*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.
Richard: This is starting out as if it is going to be a big year for young Bobby Pierce, not that such would necessarily be a shock to anyone. The young Oakwood, Illinois driver has already won twice in the Wild West Shootout at the Arizona Speedway near Phoenix and looked initially like he could be in line for the big $250,000 bonus being offered by Keyser Manufacturing to any driver who can sweep all six of the feature races held in the desert over the week long event.
At only 20 years of age, the ‘Smooth Operator’ has already accomplished a lot. In 2016 he scored two of the biggest wins in Dirt Late Model racing when he captured the crown jewels of the World 100 at Eldora Speedway and the North/South 100 at the Florence Speedway. Pierce also earned his second consecutive Summer Nationals title in 2016 in that series which features more than 25 races run in just over a month.
But perhaps the most noteworthy thing he has done over the past two seasons has been his efforts in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races held on the dirt surface at Eldora. Although he has come up just short in both of those features, he has electrified a national audience with his driving skills and his relentless tenacity.
Pierce is just one of several regional stars in this sport who can make national headlines under the right circumstances. Perhaps a national touring series could be in his future at some point, but even if it isn’t, he is a proving to be a real talent.
That raises the question of whether Bobby Pierce can sustain his success for long enough to be counted among some of the greats racing today in terms of winning big races and championships over a long period of time. Will we look back 10-15 years from now and say that he has proven to be as good as Scott Bloomquist, Jimmy Owens and Billy Moyer?
I, for one, am excited to watch the development of this racer and I believe that he is indeed well on his way to achieving much of the same greatness as those other drivers mentioned above. How about you?
Michael: Pierce is already building a strong fan base. I think he won a few more when he got by Bloomquist at the North/South 100. But he’s already won a number of big races in his young career. If he can get another win in the World 100 or win The Dream, I can’t imagine the number of fans he would draw.
There are some of those who may not give him his due unless he runs a national series or even wins a championship in one of those. That line of thinking is a bit short-sided. He runs a number of big races and loves competing in the SummerNationals. I don’t know if he has much interest in getting away from that type of schedule.
You mentioned his NASCAR experience. He has also run truck races at Martinsville and a few other asphalt tracks. While he’s not had any top 10 showings in any of those races, I do believe there are a number of people in NASCAR that are watching him. Should he do more of that or go completely in that direction, that will certainly change opinions of him.
Richard: People often ask where the next generation of superstars are going to come from in the dirt racing ranks. Well, this is certainly one of them.
You’re right about the possibility of NASCAR taking an interest in him. But as we all know, you don’t go very far in that form of racing unless you have the ability to bring sponsorship with you. Perhaps he could bring a company such as Champion Spark Plugs, which has had a relationship with his dirt team, on board as a primary backer of a NASCAR team. But without something like that, he may be better off sticking with dirt.
That could be especially true for not only himself, but his family as well. His father is the architect of Bob Pierce Race Cars, which the younger Pierce drives. That no doubt serves as a great selling point of those machines. Should Bobby Pierce leave for the asphalt ranks, it could hurt the family business. And the Pierces seem like a very tight group.
Most intriguing is the idea of him stepping onto the national touring stage. As you point out, some followers of the sport consider those tours to be the measuring stick of greatness, and without a series title some might not give Pierce proper credit. Certainly, the Pierce team seems to have found its niche in running a Midwestern-based schedule. But the lure of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series or the World of Outlaws Late Models tours can be great.
I have to wonder if Pierce could claim the $100,000 Wild West Shootout bonus for scoring five victories if that would provide the resources needed to venture further away from home.
Michael: I will be interested to see what his schedule begins to look like the more big races he wins. He attempted to run Lucas Oil a few years ago and they decided to pull the plug on that venture. I would like to see him run one of those series, but the ability to win more races is greater running here and there as opposed to going against Bloomquist, the Bowyer cars, and other high-financed teams on a weekly basis.
To your other point, I don’t know if his schedule would change much if he can capture that bonus. As they say, time will tell.
Richard: Speaking of regional drivers who decide to step out and run on a national tour, Chris Madden recently announced that he will compete on the World of Outlaws Late Models tour in 2017. I’m really anxious to see how this turns out. As we have had the opportunity to witness for several years in this area, ‘Smokey’ is a very talented driver and has a capable crew on his side. However, as you have said earlier, running one of these series is a daunting task.
Madden has shown the ability to win both WoO and Lucas races when he has been able to pick and choose his shots on tracks he is familiar with. The question is whether or not he can win races when he moves out of the southeastern U.S.
Personally, I believe he has the talent and determination to win nationally. But will Madden have the depth in his team and the financial backing to pull off this move?
Michael: I guess that is the big question. The talent and ability is there, for sure.
I think this is one of the more interesting moves of the off-season, probably just behind the Josh Richards-Brandon Sheppard “swap”. Madden has the ability to run well at almost anywhere he goes. The questions for any first-time team following one of the national series are can you continue to run well after being on the road for months and months and will you stick it out when things don’t go your way for a while? The turning point for any new driver following WoO is when they begin the trip in the upper Midwest and points west. That’s a lot of traveling during those few weeks.
I believe Madden can be a force on that tour.
Richard: On a personal note, I will miss getting to see Madden race as often as I have become accustomed to over the past few years. But like you, I believe he can succeed nationally.
I hope that our readers understand that we are not saying that a driver has to take on one of the national tours to be considered a success. But those circuits are intriguing and I can definitely see why someone would want to follow one of them to prove that they can persevere over, as you point out, the difficult stretches that are bound to occur.
Another interesting driver/car owner move made over the off season has been that of Jonathan Davenport “returning home” to the Barry Wright Race Cars house car. The Blairsville, GA driver had a very good run with Wright just a few years ago before experiencing perhaps the greatest single Late Model season in history back in 2015 when he and the K&L Rumley operation won virtually everything there was to win.
Davenport is sort of doing the reverse move of going from a national competitor back to the life of a regional star. It will be interesting to see if he and Wright can garner a large number of checkered flags this season in the various regional and selected national shows they choose to run.
Michael: I’m sure there are some regional racers in this area that will not miss Madden as he has won lots of races in our region.
From the looks of his schedule, Davenport will basically run a similar schedule to what Madden has run minus running the Southern Nationals. I believe he will win a bunch of races in the regional events as well as make a splash in some of the national touring events he enters.
Richard: Aside from those we have already mentioned, there are a number of other regional racers around this area who have considerable talent. Donald McIntosh, Chris Ferguson, Casey Roberts and Dale McDowell are just a few of the drivers who are capable of winning any race they enter.
It will also be interesting to see how the new partnership of co-car owner Randy Weaver and driver Brandon Overton works out this season.
