Josh Richards
Josh Richards likes going fast.
This Saturday night at Smoky Mountain Speedway in Maryville, Tenn. the three-time World of Outlaws Late Models champion will have the opportunity to do exactly that when the national touring series visits the Volunteer State. And the Shinnston, WV driver is looking forward to the challenge.
Richards has only driven at Smoky Mountain once over the course of his career back when the World of Outlaws visited the 4/10 mile clay oval in April of 2013. In that race, the driver of his father’s Rocket Chassis house car raced to a fourth place finish behind winner Shane Clanton.
“It was a really high speed place,” the 27-year-old recalled in an interview with InsideDirtRacing.com. “I remember for the size of it that it was a really quick place. I think we ran pretty well there. I believe we got up to third or fourth at the end. It was a fun track, you could move around early in the race then it tightened up toward the end. I’m definitely looking forward to going back.”
The driver who collected his 50th career WoO Late Models win back in February believes Smoky Mountain is a track well suited to his driving style.
“Oh yeah, without a doubt,” Richards proclaimed in an interview conducted last month. “The fast, aggressive tracks are the places I’m always most comfortable at. It’s like here at Tazewell, which can be tough to race on because you have to be totally focused, but it’s fun to drive on. It seems like the Tennessee tracks are set up that way. The surfaces don’t get as slick so they tend to stay fast throughout the night.”
After piling up feature wins and two series championships at a relatively young age, Richards tried his hand at NASCAR by making eight starts in the Camping World Truck Series in 2011 and 14 starts in the Nationwide(now Xfinity) Series in 2012. When those attempts failed to pan out, the dirt racer returned to his roots in 2013 to add his third series title.
There was every reason to believe that even more success would be forthcoming in 2014. But then an unexpected setback occurred that caused Richards to miss virtually the entire season. Doctors diagnosed a nerve condition that caused the driver to lose feeling in his hands. However, the 2011 USA Nationals winner is now back at full strength physically.
The Rocket Chassis house car driven by Josh Richards.
“I’m feeling good,” he declared. “I’m glad to be back here racing. It’s been really good to come back and and I’m glad to be here.”
Richards also believes the time away from the sport brought greater clarity to his racing life.
“It changed me a lot mentally and emotionally,” he explained. “Racing is all I’ve ever done for a paycheck. When I found out I couldn’t drive again it made me look at things differently and focus more on the business side and helping our customers, but it wasn’t anything like driving.
Richards says he is feeling fine
“I know I’m not going to race forever,” Richards added. “I don’t think I’m going to be a 50-year-old, full-time traveler. If I race then it’s probably gong to be for fun or whatever else. I’m able to travel now and do it while I’m young, but by that point hopefully we’ll still have our business and be able to focus on helping our customers.”
Early on in this current season, the No. 1 car has driven to Victory Lane three times and its driver sits third in the WoO Late Models standings behind Clanton and Darrell Lanigan. The series is set to embark on a doubleheader weekend that will have them racing at Kentucky’s Ponderosa Speedway on Friday night before heading to Smoky Mountain for a Saturday evening tilt.
