Reporters (and historians) are suckers for evaluating generations, eras and more. And for DirtonDirt, the opportunity to look at Dirt Late Model racing’s last quarter century was too tempting to pass up.

So with the 2025 season recently concluded, this week we’re taking a look at the sport’s last 25 seasons, picking the best drivers (overall and state-by-state), the key moments, the era’s trends and more. We had a fun — if sometimes mildly contentious — time putting together a MORE

VADO, N.M. — Recapping the 19th annual Rio Grande Waste Services Wild West Shootout presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts with superlatives from five Super Late Model programs contested at Vado Speedway Park (complete Wild West Shootout coverage):

Best driver: Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., who became the winningest driver in miniseries history while tallying four victories for the second straight year at Vado, increasing his career victory total at the track to 10.

Best feature: The Jan. 5 MORE

Editor's note: DirtonDirt.com managing editor Todd Turner (pictured left) of Louisville, Ky., on Aug. 10 was inducted into the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame. This is his acceptance speech:

When I was a kid in the early 1970s watching cars go around in circles while devouring every auto racing story in the Courier-Journal and Louisville Times, I never could have imagined a career as a short-track motorsports journalist. To say it was a dream wouldn’t be accurate — it wasn’t in the MORE