By Alex Nieten
GRAND FORKS, ND (June 4, 2024) – The 2024 map grows even more this weekend as the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars make their first stops of the season in two more states.
A North Dakota bullring that never fails to entertain is up first. The Greatest Show on Dirt makes its 32nd visit to Grand Forks, ND’s River Cities Speedway on Friday, June 7, for the Don Mack Classic. The high-banked quarter mile is home to nine second laps in Qualifying and thrilling racing throughout the entire program. There’s a reason longtime Series announcer Johnny Gibson ranks River Cities atop the list of nearly 400 tracks that he’s visited.
Then, the tour takes off on a nearly 300-mile drive east into Minnesota where Ogilvie Raceway awaits. Last year, the World of Outlaws debuted at the fine facility with a record crowd filling the stands and are coming back for the Wagamon Brothers presents the Big O Showdown.
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Let’s look at the weekend’s top storylines:
DONNY’S DOMAIN: Racing in home territory has always been important for Donny Schatz. Whether it was his rookie World of Outlaws season in 1997 or any of the 10 championship campaigns he’s put together, Schatz always wants to make the North Dakota fans proud. And his River Cities results prove as much.
Schatz has contested all 31 World of Outlaws events at River Cities and won a dozen of them, posted 28 top fives, and never missed the top 10 with a worst finish of eighth. The 10-time champion’s average finish at River Cities is a remarkable 2.7. During 2015 and 2016, Schatz took the Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing machine to four consecutive River Cities victories.
The Fargo, ND driver is in search of his 11th championship, and a visit to River Cities could offer a boost toward those efforts. Schatz owns a pair of victories so far this year and only missed the top 10 on three occasions. All three times he only missed it by a spot with a trio of 11th place runs.
SHARK SLUMP ENDER?: There’s no denying 2024 hasn’t been the season Logan Schuchart and Shark Racing had hoped it would be. They’ve been plenty consistent with 20 top 10s in 25 races but haven’t yet had race winning speed or been able to crack the podium. But there’s reason to believe River Cities could help them turn things around.
Schuchart has won two of the last eight visits to River Cities, including the most recent last August. Over the course of those eight races, the Hanover, PA native has finished sixth or better in all but one. Half of the eight have resulted in podiums.
Despite the lack of a win this year, Schuchart still sits sixth in points and only 26 markers outside the top five. A night at River Cities may be just what Schuchart needs to build some momentum with the Summer of Money on the horizon.
GRAND FORKS GLORY: Schatz and Schuchart aren’t the only World of Outlaws competitors with River Cities victories under their belts.
Current point leader David Gravel has made a pair of trips to Victory Lane. Seven years ago, he scored the first of the pair with CJB Motorsports, and then last June he and his current Big Game Motorsports team claimed the checkered flag. The Watertown, CT native already owns eight wins in 2024 and is only four away from reaching 100 for his career.
The man chasing Gravel in the standings – Carson Macedo – topped the June River Cities visit in 2022. That’s his only win at the quarter mile, but in eight tries he’s only missed the top five twice. He and Jason Johnson Racing enter the weekend on a roll of eight consecutive podiums and are 30 markers behind Gravel for the top spot.
The final full-timer with a River Cities World of Outlaws win is Kraig Kinser. The Bloomington, IN native pieced together an impressive drive from 10th to victory in 2012. That win came aboard his family’s No. 11K, and he returns aboard the Premier Motorsports No. 70 this Friday.
OGILVIE TAKE TWO: After an exciting debut last year, the World of Outlaws are eager to get back to Ogilvie. The 3/8 mile doesn’t often host Sprint Cars, leaving little data to suggest potential favorites entering Saturday.
The one previous Ogilvie winner is Carson Macedo. Last year, he led from flag to flag in the JJR No. 41 to tame the 10th Minnesota track visited by The Greatest Show on Dirt.
Chasing Macedo to the line a year ago was Logan Schuchart. His past success at River Cities coupled with a strong effort last year at Ogilvie lays out a prime opportunity at a strong weekend to get him and the Shark Racing team on the right track.
Rounding out the podium last year was Donny Schatz. Eight of his 313 career Series wins have come in the state of Minnesota at three different tracks – Jackson Motorplex (Jackson, MN), Princeton Speedway (Princeton, MN), and Granite City Speedway (Sauk Rapids, MN) – and Ogilvie could become the fourth this weekend.
NOSA KNOWLEDGE: The first trips to North Dakota and Minnesota this year means a fresh crop of locals will be ready to test themselves against the best in the business on home turf. The Northern Outlaw Sprint Association (NOSA) regulars are prepared to face off with The Greatest Show on Dirt.
It’s no surprise that the most recent River Cities winner this year is Mark Dobmeier. A May 31 victory marked the latest in the list of more than 100 Dobmeier has compiled at the 1/4 mile. The Grand Forks, ND native has competed 30 times with the World of Outlaws at his home track, and the closest he’s come to beating the nation’s top talent is a pair of podiums (2016 & 2018).
Fellow Grand Forks native Brendan Mullen has established himself as a solid competitor in recent years. He’s won at least one River Cities NOSA race in each of the last three seasons, and he’s fresh off a podium finish this past weekend.
Jade Hastings regularly joins the field when the World of Outlaws roll into River Cities. He won the track’s 2024 season opener on May 10. Hastings has made at least one visit to River Cities Victory Lane every year since 2017.
This trio along with a collection of others from the country’s northern region are expected to be in action this weekend.
THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
WHEN AND WHERE
Friday, June 7 at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, ND
Saturday, June 8 at Ogilvie Raceway in Ogilvie, MN
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CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (25/76 Races):
1. David Gravel – Big Game Motorsports #2 (3518 PTS)
2. Carson Macedo – Jason Johnson Racing #41 (-30 PTS)
3. Donny Schatz – Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15 (-58 PTS)
4. Giovanni Scelzi – KCP Racing #18 (-76 PTS)
5. Michael Kofoid – Roth Motorsports #83 (-108 PTS)
6. Logan Schuchart – Shark Racing #1S (-134 PTS)
7. Sheldon Haudenschild – Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17 (-196 PTS)
8. Bill Balog – B Squared Motorsports #17B (-342 PTS)
9. Brock Zearfoss – Brock Zearfoss Racing #3Z (-576 PTS)
10. Landon Crawley – Sides Motorsports #7S (-674 PTS)