After having to cancel two of Dirt Late Model racing’s crown jewel events last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, Tony Stewart and his staff at the Eldora Speedway have done an amazing thing. The historic track will host a pair of Dirt Late Model Dream events this coming week then a duo of World 100 features in September. Huge winner’s purses and great prestige will be on the line as the top racers in the sport descend upon the Rossburg, OH facility.
Not only will the primary features pay their winners handsomely but each race will be accompanied by preliminaries that will dole out what for many tracks and series would be considered top pay.
As stated earlier, the week for the Dirt Late Model Dream twin events has now come. June 9th(Wednesday) will see two $10,000-to-win races be contested leading into Thursday’s Dream No. 1 that will offer $127,000 to its victor. Friday and Saturday will play out similarly with Saturday’s Dream No. 2 paying $126,000 to the first driver to cross the finish line.
September’s World 100 week will look very much the same with a pair of $10,000 preliminaries leading into twin main events paying more than $50,000 each.
For the sake of conversation, with Dirt Late Model drivers and teams entering one of their most lucrative and prestigious weeks at this form of the sport’s top venue, one might wonder which would be the most prized triumph. The Dirt Late Model Dream pays more than double the winner’s purse than does the World 100. At the same time, the Globe trophy handed to the World 100 victor is one of the most coveted awards in all of dirt racing.
In such an expensive sport, large payouts are important. Winning the Dirt Late Model Dream is essentially the same as acquiring a major new sponsor. It can make or break an entire season financially. However, this race only dates back to 1994 so there isn’t quite as much tradition involved as with the track’s other top event. But it’s obvious benefit is the money, and in a sport where there is never enough money, that matters.
On the other hand, young and aspiring dirt racers grow up “dreaming” of winning the World 100. This race predates its Eldora counterpart by more than two decades making it the more traditional and historic of the two. While tradition may not go a long way toward paying the bills, those who possess a Globe trophy often make it the centerpiece of their race winning displays.
No one is going to complain about winning either of these races. And the great thing about 2021 is that there will be four opportunities to earn a crown jewel from the Eldora Speedway.
But for the sake of discussion, which would you rather win if you were a Dirt Late Model competitor? Is it all about the money or does tradition and prestige mean more?
Beginning on Monday morning, I will post that very poll question on my @RichardAllenIDR twitter account so look for that post to make your opinion known.
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