The list of dirt track events that pay six figures to the winner is an exclusive one, and the USA Nationals joins that club this weekend.
The 100-lap, $100,000-to-win Feature at the end of three nights of racing (Thursday-Saturday, July 31-Aug. 2) is both the highest-paying event of the 2025 World of Outlaws Real American Beer Late Model Series presented by DIRTVision season and the richest event in the history of Cedar Lake Speedway.
The weekend begins with a 30-lap, $10,000-to-win, show on Thursday night. Friday’s program includes Qualifying, Heat Races, a Heat Race Winners Dash and the FANS Fund Dash to set the lineups for Saturday, which features Landa Pressure Washers Last Chance Showdowns and a Last Chance Qualifier before the main event.
The local Cedar Lake Late Models will also be in action with full programs on all three nights.
Here are the top storylines entering the weekend:
DREAM COME TRUE: Brian Shirley took home $88,500 for his first Prairie Dirt Classic victory between the $50,000 winner’s pot and $500 for each of the 77 laps he led, making it the biggest payday of his racing career. Shirley had to wait two decades for that moment, but he may only have to wait seven days to reset that mark.
Cedar Lake has been a mixed bag for Shirley over the years, with plenty of solid runs mixed in with some lackluster nights and missed Features. His last few trips to New Richmond have trended on the positive side, with three top fives in his last six starts.
If Shirley can use the PDC victory to spark some more success in the second half of the season, he stands a chance at climbing several spots up the points table by the time World of Outlaws World Finals rolls around. The Bob Cullen Racing driver currently sits seventh, with Dennis Erb Jr., Tim McCreadie and Drake Troutman all within 72 points.
The upcoming schedule is right up Shirley’s alley as he looks to build momentum. After the tour leaves Cedar Lake, the next week of racing in mid-August includes stops at Highland Speedway and Maquoketa Speedway, where Shirley won last year, as well as Spoon River Speedway, where he’s a past DIRTcar Summer Nationals victor.
WELCOME BACK RYAN: A driver of Ryan Gustin’s caliber wasn’t going to stay out of Victory Lane forever, and a wire-to-wire win at Wilmot Raceway on Monday was all he needed to snap an 18-race drought.
Bobby Pierce’s runner-up meant Gustin gained minimal ground on the points leader, but a rough night for Nick Hoffman has the gap at 34 points between he and Gustin in the race for second leaving Wilmot.
Cedar Lake was a good track for Gustin in his Modified days – he’s a five-time United States Modified Touring Series winner there – but he struggled to match that speed in his first few visits in a Late Model. Something changed last year though, as Gustin won on Friday night and finished fourth in the 100-lapper on Saturday, blowing out his previous best of 13th in the USA Nationals.
STAYING HOT: Pierce may not have won a full-field World of Outlaws race over the weekend, but if his recent history at Cedar Lake is anything to go by, the winless streak might not last long.
The Oakwood, IL native has won the last two USA Nationals as well as a prelim night in both 2023 and 2024, adding up to four World of Outlaws wins at the track in the past two years. That makes him the winningest driver on this year’s full-time roster in Series competition at Cedar Lake.
The 3/8-mile has also been one of Hoffman’s weaker tracks, as the Mooresville, NC pilot has only one top five in his last six Cedar Lake starts. His best Saturday finish is an eighth from 2021 in Scott Bloomquist’s car, and he hasn’t finished better than 12th with Tye Twarog Motorsports. This time around, Hoffman will be looking for a turnaround reminiscent of Gustin’s last year to avoid losing further ground in the title chase.
FORMER CHAMPS: In addition to Pierce, six other past USA Nationals winners are expected to battle for the first six-figure winner’s check in event history this weekend.
Tim McCreadie took the checkers in 2013 for his third of five USA Nationals top fives in his career. After a five-year absence from Cedar Lake, McCreadie returned last year driving for Rocket1 Racing and finished ninth in the main event.
Billy Moyer won the first two editions of the event in 1988 and 1989 as part of the original iteration of the World of Outlaws before collecting three more in 1990, 1992 and 1993. His five wins have him tied with Bloomquist for the most all-time.
Jonathan Davenport (2015, 2021, 2022) is aiming to get one step closer to catching Moyer and Bloomquist with a fourth USA Nationals win. “Superman” enters the weekend as the only six-figure winner in Late Model racing so far this year with his Dirt Late Model Dream triumph at Eldora Speedway.
Brandon Sheppard (2018) came up one spot short of his first crown-jewel trophy since reuniting with Rocket1 Racing last weekend at Fairbury. He’ll go for redemption at Cedar Lake, where he’s finished top five in six of his last eight USA Nationals starts.
Chris Madden (2019) will make his first World of Outlaws start since April in search of his second USA Nationals victory. He’ll do so behind the wheel of Kale Green’s machine, which he wheeled to two Southern Nationals Series wins at Wythe Raceway and Volunteer Speedway earlier this month.
Brandon Overton (2020) is looking for a breakout weekend at a place that has been good to him in the past. It’s been a tough season for the No. 76 team, as Overton’s 60 Late Model starts have only produced three wins and 17 top fives, the most recent of which came eight races ago.
Plenty of other big names are heading to Cedar Lake looking for their first taste of USA Nationals glory, including Ricky Thornton Jr., Hudson O’Neal, Devin Moran, Garrett Alberson, Mike Marlar, Tyler Bruening, Jason Feger, Tyler Erb, Kyle Bronson, Max Blair and many more.
WHEN AND WHERE:
Thursday-Saturday, July 31-Aug. 2, at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, WI
CURRENT POINT STANDINGS:
1. Bobby Pierce (3834 points)
2. Nick Hoffman (-118)
3. Ryan Gustin (-152)
4. Drake Troutman (-274)
5. Tim McCreadie (-284)
6. Dennis Erb Jr. (-290)
7. Brian Shirley (-346)
8. Tanner English (-398)
9. Cody Overton (-422)
10. Ethan Dotson (-424)
FEATURE WINNERS (14):
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 7
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 4
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 3
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 3
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 2
Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 1
Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – 1
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 1
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 1
Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 1
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 1
HEAT RACE WINNERS (33):
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 21
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 11
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 10
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 9
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 7
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 5
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 4
Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 4
Jimmy Owens – Newport, TN – 4
Dustin Sorensen – Rochester, MN – 4
Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – 3
Ricky Thornton Jr. – Chandler, AZ – 3
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 3
Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 3
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 3
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 3
Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 3
Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 2
Jason Feger – Bloomington, IL – 2
Jake Timm – Winona, MN – 2
Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 2
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 2
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 2
Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 1
Garrett Smith – Madison, GA – 1
Zack Mitchell – Enoree, SC – 1
Cory Hedgecock – Loudon, TN – 1
Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 1
Aaron Marrant – Richmond, MO – 1
Mike Harrison – Highland, IL – 1
Chris Simpson – Oxford, IA – 1
Jared Miley – Pittsburgh, PA – 1
Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1
LANDA PRESSURE WASHERS LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINNERS (31):
Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 5
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 4
Dustin Sorensen – Rochester, MN – 3
Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 3
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 3
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 3
Michael Leach – Sun River, MT – 2
Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 2
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 2
Shannon Babb – Moweaqua, IL – 2
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 2
Jake Timm – Winona, MN – 2
Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 1
Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 1
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 1
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1
Kyle Bronson – Brandon, FL – 1
Jackson Hise – Ocala, FL – 1
Trey Mills – St. Augustine, FL – 1
Austin Smith – Cedartown, GA – 1
Mckay Wenger – Fairbury, IL – 1
Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 1
Gregg Satterlee – Indiana, PA – 1
Brenden Smith – Dade City, FL – 1
Kayden Clatt – Edina, MO – 1
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 1
Boom Briggs – Bear Lake, PA – 1
Derrick Stewart – Ainsworth, IA – 1
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 1
Jared Miley – Pittsburgh, PA – 1
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 1
Ricky Thornton Jr. – Chandler, AZ – 1
PODIUM FINISHERS (24):
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 16
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 9
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 8
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 6
Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – 5
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 5
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 5
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 4
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 3
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 2
Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 2
Ricky Thornton Jr. – Chandler, AZ – 2
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 2
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 2
Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 1
Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 1
Zack Mitchell – Enoree, SC – 1
Jimmy Owens – Newport, TN – 1
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1
Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 1
Dustin Sorensen – Rochester, MN – 1
Mike Harrison – Highland, IL – 1
Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 1
Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 1
FOX FACTORY HARD CHARGERS (17):
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 3
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 3
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 3
Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 3
Dustin Sorensen – Rochester, MN – 2
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 2
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 2
Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 1
Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – 1
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 1
Max Blair – Centerville, PA – 1
Jake Timm – Winona, MN – 1
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1
Brent Larson – Lake Elmo, MN – 1
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 1
SIMPSON RACING PRODUCTS QUICK TIMES (14):
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 5
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 4
Ricky Thornton Jr. – Chandler, AZ – 3
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 3
Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 3
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 1
Chris Madden – Gray Court, SC – 1
Tanner English – Benton, KY – 1
Tyler Millwood – Kingston, GA – 1
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 1
Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 1
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 1
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 1
BILSTEIN POLE AWARDS (18):
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 4
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 3
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 3
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 2
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 2
Jimmy Owens – Newport, TN – 1
Jason Feger – Bloomington, IL – 1
Cody Overton – Thomson, GA – 1
Cory Hedgecock – Loudon, TN – 1
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 1
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 1
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 1
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 1
Cade Dillard – Robeline, LA – 1
Mike Harrison – Highland, IL – 1
Tyler Bruening – Marshalltown, IA – 1
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 1
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 1
FEATURE LAP LEADERS (22):
Bobby Pierce – Oakwood, IL – 348
Nick Hoffman – Mooresville, NC – 141
Ryan Gustin – Marshalltown, IA – 122
Drake Troutman – Hyndman, PA – 95
Tim McCreadie – Watertown, NY – 81
Brian Shirley – Chatham, IL – 78
Ethan Dotson – Bakersfield, CA – 69
Tyler Erb – New Waverly, TX – 50
Garrett Alberson – Las Cruces, NM – 44
Jimmy Owens – Newport, TN – 41
Devin Moran – Dresden, OH – 30
Brandon Sheppard – New Berlin, IL – 29
Ashton Winger – Hampton, GA – 27
Mike Harrison – Highland, IL – 21
Hudson O’Neal – Martinsville, IN – 19
Ricky Thornton Jr. – Chandler, AZ – 18
Brandon Overton – Evans, GA – 15
Cory Hedgecock – Loudon, TN – 13
Jonathan Davenport – Blairsville, GA – 11
Mike Marlar – Winfield, TN – 8
Dennis Erb Jr. – Carpentersville, IL – 6
Tyler Bruening – Decorah, IA – 2
2025 WORLD OF OUTLAWS REAL AMERICAN BEER LATE MODEL SERIES PRESENTED BY DIRTVISION SCHEDULE & WINNERS
Friday, Jan. 24 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Ryan Gustin (1)
Saturday, Jan. 25 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Garrett Alberson (1)
Thursday, Feb. 13 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Garrett Alberson (2)
Friday, Feb. 14 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Devin Moran (1)
Saturday, Feb. 15 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Jonathan Davenport (1)
Friday, Mar. 14 / Smoky Mountain Speedway / Maryville, TN / Bobby Pierce (1)
Friday, Mar. 21 / Swainsboro Raceway / Swainsboro, GA / Bobby Pierce (2)
Saturday, Mar. 22 / Swainsboro Raceway / Swainsboro, GA / Ryan Gustin (2)
Thursday, Apr. 10 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL (Practice)
Friday, Apr. 11 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL / Ethan Dotson (1)
Saturday, Apr. 12 / Farmer City Raceway / Farmer City, IL / Brandon Sheppard (1)
Saturday, Apr. 26 / Talladega Short Track / Eastaboga, AL / Bobby Pierce (3)
Friday, May 2 / Mississippi Thunder Speedway / Fountain City, WI / Tyler Erb (1)
Saturday, May 3 / Mississippi Thunder Speedway / Fountain City, WI / Nick Hoffman (1)
Thursday, May 15 / Raceway 7 / Conneaut, OH / Tim McCreadie (1)
Saturday, May 17 / Marion Center Raceway / Marion Center, PA / Bobby Pierce (4)
Sunday, May 18 / Bedford Speedway / Bedford, PA / Tim McCreadie (2)
Friday, June 20 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO / Bobby Pierce (5)
Saturday, June 21 / I-55 Federated Auto Parts Raceway Park / Pevely, MO / Drake Troutman (1)
Friday, June 27 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Nick Hoffman (2)
Saturday, June 28 / Norman County Raceway / Ada, MN / Nick Hoffman (3)
Sunday, June 29 / Nodak Speedway / Minot, ND / Tim McCreadie (3)
Thursday, July 3 / Deer Creek Speedway / Spring Valley, MN / Bobby Pierce (6)
Friday, July 4 / Deer Creek Speedway / Spring Valley, MN / Nick Hoffman (4)
Friday, July 11 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Bobby Pierce (7)
Saturday, July 12 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Mike Marlar (1)
Saturday, July 26 / Fairbury Speedway / Fairbury, IL / Brian Shirley (1)
Monday, July 28 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI / Ryan Gustin (3)
Thursday, July 31 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Friday, Aug. 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Saturday, Aug. 2 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI
Wednesday, Aug. 13 / Highland Speedway / Highland, IL
Thursday, Aug. 14 / Spoon River Speedway / Lewistown, IL
Friday, Aug. 15 / Maquoketa Speedway / Maquoketa, IA
Saturday, Aug. 16 / Maquoketa Speedway / Maquoketa, IA
Friday, Aug. 22 / Arrowhead Speedway / Colcord, OK
Saturday, Aug. 23 / Arrowhead Speedway / Colcord, OK
Friday, Sept. 12 / Needmore Speedway / Norman Park, GA
Saturday, Sept. 13 / Senoia Raceway / Senoia, GA
Friday, Sept. 26 / Tri-City Speedway / Granite City, IL
Saturday, Sept. 27 / Tri-City Speedway / Granite City, IL
Friday, Oct. 3 / Humboldt Speedway / Humboldt, KS
Saturday, Oct. 4 / 81 Speedway / Wichita, KS
Friday, Oct. 10 / Boothill Speedway / Greenwood, LA
Saturday, Oct. 11 / Boothill Speedway / Greenwood, LA
Wednesday, Nov. 5 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Thursday, Nov. 6 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Friday, Nov. 7 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC
Saturday, Nov. 8 / The Dirt Track at Charlotte / Concord, NC