G.R. Smith Motorsports and Zack Mitchell announced they will no longer chase the World of Outlaws Late Model Series schedule.

The announcement came shortly after the team shared it would compete with the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series events this weekend at Tazewell Speedway and Smoky Mountain Speedway instead of with the Outlaws at Maquoketa.

The team stated in a post to Facebook, “We’ve made the difficult decision to step away from the remaining points races on the World of Outlaws Late Model Series tour.”

As for why, they explained, “When our deal came together toward the end of the season, our intention was always to finish out the entire tour. However, a combination of crew availability and several other circumstances has made it clear that we need to make the decision that makes the most sense for our team at this time.”

While they will not be following the full Outlaws schedule anymore, they did share they would still compete with the series when it made sense for them, “This was a team decision, and we truly believe it’s the right move for us moving forward. We’ll still be racing with the World of Outlaws when it makes sense for us throughout the remainder of the year, while also focusing on putting ourselves in the best position to be successful at the races we attend.”

“We also want to acknowledge what an incredibly difficult hand this has dealt G.R. Smith Motorsports. As a result of this decision, G.R. will ultimately lose his owner points, and that is something we are truly saddened by. We know how much time, effort, resources, and heart G.R. has poured into this opportunity, and we don’t take that lightly. We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity he has given us and for the confidence he has placed in our team.”

“None of this would be possible without our incredible partners and sponsors who continue to believe in us and stand behind this team. We are incredibly thankful for every company and every person who has supported us throughout this journey,” the team continued. “We know this decision may come with questions, but sometimes you have to make the hard decisions that are best for your team. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished, grateful for the opportunity we’ve been given, and excited about what’s still ahead.”

The team concluded that it would release an updated schedule as well as new merchandise that they have cooked up.

Zack Mitchell shared the same statement in a post to his Facebook page as well. However, he also offered an update stating, “We are continuing our partnership with G.R. Smith Motorsports and will be in the 22* to clear all speculation. We have a great working relationship. This is just a decision to step away from the World of Outlaws tour.”

Smith shared additional details in a subsequent post, “Zack and I talked about this from the start that we were going to both national tour and pick n choose schedule and see which one we had more fun with. End of story.”

“Listen it’s simple we both have families. My boy races. It’s hard to be away from home year after year. This schedule allows us to be home a lot more and race in front of our family friends and sponsors . At the end of the day you need to be happy doing this,” he continued. “I have chased the roads with the World of Outlaws Late Model Series and it was a blast these last 4 years but hiring Zack Mitchell has also made me realize that we missed racing in our region at home and seeing friends fans that I haven’t seen in years.”

“Zack and I talked and decided we just wanted to go have fun when weather is bad we don’t have to drive 15 hrs to a race when there are some in our area that weather looks good.. When the weather doesn’t look great in our area we can go catch up and race in another part of the country.”

“It really came down to having fun and spending that time with family,” Smith concluded. “Yes they can turn on the tv however it’s just not the same! We as a team are excited and energized to go race! I hope this addresses and clears up all the questions and assumptions!”

As noted by the team, it is currently sixth in the World of Outlaws Late Model Series Team 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.

Mitchell is currently 12th in the Hunt the Front Super Dirt Series 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.

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