Moran Wins Wild Wieland Winter Nationals Finale at Golden Isles
2026-03-08 19:19
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WAYNESVILLE, GA (March 7, 2026) - Defending Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented FloRacing National Champion Devin Moran came from the 22nd starting position to win a wild Wieland Winter Nationals feature on Saturday night at Golden Isles Speedway.
Moran, who was the fifth different leader of the 50-lap main event, led the final four laps to pick up the $25,000 victory and close out the Georgia-Florida Speedweeks for 2026.
Max Blair, who at one point came from the 25th and last starting position to lead laps 43 through 46, finished second, followed by Garrett Alberson, Clay Harris, and Brandon Overton.
Mark Whitener grabbed the lead at the start of the race and led the first 14 laps. The car on the move was 17-year-old Trey Mills, who started seventh and quickly made his way to the front. Mills moved into second by lap five and challenged Whitener before taking the top spot on lap 15.
Mills, who was looking for the biggest win of his young career, was holding off 19th-place starter Hudson O'Neal and Brandon Overton until he made contact with the turn-two wall. The impact launched him over the wall and collected second-place-running O'Neal, ending both drivers' nights on lap 42.
Blair then picked up the lead and held it until Moran wrestled it away on lap 47. Moran led the rest of the way, winning by 0.826 seconds.
In Lucas Oil Victory Lane for the third time this year and the 27th time in his career, the Dresden, Ohio native picked up his second career win at Golden Isles Speedway.
"I don't know what just happened. It's unbelievable and definitely not what we expected after the week we've been having. Honestly, until Trey (Mills) and Huddy got into it, I was thinking maybe we could get a top three. I felt like I was better than Max. I never really saw those guys up front because they were slicing and dicing. Then when they started sliding each other, I knew if I put myself in the right position we could do it. Once they took themselves out, I knew I just needed to get a run."
"When Max used the very top to the bottom, I used him up a little bit getting into three, but you can't use the whole race track. You've got to pass one way or the other. I think we are all in shock. Like I said, we have been struggling. We were decent the first night and did okay the second night. Last night we were horrible. We just went back to the basics. We weren't good early, but my car really came to life there in the feature. We found a good line I could run and we just made speed."
Blair, who had to use an emergency provisional, nearly pulled off a stunning victory, charging from the 25th and final starting position to lead late in the race before Moran passed him.
"He (Moran) is one of the good guys. It's hard to be mad. It just sucks. I think we had a shot at that one. I would have liked to have seen him try to keep it off me like I did him once on that next restart. I didn't do anything stupid. I went in there and raced him through the corner. But he is one of the best there is, so congrats to those guys. He did what he had to do to win and there are absolutely no hard feelings. Hopefully we can keep racing with him and maybe we can beat him every now and then."
Alberson had his best finish of Speedweeks as he rounded out the Big River Steel Podium in third after pitting during the race for a shredded right-rear tire.
"This is huge for our team right here for Speedweeks. This has been one of my toughest tracks historically, and this is by far our best night. Man, what a crazy race, but hats off to Devin and Max. He's been fast all week here. That was the best I have ever been here. These were unique conditions for Golden Isles. It was kind of more like an Illinois track right there. We actually had traction and could move around. That was a crazy race. I am just happy to be here."
The winner's Double Down Motorsports, Longhorn Chassis is powered by a Cornett Racing Engine and sponsored by Big River Steel, Millwood Plumbing, C&W Trucking, Bomag, CarSourceAuto.com, Anthony's Pizza, Phillips CPA, Hazen Services, McHugh Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, Elliott Farms, Haulin' Haskell's, and Pee Wee's Wrecker Service.
Completing the top ten were Ricky Thornton Jr., Cody Overton, Brandon Sheppard, Dennis Erb Jr., and Mark Whitener.
In the 604 Late Model feature, Ross Bailes of Clover, South Carolina won for the second night in a row, leading all 20 laps in the Farmer's Service Center, JP Environmental, Pursley Grading, GTS by Danny, Clover Racing Transmissions, and A-10 Construction Kenny Lamb Racing Engines-powered Longhorn Chassis.
Colton Troullie finished second after starting ninth. Griffin Smith was third, followed by Bubba Whitener and Austin Yarbrough.
The 602 Late Model feature went to Griffin Smith of Eatonton, Georgia for the second time this week in the Atlanta Paving and Concrete, The World-Famous Cadillac Ranch, Terminal Maintenance and Construction, Senior Life Insurance, DJ's Performance Engines Rocket Chassis.
Smith led all the way to win the 20-lap feature over Cass Fowler, Brayden Johnson, Wyatt Coffey, and John Marshall Pursley.
Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
Race Summary
Wieland Winter Nationals
Saturday, March 7, 2026
Golden Isles Speedway | Waynesville, GA
Allstar Performance Time Trials
Fast Time Group A: Michael Leach | 15.140 seconds (Overall)
Fast Time Group B:Kyle Bronson | 15.257 seconds
Penske Shocks Heat Race #1 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 76-Brandon Overton[2]; 2. 20RT-Ricky Thornton Jr[1]; 3. 74X-Ethan Dotson[4]; 4. 09-Michael Leach[3]; 5. 6-Clay Harris[6]; 6. 71-Hudson O'Neal[5]; 7. 10-Garrett Smith[7]; 8. 8-Dillon McCowan[9]; 9. 93L-Cory Lawler[10]; 10. 388-Jackson Hise[8]; 11. 16B-Ross Bailes[11]
Summit Racing Products Heat Race #2 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 76N-Blair Nothdurft[2]; 2. 14-Trey Mills[1]; 3. 16-Cody Overton[5]; 4. 93-Carson Ferguson[3]; 5. 40B-Kyle Bronson[6]; 6. 19M-Brenden Smith[4]; 7. 7-Ross Robinson[7]; 8. 24D-Michael Brown[8]; 9. 55-Benji Hicks[9]; 10. 555-Brock Pinkerous[10]; 11. 77-Preston Luckman[11]
Cool-It Thermo-Tec Heat Race #3 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 5-Mark Whitener[1]; 2. 1-Brandon Sheppard[2]; 3. 49-Jonathan Davenport[5]; 4. 16S-Sam Seawright[3]; 5. 99-Devin Moran[6]; 6. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[9]; 7. 111-Max Blair[7]; 8. 13-Dallon Murty[4]; 9. 11-Josh Rice[8]; 10. 35-Christian Augspurger[10]; 11. 51-Chad Tuten[11]
Simpson Race Products Heat Race #4 Finish (8 Laps, Top 4 Transfer): 1. 1T-Tyler Erb[2]; 2. 58-Garrett Alberson[1]; 3. 81F-Jadon Frame[5]; 4. 3S-Brian Shirley[8]; 5. 60-Dan Ebert[3]; 6. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[10]; 7. 4G-Tripp Gerrald[6]; 8. C4-Freddie Carpenter[9]; 9. 93J-Donovan Jackson[7]; 10. 88-Trent Ivey[4]; 11. (DNS) 79-Donald McIntosh
Fast Shafts B-Main Race #1 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 40B-Kyle Bronson[2]; 2. 71-Hudson O'Neal[3]; 3. 10-Garrett Smith[5]; 4. 6-Clay Harris[1]; 5. 8-Dillon McCowan[7]; 6. 55-Benji Hicks[10]; 7. 93L-Cory Lawler[9]; 8. 19M-Brenden Smith[4]; 9. 16B-Ross Bailes[13]; 10. 555-Brock Pinkerous[12]; 11. 7-Ross Robinson[6]; 12. 24D-Michael Brown[8]; 13. 77-Preston Luckman[14]; 14. (DNS) 388-Jackson Hise
UNOH B-Main Race #2 Finish (10 Laps, Top 3 Transfer): 1. 60-Dan Ebert[2]; 2. 28-Dennis Erb Jr[3]; 3. 99-Devin Moran[1]; 4. 111-Max Blair[5]; 5. 22-Daniel Hilsabeck[4]; 6. 13-Dallon Murty[7]; 7. 88-Trent Ivey[12]; 8. 11-Josh Rice[9]; 9. 93J-Donovan Jackson[10]; 10. 35-Christian Augspurger[11]; 11. 51-Chad Tuten[13]; 12. 4G-Tripp Gerrald[6]; 13. C4-Freddie Carpenter[8]; 14. (DNS) 79-Donald McIntosh
Wieland Winter Nationals Feature Finish (50 Laps):
Pos - Start - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Earnings
1 - 22 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - $26,100
2 - 25 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - $8,600
3 - 8 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - $6,700
4 - 24 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - $4,700
5 - 1 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - $4,200
6 - 5 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - $3,800
7 - 11 - 16 - Cody Overton - Thomson, GA - $2,500
8 - 6 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - $3,000
9 - 20 - 28 - Dennis Erb Jr - Carpentersville, IL - $2,200
10 - 2 - 5 - Mark Whitener - Middleburg, FL - $2,100
11 - 18 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - $2,700
12 - 15 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - $2,600
13 - 9 - 74X - Ethan Dotson - Bakersfield, CA - $1,800
14 - 17 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - $1,700
15 - 7 - 14 - Trey Mills - St. Augustine, FL - $1,700
16 - 19 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - $2,700
17 - 14 - 16S - Sam Seawright - Fort Payne, AL - $1,500
18 - 12 - 81F - Jadon Frame - Winchester, TN - $1,500
19 - 10 - 49 - Jonathan Davenport - Blairsville, GA - $1,500
20 - 21 - 10 - Garrett Smith - Madison, GA - $1,500
21 - 23 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - $2,200
22 - 16 - 3S - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - $1,500
23 - 13 - 9 - Michael Leach - Sun River, MT - $1,500
24 - 4 - 1T - Tyler Erb - New Waverly, TX - $1,500
25 - 3 - 76N - Blair Nothdurft - Renner, SD - $1,500
Race Statistics
Entrants: 44
Bilstein Shocks Pole Sitter: Brandon Overton
MD3 Lap Leaders: Trey Mills (Laps 1-14); Trey Mills (Laps 15-39); Hudson O'Neal (Lap 41); Trey Mills (Laps 41-42); Max Blair (Laps 43-46); Devin Moran (Laps 47-50)
Hellraizer Jacks Halfway Leader: Trey Mills
Wieland Feature Winner: Devin Moran
Margin of Victory: 0.826 seconds
Hellraizer Jacks Cautions: Blair Nothdurft (Lap 1); Daniel Hilsabeck (Lap 24); Garrett Alberson (Lap 26); Clay Harris (Lap 28); Dennis Erb, Jr. (Lap 38); Trey Mills (Lap 42); Ethan Dotson (Lap 48)
MyRacePass Series Provisionals: Daniel Hilsabeck, Clay Harris
Fast Time Provisional: n/a
Emergency Provisionals: Max Blair
Track Provisional: n/a
Big River Steel Podium Top 3: Devin Moran, Max Blair, Garrett Alberson
Penske Shocks Top 5: Devin Moran, Max Blair, Garrett Alberson, Clay Harris, Brandon Overton
Behrent's One-Lap-to-Go Top 3: Devin Moran, Max Blair, Garrett Alberson
PEM 4th Place Feature: Clay Harris
Diversified Machine 5th Place Feature: Brandon Overton
Wilwood Brakes 7th Place Feature: Cody Overton
Wehrs Machine 11th Place Feature: Dan Ebert
Velocity Manufacturing 13th Place Feature: Ethan Dotson
XS Power Batteries 15th Place Feature: Trey Mills
Hoker Trucking Hard Charger of the Race: Max Blair (Advanced 23 positions)
MD3 Most Laps Led: Trey Mills (27 Laps)
Sunoco Race Fuels Race for Gas Highest Finisher: Garrett Alberson
Midwest Sheet Metal Spoiler Challenge Point Leader: Hudson O'Neal
O'Reilly Auto Parts Rookie of the Race: n/a
Pro Fabrication Headers Fastest Lap of the Race: Trey Mills | Lap 6 | 15.360 seconds
FK Rod Ends Hard Luck Award: Trey Mills
Victory Fuel Power Move of the Race: Trey Mills
Outerwears Crew Chief of the Race: Chuck Kimble
ARP Engine Builder of the Race: Cornett Race Engines
Miller Welders Chassis Builder of the Race: Longhorn Chassis
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps: Mark Whitener | 15.4932 seconds
Time of Race: 42 minutes 43 seconds
Big River Steel Championship Standings Presented by ARP:
Pos - Car # - Competitor - Hometown - Points - Earnings
1 - 71 - Hudson O'Neal - Martinsville, IN - 1210 - $77,400
2 - 99 - Devin Moran - Dresden, OH - 1190 - $77,600
3 - 76 - Brandon Overton - Evans, GA - 1115 - $31,450
4 - 6 - Clay Harris - Jupiter, FL - 1050 - $29,900
5 - 20RT - Ricky Thornton Jr - Chandler, AZ - 1045 - $22,750
6 - 111 - Max Blair - Centerville, PA - 1025 - $24,000
7 - 1 - Brandon Sheppard - New Berlin, IL - 995 - $36,500
8 - 40B - Kyle Bronson - Brandon, FL - 975 - $15,375
9 - 58 - Garrett Alberson - Las Cruces, NM - 965 - $23,500
10 - 93 - Carson Ferguson - Lincolnton, NC - 940 - $17,950
11 - 3s - Brian Shirley - Chatham, IL - 880 - $15,500
12 - 60 - Dan Ebert - Lake Shore, MN - 880 - $16,575
13 - 11 - Josh Rice - Crittenden, KY - 840 - $11,425
16 - 8 - Dillon McCowan - Urbana, MO - 785 - $7,075
18 - 19M - Brenden Smith - Dade City, FL - 745 - $9,800
19 - 22 - Daniel Hilsabeck - Earlham, IA - 740 - $11,625
20 - 7 - Ross Robinson - Georgetown, DE - 690 - $4,925
22 - 93L - Cory Lawler - Hanover, PA - 640 - $7,725
23 - C4 - Freddie Carpenter - Parkersburg, WV - 575 - $1,100
Official Marketing Partners
Associate Marketing Partners
Advanced Powder Coating, All Makes Collision Center, Arizona Sport Shirts, Behrent's Performance Warehouse, Black Diamond Chassis, Bilstein Shocks, Boyd Bilt Fabrication, Brodix, Capital Race Cars, Clements Racing Engines, Cornett Racing Engines, Dave Warren Powersports, Denago Powersports, Diversified Machine Inc, Fast Shafts, Fire Suppression Engineering, FOX Shocks, Heartbeat Hot Sauce, Heath Lawson Photography, Hellraizer Jacks, Hoker Trucking, Jackson County Tourism, Keyser Manufacturing, Longacre Scales, Longhorn Chassis, The Massengill Company, MD3, Mega Plumbing of the Carolinas, Midwest Sheet Metal, MSD, Ohlins Shocks, Outerwears, PEM - Performance Engineering Mfg, Penske Racing Shocks, ProFabrication Headers, Pro Power Racing Engines, Rocket Chassis, Schoenfeld Headers, Shocker Hitch, Simpson Race Products, Slicker Graphics, Strange Oval, Swift Springs, Thermo-Tec Automotive Products, Velocity Manufacturing, Victory Fuel, Wehrs Machine & Racing Products, Wilwood, Xceldyne, XS Power Batteries, and 5150 Race Trailers.