GEORGETOWN, Del. — The quest for the most prestigious title in Big Block Modified racing begins this weekend, as the Super DIRTcar Series kicks off its season.
Saturday’s Delaware Diamond 50 is the first of two stops at Georgetown Speedway in this season. Drivers will battle in a 50-lap feature, with one driver gaining early-season momentum toward a championship.
Joining the Super DIRTcar Series this weekend are the track’s Sportsman, Delmarva Charger, Delaware Super Truck and Little Lincoln divisions.
Title Defense Begins
For the second straight season, everyone on the Super DIRTcar Series is trying to knock reigning champion Mat Williamson off his throne.
The St. Catharines, Ontario, driver won his third series title last November, and enters the season with momentum after earning his third Big Gator trophy at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals.
“Money Mat” earned a victory at Georgetown in 2022 and finished fourth when the series visited in November. If he can get a second win at the track on Saturday, it’ll be his series triumph, tying him with Bob McCreadie for seventh on the all-time wins list.
Payne & Sears
In last year’s Delaware Diamond at Georgetown, fans were treated to an epic battle between Tim Sears Jr. and feature winner Alex Payne. Both drivers are returning to Super DIRTcar Series competition in 2026 and aim to have a strong start to the season at a place where they’ve had success.
Payne’s win in 2025 was his second victory of the season, a total he’d add to one week later at The Dirt Track at Charlotte. The Hopewell, N.Y., driver has made two starts at the “First State” facility, finishing fourth on the opening night of Mid-Atlantic Championship weekend.
Sears, meanwhile, earned his runner-up finish in his only start at the track.
Blasting Off
Last season, Alex Yankowski’s second-place finish at New Egypt Speedway paved the way toward his second-place finish in the standings.
The Covington Township, Pa., driver has three victories at Georgetown in his career, including the opening night of Mid-Atlantic Championship weekend last season. He has two other wins at the facility, along with eight podium finishes.
Yankowski enters the year with four Super DIRTcar Series wins after triumphs at Can-Am Speedway and Volusia Speedway Park in 2025.
Super Start?
Ten-time champion Matt Sheppard returns to the Super DIRTcar Series in search of a record 11th championship in 2026, and his quest starts at a place he’s found past success.
The Savannah, N.Y., driver has four career victories at the track, with his last coming in August of 2024. He also has 11 podium finishes there. In two Super DIRTcar Series starts at the track, he’s finished seventh and 15th.
A win by “Super Matt” this weekend would be his 104th series victory, as he continues his chase to catch Brett Hearn at the top of the series all-time wins list (141).
Spoiling The Party
While the Super DIRTcar Series regulars are all hunting for a win in the battle for the championship, there are plenty of drivers invading Georgetown who are chasing the checkered flag this weekend. That starts with two drivers who’ve already reached victory lane this season – Stewart Friesen and Larry Wight.
Friesen outdueled Felix Roy to win the season’s opening night feature at DIRTcar Nationals, while Wight won the finale at Volusia, giving him more wins than any other driver in Modified racing this season (four).
Wight has yet to win a feature at Georgetown, but had a sixth-place finish at the track in 2020. Friesen, meanwhile, has won eight times at Georgetown, his last victory coming during Mid-Atlantic Championship weekend in 2024.
Along with those two, 17-year-old Logan Watt is also aiming to take this weekend’s $7,500 prize. The race is about a year removed from his best Super DIRTcar Series finish, a third at New Egypt Speedway to kick off the 2025 championship season.
