Story By: JOE GRABIANOWSKI / DIRTCAR – CONCORD, NC – From January to Labor Day, five divisions of northeast DIRTcar racing saw drivers in each awarded points towards the $47,000 Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship based on their 16 best finishes.
The points system rewards drivers for racing at their home tracks every week plus, thanks to a common ruleset, encourages drivers to travel to other DIRTcar tracks and Series races to accrue more points and experience.
This year, Matt Sheppard took the DIRTcar Big Block Modified Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship title. Only Sheppard, from Waterloo, NY, could insist he hasn’t had a “great” year while winning major championships like his record-setting eighth Super DIRTcar Series championship plus his seventh Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship for DIRTcar Big Block Modifieds (formerly Mr. DIRT).
Sheppard’s Hoosier championship points run came with wins at Orange County Fair Speedway, Land of Legends Raceway, Ransomville Speedway, and Weedsport Speedway in both weekly and Series competition totaling 12 wins overall which netted him $5,000 for his title.
Last year’s champion Stewart Friesen came up four points short. He picked up 10 DIRTcar Big Block Feature wins at six different tracks including Volusia Speedway Park, Can-Am Speedway, Bristol Motor Speedway, Orange County Fair Speedway, Weedsport Speedway, and Land of Legends Raceway.
Peter Britten has had one of the best years of his career. Britten finished third in Hoosier Championship points collecting four wins including a Series DIRTcar Series win at his home track Land of Legends Raceway.
The top twenty in points shared from the over $18,000 in point monies.