DirtonDirt exclusive
Grading top drivers with Speedweeks report card
By Kyle McFadden
DirtonDirt staff reporter
(Heath Lawson and Mike Ruefer photos)
Evaluating 15 drivers after Georgia-Florida Speedweeks — the top six in points on last year’s national tours and three wild card picks — among events at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., Needmore Speedway in Norman Park, Ga., Screven Motor Speedway in Sylvania, Ga., Hendry County Motorsports Park in Clewiston, Fla., All-Tech Raceway in Ellisville, Fla., Ocala (Fla.) Speedway and Golden Isles Speedway near Brunswick, Ga. Grading is on a curve, taking the driver’s expectations into account. Listed alphabetically:
C
Garrett Alberson, Las Cruces, N.M.
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $29,510 (11.1)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Three (14)
Best night: Salvages lone Speedweeks podium scrapping through March 7’s finale by overcoming midrace pitstop to finish third in chaotic finale at Golden Isles Speedway.
Worst night: Failed to qualify for Feb. 13’s DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia Speedway Park.
Points: Ninth on Lucas Oil Series
Evaluation: Entering Speedweeks with high expectations after last year’s two-win showing that ranked him fourth in total earnings, Alberson was hampered by poor qualifying efforts, starting no better than sixth in any feature. Rarely in contention for victories, he slipped to 17th in total earnings for Speedweeks.
A
Jonathan Davenport, Blairsville, Ga.
Victories: March 4-6 at Golden Isles (Lucas Oil)
Total earnings (average finish): $35,400 (9)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Four (six)
Best night: Completed three-race sweep March 6 at Golden Isles Speedway as Lucas Oil recognized him as the tour’s all-time winningest driver with his 95th career victory, surpassing Scott Bloomquist’s mark of 94.
Worst night: An opening-corner misjudgment while going for the lead from the outside pole ended disastrously Feb. 26 at Ocala Speedway, when he spun from second and slammed the outside wall.
Points: None
Evaluation: Made the most of limited Speedweeks appearances, averaging a robust $5,900 per event — second only to Nick Hoffman’s $6,327 per race — while nearly replicating consistency of last year’s six-figure Speedweeks when he averaged $5,967 per start. Blemishes, namely the Ocala gaffe and a non-factor outing Saturday at Golden Isles, keep him from A+.
C
Dennis Erb Jr., Carpentersville, Ill.
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $28,800 (12.9)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Two (15)
Best night: Finished third from the seventh starting spot in Feb. 14’s DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia Speedway Park, passing the likes of Bobby Pierce, Hudson O’Neal and Brandon Overton.
Worst night: A heat race wreck forced him to scratch from Feb. 10’s DIRTcar Nationals opener at Volusia.
Points: Ninth with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Now four years removed from his last Speedweeks victory, the 2022 World of Outlaws champion muddled through another early-season stretch in Georgia and Florida, ranking 18th in total earnings while posting six top-10 finishes. He did, however, register his first Speedweeks podium since Feb. 9, 2023, at East Bay Raceway Park.
B-
Tyler Erb, New Waverly, Texas
Victories: Feb. 11 at Volusia (DIRTcar)
Total earnings (average finish): $40,625 (11.3)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Five (18)
Best night: Capturing first career Volusia victory in Feb. 11’s DIRTcar Nationals, leading all 20 laps to top Chris Madden.
Worst night: Bounced in air and broke J-bar on the opening lap of Feb. 14’s DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia, spoiling a fourth-starting effort.
Points: Fourth with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Tallied three podiums, 10 top-10 finishes and six finishes of 16th or worse in streaky Speedweeks that ends eighth in total earnings. He contended for victories at Golden Isles (March 5-6) and the Jan. 23 Sunshine Nationals at Volusia and qualified for 18 features.
B
Ryan Gustin, Marshalltown, Iowa
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $34,050 (8.4)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Six (14)
Best night: Finished third behind title contenders Nick Hoffman and Bobby Pierce in the Feb. 21 World of Outlaws finale at Hendry County.
Worst night: Lost an engine while running sixth in the Feb. 13 DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia Speedway Park.
Points: Sixth with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Not a flashy Speedweeks, but a productive one for Gustin, who improved his average finish by more than five spots from last year’s 13.8. He tallied 10 top-10 finishes in 14 starts and ranked 10th in earnings per race ($2,432) among drivers with more than one Speedweeks start.
A
Clay Harris, Jupiter, Fla.
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $29,910 (8.0)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Six (11)
Best night: Finished runner-up to Devin Moran on Feb. 20 at All-Tech Raceway after starting eighth.
Worst night: Scratched from the Jan. 22 Sunshine Nationals opener at Volusia Speedway Park after engine trouble.
Points: Fourth on Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: Surpassed entire 2025 top-five total (four) within the opening eight races in dazzling Speedweeks. Nearly strung together four straight podiums before crashing out of second in the closing laps Feb. 19 at All-Tech. Ranked ninth in earnings per race ($2,493) among drivers with more than one Speedweeks start — huge leap from 37th last year ($903) — while improving average Speedweeks finish by more than 10 spots from 18.3.
A+
Nick Hoffman, Mooresville, N.C.
Victories: Feb. 11 at Volusia (DIRTcar), Feb. 12-13 at Volusia (World of Outlaws) and Feb. 21 at Hendry County (World of Outlaws)
Total earnings (average finish): $69,600 (3.7)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Nine (11)
Best night: Led the final 23 of 35 laps for his third straight Volusia victory in the Feb. 13 DIRTcar Nationals.
Worst night: Salvaged ninth from the 20th starting spot in the Feb. 14 DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia.
Points: First with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Delivered sterling Speedweeks as only national campaigner to finish inside the top 10 every race he entered while piling up four victories and five podium finishes. He led all drivers with $6,327 in earnings per race and capped the stretch with an impressive $20,000 victory in a head-to-head duel over Bobby Pierce at Hendry County.
B+
Tim McCreadie, Watertown, N.Y.
Victories: Jan. 24 at Volusia (World of Outlaws)
Total earnings (average finish): $49,400 (8.8)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Six (13)
Best night: Triumphed in Jan. 24’s Sunshine Nationals finale at Volusia from the 10th starting spot.
Worst night: Swept up in lap-17 wreck in Feb. 13’s DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia, finishing 26th.
Points: Third with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Solid Speedweeks for T-Mac topped by first Volusia victory since 2023 along with four podiums and nine top-10 finishes. Two of four finishes outside the top 10 were DNFs. Ranked seventh in total earnings — up from 16th last year — while qualifying for all 13 features and improving average Speedweeks finish by nearly five spots from 13.4.
A
Devin Moran, Dresden, Ohio
Victories: Feb. 20 at All-Tech (Lucas Oil), Feb. 24 at Ocala (Lucas Oil) and March 7 at Golden Isles (Lucas Oil)
Total earnings (average finish): $80,920 (4.5)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Nine (14)
Best night: Dominated 50 laps of Feb. 20 Lucas Oil feature at All-Tech, winning by more than five seconds.
Worst night: Missed a second straight DIRTcar Nationals feature Feb. 13 at Volusia.
Points: Second on Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: Another outstanding Speedweeks for the reigning Lucas Oil champion produced victories at all three Lucas Oil stops along with eight podiums. Ranked third in total earnings and posted the third-best average finish among national touring drivers. Only blemishes were failing to qualify for the Feb. 12-13 DIRTcar Nationals features at Volusia.
A+
Hudson O’Neal, Martinsville, Ind.
Victories: Jan. 23 at Volusia (World of Outlaws), Feb. 10 at Volusia (DIRTcar), Feb. 21 at All-Tech (Lucas Oil), Feb. 26 at Ocala (Lucas Oil) and Feb. 28 at Ocala (Lucas Oil)
Total earnings (average finish): $109,320 (4.4)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): 13 (18)
Best night: Led the final 15 of 50 laps for a $25,000 victory in the Ocala finale over Devin Moran.
Worst night: Failed to qualify for the Feb. 13 DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia.
Points: First on Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: Became sixth driver in history to win at least five races during Speedweeks while standing as the only six-figure earner and leading all drivers with 11 podium finishes. He strung together 10 straight top-five finishes from Feb. 14 at Volusia through March 2 at Golden Isles, a major turnaround from last year’s winless Speedweeks vs. national competition.
A-
Brandon Overton, Evans, Ga.
Victories: Jan. 30 at Needmore (Hunt the Front), Feb. 6 at Screven (Southern All Stars), Feb. 7 at Screven (Southern All Stars) and Feb. 9 at Volusia (DIRTcar).
Total earnings (average finish): $99,560 (6.6)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): 13 (22)
Best night: Captured his fourth straight victory Feb. 9 at Volusia by three seconds over brother Cody and Devin Moran.
Worst night: Failed to qualify for the Feb. 12 DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia.
Points: Third on Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: Finished with second-most earnings while entering Speedweeks-high 23 events. While he didn’t technically score a national tour victory, he still produced four podiums and a 7.6 average finish in 16 national series features. A flat tire while leading with 15 laps remaining Feb. 28 at Ocala dashed best chance at national touring Speedweeks victory.
B+
Bobby Pierce, Oakwood, Ill.
Victories: Feb. 20 at Hendry County (World of Outlaws)
Total earnings (average finish): $49,550 (6.3)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Five (11)
Best night: Convincing $12,000 victory Feb. 20 at Hendry County where he led by nearly six seconds.
Worst night: Started 13th and finished 16th in the Feb. 11 semifeature at Volusia.
Points: Second with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: Shook off slowish start where he finished no better than sixth in his first six races to reach the podium in final five events. He ranked fifth in earnings per race ($4,505), a major improvement from last year’s winless Speedweeks when he was 19th in that category. Most drivers would be in A territory with those numbers, but for Pierce, a single victory in 11 starts isn’t his standard.
A-
Brandon Sheppard, New Berlin, Ill.
Victories: Feb. 14 at Volusia (World of Outlaws), Feb. 19 at All-Tech (Lucas Oil) and Feb. 25 at Ocala (Lucas Oil)
Total earnings (average finish): $80,400 (7.4)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): 10 (20)
Best night: Powered from sixth to win the Feb. 19 Lucas Oil feature at All-Tech Raceway.
Worst night: A flat tire derailed a top-10 run Feb. 26 at Ocala, leaving him 18th.
Points: Seventh with Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: Recaptured frontrunning form with Rocket1 team, piling up the fourth-most earnings and three Speedweeks victories for the first time since 2022. Off nights (16th and 17th on March 5-6 at Golden Isles) and flat tires (15th and 18th on Feb. 26 and Feb. 28 at Ocala) hinder Lucas Oil standing.
B
Drake Troutman, Hyndman, Pa.
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $33,825 (8.9)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Five (17)
Best night: Finished fourth in the Feb. 21 Swamp Cabbage finale from the 12th starting spot.
Worst night: Finished 14th in the Feb. 10 DIRTcar Nationals feature at Volusia.
Points: Fifth with World of Outlaws.
Evaluation: The 2025 World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year never reached the podium but also never finished worse than 14th this Speedweeks. Best chance at victory came in the Feb. 28 Ocala finale, where he started from the pole but finished fifth. Ranked 13th in total earnings, down from eighth last year.
C
Ricky Thornton Jr., Chandler, Ariz.
Victories: None
Total earnings (average finish): $36,750 (9.7)
Top-five finishes (feature starts): Four (19)
Best night: Finished third in the March 6 Lucas Oil feature at Golden Isles Speedway, his lone podium of Speedweeks.
Worst night: Finished 23rd Feb. 9 at Volusia for his second finish of 20th or worse in a three-race span.
Points: Fifth on Lucas Oil Series.
Evaluation: After ripping off four victories during last year’s Speedweeks, the 2023 Lucas Oil champion couldn’t find his usual rhythm, dropping from third in average earnings per start last year ($4,607) to 14th ($2,042) among drivers with at least one start. His 19-race winless streak is longest since November 2022. Despite the dropoff, he still managed respectable 9.7 average finish.
