DIRTRACKR Daily Podcast - Episode Transcript
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Is parity emerging with Lucas & the Outlaws? Hoosier Hundred trophy update | DIRTRACKR Daily 3/10/21
It is Wednesday, March 10th, two thousand and twenty one and you are tuned into DIRTRACKR Daily. I'm Justin Fiedler.
Today on the show I've got some thoughts and some questions about the start of the 2021 super late model season, I've also got an update on the stolen Hoosier Hundred trophy, new podcast episodes to check out and more, so let's jump in.
Now that we are nine races deep into the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series season and six races into the World of Outlaws Late Model Series season, there are a few things that stand out that I wanted to discuss. The first is Brandon Sheppard. We talked back on February 17th on this show about his struggles to start 2021, and this past weekend's race at Smoky Mountain didn't do much to show that they are turning things around. He was 8th in his qualifying group, third to second in his heat, and 9th to 8th in the feature. Not a disaster by any stretch, but this just isn't what we've come to know from this team. He still doesn't have a top five finish with the Outlaws this season, and just one with Lucas and I can't seem to A, figure out what's up, and B why nobody else seems to be really talking about this. In the previous four seasons since joining Rocket, Sheppard has 63 Outlaw wins. Let me repeat that. 63 wins in FOUR seasons. In 164 Outlaw starts over that span he has 135 top FIVE finishes. That's over 82% of races he's finished top five. And now suddenly, he doesn't have a top five Outlaw finish in his previous seven starts. And this from a driver and a team that has averaged just a little more than seven non-top five finishes for a full season. It hasn't hurt the team's chances yet, as they are second in the standings 66 points back, and we've seen them go on crazy runs, but this is wild to witness.
And in thinking about Sheppard's struggles and looking around at the other racing, I'm wondering if we aren't seeing some parity emerge between the top two series. The name of the game in 2020 was the big three. Sheppard, Brandon Overton, and Jimmy Owens really dominated the headlines for most of the year, and yet suddenly all that has changed. Overton has bagged some wins so far in 2021, but Owens and Sheppard are both winless at this point. And in the process, a lot of other names have won races. Guys like Kyle Strickler, Devin Moran and Hudson O'Neal are race winners and at or near the top of the standings. We've had five different winners in six Outlaw starts and eight different winners in nine Lucas races. My late model knowledge only goes back a few years, but for the late model fans tuned in, is this common? It feels like we usually have a dominant group emerge, and early, but that hasn't been the case this year. Let me know your thoughts in the comments or on social media. To start the 2020 Lucas season, both Tim McCreadie and Brandon Sheppard already had multiple wins in the first nine races, and two years ago with the Outlaws, Sheppard won four of the first six nights. Could this be a season where we see someone maybe we weren't expecting win one or both of these championships? That feels right now like it's absolutely in play. The other question I have is will Brandon Overton stay out with Lucas and try and win a championship? After Florida he leads the points standings by 65 over Hudson O'Neal. Last year he was a pick and choose guy, and I'm not clear on what his intentions are this season. I feel like I've heard and read that he's following Lucas and also that he won't. Is the draw of a real chance to win a title big enough to get his team to commit? Being a southern based team, you'd expect him to be at Bristol on March 19th and 20th for the Dirt Nationals, especially with $10,000 and $50,000 to the winners, but as of March 1st he isn't on the prelim entry list. That could mean he's headed to Atomic and Brownstown with Lucas that weekend. If there is a season to try and win a title, this feels like it for Overton. He's been so good lately, and with Davenport and Owens way down the order, the door is wide open. Chime in here and let me know what you think of the late model season through these opening weeks. Is this what you expected? Will Sheppard turn it around? Will Overton stay out with Lucas? I'm curious what your thoughts are.
We talked last week on the show about a stolen Hoosier Hundred trophy that belongs to Oklahoma racer Jack Howerton, and as of Monday, that trophy is back with it's rightful owner. A group of race fans tracked down the stolen piece and returned it to Howerton, who recently had a trailer full of his belongings stolen. The trophy was given to Howerton for his 1974 win at the Hoosier Hundred, a race in which he was a rookie. He qualified on the pole, and led every lap en route to the win, beating guys like Al Unser, Mario Andretti, and AJ Foyt. It's great that this story has a happy ending, with Howerton now back in posession of the important piece. To see more on the story, check out newson6.com.
If you are looking for other dirt racing podcasts to listen to this week, there are plenty of new episodes. Winged Nation has Cody Jacobs, and Carson Macedo and Aaron Reutzel. Loudpedal is talking the Jason McDougal alphabet run at the the Chili Bowl, Stick Signals has Kyle Strickler, the Rigsby Report has Kenny Wallace, Forward Bite has Corey Lajoie, Ohio Dirt has Zeb Wise, Quicktime has Joe Kosiski of I-80 Speedway, Passing Points has Cody Brewer, Midwest Autosports has Kyle Schuett, I was actually on Track Talk with Dylan Friebel, and there are new episodes of the Dirt Nerds and Wednesdays with Wayne. To see the full list of shows and episodes, with links to everything, visit dirtrackr.com/podcasts.
And if you haven't checked it out yet this week, I'd encourage you to listen to the newest DIRTRACKR Conversations episode featuring Tony Rost. Tony is going to compete weekly at Knoxville this season in 360 sprint car competition, and he has a very unique story and some interesting ideas and thoughts on the business of sprint car racing. Find that episode in this podcast feed and the dirtrackr YouTube channel. Tony was episode 32 of Conversations, and those past episodes include some great chats. Sprint car folks, late models, media people, mod guests, there have been all sorts of different conversations. Georgia Henneberry, Josh Baughman, and Jordan Swindell are currently the three most watched on the YouTube channel. Find every episode there, or at dirtrackr.com/conversations. If you'd like to suggest or request a guest, drop me a line via email or social media.
There is again nothing on the streaming schedule today except FloRacing 24/7. To see the full daily streaming schedule, with links to watch, visit dirtrackr.com/watchtonight.
That's it for the show today, hope everyone has a good Tuesday.
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