Fast Talk presented by MD3 and Five Star Bodies
Fast Talk: Is Brandon Overton back?
After Brandon Overton swept the Southern All Star Winter Freeze at Screven Motor Speedway in Sylvania, Ga., with Volusia Speedway Park’s DIRTcar National up next, our roundtable checks in for the weekly feature presented by MD3 and Five Star Race Cars Bodies (edited for clarity and length):
Is Brandon Overton back?
Kevin Kovac, DirtonDirt senior writer: Going 3-for-3 in regional events on familiar turf certainly doesn’t mean he’s returned to his vintage, Eldora-winning form. But it’s a heck of a boost for a driver who hasn’t tallied a double-digit win total for three straight seasons. Overton admitted he needs to rebuild his confidence, and nothing helps a driver do that more than winning races in bunches. It’s Overton’s first three-race win streak since 2021 and sends him into stronger competition this week at Volusia feeling better about himself and his racing than he has in quite some time. If he starts knocking off some World of Outlaws or Lucas Oil victories in the coming weeks, then we can declare him truly “back” to his superstar status.
Todd Turner, DirtonDirt managing editor: Three straight victories are no doubt promising, but as my fellow panelists mention, breaking through in national touring competition is the gold standard. For any driver — and especially for Overton, who hasn’t regained that “feel” he had during his best seasons a few years back — it’s the intangibles of finding success as much as the trophies you’re collecting. Amid Overton's relative struggles, including a mere four victories last season in his former Longhorn Factory Team ride, finding the right frame in mind, putting all the pieces in place and reaching a comfort level are key to achieving that confidence that drivers need to succeed.
Kyle McFadden, DirtonDirt staff reporter: Back to the remarkable pace of his 31-win, Eldora-owning peak from 2021? Not quite. Back to looking like a driver who’s enjoying the process again? That’s closer to the mark for Brandon Overton. His three straight victories on home turf feel like a high-major college basketball team knocking off a trio of low-majors — convincing, confidence-building and meaningful, but not all-telling. Early-season momentum is finally on his side, which counts for something. Expectations should remain tempered, and Overton would be the first to agree. If he can bottle this into the rest of Speedweeks and knock off one or two more against national-tour competition, then the “he’s back” conversation truly begins.
Aaron Clay, DirtonDirt weekend editor: If I’m answering with my heart, yes. Absolutely yes. Brandon Overton just led 83 of 85 total laps contested over the Winter Freeze doubleheader at Screven, earning more than $35,000 and increasing his win total to three on the season after winning only four in all of 2025. However, let’s be real; he still needs to do it on the national level. It’s cool and a feel-good story when he wins close to home, but I’d stay he’s not truly “back” until he wins on a national tour.
Discuss another Screven driver.
Turner: Talk about needing a roster to figure out which driver is which, it feels like Ross Bailes of Clover, S.C, has been in such a variety of cars for a variety of teams over the last few years that he keeps announcers scrambling through their notes. The constant is that Bailes has the ability to make the most of his opportunities, most recently at Screven where he ran as high as second in the opener before a tangle with a lapped car forced him out. He made a 15th-to-sixth charge in the finale in Brian Nuttall’s car for a solid weekend. I suspect he’ll be among the top competitors next month when Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, S.C., gets rolling with its March Madness event.
McFadden: Tucker Anderson running as high as second on both nights, even if only briefly, was one of the weekend’s prime takeaways. The 18-year-old from Blairsville, Ga., whom we highlighted in DirtonDirt’s Top 25 Drivers 25-and-Under in December, continues to look every bit like a rising prospect. Anderson, a two-time Southern All Star winner during his rookie Super Late Model season last year, was on track for a podium Saturday before a lap-16 flat tire derailed his run from second. When I last spoke with him in December, he projected a roughly 40-race, pick-and-choose Super Late Model schedule in 2026, his most ambitious slate yet, and early signs suggest he’s ready for the step up.
Clay: Daulton Wilson had an excellent bounce back in Saturday’s Winter Freeze finale at Screven Motor Speedway after spinning from ninth on the sixth lap of Friday’s opener, failing to finish and crediting him with a 22nd-place result. Wilson started fifth and slid past Overton to lead laps 7-8 in Saturday’s finale before settling for second, about a half second back at the checkers. I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if Wilson and his Big Frog-Viper Motorsports team can carry that momentum gained into Volusia’s DIRTcar Nationals.
Kovac: Payton Freeman might have been the weekend’s most pleasant surprise. Returning to the Capital Race Car fold for the first time in three years — he drove Capital co-owner Shane Clanton’s personal car with a new machine not ready for him — the 23-year-old Georgian finished sixth on Friday and fourth on Saturday. Just a few short years ago Freeman appeared to be one of the Southeast’s up-and-comers but he stalled a bit last season with a single top-five finish in his modest 20 feature starts. Perhaps Screven signaled that he’s primed to regain his momentum and help build some notoriety for Capital as well.
And mention another recent news item, happening or driver of interest.
McFadden: One of the more encouraging developments of the offseason is Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex committing to Super Late Models on a weekly basis again. After talking with owner Rick Jones, I believe there’s a real plan in place to make it stick, starting with facility upgrades at the Markleysburg, Pa., oval. In a region where Supers have been scaled back — Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway and Winchester (Va.) Speedway run them sparingly nowadays, while Bedford (Pa.) Speedway races on Fridays — there appears to be enough wiggle room between Port Royal (Pa.) Speedway and Selinsgrove (Pa.) Speedway on Saturdays for Roaring Knob to carve out its own niche in western Pennsylvania. If it works, it could give the Northeast’s waning Super Late Model scene a much-needed shot in the arm.
Clay: I’m interested to see how Sam Seawright fares after becoming Brett Coltman’s newest driver of his Coltman Farms Racing Longhorn team on the national touring level. On one hand, Seawright has been successful in a Mach X Chassis — four wins since last July, including a repeat in January's Ice Bowl — so we’ll see if he has more untapped potential in Coltman’s flagship Longhorn. The young Alabama driver is definitely among the sport’s up-and-coming stars.
Kovac: Pretty cool to see Lucas Oil Series regular Carson Ferguson do Dirt Late Model racing proud with his performance in the Ram’s Race for the Seat reality-show competition. He finished second in points among 15 drivers who were selected to participate in a series of challenges meant to identify emerging talent for Kaulig Racing’s first-year NASCAR Truck program. He fell short of securing a full-time NASCAR Truck ride for 2026, but he will get a one-off opportunity to run a Kaulig truck on Oct. 30 at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.
Turner: It’s been a lengthy process, but it’s good to hear that the construction of the new Belle-Clair Speedway in Belleville, Ill., is under way. The original fairgrounds track was a key part of the St. Louis metro area and for many years an entertaining stop on the DIRTcar Summer Nationals. I do have mixed feelings that the track will be a larger quarter-mile — the fifth-mile layout with inside and outside walls of the original track build in 1948 was a supreme challenge for Super Late Models — but it does appear the new facility, at nearly $14 million in total construction costs, will retain its covered grandstand. I’m skeptical this summer’s opening will happen, but let’s hope the track is back on the Summer Nationals circuit and perhaps a weekly host of DIRTcar Super Late Models by 2027.
What driver who wasn’t much of a factor at Volusia 1.0 do you expect to be a factor at Volusia 2.0?
Clay: I’m taking the low-hanging fruit and the obvious answer with Ricky Thornton Jr. After securing multiple little gator trophies in modified competition last week, Thornton looks to improve upon a 12.7 average finish across January’s three-race Sunshine Nationals event (Thornton slowed and pulled off on the 28th lap of the second round feature — a race where he ran as high as sixth before slipping to 17th and retiring). With additional laps at Volusia, especially on the new dirt surface adorning the half-mile oval, Thornton seems poised for a breakout DIRTcar Nationals.
McFadden: Drake Troutman. After speaking with the 21-year-old Hyndman, Pa., driver recently for a story, there’s little doubt he expects to be right in the mix this week at Volusia. Troutman admitted he and Team 22 Inc. simply missed the setup the first two nights of Volusia 1.0, where he finished 19th and 11th, before finally landing on a balanced race car that carried him to a fifth-place finish on the final night. And don’t forget last year: Troutman narrowly lost a head-to-head battle with Jonathan Davenport in the DIRTcar Nationals finale. That in mind, I’d expect him to be a legitimate contender this time around.
Turner: Well, Devin Moran of Dresden, Ohio, wasn’t a factor at Volusia last month primarily because he wasn’t in attendance, but I suspect everyone will know he’s there for the DIRTcar Nationals. Moran is a 13-time career Speedweeks winner, including at least one victory at Volusia each of the past three seasons. He hasn’t raced in an outdoor event in nearly three months — a seeming eternal break for national touring drivers these days. After enjoying an offseason celebrating his Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship, Moran will refocus on racing just a month ahead of the expected delivery of he and wife Lakia’s first child in March.
Kovac: I have more than a sneaking suspicion that Bobby Pierce won’t go through Volusia 2.0 without a top-five finish like he did in last month’s three WoO shows. Pierce logged finishes of ninth, 10th and sixth in the Sunshine Nationals; just once last year did he fail to record a top-five finish in three straight WoO features (incidentally, that came in the last three races of the season at Charlotte), so history would seem to indicate he’ll make things right during the DIRTcar Nationals. Expect him to grab a DIRTcar-sanctioned win early in the week and grab another in WoO action at the end of it.
With a the Big Gator trophy up for grabs this week among racers, which driver has the physical prowess to literally be the best gator wrestler?
McFadden: He may not have the most physical prowess in the sport, but Tyler Erb definitely has the courage. I don’t think anyone can argue that Terbo would rely on pure gumption, playfulness and audacity, which, in this case, might be exactly what you need to wrangle a gator into submission.
Clay: I initially didn’t take this question literal enough, but I would still submit my answer as Nick Hoffman. To start, the Illinois-turned-North Carolina driver already has a proverbial Gator Pond (full of his gator trophies from Volusia) in his house. Secondly, to successfully wrestle a gator, I think the driver would need to be quick and have the ability to sneak up on the unsuspecting reptile. Lastly, I think Nick would have the strength to manhandle the gator and hold on for longer than eight seconds, similar to a bull rider in the heat of a rodeo competition.
Turner: Well, I guess if we can’t get former Louisiana racer and alligator farmer Chris Wall to make a comeback — he’d be a natural, of course — I guess I’ll have to find someone else. I agree with the other picks, so I’ll go with Kyle Strickler of Mooresville, N.C. No doubt Strickler can manhandle a race car and I think he’d give it a go wrestling a gator (he’s hoisted plenty of gator trophies).
Kovac: If one of Volusia’s alligators strays from the pond in the lower pit area and needs to be returned to the water, I’m sending Kyle Bronson down to take care of the situation. Bronson seems to have the brawn to give a gator a battle. Plus, he’s a native Floridian, so he should know how to handle a gator, right? My backup choice would be a guy who’s not a driver but still well known in the Dirt Late Model pits: Pro Power engine builder Bill Schlieper. I could see him manhandling a gator like he slings around a motor without any assistance. And heck, knowing Schlieper, he might have already accepted somebody’s challenge to wrestle a gator.
