OGILVIE, Minn. — Minnesota is ready to welcome “The Greatest Show on Dirt” for the first time in 2026.
With the Knoxville Nationals in the books, the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series is ready to resume the title fight with a weekend in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes.”
Ogilvie Raceway opens the action on Friday, Aug. 21.
The tour debuted at the track roughly 70 miles north of Minneapolis in 2023, and it’s become a regular summertime stop since 2026, marking the fourth consecutive year with the “Big O” on the calendar.
Then it’s a drive to the state’s southwest corner where Jackson Motorplex awaits to host the Fendt Showdown. Jackson is the most visited track in Minnesota with 34 prior trips. The first four came in the late 1980s, and then after a nearly two-decade hiatus, Jackson returned to the schedule and has become a staple ever since.
MINNE-CEDO
The stats say Carson Macedo and the Jason Johnson Racing team could be in for quite the weekend.
Let’s first look at his three visits to Ogilvie. It began with Macedo leading every lap in 2023. A year later, the Lemoore, Calif., native led all but one lap. Unfortunately for him, it was the final circuit when Sheldon Haudenschild slid by for the win and forced him to settle for second. Then Macedo returned to victory lane in 2025 with a charge from fourth to the front.
His numbers at Jackson are even more impressive as hard as that may be to believe. He’s taken the JJR No. 41 to five wins in the last eight tries at the four-tenths-mile track. Macedo also picked up a checkered flag there in 2019 in the Kyle Larson Racing No. 2.
Add it all up, and his six scores at Jackson are the most in Series history. And if you throw in the two times Jason Johnson won at Jackson, Jason Johnson Racing has claimed 20% of the World of Outlaws races contested there.
A big weekend is just what Macedo needs as the season heads toward the home stretch. He’s currently fourth in points, and he’s never been worse than third in the final standings since joining Jason Johnson Racing in 2021.
Sheldon Haudenschild is 38 markers ahead in third with Michael “Buddy” Kofoid running second and leading Macedo by 64 points.
BLOOD IN THE WATER
Macedo may be focused on moving up, but he’s got a hungry shark swimming behind, getting closer and closer.
Logan Schuchart and his Shark Racing team have quietly put together a stellar summer. They’ve missed the top 10 only once in the last 19 World of Outlaws features and boast a 5.5 average finish over that stretch. Recent results for the No. 1s include a dominant Ironman 55 victory and a Knoxville Nationals top five. Schuchart sits fifth in the standings with Macedo 50 markers ahead.
Schuchart has finishes of second, seventh, and sixth at Ogilvie through three tries. There was a time when the Hanover, Pa., native was nearly unbeatable at Jackson. He won four times in a six-race span there from 2020 through 2022. The two he didn’t top were still podium finishes with a runner-up and a third.
A NOSOME WEEK
Knoxville was kinder to no World of Outlaws competitor more than Sheldon Haudenschild.
Wednesday’s prelim saw him pull off one of the most miraculous wins in Knoxville Raceway history when he slipped past Jace Park and James McFadden in the final set of corners and crossed the finish line just .006 seconds ahead of “J-Mac.”
Then Haudenschild brought the KCP Racing/NOS Energy Drink No. 18 home runner-up on Saturday, marking a personal best finish at “The Granddaddy of ‘Em All” for him and putting $85,000 in his bank.
The week in Iowa was the latest in what’s been a stout stretch for the 32-year-old. He’s now at 15 podiums in the last 25 World of Outlaws races.
Haudenschild will look to keep the momentum rolling this weekend in Minnesota. He debuted at Ogilvie with a drive from 19th to seventh in 2023 before making a thrilling last-lap pass for victory in 2024. The Wooster, Ohio, native was fifth last year at the three-eighths-mile oval. He’s winless at Jackson but has been close numerous times, to the tune of a trio of second-place runs.
MONEYMAKERS
With the bulk of the “Summer of Money” complete, let’s check in on its biggest earners, specifically a trio of World of Outlaws competitors.
David Gravel got it started in a big way by banking $300,000 at the BillionAuto.com Huset’s High Bank Nationals. He’s since added a trio of $20,000 wins at Ohsweken Speedway, Weedsport Speedway, and Williams Grove Speedway. Most recently, his sixth-place Knoxville Nationals effort was worth $24,000. Add it all up, and he’s made more than $660,000 in 2026 with Big Game Motorsports, which is by far the most in the sport.
Running second to Gravel in dollars is Michael “Buddy” Kofoid.
Like Gravel, Kofoid’s summer started on a high note at Huset’s with $20,000 and $150,000 scores on consecutive nights in the Roth Motorsports No. 83. He finished a spot behind Gravel at Knoxville and pocketed $23,000. Kofoid’s 2026 earnings sit north of $470,000.
Kyle Larson launched his name into the top three earners with his $200,000 Knoxville Nationals triumph, and then behind him is Sheldon Haudenschild. Huset’s brought Haudenschild and KCP Racing a $25,000 runner-up and $20,000 win. His $85,000 second-place run at Knoxville pushed him close to $400,000 this year.
HISTORIC PARITY
The 2026 World of Outlaws season is nearing a historic level of parity.
Through 49 races, 19 different drivers have visited victory lane already. The series’ 48 previous seasons have yielded only nine years with at least 20 different winners. The record for the most is 2004 when 25 different drivers nabbed a checkered flag. With nearly 30 races still to go, that mark is very much within reach.
Garet Williamson may be poised to be the next to add his name and up the tally to 20. His recent speed in the Fischer Motorsports No. 23 and near misses have been well documented. Fellow sophomore Cole Macedo is still in search of his first victory. Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year presented by Five Star Bodies contender Emerson Axsom has been on the podium multiple times but is yet to stand atop it.
Throw in the fact that regional stars like Ryan Timms in the Midwest, Justin Sanders and Shane Golobic on the left coast, and Lance Dewease and Danny Dietrich with the Pennsylvania Posse, all still have shots at winning, and that record mark of 25 doesn’t seem too distant.
