Fast Talk: Looking ahead to WoO tripleheader
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 (edited for clarity and length):
Todd Turner: Let’s review the racing weekend and look ahead to a busy next weekend. Ray Cook’s first-year Spring Nationals launched with a doubleheader at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn., with Dale McDowell and John Blankenship taking victories. The opening weekend drew not a huge, but definitely a talented, field of drivers. A nice start for the series that stretches 10 races over four weekends in four states?
Joshua Joiner: It was definitely a good start for Cook's new series. Talking to him afterward, he definitely seemed happy with the entire weekend. I'm sure he would have liked a few more cars, but he told me he was hoping to average 30 cars for the 10 races, and he's got a direct hit on that mark so far. And you're right, Todd, that was definitely one of the more talented group of drivers you'll see at any regional race. Like I said, all in all, I think it was a great start for the Spring Nationals. Definitely something to build on.
Michael Rigsby: I actually just spoke to Ryan Delph, who helps Ray with website and PR materials, and he said everyone involved, from Ray to Volunteer owners Phyllis and Joe Loven were very happy with the way the first weekend turned out. I suspected that it would, too. Volunteer is just so perfectly placed not only for a March race like that, but it's a track that so many guys like to shake their stuff down at that it makes sense it would draw some really good talent. Ray's onto something with this series, and I think he's headed in the right direction. Plus he might be the only series in the country that can race with the weather being sub-arctic everywhere, it seems.
TT: For the second straight weekend in Tennessee we’ve seen the best two drivers in the state overshadowed in $10,000-to-win events — Jimmy Owens and Scott Bloomquist, although Bloomquist led early in the Volunteer finale before fading to fifth. Obviously, you can’t read a lot into a few races, but I think you’d have found a lot of takers who’d have bet on Owens or Bloomquist to grab a victory at Cleveland’s Shamrock or Volunteer’s Spring Thaw. Are their so-so performances just another signal of the Dirt Late Model racing’s parity?
MR: I think that's part of it, but let me say something I'm totally going to get blasted for. (I'm ready for the emails). I do think in races like this Scott and Jimmy take a few more risks when it comes to testing and figuring a few things out on their race cars that they can't do in series races. I know, I know, that may be reaching, it's just a thought. Either way, it's surprising to see them at both Cleveland and the Gap not win. If you had to take Bloomquist-Owens or the field, at those tracks, in that state, you'd probably take those two.
TT: I get the same feeling, Michael. I know critics take shots at drivers who claim they're "testing" when things don't go right, but it seems to make sense when a week or two later, those same guys suddenly run up front when a points race or bigger money is on the line.
JJ: There's definitely a lot of parity in the sport right now, at least among the top-level teams. But it was a bit surprising that neither Bloomquist or Owens performed any better than they did over the past two weeks. As you guys point out, sometimes you wonder how much testing these guys are doing at races like this. They get few weekends off from the Lucas Oil Series as the year gets busier, so maybe they're trying some things at these early Lucas off-weekends to help them later in the year. But I only buy into that so much.
Bloomquist definitely was testing Friday night when he dropped to the tail at the start of the race, but when he's starting on the front row of a $10,000-to-win race, even if it's not a Lucas show, you know he's out there to win.
TT: The Southern All Stars visited East Alabama Motor Speedway for the first time since I was a high school senior (1984, if you’re scoring at home), and Jonathan Davenport notched his first victory as a full-time driver for AES Racing, leading every lap of the Jimmy Thomas Memorial. The former Clint Bowyer Racing driver stumbled a bit out of the gate with AES, but do you all see him being the force he was in the Barry Wright house car a few years ago, hovering at the 20-victory mark?
MR: I look at races like this EAMS win, and they have Davenport written all over them all year long. He’s going to win races like that, and win a lot of them I think, sprinkled in with some bigger $10,000-to-win shows too. I think they're hungry, and races like that are tailor-made for AES to rip through the entire year.
TT: The victory total between Davenport and AES teammate Dennis Franklin — in Supers and Crates — could be quite impressive as I'd expect them to pick their spots pretty well. They can line up with anyone.
JJ: It's tough to see Davenport getting to that 20-victory level this season, but I definitely think he's only going to get better as the year progresses. He'll pick up quite a few wins this year, especially if they keep picking and choosing their races wisely, and I can definitely see that team perform at a very high level by the end of the season and heading into 2014.
TT: The national tours will roar back into action this weekend, and let’s first examine the World of Outlaws Late Model Series trek to three first-time tracks: I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark., Whynot (Miss.) Motorsports Park and Duck River Raceway Park in Wheel, Tenn. When you’re on a three-race swing and Whynot is the biggest track with likely the least fender-banging, you know you’re heading for some bullrings. But all three tracks have reputations as racy joints. Should be fun, shouldn’t it?
MR: I talked to Wendell Wallace for this week's VideoCast, and he said he couldn't remember a weekend he was more excited about. It's just so outside the norm to see a tripleheader like this anymore, that it really is eye-catching. When you think about Josh Richards, Darrell Lanigan, Shane Clanton, and other WoO drivers assaulting these bullrings, it's neat to think about. Quick thoughts on each track. I-30: Watch the lip in turn one. It can be treacherous and makes for awesome racing. Whynot: One of the 10 raciest tracks in the country, gonna be awesome. Duck River: Watch out! Elbows up, get ready to get some bent sheetmetal and to see an incredible race.
JJ: When all of the schedules started coming out over the offseason, this was definitely one of the weekends I was most excited about. These are three bullring-type tracks that should produce some great racing throughout the entire weekend, with a lot of the Outlaws guys taking on tracks they've never seen before. There should also be quite a few talented regional guys mixed in at these races that will make things even more interesting.
TT: How do you all see the home-state drivers performing against the WoO invaders? Arkansas obviously has a lot of talented drivers, WoO regular and home-state driver Bub McCool won last weekend’s Mississippi State Championship Challenge Series opener at Whynot, and experienced drivers at Duck River could level the playing field against the high-dollar WoO travelers. Which race is most likely to have a surprise winner, or a winner whose home-track experience is key?
MR: Wendell loves I-30. I can see him running well there, and you know Jack Sullivan really wants to perform well this weekend. I still think Josh Richards is in good shape to take two of three.
JJ: At this point, I would consider McCool a favorite to win at Whynot and not necessarily a surprise victory candidate. But as far as other home-state drivers, I've got my eye on David Breazeale at Whynot. He's been a little slow to get going this year after coming out of retirement and rejoining Henderson Motorsports, but he's coming off a MSCCS win Sunday at Magnolia. Some nice momentum and heading to a track he's very familiar with in Whynot, I think he's definitely some to keep an eye on if you're looking for a surprise victory.
TT: The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is back in action with the Indiana Icebreaker at Brownstown (Ind.) Speedway, a traditional early-season event in the Midwest that’s usually entertaining. Besides the fact that promoter Tim Keithley must be thrilled that Indiana’s potential second-round NCAA basketball tournament game won’t fall on a Saturday, any other storylines you’re looking for at Brownstown?
MR: Especially with Florence's Spring 50 being weathered-out last weekend, this really becomes the deFacto first big race of the Midwestern racing season. Hard not to think back to all those early and mid '90s big March-April shows at Brownstown with Hav-A-Tampa when this rolls around. (But I digress). I'll be interested to see how Brad Neat performs for the first time in that Tim Logan ride. He's excited I know that. I'll also be interested to see if any Brownstown locals can muster some of that old quarter-mile magic and give the Lucas guys a good fight.
JJ: I'm really just ready for the Lucas Oil Series to get back going. For some reason, it seems like the gap between East Bay and Brownstown has been even longer than usual this year, I guess just because of all the racing that's been going on the past few weeks. I'm interested to see if Bloomquist and Owens can shake off their recent home-state disappointments and pick back up against their Lucas foes. I'm also watching to see if guys that had success at East Bay, specifically Dennis Erb Jr. and Bobby Pierce, can keep their momentum rolling into this weekend's races.
