DirtonDirt Dispatches
Dispatches: Explosion revives Gustin's season
Ryan Gustin celebrates at Mississippi Thunder. (Emily Schwanke)
Among the latest notes and quotes from Dirt Late Model action, including the World of Outlaws Late Model Series Dairyland Showdown weekend at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis. (look elsewhere for Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series coverage):
Catching fire
In a span of three spring weekends, Ryan Gustin has completely transformed his 2026 campaign.
Three straight regional touring series victories. Three straight World of Outlaws Late Model Series podium finishes topped by a $40,000 triumph in Saturday’s 50-lap Dairyland Showdown finale at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis.
For a driver who was winless in his first 29 starts of the season, reaching victory lane in four of his last seven appearances qualifies as a full-fledged breakout.
“Man, I’m speechless really,” Gustin said after dominating the headliner of Mississippi Thunder’s tripleheader from flag-to-flag. “We've struggled a bunch this year.”
Gustin, 35, of Marshalltown, Iowa, had been far from an also-ran over the first three-and-a-half months of the season. But he didn’t win during January’s Wild West Shootout. He didn’t win during Georgia-Florida Speedweeks. He didn’t win in his first eight post-Speedweeks WoO starts through mid-April. His best finish? Third on seven occasions.
Then Gustin used a break in the WoO schedule to find himself. He won a Northern Allstars Late Model Series feature on April 17 at Paragon (Ind.) Speedway. One week later, on April 24-25, he captured a MARS Late Model Championship Series A-main at the Brownstown (Ill.) Bullring and a Midwest LateModel Association race at Farmington (Mo.) Empire Speedway.
Just like that, Gustin and his Todd Cooney Motorsports team were back. The WoO visit to Mississippi Thunder — a 3/8-mile oval where he won a $40,000 open-wheel modified event in 2016 and a $25,000 WoO Dairyland Showdown feature in ’24 — continued the surge.
Gustin improved all three nights of the WoO weekend, following up prelim finishes of third and second with a powerful performance in Saturday’s big-money finale for his first WoO victory of the season. His last triumphs on the national tour had come last year in rich events: August’s $100,000 USA Nationals at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis., and October’s $50,000 Bayou Classic at Boothill Speedway in Greenwood, La.
Is Gustin now primed to continue stacking checkered flags and realize his full potential as a Dirt Late Model racer?
“I sure hope so,” said Gustin, who vaulted from seventh to fifth in the WoO points standings with his Mississippi Thunder results. “The guys have been working hard. When you’re struggling, not running good, it takes a toll on everybody, so hopefully this is a morale booster and we carry the momentum on.” — DIRTVision, series and staff
Older, wiser Hoffman
On his 34th birthday, Nick Hoffman of Mooresville, N.C., showed that he wasn’t only getting older, he was also getting wiser. The new World of Outlaws Late Model Series points leader, in winning for the third consecutive season at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis., was wise enough to choose his best car and stick with the best line in Friday's 30-lap victory worth $10,000.
After a fourth-place finish in Thursday’s 30-lap Dairyland Showdown prelim, Hoffman decided to unload his other Tye Twarog Racing entry.
“I woke up this morning and I was like, ‘Man, I'm tired of screwing around.’ This car's been up in the trailer and I think its win percentage is around 75 percent now,” Hoffman told DIRTVision’s Ashton Smyth in victory lane. “It hasn't raced since Volusia and I just wanted to bring it back out to see how good it was again because I planned on racing it in a couple of weeks in Delaware … this thing was just really good.”
The fourth-starting Hoffman took advantage of race-long leader Ethan Dotson’s slipup at halfway when he got too high between turns one and two. Hoffman raced underneath and led the rest of the way, taking the checkers ahead of Ryan Gustin and Tyler Erb while the pole-starting Dotson settled for third. Hoffman's victory moved him back into the series points lead over Bobby Pierce, who finished ninth and saw his three-race winning streak end.
"I had to earn that one coming from fourth, and then once Ethan knocked the spoiler off, I felt like he was kind of vulnerable there and I knew I had to make moves pretty quick, knowing that (the track surface) was starting to latch down here,” Hoffman said.
Hoffman wasn’t challenged the rest of the way as Gustin battled with bodywork — the “flopper” section on the left-front of his nosepiece knocked off when he struck an infield tire barrier — that obscured his vision.
“Man, I’m 34 now, so I'm maybe a little bit wiser,” Hoffman said. “I lost that race at Senoia (Ga.) earlier this year, getting out of the rubber and trying to pass a lapped car, and I was like, 'I ain't doing that dumb (stuff) again.’ So, as soon as I realized it was rubbered up around the bottom, I was like, ‘They're either gonna have to pull out of line and make a pretty aggressive move or damn near crash themselves.”
Hoffman, who spent part of his current Midwest trip at Wehrs Machine & Racing Products in Bangor, Wis., doing some research and development, is enjoying another vist to Wisconsin with a $40,000 payday on the line Saturday.
"I love this place. I love coming up here,” he said. “All these Northern racetracks have always been good to me, and especially this place. So, I know we'll get a curveball tomorrow. They'll probably do something a little bit different with the racetrack knowing what it did tonight. We’re definitely confident every single night.” — DIRTVision, series and staff reports
Troutman falls short
After finishing second to streaking Bobby Pierce, Drake Troutman of Hyndman, Pa., thought it was generous calling their brief lead-swapping duel a “battle” on Thursday at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis.
When DIRTVision pit reporter Ashton Smyth characterized it as such, Troutman gave a bit of a laugh.
“There wasn't really much of a battle,” he said. "It might have lasted a lap.”
Indeed the WoO points-leading Pierce, after he and Troutman traded slide jobs on laps 19 and 20, pulled away to capture his third straight series victory and a $10,000 payday in the Dairyland Showdown opener. But Troutman left with his best performance in 34 features this season as the runner-up.
“It's just tough leading the race with these guys, especially with Bobby behind you. Second sucks, but we’re getting really close,” Troutman said, thanking his sponsors and crew while wishing team co-owner Stacy Smith a happy birthday. "Wish we could have got them one tonight, but man, I don't know. We've been really close. We’ve just gotta keep putting full nights together and stay consistent here. We've been really consistent, so stay consistent and hopefully we can start popping them off here before too long.”
Pierce drove under Troutman in turns three and four. Troutman made a similar move in turns one and two. But Pierce went back ahead and used lapped traffic to pull away in the 30-lapper.
"I kinda had to shoot it in there and get going," Pierce said, "and when I caught Troutman for the lead I think he was starting to kind of maybe try to switch around and I knew I had to get the lead before he changed his line too much and found that top side out, but luckily we were able to get out front."
Troutman, last year’s WoO Rookie of the year with 15 top-five finishes, clicked off his sixth top-five of 2026. He stands fifth in points, one spot better than last year’s finish.
"I'll get regrouped here and get back after it for tomorrow,” said Troutman, who has been sixth or better in five of the last six WoO features.
Streaming schedule
Among upcoming Dirt Late Model special and sanctioned events available via live streaming:
Thursday, April 30
• World of Outlaws Late Model Series Dairyland Showdown first prelim at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis. (DIRTVision)
Friday, May 1
• Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at Circle City Raceway in Indianapolis, Ind. (FloRacing)
• World of Outlaws Late Model Series Dairyland Showdown second prelim at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis. (DIRTVision)
• Save A Lot American Crate All-Star Series at Potomac Speedway in Budds Creek, Md. (Dirt Rich TV)
• Nutrien Ag Solutions Revival Super Dirt Series at Thomas County Speedway in Colby, Kan. (ArrowVision Live)
• RepairableVehicles.com Tri-State Late Model Series at Park Jefferson Speedway in Jefferson, S.D. (IMCA TV)
• Ozark Limited Late Model Series at Arrowhead Speedway in Colcord, Okla. (ArrowVision Live)
Saturday, March 2
• World of Outlaws Late Model Series Dairyland Showdown at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis. (DIRTVision)
• Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series at Florence Speedway in Union, Ky. (FloRacing)
• Rogers-Dabbs Crate Racin’ USA 604 Series features at Swainsboro (Ga.) Raceway (Crate Racin’ USA TV)
• Save A Lot American Crate All-Star Series at Potomac Speedway in Budds Creek, Md. (Dirt Rich TV)
• Unsanctioned Super Late Models at Port Royal (Pa.) Speedway (FloRacing)
• Nutrien Ag Solutions Revival Super Dirt Series at Thomas County Speedway in Colby, Kan. (ArrowVision Live)
• RepairableVehicles.com Tri-State Late Model Series at Off Road Speedway in Norfolk, Neb. (Dirt Crown TV)
• American Crate Late Model Series at Southern Oklahoma Speedway in Ardmore, Okla. (RaceON)
Sunday, March 3
• Valvoline American Late Model Iron-Man Series at West Virginia Motor Speedway in Mineral Wells, W.Va. (FloRacing)
• Malvern Bank West Series at Stuart (Iowa) International Speedway (IMCA TV)
• Karl Chevrolet Premier Late Model Tour at Benton County Speedway in Vinton, Iowa (IMCA TV)
