DIRTRACKR Daily Podcast - Episode Transcript

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How did we not notice this late model legend walking away? | Daily 10-01-2024

Guys, I think Earl Pearson Jr. retired, and none of us realized it. I've got some info on that plus, Hunt the Front's equipment sellout, an Ohio sprint car split, things not looking good for this winged sprint car series, and more. Let's go!

It's Tuesday, October 1st, I'm Justin Fiedler. This is DIRTRACKR Daily presented by Kubota Genuine Parts.

I'm down to the final few items left over at shop.dirtrackr.com as we've continued to drop prices to clear out all remaining stock. I have just seven daily show stickers left, they are down to $2 each right now. And there are five sprint car shirts left, three 2XLs, 1 XL, and 1 small. They are $14.50 as of today. You can take advantage of these deals by clicking the links below on YouTube or visiting shop.dirtrackr.com.

So, I had a DM last night, actually on the DIRTRACKR TikTok account, about where Earl Pearson Jr. has been lately. In reading the message, I had completely forgotten about EPJ's plans to run MLRA this year after dropping off the Lucas tour, so I went looking for information. Going back to the end of 2023, we know that Pearson parted with Jason Papich, and things were up in the air for 2024. Just weeks before the Lucas season was set to start, EPJ put a deal together with Jason Rauen to run the full Lucas schedule. He said at the time that he nearly retired, but got something together in time to go racing. Unfortunately, those plans didn't last long. After Speedweeks ended in February, the team announced they were pulling out of the series, and eventually decided to chase the regional MLRA series instead. Through the opening 13 nights, they had just a single top ten finish. When the MLRA season got rolling at Wheatland in April, EPJ was there, eventually finishing 13th in the Spring Nationals. He remained on tour through the June 7th show at Callaway Raceway. Along the way, EPJ picked up second place finishes at Quincy in May, and at that Callaway show in June. He actually led most of that Callaway race before Dillon McCowan passed him late. The MLRA's next two races were rained out, and we didn't see Pearson again until the Slocum 50 at 34 Raceway in July with Lucas. He started third in that feature, and ended up 11th in a race won by Devin Moran. Since then though, MyRacePass doesn't show any more appearances for EPJ. So did he quietly retire on us? There are no updates on his racing Facebook page since May 30th, and digging through social media a bit, it seems as though EPJ has been busy outside of racing. Back in July, less than two weeks after that Slocum 50 race, something called the Newell Lodge Resort, based in Georgia, was rebranded as The Lodge at Hartley Oaks, and it appears as though Pearson and his family are running the facility. They've got cabins, a campground, a restaurant, and wedding and event space there. That part of Georgia did suffer some effects from the Hurricane, and some in that county are still without power, but hopefully things will be back in order there soon. If this is indeed the end for EPJ's career, maybe we can get him to come out to a Lucas show soon and have him honored. He'd been on tour since the series' inception in 2005, won four titles, and 40 races along the way. It's strange that at a time where we are inundated with information and all sorts of details about people's lives, that a driver like EPJ can just slip away quietly and have very few people notice. Happy Trails Earl Pearson Jr.

I was a bit surprised yesterday by the number of comments I had about the Hunt the Front guys' newest video about them selling some equipment. I think there were three or four yesterday that mentioned it, asking my opinion or wanting to know why I didn't talk about it. If you are unaware, they are currently in the process of selling two race cars, three engines, a variety of parts, and their truck and trailer. As they put it, you could buy everything they have for sale and dang near be ready to hit the race track. But in terms of what this means for their team, it doesn't mean anything. The cars for sale are their two Longhorns, which they aren't going to continue using because of their new deal with Capital Race Cars. They've been running a Capital here more recently, and I'm sure will be getting at least another chassis from them soon. So with the transition, they don't need the Longhorns anymore, and the assortment of parts that go with those cars. And the truck and trailer sale is just setting them up to upgrade their operation for next season. They just purchased a newer toter for the series folks to use, and likely have a new truck and trailer already in their sights for the race team. Teams do this type of thing all the time, getting rid of older inventory for new stuff. That means haulers, race cars, parts, tires, and even merch trailers. Especially as we approach the end of seasons, new stuff will be coming for the following year. In recent weeks there have been posts from Bobby Pierce with tires for sale, and Ricky Thornton Jr's merch trailer got listed in early September as they are upgrading. Hunt the Front isn't getting out of racing, or scaling back. Just cleaning some stuff out they don't need anymore. If you are a Friday night racer in need of parts and equipment, these sales are often a place to get good stuff for less. Those top teams mileage things out and buy brand new, but a lot of those parts and pieces are still good. You can check with individual teams for stuff, and I know that guys like Bernie at Indy Race Parts often have a whole inventory of used stuff. So nothing out of the ordinary for Hunt the Front, really just business as usual.

On the DIRTRACKR Twitter account yesterday, I shared that I had been hearing about some regional sprint car changes that were coming, and one of them dropped not long after I made that post. In Ohio, Cale Thomas announced that he was parting ways with the Jay Kiser Racing 23 car. This one was surprising to me, as this had been a potent combination in Ohio this season. Eight wins on the year in 58 appearances, including four at Attica, two at Fremont, and one each at Wayne County and Waynesfield. Two of those FAST series wins, plus five AFCS victories. He ended up just getting nipped by Cap Henry for that AFCS championship. Thomas and the 23 didn't make a ton of national tour appearances this season, just three race nights with High Limit, and a best finish of 15th at Kokomo. 12 Outlaw shows, with two top tens, one at Eldora in May, and one at Fremont. In his statement, Thomas thanked Jay and the guys for their support and dedication, and wished them the best going forward. He did not point to future plans, but did say quote "I am excited to embrace new opportunities and challenges." It is my understanding that at this moment, neither side has anything locked down for the future, but I think both should be on a lot of people's radar. Jay Kiser obviously showing his car can win on a regular basis, and Thomas can be a serious contender there around Ohio, and maybe even on a bigger stage. I don't know that there are going to many open rides that will offer a driver like Thomas the chance to go race full time with the Outlaws or High Limit, but if I'm a team owner, a call to Thomas would be on my todo list. He and Cap Henry were neck and neck for the two top drivers in Ohio this season.

One other sprint car note for you today, the Maverick Winged Sprint Series in Indiana has sacked their season finale that was supposed to happen this Friday at Lincoln Park. In a social media post, they shared quote "Due to Lincoln Park Speedway needing to get the final points night in for Saturday night racing, our event October 4th has been cancelled. We will complete the point verification for the 2024 season and post the top ten in points next week. We will update you on 2025 plans in the coming weeks" unquote. I have no inside information on this one, but losing the final three races off your calendar doesn't seem to be a great omen for the future. Bloomington was cancelled because of heat, Terre Haute was called off because of lack of cars, and now this one. We talked a few weeks ago about that Terre Haute show that was cancelled just hours before it was set to start because they only had three cars officially signed in, even though they were likely going to get to 10 before on-track action started. We know that teams were in route, and they had to turn around. That was a really tough deal. And this final cancellation is for a reason you don't hear often either, we had to cancel Friday because there is a race on Saturday. Weather for the week looks good in that area, and there isn't a ton of competition coming up. POWRi 410s are in Texas, you've got MOWA at Jacksonville, that's really the closest, but no real competition in Ohio, High Limit is off, and the Outlaws are at Williams Grove. I really liked this idea of a 410 series based in Indiana, and I think it had potential, I just don't know that there is much hope here. I hate to be negative about this stuff, but I feel like we've maybe seen the last of the Maverick Winged Sprint Series. And a strange tie-in to the previous segment, Cale Thomas actually the very first Maverick winner going back to 2023.

We'll call it good for there today. Hope you guys have a great Tuesday out there, we'll see you back here tomorrow!