talked to Ben before this week's Flo Night in America season opener was postponed, so that's why you hear us talk like it's still happening. That series will now open March 31st at Tri City Speedway.

We haven't seen the Donny Schatz we've come to know in recent seasons, and today we explore what's changed with his Tony Stewart Racing team and where they stand today. We've also got details on the USMTS King of America and new dirt racing podcast episodes.

Today on the show we run through the World of Outlaws Late Model Series Bristol entry list, and then dive into why Brad Sweet's competition for the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series title may already be in trouble.

My guest this time on the show is about to start her rookie campaign with the IRA Sprint Car Series, and she's going to do it while still going to college and working anywhere from 20 to 40 hours per week. When you want something bad enough, you find a way, and Bailey Goldesberry is a perfect example of that struggle that many in dirt racing find themselves in. How do you earn a living, continue to grow as a human, but still go do that thing you love. In her case, it's driving 410 sprint cars. She joins me to talk about her career, rising through the ranks, learning from cousin Jordan, what her expectations are for her rookie season, working to find those all important sponsors, and a lot more.

We've got a busy show today, as we talk the Bristol dirt weekend, Lucas at Brownstown and Atomic, World of Outlaws Sprint Car wins for Sheldon Haudenschild and Brad Sweet, and much more.

A busy weekend of racing is on tap between the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars, Lucas Late Models, Bristol, and more. We talk about all of it today, including win predictions, who to watch, and more.

Today we've got details on day three of the Bristol Dirt Nationals, including wins for Kyle Strickler and Ricky Thornton Jr. We are also talking about the shut down of Arizona Speedway and the ripple effects, plus weekend previews for the POWRi National Midgets, ASCS National Tour, and NARC/King of the West Sprint Cars.

James McFadden makes his 2021 Outlaw debut this weekend, Stewart Friesen is going NASCAR Cup racing, Austin Dillon won in a late model at Bristol, we've got Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series schedule updates, and more.

We dive into Cory Eliason's sprint car season to date between the All Star Circuit of Champions and World of Outlaws, including what this might mean for his championship chances. We also talk about the opening race day at Bristol, and Mike Marlar going NASCAR racing on the Bristol dirt.

My guest this week is a 17 year old racer from Oregon who recently made his 410 sprint car debut at the Wild Wing Shootout in Arizona. It's wild to think that even at 17, Tanner Holmes already has 11 years experience behind the wheel, between Outlaw karts and sprint cars, and that he's been successful at all levels. He joins me this week to talk about becoming the winningest driver in the history of Red Bluff Outlaws in California, getting sprint car experience on the west coast, making his 410 debut against drivers like Donny Schatz and Tony Stewart, and growing his popular YouTube channel to more than 40,000 subscribers.

We go deep on the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series weekend, including a big win for Sheldon Haudenschild, trouble for contenders Carson Macedo and Aaron Reutzel, and look at how often you can stumble with the Outlaws. We are also talking other weekend winners, Bristol opening tonight, and more.

On this bonus episode of the show, I'm joined by Kraig Kinser's World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series crew chief Mikey Kuemper. Mikey has been on the road with the Outlaws for many years, working for Tony Stewart Racing and the Kinsers. These days he and Kraig have to battle night in and night out against some of the toughest competition in dirt racing, and they are doing it with limited resources. We talked about the upcoming Outlaw weekend, his career, working with Kraig, and a lot more.

On this Friday we have early reaction to the All Star Circuit of Champions naming FloRacing the series new title sponsor. We are also talking the World of Outlaws weekend in Mississippi and Louisiana, other racing happening this weekend and more.

With Bristol looming, two more NASCAR drivers will add to their dirt racing resumes in the coming weeks, with both Chase Elliott and Brad Keselowski announcing late model rides yesterday. We've also got details on a new full time World of Outlaws Late Model Series competitor and news from the Summer Nationals, Placerville Speedway, and FloRacing.

I've got a bunch of thoughts and questions today regarding the opening of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series and World of Outlaws Late Model Series seasons, including around Brandon Sheppard and Brandon Overton. There is also news on the stolen Hoosier Hundred trophy, new dirt racing podcast episodes, and more.

Today we look at the correlation between average finish and winning a World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Championship. We've also got details on last night's Bristol dirt test, plus news from the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, and more.

Not every path into and through dirt racing is the same and my guest this week certainly breaks the mold. After running winged and non-wing cars when he was younger, Tony Rost put a pause on his racing career to pursue his education. Now, with a Doctorate from the University of Nebraska and an MBA from the University of Nebraska-Omaha in hand, Rost is venturing back into sprint car racing and has plans to do things a little differently. He and two partners have started Catalyst Autosport, with plans to enter weekly 360 sprint car competition at Knoxville Raceway and some other events in 2021. Armed with his education and several years of research, Rost has some very specific ideas on how to market and promote his team and the sport of sprint car racing. This time on the show Rost joins to talk about his racing career, making the decision to step away and get his degrees, his ideas on motorsports sponsorship and marketing in these changing times and much more.

We've now had four different World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series winners in four races with Carson Macedo and Aaron Reutzel winning over the weekend. We talk about that today, plus late model wins for Chris Madden and Brandon Overton, and more.

The World of Outlaws Sprint Cars and Late Models are back racing this weekend, and we've got everything you need to know, including who to watch, win predictions, and more. We've also got crew chief news from KCP Racing, and a look at what other racing is happening this weekend.

Today we've got details on Shane Golobic getting a NASCAR Cup ride for the Bristol dirt race. We also discuss FloRacing's addition of the Short Track Super Series to their lineup of streaming events, we've got more context on the World of Outlaws' decision to make Bristol invite-only, and more.

The entry list for the Bristol Dirt Nationals in advance of the Bristol NASCAR weekend continues to grow, with names like Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Austin Dillon, and Corey Lajoie being added. We've also got details on another USMTS schedule change, an interesting story about a stolen Hoosier Hundred trophy, and more.

Logan Schuchart quickly became a title threat with the World of Outlaws in 2020, and today we look into just where he needs to improve this season to top guys like Brad Sweet and bag his first championship. We also talk about news from Chad Boat Industries and FloRacing.

Growing up in a late model family, with a hall of fame father, Devin Moran was probably destined to be a successful racer. At 26, he's won with both the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. He was the World of Outlaws rookie of the year in 2017, and took down the $30,000 to win Prairie Dirt Classic at Fairbury in 2018. As of this recording, Moran currently sits third in the Lucas standings after nine races, and he picked up an Outlaw win and the DIRTcar Nationals Big Gator Trophy after a successful week at Volusia. He joins the show this time to teach us all about racing a dirt super late model. From the basics of how to start the car, changing gears, and what's on the dash, to more advanced aspects like choosing racing lines, dealing with changing track conditions, and how to race against certain competitors. I learned quite a bit from Devin in this chat, and I hope it will help advance your knowledge of late model racing as well.

Today we recap the weekend of racing including a win for Brandon Overton, a championship for Chris Madden, and a win drought busted for Tim Wagaman. We also have more details on Jonathan Davenport's Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series situation, Tyler Swank is out at KCP Racing, and Alex Bowman dropped his team's 2021 schedule.

Kyle Busch is partnering with Jonathan Davenport to get some dirt seat time, plus is Davenport dropping off the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series? We discuss that, plus preview the Xtreme DIRTcar Series finale, talk about schedule changes for the All Star Circuit of Champions and Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour, and more.

The first cars hit the Bristol dirt in the last few days, and we've got details and first impressions. We also have a ton of event news, results from another Nick Hoffman win last night, and then we dive into the opening Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series stretch by the numbers.

Chris Windom gets to go NASCAR Cup racing at Bristol in a few weeks and we have the details today. We also introduce more new stats and analytics for dirt racing available at dirtrackr.com/analytics and talk about a few drivers who are able to get value finishes when they don't start well.

The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series announced their revised spring schedule today and we've got details. Plus we are talking Zeb Wise's new ride, news from Thunderbowl Raceway and Angell Park Speedway, and there are some fun new additions to the analytics section of DIRTRACKR.com.

When we watch or attend races, the voice calling the action is important to the experience, and over the years we develop relationships with those booming announcers. Hearing those voices is comforting, familiar and we come to expect a particular sound from our favorite series or race track. So, when things change, especially unexpectedly, it can be a jarring experience that conjurs negative feelings. For Tony LaPorta, my guest this time on the show, those negative feelings turned into a lot of adverse reactions on social media while he was trying to navigate his opening weekend as the new voice of USAC on FloRacing. LaPorta moves over to USAC from calling the action for series like the Road to Indy and IMSA, but his desire to announce for USAC has been years in the making. He joins me to chat about his journey to the mic, which includes delivering pizzas and sleeping on couches, dealing with online haters, speed dating with the USAC competitors, and a lot more.

We get you up to speed today on Xtreme DIRTcar Series wins for Ross Bailes and Chris Madden, talk about other weekend winners, and we have news from the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Cole Bodine, Jeremy Elliott, and more.

On this Friday we are getting you prepared for the weekend racing for the Xtreme DIRTcar Series, and we have news from Brian Carber, Chase Randall, and IMCA. We then share some thoughts on David Gravel being overlooked for the World of Outlaws championship this season.

If you listen to my daily show, you've heard me talk a bunch about the streaming platforms in the past, and this week there is a new player entering the space. Jeremy Elliott, who owns sprintcarunlimited.com is partnering with past conversations guest Mike Mallett and Dirt Track Digest to create SprintCarUnlimited.TV. Jeremy joins the show this time to talk about his new streaming venture, starting sprintcarunlimited.com, and plenty of sprint car topics including who we should be watching in Pennsylvania, what the All Star championship outlook looks like, why David Gravel seems to be getting left out and more.

The World of Outlaws cancelled their spring West Coast Swing yesterday, and we have details, including what's next. There is also a new dirt racing streaming provider coming from Jeremy Elliott, and then we take a look at just how wild USAC Midget racing is by the numbers.

It's been a rough start to 2021 for Brandon Sheppard and the Rocket house car, and we dive into the numbers today. We've also got event news from the World of Outlaws and Lincoln Speedway, MAVTV is partnering with POWRi, and more.

The reaction yesterday to the announcement by the World of Outlaws that their Bristol events will be invite-only was swift and negative. We share some thoughts today on the move, plus we have streaming news from FloRacing and Lincoln Speedway, and event news from the USAC CRA Sprint Cars.

Ashley Stremme grew up on the dirt tracks of Central Pennsylvania watching her dad race sprint cars, and has turned her passion for motorsports into a media career and a thriving dirt modified chassis company with husband David. Besides appearing regularly as a co-host on MRN's Winged Nation, Ashley has made TV appearances as a pit reporter for CBS Sports Network, with plans for doing more media in the future. She joins the show this time to chat about growing up in such a rich area for dirt racing, getting her first chances on Winged Nation, growing Lethal Chassis, her thoughts about the upcoming sprint car season and much more. Through the early part of the conversation, you might hear noises and equipment in the background, but that was because Ashley joined me from the grandstands at Volusia Speedway Park where they were doing track prep for DIRTcar Nationals. It should clear up near the six minute mark.

We are back on this Monday after an extended weekend to talk everything dirt racing that happened between Volusia, Bubba and more. Devin Moran and Brandon Overton were World of Outlaws winners, Max McLaughlin won with the Super DIRTcar Series and then got punched in the face, and Justin Grant and Kevin Thomas Jr. split the USAC weekend.

This is our final show of the week, and in it we are talking Kyle Strickler's wild Volusia win from last night with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series. We also have details on his status with the national tour. We've also got details on Stewart Friesen's second big block modified win, the USAC Sprint Cars opening tonight at Bubba Raceway Park, and more.

Today we look back at last night's late model and big block modified action at Volusia, including wins for Bobby Pierce and Stewart Friesen. We also have World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event news, and new podcast episodes and today's streaming schedule.

The Florida swing to start 2021 continued last night with late models and UMP modifieds at Volusia and USAC National Midgets at Bubba Raceway Park. We've got all the details on what went down, plus news from the Louie Vermeil Classic in California.

Being a crew chief on a race team is a difficult job. Not only is it on them to make setup calls and work with the driver, they are also responsible for building cars, managing team members, and getting the team from track to track. One guy who's been successful as a crew chief at an early age is Drew Warner. In his early 20's, Warner bursted on to the national scene in 2018 as the head wrench for Rico Abreu, with the duo teaming up to win the Ironman 55 at Pevely and the Gold Cup with the World of Outlaws. These days, Warner is the crew chief for California's DJ Netto and his number 88N Netto Ag team, and he joins the show this week to chat about being a young crew chief, working with different drivers, being responsible for cars and setups, and a lot more.

It was a busy weekend of racing, and we are back on this Monday to talk about all of it, including the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars at Volusia, USAC Midgets at Bubba Raceway Park, and UMP modifieds at DIRTcar Nationals. We've also got some news items and today's dirt racing streaming schedule.

On this Friday we wrap up the All Star portion of DIRTcar Nationals from last night where Carson Macedo grabbed the win. We then go deep on weekend and season previews for the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and USAC National Midgets.

Today we are talking Logan Schuchart's All Star win last night at Volusia, including what this could mean for the World of Outlaws season. We've also got details on a wild night for Kyle Strickler, more information from James McFadden, and 2022 schedule news.

Last night was the Florida stretch finale for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. We recap that, plus talk about the All Stars at East Bay, the opening night of DIRTcar Nationals, DIRTVision adds OTT apps, and more.

Ricky Thornton Jr. earned his first Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series win of the season last night at Bubba Raceway Park. We recap the action, plus the All Stars were rained out, the DIRTcar Nationals kick off tonight, Chase Elliott is making his first USAC midget start, James McFadden is a full time Outlaw, and more.