GAFFNEY, S.C. — A history-making weekend is on the horizon as the World of Outlaws CASE Construction Late Models return to South Carolina’s Cherokee Speedway on March 25 and will be joined by the Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series for the first time.
The Extreme series will crown a champion Saturday night at the second annual Rock Gault Memorial.
The highly anticipated event kicks off with a 40-lap, $10,000-to-win feature on Friday, March 25. More money is on the line on Saturday as the two series battle for 60 laps, with $20,000 being payed out to the winner. If a driver finds victory lane on both nights at Cherokee, they could walk away with a $30,000 payday.
There is also a weekend bonus option for any driver who chooses to run the Xtreme DIRTcar Series event on Thursday, March 24, at the nearby Lake View Speedway. The Nichols, S.C., venue is offering an extra $2,000 if a driver wins a race at both Lake View and Cherokee or $5,000 for a weekend sweep.
This weekend will serve as the highest paying weekend in Xtreme DIRTcar Series history.
Local divisions are also on the racing card during both nights at Cherokee. Mid-East 602 Late Models will race on Friday, while Mid-East 602 Modifieds race on Saturday. The Mid-East Street Stocks will run both nights.
There’s a new contender showing up to contest with Brandon Sheppard’s World of Outlaws throne at Cherokee: Dennis Erb, after his performance at Georgia-Florida Speedweeks landed him on the map.
Erb, the driver out of Carpentersville, Ill., has already found victory lane three times this season and shows no signs of slowing down. He has shown versatility, winning at Volusia Speedway Park, East Bay Raceway and Clarksville Speedway — three different types of race tracks.
He has the chance to make it four, but “The Place Your Mama Warned You About” hasn’t been kind to the veteran driver in the past. In three features in 2021, Erb only finished in the top-10 during a split-field feature last March. His best finish at the South Carolina facility since becoming a full-time World of Outlaws driver was sixth in 2019.
Four-time and defending champion Sheppard is hoping to beat Erb to the checkered flag, although Sheppard didn’t find victory lane with his 2021 performance at Cherokee.
He opened last year’s Rock Gault Memorial with a split-field feature victory and backed it up with a second in last October’s Mike Duvall Memorial. While Sheppard’s worst finish at Cherokee was a 10th last September, the resiliency of Rocket1 Racing was on display that night as they battled back to the top-10 after a flat tire in the heat race.
Sheppard hopes to take the next step toward World of Outlaws history at Cherokee, as his next win ties Josh Richards at the top of the all-time wins list (78). The New Berlin, Ill., driver enters the weekend with two top-fives and five top-10s in six World of Outlaws races this season.
Another contender for the win is Tyler Bruening, whose Rookie of the Year run in 2021 was largely due to his success on red clay late in the season. The Decorah, Iowa, driver proved he’s a contender on that surface in last year’s three-race Labor Day weekend swing.
Bruening scored two top-fives and a top-10 in that stretch, including a ninth during last year’s Rock Gault Memorial. That recent success gives Bruening confidence heading into the weekend. He’s already scored a top-five and three top-10’s this season.
Ryan Gustin is one driver hoping to rebound after an up-and-down DIRTcar Nationals. The Marshalltown, Iowa, driver won a DIRTcar Late Model Feature at Volusia but struggled during the World of Outlaws portion of the event.
Gustin got his first crack at Cherokee in 2021, but like fellow Iowa driver Bruening, only started to improve as the season moved along. While he cracked the top-10 with a ninth in one of March’s split-field features, things didn’t go his way as he finished 16th in September. “The Reaper” had his best finish at Cherokee in last October’s Mike Duvall Memorial — a sixth. He hopes to build off that finish in his return.
The battle for Rookie of the Year will continue at Cherokee, after six races at Volusia where Max Blair and Tanner English have jumped ahead in the running.
Blair leads the battle by 10 points over English entering Cherokee. Gordy Gundaker holds down third, 86 points behind Blair.
While the World of Outlaws is still in the early portion of its season, the Drydene Xtreme DIRTcar Series will crown a champion at Cherokee. The Xtreme DIRTcar Series championship battle will be the race within the race this weekend. Those racing for the title will also being racing against the Outlaws for the Rock Gault win.
Ben Watkins leads the Xtreme DIRTcar Series standings entering the weekend — 16 points ahead of Ross Bailes and 40 points ahead of Carson Ferguson. World of Outlaws drivers are familiar with South Carolina natives Bailes and Watkins as both have pulled an upset win against the Outlaws before.
Bailes scored his first career World of Outlaws win at Cherokee in 2019, while Watkins bested Tyler Bruening at Lavonia last year. While both drivers hope to find victory lane and potentially claim the Lake View Motor Speedway bonus, they’ll also be eyeing their first Xtreme DIRTcar Series title.