With the last minute cancellation of the Maverick Winged Sprint Series race at Terre Haute last Sunday, it got me thinking about where the best area would be to create a regional sprint car series that matches the hype and competition level of the All Stars. In addition to the World of Outlaws and High Limit Racing, many regional 410 sprint car series race around the country. The FAST series exists in Ohio and Western PA, the IRA Sprints race in Wisconsin, the AFCS race at Attica and Fremont, NOSA races in North Dakota, NARC has the west coast covered, Maverick in Indiana, MSTS in South Dakota and neighboring states, MOWA runs a small schedule around Illinois, ASCS Elite Outlaw in Texas, and POWRi in Missouri.
Despite the influx of regional series, all of them have had respectable car counts in 2024. The majority of them really stepped up in terms of purses and winners share after the announcement that the All Stars were bought by High Limit. Paying $4,000 – $5,000 to the winner and $400 to start the A-Main has become the standard for AFCS, FAST and POWRi in 2024. Still, with economic factors and rising costs to go racing, regional purses are still not enough to peak the interest of teams who would have to travel 3+ hours to race.
With the Outlaws and High Limit occupying around 25 full-time teams in 2024, a number that is expected to remain the same or even grow some in 2025, the question is always if there is enough cars remaining to have a feeder series. In my opinion, there is room for a feeder series, but it needs to be done very strategically. Take a look at the average car counts as of 9/20/24 for some of these regional series.
Some of these numbers are inflated, but they all have one thing in common; car counts go up significantly when they work together with other series. For example, when NOSA and the IRA work together for the “King of Wings” weekend, car counts were in the 40s. When Maverick held their “Maverick Mayhem” week with the IRA, car counts were over 50. When the AFCS took the week off so FAST could host Ohio Speedweek, car counts averaged around 53. When MSTS works with the Huset’s weekly schedule and NOSA, car counts were over 30.
Regardless, those averages tell me that there are plenty of cars still available to form a larger, all-star style regional 410 series. But are there enough teams equipped to add additional travel to their schedule? Are most of these guys local racers with no intentions of doing any traveling or racing for points with a series? The answer is yes and no. I think most of the teams racing with NOSA, IRA and AFCS fit the bill of local racers. The IRA gets a fair share of invaders, but the field is filled with small teams and local racers at the core. The AFCS has a solid field of Ohio teams with intentions of only racing at Attica and Fremont.
One of the hurdles when creating this regional series is actually getting teams to follow the full schedule. Take the FAST Series for example; they increased their purse, took over sanctioning Ohio Speedweek and added to their schedule in 2024. Still, only 3-4 teams have been following the full schedule. It’s a two-man race between Brandon Spithaler and Zane DeVault for the championship that pays $15,000 to win.
Is $15,000 enough to peak the interest of regional teams? Probably not, but I think there are deeper issues with the lack of interest in the FAST Series (in terms of full-time teams, not car counts). First, the schedule includes some tracks that have not been friendly to tires and equipment in the past. One driver mentioned to me that track surface is more important to him than any purse. When a lot of drivers hope to be able to breakeven or get close to it after the night, a bad track surface is going to make that increasingly more difficult.
A few of these regional car count averages have been decreased by scheduling conflicts. Earlier in the season, POWRi raced with only eight cars in the pits. Take one look at the schedule and you see that both the World of Outlaws and High Limit were in action on that night, as well as a local Knoxville show, the FAST Series and the IRA. With so many tracks and series hosting 410 sprint cars on the weekends, is there room in the schedule for something new? Again, I think yes, but strategically scheduling around the other series and working with existing regional series has to happen.
Next, you have to look at where and how far these potential teams are willing to travel. When speaking with a few regional drivers, it seems the consensus for one-way travel is 3-5 hours from their shop to the racetrack. One driver will not show up unless it is $3,000 to win and $400 to start minimum. Then, you have to find tracks within that distance that drivers are interested in racing at. They can’t be rough on equipment and they need to be up to the current safety standards.
Based on the information I gathered and the drivers I talked to, this is what I came up with for a successful regional series. Again, this is all hypothetical and for fun.
THE GASSER SERIES
Location: Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, Illinois, Ohio + nearby tracks in states that make sense logistically.
Schedule: 30-40 Races, including a 10 race “Thursday Night Thunder” streamed on Flo/DIRTVision. This accounts for rainouts. Build the schedule after the Outlaws/HL release theirs. Work with existing regional series for promotion and co-sanctioned events. If a track is just too far for a team to make it work, a “drop” rule will be in effect. Teams will be awarded two “drops” that will not count against the season-long points.
Purse: $6,000 to win / $400 to start standard. Thursday Night Thunder $8-$10,000 to win / $500 to start.
Exclusivity: None. No sign-on requirements. Teams will be awarded bonus money based on attendance/travel. Once they hit a certain tier, bonus money will be paid.
Points Fund: $100,000 – the Top 10 in points will be paid out. $40,000 to the winner, $20,000 to second and down from there.
Tow-Money: Will be part of the attendance bonus and based on miles traveled.
Format: Similar to the All-Stars. Qualifying with the fastest transfer and heat winner to the dash. Quick timer in the heat will start 4th, the rest lineup by time. However, if the fastest qualifier doesn’t maintain their position and falls backward, the 1st and 2nd place finishers will go to the dash.
Rules: Match what the WoO/HL series have in place
Streaming: Must be streamed on one of the major streaming platforms. Streaming is not killing racing in this situation. It needs to happen in order for this to be successful. POWRi and FAST would be getting much more attention if they were streamed/promoted on one of the top platforms.
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