CONCORD, N.C. — The northernmost portion of the schedule awaits the World of Outlaws Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision this week.
The first two legs of the Northern Swing at 141 Speedway and Ogilvie Raceway are in the books, with plenty more racing left on the road to next weekend’s NAPA Auto Parts Gopher 50 at Deer Creek Speedway. Another Minnesota staple is coming up on Wednesday, June 24, when the Series returns to I-94 emr Speedway in Fergus Falls for a $12,000-to-win program.
From there, it’s off to Grand Forks, N.D., for the annual trip to River Cities Speedway on Friday, June 26, which pays $15,000 to the winner. After a travel day on Saturday, the tour will return to Minot, N.D., on Sunday, June 28, for a $20,000-to-win show at one of the premier facilities in dirt-track racing.
TURNING POINT?
Nick Hoffman got his season rolling again with finishes of third at 141 and second at Ogilvie. But when you’re battling Bobby Pierce for a championship, sometimes a pair of solid podium finishes still isn’t enough to gain ground.
Thanks to Pierce’s wins at both tracks, the gap back to Hoffman has grown to 55 points. The remainder of the northern swing will be crucial if Hoffman intends on keeping the title fight close for the rest of the year. If the No. 9 can’t win races and close in on Pierce up north – a region he’s called one of his favorites in the country to race in – the task will only get harder once the series travels to some of Pierce’s best tracks later in the year.
It’s been three years since the World of Outlaws last raced at I-94, but Pierce won on that night while Hoffman finished eighth. Hoffman had the upper hand at River Cities last year when he won ahead of Pierce in sixth, while they both finished on the podium last year at Nodak.
MIDSEASON SHAKE UP
It had been a rough start to the Northern Swing for Drake Troutman, as he was a DNF at both 141 and Ogilvie due to mechanical issues. Then on Wednesday, news broke that Troutman and G.R. Smith Motorsports have gone their separate ways.
Troutman isn’t giving up on his full-time World of Outlaws bid and is working to find a ride for the rest of the tour’s stint up north. As it stands, Troutman is holding down the fifth spot in the point standings with four podium finishes to his credit. While victory lane has eluded him, he has been in contention to win several races, and his 99 laps led in features this year are the most of anyone without a win.
The 21-year-old Pennsylvanian should be a frontrunner in whichever car he ends up in this week – he’s never raced at I-94, but he finished in the top five at both River Cities and Nodak in 2025.
ON THE RISE
It’s no secret that Ethan Dotson wasn’t satisfied with how he started his second full-time World of Outlaws campaign. He’s still working toward the ultimate goal of being a regular winner on tour, but he has been making significant gains as of late.
Following a stretch of eight races without a top five, Dotson strung three of them together on both nights at West Virginia Motor Speedway and at 141. He was in position to grab another one at Ogilvie with his sixth-starting spot before dropping back in the feature and finishing 18th.
Nevertheless, Dotson is rolling north with a renewed sense of confidence, and his points position reflects that. He was briefly up to sixth, but Ryan Gustin’s third-place run at Ogilvie was enough to retake that position going into I-94. A spot in the top five is still within reach for Dotson, with 43 points separating him from Troutman in fifth.
BATTLING BACK
Early in the year, it looked like Daulton Wilson was going to leave every other candidate for this season’s MD3 Rookie of the Year Award in the dust. But Trey Mills has had something to say about that.
Wilson and his Big Frog/Viper Motorsports crew had several strong runs in the opening months of the season, but have struggled as of late, with Wilson’s last top 10 coming eight races ago at Marion Center Raceway.
Meanwhile, Mills has finished in the top 10 four times since then and brought the gap down to 68 points with plenty of racing left.
The rookie battle isn’t the only one Mills has to worry about, as he’s tied for ninth in the overall points with Dennis Erb Jr., who has also been hitting his stride with finishes of sixth or better in three of his last four starts.
