DirtonDirt Dispatches
Dispatches: Racing at home fuels Herrington
Wil Herrington in victory lane at Cochran. (Kevin Ritchie)
Among the latest notes and quotes from Dirt Late Model action, including the Gauntlet at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn., and other regional weekend events
Hometown hero
Wil Herrington knows Cochran (Ga.) Motor Speedway better than any other track, which isn’t surprising since it’s roughly 20 minutes from his home in Hawkinsville, Ga., and where he cut his teeth in racing.
But the 29-year-old still wondered if the softer-compound right-rear tire his familiarity with Cochran encouraged him to run in Saturday night’s 50-lap Southern Thunder Super Dirt Series feature was the right choice. Especially when one of his primary rivals in the race, fourth-starting veteran Mark Whitener of Middleburg, Fla., offered up his rubber call in a pre-race conversation.
“Mark had told me he put on a different (harder) tire when we was in staging over there,” Herrington said, “and he’s like, ‘Wil, it’s 50 laps.’
“I was like, ‘I know it,’ but I just … I didn’t know we were gonna be out front, but I just thought I could get out front and I could just be easy on my tires. I knew the pace was gonna be really slow just to try to get around that bottom there.”
And the A-main played out exactly as Herrington envisioned. He grabbed the lead at the initial green flag off the pole position and controlled the entire distance, beating Whitener, who reached second on a lap-three restart in an exchange the sent Jackson Hise of Ocala, Fla., spinning, by 1.698 seconds for a $10,000 triumph.
Whitener, 45, acknowledged Herrington’s supremacy on his home turf.
“We followed Wil around the racetrack,” Whitener matter-of-factly said. “We come here, he’s really good here, we knew it. He gambled a little different on tires than what we did, but he was good. He was right. He done a hell of a job, and he’s in victory lane. I had a good car. Wil just had a better one.”
Herrington’s success came in a family-owned Rocket XR2 Chassis that he ran in a feature for just the third time. His previous two A-main appearances — his first Super Late Model starts of the 2026 season — resulted in an 11th-place on April 3 at Wythe Raceway in Rural Retreat, Va., and a third-place run on April 10 at Hartwell (Ga.) Speedway.
“I was on the phone with (Rocket’s) Mark (Richards) today for a while and he helped me out with a few things,” said Herrington, who secured the pole for the feature with a burst forward using the inside groove to win the first heat.
Herrington remarked that “we needed this bad,” and the length of time since his last Super Late Model victory — last May 25 at Potomac Speedway in Budds Creek, Md., driving for Maryland’s Bruce Kane — made that clear. His three wins earlier this season came in a 604 Crate at All-Tech Raceway in Ellisville, Fla., and in Limited Late Model action at Cochran and Needmore Speedway in Norman Park, Ga.
Saturday also marked Herrington’s first five-figure score since March 2, 2025, at East Alabama Motor Speedway in Phenix City, Ala., also aboard Kane’s No. 15k. Snapping that drought at the speedway he calls the “best racetrack in the state of Georgia” had him riding high.
“Just growing up here with all y’all amazing fans … y’all are awesome,” Herrington said. “It’s cool to see y’all pack this place out. I just appreciate y’all coming and supporting this. This is cool to win in front of all y’all. We’ve done it a lot of times, and it just never gets any better than this.
“We’re gonna do a little celebrating tonight,” he added with a smile. “Y’all come on down … maybe till the sun comes up.” — Series and staff reports
Turning back Marlar
Jonathan Davenport never thought he was home free as he led Saturday night’s 60-lap Gauntlet finale at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. He figured it was just a matter of time before someone rose up to offer a challenge.
“I always was planning on somebody to slide me,” Davenport said after completing a flag-to-flag drive to a $30,000 victory that also earned him a gargantuan $100,000 bonus from promoter Vic Hill because he won one of the event’s three preliminary features.
Nevertheless, when the 42-year-old superstar from Blairsville, Ga., faced that threat to his supremacy from Mike Marlar of Winfield, Tenn., on a lap-35 restart, he admitted it “did surprise me a little bit.”
Davenport managed to turn back Marlar’s slider through turns one and two with a nifty crossover move at the other end of the high-banked, 4/10-mile mile and go on to defeat Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., by 2.512 seconds, but in that moment he undoubtedly saw the six-figure bonus he was chasing possibly slipping from his grasp.
“Turns one and two is just an animal here,” Davenport said. “It’s kind of like a chess match there for sure … so I would always go in just a little bit more crooked so I could turn back down easily (to be prepared for a slider) and, after I got a couple laps under my belt, then I was driving a whole lot straighter.”
On lap 35, though, Davenport suddenly found himself fending off Marlar. The savvy veteran in him made the right counter with his Double L Motorsports Longhorn Chassis.
“That was his first start on the bottom there, up when he got to third when (Chris) Ferguson had that flat, so he did surprise me a little bit,” said Davenport, who won Tuesday’s $7,500 opener but then experienced bad luck on both Wednesday (smacked the wall early in the feature) and Friday (flat tire while leading) and ran his backup car the final two nights. “But I heard him coming and I seen him, so I just had enough time to react, turn back down and, luckily, you know, he didn’t hit a hole or something and turn sideways and come back down more than he wanted.
“And then we raced off into turn three and I felt like I sort of slid him a little bit. I’ll have to go back and watch it. I was figuring he thought I might go all the way to the wall, but I tried to go in there really straight and fast and then kind of brake at the last minute and turn back down towards the middle.
“So I was playing defense and blocking,” he continued, “just trying to be smart and try to beat him back down here to turn one and two again.”
Marlar, 48, wasn’t in contention for the $100,000 bonus after failing to win a preliminary feature, but he craved the 30-grand race bounty to salvage his week. He nearly pulled off the pass but declined to get physical with J.D. and ultimately fell back to finish third in his Ronnie Delk-owned Longhorn Chassis.
“Oh yeah, we had quite the exchange right there,” Marlar said of his battle with Davenport. “I thought I got him. I was getting really good launches off the bottom there in the feature and so I got a good take off and I was committed enough to probably slide him and try to block the crossover there.
“I came down as far as I could til I felt his touch, and it was about to get expensive for both of us so I just quit coming and kind of give him the lane. I was hoping I had enough clearance to come back, but I didn’t.
“Jonathan always races me awesome,” he added. “It’s fun racing with him. He’s in his prime right now and he’s hard to beat, but I gave him all I had right there.”
As an independent racer this season, Davenport doesn’t have the extra financial rewards — show-up money and post-season points-fund cash — that come with running a national tour. He needs to hit big payoffs like at Volunteer to compensate, so the Gauntlet and its bonus already have him in a good place before the year’s richest events begin.
The $137,500 in first-place and bonus money he collected at Volunteer more than doubled the $63,500 he had earned for his six previous victories this season.
“Thanks for Vic and his whole staff for putting this deal on,” said Davenport, who was winless in his first eight starts of 2026 but has since been triumphant in seven of his last 15 appearances. “I know he took a huge gamble, and I know he probably didn’t get the car turnout he wanted to, but, you know, maybe it’ll improve for next year. I hope he does it again.
“Just an awesome event. I’m glad we could finally just put a staple on it for sure. I was a little worried coming in today because of just how this place races. You got to qualify good, but my guys was just on top of the car day-in, day-out and give me a good hot rod, and I tried to do my best I could driving it.” — Track and staff reports
Madden holds on
Chris Madden knew where he was vulnerable while leading The Gauntlet’s final preliminary night at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. That concern only amplified with less than 20 laps remaining, once Zack Mitchell slipped past Brandon Overton for second never allowing Madden to build more than a 0.652-second advantage down the stretch.
“My guys were telling me, ‘Get to the bottom, get to the bottom.’ We knew Zack was good. He was way better than I was through (turns) three and four,” Madden said in Volunteer Speedway’s victory lane. “I was horrible down there. In one and two, I think I could gain on him a little bit.”
Mitchell pulled alongside Madden numerous times in the waning circuits of the 50-lap, $20,000-to-win feature, but the Infinity Race Cars house car driver protected just enough — “We was in defense mode there the last five laps,” he added — to join Jonathan Davenport and Brandon Overton as the only drivers with a shot at Saturday’s $100,000 bonus, should they also win the $30,000-to-win main event.
“Hats off to (Mitchell) for a great race,” Madden said. “He raced me clean. Just put on a good show for the fans, I hope.”
Madden’s third victory of the 2026 campaign was further evidence of his continued progression with the Wells Motorsports-backed house car program.
Over his last seven races, he has two victories, four podium finishes and six top-five runs — all since his March 21 $20,053 Southern All Star Dirt Series victory at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, S.C.
“Thanks to Infinity and all the guys up there at the race shop. They’ve been working hard for us, gave us a new chassis right now,” Madden said. “We’re looking forward to the rest of the year. We’re getting there.”
But as he began his victory lane interview, Madden’s deficiencies still lingered, a stark reminder he’ll need to be better Saturday to cash in on a potential $130,000 payday.
The pole-starting Madden lost the lead on the initial start to Davenport, who led until suffering a flat right-rear tire on lap 30. That’s when Madden inherited the lead and shifted into preservation mode down the stretch to hold off Mitchell.
“We’ll go to work on this thing. We got to get it better to win the $100,000,” Madden said. “We’ll keep working on it, get it better.”
Should Madden get the job done Saturday, it’d add to the deep collection of memories he’s made at the high-banked 3/8-mile oval.
“Been coming here a long time. It’s one of my favorite places,” Madden said. “Made a lot of memories here with Scott (Bloomquist). It’s an awesome place. It’s got a place in my heart. Just hats off to everybody for coming out and spending their hard-earned money to support this race for (track promoter) Vic (Hill). Thanks, Vic, for putting this on. And hey, we’re in the mix for $100,000 tomorrow. Hopefully we can get it done.” — Track and staff reports
Benji stands out
In a field stacked with superstar national names, Benji Hicks of Mount Airy, N.C., made noise for the regional racers during Wednesday night’s Round 2 of the Gauntlet at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn.
The 30-year-old finished second in the unsanctioned 40-lap feature won by Brandon Overton of Evans, Ga., continuing a solid start to the 2026 season for the builder of the Double Nickel Chassis. He’s yet to reach victory lane but he’s certainly knocking on the door with two runner-up placings among his four top-five and seven top-10 runs in nine feature starts.
While Hicks, who started fourth after a heat win, appeared in second on a lap-three restart after Tuesday winner Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., slapped the turn-one wall and never relinquished the spot, he crossed the finish line with the right-rear decking and quarter-panel of his No. 55 thoroughly mangled from earlier incidents. That included a lap-36 run-in with Chris Madden of Gray Court, S.C., whose attempt to slide past Hicks for second ended with the 50-year-old veteran smashing the turn-two wall.
“I thought we was gonna have a good, clean race, and 44 comes in there and parks it on my nose,” Hicks said of Madden’s bid for second. “And you know, I guess it was one of those split-second decisions, and I’m sure he’s gonna say I made the wrong one. I’m gonna say he made the wrong one, so it is what it is. We’ll live to fight another day.”
Madden, whose Infinity Chassis house car was towed off after the wreck, had no comment on the circumstances of the tangle when contacted by DirtonDirt. He did note that the damage to his car was for the most part “just cosmetic” and he would be back at Volunteer for Friday and Saturday’s $20,000- and $30,000-to-win events to close the Gauntlet.
Hicks, meanwhile, will have to “put a deck in this thing again” after needing to make repairs following his 12th-place finish in Tuesday’s feature, but he’ll do so with his spirits riding high thanks to his strong run.
“I was just trying to keep the car underneath me,” said Hicks, who never seriously challenged Overton en route to finishing 2.668 seconds behind the $10,000 victor. “They told us on the Raceceiver (one-way radio) rather than going double-file on that last restart there (following Madden’s crash) they was gonna do single-file because it was starting to take rubber … and I thought all of us was kind of running the same speed. I mean, when it takes you 10 laps to get by a lapped car, that’s a telltale sign (of the surface locking down).”
Hicks, whose other second-place finish this season came in March 28’s Coltman Farms Carolina Clash-sanctioned Doug Walls Memorial at Friendship Motor Speedway in Elkin, N.C., gave some thanks during the post-race ceremonies to people who played key roles in his success.
“I gotta give a shout out to (fellow racer) Alex Vance and his crew for jumping in and helping us here (get ready) for the feature,” Hicks said. “And a big shout out to P1 Suspension, Precision Suspension with Sammy and Pete — man, we got on their stuff at the end of the year last year and it’s really been a, been a game-changer for us. And a huge shout out to (veteran engine builder) Randy Clary — we got on his carburetors and Brandon (Overton) is on one of them too, so they run flawless and definitely help keep 900 horsepower hooked up.”
Hicks was also complementary of Volunteer promoter Vic Hill putting on the Gauntlet.
“Hopefully all these fans (watching) on TV (the live stream broadcast) and the ones here are supporting Vic Hill,” Hicks said. “I think it’s a great deal what he’s doing here and I think it’s gonna be an awesome, awesome deal for the future.” — Staff and track reports
Oregon driver returns
In his 20s, Jeremy Shank was among the fastest Late Model racers at Willamette Speedway in Lebanon, Ore., evolving from a champion of the track’s super sport division into Super Late Models and capturing a pair of titles on what’s today the Coors Light I-5 Silver Bullet Series.
The 47-year-old Shank been out of the driver's seat most of the past 15 seasons, raising a family and operating Albany, Ore.-based Left Coast Motorsports, but he’s planning a return in 2026.
Shank has reached an agreement to pilot the B.J. Donofrio-owned Skyline Ford Swartz Chassis No. 99 at Willamette and perhaps I-5 tour events.
"I’ve got to shake off some rust and get used to being back out there with some tough competition, but I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do,” Shank said. "Willamette Speedway has always been known for the highest level of competition, especially in the Late Models where you’ve got the best of the best in our region.”
Shank, whose I-5 championships came in 2009 and ’11, has made occasional starts over the years, winning Willamette’s $5,000 Clair Cup in the Late Model division in 2016 and last winning a Late Model feature in 2021.
He’s set to start the season at the NASCAR-sanctioned track with Saturday’s Dirty Diamond 60 for the Albany Toyota-sponsored Late Model division, a race in honor of the track’s 60th season. The track has posted a $7,000 championship with potential earnings of $50,000 for regional and national NASCAR titles. — Track reports
Streaming schedule
Among upcoming Dirt Late Model special and sanctioned events available via live streaming:
Friday, April 17
• The Gauntlet third prelim at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. (The Thrill TV)
• Northern Allstars Late Model Series at Paragon (Ind.) Speedway (Hunt the Front TV)
• Nutrien Ag Revival Super Dirt Series at Kennedale (Texas) Speedway Park (RaceON)
Saturday, April 18
• The Gauntlet finale at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn. (The Thrill TV)
• Southern Thunder Super Dirt Series at Cochran (Ga.) Motor Speedway (Hunt the Front TV)
• Northern Allstars Late Model Series at Brownstown (Ind.) Speedway (Hunt the Front TV)
• Valvoline American Late Model Iron-Man Series at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio (FloRacing)
• Unsanctioned Super Late Models at Port Royal (Pa.) Speedway (FloRacing)
• RUSH Crate Late Model Series at Pittsburgh’s Pa. Motor Speedway in Imperial, Pa. (Dirt TV)
• Rogers-Dabbs Crate Racin’ USA 604 Series at Dixie Speedway in Woodstock, Ga. (Crate Racin’ USA TV)
• Save A Lot American Crate All-Star Series at 191 Speedway in Campton, Ky. (Dirt Rich TV)
• Nutrien Ag Revival Super Dirt Series at Kennedale (Texas) Speedway Park (RaceON)
• Best Plumber 604 Crate Racing Series at Wartburg (Tenn.) Speedway (Dirt Rich TV)
