As the costs to compete continue to rise for Late Models, drivers with limited budgets, time and resources continually turn to the “entry division.”
Factory Stocks are a staple at both Columbus Speedway and Magnolia Speedway, and they’re on weekly shows across the state. So it was only a matter of time before someone formed a series for Factory Stocks drivers.
And, fittingly, it’s Cedar Bluff native and longtime driver and tech-man Paul Ware leading it.
Ware’s son, Scooter, is a winning driver in the division. But Paul is deep in Factory Stocks circles, helping other drivers set up cars and serving as the tech-man at tracks across Mississippi. That’s a boon for his burgeoning series, he said.
“I have a pretty good base of 10 to 15 cars that, right off the bat, are going to show up to our series races,” Paul said. “We had 29 cars at our first race at Meridian, and we’re expecting that many or more at Columbus (Speedway).”
The Mississippi Factory Stock Series will stop tonight at Columbus Speedway in a $600-to-win feature. The show will also feature weekly racing and a $1,500-to-win All-Star Crate Late Model feature.
Paul said the series formed because of the uniformity of rules for the division between Columbus, Magnolia, Whynot Motorsports Park and Jackson – the only four tracks on the schedule. And with an abundance of experience as a tech-man and having previously promoting a track – Louisville in 2000 – he decided to “do something to help the drivers.”
Columbus will mark the series’ second race after launching earlier this year at Whynot. Scooter won the inaugural race, with Tyler Collett, Blake McNeill, Blaze Chatham and John Beard rounding out the top 5.
“It’s all I’ve ever done – race cars, tech cars and build race cars,” Paul said. “Everybody wants to be on the same playing field. I felt like, if someone didn’t come on board and start a series to keep everything in line, it’d be like everything else … you see what happened with the Street Stocks? It takes 30 grand to run in that division. That division was what Factory Stocks are now.”
The Factory Stock series will pay $1,000 to the points winner and $500 and $250 for second and third place, respectively. Drivers do not pay an entry fee; instead, they pay a $20 series fee that funds the points payouts at the end of the season.
The series has built-in contingency awards, too: a $100 goes to the fast qualifier at each race; the 14th-place finisher gets five gallons of race fuel; and the “hard luck” driver gets $50.
“Everything we make goes right back to the racers,” Paul said.
Paul said that, after racing in every division, including Late Models, he grew tired of seeing people spend exorbitant amounts of money “to run for $1,200.” It was a far cry from his humble beginnings, when he and two friends bought their first racecar for $15, then a $100 for a car with a 327 motor in it.
His racing career saw him land in Circle Track Magazine in 1997 for winning a bounty. But with prices soaring, and as Scooter began to race in the mid-2000s, Paul stepped away from driving.
“I had some pretty good sponsors running Late Models, but I wasn’t having fun,” Paul said. “I like taking junk, making it myself and winning with it. I get more accomplishment from that.”
Rod Taylor, promoter of Columbus Speedway, said the series has potential to grow beyond the four tracks on the schedule because of Paul leading it.
“Paul and his wife (Susan) work their tails off to make that series go,” Taylor said. “That division, with the way it was growing, needed a series like this.”
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.