DIRTRACKR Daily Podcast - Episode Transcript

Dirt racing news, results, discussion, analytics. Sprint cars, late models, modifieds, you name it. From national series, to top local shows. Brought to you five days a week. Email the show at info@dirtrackr.com.

The Outlaws are talking rule changes, and not everyone is a fan | Daily 11-4-2025

The World of Outlaws will have sprint car rule changes for 2026, and not everyone completely agrees with what's coming. We'll talk through what exactly is changing and why, plus Xtreme Midget results, a question about driver pay and more. Let's go!

It's Tuesday, November 4th, I'm Justin Fiedler. This is DIRTRACKR Daily presented by Kubota Genuine Parts.

Did you know that DIRTRACKR is now on Patreon? You can find the show at patreon.com/dirtrackr. It's free to sign up there, and just another way to keep up with everything dirt racing. If you sign up for the top tier premium membership there, you can get the Daily show ad free. That means no platform ads, and no ad content from me, just dirt racing. Members also get access to their own chat, extra content, and other perks. If you want to join, hit up patreon.com/dirtrackr. You can also support the show on YouTube with a channel membership. That gets you some added perks for just a few bucks a month. Click the join button at youtube.com/dirtrackr for more information on how to sign up.

A couple of weeks ago over on the bird app now known as X, sprint car driver Danny Dietrich did what Danny Dietrich does online, and that's stir things up. The first post from him said quote "Anyone wanna hear my opinion on World of Outlaws upcoming rule changes and Tommy D. I've absolutely had enough of the stupid bullshit opinions and tunnel vision" unquote. He followed that up about an hour later with a several paragraph long post about fuel cell tabs, and where things stand currently with a situation he clearly doesn't agree with. In the current World of Outlaws rulebook, it says that six mounting points for fuel cells are recommended, but for 2026, that verbiage is changing from recommended to effectively required. This fuel cell rule is one of several that are being implemented for next year, and a full bulletin was recently sent to teams. I have been sent a copy of that bulletin, and I thought we could talk about all of the items today. All of the changes coming are safety related, except for one. We'll get to that one at the end. The verbiage being added to the fuel cell rule Dietrich doesn't like is quote "Fuel cells must be mounted with at least 6 mounting points subject to World of Outlaws Officials approval. Example: Kaeding and Triple X devices are acceptable others will be approved case by case. Any type of web material or tether will not be allowed to be used a mounting point" unquote. All of this is in response to fuel cells becoming unattached from cars during crashes. Officials want to keep that from happening, but there is clearly not consensus for the best way to do that. There are also updates to the left side bodywork, with officials concerned here about drivers having a clear way to exit the car in crash. Any panels on that left side, or arm guards, can't exceed 31 inches above the lower rail, and there must be an 18 inch wide opening front to back. This one will potentially only affect those guys that run that larger left side arm guard panel. I don't know exactly the measurements, but names that come to mind who run a panel like that include Logan Schuchart, Tyler Courtney, Brent Marks, Aaron Reutzel, and Brenham Crouch among others. I'd need a tape measure though to know if those cars are legal as is, or if they would need adjustments. Rule change three is that carbon fiber floor pans are no longer allowed. Only steel or aluminum will be legal. I'm told this is in response to a crash this year where a driver's feet went through that carbon fiber floor pan. Seems reasonable. Up next is a rule change that was already spelled out for 2026. In section 5 under axles, the current rules read quote "Ultra-light rear axles are not recommended for 2025 and will not be allowed in 2026. After January 1st, 2026, the maximum inside diameter of the rear axle will be 1.8750." So that is just now official. Change number five is the addition of a chassis support bar from the hip rail up. This one is listed as recommended for 2026, not required. But it does say this will likely by mandatory for 2027 after more research. If you remember back to the Tyler Courtney crash at Eldora, and the subsequent photos shared by Dan Lawson from Schnee Lawson chassis, these would be what he called their "lifesaver bars." Not every driver runs these, but I believe they are an option from most builders. The final mention is the one non-safety related rule, and it has to do with wings, both front and top. The verbiage says quote "Front wings position and qualifying top wings: There has been some discussion about these two topics. After looking at all the facts, there will not be changes to these rules for 2026. There are plans to develop a single, precision manufactured front wing gauge that will be used by all sanctioning bodies and tracks going forward" unquote. Qualifying wings have certainly been a topic around here, especially earlier in the season around Kyle Larson and Paul Silva. I like that those aren't being outlawed. Also, that front wing gauge situation I'm assuming has to do with the type of issue we saw David Gravel suffer with High Limit where he was DQ'd for that wing being too far forward. In asking around a bit, all of these seem to be welcome changes, there is just the question over the implementation of the fuel cell mounting. It's important to note, the World of Outlaws along with Knoxville and a few other tracks have long been the leaders in rule changes. But High Limit's emergence has really changed things. We saw Mike Hess take High Limit a different direction this past season on some things, and it's possible they don't follow along with what's being implemented here with the Outlaws. I hope though things don't stray too far, so we aren't splitting cars across the country. We don't need a scenario where teams need an Outlaw car and a High Limit car to race each week.

At Millbridge last night to begin the Xtreme midget finale for 2025, Karter Sarff made a big charge through the field, going ninth to the win. That was his fourth win of the season, and 10th of is career with the series. Cannon McIntosh and Trevor Cline rounded out the podium. There was a big crash before halfway that changed the complexion of those front runners, with several leaders getting involved including Hayden Wise and championship leader Jacob Denney. Denney's car looked hurt, but the Keith Kunz team was masterful in the work area getting Denney back out and in the game. He drove back to a top ten finish to avoid his first DNF of the season. He will easily wrap up the series title tonight. Some others who raced last night, included Ty Gibbs, Nick Hoffman, and Sheldon Haudenschild. Gibbs ended up 12th, Hoffman was in a crash and finished 18th, and Sheldon missed the feature transfer in the B-Main. They will do it all over again tonight to close out the 2025 season. It will be live on DIRTVision if you want to tune in.

Last thing for today, we've got some questions and topics from YouTube/Patreon members, and we'll talk about one of those now. IvisionSchof2 says quote "I know you made a video in the past about the finances of operating a sprint car team, but I'm curious what drivers actually make in a year. I just saw a video that Sye Lynch made about $120k in winnings this year. Is that his money or is that split with the team owner? I know a lot of drivers have their own agreements on splitting prize money with their owners so not sure how many specifics you know but I’ve always been curious what drivers actually make in a year. I’m guessing the lifestyle of David Gravel is probably a lot different than a guy driving for a 8th or 10th place team on a national tour" unquote. Thanks for the question, and you'd be correct about lifestyles being different. The most standard deal for professional drivers in dirt racing, whether sprint cars or late models, is 40-50% of the winnings. Maybe the really top guys are able to get some guarantees, but this percentage split is most common. And, most drivers don't have anything but handshake agreements. Very few have actual signatures on paper. So, for example, Buddy Kofoid has $802,000 in race winnings this year, so he's keeping $300 to $400K of that. Remember though, a lot of drivers are on their own for travel and expenses, meaning plane tickets, hotel rooms, meals, etc. So those expenses come out of what they make. There may be additional bonuses for wins, and drivers will also get a piece of any year end championship payouts. The other big money maker for drivers can be merch sales, that's if they have a big enough following. It's not cheap to have a merch trailer at every race, and that means needing to sell some minimum amount of merch to even break even on a nightly basis. The top guys though do very well, into the six figures in profit a year on that front. Thanks for the question and for supporting DIRTRACKR.

That's the show for today. Don't forget, if you want even more dirt racing content, make sure to follow DIRTRACKR across social media. That means Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and more. Wherever you are, so is DIRTRACKR.

Hope you guys have a great Tuesday out there, we'll see you back here tomorrow!