Alex Payne’s magical run down the stretch in 2025 continued Friday night, as he earned a win on one of racing’s biggest stages.
The Hopewell, NY driver led all 30 laps to score his first World of Outlaws World Finals victory at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, and his second five-figure payday in the past week.
“I can get used to this,” Payne said. “We’ve had a really good car the last couple of weeks. Two different cars, really. Georgetown and here were two different cars. But when you got a package that rolls good, it just rolls good, I guess.
“The biggest thing is we’re having fun. That’s what’s making this season a lot different. We’ve had good runs in the past, but to put all of our heads together and have fun, it’s just a dream.”
Mat Williamson chased Payne to a second-place finish and mathematically secured his third Super DIRTcar Series championship, which will be officially celebrated on Saturday.
Payne, the SRI Performance and Stock Car Steel Pole Award winner, led the field to the green in the $10,000-to-win battle, outdueling Erick Rudolph for the lead in Turns 1 and 2.
However, the race was red-flagged on the opening lap after Tyler Siri flipped in Turn 3, with another car colliding with him as he landed.
After the incident, he was alert and talking to safety officials. He was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation.
When the race resumed, Payne drove away from Rudolph again through Turns 1 and 2 and quickly gained separation from the No. 25. That lead was short-lived though, as back-to-back cautions slowed the field on Lap 4.
On the next restart, Rudolph couldn’t match Payne’s speed as they raced down the frontstretch, allowing the “Slide Job Express” to keep his momentum out front. That distance only grew as the race went on, as Payne got out to over a six-second lead toward the end of the race.
Behind Payne, Williamson moved through the field using different lanes. Using the outside, he gained speed through the corner before switching to the bottom as he raced down the backstretch. That strategy powered him past Felix Roy for third on Lap 13 and by Rudolph for second on Lap 18.
When he moved into second, Williamson’s chase for the lead began, aiming for his fifth World Finals victory. However, he was still six seconds behind Payne. The St. Catharines, ON driver cut the distance in half over the next 12 laps, but it wasn’t enough to catch Payne, who cruised to his fourth career Super DIRTcar Series win.
While Payne dominated the 30-lap race, he said he was worried at the beginning because he hates starting on the pole.
“I’ve always hated it,” Payne said. “I’ll probably never get used to it. It’s just tough. You might have the best car, and you might go on to win like we did. Or you might have the worst car. You just never know where your speed is or where the line is.
“Tonight, I needed the clean air, and first was the best spot. I’m really thankful for that.”
With his win, Payne moved to within 28 points of Alex Yankowski for second in the Series standings, after Yankowski crossed the line in 15th.
Williamson drove from sixth to second in the 30-lap Feature to earn his fifth straight Series top five, and 10th top five in his last 11 starts. “Money Mat” said he ran a higher line than he’d usually run at Charlotte, knowing he didn’t have to worry about points once the race started.
“We did the same thing we did last night, we just picked the harder tire tonight, and it seemed to pay off,” Williamson said. “I would’ve liked a yellow, but I don’t know if I would’ve got him anyway. We were doing the same things in Turns 1 and 2.
“It’s fun to just come down here and race and not worry about points.”
Tim Fuller crossed the line third after starting eighth. It’s the Edwards, NY driver’s second straight top five this week, on a track he enjoyed racing on.
“I had a 300 (Hoosier Tire) on the left rear,” Fuller said. “I knew it wasn’t the right tire, but I could get down in the brown. All those guys were bellyaching that their 400s were bad, and I said just hang on, it’ll be ok. That long green really made their 400s go, and I just kind of stayed ok.
“Any time you can come down here and keep getting top fives on the biggest stage, it’s cool.”
Rudolph scored his third consecutive top five with a fourth-place finish, and Roy rounded out the top five.
UP NEXT: The Super DIRTcar Series returns to The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, NC, for the final night of the World of Outlaws World Finals on Saturday, Nov. 8, for the 2025 season finale. Drivers will battle in a 40-lap Feature paying $15,000-to-win.
Following Saturday night’s Features, Mat Williamson will officially be crowned the 2025 Series champion in a celebration on the frontstretch.
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVision.
World Finals Night 2 (30 Laps): 1. 70A-Alex Payne[1]; 2. 88-Mat Williamson[5]; 3. 19-Tim Fuller[8]; 4. 25-Erick Rudolph[2]; 5. 91-Felix Roy[3]; 6. 12-Darren Smith[10]; 7. 98H-Jimmy Phelps[11]; 8. 44G-Sebastien Gougeon[4]; 9. 9S-Matt Sheppard[6]; 10. 83X-Tim Sears Jr[12]; 11. 6-Matt Stangle[14]; 12. 02-Jack Lehner[9]; 13. 26-Ryan Godown[21]; 14. 3-Justin Haers[13]; 15. 84Y-Alex Yankowski[15]; 16. CRAZ8-Max McLaughlin[22]; 17. 35-Mike Mahaney[16]; 18. 99L-Larry Wight[24]; 19. 15X-Justin Stone[18]; 20. 8B-Peter Britten[19]; 21. 4M-Logan Watt[7]; 22. 11C-Matt Caprara[20]; 23. 27B-Robert Bublak[17]; 24. 66-Corbin Millar[29]; 25. 4-Anthony Perrego[26]; 26. (DNF) 6S-Brian Swartzlander[23]; 27. (DNF) 5C-Ayden Cipriano[27]; 28. (DNF) 17-Marcus Dinkins[30]; 29. (DNF) 1M-Tyler Murray[28]; 30. (DNF) 5-Tyler Siri[25]
