Fast Talk presented by MD3 and Five Star Bodies
Fast Talk: Recapping Florence and a busy weekend
With Bobby Pierce making history with his third straight and fourth overall North-South 100 victory, our roundtable discusses that and more in the weekly feature presented by MD3 and Five Star Race Cars Bodies (edited for clarity and length):
What’s your perspective of the Bobby Pierce-Jonathan Davenport tussle that decided the North-South 100?
Todd Turner, DirtonDirt managing editor: I love it. It’s got all the elements that make Dirt Late Model racing so compelling — and that was obvious by the reaction of the crowd (the Florence faithful aren’t shy). Rivalry. High stakes. Drama. And perhaps most of all, paint-swapping, which obviously can ruffle feathers but is so fun for us mere humans to watch as these superior drivers throw their cars into tricky positions and know just how far they can push it without completely wrecking each other. The best seven laps we’ve seen this season.
Kevin Kovac, DirtonDirt senior writer: Todd is right — that was one intense, wild midrace stretch between two Dirt Late Model titans. And coming in a crown jewel event in front of a vocal Florence crowd made it even more exciting. Sure, Davenport was rubbed the wrong way by Pierce’s initial slider — and unfortunately the damage to J.D.’s left-front certainly shortened the battle — but there’s no doubt it made for a memorable exchange that added to a rivalry between the two that, you’ll recall, had already gained a little heat from Pierce’s February comment at Volusia about Davenport (“J.D. don’t know how to throw sliders”). Their next showdown, at Eldora’s World 100, now becomes even more anticipated.
Bryan Ault, DirtOnDirt contributor: I can’t really take sides. To be fair to Pierce, J.D. seemed to initiate the contact when he slid in front of Pierce on lap 46 at the flagstand to cut off his air. Then, Davenport left-rear hooked him at the same spot on the next lap, which could have ended Pierce’s night completely and caused a flat tire. A less experienced driver might have crashed into the inside wall. At the same time, Pierce caused heavy damage on Davenport’s nose in turns one and two. He probably could have gotten around Davenport without the contact. Plus, there were still 45 laps to go — why take out another driver’s chances with so many laps left in the race? Either way, if it’s officially a rivalry, it should definitely spice up the hype at the World 100 where the two drivers will meet again on the sport’s biggest stage.
Kelley Carlton, DirtonDirt contributor: When a packed house like Florence had on Saturday is up on their feet and rocking the whole place, this is what this sport has to be all about: entertainment. Was Pierce’s first slider completely respectful? No. But was it egregious or over the top? Also no. Was the move too early? With the way things happen so quickly in Dirt Late Model racing, I can't fault Pierce for wanting to get to the lead as fast as possible. Did J.D. mete out some of his own punishment? Yes. Either way the fans were the real winners. It was a slugfest, a fight among gladiators, a slobberknocker and all of those other cliches. It is entertaining and that sells tickets and attracts new fans. And no matter what anyone’s perspective is, we need that in our sport.
Detail another Florence topic.
Kovac: Josh Rice is so good at Florence, and the excitement each year around the prospect of him winning the North-South 100 is palpable. But he just can’t seem to have everything go right at his home track’s marquee event. Rice and his legion of Florence fans left the weekend disappointed again as the Kentucky driver struggled throughout the three nights, switching cars twice (from Thursday to Friday by choice, then after qualifying in a Saturday heat because of engine trouble) and never even getting a sniff of serious contention in a feature. Rice is only 28 and has plenty of years ahead of him, but his North-South 100 frustration continues to grow.
Ault: The win for Pierce is historic. That he won the event from starting so deep in the field thanks to the invert (more on that below) is a testament to his skill as a driver. I watched the race from the backstretch and stood next to a crew member from another top team, and as I watched Davenport struggle after the contact, Thornton bounce off the wall and this crew member desperately making signals to his driver, all in an effort to hunt down Pierce, I started to wonder where Pierce will be in terms of belonging among the sport’s greatest. He’s 28 and has won so many big races, and with many more years to go in his career, I don’t see anybody stopping him from reaching the top.
Carlton: I know that Jason Jameson has a lot of laps and has had some success at Florence, but in my opinion, he had one of his best career showings. He was fast all weekend and fighting up front every night in heats and features. He stayed out of trouble and looked really solid with finishes of 12th and seventh on prelim nights. Then he backed it up and improved to a sixth-place finish in the full-field finale. How cool would it have been if the stars would have aligned and he was able to win on Saturday? I am pretty sure Dan Rice would still be playing tunes and they would still be partying on the backstretch.
Turner: I’ll stick with the Pierce-Davenport rivalry, and I think Bryan and Kevin are right on in envisioning what this means for Eldora’s World 100 next month. While dominance at Eldora between the two has already been brewing, Florence clearly sets up an Eldora showdown between last year’s World 100 winner (Pierce) and this year’s Dream winner (Davenport) for a battle. We’re often drawn to races that are wide open because of parity throughout the field, but this year’s Globe Trophy appears like it’ll go to one of two drivers unless someone else shocks the World.
Expound on another weekend winner, result or recent happening.
Carlton: How about that MARS finish at Macon? I hated to see it for Jake Little who did a good job of using that top-side cushion to get the lead from MARS point leader Jason Feger. Little was able to get through on the rough-and-tumble surface from his sixth starting spot and into the lead by lap 21. But what the topside giveth, it can quickly taketh away. Little was just one corner away from his first MARS victory until he got up onto the treacherous cushion which sent him bouncing and slowed his momentum just enough to let Ryan Unzicker slip by for the win and the $10,000 check.
Ault: Rusty Schlenk captured picked up back-to-back victories in Ohio this weekend in the American Late Model Iron Man Series. Schlenk is second in the points behind Colten Burdette. Schlenk winning races in his own Domination chassis against drivers with great equipment is always noteworthy and a reminder that drivers on a shoestring budget can still win. Schlenk has many friends and enemies on the track just due to his aggressive driving style and ability to create lanes when they don’t always exist, but no matter what you really think of him, I’ve always enjoyed interviewing the McClure, Ohio veteran, who has that right mix of being quick-witted, thoughtful and even a little wild.
Turner: How about Magnolia Motor Speedway cracking the 50-car mark two nights in a row with the rescheduled Clash at the Mag? The Comp Cams circuit and track co-owner Johnny Stokes had to be thrilled with an impressive turnout and a couple of exciting, multileader races with Ashton Winger and drought-ending Shane Clanton grabbing victories. And Jake O’Neil, the modified standout who tends to drift in and out of the Late Model world every few years, leads laps in the opener and posts a couple of top-five finishes on a weekend with the pits full of talented drivers.
Kovac: Staying with Florence, it was pretty neat to see Garrett Alberson and Daulton Wilson open the North-South 100 weekend with $6,000 victories in Thursday’s twin 25-lap semifeatures. Yes, they were split field races, but winning them is still no easy task. And to see two members of Lucas Oil Class of 2022 rookies do it on the same night was notable. Alberson has two full-field Lucas Oil triumphs and Wilson still has just one, but perhaps their semi successes signal their experience on the national tour will start translating into more checkered flags.
Look ahead to the Topless 100 or another upcoming event.
Kovac: Want a crazy Topless 100 statistic? Tim McCreadie, who won last year’s race driving the Rocket Chassis house car, won’t be in this weekend’s field because he’s now a World of Outlaws regular and will be competing in Illinois and Iowa. I looked through the Topless 100 history and not having the previous year’s winner in the field to defend their victory in unprecedented. The Topless 100 has been around since 1993, and every single year the previous winner has been back looking for two in a row. What’s more, the previous winner didn’t make the feature field just once in over three decades — in 2000, when the late Scott Bloomquist blew an engine in his heat and crashed in a consolation.
Ault: Batesville strikes me as a kind of a now-or-never race for the coveted fourth position in Lucas Oil’s Big River Steel Chase for the Championship. Moran’s successful run at Florence has given him a 215-point cushion over Garrett Alberson and Brandon Sheppard, who was really hot throughout July. If anybody is to challenge Moran, they need a big month with a little bit of luck to have a shot, starting with this weekend in Arkansas.
Carlton: Jonathan Davenport hasn't finished worse than second in the last four Topless 100 events. Blend that with a little fire remaining in his belly from the North-South kerfuffle with Pierce and the fact that it is effectively a home game for his Double L Motorsports team, and you could have all the makings of a 49 domination at Mooney Starr’s place. But it should also be noted that 2023 Topless winner Dale McDowell and his Shane McDowell led team skipped the North-South to get prepared for the Topless. A showdown between the Georgia drivers seems likely.
Turner: While Batesville’s $50,000 prize is the richest of the weekend, I’ll look at the four straight Midwestern events for the World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Model Series at Highland and Spoon River in Illinois along with a doubleheader at Maquoketa Speedway. The weekend has Bobby Pierce written all over it (a couple of home-state haunts and an Iowa track where he’s won twice this season). Highland’s tight-cornered layout provides challenges aplenty and its winner might provide a peek into what lurks the rest of the weekend. The quartet also gives Summer Nationals champ Jason Feger a shot at a national tour victory.
Get something off your chest or share some other random thoughts.
Carlton: I’ll probably upset my modified friends here, but for me, dropping the division from the North-South program was an absolute home run. Florence’s crown jewel is firmly secure in its position and as such I don’t think it needs a support class to carry it through. That's no dig at support classes. I just believe the race can stand on its own as a Late Model only event just as the World 100 and the Dream already do. I heard only positive feedback about the earlier finishing times and lack of need to track prep during the event. I may start a riot, but I’ll petition that crown jewel status requires no support classes.
Ault: I have immense respect for all the drivers who started on the front rows of heat races at Florence, so please forgive my rant, but goodness gracious, these inverts at Florence and Eldora have me miffed. The goal for drivers and crews is to put together the fastest car and fastest driver. If that happens, those teams should start toward the front as a reward for their hard work, dedication and equipment. The inverts punish that. How is it right for Pierce, Moran, Davenport, Alberson and Daulton Wilson to start in the second row? Imagine a race when Pierce and Davenport could’ve spent all 100 laps sliding each other or playing cat-and-mouse on who will use up their tires faster. Why do we have inverts for these special shows when we don’t have inverts at all throughout the entire season? Either make all racing that way all the time, with an official act and law signed by Congress, or start the fastest drivers and teams where they belong.
Kovac: I was a little disappointed — or, actually, perplexed — with the North-South’s 51-car field, which was down 10 entries from 2024 and actually one fewer than the turnout for last week’s USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway (the first 50-car field for the Wisconsin track’s big show since 2014). To me, the North-South has all the qualities necessary to consistently reach the 60-car mark, including a big-race atmosphere, central location and, most importantly, a racy track. I just feel like a few more teams should have this event as a red-circle date on their calendar.
Turner: I’m trying to cut down my complaining (believe me, I’ve got lots of racing gripes), so I’ll go random. … Florence clearly draws a throng for the North-South 100, but I never appreciated quite so much until I saw the drone shots over those rolling hills of the campers and masses. Amazing. … According to DirtonDirt results, there were more completed Dirt Late Model races the second weekend in August than any weekend so far this year (more than 125 tracks hosted an event). … Condolences to the family of the late Rick Neff, a longtime dirt racing photographer who was a gentle friend to many of us here at DirtonDirt. … Notable first-time Late Model winners over the weekend: top WISSOTA rookie Devin Fouquette, Illinois youngster Caden McWhorter and Nebraska 15-year-old Landen Rojewski, winning in an Al Humphrey-owned car just two years younger than he is.
