BARBERVILLE, Fla. — The “Late Model Palooza” is back.
For the seventh time, Volusia Speedway Park will open its doors for multiple divisions of dirt Late Models to tackle for three nights in the 2026 edition of DIRTcar Sunshine Nationals from Wednesday-Saturday, Jan. 21-24.
The seventh edition of the track’s opening weekend will feature World of Outlaws Late Models presented by DIRTVision, Crate Racin’ USA (CRUSA) 604 Late Models, and 602 Late Models each night, starting with open practice for all teams on Wednesday.
While each night of Sunshine Nationals will feature a complete program for the Outlaws, Thursday and Friday will see CRUSA and 602 Late Models competing in split Features to gain event points. The 604 Late Models will compete for $1,500-to-win, while the 602 Late Models will race for a $1,000 payday.
The top 20 in event points from the two divisions after Friday will clinch a guaranteed position in Saturday night’s features.
The finale’s program will begin with Last Chance Showdowns, then close with 20 laps and $3,000 up for grabs in the 602 Late Models, along with 30 laps and a $10,000 prize in the 604 Late Models.
WINTER BRAWL
While Sunshine Nationals marks an anticipated opening weekend for the World of Outlaws and Volusia Speedway Park, it is a key stop in the heart of the Crate Racin’ USA Winter Shootout Series.
Entering the weekend, Alabama’s Deisel Jones holds the points lead with a third-place run in the Ice Bowl at Talladega Short Track and a win at Hendry County Motorsports Park.
Ten points separate Jones from Georgia natives Michael Page and Koulten Herbert from stealing the Winter Shootout points lead. While Jones and Herbert seek to leave Volusia with their first career surfboard trophy, Page has sought his first visit back to Volusia victory lane since 2021.
SUNSHINE STATERS
As the best dirt late model drivers in the country converge in Central Florida for the traditional tour-opening time of the year, there will be a plethora of Florida natives who will compete to defend the “Sunshine State” turf.
Jacksonville’s Trynt Lloyd earned five wins across the 2025 points season to score the 604 Late Model championship. Lloyd also earned a podium in the 604 Late Model Sunshine Nationals finale last January.
Bubba Roling began his 2025 late model season with his first career triumph in the 602 Late Models during the Saturday “Late Model Palooza” finale. The No. 515 Capital Race Cars machine returns to keep the event guarded by Florida faces.
SOUTHERN CHARM
Since the event’s inception in 2020, Sunshine Nationals has evolved into a stage that rising Southern racers have used to work their way up the ranks of dirt late model racing.
In 2020, Kyle Bronson emerged as event champion while Cody Overton took a 602 Late Model win before moving up the ranks to the World of Outlaws. Trey Mills has taken multiple feature wins at Volusia between the 602 and 604 Late Models, but is seeking a first in a Super Late Model as a rookie for the Outlaws in 2026.
Sitting seventh and ninth in Winter Shootout points, respectively, include Lucas Oil Late Model racer Clay Harris and World of Outlaws rookie Daulton Wilson as they look ahead to an active schedule in Barberville.
CHANGE & HISTORY
Much discussion has been made about the new surface that Volusia Speedway Park applied after the conclusion of the 2025 World of Outlaws Bike Week Jamboree and debuted for the local season’s opening event.
While the new surface has been a part of the year’s most thrilling races at the Volusia County racetrack, it remains the traditional half-mile that produces high speeds and close-quarters competition that racers expect in Florida.
The gumbo compound is an added variable in the longer equation that drivers will need to solve for a chance to leave the track with a career-defining victory. Among the national faces of dirt late model racing, Outlaws Drake Troutman and Ethan Dotson got their first tastes with a 1-2 finish in the Emil and Dale Reutimann Memorial, Cody Overton trying his hand at the surface in October in a 604 Late Model, and 2025 prelim winner Mark Whitener making scattered starts.
