CONCORD, N.C. — During the latest World of Outlaws offseason, Carson Macedo was hit with an odd realization.
Over a two-week break in his Australian race schedule, as Macedo lounged on the Gold Coast and tried to catch his breath from the never-ending grind, he suddenly got itchy feet. Not literally, but Macedo started to experience an inward ache as he watched his fellow competitors race on television while he stuck his feet in the sand.
“It took a few nights off and watching other people do it to make me realize what I’m really passionate about,” Macedo said. “I got so bored so quick.”
The 27-year-old admitted that prior to his Australian epiphany, he had entertained a fair share of doubt about where he was headed with his sprint car racing career.
After enduring a fiery wreck at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway in June and suffering a broken back later in the year, Macedo was pretty beaten down — physically and mentally — by the end of the 2023 season.
Though he had originally started out his World of Outlaws campaign contending for the points lead, he spent the remainder of the year on the mend, playing catch-up.
“After a few World of Outlaws seasons and some big wrecks, I felt like I was dwindling a little bit,” Macedo admitted. “When you’re injured, it makes you think like, ‘Man, am I just really not enjoying this anymore?’”
But after spending a few nights in Australia as a bystander and rediscovering his love for racing, Macedo found his answer.
Since returning to the United States in late January and throwing himself back into the swing of things with Jason Johnson Racing, Macedo is operating with a renewed sense of motivation. He shared that his body is “100 percent” recovered and in general, he’s feeling healthy.
He also has a list of he wants to accomplish during his sixth consecutive World of Outlaws season, starting with a series title.
“I would love to win the championship. Obviously, anything less than a win is a loss,” Macedo said. “Last year I feel like I had some really good runs and we were on a good roll there. We were leading the points and had some momentum on our side. And then we had some hiccups and ended up third again.”
Macedo has a new plan of attack this year — a mindset that’s been shaped by the time he spent with five-time World of Outlaws champion Brad Sweet last year.
“I felt like he was the guy that was probably the least worried or stressed about winning it out of myself, him and David (Gravel),” Macedo recalled.
“He wasn’t really worried about winning the championship at all. He was more so just kind of out there having a good time because he had already won it four times. So, a fifth title wasn’t gonna make or break his life in any way.”
Whether that mentality turns out to be the key to it or not, Macedo still learned a lot during his off-track chats with Sweet. Likewise, he’s disappointed the “The Big Cat” won’t be competing with the Outlaws this year.
Instead, Sweet will be full time with High Limit Racing — the national sprint car tour he co-owns with Kyle Larson.
However, with Sweet’s departure, it opens the door for competitors like Macedo and Gravel to become the first new World of Outlaws champion in five years. And that’s an accomplishment Macedo has been chasing for a long time.
“For years and years, the history of sprint car racing goes back to the World of Outlaws. Ultimately, a World of Outlaws championship has been the prestigious, ultimate goal and title for most people who want to make a professional living driving race cars in the sprint car scene,” Macedo said.
“For myself, that’s been my ultimate goal my whole life.”