BUZZIN’ TO THE FRONT: Mat Williamson Outduels Larry Wight For Seventh DIRTcar Nationals Win
After it took him 13 races to earn his first Super DIRTcar Series win in 2025, defending champion Mat Williamson didn’t waste any time reaching Victory Lane in 2026.
In his second Series start of the year, the St. Catharines, ON driver held off Larry Wight to earn his seventh Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals triumph, and first since 2024.
Bobby Varin, the SRI Performance and Stock Car Steel Pole Award winner, grabbed the early lead in the 30-lap Feature. However, it wasn’t long before he was challenged by both Wight and Jimmy Phelps, who tried to wrestle the lead away.
Despite those challenges, Varin maintained his lead until a Lap 4 caution for Erick Rudolph, who had a flat tire.
When the race resumed, Varin kept control of the lead on Lap 5, but left the outside lane open for Wight. As Varin entered Turn 1 on the bottom on Lap 6, Wight used the “Larry Lane” in Turn 2 to grab momentum on the backstretch. Then he slid in front of Varin in Turn 3 to take the lead.
Wight drove away from the No. 18V, but behind him, Williamson, who started sixth, was moving forward. One lap later, Williamson drove by Varin on the bottom in Turn 1 to take over second, setting his sights on the No. 99L.
Williamson wasn’t catching Wight under green, but a caution for Darren Smith with 12 laps remaining gave “Money Mat” an opportunity to strike.
On the restart, Wight went to the top in Turns 1 and 2. But Williamson expected it, switching lanes and driving by Wight as they raced down the backstretch. From there, it looked like Williamson was in the clear, but it wasn’t over yet.
The three-time defending Series champion caught lap traffic with five laps to go, forcing him to get out of his comfort zone during the final laps. That allowed Wight to make a late charge toward the lead, getting within three car-lengths on Lap 28. That’s as close as Wight would get, though, as Williamson held on for the $5,000 win—his 37th career Super DIRTcar Series triumph.
“All I heard was how good Larry was at All-Tech, so there was a little bit of extra motivation there,” Williamson said. “I saw what he did on the first restart, and I was surprised he didn’t go to the top of (Turn) 1 because he was really good up there. When he slid himself, I figured I had to commit to that top and hope I didn’t bounce too bad. Then, when you get clean air, clean air is so much in these things that I was struggling toward the end in lap traffic.”
Wight settled for second, earning his fourth podium finish of 2026. The Phoenix, NY driver said that the Lap 18 restart played a vital role in keeping him out of Victory Lane.
“I’ve raced with Mat enough to know he’s going to pull a slider, so I was just trying to protect myself,” Wight said. “On that last restart, I entered too low, caught the rut, and bottomed the nose out, and once I started coming across the track, I knew he had a full head of steam.
Alex Payne finished third after starting seventh, Justin Haers finished fourth, and Jimmy Phelps rounded out the top five.
Rudolph charged from the rear of the field after his flat tire and finished sixth.
Here are the top five in Big Gator points after two nights of racing at Volusia:
- Mat Williamson 302
- Larry Wight -10
- Felix Roy -14
- Erick Rudolph -15
- Alex Payne -16
RACE NOTES:
JAM Performance Fastest Hot Lap Award: Peter Britten
Billy Whittaker Cars and Trux Quick Time Award: Jimmy Phelps
Bicknell Racing Products Heat Race 1 Winner: Jimmy Phelps
DIG Race Products Heat Race 2 Winner: Darren Smith
Wix Filters Heat Race 3 Winner: Mat Williamson
The Greatest Store on Dirt.com Heat Race 4 Winner: Alex Payne
SRI Performance/Stock Car Steel Pole Award Winner: Bobby Varin
Behrent’s Performance Wearhouse One Lap to Go: Mat Williamson
UP NEXT: The Super DIRTcar Series returns to Volusia Speedway Park on Friday, Feb. 13, for night three of Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals. Joining the Beasts of the Northeast are the World of Outlaws Late Models presented by DIRTVision.
For tickets, visit DIRTcarNationals.com.
Where can you watch every World of Outlaws race? Live on DIRTVision.
DIRTcar Nationals Night 2 (30 Laps): 1. 88-Mat Williamson[6]; 2. 99L-Larry Wight[3]; 3. 70A-Alex Payne[7]; 4. 3-Justin Haers[5]; 5. 98H-Jimmy Phelps[2]; 6. 25-Erick Rudolph[25]; 7. 18V-Bobby Varin[1]; 8. 91-Felix Roy[4]; 9. 21A-Peter Britten[19]; 10. 84Y-Alex Yankowski[16]; 11. 165-Rex King Jr[11]; 12. 9S-Matt Sheppard[9]; 13. 2-Jack Lehner[22]; 14. 20-Rick Laubach[17]; 15. 1-Billy Pauch Jr[12]; 16. 10C-Danny Creeden[24]; 17. 32R-Ronnie Davis III[26]; 18. 4V-Billy VanInwegen Jr[15]; 19. 16-Louden Reimert[23]; 20. 11-Matt Caprara[21]; 21. 12-Darren Smith[8]; 22. 17-Marcus Dinkins[28]; 23. 11T-Jeff Taylor[10]; 24. 33-Eddie Strada[18]; 25. (DNF) 5H-Amy Holland[13]; 26. (DNF) 15X-Justin Stone[20]; 27. (DNF) 6-Matt Stangle[27]; 28. (DNF) 92-Andrew Buff[14]
