Are You Ready for Ransomville? The Super DIRTcar Series Invades the Western New York Small Block Hot Spot

Ransomville Speedway is the weekly track for a number of stars in Northeast modified racing, and while the weekly car count might average under 20, the competition is as fierce as it could be with names like Williamson, Rudolph, Susice, Lindberg, Bicknell, and Brachmann doing battle in their Small Blocks every Friday night. Williamson and Rudolph are two of the favorites to top points leader Matt Sheppard, while the likes of Lindberg, Bicknell, and Brachmann look for an upset victory on their home turf that they know very well. Tune in on DirtVision at 6:00 EST for hot laps and qualifing for the Super DIRTcar Series. The DIRTcar Sportsman heats will precede the SDS heat races, so this will provide fantasy managers with a buffer to get those rosters locked and loaded.

Mat Williamson: $21,500

Williamson rolls into the Ransomville SDS round with his eye on a 3rd straight track championship (1 shared with Rudolph in 2021) and brings an impressive 5 wins in 9 races, plus no finishes outside of the top 5 this season. Last season, Williamson won this event for the first time and took home the non-series Big Block/Small Block Shootout a few weeks later.

Erick Rudolph: $21,200
Rudolph is not competing regularly at Ransomville this season, but has 2 wins in 5 tries and has only finished outside of the top 5 once. Additionally, Rudolph is one of the best at the Western NY track, as he holds 4 track championships and 34 wins overall. 2023 has been on par for Rudolph so far, as he comes into this event with 12 total wins, the BRP Modified Tour points lead, a Super DIRTcar Series win, and a Canadian Big Block Series victory. I would look for Rudolph to improve on his 5th place finish from last season.

Anthony Perrego: $21,100
Perrego started off the season by blowing three engines in three different cars in less than one night. His season seemed to be on life support even before it began, but a 3rd at the STSS Battle of the Bullring at Accord in early May seemed to stabilize the situation. Perrego enters this event with a pretty solid 6 victories, including his first SDS victory at Big Diamond and Friday night's $10,000 payday at Big Diamond's Prelude to the Coalcracker. The 7-time Orange County Fair Speedway track champion is also leading the Big Block points at the Eastern NY circuit, while he sits only a handful of points behind Dillon Steuer in the 358 rankings. Perrego ended up a respectable 11th in his first Ransomville start last season, but I think that he is primed for at least a top 10 run this go around.

Chad Brachmann: $20,700
The 2011 Ransomville track champion brings a very impressive 2023 local stat line of 1 win, 7 top 5s, and 2 top 10s, with a worst finish of 10th, in 10 Ransomville starts. Additionally, he holds 3 top 5s and 1 top 10 in 4 starts at Merrittville, and a further 1 top 5 and 1 top 10 in 3 starts with the BRP Tour. Brachmann wheeled his ride to a 10th in last year's race and I would not be shocked to see him challenge deep inside of the top 10 this year. The price is a bit steep, but Brachmann is a steady hand and can certainly be trusted.

Gary Lindberg: $20,300
Lindberg's resume at Ransomville might not be as spectacular as someone like Rudolph or Williamson's, but he's only finished outside of the top 10 five times in 32 events at Ransomville, while holding three victories. He finished 3rd in this event last year, finished 8th at Oswego in the Salute to the Troops 100, and won both 358 modified specials at Ohsweken. This season, Lindberg grabbed that 2nd victory at Ransomville on July 21st, finished 9th with the BRP Tour at Sharon, and came home with another top 10 at Weedsport's Empire State Big Block Challenge on July 30th. His 18th last Friday night ranks as his worst finish on the season, but look for the Canadian pilot to make a run for his first career SDS triumph. *I had written this blurb prior to August 18th, and Lindberg went out and captured the win at Ransomville over Chad Brachmann and Mat Williamson!

Pete Bicknell: $20,200
The 67-year-old Bicknell rolled into the start of last season on a 3-year winless streak and proceeded to collect 4 victories and only 1 finish outside of the top 10 in 36 starts. The now 68-year-old Hall of Famer has not really shown any signs of slowing down, as he enters this event with 1 victory and 21 top 10s in 22 events, with an 11th at Ransomville's Opening Night being his worst finish of the season. Bicknell might not be the same driver he was when he claimed the Syracuse 200 title on 3 occasions, but he's still got some fight in him, as he came home 12th in this race last year and 2nd at the BRP Tour stop in Ransomville. I would consider Bicknell to be a relatively safe choice for a good result.

Tim Sears Jr: $19,900
Sears has been on a tear through the summer months, racking up weekly victories at Fulton (2) and Brewerton (1), a podium at the SDS SummerFAST opener, 4th in the Hall of Fame 100, and three more SDS top 10s split between Big Diamond, Drummond, and Brockville. Ironically, his two worst finishes (20th) both came at the Land of Legends SDS events, but he claimed a heat race victory during Wednesday's contest. Looking ahead, Sears is the favorite to win both the Fulton and Brewerton titles, and only sits 6 points outside of 3rd in the SDS standings. He's never finished inside of the top 10 at Ransomville, but his recent form calls for attention.

Felix Roy: $19,300
Roy has absolutely zero experience at Ransomville, but has brought his #91 home inside the top 10 in 3 of the past 5 SDS races. Outside of that, he has a victory with the Canadian Big Block Series at Cornwall, and weekly victories at Granby and Airborne in the 358. Roy is in his first season of SDS competition and has shown good speed on numerous occasions. If you select Roy, you are getting a provisional and a young driver with loads of talent. He is definitely worth a look at this salary range.

Greg Martin: $19,000
Martin is a regular at Ransomville on Friday nights and brings a very solid 3 top 5s and 6 top 10s in 9 starts this season, with a worst finish of 11th on July 14th. Martin did not compete in this event last season, but posted a 9th place finish at the BRP Tour event, which was one spot better than Rudolph. He has never won at his home track, but 54 top 10s in 70 events shows that Martin will be a reliable choice to round out your roster.