The sun has never shined brighter on Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals. Literally.
Even with the expansion of an additional week, all 15 days of the 54th edition of the event saw a sun lit sky and warm weather for peak racing conditions every night.
From that, DIRTcar Nationals saw record crowds, record entries, new winners and new Big Gator champions across the board.
Get caught up on the best storylines to come out of DIRTcar Nationals, and then renew your tickets for the 2026 edition of Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals, Jan. 29-Feb. 14, either online at MyDirtTix.com or by calling 844-DIRT-TIX.
FEDERATED AUTO PARTS EXTENDS: DIRTcar Nationals’ prestige increased in 2023 when Federated Auto Parts joined as the event’s title sponsor, helping the event increase its purses and add a purse to the Big Gator championship. The company’s support of the event and dirt racing will continue for the next several years as the it was announced Federated Auto Parts has extended its sponsorship of DIRTcar Nationals with a new multi-year deal.
RELATED: Federated Auto Parts Extends With DIRTcar Nationals, Continues World of Outlaws Partnership
PECK’s 360 DOMINATION: The American Sprint Car Series National Tour made its debut at DIRTcar Nationals and Volusia Speedway Park this year with a three-day event to help kickoff “FL in Feb.” And Justin Peck wanted his name to be the first on everything.
Driving the No. 26 Sprint Car for Rudeen Racing, Peck won the opening night race. Then the second night. And then the final night, which led to him also claiming the first 360 Sprint Car Big Gator championship.
His feat made him the third driver in ASCS history to win the first three races of the season and first to do it since Jason Martin in 2023.
LONG-TIME COMING FOR UNOH: The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds’ format of having six Features a night for five straight nights before the Gator Championship finale opens the door for a plethora of first time DIRTcar Nationals winners. This year that number was 11.
While each win came with its own fairytale story, one of the top stories came on Tuesday, Feb. 4, when the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) Motorsports team earned their first victory with a student driver – Randy Giroux.
The school has been attending DIRTcar Nationals for more than a decade, fielding a couple cars with a group of students doing all the work on each.
Their hard work paid off during the second night of Week 2 when Giroux held off reigning NASCAR Xfinity Series champion Justin Allgaier to win his first DIRTcar Nationals Gator trophy.
BELL V.S. LARSON: Thank you, Joe Gibbs.
That’s what everyone couldn’t stop saying after the second World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series race of Week 2 of DIRTcar Nationals. Gibbs’ decision to lift the dirt racing ban on his NASCAR drivers brought the revival of Christopher Bell versus Kyle Larson to Volusia Speedway Park. And it didn’t disappoint.
Carson Macedo won the season opener, but then Bell and Larson put on a master class the rest of the week. Bell kept everyone out of their seats on Wednesday, beating Larson to the checkered flag and bringing the famous Kreitz Racing No. 69K to Victory Lane at Volusia for the first time.
Then, it was Larson’s turn. Their 1-2 finish flipped on Friday with Larson and Paul Silva getting their first DIRTcar Nationals Gator trophy. On the final night, Bell suffered a mechanical issue, bringing the friendly duel to an end while Larson ran away with another victory and his first Big Gator title.
SHEPPARD V.S. YANKOWSKI: The Super DIRTcar Series consistently produces some of DIRTcar Nationals’ best races each year, and this year they brought fireworks for their season-opener.
Ten-time Series champion Matt Sheppard – the veteran – and 2024 SummerFAST champion Alex Yankowski – the newcomer – became the story of the night on Wednesday, testing each other’s patience on restarts and pushing the term “tight racing” to its limits.
Playing games with each other on the restarts, Yankowski would pull ahead at times, while others Sheppard strong armed his way to the lead before they reached Turn 1. But by the end of the race, Sheppard claimed the victory, scoring his 98th career Super DIRTcar Series win.
The excitement didn’t end at the checkered flag as the two drivers kept their disagreement going throughout the podium photoshoot (see below).
But aside from the “fireworks,” the Super DIRTcar Series produced four straight nights of exciting action. Yankowski got redemption on the second night with his first Volusia win, Peter Britten return to Victory Lane on Friday and Erick Rudolph also earned his first Volusia win on Saturday.
Yankowski left with the biggest trophy, earning his first Big Gator championship on the final night.
ALL NEW BIG GATOR CHAMPIONS: Six Big Gator championship trophies were handed out this year and all six went to new champions.
Justin Peck, of Monrovia, IN, made history as the first Big Gator champion with the 360 Sprint Car division.
Curt Spalding, of Watervliet, MI, became the fourth straight different Big Gator champion with the DIRTcar UMP Modified division after claiming four wins throughout the week, including his first Gator Championship.
After years of trying to just get a DIRTcar Nationals Little Gator trophy, Kyle Larson, of Elk Grove, CA, left Volusia this year with two Little Gator trophies and his first Big Gator championship. He beat reigning Big Gator champion and World of Outlaws Sprint Car champion David Gravel by 14 points.
In four years of being a part of DIRTcar Nationals, the Non-Wing Sprint Car division has seen a new Big Gator champion each time. This year, that title belongs to Princeton, IN’s Kyle Cummins. He won the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship season-opener at Volusia and then wrapped up the title with a second-place finish on the second night.
The Super DIRTcar Series produced the closest Big Gator championship fight of the event with Alex Yankowski beating reigning Big Gator champion and Series champion Mat Williamson by three points. Yankowski entered the final night with a 10-point lead over Peter Britten. Britten struggled in the final Feature, falling out of contention, but Williamson entered the picture to give Yankowski a scare. The two drivers were separated by only 16 points entering the night and Williamson ran second for most of the race, while Yankowski fought to stay in the top 10. However, with an eighth-place finish for the young Covington Township, PA driver helped him hold a three-point lead over Williamson for the Big Gator title.
Ricky Thornton Jr., of Chandler, AZ, took home the final Big Gator title of the event, becoming the fourth straight different title winner for the Late Model division. He finished in the top 10 in all six Late Model races during Week 3 and picked up two victories on his way to his first Big Gator championship.
2025 DIRTCAR NATIONALS WINNERS:
American Sprint Car Series National Tour–
Feb. 1, 2025 — Justin Peck
Jan. 31, 2025 — Justin Peck
Jan. 30, 2025 — Justin Peck
DIRTcar Late Models–
Feb. 12, 2025 — Ricky Thornton Jr., Jonathan Davenport, Brandon Overton
Feb. 11, 2025 — Ricky Thornton Jr.
Feb. 10, 2025 — Nick Hoffman
DIRTcar UMP Modifieds–
February 8th, 2025 — Curt Spalding
February 7th, 2025 — Trevor Neville, Will Krup, Curt Spalding, Kyle Strickler, David Stremme, George Dixon
February 6th, 2025 — Curt Spalding, Kyle Strickler, Cole Falloway, Charlie Mefford, Justin Stone, Lucas Lee
February 5th, 2025 — Mike McKinney, Cole Falloway, Brad Deyoung, Curt Spalding, Will Krup, Michael Long
February 4th, 2025 — JP Roberts Jr, Glenn Styres, Cole Falloway, Evan Taylor, Randy Giroux, David Stremme
February 3rd, 2025 — Gene Nicholas, David Wietholder, Trevor Neville, Bobby Bagley, Chase Holland, Kyle Strickler
February 1st, 2025 — Cole Falloway
January 31st, 2025 — Cole Falloway
January 30th, 2025 — Curt Spalding
Super DIRTcar Series–
Feb. 15, 2025 — Erick Rudolph
Feb. 14, 2025 — Peter Britten
Feb. 13, 2025 — Alex Yankowski
Feb. 12, 2025 — Matt Sheppard
USAC Non-Wing Sprint Cars–
Feb. 11, 2025 — Logan Seavey
Feb. 10, 2025 — Kyle Cummins
World of Outlaws Late Models–
Feb. 15, 2025 — Ricky Thornton Jr.
Feb. 14, 2025 — Devin Moran
Feb. 13, 2025 — Garrett Alberson
World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series–
Feb. 8, 2025 — Kyle Larson
Feb. 7, 2025 — Kyle Larson
Feb. 6, 2025 — Christopher Bell
Feb. 5, 2025 — Carson Macedo