LAS VEGAS — Supermodifieds will return to Davey Hamilton Jr.’s Open Wheel Showdown this season, competing at both editions of the event.
The low-slung racers will be on hand for the Nov. 14-16 round of the Showdown at The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the Nov. 22-24 weekend at California’s Irwindale Speedway.
With the help of Adam Nelson, owner of Meridian (Idaho) Speedway, and his creation of the new Speed Tour Super Modified Series, the division is growing quickly.
When Davey Hamilton Jr. announced the division would be added to the inaugural Davey Hamilton Jr’s Open Wheel Showdown at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway last December, many were skeptical that enough cars could be rounded up to put on a competitive event. The event exceeded expectations and drew a healthy field of cars.
It had been many years since the Supers were featured in a West Coast event such as as the Open Wheel Showdown. Supermodified events on the West Coast had been few and far between until 2022. Nelson had been hosting a handful of two-day events at Meridian Speedway and it seemed to help to get cars out of the garage and out to the track.
Utah racer Bryan Shafer helped organize a high-paying event at the Bullring in 2022 that really speeded up the revival.
Last year’s Showdown drew cars from the Midwest and East Coast in addition to the West Coast. Oswego (N.Y.) Speedway regular Dave Danzer won the inaugural event last year.
If this year’s early entry process is any indication, fans are in for a treat. As of June 13, there have already been 18 Supers entered for both events with the races still five months away.
A second Open Wheel Showdown was added in 2024 at Irwindale Speedway. It will be the first time Supers have roared around Irwindale Speedway since Nov. 6, 1999. Troy Regier won that Western Super Modified Racing Ass’n event nearly 25 years ago.
For more information on the Open Wheel Showdown, visit www.openwheelshowdown.com.