The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series was scheduled for an 86-night national campaign this season, visiting more than 40 tracks across the United States and Ontario.
That’s a lot of time on the road.
Straight out of Wooster, Ohio, the son of Sprint Car Hall of Famer Jac Haudenschild, Sheldon Haudenschild has been on the road with the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series since 2017.
Currently positioned third in points in the 2026 series with 57 races run and 10 wins and 36 top-five finishes, the 33-year-old Midwesterner has been competitive everywhere he has raced and has done an excellent job of keeping the Haudenschild name in lights.
Still a very long way to go in 2026 and keen to win more WoO races this autumn, Haudenschild took the time to dial in and check in from the road between North and South Dakota. Road weary and steadfastly determined to try and make a run at the ’26 title, it has been quite the journey for Haudenschild.
“We just left Fargo, North Dakota and we’re headed south to Sioux Falls, South Dakota,” said Haudenschild from the cab of a truck somewhere in the Dakotas prior to the Labor Day weekend. “It’s kind of the end of our Dakotas trip and then we’ll start heading west after this. We’ve got Kansas, Colorado and then we’ll be on the west coast after that.”
A grueling tour if ever there was, over the course of the 80-plus race in season, the World of Outlaws teams and transporters post more than 20,000 miles of cross country travel. Brutal.
“Obviously, when you sign up for it, you know what you’re signing up for,” explained Haudenschild, who has been on the road his entire life. “I think we have 86 races on our schedule about every year. The more you do it, the more you learn to manage that. We’re a little past the halfway point now and it’s kind of easy sailing, but there are also a lot of good races left.
“Fifty-five races in, you know you go through July and August, our busy times, and it does slow down a little bit, but still a lot of traveling to go from California to Pennsylvania yet. There is still a lot of work to be done.”
Haudenschild said the consistency of the schedule from year to year helps as the teams hop, skip and jump across the country.
“Our schedule doesn’t change too much year after year, so you kind of know where you’re going, you know?” explained Haudenschild. “July 4th, we’re in the same spot. Labor Day and Memorial Day, we’re in the same areas. Were in the same spots in July and August, so you kind of know where you’re going by memory. Sometimes you’ve got to check the calendar and make sure you’re going to the right spot. This is my 10th year on the road. Once you do it, you kind of get it down.”
In his first season driving for KCP Racing, Haudenschild has enjoyed a career season.
“Yeah, I’m stoked on my year,” offered Haudenschild. “I think it is probably the best year I’ve ever had. I think there are a couple little things that I can clean up and we’d probably be in the championship fight. Honestly, I’d say mainly we had a couple bad races. I’ve had three to four DNFs. We haven’t had any mechanical failures or anything like that. Just on my part, on the driving side, I’ve had two DNFs by myself that were silly mistakes. We had a couple of run-ins with a couple other competitors that just put us behind the eight ball.
“When you DNF, it is such a points loss. It’s hard to make that stuff up. All of us guys are pretty much in the top four or five every night, so you’re only making up two points at a time,” Haudenschild continued. “If you crash one night, or you blow up one night, you just can’t string nights like that together because you just get yourself buried. I feel like we did such a good job all year of not having any mechanicals.
“Most of the year, I did really good on my side on not having any DNFs. I did have a stretch where I had two, and then I had two again. Man, it’s a real bummer when that happens when you’re right there in the fight.”
It’s the first time Haudenschild has contended for the series title.
“You know this is really the first year that I’ve felt like we have a shot to run for a championship,” continued Haudenschild. “Yeah, to have 10 wins on the season and to be really fast every night, I don’t think I have much to complain about.
“I think making a run for the championship is a little bit of a stretch right now,” furthered the Buckeye. “I think we’re about 180 points out of it. I think if we can finish second in the points, that’s a big win for us. Being a new team and making a change over the off-season that probably a lot of people thought wasn’t going to work, yeah, I’m really happy with where we’re at.”
Haudenschild discussed his move from Stenhouse Jr. Marshall Racing to KCP Racing.
“Honestly, I was with SJM for eight years and we kind of just stalled out a little bit over the last two to three years and we had a connection with the KCP team with my longtime crew chief Kyle Ripper,” Haudenschild explained. “He worked there in the past for four to five years. We had a connection there with them. We kind of knew the equipment they had. We knew of the engine program they had.
“They ended up having their driver quit midseason. We kind of just jumped on it and started making some phone calls. Really, August of last year we made a gameplan of what we wanted to do and I think it is paying off, for sure. Yeah, I’m really happy with the whole KCP team.”
A highlight to Haudenschild’s season was his performance during the sport’s biggest race — the Knoxville Nationals.
“Honestly, I’d say winning our preliminary night in Knoxville was big. Having a really good Knoxville Nationals and finishing second at that was great for me as a driver because that’s been one of the tracks that I’ve struggled at,” he said. “Our team is based out of Iowa, so it’s a home race for them. That’s probably been the highlight of the season, just having a good Knoxville Nationals. That’s our World Series. We’ve got 100-plus cars there.
“It is definitely the most difficult format of the year. It’s the best paying race that we run. Again, with our team being based there and every sponsor on our car being based from there and with NOS Energy Drink sponsoring the Knoxville Nationals, it’s just the perfect event for our team.”
Haudenschild explained his approach the final phase of the World of Outlaws season.
“Honestly, I want to just try and keep winning races,” he said. “I want to stay on the podium as much as possible and try and lessen that gap from second and third and honestly just win races. There is still some good money to be made and some good races to win. I just want to try and click off race wins and get above that 10-race win mark and just keep rolling.”
