Turn 2 Blog: Pick-and-choose schedules paying off

*Turn 2 Blog is a regular feature on InsideDirtRacing.com. Here, site operators Michael Moats and Richard Allen take turns offering their thoughts on the dirt racing topics of the day from east Tennessee and beyond.

The latest edition of the Turn 2 Blog is presented by the American Crate All-Star Series.

It certainly appears as if the pick-and-choose type schedules being used by many of Dirt Late Model racing’s top stars is paying off, doesn’t it?

Richard: There’s no doubt that Brandon Overton taught the Dirt Late Model world a lesson in 2021 and many teams learned that lesson well. Last year, Overton was not tied to a particular series which allowed him to show up only at the events where he wanted to race with fresh equipment and crew members. He could then go on to claim big money prizes. This year, we have seen a number of competitors adopt that same mindset.

But before going on with my answer, it has to be pointed out that there are definite advantages to running with a touring series. Provisional starting positions guarantee series regulars a spot in every feature. “Show Up” money is given to those who stick with a tour to help defer some of the extensive costs of travel. A year-end points fund will allow those who ran the full schedule to earn more than just individual race purse money. And, there are other contingency awards from various sponsors to sweeten the pot for touring regulars as well.

But back to the pick-and-choose schedules. The top-two drivers all season have been Jonathan Davenport and Chris Madden and that is certainly demonstrated by the fact that they have combined to win 10 of the 24 features this season that have offered a winner’s purse of $25,000 or more. No doubt, much of that success is due to the fact that they can choose to race when they are ready and can point their efforts toward the higher paying races without having to worry about travelling long distances for lesser paying affairs.

Those two finished first and second in the most recent crown jewel this past weekend at the USA Nationals in Wisconsin.

Another driver who has done very well this season by being more selective is Chris Ferguson. The North Carolina star has been less active this year and it has definitely paid off as it did this past weekend with a $20,000 victory in the USA 100 at Virginia Motor Speedway. It has been ‘Fergy Time’ also this season in the Show-Me 100 at Lucas Oil Speedway and in a XR Super Series feature at Bristol Motor Speedway with both of those races paying quite well.

Mike Marlar is another driver who has done remarkably well in 2022 while not running a particular series. Not only has he scored a couple of very nice wins but he also amassed a string of more than twenty consecutive top-5 finishes against the best competition the sport has to offer.

I very much enjoy the national tours as well as all of the various regional series that conduct Dirt Late Model racing, but for some, the best plan of action seems to be to just hit the races that make the most sense for them.

Michael: The plan is great if you’re the driver winning some of these races like Davenport and Madden have been. The flip side is when you’re not winning anything. You mentioned the season Overton had last year. His season, this year, has been the complete opposite. I’m sure Overton is still happy not to be running a set schedule.

With the increased purses for a lot of these races and added races that are also paying quiet well, there’s an opportunity for drivers to make some good money. And unless something unexpected happens next year, those opportunities will be there for 2023. That leads to the question of how many other drivers will decide to do the same. The more drivers that chose to do that could lead to less chances for a driver or two to really capitalize on the situation.

A $10,000-to-win isn’t what it used to be, is it?

Richard: Along the line of the topic we discussed in the first question, a $10,000-to-win payout is not necessarily what it used to be. Just a few short years ago, if there was an open weekend on one or both of the national tours, there might be several of the national stars to show up at a particular track. That isn’t quite the case now.

No doubt, partly because the are so many higher paying races to choose from. With those being held by the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Model Series, the Castrol FloRacing Night in America Series, and the XR Super Series, there simply isn’t time for the more well-known drivers and teams to hit a $10,000 race.

Also, as we said above, teams are able to spend more time in the shop fine tuning for the next $25,000 or $50,000 show as they focus their efforts there. Further, many teams are short on crew members and have to give their guys a break from the road once in a while so a $10,000 race might be skipped in favor of the bigger events coming one weekend later.

To me, it seems as if the $10,000-to-win race has largely replaced the $5,000-to-win regional features that used to be more prevalent.

Michael: As more of these $50,000-to-win races started popping up, it was bound to make the $10,000-to-win races seem less enticing for drivers and race teams. I think that’s one reason why both Lucas Oil and World of Outlaws have both seen drop-offs with how many drivers are staying on the tour.

I had a couple of drivers tell me a few weeks ago between the price of race fuel, tires and diesel for their rigs, it’s hard for a driver to make money at a $5,000 to win race. I think the $10,000 to win races will be the new $5,000 to win races for Super Late Models. Race tracks will have to keep this in mind as they do their schedules for next season. Many of these $5,000-to-win races aren’t even drawing 20 cars. It’s going to be a tough spot for them as they evaluate their respective situations.

Preview this weekend’s North-South 100

Richard: The format for this coming weekend’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series-sanctioned North-South 100 at the Florence Speedway will call for full racing programs to be run on Thursday and Friday nights with qualifying, heat races, B-mains and a $5,000-to-win feature. Drivers will accumulate points on those two nights that will set the heat race lineups for Saturday’s $75,000-to-win main event.

In other words, there will be three full nights of racing rather than simply having a night for qualifying and heat racing then another night for B-mains and the feature. I have grown to like this format very much for that very reason. Two preliminary nights of actual racing beats the other format in my opinion.

Further, I’m sure the racers like the idea of actually getting paid for Thursday and Friday rather than having to spend a lot of time on the track for no money at all.

As far as the race itself, the obvious thing to do is say that Davenport and Madden will be the two favorites going in. And why wouldn’t they be? As stated earlier, they have dominated the big money races in 2022 and both have won this race in the past.

I also look for Mike Marlar to continue running well considering that he has turned a lot of laps on this track. Hudson O’Neal seems to always be in the mix at Florence and I keep expecting defending race winner Brandon Overton to break out at some point and run off a string of wins.

And no race at Florence would be complete without Josh Rice scrapping the outside wall while running among the lead pack.

But going into the weekend, I just have a feeling Marlar will be the guy to beat this time around.

Michael: I applaud Florence Speedway for changing the format for the North/South 100. In years past, the format was similar to the old Eldora format where there was a night of qualifying on Friday night, then everything else was held on Saturday night. The new format is similar to that except Thursday and Friday nights are preliminary races to help set those lineups for Saturday. I left like there was less racing on Saturdays in recent years. Kudos to giving the fans more racing for their money.

Davenport and Madden would have to be co-favorites heading into Florence. But there are some drivers that run well at Florence who should be in the mix. In addition to Overton (last year’s winner) and Josh Rice (Lucas Oil winner in June), two other drivers cannot be overlooked. Tim McCreadie has won two North-South 100s in the last several years. The other is Bobby Pierce. He’s won the race before. I keep waiting on him to bust out and get one of these crown jewel races.

Please consider also reading:

Jonathan Davenport continues stellar season with USA Nationals triumph

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