Bobby Pierce after his win in the North/South 100
*Interview provided by Knoxville Raceway announcer Kris Krug.
For several years now, Bobby Pierce has been considered one of the top regional drivers in Dirt Late Model racing. The Oakwood, Illinois pilot has two UMP Summer Nationals titles and scores of wins on tracks all over the Midwestern United States to prove that. But the 2016 season has gone a long toward thrusting this young driver into the national spotlight in a major way.
Pierce has added two crown jewel triumphs, national touring series wins and his second Hell Tour championship to his already impressive list of accomplishments this year with major events such as the Dirt Track World Championship and the World of Outlaws World Finals remaining on his schedule.
So what does this young driver think of his current campaign to date?
“It’s been great,” Pierce said in an interview provided to InsideDirtRacing.com by Knoxville Raceway announcer Kris Krug. “I’ve always wanted to get that first crown jewel win and this season we finally did it. I’d say that was my main goal for the year. Once we did that I’d say the rest of the year was smooth sailing after that. We just hope we can carry that momentum on through the rest of the season.”
Not only did the driver known as the ‘Smooth Operator’ score his first crown jewel win when he passed Scott Bloomquist late in the going at Kentucky’s Florence Speedway to capture the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series sanctioned North/South 100, but he also grabbed the checkered flag in what many consider the most prestigious event in all of Dirt Late Model racing- the World 100 at the famed Eldora Speedway. All of this coming after Pierce earned his second victory in three years in the Lucas Oil sanctioned race at Macon(Ill) Speedway.
But of all those accomplishments, Pierce has perhaps gained the most attention nationally from his efforts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races held at Eldora over the past couple of seasons. In those two near victories, the 20-year-old driver has wowed television audiences with his ability to control his machine and his determination to win.
For a regular in Dirt Late Model racing, is there anything that can be learned from driving a NASCAR truck that can apply to what Pierce does routinely?
“It kind of does help, honestly,” Pierce explained of truck racing on Tony Stewart’s dirt oval. “The way the truck drives is not meant for dirt so when you put something on dirt that’s not meant for it, it kind of makes you a better driver because you’re used to going there and you’ve got all this power with the Late Model and it’s really hooked up. You’re hooked up(in a Late Model) a lot more than you are with those trucks. It gives you another feel for how you can possibly drive the car when you don’t have any traction out there. So yeah, I think it made me better.”
If nothing else, the amount of seat time in the truck may have benefited the young driver when it came time to compete for Dirt Late Model racing’s biggest prizes.
“Anytime you can go to a racetrack and race more times than the other guys can it gives you an advantage,” the pilot of the No. 32 Bob Pierce Race Car said. “You know, we’ve gone there for the Dream, the World and the truck race for the past two years. We go there for the Fall Nationals, which I’ve won the past three times in a row. All that helps out a lot and even just running the trucks in general and the other asphalt stuff makes you a more well rounded driver when you drive different things.”
Pierce has driven on asphalt several times in various series over the past couple of seasons.
“Stepping up into asphalt is always something that, as a dirt guy, it’s a lot different for us, just the whole feel of the car,” he declared. “It’s a lot different. I think for us, it’s easier to go into asphalt from dirt than if you’re if you’re an asphalt driver and you try racing on dirt. I think there’s a lot more different variables in dirt racing that asphalt racing doesn’t have. But don’t get me wrong, asphalt racing has it’s own variables too. It takes a lot of years to master it and I’m just starting to get into all the little tiny tricks that can make you a tick better. I think racing Sprint Cars, Late Models or whatever you race on dirt helps you in certain situations on asphalt.”
And finally, will this most successful of regional racers ever rake on a national touring series full time?
“Maybe, I don’t know. I’d like to run Lucas or World of Outlaws someday. It takes a lot of money to do it, just the travel up and down the road. Hopefully someday I’ll get to do that.”
