RPW Exclusive: Super DIRTCAR Series Power Rankings Ahead of Busy August Schedule

Column By: STEPHEN DURHAM / RPW – BOSTON, MA – We are now heading into the 2nd week of August, and the busiest part of summer for the Super DIRTcar Series is now here. A new championship points leader now controls the field, with Mat Williamson leading the young hot-shoe of Alex Yankowski by a narrow 13 points. Stewart Friesen led the month of July off with a win at Weedsport, and we all have him and his family in our thoughts as he continues to recover from his vicious wreck at Autodrome.

Matt Sheppard has turned up the heat, sweeping the nights at Autodrome, and now is in the hunt for yet another Super DIRTcar Series championship. There are seven races scheduled for the month of August, and if you include the first week of September, a total of 9 races are on top for the series.  It will be a true test to how well prepared these teams are for the coming weeks, between maintenance, preparation, race notes, and stamina to keep up with the summer heat. Here is the August edition of the Super DIRTcar Series Power Rankings as we head into the busiest weeks of the racing season.

1. Mat Williamson (Previous: 1): The new 2025 Super DIRTcar Series championship standings points leader, with a strong showing in the last four races. Three 2nd place finishes, one at Weedsport, Autodrome, and at Brockville. His other finish was 6th place. Williamson will look to grow his championship lead this month with the busy schedule ahead. His last visit in 2017 at Sharon Speedway, wasn’t a strong one, coming away with a 30th place finish. The other places coming up on the schedule, Williamson has won at. Williamson has been the only driver since last year to win at Weedsport, while Friesen took the first two races this season at Weedsport. Williamson is the defending winner at Ransomville, a hometrack of his, won back at  Brewerton in 2023, and has won this year already at Land of Legends Raceway, and is the defending winner from 2024. Can Williamson add multiple wins in the coming weeks to continue his hunt for a third Super DIRTcar Series championship?
2. Matt Sheppard (Previous: 4): It was indeed “Superman” Matt Sheppard over the last month, being the most dominant of the Super DIRTcar Series regulars. Sweeping the nights at Autodrome, and a pair of 3rd place finishes at Weedsport and Brockville.  Sheppard now has 3 wins on the season, and sits 65 points behind Williamson in 3rd place. Sheppard will look to add Sharon Speedway to his list of tracks he has won at, with only two starts so far there, he has one top 10, coming back in 2017. Sheppard has won at the other tracks, especially Brewerton, Fulton, Land of Legends, and Weedsport, all tracks where he has double-digit wins in his career. Sheppard came home runner-up at Ransomville in 2024, a track he has won twice at. 
3. Alex Yankowski (Previous: 2): It was a strong month for the “Kid Rocket”, but it’s definitely not easy when going up against the two guys that have dominated the Super DIRTcar Series since 2015. Yankowski had three top 5’s, and a top 10 to his credit over July. The first night at Autodrome, Yankowski was involved with the big wreck with Friesen, but salvaged a 10th place finish. He rebounded the following night at Autodrome with a 3rd place finish. Yankowski will look to chase down Williamson in the championship standings in August, as he trails by 13 points. Williamson so far on the season in the regular season, 13 features, 13 top 10 finishes, the only regular on the series with that 100% top 10 stat. Yankowski will be looking forward to SummerFAST, as he won one of the races in 2024, being at Fulton Speedway. Sharon and Ransomville Speedways will be new for Yankowski, but don’t count out the kid, as he has shown all season, he is here to fight for the championship.
4. Erick Rudolph (Previous: 3): It was yet another steady month for Rudolph in July, coming away with three top 10 finishes, with his finish outside the top 10 being an 11th place finish at Weedsport earlier in the month. Rudolph currently sits 5th in the championship standings, 24 points behind Alex Payne. Rudolph on the season has four top 5’s, and eleven top 10 finishes. Rudolph has solid notes on Sharon, a track he has won at with other tours. Rudolph is also a force and could be a favorite at Ransomville, where he has won a championship in 358 modifieds, last time being 2021 co-champion with Mat Williamson. Rudolph has won before at Weedsport and Land of Legends as well, with multiple top 5s at Brewerton and Fulton. Expect the veteran to be fighting his way towards the front this month. 
5. Alex Payne (Previous: 7): When the series headed north of the border, there was chatter on Payne being a favorite to win one race at least in Canada. He did, defending his Canadian Classic win from 2024. Winning at Brockville, and fighting for a win with Matt Sheppard at Autodrome. In all four races, Payne had top 5 finishes, including heat race wins both nights at Autodrome. Payne now sits fourth in the championship standings, 16 points behind Sheppard, and 81 points overall behind Williamson. Payne will look to continue his momentum into the heart of summer. Payne has yet to visit Sharon Speedway until this month, so he will look to build notes there. Land of Legends and Weedsport have already been good to Payne in 2025, both places he came away with top 5 finishes. Payne will look to continue his momentum, and try to get back to victory lane again in 2025. 
6. Jimmy. Phelps (Previous: 9):  It was a steady, but strong showing over the last month for the “Baldwinsville Bandit”. His lowest finishing being 14th place at Weedsport in early July, then he currently rids a streak of three consecutive top 10 finishes. For the seasoned veteran, he sits 12th in the championship standings, 26 points back from current 10th place, of Perrego. Phelps found victory lane at Sharon Speedway back in 2016, and has won at every track, except Ransomville. Phelps has 15 career starts at Ransomville, including last year, where he came home 14th. 
7. Mike Mahaney (Previous: 6): Mahaney and his wife Mandee remain on baby watch as we head into August, while Mahaney had a solid month of July in the racing world. Mahaney had two top 10 finishes, they came at Weedsport and Brockville. Autodrome wasn’t kind to Mahaney, finishing 15th and 21st. Mahaney had one start at Sharon Speedway, back in 2016, coming away with an 11th place finish. Mahaney sits 6th in the championship standings, with two top 5’s and eight top 10’s so far on the season in 2025. 
8. Peter Britten (Previous: 5): The last four races started off rough for the “the Batman” Peter Britten, with a pair of finishes being outside the top 20 at Weedsport and the first night at Autodrome. Britten would rebound the second night at Autodrome with a 10th place finish, and then a ninth place finish at Brockville to round things out. Britten will be looking forward to the coming schedule, as he is the defending winner at Sharon Speedway from 2017. Britten then has wins at Land of Legends Raceway, a Saturday night home track, and won back in 2021 with the series. Britten finished 14th earlier in the month at Weedsport.
9. Jack Lehner (Previous: 10): July was a strong showing for the “Ginga Ninja”, picking up a pair of top 10 finishes at Weedsport and at Brockville. His best finish being a 6th place finish at Weedsport. Lehner now sits 9th in the championship standings, 5 points behind Britten in 8th. Lehner has now five top 10 finishes in 2025. Lehner will look to add to his notes, as he visits Sharon Speedway for the first time. Lehner has three starts in his career at Ransomville, with a top 5 finish to his credit last summer. Lehner also has top 5 finishes at Brewerton, Land of Legend, and Weedsport. 
10. Tim Sears Jr (Previous: UR): June was a quiet month for Tim Sears Jr, but he turned it around when the series headed to Canada. A tough finish at Weedsport, with a 25th place finish, followed by a pair of top 5 finishes at Autodrome, and finishing off with an 11th place finish at Brockville. Sears Jr now sits 11th in the championship standings, 11 points behind Perrego in 10th. Like other series regulars, Sears has yet to visit Sharon Speedway. Sears has had top 5s and even wins on the upcoming tracks. Brewerton and Fulton are Friday/Saturday night hometracks, where combined he has won over 50 times in his career. Sears had a top 5 finish at Ransomville a year ago, coming home in 5th. 

On The Radar:

Anthony Perrego: After a top 10 finish at Weedsport, the rest of July was an up-hill climb for Perrego. Perrego finished 19th the first night at Autodrome, followed by a 22nd place finish the 2nd night. Perrego would improve at Brockville, coming home in 13th. Perrego will get his first looks at Sharon Speedway, like others on the tour. In two career starts, including last August, Perrego has one top 10 at Ransomville. For the SummerFAST week, Perrego has top 5 finishes at Land of Legends and Weedsport. 

Felix Roy: The first two races of July were tough for Roy, 17th place finish at Weedsport, followed by a heat race win at Autodrome, but then a DNF would end his night early. The second night though, Roy would pick up a top 10 finish, followed by a top 5 at Brockville, his first on the 2025 campaign. 

The Super Dirt Series rolls into Sharon Speedway in Ohio, Monday August 11th, then heads to Ransomville Speedway the following night, August 12th. Then the following Sunday, August 17th, SummerFAST kicks off at Weedsport, with four straight nights of racing. It will be Monday August 18th at Brewerton, August 19th at Land of Legends Raceway, and rounding out the week at Fulton Speedway Check back later this month after these races, for our next edition of power rankings for the Super DIRTcar Series.