DirtonDirt Dispatches
Dispatches: Benedum, Loudy soak up Taze's big night
Kaede Loudy shows off his title check. (mrmracing.net)
Among the latest notes and quotes from around Dirt Late Model racing heading into the finale weekend in July, including coverage of the Schaeffer's Southern Nationals (look for World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Model Series coverage from Fairbury, Ill., elsewhere). Also find a listing of live-streaming video from specials around the country:
Tazewell’s finale
It was a big night for the first- and second-place finishers in the Schaeffer's Southern Nationals finale at Tazewell (Tenn.). A night neither will soon forget.
For winning Mike Benedum, he captured the richest victory of his career with a $10,053, and his first career victory on the Ray Cook-produced tour.
For runner-up Kaede Loudy, he captured his first career touring title in overcoming a tight championship battle with fellow youngster Garrett Smith and veteran Jimmy Owens.
Benedum thanked his crew for their hard work for the 11-race series that ran over 16 days without a single rainout. His victory came at the high-banked Tazewell, a favorite oval.
“I love Tazewell,” said Benedum, the 53-year-old racer from Salem, W.Va.. “(The track) was so rough there that I decided that I’d roll the outside and I’m sure glad I did because I would’ve been right in the middle of that (lap-17 rollover crash).
“I hate it for them guys, I wanted to beat them fair and square, I didn’t want them to wreck. But, I thought we had a pretty good hot rod anyway because I was holding on there.”
The 20-year-old Loudy of Rogersville, Tenn., was the underdog in the Barry Wright house car, surprising even himself in joining a list of series champions that includes standout drivers Jonathan Davenport, Brandon Overton, Owens and more.
“I never would have thought of this,” Loudy said after the race that saw Smith drop out with suspension problems and Owens roll over amid a big pileup among the leaders.
The son of World 100-winning crew chief Kirk Loudy said the team has “had a fast car and we've been consistent. You know, just growing up being around the people my dad surrounded me with, they've always said just consistency wins championships and really coming into the night, I really felt like Garrett had it wrapped up. All he had to do was finish and then they had one wreck and then they had another one and another one I just I really got lucky and missed them all.”
Loudy eventually let it all hang out.
“Under that caution there,” Loudy recalled, “they just told me to be smart and with about 25 (laps) to go, I just laid her on the floorboard and I was like, ‘Well, surely there are enough laps down that I might be able to be in a good enough spot to win it anyway and go after Mike, but he had a really fast car.”
While he wasn’t able to win a series race, he achieved one of his primary goals for 2025 with the Barry Wright car.
"It's what we set out to do at the start of the year,” he said. “You know, the last few years they've probably been doubted, and, this is just the start of a lot of wins to come.” — Staff reports
Two-division success
Robbe Ewing of Stockton, Mo., didn’t have expectations entering his first Late Model season behind the wheel of the EKJ Motorsports Capital Race Car. Having driven a B-mod exclusively in a racing career that began in 2014, Ewing was open-minded and eager to see what happened.
“I’ve always wanted to do something else, but the B-nod deal is what we can afford and we enjoy it,” Ewing said. “The stars aligned. We couldn’t have done it any other way. I’m just the lucky guy who gets to drive both cars.”
One of the surprise stories of the 2025 Lucas Oil Speedway season has been Ewing’s success in the Late Model. While he’s yet to win a feature — he’s been close with four second-place finishes at the Wheatland, Mo., oval — Ewing holds a two-point lead in the season points chase over J.C. Morton, another B-mod driver who’s doubling up in track’s Late Model division sponsored by Hermitage Lumber.
Saturday’s program will be a particularly busy one for those two. Fan Appreciation Night will find twin 20-lap features for the B-mod divisions with Late Models also in action with super stocks, modifieds and Show-Me Vintage Racers.
Ewing, 33, said EKJ Motorsports, one of the sponsors on the B-mod, came to him after last season to discuss him driving their Late Model. It’s a 2020 Capital that Larry Ferris had success in over the last few years at Lucas Oil Speedway. Bryan Larimore of Dirt Track Specialist in Nevada, Mo., maintains the car and oversees it in the pits. Robbe’s dad, Brian Ewing, is crew chief for the B-mod and pitches in on the Late Model when needed.
"We go and get it on Saturday morning and drag it to the track,” Ewing said. “I kind of knew what to expect from the B-mod stuff, but didn’t have a lot or expectations with the Late Model. Of course, I wish we had a win or two. But if we keep putting it up front, wins will come.”
A former multi-sport standout at Stockton High School and college baseball player at Missouri Southern State in Joplin, Mo., Ewing is a three-time track champion at Dallas County Speedway and also a past champ at Bolivar Speedway, there are challenges in going back and forth between two cars.
“They drive completely different and I expected that,” Ewing said. “We’re six races into this Late Model deal and we have a long ways to go, but getting out of one into the other they drive totally different. You have a small tire and little horsepower (B-nod) to lots of horsepower with big tires (Late Model). It’s just a different world getting out of one into the other.
“It’s been an adjustment, but a fun challenge.”
Ewing said whatever happens the rest of the season, it’s been fun on and off the track. He’s getting to race just as much as past season, but only doing it one night a week which is important for family balance. He and wife Kelsey have a 4-year-old daughter, Macyn.
Meanwhile, winning a race in the Late Model outweighs a desire to win a track championship.
“Both would be great, but we didn’t go into the year saying we were going to run for points or anything like that,” Ewing said. “We’re not really trying to do that any more. Lucas keeps the schedule pretty spaced out and it works out good for what we want to do.
“At the end of the year, if we’re up there we’ll definitely try to win it. If we can’t, we’ll hang our hats on a pretty good year in our first season in a Late Model. We just want to stay consistent and keep it up front and if we do, the wins will come.” — Lyndal Scranton
Herring copes, wins
The past year has been tough for Jon Herring Jr. of Woodward, Okla. In April 2024 he lost his mother, then in December his dad, Jon Herring, Sr. suddenly passed away. The losses took their toll and Herring has been coping.
Last weekend, Herring climbed back behind the wheel of his Late Model for only the third time since last season and started a new chapter in his life winning the Hayden Ross Motorsports Foundation Sooner Late Model Series feature at Longdale (Okla.) Speedway.
“I wish he was here,” Herring said of his father, who formerly competed with his son in team cars.
“It has been a rough year. I lost my mom, then I lost my race car and lost my dad. It has been one thing after another. We just took a step back and tried to rebuild everything. My wife and sister helped me a lot.”
Herring had a lot to deal with and really missed racing when the 2025 season began.
“I missed it a lot.” said Herring. “It sucks when you are sitting at the house doing stuff and you want to go racing and you can’t because you have other stuff you have to do.”
But with his third career Sooner victory, Herring is ready to win some races.
“We made a lot of changes after the heat race,” Herring said. “Delbert (Smith) is really smooth and we thought it (the track) would go dry. I thought we needed to try and swing for the fence a little bit since we drew No. 1, and it worked. The car has been tight lately and we found a way to fix it.”
Herring still has his father's car in the shop and race ready. But is not sure if he will ever drive it.
“Dad’s car is still race ready, but we have not chose to race it,” he said. “We don’t know if something happened to it if we would ever get it back. But I hate looking at it in the shop because I know he would want me to race it. He always made me race it before, but it is the only thing I have left.” — John Rittenoure
Streaming schedule
Among upcoming Dirt Late Model special and sanctioned events available via live streaming:
Thursday, July 24
• Schaeffer’s Southern Nationals at Sugar Creek Raceway in Blue Ridge, Ga. (FloRacing)
• Malvern Bank East Series at Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City, Iowa (Dirt Crown TV)
Friday, July 25
• Schaeffer’s Southern Nationals at North Georgia Speedway in Chatsworth, Ga. (FloRacing)
• Southern Thunder Super Dirt Series at Penton (Ala.) Raceway (Hunt the Front TV)
• World of Outlaws Real American Late Models at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway prelims (DIRTVision)
• Malvern Bank East-West Series at Marshalltown (Iowa) Speedway (FloRacing)
• United Late Model Racing Association at Monett (Mo.) Motor Speedway (RaceON)
• American Crate All-Star Series at Hidden Hollow Speedway in Colson, Ky. (Dirt Rich TV)
• Tri-State Late Model Series at Brown County Speedway in Aberdeen, S.D. (Dirt Race Central)
• Red Clay 602 Late Models at North Georgia Speedway in Chatsworth, Ga. (FloRacing)
• American Crate Late Model Series at Hunt County Raceway in Greenville, Texas (RaceON)
Saturday, July 26
• World of Outlaws Real American Late Models at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway prelims (DIRTVision)
• Schaeffer’s Southern Nationals at Tazewell (Tenn.) Speedway (FloRacing)
• East Alabama Motor Speedway Super Late Models in Phenix City, Ala. (Track Hub)
• RUSH Crate Late Model Series at Pittsburgh’s (Pa.) Motor Speedway (The Cushion)
• Tri-State Late Model Series at Brown County Speedway in Aberdeen, S.D. (Dirt Race Central)
• Cottage Grove (Ore.) Speedway Super Late Models (IMCA TV)
• Malvern Bank East-West Series at Adams County Speedway in Corning, Iowa (Dirt Crown TV)
• Jail Breaker Topless Outlaw Late Models at Tri-County Racetrack in Brasstown, N.C. (Mad Speed TV)
• Southern Thunder Super Dirt Series at Talladega Short Track in Eastaboga, Ala. (Hunt the Front TV)
Monday, July 28
• World of Outlaws Real American Late Models at Wilmot (Wis.) Raceway (DIRTVision)
Correction: Fixes Benedum's age to 60 sted 61.
