DirtonDirt Dispatches

Dispatches: Pierce, Erb end up nose-to-nose

May 29, 2025, 1:26 pm

From series, staff, track and other reports

Bobby Pierce and Tyler Erb in victory lane. (Josh James)

Among the latest notes and quotes from around Dirt Late Model racing the last weekend in May, including MARS Champion Series coverage from La Salle (Ill.) Speedway among other weekend special events (look for coverage of Northern Allstars action in Brownstown, Ind., elsewhere on the site). Also find a listing of live-streaming video from specials around the country:

Twisted victors

After Friday night’s Twister Twin 25 features were completed at La Salle (Ill.) Speedway, the $5,000 winners — Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., and Tyler Erb of New Waverly, Texas — shared the victory stage with their cars pointed directly at each other.

Pierce’s No. 32 was to the left. Erb’s No. 1 was on the right. They both climbed out of their cockpits and simultaneously stood on the roofs of their machines in celebration of their triumphs.

The moment was not lost on Erb. He couldn’t help recalling another time nearly five years ago when they had their cars positioned similarly but in that case on the racetrack and under much more tense circumstances.

“I’ve never been, nose-to-nose in victory lane,” Erb said with a grin. “I think the last time me and him were like this we were trying to kill each other.”

Erb thought back to the August 2020 USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis. On lap 85 of that crown jewel 100-lapper, Erb spun out of fifth place and blamed Pierce for causing it with contact from behind. Erb’s ensuing retaliation culminated with him driving backwards on the track under caution to face off nose-to-nose with Pierce in turn one.

There were only smiles flashing between the two 28-year-olds this time as their front bumpers sat inches apart following the opening night of the MARS Championship Series-sanctioned Illinois Valley Showdown.

“Hats off to Bobby,” Erb said, sounding nothing like the disgruntled driver who had no warmth for Pierce on that controversial Cedar Lake evening. “Obviously his car’s really fast, so we definitely gotta work on this thing to be better. But, you know, we’ll take it.”

Pierce kicked off the weekend’s preliminary program by winning the first 25-lap feature, which was aligned under the usual MARS qualifying format. He led from flag-to-flag off the pole position to easily outdistance Shannon Babb of Moweaqua, Ill., for his 15th overall victory of the 2025 season.

Erb, meanwhile, finished ninth in the first 25-lapper, which put him on the outside pole through the 10-car inversion for the nightcap that was run immediately after Pierce drove to his checkered flag. The front row starting spot helped propel Erb to the top prize in the second 25-lapper, though Ryan Unzicker of El Paso, Ill., drew close in the final circuits and finished just 0.189 of a second behind.

Finding the proper path around the quarter-mile oval to keep his Best Performance Motorsports Rocket Chassis in front for the entire distance was a chore for Erb.

“I felt like the top was getting better,” Erb said. “I think the first race was kind of won on the bottom, and I just kept looking at it and I was on the outside pole and I was like, ‘Well, I have no choice but to at least try it.’ I honestly felt better in (turns) three and four in the top than one and one … one and two is just a little treacherous.

“Then I know the caution (on lap 22), I could see Unzicker next to me in the bottom, but we were about to catch lapped traffic and they were in the bottom so I was like, ‘Well, I’ll run it a little harder here,’ and I went down on the bottom in one and two and I couldn't turn on a 50-acre field. I just had to kinda move around and do all kinds of crazy stuff and keep them scared from trying to get next to me I guess.

“But yeah, it worked out. It was cool,” he added. “The format really really helped me today, so just take them any way you can get it.”

Pierce managed to climb to a fourth-place finish from the 10th starting spot in the second 25-lapper, earning him the most points in the Twisted Twin 25s and a pole starting spot in Saturday’s first heat race. He said he “stuff was a little burned up” by the end of the second feature, but he was satisfied with his Longhorn mount’s performance.

“It was a really good night,” said Pierce, who will chase a $25,000 first-place prize in Saturday’s 75-lapper less than one month after collecting $20,000 for capturing the FloRacing Night in America event that served as La Salle’s grand reopening following nearly four years of inactivity. “We kinda know now what to do for tomorrow for the 75 laps. That’s a lot of laps.” — Staff and series reports

Stewart's switch

Garret Stewart was one of Florida’s most successful drivers in the modified ranks, but then shocked many when he sold his modified halfway through the season in 2022. In place of it, he purchased a Longhorn Chassis to compete in the 604 Crate Late Model division.

The reason? More laps for the regular at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla.

“We wanted to race more,” Stewart said. “Only Seth (Geary) and I, at the time, ran between the big three of East Bay (Raceway Park), Volusia, and Ocala (Speedway). We knew East Bay was closing, then Volusia scaled back, and Ocala was hardly open. So, we went from racing 18-20 times to almost once a month.

“We just decided to take the leap, and I don’t know that we’ve always thought that it was the right decision. But I’m pretty happy with what we’re doing,” Stewart said.

Three years later, the five-time Volusia modified champ is building a new reputation as a Late Model driver. And even though he has 17 years of racing experience, life in a Late Model has taught him new lessons.

“I’ve had to change a ton with my driving style,” Stewart said. “I had to get a lot more aggressive, especially in the first couple of years. My stuff was really good in the mod, so I could let things play out five to eight laps in and start maneuvering through the field. Whereas the Late Model, when they throw the green flag, you gotta go.

“So, it’s been a bit of a hurry up for me to get aggressive and learning how different the two drive. You have to really be able to rotate the (Late Model) for the corner, because you can’t just drive straight through it. You could sometimes take a Modified where it wasn’t exactly where it needs to be, but you could still be able to run through your lines straight through.”

Stewart posted two top-five finishes in the Crate Late Model division the second half of the 2022 season. He’s won Crate races each of the past two seasons at Volusia along with the 2023 title at All-Tech Raceway in Ellisville, Fla. He’d like to add the 2025 title at Volusia and he’s 15 points behind Trynt Lloyd heading into June 14’s Firecracker Classic.

“The titles were something we never really thought about,” Stewart said. “We always just raced as much as we could, and then it just ended up with all these titles that didn’t really plan on. We just race as much as we can, and it works out. At All-Tech currently, I missed the first race for a cruise, but you look at it now, and we’re second in points.

“Winning at Volusia would be huge for us, because it would show that we rose to the occasion, we’re running a lot better, I understand the car a lot more, and it’s definitely a goal of mine. I don’t want to be known as ‘The Modified Guy’ because I hear (announcer) Bob (Stoekel) say it, and I just wanna be known as Garret. But it’d really mean a lot for me and my family.” — Matt Skipper