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Fast Talk: NDRL's impressive fields, big winners
Here’s the latest edition of Fast Talk, a DirtonDirt.com feature appearing each Monday and sponsored by Out-Pace Racing Products. Staffers Michael Rigsby, Todd Turner and Joshua Joiner gather weekly for a roundtable discussion about who’s hot, who’s not and other issues regarding Dirt Late Model racing. Regular contributor Ben Shelton subs for Joshua today (edited for clarity and length):
Todd Turner: Let’s delve into the inaugural National Dirt Racing League weekend, where we all were on hand to watch the launch of the John Kennedy-founded five-race series that drew a stellar field of cars to Paducah (Ky.) International Raceway and Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 in Pevely, Mo. (Disclosure: Ben worked as NDRL’s announcer at both events).
The aim of the NDRL’s $20,000-to-win event was to draw the country’s best drivers, and thanks to the World of Outlaws rainout, there was indeed an impressive field of 55 and 50 entries with a mix of WoO, Lucas Oil and top independent and regional drivers.
Let’s start there, because we all remarked it was a field seldom seen outside Florida Speedweeks or Eldora’s big races. This was a weekend when cracking the top 10 was doing something, wasn’t it?
Ben Shelton: Not only was cracking the top 10 something, but just making the field was a true feat. At Paducah on Friday I commented to a friend that it was really exciting to watch the pit gate because you literally never knew who was rolling in next. It had that old school feel of big shows back in the '90s when the internet didn't tell you exactly who would and wouldn't be at shows.
While it was obviously a series event for the NDRL tour it just had that old school unsanctioned feel, where you truly had drivers from just about every tour on hand to battle for bragging rights. Bottom line is it was just a really fun and diverse field.
Michael Rigsby: As I walked trough the pit area on Friday night at Paducah, I had at least four or five drivers stop me and say, “Wow, this is some serious heat here. This is like making a World 100 field.” It really was a very cool mix of guys that we don't often get to see anymore, and from that perspective, as Ben said, it felt incredibly like old school Dirt Late Model racing.
One thing I always find interesting is when drivers say they're going to support something, do they actually support it. In this case they did. They all told me in February they would, and virtually all of them turned out, which is a good sign. Fans seemed to embrace it as well. At a stop at a hotel Saturday night, I bumped into a guy who had driven from Greensboro, N.C. just to come see both events.
TT: It turned out the weekend’s $20,000 winners were two-time champs on the national tours, with Josh Richards of the World of Outlaws winning at Paducah and Jimmy Owens of the Lucas Oil Series winning at Pevely. Let’s talk about the Richards victory, first, as he deftly maneuvered over a rugged surface soaked by rain the previous night that caused lots of attrition. The hard-driving Richards never shrinks from such conditions, but it really seemed like he was smoother than just about anyone else in leading all but two of 75 laps.
BS: Richards was in a different time zone at Paducah. While he did clearly get some solid challenges from guys like O'Neal and Owens, it seemed like he was truly on cruise control most of the event and could turn up the wick whenever needed. He ran a very smooth race, and it really seemed he didn't have to show his full hand very often. It was an impressive performance for sure, and I definitely hated to see the flat at Pevely on Saturday because I think he and Owens — who were each running distinct grooves — were going to put on an amazing battle for the win.
MR: His comments to me afterwards summed it up — while other guys were worn out, Josh said "I could have gone 1,000 laps on that.” He just thrives in conditions like that, and you could tell. Yes, Owens was pulling near him before he made contact with the lapped car of Bobby Pierce, but honestly whenever Josh wanted to turn it on, he was gone. It's just such a pleasure to watch him when you know the racetrack will be demanding. I said before the event, it'd be really interesting to see who can manage 75 laps at Paducah (which is a lot), but my immediate thought was that has to make Josh a favorite. And it did.
TT: At I-55, Owens rallied from his 12th starting spot to overtake Richards, then fought off challenges from MB Customs drivers Jimmy Mars and Brian Birkhofer in his 75-lap victory. Birkhofer cracked that he was just happy that he could still see Owens at the end, because this was one of those nights when Owens simply looks like the best Dirt Late Model racer alive, wasn’t it?
BS: As I mentioned earlier, the Richards flat tire was unfortunate because we don't know if he could have stuck with Owens. However, Jimmy had an incredible hot rod on Saturday night. While he made his charge on the low side, he was able to maneuver his car wherever he wanted and still be fast. It was definitely the dominant Jimmy Owens that we've come to see in big events over the past five years or so.
MR: I've been to countless races at I-55 and seen Billy Moyer win countless shows using that bottom groove, but I've never seen anyone use a groove as low as Owens did. Granted the moisture at the bottom had something to do with it, but he was a full groove lower than anyone else I've ever seen run there. It would have been interesting to see if Josh didn't have a pinhole in his tire with air going down, if he could have hung with him, but it appears Owens was just better. Impressive considering he hadn't won a race there since 1998 — in a modified.
TT: Any other thoughts after digesting the NDRL weekend? I have a few. If Owens doesn’t damage his spoiler at Paducah on lap 45, would that have changed the outcome? The hefty one-day purses needed home run crowds that turned out to be merely respectable, so Kennedy will be hoping for fuller grandstands at his three Pennsylvania races later this season. Checking out the heavy hitters atop the rundowns of both races, Brandon Sheppard’s fifth-place finish at I-55 jumps out as impressive.
BS: The crowds were definitely a little lighter than I expected at both events, especially at Pevely. The lack of fans can't be attributed to lack of quality cars because clearly they were there, so it's a definite disappointment to see that more fans didn't get behind someone trying to run a two-day show in one night. I think the drivers definitely did their part to support it. It was cold on Friday night at Paducah — no arguing that — but it was absolutely gorgeous at Pevely. Hopefully the fan counts pick up for the next three rounds because these are fun fields of cars to watch.
Sheppard quietly came away with a great performance on Saturday night at Pevely. He lurked around the top five pretty much the whole event before finishing fifth. I though Tim Fuller's charge from dead last into the top 10 in 20 laps at Pevely was quite impressive as well.
MR: That was definitely a run Sheppard needed, especially at a track that he's had a lot of success . There were a few times he was dangerously close to sticking it in three-wide late in the race and didn’t — as he said, "I thought better of it.”
I think for me one thing that stood out was just the general "agreeability" of everyone all weekend. It seemed like no one was fighting, no one was at each others throats, and no one really had a bad word to say about anyone. The "mood" was just really good, and you don't always see that these days in our sport. I don't know why, but that stood out to me for sure.
BS: Also have to give a big thumbs up to the crew at Paducah for the job they did on the facility. I arrived at the track at 11 a.m. Friday and both the pits and spectator parking were still underwater. They worked their tails off to make the place be race-ready, and never quit working on the track throughout the night.
TT: Let’s look ahead to the national touring races coming up this weekend, starting with the World of Outlaws at 311 Motor Speedway near Madison, N.C., and Fayetteville (N.C.) Motor Speedway. If there’s no rainout, this will mark the first season the series has run two North Carolina events at tracks other than Charlotte Motor Speedway, which annually hosts the tour’s season-ending weekend.
The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is also busy with three races at Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex in Markleysburg, Pa., Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway and West Virginia Motor Speedway in Mineral Wells.
What should fans look for this weekend?
BS: After being brutalized by weather as much as anybody so far this year the East Coast fans are in for a lot of great racing this weekend if Mother Nature will just stay out of the picture. On the WoO end of things, I look for Lanigan to find victory lane at least once, but he'll have Richards to deal with both nights. There are some strong contenders on the regional scene in Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia for the Lucas Oil competitors, but it's hard to bet against their regulars right now, and I see Owens and Bloomquist enjoying a really good weekend.
TT: Over the years Hagerstown has a reputation as a tough weekly track, and hosts many special events through the season. I always look forward to the big touring races there because you can get interesting winners, for sure.
MR: I think everyone is interested to see how West Virginia Motor Speedway races for a big-time national event. Of course it's most famous for being a monster 5/8-mile track, that has now been scaled down to a smaller size. That was brought up to me more than a few times this past weekend. I'll have my eyes on that.
Fayetteville has had the tendency to produce late-race drama over the years, so we'll see if that holds up, while I'm also looking out for the tri-sanctioned tripleheader this weekend for the Corn Belt Clash, MARS and ALMS at Tri-City, 34 Raceway and Quincy. That's going to be a neat mix of guys at a neat mix of tracks. Could see some co-mingling we don't often get there.
