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Dirt Late Model Drivers Share Their Solutions For Competitors Purposely Bringing Out Cautions

September 24, 2026  ·
  John Trent

A number of Dirt Late Model competitors and even one NASCAR Cup Series driver shared their solutions for competitors purposely bringing out cautions.

The various solutions were prompted by FloRacing General Manager Michael Rigsby seeking answers in a social media post for the problem. He wrote, “One thing we have to solve in dirt late model racing … guys bringing cautions out on purpose. I totally get why they do it. I also believe it’s ruined more good or “would be great” races than anything in the last 10 years of our sport. How do we fix it? What’s the solution? I’m open to anything. I’ll start with Gordy Gundaker … what do we do?”

As for what he means by purposely bringing out a caution, Rigsby clarified, “You know it when you see it. A driver clearly could get his car to the pit area but instead chooses to stop and bring a yellow out … and THEN … go to the pits. To either change a tire or ‘fix’ other issues.”

Gundaker answered, “If you don’t have a flat and you stop, then pull in to the hot pit. You’re done for that race. It’s brutal that guys do it all the time. It ruins a lot of races and also, if your race car sucks that bad, 4 turns on the RR adjuster nut aren’t saving ya.”

“The only exception I would give is if a guys RR is packed full of mud, because that is brutal to try and race with, although Tanner Thorson just did it at Wheatland. Cap tip to you my friend,” he concluded.

Bobby Pierce shared, “There needs to be deemable cause for stopping. Like a tire losing air pressure, or something rubbing on your tire, mud in wheel, something obstructing your vision, bumper knocked into the ground can’t steer, etc.”

Gundaker replied, “Yeah definitely think there would have to be some exceptions. But wouldn’t need to be a big list of things. Guys who just stop to stop and come to get a change on the car or that changing both rear tires will save them.. that’s gotta go.”

Fabricator and Midget competitor Flea Ruzic called for the hot pit to be eliminated, “Eliminate the work area. Speeds up the program, saves the teams money, and eliminates most of the intentional yellows if u can’t work on it.”

NASCAR Cup Series driver and owner of Brent Marks’ Sprint Car Chase Briscoe shared his solution, “No flat tire you can’t change it.”

Nick Hoffman concurred with Briscoe writing, “What Chase said. If it’s not flat you can’t change it. If you simply stop to bring out a caution then roll away you are done for that race. No work area time in heats and only til half way in feature. You can go to work area to fix it but no allocated time.”

“Lots of times the race director is to quick to throw the caution. I get it’s a safety thing most of the time but there have been so many scenarios where drivers are literally just trying to get off the track and they pull the trigger on a caution,” he added.

Randle Chupp pointed to a different problem that needs to be solved as well, namely the number of flat tires that happen in a race.

He wrote, “Not necessarily on same question in a way but they wouldn’t have to bring out half as many cautions if the tires didn’t go flat three times more often than they used too on guys bringing out cautions with flats ya can’t blame them cause it’s the only way to stay in race.”

Ricky Thornton Jr. also questioned if a driver causes yellows repeatedly on subsequent nights of racing. Gundaker shared his solution for that, “Start money taken away (if you took an emergency provisional, $1000 fine)”

NEXT: Jacqueline Rumley Explains Why The K&L Rumley Team Has No Plans To Race Nationally Moving Forward

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Author: John Trent