DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Joey Tanner has won the NASCAR Local Racing Series Powered by O’Reilly Auto Parts National Championship, completing a landmark season for the Portland, Oregon, driver and the No. 46 dirt Super Late Model team owned by Darren Coffell.
Tanner is the first dirt-track driver to win the NASCAR local racing national championship since Gary Webb accomplished the feat in 2000.
The achievement carries special meaning for Tanner, who attended the NASCAR awards banquet with his father that year after the elder Tanner won the Portland Speedway track championship. Tanner remembers seeing Webb at the banquet; 26 years later, he joins him among NASCAR’s national champions.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the team I race for and the people who support us,” Tanner said. “This is a big win for the state of Oregon, for the West Coast, for our team and my family, my crew – everyone involved.”
Tanner earned 12 wins in 15 starts at Willamette Speedway in Lebanon, Oregon, and secured the national championship by two points. The title is the culmination of a focused season-long effort by Tanner, Coffell, crew chief Chris FitzJohn and the entire No. 46 team. Once the group recognized it was gaining ground in the national standings and building its advantage in the regional standings, it committed fully to the title pursuit.
“We were definitely focused on winning this championship,” Tanner said. “When we really started to notice us creeping up in the points nationally and the gap was getting bigger for the regional title, we really dug in. Darren stepped it up. We had more tires than I had ever seen. The equipment was always beautiful. He showed up ready to go.”
“Joey Tanner’s championship represents everything that makes NASCAR local racing special – talented competitors, dedicated teams and families, and communities that support their hometown racers week after week,” said Joey Dennewitz, NASCAR vice president of Industry Development. “Joey and the No. 46 team turned hard work, preparation and belief in one another into a historic season for Oregon and West Coast racing. We are proud to recognize him as the first dirt-track driver since Gary Webb in 2000 to win the national championship.”
“Congratulations to Joey Tanner on an outstanding season and on earning the 2026 NASCAR Local Racing Series Powered by O’Reilly Auto Parts National Championship,” said Diane Heatherly, sponsorship marketing manager for O’Reilly Auto Parts. “Joey’s 12 wins in 15 starts reflect the preparation, commitment and competitive spirit that define local racing. We are proud to celebrate Joey, the No. 46 team and the passionate fans whose support makes grassroots racing so special.”
Tanner was born and raised in Portland and still lives outside the city, where he works as a sales professional for Maletis Beverage. His racing career began in indoor go-karts at age 10. He later advanced through street stocks and late models before beginning his dirt-racing career in 2005.
The move to dirt became a defining turn in Tanner’s career. The speed, precision and risk required to handle a powerful late model on dirt quickly developed into a lasting passion.
“I love the dirt. There’s nothing like it,” Tanner said. “Driving a 900-horsepower late model on the verge of hitting the wall every lap – there’s just nothing like it. I’ve built a love and passion for it, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Tanner said the title validates what the close-knit No. 46 team believed it could accomplish, while bringing national recognition to a program built through years of work and steady success.
“I’m just so proud of our accomplishments with what we have,” Tanner said. “We know as a team we have a great program, but now everybody knows on a national level. We’ve been fast for a couple years, and I’ve been winning races for a long time. Doing it with a small team shows what you can accomplish with people who work hard and put all their effort into it.”
The championship is also a family achievement for Tanner, who is married and has two children and a stepson. It extends a racing tradition passed down by his father and creates another milestone for a family with deep roots in Oregon short-track racing.
The championship picture also showcased the breadth of NASCAR local racing. The top five in the national standings represents five distinct car, surface and regional combinations: Tanner in a dirt Super Late Model from the Northwest; Connor Hall in a pavement Late Model Stock from the Southeast; Mike Lichtfeld in a pavement Late Model from the Midwest; Burt Myers in a pavement Modified from the Southeast; and Mitch Keeter in a dirt Modified from the Midwest. Defending national champion Jacob Goede finished sixth in points this season.
“Whether it was winning the region, the state or even the national championship, we knew it was going to be tough,” Tanner said. “We knew we weren’t going to get that many races, so our throw-outs were going to have to be pretty good just to be in the hunt. We knew from the beginning that we had a shot to do something special, and we ran with it.”
