DirtonDirt.com Dispatches

Dispatches: Another championship for RTJ

November 16, 2024, 8:26 am

From series staff, team, track and contributor reports

Castrol tour champion Ricky Thornton Jr. (Josh James)

Among the latest notes and quotes from around Dirt Late Model racing on a November weekend that includes the Castrol FloRacing Night in America Peach State Classic at Senoia (Ga.) Raceway:

Another title

Ricky Thornton Jr.’s path to winning the 2024 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship was likely unprecedented. How often in Dirt Late Model history — any division’s history — has a driver changed rides in the middle of a season and still managed to capture a national tour title?

But the road Thornton took to the Castrol FloRacing Night in America series points crown, which he secured by claiming Saturday’s 75-lap feature at Senoia (Ga.) Raceway to complete a sweep of the Peach State Classic weekend, was perhaps even more unlikely.

Running an eight-race schedule for four teams and overcoming the indomitable Bobby Pierce in the points standings over the final two nights? Now that’s something no one — including the 34-year-old star from Chandler, Ariz., who did it — could have drawn up.

While the Castrol series is of course much shorter than the grueling Lucas Oil circuit on which Thornton emerged as champion on Oct. 19 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, just over three months after moving from SSI Motorsports to Koehler Motorsports, he showed his adaptability in winning it. The start of July 8’s Castrol stop at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway came less than 24 hours after Thornton was shockingly released from his SSI Motorsports seat by team owner Todd Burns but he nonetheless was at that race and finished seventh — a run that would prove crucial to his championship hopes.

In a Facebook post following Saturday’s race, Thornton noted that fellow racer Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., offered him a ride for Lincoln’s event within an hour of his firing. Thornton’s social media comment said “we were fully prepared to not race and try to get our life together,” but instead he jumped into a Longhorn Chassis usually piloted by Sheppard’s father, Steve Sheppard Jr., and salvaged a top-10 finish.

Two weeks later, when the Castrol tour resumed on July 24 at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway, Thornton was behind the wheel of Kevin Rumley’s Longhorn car — renumbered with Thornton’s familiar No. 20rt — as his new Koehler Motorsports team was back in North Carolina gearing up for the rest of the season during a break in the Lucas Oil Series schedule. Thornton promptly charged forward from the 15th starting spot to score a dramatic victory worth $20,000 that vaulted him into the tour’s points lead.

Driving his Koehler Motorsports entry for the remainder of the series, Thornton ceded the top spot in the points standings to Oakwood, Ill.’s Pierce following the next Castrol event on Aug. 21 at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa., and entered Senoia’s season-ending weekend still trailing Pierce by 27 points. He was a decided underdog to earn the title, but Thornton thrived in the same role on the Lucas Oil Series. As a result, it was no surprise that he found a way.

And that way was a dominant sweep of the weekend. He led all but the first circuit of Friday’s 40-lap opener run on a rough-and-tumble track to win the $20,000 check over Pierce and cut his deficit to 21 points, and then he controlled Saturday’s 75-lapper from flag-to-flag to pocket another $30,000 winner’s prize.

The 27-year-old Pierce, meanwhile, experienced a rare off-night on Saturday, struggling so much in qualifying and his heat that he decided to switch cars and use a provisional to start 25th. Needing a sixth-place finish to clinch the title if Thornton won the feature, Pierce only managed to climb to 11th in the finishing order during a race slowed by just a single caution. With that, Thornton was the champion by 11 points.

Thornton offered special shout outs afterward to the people who kept him in the Castrol points battle.

“I have to thank Steve Sheppard (for July 8’s ride at Lincoln) and Kevin Rumley (for July 24’s ride at Fairbury), too,” Thornton said. “They gave me a ride whenever I needed it for these Flo races. There’s been so many things happened this year, and to be able to pull it off is pretty awesome.”

Then Thornton shifted into a more reflective mood. When asked in victory lane what it meant to add a Castrol tour championship worth $75,000 to his $200,000 Lucas Oil Series crown, he smiled broadly and offered some personal perceptive.

“It’s a dream come true,” Thornton said. “Obviously I was a little fan in the stands just like these guys (motioning toward youngsters standing nearby), just always wanted to be a race car driver, and I’m glad it worked out for me.

“So everyone,” he continued, “if you’re a little kid in the stands and you wanna become a race car driver, just keep digging. You never know what will happen.” — Series and staff reports

Thanksgiving feast

Dillon McCowan conceded he was “kind of at a loss for words” after winning Saturday’s 30-lap Turkey Bowl XVIII at Springfield (Mo.) Raceway. His $6,064 victory not only capped a long, grueling night for the 20-year-old driver from Urbana, Mo., but also gave him a checkered flag in the Dirt Late Model portion of an event that’s a staple of his home state’s autumn racing schedule.

Speaking in victory lane following a feature that ended at 12:30 a.m., McCowan noted that he had been busy all evening because he also drove a B-mod in the Turkey Bowl’s undercard.

“Pretty mentally tired,” McCowan said. “That double-duty stuff’s pretty tough, especially when you’re going from four-link and everything that’s on these Late Models back down to a B-mod.”

Nevertheless, McCowan remarked that getting laps in the open-wheel machine had its benefit.

“It definitely probably helped me with my throttle control and everything like that,” said McCowan, who missed transferring to the B-mod feature by a single spot in one of the six B-mains that were run for the whopping 76 entries. “And it probably helped me getting out here, you know, doubling (time on) this track tonight.”

McCowan’s triumph was his third of 2024 with his family-owned team but first in over five months. His other successes came in a May 17 MARS-sanctioned show at Kankakee (Ill.) County Speedway and June 7 in an MLRA-sanctioned affair at Calloway Raceway in Fulton, Mo.

The Longhorn Chassis that McCowan drove had a different look, sporting a no-frills appearance with no sponsors showing.

“We pulled this car out, we hadn’t run it in two or three months, and just cut the wrap off it and left an 8 on there,” McCowan said. “We didn’t really think we could get it done (in the feature), but Tony (Jackson Jr.) chicken-winged me (with contact early in the race), kind of lit a fire under me, and I was kind of like, ‘Well, I guess it’s time to go to the front.’”

McCowan, who inherited the lead on lap 21 when Daniel Hilsabeck slowed with a flat right-rear tire and never looked back, called his victory an “early birthday” present for his father.

“This is all he ever wants for his birthday, is one of these turkeys,” McCowan said, “so I’m glad we could get it done this year.” — Track and staff reports

Correction: Fixes McCowan's earnings to $6,064 sted $5,012.

Strong at Senoia

Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., has only visited Senoia (Ga.) Raceway twice in his Dirt Late Model career, but he sure knows how to navigate the 3/8-mile oval.

Whether it’s surface is slicker and slower (like when he decimated the field to win 2022’s Peach State Classic finale) or heavy and rough (like Friday night when he captured the 40-lap opener of the event’s third running), the 34-year-old star has Senoia’s number.

Friday’s $20,000-to-win kick off to Senoia’s Castrol FloRacing Night in America weekend presented a significant challenge to Thornton and his 50-plus rivals after rain on Thursday contributed to difficult track conditions, but he handled the situation with aplomb. He grabbed the lead from polesitter Jonathan Davenport of Blairsville, Ga., on lap two and powered away from a late challenge offered by Bobby Pierce of Oakwood, Ill., to emerge victorious.

“I don’t think we’ve been on a track this demanding all year,” said Thornton, who credited Daryn Pittman’s Ultra Shield Race Products for building a seat that kept him comfortable in his Koehler Motorsports Longhorn Chassis despite the physical conditions. “They got a lot of rain and they were doing their best. A little lengthy track prep before the feature, but at least it provided a lot better racing than what we had.

“Hats off to the whole track crew. I know it’ll be a lot better tomorrow (for Saturday’s 75-lap, $30,000-to-win finale).”

Thornton found the best way around the uneven track following the race’s second and final caution flag on lap 15.

“I kind of figured out on that restart, like, J.D.’s crew guy was screaming at J.D. to move down on the restart,” Thornton said. “I was like, ‘Well, heck, if he’s telling him to move down, I’m gonna try it.’ It just kind of worked out for us. I could really charge into one super hard and skip across the first hole and then just hit the cushion down the back straightaway.”

Thornton’s approach made it almost appear he was pulling a slider each lap entering turn one as he dove hard into the corner, slid across the middle and banged off the cushion exiting turn two. Pierce, who started fifth, was able to draw within striking distance of the pacesetter with 10 laps remaining, but Thornton proceeded to turn up the wick and pull away to win by 2.861 seconds.

“I saw (Pierce) get second on the board and I knew I really had to step it up a little bit so I drove pretty hard those last 10, 15 laps,” Thornton said. “I about tipped her over there one time in turn one and then again in turn three.”

Pierce, who turns 28 on Nov. 24, thought better of matching Thornton’s aggressiveness over the final circuits.

“I think he turned it up a little bit, and when he did, I think it was just too rough for me,” said Pierce, who recorded his 19th runner-up finish to go along with his astounding 38 victories this season. “I realized when he kicked it up a notch it was gonna have to take a lot to pass him. I ran out of (helmet) tearoffs as well. I think right when that happened it really started messing me up because I couldn’t see as much. I was wiping (the shield) the best I could. I put 25 tearoffs on. I guess I’ll need 50 for tomorrow.”

Thornton’s triumph was his 24th overall of 2024 in Dirt Late Model competition but just his fifth driving for the Koehler Motorsports team he joined in early July after his release from SSI Motorsports. Three of those victories have come in his last seven starts over the past month-plus after he won just twice in his first 26 starts with Koehler.

“It’s been a long year and I’m glad we got some real good speed here towards the end,” said Thornton, whose surge includes his clinching of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series championship last month.

Thornton still has a shot at the Castrol tour’s $75,000 points title in Saturday’s season finale. He faces a 21-point deficit to Pierce, who will assure himself of a second consecutive Castrol crown by finishing at least sixth in Saturday’s feature. — Series and staff reports

Castrol title battle

The World of Outlaws Case Late Model Series isn’t the only traveling series to have its battle for the championship come down to the final weekend.

This weekend’s Peach State Classic at Senoia (Ga.) Raceway pits the two winningest Dirt Late Model drivers since the start of last year, Bobby Pierce and Ricky Thornton Jr., in the race for the Castrol FloRacing Night in America title.

Pierce, the 2023 World of Outlaws champion and narrow runner-up this season, holds a 27-point lead over Thornton, the 2024 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series champ, as the final two Castrol FloRacing Night in America races take place Friday and Saturday.

A potential $115,000 payday is on the line for Pierce and Thornton, too, should they sweep Saturday’s $30,000 finale and take home the $75,000 miniseries championship top prize. Daulton Wilson (94 points behind) and Jason Feger (126 points behind) are still mathematically alive in the title battle as well.

Two of Pierce’s whopping 38 victories this season have come on Castrol FloRacing Night in America: July 8’s second-round event at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway, good for $20,000, and Aug. 21’s fourth-round event at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa., good for another $20,000.

Like Pierce, two of Thornton’s 22 victories in a Dirt Late Model this season have occurred on Castrol FloRacing Night in America: May 28’s opener at Macon (Ill.) Speedway and July 24’s third-round event at Fairbury (Ill.) Speedway, both good for $20,000 paydays.

The Castrol FloRacing Night in America points breakdown begins with 87 points to the victor and 81 points for second, then a three-point reduction thereafter: 78-75-72-69-66-63-60-57-54-51-48-45-42-39-36-33-30-27-24-21-18-15.

Finishers 24th or worse receive a minimum 15 points. The first five non-qualifiers from the B-main receive five points with all remaining B-main starters receiving three points. That considered, here’s the championship scenarios before the weekend:

Bobby Pierce clinches the title if:

• He accrues 148 points or more between Friday and Saturday, even if Thornton sweeps the weekend. Pierce can do that with:
• A victory and eighth or better = >150 points
• Runner-up and sixth or better = >150
• Third and fifth or better = >150
• Fourth and fourth or better = >150
• Fifth and third or better = >150
• Sixth and second or better = >150
• Seventh and a victory = >153
• Eighth and a victory = >150
• If Thornton doesn't win, Pierce can’t finish worse than nine combined spots behind Thornton on Friday and Saturday; should Thornton finish second both Friday and Saturday, Pierce can win the title via finishes of sixth and seventh

Ricky Thornton Jr. clinches the title if:

• He sweeps the weekend and Pierce accrues less than 148 points
• One win and seven positions better than Pierce on whichever night he doesn't win
• At least 10 combined spots better than Pierce between Friday and Saturday