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Turn 2 Blog: The State of Short-Track Racing with Matt Weaver

*Turn 2 Blog is a regular feature on InsideCircleTrack.com. Here, site operators Michael Moats and Richard Allen take turns offering their thoughts on the NASCAR and pavement short track racing topics of the day. In this edition of the Turn 2 Blog we will be discussing five topics regarding short-track racing, whether it be on pavement or dirt. We are happy to be joined by one of the foremost authorities in short-track racing as Matt Weaver(@MattWeaverAW on Twitter) weighs in on our five questions. Matt is the proprietor of ShortTrackScene.com & provides regular contributions to AutoWeek. 1. What is the best thing…

Derek Griffith anxious to make Snowball Derby debut

The Snowball Derby held each year at the Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Fla. is one of the crown jewel events in the world of Asphalt Late Model racing. Dating back to 1968, some of the most legendary names in American racing have graced victory lane at the conclusion of the main event. Darrell Waltrip, Donnie Allison, Butch Lindley, Jody Ridley, Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott are just a few of the recognizable figures to have taken the checkered flag from this historic race. Just making the show is a remarkable accomplishment for many of the entrants. And one driver…

Brandon Setzer making his own way in short-track racing

Dennis Setzer won races on what are now called the NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series as well as taking scores of checkered flags from short-tracks all over the southeast and other parts of the country. And now, Brandon Setzer is picking up right where his father left off as a driver and by earning a living within the racing industry. The 25-year-old Setzer has been a frequent visitor to victory lane at Hickory Motor Speedway, which is just minutes from his Newton, NC home. And more, the second generation driver has earned trophies racing with…

Matt Craig enjoying his racing life as a PASS South champion

For seven consecutive years between 2009 and 2015 the Pro All Stars Series South division had seven different drivers to claim the season-long championship for the pavement-based Super Late Model circuit. But beginning in 2016 Matt Craig began a streak that has now reached its third straight season in which he has laid siege to that touring series title. On Saturday at the Hickory(NC) Motor Speedway the Kannapolis, NC driver placed third in the Mason-Dixon Mega Meltdown 200-lap race which was good enough to secure yet another championship for the driver of the No. 54 machine. While Craig and his…

Derek Ramstrom claims PASS victory at Hickory; Griffith, Craig earn titles

The Pro All Stars Series South for pavement Super Late Model machines made its way to Hickory Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon to contest its final race of the 2018 season. At the end of the 13th annual Mason-Dixon Mega Meltdown it was Derek Ramstrom of Worcester, Mass. who came away with the win on the historic North Carolina track. Matt Craig was crowned as the 2018 PASS South Series champion while Derek Griffith took PASS National Series honors for the season. Kodie Connor led the way in PASS qualifying as he turned a lap of 14.536 seconds around the…

Christopher Bell earns WoO Sprint Car victory at Eldora

ROSSBURG, OH – October 14, 2018 – Christopher Bell pounded the cushion to perfection up against the Eldora Speedway wall to win his fourth career World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series Feature, but first of 2018, Sunday evening at the Ohio half-mile. Bell fell as far back as eighth but took the lead on Lap 14 and never looked back. Donny Schatz extended his Series points lead finishing second for a Tony Stewart Racing/Curb-Agajanian Racing one-two punch. Parker Price-Miller, who led the first 13 laps, completed the podium. Tim Shaffer won the Sears Craftsman Dash and led the field…

Can A Racer Have A Great Career Without Success in NASCAR?

There is a prevailing attitude, among some fans and media at least, that a race car driver’s career will go down as incomplete or even unsuccessful if he/she has not made it to and succeeded at the “big time” levels of the sport. If said driver has not won races in NASCAR, IndyCar, Formula 1, or the NHRA they have failed in some way and will thus be living with some degree of regret at having not made it to the top. And while such a statement may at least be somewhat true of a baseball player who makes it…

Kres VanDyke focused on Martinsville’s ValleyStar Credit Union 300

Kres VanDyke has had what many Late Model Stock Car racers would consider to be an excellent season at Kingsport Speedway in 2018. The Abingdon, Virginia driver took four checkered flags and ultimately earned a second place finish in the east Tennessee track’s final standings. But that’s by the standards of other racers. Based on VanDyke’s past record of success the 37-year-old was hoping for a just a little bit more. “The season hasn’t been as good as it has been in the past couple of years, but it’s been pretty good,” VanDyke stated in an interview with InsideCircleTrack.com. “We’ve…

Nik Williams closes out 2018 at Kingsport Speedway in strong fashion

Nik Williams finished the season at Kingsport Speedway about as hot as a driver possibly could. The Greeneville, Tenn. racer won six of the final eight Late Model Stock Car races held on the upper east Tennessee track known as ‘The Concrete Jungle’ to close out the 2018 campaign. The driver points out that his strong late season charge was aided by the preparation leading into each race night. “We work on it all week” Williams explained in an interview with InsideCircleTrack.com. “It’s like having another job. When you get home you get in the shop and get after it….

Logan Seavey takes ARCA checkered flag on the dirt at DuQuoin

For the second time in the 2018 season the ARCA Racing Series took to the dirt to stage a race. this time it would be at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds for the Menards General Tire Grabber 100. At the end of the afternoon it was Logan Seavey driving a Venturini Motorsports Toyota who came away from the Illinois track with the win at the end of the Labor Day classic ARCA Racing Series points leader Sheldon Creed led the way in qualifying with a lap of 31.805 seconds around the one-mile clay oval. That lap bettered the former track previous…