LAS VEGAS — Jackson Macenko will be making his first Only Bulls Open Wheel Showdown start at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway November 4-7.
The 22-year-old Cincinnati, Ohio native will be competing in the Elliot’s Custom Trailers & Carts Non-Winged Sprint Car $10,000-to-win event.
Macenko may be unfamiliar to many in the racing community outside of the Midwest, but he is quickly making a name for himself. In only his fourth season running pavement sprint cars, Macenko has had a career season.
Driving for car owner Brad Hayes and his Brad Hayes Racing Team, Macenko captured his first 500 Sprint Car Tour career victory at the intimidating hills of Winchester (Ind.) Speedway back in June. In addition, he finished in second in the standings.
In seven series starts in 2026 he finished no worse than seventh with four podium finishes. He also scored his first podium finish with the USAC Sliver Crown Series at World Wide Technology Raceway in early June. His early season success gave him the opportunity to make 2 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series starts at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park and Bristol Motor Speedway late in the year. He had a phenomenal season by all accounts.
Now Macenko and his Brad Hayes Racing Team will put its sole focus on the Bullring and the $10,000 payday that awaits the winner of the non-winged sprint car feature.
It will be a new track, and he will be competing against many drivers he has never faced off against before.
“From my perspective, watching the Open Wheel Showdown the last few years from my couch, and seeing most of the guys I typically compete against was frustrating,” explained Macenko. “You almost get FOMO, fear of missing out. You race against these same guys all year long and we weren’t able to be a part of it. My car owner Brad and I have talked about going winged racing, but things just haven’t really aligned. When Davey (Hamilton Jr.) announced he was adding non-winged sprints it opens the avenue for us to now be a part of the show.”
Macenko has never been to the Bullring before but admitted he’s been doing his homework.
“I’ve done a bunch of laps on iRacing,” he said. “It’s not exactly completely up to date. But it gives you a feel for your surroundings, your breaking points, where you should pick up the throttle, where you want your car to be positioned. You know it’s not gonna be perfect, but it gives me a baseline as a driver.
“With the recent resurfacing of the track this year, I think it will be quite a bit of a level playing field due to the circumstances of the repaving. It eliminates the experience factor that some of the other guys might have.”
When asked how he thinks he will fare in Las Vegas with so many unknowns, Macenko gave his assessment of what he expects and how his team will fare against, new, and unknown competition.
“I always have the same goal going into every race. My priority is to win,” Macenko said. “But you always have to be realistic based upon your performance. If we’re really struggling in practice your goals shift. I can better answer that question after practice, qualifying, and after we’ve been on the track. Knowing how we’ve performed this year, and the level of equipment we have, how well rounded my crew is, I think we certainly have the ability to go win.”
Watch the Open Wheel Showdown on SPEED SPORT 2.
