G.R. Smith Motorsports announced that driver Zack Mitchell will compete with the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series this weekend beginning at Tazewell Speedway.
The team announced on Facebook, “The G.R. Smith Motorsports team & driver Zack Mitchell will be traveling to East Tennessee this weekend!”
The announcement comes in the wake of Mitchell and the team winning with the Southern Nationals at Toccoa on Thursday night. Mitchell hunted Garrett Smith for the opening 10 laps of the race before he finally found an opening underneath him in turn 3. He took the opportunity and then dominated the rest of the race.
The move to race with the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series is a bit surprising given the team had indicated it would continue to chase the World of Outlaws Late Model Series after bringing Mitchell in after Drake Troutman departed the team. In fact, the team is currently sixth in the points standings. They are 62 points behind Cooney Motorsports and their Ryan Gustin car and have a 27 point advantage over Two X Motorsports, which fields Ethan Dotson’s car.
Smith told the World of Outlaws back in July, “[Mitchell] is the best kept secret that the national level doesn’t know about. He’s the guy to beat in [the southeast], right? If you get Zack in the south, if you look at his stats per starts, he’s a true wheel man. To be in a situation at this time of year and to have a talent like Zack available, it got me excited to go racing again. I have a lot of respect for Zack. I’ve gotten to follow his racing career closer than most people on the national level just because of where we live. Finished second to him many a time, wishing that he was somewhere else racing when I was a driver and finishing second to him. He’s definitely a talented shoe, and I think he’s ready at this stage of his life to tackle a World of Outlaws national tour.”
Mitchell is 12th in the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series points standings and was in the hunt for the championship before missing the series’ last four races. He has 1 win, 4 Top 5s, and 6 Top 10s in six starts with the series so far. His win came at North Georgia Speedway.
It is unclear why the team has decided to chase the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series this weekend over the World of Outlaws Late Models at Maquoketa. Smith and the team also did not share any information on what their plans are for the future following this weekend and whether they will return to Outlaw action. The Outlaws will remain in Iowa after this weekend at Maquoketa and will compete at Adams County Speedway and Shelby County on August 28th and 29th.
The Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series has a double header this weekend. It begins tonight at Tazewell Speedway with hot laps expected to begin at 7:30 PM and $8,028 on the line to win. Along with Mitchell, Brandon Overton, Dale McDowell, Sam Seawright, and Jimmy Owens are also expected to be there along with series regulars Ashton Winger, Dalton Cook, Joseph Joiner, Jadon Frame, and Jake O’Neil.
On Saturday the series will head to Smoky Mountain Speedway where Chris Madden and Mike Marlar are expected to spoil the party. They will be battling for $12,000 to-win.
0 Comments