Justin Haers will never forget Super DIRT Week 53.
The Phelps, NY driver narrowly missed out on his first Billy Whittaker Cars 200 victory at Oswego Speedway, going side-by-side multiple times with eventual winner Mat Williamson before ultimately finishing second.
Next week, “T-Bone” returns to Super DIRT Week 54 presented by StubHub, Oct. 5-10, aiming for redemption after a moment he called bittersweet.
“We thought we were going to be able to make a charge there toward the end, but it didn’t come out that way,” Haers said. “I thought the cautions kind of hurt me, but that’s beside the point. If you would’ve told me I was going to run second at Super DIRT Week last year, I would’ve definitely been happy.
“I always look forward to Super DIRT Week. I love the big stages, the people, the crowds. And to be able to run second, really means a lot.”
Haers had his best chance to get by Williamson on a Lap 135 restart, when he pulled even with the No. 88 coming off Turn 4, nosing ahead to lead a lap. But that was short-lived, as Williamson’s momentum carried him back in the lead on the bottom in Turn 2.
Unfortunately for Haers, the race never got back into heavy lap traffic, where he said he thought his Phelps Cement Products No. 3 would be positioned to reclaim the lead.
“That’s where I thought I was a bit better than him, and a bit more maneuverable than he was,” Haers said. “I was just trying to get him pinned behind a lap car in (Turns) 3 and 4, because that’s where I was the best. Not so much in (Turns) 1 and 2.
“As you’re racing, you’re trying to strategically play out how this is going to work. In a perfect world, you’re saying I’m going to pin him behind this lap car going into (Turn) 3, roll him on the outside, and hopefully that’s how it’s going to work, and we can race. But it didn’t work out that way; a lot of things happen in these races, and you just have to roll with the punches.”
Williamson wasn’t the only challenge Haers faced during the 200-lap battle. Another was keeping his car balanced for the duration of the event. With 2026 being only the third year the race has been contested under the lights at Oswego, he said it’s still a guessing game how the track will react at the start. Which means it’s also a guessing game on how to set up your car.
“You really hope at the beginning of the race that you’re really close,” Haers said. “You’re hoping at that 100-lap stop you have enough notes or enough feeling that you can give your crew an idea of what you want to change.
“That’s hard as a driver. You’re out there just driving, being as smooth as you can, and just doing your job out there. But in the back of your mind, you’re thinking of where I need to be better, and how can I make it better. You can come into your pit, and if you don’t have an experienced crew chief to say I need to be better off the corner, and have them throw some ideas at you, you’re the one doing the ideas in your head. That’s really challenging, but it’s also really fun at the same time.”
One thing different about Haers’ return to Super DIRT Week in 2026, is that he’ll be pulling double duty for the first time since 2021. He’ll be driving the Vic Coffey-owned 358 Modified in the Salute to the Troops 150 presented by Air National Guard.
A reason he’s getting behind the wheel of a Small Block this season is simple: more track time.
“You don’t really get a lot of it,” Haers said. “This year I had an opportunity to get a real stout engine from Morrison Performance, and we kind of put a deal together with Vic (Coffey) to run Vic’s car with the No. 32C, which has obviously won a couple of Super DIRT Weeks.
“Just getting track time, making sure your tires have enough heat cycles and you’re not on new tires all the time is important. You don’t know what the weather is going to throw at you at Oswego.”
All the track time during the Salute to the Troops 150 is just an added piece of the puzzle for Haers to try and accomplish what more than 70 drivers aim to do at Super DIRT Week: grab a Billy Whittaker Cars 200 victory.
In 2026, Haers returns to Oswego with more confidence, knowing the opportunities to etch his name in the record books are dwindling.
“I would be just totally blown away,” Haers said. “I’ve always said you have to lose one before you win one. And I’m not saying I lost one, but that was as close as I got to winning one, so I’d say that’s as close as I got to losing one. My years are numbered doing this, so I cherish every race I’m close to winning. The older you get, you usually start kind of like falling off and not running as well. And I don’t think I’ve done that yet.
“I’ve got some fight in me, and some speed. We’ll see what happens. I’m excited. We’re not quite where we want to be as far as racing for here, but we’ve been really working hard to get ready.”
Haers joins the Super DIRTcar Series and DIRTcar 358 Modified Series during Super DIRT Week 54 at Oswego Speedway in Oswego, NY, Oct. 5-10, culminating with the Billy Whittaker Cars 200.
Where can you find event information and tickets for Super DIRT Week 54 presented by StubHub? By visiting SuperDIRTWeek.com.
Where can you watch the Super DIRT Week? Watch every lap live on DIRTVision.
This article was republished with permission from Super DIRT Week. The original article can be found here: https://superdirtweek.com/dirtcar-ne/big-block-modifieds/super-dirt-car-series/a-shot-at-redemption-justin-haers-ready-for-another-shot-at-a-billy-whittaker-cars-200-victory/
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