11/02/2026
MOTHER NATURE WINS AGAIN, BUT USMTS DELIVERS ANOTHER INCREDIBLE SEASON IN 2026!
28 Races, 12 Different Winners, 38.25 Cars Per Event, and Some of the Most Incredible Racing You'll Ever See!
The 2026 Summit Racing Equipment USMTS presented by RacinDirt.com season is officially in the books, and what a season it was!
We started the year with 47 events on the schedule, and when the dust finally settled, we managed to complete 28 of them. That's 19 events that didn't get completed as originally scheduled, with Mother Nature playing a major role once again!
But despite all the rainouts, the 2026 season produced some outstanding racing, incredible finishes, new faces in Victory Lane, and one of the most impressive winning streaks we have seen in quite some time.
And when you look back at everything that happened, there were plenty of stories that went far beyond just who won the races.
Let's take a look back at the 2026 season!
KING OF AMERICA KICKS OFF THE SEASON IN STYLE!
The season was originally scheduled to begin the first weekend of March at KSP Speedway in Kennedale, Texas, but Mother Nature had other plans.
That moved the season opener to the King of America at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri, and what a way to kick things off!
A season-high 66 Modifieds checked in on opening night, making it the largest car count of the entire 2026 USMTS season.
The first two nights produced two first-time USMTS winners.
Reece Solander and his teammate Gabe Hodges, who would go on to earn the prestigious 2026 Grant Junghans USMTS Rookie of the Year Award, each found their way to Victory Lane during the opening two nights.
Then came Saturday night, when Tanner Mullens added another major accomplishment to his racing résumé by capturing the King of America crown.
In the 15-year history of the King of America, Ryan Gustin remains the only driver to have won the prestigious event twice.
Three nights of racing, three different winners, and an incredible start to the season!
MISSISSIPPI WELCOMES THE USMTS!
From Missouri, the series headed south to Mississippi for two new stops on the schedule.
Hattiesburg Speedway would see 2024 USMTS National Champion Jim Chisholm collect his first victory of the 2026 season.
The following night at Mitchells Motorplex, Tyler Stevens would accomplish something every Modified driver dreams about, capturing his first career USMTS victory.
Five races into the season, and five different drivers had visited Victory Lane!
SCOTLAND COUNTY PRODUCES MORE DRAMA!
Next up was the Jon Fuller Memorial at Scotland County Speedway in Memphis, Missouri.
Friday night's feature looked like it might produce another different winner when Cade Dillard was leading late in the race. Unfortunately, a flat tire ended his chances.
Rodney Sanders would cross the finish line first, but following post-race technical inspection, Sanders was disqualified after his car was found to have exceeded the allowable indexing limits.
That handed Tanner Mullens his second victory of the season.
Saturday night, Cade Dillard would come back and finish what he started the night before, taking the checkered flag and earning his first victory of 2026.
MOTHER NATURE STARTS FLEXING HER MUSCLES!
The next scheduled stop was Route 66 Motor Speedway in Amarillo, Texas, but Mother Nature forced that event to be postponed until August.
The series then headed to Tri-State Speedway in Pocola, Oklahoma, for the Red, White & Blue Nationals.
Originally scheduled as a three-day event, the weekend was shortened to two nights.
Rodney Sanders made the most of it, sweeping both nights and reminding everyone why he is one of the most successful drivers in USMTS history.
MEMORIAL WEEKEND BRINGS THE SERIES NORTH!
Memorial Weekend brought the USMTS to Iowa and Minnesota for a busy stretch of racing.
Rodney Sanders kept his momentum rolling with his third consecutive victory at Fayette County Speedway in West Union, Iowa.
Friday night's scheduled event at Hancock County Speedway in Britt, Iowa, was postponed because of rain, forcing some adjustments to the weekend.
The series moved to Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minnesota, where Jim Chisholm picked up his second victory of the season.
Next came the Jerry Hejna Memorial at Mason City Motor Speedway.
And folks, if you were there, you witnessed one of the most incredible races of the entire 2026 season!
Terry Phillips, Tanner Mullens, and Brandon Davis put on one heck of a show!
For much of that race, it looked like Terry Phillips was going to take home the victory. Terry was giving it everything he had, even driving off the backstretch during the battle!
It certainly looked like Terry's race to win, but Tanner Mullens would eventually come out on top, capturing his third and final victory of the 2026 season.
If that race wasn't the Race of the Year, it certainly deserves to be in the conversation!
The Memorial Weekend stretch wrapped up with the rescheduled event at Hancock County Speedway, where Jake Timm picked up his first victory of 2026.
THE MASTERS AND MORE RAIN!
The following weekend, the series was scheduled for three nights at Mississippi Thunder Speedway.
Unfortunately, all three nights were washed away.
That moved the series to the prestigious Masters at Cedar Lake Speedway.
Thursday night's opener was also lost to rain, reducing the event to two nights.
Cade Dillard would collect his second and final victory of the season on Friday, while Jake Timm would capture his second win on Saturday night.
The UMP Modified Challenge at Macon Speedway was next on the schedule, but once again, Mother Nature had the final say.
PARK JEFFERSON PRODUCES GREAT RACING AND HEARTBREAK!
Next up was Park Jefferson International Speedway, which produced the smallest car count of the 2026 season with 18 Modifieds.
But don't let that number fool you!
The racing was outstanding!
And how about Kyle Brown?
Kyle looked like he might be on his way to capturing his first career USMTS victory. He was putting together one heck of a run and showing everyone he had what it takes to run up front with the best Modified drivers in the country.
Unfortunately, a late-race caution changed everything, and Kyle would eventually settle for a third-place finish.
Sometimes racing can be downright cruel!
Brandon Davis also looked like he might be headed to Victory Lane before mechanical problems ended his chances while leading.
Jim Chisholm would capitalize and collect his third victory of the 2026 season.
LOCAL HEROES STEP UP!
The series then headed north to Casino Speedway in Watertown, South Dakota.
Local favorite Mike Stearns thrilled the hometown crowd by capturing his first career USMTS victory.
Next up was Princeton Speedway in Princeton, Minnesota, where another local favorite, Clayton Wagamon, would take the checkered flag for his first career USMTS victory.
These are the kinds of moments that make traveling around the country with the USMTS so special.
Watching drivers earn their first victory against some of the toughest Modified competition in America is something we never get tired of seeing.
THEN CAME THE BRANDON DAVIS SHOW!
As the summer continued, Brandon Davis started putting together one of the most impressive stretches of the entire season.
It began at Ogilvie Raceway and continued at Granite City Motor Sports Park.
Mother Nature then wiped out the scheduled events at Fairmont, Minnesota; Decorah, Iowa; and Mason City, Iowa.
But when the series returned to action at Nevada Speedway and Lucas Oil Speedway, Davis picked up right where he left off.
By the time that stretch was finished, Davis had collected five consecutive USMTS victories!
Two weeks later, the series traveled to Route 66 Motor Speedway in Amarillo, Texas, for the rescheduled event from May.
Unfortunately, making that event happen meant canceling the scheduled stop at Hamilton County Speedway in Webster City, Iowa.
And who was standing in Victory Lane at Amarillo?
You guessed it.
BRANDON DAVIS!
That made it an incredible SIX CONSECUTIVE USMTS VICTORIES!
What an accomplishment against the level of competition that follows the USMTS tour.
But there was another story that weekend at Amarillo.
How about Brandon Givens?
Givens was having what looked like the best run of his USMTS career, leading a large portion of the feature and showing everyone he had what it takes to compete with the best in the business.
Unfortunately, mechanical problems ended his chances at what could have been a career-best finish.
It was certainly disappointing for Brandon, but what a run he was having!
And for Brandon Davis, the incredible season would eventually lead to the 2026 Leon Ramirez USMTS National Championship, earning the $42,000 championship payday.
For Davis, who was competing in his first full season on the USMTS tour, it was certainly a year to remember.
FALL JAMBOREE DELIVERS ANOTHER CLASSIC FINISH!
The next stop was the 28th Annual Featherlite Fall Jamboree at Deer Creek Speedway in Spring Valley, Minnesota.
And once again, the Fall Jamboree delivered!
Joe Chisholm, Brandon Davis, and Jake Timm would each find their way to Victory Lane during the three-night event.
But Saturday night's finale was something special.
For the second consecutive year, the Fall Jamboree produced a finish that will be talked about for years.
In 2025, Brandon Davis made an incredible last-lap move to get by Reece Solander coming out of turn four to steal the victory.
Fast-forward to 2026, and this time Davis was on the receiving end.
Jake Timm made a tremendous charge coming out of turn four on the final lap, edging Davis by a nose at the checkered flag!
TWO YEARS IN A ROW! TWO INCREDIBLE FINISHES!
And two races that remind everyone why we love dirt track racing!
If that wasn't the Finish of the Year in 2026, I would sure like to know what was!
SOMETIMES LIFE THROWS YOU A CURVEBALL!
We also had a couple of very scary situations involving two of our USMTS competitors this season.
Reece Solander suffered injuries in a frightening tractor fire that resulted in a trip to the burn unit.
Then, later in the season, longtime USMTS competitor Joe Duvall was involved in a serious electrical accident.
These are the kinds of things that put everything into perspective.
We spend so much time worrying about race cars, points, wins, and losses, but when something like this happens, it reminds us that racing is just racing.
The health and well-being of our racing family will always come first.
And speaking of Joe Duvall, how about Dylan Thornton jumping behind the wheel of Joe's No. 91 while Joe was recovering?
Dylan stepped in, had some fun, and kept Joe's car out there competing with the USMTS.
That's one of the great things about this sport. When somebody needs a hand, the racing family has a way of coming together.
We certainly wish Reece and Joe nothing but the best.
THE DRIVERS WHO WERE THERE THROUGH IT ALL!
One thing that should never go unnoticed is the commitment it takes to follow the USMTS tour.
In 2026, 12 drivers competed in all 28 completed USMTS events!
Think about that for a minute.
From Missouri to Mississippi, Oklahoma to Texas, Iowa to Minnesota, South Dakota, and everywhere in between, these drivers and their teams traveled thousands of miles to support the series.
And with all the rainouts, rescheduled events, and changes throughout the season, that commitment becomes even more impressive.
Steve Lavesseur was the 12th and final driver to accomplish that feat.
We can't thank these 12 drivers and their teams enough for their dedication and support.
Winning races and championships is certainly important, but so is showing up week after week, supporting the racetracks, supporting the series, and helping make the USMTS what it is today.
Those are the people who keep this sport going, and we appreciate every single one of them!
MOTHER NATURE GETS THE LAST WORD!
That left just two events on the schedule.
The USMTS was set to return to Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas, followed by the season finale at 81 Speedway in Park City, Kansas, on Halloween night.
Unfortunately, Mother Nature wasn't finished with us.
For the third consecutive year, the Lakeside Speedway event was lost to weather.
And for the second consecutive year, the Halloween event at 81 Speedway was also canceled.
Not exactly the way we wanted to finish the season, but sometimes Mother Nature simply refuses to cooperate.
2026 USMTS SEASON BY THE NUMBERS!
Despite everything Mother Nature threw at us, the 2026 season produced some impressive numbers.
2026 SEASON STATISTICS
47 scheduled events
28 completed races
19 events not completed
38.25 average cars per event
66 cars at the King of America season opener
18 cars at Park Jefferson, the smallest field of the season
12 different feature winners
6 consecutive victories by Brandon Davis
$42,000 to Leon Ramirez USMTS National Champion Brandon Davis
2026 USMTS FEATURE WINNERS
🏁 7 Wins: Brandon Davis
🏁 4 Wins: Jim Chisholm
🏁 3 Wins Each: Tanner Mullens, Rodney Sanders, Jake Timm
🏁 2 Wins: Cade Dillard
🏁 1 Win Each: Reece Solander, Gabe Hodges, Tyler Stevens, Joe Chisholm, Clayton Wagamon, and Mike Stearns
The 2026 season also gave us several drivers celebrating their first career USMTS victories, including Reece Solander, Gabe Hodges, Tyler Stevens, Clayton Wagamon, and Mike Stearns.
THANK YOU FOR ANOTHER GREAT SEASON!
When you look back at everything that happened in 2026, it really was another great year of USMTS racing.
We had outstanding car counts, first-time winners, local drivers beating the traveling stars, incredible finishes, and one of the most dominant stretches of racing we have seen in quite some time.
We also had our share of disappointments.
Losing that many events is tough on everyone involved.
It is tough on the drivers and crews who spend countless hours and dollars preparing their race cars. It is tough on the racetracks that work so hard to put these events together. It is tough on our sponsors, and it is certainly tough on the fans who make plans to come watch the best Modified drivers in the country.
Nobody likes rainouts, especially us!
But through it all, the support for the USMTS continues to be something we are extremely thankful for.
To our drivers and crews, thank you for traveling up and down the highways and supporting the series.
To our racetrack promoters and staff, thank you for giving us places to race and working with us through all the weather-related challenges.
To our sponsors and marketing partners, thank you for continuing to believe in the USMTS and what we are trying to accomplish.
And most importantly, to our fans, thank you for continuing to support dirt track racing and the USMTS.
NOW IT'S TIME TO LOOK AHEAD TO 2027!
As we begin putting together the 2027 USMTS schedule, our goal remains the same: continue bringing the best Modified racing in America to great racetracks and great racing fans.
We are already working on the schedule, looking at some different dates, and trying to figure out how we can outsmart Mother Nature for a change!
We certainly hope to see all our drivers, teams, sponsors, and fans back with us in 2027.
And after looking at the 2026 results, I think we can all agree on one thing:
Brandon Davis may have won the Leon Ramirez USMTS National Championship, but Mother Nature was still the biggest winner of the 2026 USMTS season!
Thank you for another great year!
Todd, Janet, & Ryne Staley
Summit Racing Equipment USMTS
Presented by RacinDirt.com