Fast Talk presented by MD3 and Five Star Bodies
Fast Talk: Modoc, chilly nights (and a few beefs)
After a busy late October weekend with Jonathan Davenport picking up more than $65,000 in purse money, our roundtable checks in for the weekly feature presented by MD3 and Five Star Race Cars Bodies (edited for clarity and length):
Provide brief reaction to the World of Outlaws weekend at Modoc.
Kevin Kovac, DirtonDirt senior writer: Was Modoc worthy of a national touring series doubleheader? It sure was. The rebuilt facility looked outstanding on a big stage. I was most struck by that gray, gumbo clay surface, which made it hard to conceive that the place was in the Southeast where red clay dominates. That shiny, smooth track produced some entertaining racing. What I especially liked is that there was still a cushion up top that drivers could sling around to make time if they hit it just right, which offered a contrast in grooves. The crowd looked great (the event enjoyed perfect weather) and the WoO feature ended both nights before 9:30 p.m., so just a successful weekend in all ways. I think we’ll be seeing more from Modoc.
Todd Turner, DirtonDirt managing editor: Quite eventful from Cody Overton’s emotional first WoO victory (then scraping under Tyler Erb the following night), Bobby Pierce’s weekend of downs and ups (and downs again) and Jonathan Davenport winning for the first time in nearly two months (and backing that up with Sunday's Blue-Gray victory). Also the Senoia-fication of Modoc’s surface is opening more Southern eyes to a different style racing. Drivers averaged 19-second laps in Saturday’s feature on Modoc's “icy slick” surface compared to a dominating 2018 winner averaging 16.8-second laps. For those in the back that can’t hear, slower is better.
Kyle McFadden, DirtonDirt staff reporter: We all had that feeling Cody Overton’s first World of Outlaws victory was coming at his home track, didn’t we? After winning a pair of Modoc events earlier this season, amid the season he’s having with new car owner James Trantina, Friday felt inevitable — though holding off Bobby Pierce still required near-perfect driving of his own. Jonathan Davenport’s Saturday victory was significant, too. He snapped a 56-day drought after enduring a 70-day gap earlier this year, making this his first season since the Covid-disrupted 2020 campaign with two stretches that long between victories. Pierce might have been the weekend’s most eventful story with charges from 20th to second and 21st into contention for Saturday’s win before losing power. It was encouraging for Pierce to have race-winning speed again, but that DNF leaves Nick Hoffman an opening at 76 points back entering Charlotte’s World Finals championship weekend.
Bryan Ault, DirtonDirt contributing writer: Jonathan Davenport has had several podium runs this season, especially since his runner-up finish at Lucas Oil’s finale at Shelby County Speedway in July. He nearly won the North-South 100, finished second during a prelim outing at the Dirt Track World Championship, and lost at the finish line to Jimmy Owens on Thursday at Volunteer. On Saturday night, Davenport was able to take home his first trophy since winning at Port Royal Speedway on Aug. 29. I’m sure all those runner-up finishes were discouraging, so it’s welcome to see him back in victory lane (and again the following night at Cherokee!).
What was the weekend’s best story to tell?
Turner: Josh Putnam’s dramatic, come-from-nowhere Coors Light Fall Classic victory at Whynot. Well, coming from nowhere doesn’t quite seem accurate for a driver who was running third most of the race, but Ashton Winger and Drake Troutman were clearly the class of the field but their slide-jobbing, fender-bagging, elbow-throwing laps late in the race allowed Putnam to sneak underneath for a career-high $20,000. It ended Putnam’s 16-month losing streak and gave a huge boost to a team that robbed the T-shirt earnings to get into the Whynot pits. Also note this: make a trip to Whynot and you’ll see a humdinger. Few tracks produce the excitement and racing quality of the Mississippi track and the national tours could do worse than replacing one of their blah tracks with Rodney Wing’s oval.
McFadden: Jimmy Owens winning Thursday’s FloRacing Night in America race at Volunteer Speedway was absolutely the weekend’s best story. A 93-race national touring drought, a home crowd stirred up to see him win again and the beloved Bulls Gap track facing an uncertain future — then he beats Jonathan Davenport by 0.002 of a second. You couldn’t script it much better. What stuck with me was Davenport admitting he was rooting for the Newport, Tenn., veteran until he got to second and had his own chance to win. I think everyone there Thursday at least cracked a smile seeing Owens back in victory lane. If that was indeed the final race there — which I have a hard time believing — then, man, what a sendoff it was.
Ault: I’ll second Kyle’s take of Owens winning at Volunteer. It's right up there with Josh Rice winning the North-South 100. Our sport’s young drivers are fun to watch and make some dazzling moves on the track, but it’s refreshing to see the older drivers I grew up watching take home a big win. How can you not be happy for Owens, snapping a one-year long winless streak? I don’t think anybody could have expected that. Including Eldora’s crown jewels, Owens has failed to make the starting field for 11 national touring features in 2026, yet out of the blue he pulls out a win against the sport’s young stars. If that was the last lap at Volunteer Speedway, the track went out on a high note, but let’s hope the high-banked East Tennessee oval isn’t going away.
Kovac: There were several good ones across the country, but how could you not single out Cody Overton’s first-ever WoO victory Friday at Modoc, a track that’s 20 minutes from his native Evans, Ga.? How much that win meant to him was unmistakable. His smile in victory lane could’ve lit up the whole place, and then hearing his voice crack as he spoke of his accomplishment added more to the moment. Just so cool that Overton was able to celebrate his first national touring series checkered flag with so many of his family members, friends and supporters.
Another recent bit of news or result that caught your eyes or ears?
McFadden: Garrett Alberson getting back to victory lane in Friday’s Fall Classic prelim at Whynot caught my attention. The $3,000 payday might not jump off the page, but that was a big deal for a driver only a month removed from returning after a six-week absence with facial injuries suffered at the North-South 100. Getting back in the car was a milestone in itself. Getting back to winning is another, and it was good to see him have that moment.
Ault: An event caught my attention last weekend. We often talk here about ways tracks can spice things up for fans during holiday weekends and how they can get the community interested in racing, yet most never do. Well, Montpelier (Ind.) Speedway certainly does every year with their annual Monster Mash, which I covered Saturday. The track goes all out with its Halloween-themed race with fans and children showing up in costume. Even track employees get dressed up. The warm temperatures brought fans out in droves, including hundreds of kids. Big shoutout to Ryan Sutter, the promoter at the northeast Indiana track, who really seems to grasp that younger fans need to be involved. What a great way to get younger generations interested in racing. More tracks should do something similar.
Kovac: Sad to hear of veteran western Pennsylvania car owner Joe Corrado’s passing last Tuesday at the age of 71 following a four-year battle with brain cancer. The No. 10 Corrado fielded was one of his area’s most recognizable Dirt Late Models for years and he enjoyed plenty of success, including multiple Lernerville Speedway and even a 2022 WoO win with Jared Miley at Port Royal Speedway. What struck me in the wake of his death were the heartfelt Facebook posts honoring Corrado that I noticed several of his drivers — Alex Ferree, Levi Yetter, Michael Norris — authored. It’s clear that Corrado was a special to the people he touched and will be missed on the western Pennsylvania racing scene.
Turner: I’m amused by the creativity of the ax-throwing bonus for the Rio Grande Waste Services Wild West Shootout — and I'm predicting lots of drivers who miss the target altogether. Pro tip for those in the Central Arizona infield: don’t stand near the target.
Would you rather be too cold at a race early in the season … or late in the season?
Ault: I’d much rather be not cold at all. Give me hot and humid, 95-degree, days and sultry summer nights. If I’m forced to choose when to be cold, it would be earlier in the season because I know the racing season has just begun and it’s only a matter of time before the weather gets warmer. Cooler temps at the end of the year is a sign the season is drawing to a close and winter is approaching — and that’s not fun to think about.
McFadden: Later in the season is more tolerable for me. Going from the Wild West Shootout in Arizona or Georgia-Florida Speedweeks to covering a race in the Midwest in March can be a shock to the system. By October and November, I’m a little more accustomed to the chill, and it feels like part of the fall atmosphere. It probably depends on what you enjoy, though. Race-hungry fans will brave just about anything to see a race early in the season. Those of us who love fall might have a little more tolerance for those cold nights late in the year.
Turner: Never being cold is the right answer, but in the spirit of the question, I can endure the chill for late-season events much better. A warm autumn day where you pull on a hoodie or a coat is far preferable than heading to the track in March when anyone in their right mind knows this race should’ve never been scheduled in the first place and we’re all dressed like Randy in “A Christmas Story.”
Kovac: Oh, I can definitely handle cold temperatures late in the season much better than early. It’s somewhat a mental thing — the arrival of autumn conditions me to expect chillier conditions, while races early in the season after a cold winter have me pining for springtime warmth. But maybe it’s something that tracks back to my childhood, when most of the major big-block modified events came after Labor Day and I looked forward to those races not only because of their importance but because the colder weather meant I’d have a chance to wear my Billy Pauch or CAM2 Racing Fuels winter coats.
Anything griping you recently?
Kovac: I think we all hate when we’re in James Essex “Please stay green!” mode watching a battle for the lead and then a car slows on the track to draw a caution flag. That moment is even more frustrating when you realize the machine causing that caution is a provisional starter in the race. In fact, there was a recent feature that I couldn’t help but notice had all three of its caution flags brought out by drivers who took provisionals to get in the race. I got a little angry when I realized the trend, and it got me wondering if perhaps series need to track the number of cautions charged to provisional starters over the course of a season.
McFadden: The amount of AI-generated racing graphics infiltrating social media, especially from startup content creators grabbing photographers’ work, running it through AI and thinking a photo credit makes everything OK. Giving credit isn’t the same as getting permission. Somebody bought the photo equipment, traveled to the track and put in the work to capture that image. Their livelihood deserves more consideration than having their photos treated as free material to build someone else’s following. And when AI distorts the cars, lettering and sponsor logos, that’s even more of a bad look. There’s room for new voices in racing, and I want to see people create things. But ask permission, pay photographers when required and put some original work into what you’re building. A creditline doesn’t erase the responsibility to respect somebody else’s work.
Ault: I gripe a lot about how long races take, so I’ll leave that to someone else. At a recent event, I saw a driver try and accelerate his way out of a spin and go in the wrong direction in the process, even as the caution was already out and drivers toward the back of the field were slowing down. How he avoided contact with competitors is a miracle. Drivers slowing down and bringing out a caution on their own, potentially ruining a great finish, is a topic that gets a lot of discussion and rightfully so, but speeding up just to keep your position after spinning on your own is ridiculous and could be costly for others. Start penalizing drivers for getting on the gas when they should be on the brakes.
Turner: Drivers running without numbers on the sides of a car? I get it for a four-banger at some rando track with 133 paying patrons. If you’re in a national touring event that’s streamed, officials should require numbers on both sides of cars. Numberless isn't quaint, it’s bush league. Also, I appreciate MLRA committing to 100 laps at the Liberty 100, forcing every driver into pit strategy of when to refuel at the half-mile oval. But if any driver had an inkling of making it 100 laps on a single tank, it was wiped out by too many pace and caution laps, which, following a single-car caution, penalized drivers on the track and aided those pitting with unnecessary extra time to fuel up and change tires. As much as possible officials should follow Eldora’s time-tested rule of not waiting on Jesus himself in the hot pit, returning the race to a green flag as quickly as possible.
