Seawright’s success

Sam Seawright’s richest-ever season continued Saturday at Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, Tenn., with the richest victory of his career.

The 21-year-old Rainsville, Ala., racer entered 2025 with two career five-figure paydays, and Saturday’s $15,000 Deep Fried 75 victory on the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series gives him his third five-figure payday of the season and second in as many weekends.

Seawright started. on the pole in Duck River’s 75-lap, but after leading the first lap, found himself playing catchup the rest of the way. Twice he had passes for the lead erased by cautions and he worked and worked and worked on trying to get past Cory Hedgecock of Loudon, Tenn., who led laps 18-70 at the frenzied quarter-mile oval.

“I just didn't need those cautions, man. It seemed like every time I got a good run going, the caution would come out,” Seawright said in victory lane after driving underneath Hedgecock entering turn one on the 71st lap. “Cory done an awesome job. I felt like I was better than him, but he done a really good job driving and it took me forever to get by him there. I bombed it off in there — I don't wanna slide him dirty and I hope I didn't — but you gotta do what you gotta do. I had an awesome race car.”

Hedgecock, who rebounded from struggles a night earlier when Jimmy Owens of Newport, Tenn., won the $8,000 HTF weekend opener, knew he was vulnerable against Seawright.

"I kept looking at the scoreboard like hoping (the lap count) would maybe jump a couple numbers,” Hedgecock said. “But it's like I could tell, I knew he was better than me like through the center (of the corner) and everything. I'm just trying to hang out there and kind of just knock his air off (Seawright’s nose) and everything, but he did good.”

Seawright was thrilled to be celebrating in front of Duck River’s shoulder-to-shoulder crowd.

"Thanks to this awesome crowd,” the winner said. “You know, this place is badass. This is my favorite place in the country.” — Staff and series reports

Low, low, low

Dale McDowell led most of Friday’s Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series feature at Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, Tenn., but late in the race, he opened the door — the inside door — for fellow fiftysomething driver Jimmy Owens.

And Owens, the HTF points leader and Newport, Tenn., standout, took advantage, driving under McDowell in a near dead heat on the 38th lap, then edging away from McDowell the final two circuits for an $8,000 payday in the Deep Fried 75 opener.

Owens, McDowell and the rest of the HTF gang will return to Duck River on Saturday for the weekend finale with a $15,000 payday on the line.

Owens, who came from the eighth starting spot, kept his Rocket Chassis glued to the hub in grabbing the victory in a race that Sam Seawright also led in the early laps.

“That's best I've run around the bottom of track in a while. We had some good dig down there and luckily Dale never got down low enough,” the 53-year-old Owens said. “He kept sliding out a little bit, and I thought if I just hit (turns) one and two a little bit better, I might be able to sneak up beside him and it worked out, especially that last restart.”

McDowell, driving his brother’s Shane McDowell Racing entry, couldn’t repel the late charge of Owens.

“It sucks to lead. You don't know where to go … so I just kind of ran the middle where it was brown,” the 59-year-old McDowell said. “The car was a little free, so I think Shane can make adjustments in that condition and change it up a little bit, but I just kind had to float my middle and and carry some middle speed across there and Jimmy was able to slow down and just drive up off the corner better. Hats off to him and his guys. We'll just work hard on this thing and see if we can get it a little bit better tomorrow night.” — Series reports