BARBERVILLE, FL (January 31, 2025) - Cole Falloway drove like a seasoned veteran to score his win at Volusia Speedway Park on Friday night. However, it was only his second start there.
Finishing first in every event he competed in, the Owensboro, KY driver set the Quick Time in Qualifying, led every lap of his Heat race, and then led all 20 laps scheduled for the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds at Volusia Speedway Park.
Oakland, MD’s Mitch Thomas and Falloway led to the green flag, with Falloway taking the top spot with a stronger start than Thomas on the high line.
Seeing Thomas falter early, Trevor Neville took over second place as Thomas’ No.97 machine struggled to gain momentum on his side.
Things immediately went wrong for Thomas and Neville on the sixth lap. Their cars collided in Turn 4, causing heavy damage and eliminating the two from competing for the duration of the Feature.
Falloway had a new lineup of Modifieds to defend, as Will Krup and Thursday’s podium finishers David Stremme and Kyle Strickler attempted their hunt towards taking the win away from the No.66 Modified.
Strickler and Stremme battled for the final podium position, culminating in the “High Side Tickler” taking his No.8 Elite Chassis up to the high side of the track and swinging by Stremme for the spot.
With the laps ticking down, Falloway played it safe with a comfortable three-second lead over Krup as he crossed under the twin checkered flags for his first-career DIRTcar Nationals Golden Gator trophy and a $1,200 check.
“Last night was mostly me getting comfortable,” Falloway said. “I think we had a better car than what we showed last night, and tonight I was able to set Quick Time and won my Heat so I could get out front and make laps in the Feature. I can’t thank everybody enough who helps me out.”
Krup drove towards a feel-good second-place finish after a mechanical issue in Thursday night’s Qualifying session took the Mt. Carmel, IL driver out of the night’s program.
“I mean, I’ll take this over last night all day,” Krup said. “We had a good piece, we just obviously need to get a little better. I couldn’t quite get turned into (Turn 3), but we’ll take this over last night for sure.”
Strickler snagged third place to build his lead in the UMP Modified Speedweeks points, and sits in prime position for a front-row starting spot in Saturday’s opening week finale after starting the Feature in 10th place.
“I’m actually happier about a third tonight than I was for a second last night,” Strickler said. “I thought we had the best car last night and didn’t win, and I felt like we had a decent car tonight but we started so far back. We were able to maneuver through the field and got the Elite Chassis one, two, three, so I know that’s important for Nick (Hoffman) and everybody involved.”
Stremme, of Mifflintown, PA, finished the night in fourth, and Thursday’s Feature winner Curt Spalding ended the night with a top-five result.
Up Next: The DIRTcar UMP Modifieds take on Volusia Speedway Park for the last night of the opening week with $2,500 on the line as the American Sprint Car Series decides a Big Gator champion at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals on Saturday, February 1.
Tickets are available here:
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all the action live on DIRTVIsion – either online or by downloading the DIRTVision App.
Feature (20 Laps): 1. 66-Cole Falloway[2]; 2. K9-Will Krup[4]; 3. 8S-Kyle Strickler[10]; 4. 35-David Stremme[5]; 5. 5CS-Curt Spalding[7]; 6. 19-Dustin Sorensen[6]; 7. 5-Jonathan Taylor[14]; 8. 13-Charlie Mefford[15]; 9. 77D-George Dixon[12]; 10. 36-Kenny Wallace[8]; 11. 21CZ-Cole Czarneski[11]; 12. 7D-Brad Deyoung[17]; 13. 35A-Michael Altobelli[22]; 14. 77-Ray Bollinger[20]; 15. 12L-Lucas Lee[16]; 16. 56-Colton Profitt[18]; 17. 91-Chris Beaulieu[13]; 18. 27G-Jason Garver[23]; 19. 7-Evan Taylor[21]; 20. 27-Michael Turner[9]; 21. 31G-Stephen Pedulla[19]; 22. 2K-Taylor Kuehl[24]; 23. 777-Trevor Neville[3]; 24. 97-Mitch Thomas[1]