Another weekend of 410 sprint car racing is in the books and the World of Outlaws finally have a multi-time winner. Both David Gravel and Sheldon Haudenschild picked up their second wins of the season over the weekend. Out in California, the newly reconfigured Stockton Dirt Track was on display for the first time with the NARC 410 sprint cars and the SCCT 360 sprint cars. The paperclip shaped track was definitely interesting during time trials, but things quickly went downhill from there. Cole Macedo ultimately picked up the feature win that was determined official two laps early.
Winners
Brent Marks – Texas Motor Speedway Dirt Track
David Gravel – US 36 Raceway
Danny Dietrich – Port Royal
Scotty Milan – Farmington Empire
Cole Macedo – Stockton Dirt Track
Sheldon Haudenschild – Arrowhead Speedway
Chase Dietz – Lincoln Speedway
Quick Thoughts
What a mess it was at Stockton Dirt Track on Saturday night. If you stayed up late and watched, you sure got some entertainment. Unfortunately, that entertainment was not in the form of good racing. The newly shaped paperclip track seemed almost un-raceable and it only got worse as the night went on. After multiple wrecks and wild moments in the feature, officials made the decision to end the race early with only two laps to go. It was a questionable decision that made no sense. You already let these guys attempt to race for 28 laps, why can’t they finish the last two?
It was a really unfortunate situation for Justin Sanders and Tanner Carrick, who finished second and third. With the track surface the way it was, there was a high probability Macedo or someone else could have made a mistake on the final restart to change the outcome. We all saw what happened to Ryan Robinson at Chico a few weeks ago. Sanders was rightfully furious after the race.
Cole Macedo deserves a ton of credit for managing his car the way he did throughout the race and running a relatively smooth race. The decision made by officials to end the race early discounts an otherwise great performance by Macedo. I don’t know what the future holes for Stockton, but they might need to make some changes before we see another race there.
With Anthony Macri out on the road with the Outlaws, Danny Dietrich and Chase Dietz have been the two best cars in Central Pennsylvania. Dietz, who picked up his first win of the season at Lincoln on Sunday, has finished in the top 10 in every race that he’s entered this season. Dietrich has been on the podium in every race since returning to PA from Florida. He made an epic move to get by Devon Borden during a late race restart in the rubber at the Port Royal opener.
The rumors of the PA Posse’s demise have already been deemed untrue. Macri, Dietrich, Dietz, Freddie Rahmer, and Troy Wagaman Jr have all looked very strong to start the season. Lance Dewease has two top fives in his only two starts, and Devon Borden has been improving every week. Kyle Moody and Dylan Norris have also had solid starts to the season.
The story of the weekend was rubber. It was a bummer that Arrowhead rubbered up during the feature, but that track definitely has a lot of potential. The wind certainly didn’t help, and I think they can get that surface in great shape if the Outlaws return. Port Royal rubbered up during the daytime race, which wasn’t surprising considering the conditions leading up to the race.
Driver News
The weekend started with some drama after Lockie McHugh announced that he was no longer coming to the states to driver the Deuce 5 Motorsports car for the summer. The decision was clearly last minute, as car owner Brandon Ikenberry voiced his displeasure on Facebook. Kerry Madsen will fill the seat for a few upcoming races, but Madsen has his own ride lined up for Knoxville, so it will be interesting to see who ends up in the seat of the no. 25.
Kalib Henry was announced as the driver of the Running Boxer Farm no. 101 for the 2024 season. It is a big move for the young California racer, as he was head to Ohio for a 50-60 race schedule. His first race of the season will be this weekend at Attica Raceway Park.
World of Wings
World of Wings has all of your 410 sprint car needs. Find 2024 sprint car stats, point standings by series, regional and national power rankings, driver schedules and much more all in one place.
Subscribe to the Monday Methanol Newsletter. It is completely free and will go directly to your inbox every Monday!
