This season is primed to be one of the most wide-open years in the history of 410 winged sprint car racing.
The division now features, well, division as there are two national tours. The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series has been joined by High Limit Racing, which acquired and absorbed the regionally focused All Star Circuit of Champions during the offseason.
The World of Outlaws released an 86-race schedule with events at 41 tracks in 19 states.
High Limit Racing announced a 60-race schedule featuring shows at 36 tracks in 19 states. Both series showcase multiple six-figure payouts and several dozen combined races that offer at least $20,000 to win.
“In my entire lifetime, this year would be the best year to be a winged sprint car driver in the United States of America,” California driver Dominic Scelzi said. “Not just opportunity, you have purse increases across the board. You have more races, big races, weekly races, options than before.
“You have a lot of really good guys that are now being able to choose where they race, so theoretically you’re splitting the top competition to allow guys to have career-defining runs and moments this season.”
Earlier in his career, Scelzi bounced between racing in the Midwest and on his home turf along the West Coast.
The last three years he has focused on competition in California, Oregon and Washington. Scelzi recently announced plans to spend the first two months of this season on the road, competing in select World of Outlaws and High Limit Racing events.
“There’s huge money being thrown around on the West Coast with High Limit having two $100,000-to-win races as well as the Outlaws having an $83,000-to-win event,” he said. “We have more national races on the West Coast, and for us we had a great run last year. How do we get better and grow as a team? That’s racing those guys more.
“With having so many races that pay well, it was perfect for us to start the season and to throw us to the wolves, racing with the Outlaws and High Limit to raise our level as a team and, hopefully, come home to the West Coast and carry that speed over.”
The World of Outlaws has long been the highest level of winged sprint car racing and now faces a new challenger in High Limit Racing, which is owned by NASCAR champion Kyle Larson and five-time World of Outlaws champion Brad Sweet.
Both series feature more than a dozen full-time competitors. David Gravel, Carson Macedo, Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart, Sheldon Haudenschild and more are returning to The Greatest Show on Dirt.
High Limit Racing picked up Sweet and his car owner, former NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne, along with 2023 Outlaws Spencer Bayston, James McFadden and Jacob Allen in addition to a strong group of drivers who previously raced regularly with the All Stars as well as fan favorite Rico Abreu.
“I feel like as a team, me, (crew chief) Barry Jackson and (car owner) Chad Clemens agreed it’s an opportunity with a lot of upside potential along with something new and different,” Bayston said.
“CJB (Motorsports) has been in the sport a long time. They have multiple years on the Outlaws tour. At the end of the day, my owner and crew chief wanted to work under an organization that was led by racers. I think what High Limit is offering is really exciting and a good opportunity and we wanted to be part of that.
“I think there’s a number of things. With it being a new, exciting series that got a bump in the purse, they added another list of big events for us teams. Also, the charter system we could be a part of could definitely add a twist to sprint car racing that is now in demand with everything that is structured in the streaming and the following that it has.
“That freedom they are granting us (to race in unlimited events not sanctioned by High Limit Racing) will give us the opportunity to participate in almost all the big Outlaws events. We feel we didn’t give up much.”
Live streaming has been a catalyst for a lot of the growth as the World of Outlaws’ parent company — World Racing Group — owns DIRTVision while High Limit Racing is tied to FloRacing — a division of FloSports.
That has added a dimension of viewership that is unprecedented in grassroots dirt-track racing.
“The awareness is higher than it’s ever been,” World Racing Group CEO Brian Carter said. “I think the awareness continues to grow and grow and we’re proud to be leading that attack for a long time now. This is definitely the growth that I like to see happening and it’s happening at a pace that’s a very stable, steady increase, which is a much more stable growth rate than a flash in the pan.”
The line was drawn in the sand by many tracks when it came to scheduling this year, but a handful are hosting both World of Outlaws and High Limit Racing events. Riverside Int’l Speedway in West Memphis, Ark., welcomes High Limit Racing in April and the World of Outlaws in October.
“I did it because we haven’t had them in quite a while,” Riverside Int’l Speedway owner Clayton Allen said. “I think the Outlaws were there last in (2018). Our market cannot handle them every year and justify that kind of money.
“The High Limit started out I was trying to get them on Greg’s (Hodnett) memorial race in the middle of June, but the schedule wouldn’t work out properly to do that. They gave me that date (in April). It’s our 75th anniversary this year. We’re gonna go big or go home.
“If you’re a race fan and those two series are coming in, I spaced them as the bookends, I think it’ll be awesome. It’s cool for Riverside. The history that Riverside has, we have the most drivers in the Hall of Fame in Knoxville than any other track. Sprint car history is absolutely here and in my opinion what better way to celebrate our 75th birthday than that.”
Time will tell regarding the impact of two national tours, but the excitement level surrounding the sport continues to rise.
“I think it’s as healthy as I’ve seen it,” Bayston said. “Listening to the veterans who have been around the sport for a long time, they say it’s in a very healthy spot. There’s a lot of good things going for sprint car racing. With all the big-money events, there’s a lot of excitement with the streaming services in existence.
“There’s a whole opportunity for teams, drivers, owners, fans. There’s more fans watching sprint car racing than ever.
“I haven’t been a part of sprint car racing as much as some of the people I’m racing against, but in the short span I have it’s been cool to see the rapid transition. The size of these races we’re competing in have grown the last few years, whether that’s from the streaming dollars coming into the sport, more fan engagement.
“Sprint car racing has always been exciting and drawn a lot of hype. When you throw out a million dollar race, a quarter-million dollar race, six-figure payouts, it brings a whole new level of excitement to the table.”
Simply put, more attention on the sport is showing up with fuller grandstands and strong viewership numbers via streaming. That is allowing many of the renowned tracks to host more big-money events and some of the smaller facilities to welcome the top-level series for the first time in a long time or perhaps ever.
“What’s happening is 410 racing is gaining popularity,” Sweet said. “In regions that haven’t been able to support winged 410 racing in the past, there’s groups or individuals with desire to gain momentum to have 410 racing. We’re seeing record crowds and more teams than we’ve seen. I think the market has picked up. The sport as a whole has grown immensely the last three or four years. We have a lot going on with High Limit.
“The Outlaws are stepping up their program. I think there will be some rivalries. There will be more big races and big events and more anticipation from the fans than before. I think you’ll see regional groups competing with national groups. A sprint car fan will have the most content they’ve ever had whether it’s watching races on the streaming services or going to races in their region.”
The opportunity is ripe for drivers to race for a lot more money and fans to see top-level competition a lot more regularly than ever.
“The whole tide is rising and it’s fun to see,” Carter said. “I’m optimistic about where we stand relative to increases in awareness. I don’t know anybody who becomes familiar with what we do and doesn’t enjoy it. So my job is to bring awareness.”
THIS ARTICLE IS REPOSTED FROM THE MARCH 20 EDITION OF SPEED SPORT INSIDER
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