Poll Position presented by Keyser Manufacturing
Top 25: Mitchell No. 18 with Pierce still on top
By Kevin Kovac
DirtonDirt senior writer
Zack Mitchell (Tyler Carr photo)
Strengthening his hold on the top spot in DirtonDirt’s power rankings, Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., came within one first-place vote of unanimous No. 1 status after scoring a victory and runner-up finish in the World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Model Series doubleheader at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, Ohio.
The 28-year-old star from Oakwood, Ill., received nine of 10 first-place nods to remain atop the Keyser Manufacturing-sponsored Top 25 poll for the 14th consecutive week. His $12,000 triumph in Sharon’s opener was his 20th overall of the 2025, marking the fifth consecutive year that he’s reached the lofty plateau.
In addition, Pierce now sits alone in fifth place for the most weeks spent in the No. 1 spot in the history of DirtonDirt’s long-running poll. With 44 weeks atop the rankings, he trails Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill. (107 weeks), Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga. (69), Josh Richards of Shinnston, W.Va. (55) and the late Scott Bloomquist of Mooresburg, Tenn. (50).
Davenport earned the other first-place vote as he remained locked into the No. 2 position. His winless weekend on the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series included finishes of fourth at 34 Raceway in West Burlington, Iowa, and second and eighth at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo.
Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., stayed No. 3 in the poll after rebounding from a 20th-place finish at 34 Raceway by winning the $15,000 opener of Wheatland’s Diamond Nationals and finishing third in the finale. The 4-5 spots flipped with Hudson O’Neal of Martinsville, Ind., moving up to No. 4 following a weekend that saw him finish second at 34 Raceway and in Wheatland’s finale and Nick Hoffman of Mooresville, N.C., slipping to No. 5 after finishing fifth and 18th at Sharon and winning his first-ever DIRTcar Summer Nationals feature on Sunday at Wayne County Speedway in Orrville, Ohio.
The most dramatic ascension in the week’s rankings belonged to Zack Mitchell of Enoree, S.C., who went from unranked to No. 18 thanks to a spectacular stretch of action on the DIRTcar Nationals. He towed north for the final six races of the Hell Tour and promptly won three times — at Shadyhill Speedway in Medaryville, Ind., Crystal (Mich.) Motor Speedway and Oakshade Raceway in Wauseon, Ohio — en route to capturing the $10,000 weekly points title.
Also joining the poll at No. 25 was Gregg Satterlee of Indiana, Pa., who won back-to-back features at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway and Winchester (Va.) Speedway.
Dropping out of the Top 25 was Joseph Joiner of Milton, Fla., and Ethan Dotson of Bakersfield, Calif.
Voting is done by a 10-member committee made up of staffers and contributors to determine the Top 25 power rankings: Richard Allen, Bryan Ault, Jeff Broeg, Kelley Carlton, Ryan Delph, Josh James, Kevin Kovac, Kyle McFadden, Mike Ruefer and Kyle Symons. Results are compiled and tabulated by Todd Turner, who serves as a voting alternate along with fellow staffer Aaron Clay.
Rankings appear Tuesdays through mid-November provided at least half of the drivers in the current rankings are in action in the previous week.
1. Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, Ill.
Comment: Reaches 20-victory mark for the season with $12,000 WoO victory Friday at Sharon, then adds runner-up finish in track’s weekend finale. Ready to chase $75,000 Silver Dollar Nationals pot of gold at Huset’s. Series points: 1st (WoO). 1st (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 1st (nc)
2. Jonathan Davenport, Blairsville, Ga.
Comment: Goes winless over three-race Lucas Oil stretch, but records second-place finish in Wheatland’s Diamond Nationals opener and runs no worse than eighth. Tour takes him to Shelby County and Huset’s next. Series points: 1st (Lucas Oil); 2nd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 2nd (nc)
3. Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
Comment: Rebounds from rough Lucas Oil night at 34 Raceway with victory and third-place finish at Wheatland. Hoping to add first Silver Dollar Nationals checkered flag to resume. Series points: 2nd (Lucas Oil); 3rd (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 3rd (nc)
4. Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, Ind.
Comment: Sandwiches eighth-place finish in Wheatland’s opener with bridesmaid runs at 34 Raceway and Diamond Nationals finale. Big-money Silver Dollar Nationals prize on his mind for weekend. Series points: 3rd (Lucas Oil); 9th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 5th (+1)
5. Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, N.C.
Comment: After fifth- and 18th-place WoO outings at Sharon, closes weekend with first-ever DIRTcar Summer Nationals win in circuit’s 2025 finale at Ohio’s Wayne County. Prep for Fairbury’s Prairie Dirt Classic week underway. Series points: 2nd (WoO); 6th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 4th (-1)
6. Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, Ill.
Comment: Follows quiet Lucas Oil runs at 34 Raceway (ninth) and in Wheatland’s opener (10th) with $25,000 victory in Diamond Nationals finale, both his and Rocket1 team’s first win at Lucas Oil Speedway. Looking to take momentum to Huset’s, where he won Silver Dollar Nationals in 2023. Series points: 6th (Lucas Oil); 5th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 6th (nc)
7. Devin Moran, Dresden, Ohio
Comment: Lucas Oil winless streak rises to 17 after finishing no better than fifth in circuit’s Midwest tripleheader. Heading to Huset’s in search of second consecutive Silver Dollar Nationals triumph. Series points: 4th (Lucas Oil); 7th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 7th (nc)
8. Garrett Alberson, Las Cruces, N.M.
Comment: Finally snares first Lucas Oil win of ’25 at 34 Raceway and adds solid fourth- and fifth-place runs at Wheatland. Boasts plenty of confidence entering Silver Dollar Nationals. Series points: 5th (Lucas Oil); 10th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 9th (-1)
9. Tyler Erb, New Waverly, Texas
Comment: Closes Summer Nationals with quiet week, tallying just a single top-five finish (second at Crystal, Mich.) in six starts. Returning to Lucas Oil Series action at Shelby County and Huset’s. Series points: 2nd (Summer Nationals). Previous ranking: 9th (-1)
10. Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa
Comment: Runs fourth and eighth in WoO action at Sharon between Summer Nationals finishes of sixth (Butler) and third (Wayne County). Planning Tuesday run in Lucas Oil show at Iowa’s Shelby County. Series points: 3rd (WoO); 8th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 10th (nc)
11. Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.
Comment: Steady but unspectacular finishes of sixth and seventh at Sharon. Has chance to race close to home this Friday in Pete Loretto Memorial at New York’s Freedom Motorsports Park. Series points: 5th (WoO). Previous ranking: 11th (nc)
12. Brandon Overton, Evans, Ga.
Comment: Starts Lucas Oil swing with promising third-place finish at 34 Raceway, but slips to sixth and ninth in Wheatland rundowns. Moves on to Shelby County and Huset’s sitting 375 points out of tour’s fourth and final playoff spot. Series points: 7th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 12th (nc)
13. Josh Rice, Crittenden, Ky.
Comment: Debuting new Rocket Chassis at Florence, rallies to finish second after flat tire knocks him from lead late in 25-lapper. Tackling Iron-Man events at Moler and Atomic this weekend. Series points: 1st (Northern Allstars). Previous ranking: 13th (nc)
14. Jimmy Owens, Newport, Tenn.
Comment: Jumping into a Big Frog Motorsports Longhorn for the Schaeffer’s Southern Nationals, starts strong with two fourths and a fifth in first three events as he chase second miniseries title in three years. Series points: 1st (Hunt the Front); 2nd (Southern Nationals). Previous ranking: 16th (+2)
15. Brian Shirley, Chatham, Ill.
Comment: Trip to Sharon yields positive results with finishes of third and fifth. Idle weekend for WoO will lead him to pit area at Huset’s for Silver Dollar Nationals. Series points: 7th (WoO); 4th (FloRacing). Previous ranking: 14th (-1)
16. Drake Troutman, Hyndman, Pa.
Comment: Runs well with WoO at Sharon (second, sixth) but fails to qualify for Sunday’s Summer Nationals show at Wayne County. Series points: 4th (WoO). Previous ranking: 17th (+1)
17. Jason Feger, Bloomington, Ill.
Comment: Caps second career overall Summer Nationals championship with two top-fives and five top-10s in final six races. Back at it with MARS tour for weekend at Farmer City, I-55 and Quincy. Series points: Champion (Summer Nationals). Previous ranking: 18th (+1)
18. Zack Mitchell, Enoree, S.C.
Comment: Makes a big mark on Summer Nationals with three victories and a runner-up finish in six starts, earning the $10,000 prize for winning the final weekly points title. Series points: 3rd (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: Unranked
19. Mike Marlar, Winfield, Tenn.
Comment: Breaks through for first national touring series victory of season, claiming Sharon’s WoO finale for $15,000 paycheck. Series points: None. Previous ranking: T21st (+2)
20. Max Blair, Centerville, Pa.
Comment: No glory on home-region turf with WoO finishes of 15th and ninth at Sharon. Pointing trailer north for Friday’s Super Late Model Pete Loretto Memorial at New York’s Freedom Motorsports Park. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 15th (-5)
21. Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, Ill.
Comment: Continues recent string of solid performance with eighth- and third-place finishes at Sharon. Spending idle WoO weekend racing with MARS at Farmer City, I-55 and Quincy. Series points: 6th (WoO). Previous ranking: 23rd (+2)
22. Dale McDowell, Chickamauga, Ga.
Comment: In Schaeffer’s Southern Nationals action, flat tire dive-bombs top-five run at Wythe and Bulls Gap outing on Monday ends with accident. Another Southern Nationals start on tap Tuesday at I-75. Series points: None. Previous ranking: 19th (-3)
23. Cory Hedgecock, Loudon, Tenn.
Comment: Keeps car in garage for weekend, but Southern Nationals starts likely in coming days. Series points: 2nd (Hunt the Front). Previous ranking: 20th (-1)
24. Daulton Wilson, Fayetteville, N.C.
Comment: Finds speed at Wheatland with finishes of seventh and sixth. Remains in Midwest for Lucas Oil stops at Shelby County and Huset’s. Series points: 8th (Lucas Oil). Previous ranking: 25th (+1)
25. Gregg Satterlee, Indiana, Pa.
Comment: Goes 3-for-3 with victories at Selinsgrove, Hagerstown and Winchester. Looking to extend win streak in ULMS events at Path Valley and Latrobe. Series points: Champion (Appalachian Mountain Speedweek). Previous ranking: None
Dropped out: Joseph Joiner, Ethan Dotson
Others receiving votes: Joseph Joiner, Ethan Dotson, Chris Madden, Mark Whitener, Trey Mills, Billy Moyer, Mason Zeigler, Cody Overton, Cade Dillard, Donald McIntosh, Dylan Thornton, Garrett Smith.
