Contact Us
Dirt Late Models  ·  Featured

World Of Outlaws Late Models Drivers Express Dissatisfaction With Mansfield Speedway’s Character-Filled Surface

May 30, 2026  ·
  John Trent

A number of World of Outlaws Late Models drivers expressed their displeasure with the racing surface at Mansfield Speedway during the opening night of the Blaster 57 Special.

Bobby Pierce made his thoughts on the matter rather clear during an interview following his third place heat race finish. Pierce spoke with DirtVision’s Rich Vleck and simply told him, “Good luck on this.”

Pierce cracked after the race on X, “Let’s just pretend I was talking about my race car or something..”

He was not the only one to comment on the track’s conditions. Chris Ferguson, who finished third in heat 4, also shared, “Tracks got a lot of character. Could pace Nick [Hoffman] and Nick’s really one of the fastest cars in the country so really happy about that. Kinda going to be a little bit tough to pass, but I think as the track slows down, gets a little more character, some people make some mistakes. Just victory in Jesus and thanks to all my sponsors for everything they do. Thanks to all my fans for watching and everybody that supports us. This guy does a great job here. I know the track’s got some character right now, but, man, what a crowd and thanks for everybody for coming out.”

The track underwent a lengthy track prep, approximately 45 minutes, before the heats with DirtonDirt.com’s Kyle McFadden reporting they “smoothed over the ruts in turn three pretty extensively. Looked better during that first heat.” However, those ruts had definitely returned by the feature time.

On X, Nick Hoffman posted after the race, “Congrats to Terbo on 100k tonight. As for the rest of this tweet I better just [Zippit].”

Pierce replied, “How big was the rock that hit your neck? Just curious on how much chicken wire I need to buy.”

Numerous cars pulled into the pits during the feature without being involved in an accident. They included Dustin Sorensen, Ricky Thornton Jr. Dale McDowell, Chris Ferguson, Dallon Murty, Kyle Moore, Max Blair.

Thornton and his team shared that he decided to call it a night after suffering a flat tire after striking some debris. They wrote on Facebook, “Started on the pole & bounced (literally😂) back to 5th before we had a flat & just decided to call it a night. Strong start to the night, gotta work on getting through the rough a little bit better tomorrow. See y’all then!”

While the track rightly received criticism, McFadden noted that in a conversation he had with Matt Tifft following the race he “knows there’s a lot of work that needs done to get it right.”

Additionally, McFadden shared his own thoughts that Tiff and his team “will figure it out. If there’s reason for optimism, it’s that Tifft has already shown a vigor to invest heavily in the property. Someone willing to pour $8 million into reviving a racetrack isn’t going to sit idle when these issues arise.”

One person who was not complaining about the track was race winner Tyler Erb. During his victory lane interview, he said, “I can’t thank Matt [Tifft] enough. It takes a lot of balls to open a place that everybody [whines] and cries about. I don’t even know what’s going on behind me and I’m so glad I wasn’t apart of it. But for him to do that and everyone to make this $100,000 to-win race just at the drop of the hat that means a lot. It means a lot to me to win. Winning is what you’re all about. I can’t appreciate them enough. Hell, I hope he pays more tomorrow too. That’d be cool.”

“Obviously, it was one of his first races,” he added. “So really appreciate him having us out here and paying such good money. Tomorrow especially like $5,000 is unheard of to start. Just can’t thank Matt enough for what he’s doing here. The old heads are going to cry. The young guys are going to say it’s cool and I think it’s [freaking] awesome.”

The Outlaws remain at Mansfield for tonight’s $57,000 to-win Blaster 57 Special that also pays $5,700 just to start the feature.

NEXT: Tyler Erb Cashes In For $100,000 In 57 Special Opener At Mansfield

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Author: John Trent