JACKSON, Minn. — The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series is all set for a busy week up north as two states are set for their first 2025 dose of The Greatest Show on Dirt.
First up is midweek racing at Minnesota’s Jackson Motorplex on June 4. It’ll be the 34th visit in series history to the four-tenths-mile track.
Then, all eyes are on Wisconsin for a big weekend in America’s Dairyland. The Badger State Triple features three race tracks in three days. The opener is Friday’s return to Plymouth Dirt Track, where the World of Outlaws last visited in 2005.
The centerpiece is the $20,000-to-win Jim “JB” Boyd Memorial on Saturday, June 7, at Beaver Dam Raceway. The weekend wraps up on Sunday, June 8, in Sun Prairie, Wis., where the World of Outlaws will make their second Angell Park Speedway appearance and first since 2016.
JACKSON JETS
Three current World of Outlaws competitors will be vying to distinguish themselves as the winningest driver at Jackson on Wednesday.
The trio of Logan Schuchart, Carson Macedo and Donny Schatz have all topped four apiece, which is tied for the most, and a fifth would give them sole possession.
Schuchart topped a pair in 2020, including the prestigious Jackson Nationals. He and Shark Racing also went to victory lane in 2021 and 2022. Macedo’s first Jackson triumph came in 2019. He then went on to top back-to-back Jackson Nationals in 2022 and 2023 with Jason Johnson Racing before claiming a prelim last year. Schatz’s scores are much more spread out with wins in 2006, 2013, 2018 and 2024.
WISCONSIN ACE
This week presents plenty of great opportunities for Bill Balog to score a popular win. The native of North Pole, Alaska, moved to Wisconsin and kickstarted his sprint car career years ago.
He still calls the state home and will no doubt have the experience advantage during the Badger State Triple.
Balog owns 20 Interstate Racing Association victories at Plymouth, including one that was co-sanctioned with the All Star Circuit of Champions in 2022. Beaver Dam is responsible for 19 of his IRA checkered flags, and it’s home to the first of his two career World of Outlaws wins.
Over at Angell Park, Balog has been successful in a variety of cars, winning with winged and non-winged sprint cars as well as midgets.
“The North Pole Nightmare” has been up and down as of late, with three top 10s in the last seven races but also three finishes outside the top 15 in that stretch. A weekend at home presents a prime opportunity to build momentum.
BEAVER DAM KING
There’s no doubt that Beaver Dam is circled on Sheldon Haudenschild’s calendar.
Recent years have proven the Wooster, Ohio, native has the third-mile dirt track figured out. Haudenschild topped five of the last seven World of Outlaws visits to Beaver Dam, including a thrilling drive from sixth last May.
Of his 43 career victories with The Greatest Show on Dirt, Beaver Dam is responsible for the most. And on top of the winning, he’s also the track record holder with a mark of 11.025 seconds in 2022.
Haudenschild enters the week fresh off his second victory of the season, courtesy at Red River Valley Speedway. He and the Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing team are currently riding eight straight top-10 finishes.
BADGER STARS
Balog and Haudenschild aren’t the only current World of Outlaws competitors that have made their way to victory lane in the Badger State.
Donny Schatz has won at two of the three tracks on the weekend calendar. The 10-time champion bested Beaver Dam twice, the first in 2002 and then again in 2015 with Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing. He’s the only World of Outlaws winner at Angell Park, claiming the 2016 debut.
Giovanni Scelzi enjoys any opportunity to visit Beaver Dam. Of his 10 victories with The Greatest Show on Dirt, the third-mile is the only track responsible for multiple. “Hot Sauce” won there in 2023 and 2024 with his KCP Racing team.
Carson Macedo beat the Interstate Racing Association in his Beaver Dam debut in 2017 aboard Joe Gaerte’s No. 3g. He was also a POWRi Midget winner at Angell Park in 2016.
Series rookie Hunter Schuerenberg was an Angell Park winner in 2022 with ASCoC. The Vermeer Motorsports pilot is still hunting his first checkered flag with the World of Outlaws.
GETTIN’ AFTER IT
There’s still plenty of season remaining, but one driver has arisen as the favorite for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year among the loaded class.
The last few weeks have seen Chris Windom and the Sides Motorsports team lift their performance to another level.
After no top fives and five top 10s in the first 21 races, the NOS Energy Drink No. 7S has reeled off six consecutive top 10s, including a pair of top fives. Windom’s average finish over the recent stretch is 7.3, up from 15.7 through the first 21 outings.
“Big Daddy” is familiar with all four tracks ahead. He finished eighth with the USAC National Sprint Cars at Jackson in 2016. The last time Windom went to Plymouth, he podiumed with ASCoC. Saturday will be his first Beaver Dam visit since 2007, when he raced with the Badger Midget Racing Association. He has plenty of Angell Park laps highlighted by a pair of USAC podiums (2012 and 2014).
