The Super DIRTcar Series was founded in 1972 by Glenn Donnelly as a series of qualifier races leading into the inaugural Super Dirt Week at the New York State Fairgrounds Racetrack in Syracuse, New York. Super Dirt Week — the annual culminating event drawing the largest purses in dirt modified racing — became the crown jewel around which the entire series was organized. The series became a true points championship in 1974, simultaneously establishing a prize fund for season-long competition. Will Cagle won that first points championship, edging two-time Super Dirt Week champion Buzzie Reutimann.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the series grew in national profile, attracting corporate title sponsors and television coverage. Past title sponsors have included Schaefer Beer (1972 to 1975 and 1978), CRC Industries (1979 to 1985), Sun Country Cooler (1986), U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company (1987 to 1998), and Advance Auto Parts (1999 to 2008). Between 1988 and 1992 the series experimented with asphalt events at tracks including Cayuga, Flemington, Nazareth, Oswego, Sanair, and Thompson, though the series ultimately returned to its dirt oval identity.
Super DIRTcar Series cars are highly specialized racing machines built on 1018 or 1020 steel tube chassis with a wheelbase of 106 to 110 inches. The center-steer configuration — with the steering column positioned centrally rather than to the left — is a distinctive feature of northeast-style big block modified racing and distinguishes these cars visually and mechanically from their smaller-engine counterparts. The minimum weight with driver is 2,500 lb.
Power comes from carbureted big block V8 engines displacing up to 467 cubic inches, producing between 650 and 800 horsepower at 7,000 to 8,300 rpm with a compression ratio of 13:1 to 14.5:1. A dry sump lubrication system is mandatory. Suspension is coil spring or torsion bar at the rear and coil spring at the front. Brakes are four-wheel hydraulic disc with no power assist. Hoosier Racing Tire supplies all tires, with a mandated right rear tire circumference of 92.5 inches. A two-speed transmission with reverse and a quick-change rear end complete the drivetrain.
The series' premier event is the Billy Whittaker Cars and Trux 200, held as part of NAPA Auto Parts Super Dirt Week at Oswego Speedway in Oswego, New York. The race pays $50,000 to the winner and stands as one of the largest purses in dirt modified racing. Super Dirt Week was originally held at the New York State Fairgrounds Mile in Syracuse for over four decades; when the historic Fairgrounds track was demolished in 2016, the event relocated to Oswego, where the asphalt oval is converted to a dirt surface for the occasion.
Other major events on the Super DIRTcar Series schedule include the DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park in Florida, the Hall of Fame 100 at Weedsport Speedway, the Mr. DIRT Track USA at Lebanon Valley Speedway, and the World of Outlaws World Finals at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Broadcasts are carried via DIRTVision for live streaming and MAVTV for delayed television coverage.
Alongside the touring series, the Super DIRTcar organization also oversees the Mr. DIRTcar program, which recognizes excellence among weekly short-track competitors at affiliated venues. From 1976, points earned in the Super DIRTcar Series were credited toward an overall Mr. DIRT crown. In 1998 the two titles were merged. The program was rebranded Mr. DIRTcar in 2007 and includes regional championship recognition. Since 2011, the overall weekly title has been decided on a driver's best 16 finishes at their home track, and in 2019 Hoosier Racing Tire became the title sponsor under the name Hoosier Racing Tire Weekly Championship.
Brett Hearn holds the all-time wins record with 141 victories, the most dominant accumulation of wins in the series' history. Matt Sheppard has claimed the most DIRTcar titles with 10 championships, a total that speaks to both longevity and consistent excellence. The record for wins in a single season stands at 10, achieved by Hearn in 2002, Billy Decker in 2008, and Sheppard in 2016. Alan Johnson set the consecutive wins record with five straight victories in 1983. Hearn also holds the records for most seasons with at least one win (32) and most consecutive seasons with at least one win (22), and his victories have come at 33 different tracks, also a series record. The youngest winner in series history is Alex Yankowski, who won at 17 years old.
The series was acquired by World Racing Group (then operating under the name Boundless Motorsports) in 2003. Under World Racing Group's banner the Super DIRTcar Series sits alongside the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars and Late Models as part of a broader dirt oval racing portfolio. The series remains the unambiguous pinnacle of northeastern dirt modified racing, drawing the region's top talent each season and maintaining a following rooted in decades of racing tradition at venues like the Syracuse Mile, Oswego Speedway, and Lebanon Valley.