{"id":6543,"date":"2024-12-19T13:18:04","date_gmt":"2024-12-19T17:18:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/volusiaspeedwaypark.com\/?p=6543"},"modified":"2024-12-30T13:18:26","modified_gmt":"2024-12-30T17:18:26","slug":"nick-hoffman-savoring-offseason-activities-with-family-volusia-prep-with-kenny-wallace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/volusiaspeedwaypark.com\/news\/nick-hoffman-savoring-offseason-activities-with-family-volusia-prep-with-kenny-wallace\/","title":{"rendered":"Nick Hoffman Savoring Offseason Activities with Family, Volusia Prep With Kenny Wallace"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe Thrill from Mooresville\u201d keeps his winter schedule busy with Late Models, UMP Modifieds, and Midgets<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Nick Hoffman is enjoying the 2024 offseason by racing with family and close friends while preparing for a new year of racing with the World of Outlaws Late Models.<\/p>\n The Mooresville, NC resident built a UMP Modified for his father, Darrell Hoffman, to race at The Dome at America\u2019s Center \u2013 which will also be Kenny Wallace\u2019s car at Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals<\/em> in February.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was something on Dad\u2019s side that he\u2019s talked about for a couple of years,\u201d Nick said. \u201cI never knew if he was actually serious about it, but he was pretty serious about borrowing a car. I was like \u2018Listen, if we\u2019re gonna do it, we\u2019re gonna do it right,\u201d so people probably thought I was crazy for bringing a brand-new car there. At the end of the day, it ended up working out great to build this car, get it ready, and give him the best.\u201d<\/p>\n Darrell agreed with Nick\u2019s sentiments about the weekend, saying it was the best car he\u2019d ever had in his racing career at the event.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought it\u2019d be really cool to run (at the Dome) and try it one time,\u201d Darrell said. \u201cSo, we had a birthday party at the Blue Deuce, and Cody Sommer was there so Cody wrote up a contract and made Nick sign it so he\u2019d have a car ready for me by November 15 so I could go to Millbridge (Speedway) to test. So, we got a few crown cokes and got him to sign it.<\/p>\n \u201cHe missed the date by a few days, but he worked his butt off and didn\u2019t just build a normal car. I guarantee it was the best one in the Dome, but the car was way better than the driver.\u201d<\/p>\n The finished product featured a retro design to Darrell\u2019s original Modified from the 1990s that revealed memories of his past in the area.<\/p>\n While he has no intentions of racing in the foreseeable future, Darrell said he\u2019s proud and appreciative of his children, Nick and Ashly, for using their resources to help him prepare for the event.<\/p>\n \u201cIt brought back a lot of memories for me and a lot of people in St. Louis that remembered,\u201d Darrell said. \u201cI didn\u2019t even know it was happening, that was pretty much all (Nick\u2019s) idea. Then, Jeremy (Burnett) and Ashly did the wrap on it. How many guys can say they had their son build them a race car, then go to your daughter\u2019s racetrack to test? It\u2019s pretty amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n In February, Hoffman will give the same chassis to Kenny Wallace, matching the same deal from the 2024 edition of the Volusia Speedway Park marquee event.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019ll be the same as last year to run Kenny Wallace in Florida,\u201d Nick said. \u201cWe\u2019ll run the whole week again in that car. It worked out pretty good to line that deal back up again and something that was in my court to have Wallace trying to do it, but it was a matter of having a car ready for him and it all went smooth. So, the car dad ran will be reskinned for Wallace to go to Florida and race.\u201d<\/p>\n Wallace, of St. Louis, MO, scored eight Feature wins in his No.36 machine through 2024, ending the year with a top-10 at the Dome. \u201cThe Hermanator\u201d has scaled back his racing toward local tracks around him, but said he is satisfied with what he\u2019s accomplished in the change.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was one of the most satisfying years I\u2019ve ever had,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cIt was hard for me to do all the traveling because most of my help is married or had kids. I raced around my local tracks, and I\u2019ve never done that before, but we got faster by the end of the year when we reached the Dome.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat set us up well was qualifying third overall, then I won my qualifier, so I had to come up with something for my interview, so I went to the Nellyville album and sang Air Force Ones. You\u2019re there to have fun, and I approach the Dome as a celebration of dirt racing.\u201d<\/p>\n Wallace returned to DIRTcar Nationals<\/em> Victory Lane for the first time since 2012 in February, but an engine failure on the finale night cost him a chance at his first Big Gator trophy.<\/p>\n As he prepares for a second chance at the Big Gator in Hoffman\u2019s Elite Chassis, Wallace knows he needs near perfection to leave \u201cThe World\u2019s Fastest Half Mile\u201d with the prized trophy.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were primed,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cWe were less than 10 points out of the championship, and we broke a motor. You gotta have a little luck on your side, but you gotta be fast every night. It\u2019s a new game and history with running nine nights.<\/p>\n \u201cThat’s unheard levels that we\u2019ve never done before, so it\u2019s gonna be one of the biggest weeks at Volusia in Modified history. To win that (Big Gator), you might afford one hiccup on one night, but that\u2019s about it.\u201d<\/p>\n That is not the last of Hoffman\u2019s offseason activities, as he\u2019ll pilot a NOS Energy Drink Midget at the Tulsa Expo Center for the Chili Bowl Nationals <\/em>in January.<\/p>\n The last time a former World of Outlaws Rookie of the Year went to Tulsa ahead of their third season, they won the event\u2019s Feature and the Series title in the same year. That driver was Watertown, NY\u2019s Tim McCreadie in 2006.<\/p>\n \u201cThat deal is a totally different style of racing,\u201d Nick said. \u201cIt\u2019s fun for us to have a change of pace and be on the other side of the racing world. You see guys like Brian Shirley, Tim McCreadie, and Ricky Thornton Jr. having good runs. The pressure is on you to perform and do well, but I don\u2019t think anybody is expecting us to lock in or dominate the Feature.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a good time to learn and get better. I feel it helps you as a race car driver, like Logan Seavey coming to our side and racing, and I was able to talk to him and say, \u2018Now you realize why we struggle when we get into a Midget.\u2019 It can be a struggle, but it\u2019s a different style of racing that\u2019s fun to learn.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoffman has made substantial gains through his two full years in World of Outlaws competition. He finished fifth in points to claim the Rookie of the Year honors in 2023, then contended for the championship with Brandon Sheppard and Bobby Pierce in his sophomore season, ultimately finishing third in points.<\/p>\n This time around, Hoffman has more focus on improving his Modifieds and Late Models under one roof in his renewed championship quest.<\/p>\n \u201cWe went from fifth to third last year so if we pick up another two spots, we\u2019ll be in pretty good shape,\u201d Nick said. \u201cIt\u2019s very difficult and the guys racing with us is gonna be even more difficult than this year. We just can\u2019t have any silly issues to take us out like Charlotte. It didn\u2019t pan out, but we\u2019re even more prepared.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything being in one building is probably the nicest change that\u2019ll help us in the season. My business is where I make my living, and that\u2019s where in 20 years, if I decide to retire, everything between my shop and dad\u2019s engine building is all right here. Having the Late Model at Ricky Stenhouse\u2019s shop and the Modifieds at my dad\u2019s had s*** strung around the Mooresville area. Now, it works out to manage the team and business under one roof and continue to build up my programs.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoffman kicks off the season with the World of Outlaws Late Models for the DIRTcar Sunshine Nationals<\/em>, Jan. 22-25. For tickets, CLICK HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n Wallace will begin his hunt at the Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals<\/em>, Jan. 30- Feb. 8. The first three nights will not count toward points, while the traditional six days of points racing will crown a Big Gator champion. For tickets, CLICK HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n If you can\u2019t make it to the track, you can watch every race from the World of Outlaws Late Models and Volusia Speedway Park live on DIRTVision<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cThe Thrill from Mooresville\u201d keeps his winter schedule busy with Late Models, UMP Modifieds, and Midgets Nick Hoffman is enjoying the 2024 offseason by racing with family and close friends while preparing for a new year of racing with the World of Outlaws Late Models. The Mooresville, NC resident built a UMP Modified for his … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":6544,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[252,3,26,13,101,20,59,113],"class_list":["post-6543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-dirtcar","tag-dirtcar-nationals","tag-dirtcar-ump-modifieds","tag-featured","tag-kenny-wallace","tag-late-models","tag-nick-hoffman","tag-world-of-outlaws"],"yoast_head":"\n