FARGO, N.D. (November 12, 2025) – They say all dirt roads lead to the World Finals at the Dirt Track at Charlotte – the season finale for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series. That is true in many ways for Donny Schatz this season, as it took several different roads for him to complete the World of Outlaws season – his ultimate goal for 2025 after departing Tony Stewart Racing after the Knoxville Nationals.
All of that culminated in one of his best weekends of the year at Charlotte.
On Thursday night, Schatz started 29th in a lineup that included several World of Outlaws drivers who took provisionals. Schatz showed speed right away in the 25-lapper, as he quickly climbed his way up the running order.
By the end of the caution-filled feature, which was halted for an open red on lap six for fuel, Schatz climbed all the way up to 12th, advancing 17 positions.
He came back on Friday night with a better starting position in the feature and became a contender late in the feature. Following David Gravel through the pack from his 10th starting position, Schatz found himself battling for a podium position with leaders Gravel and Rico Abreu.
Schatz admitted after the race that he abused his tires working his way forward, and didn’t have much for the lead duo once he got to them, but was happy to settle for a third-place finish.
“We found something with the motor for the heat race, and we were able to make up that ground in the heat, which was huge. If you can start in the top 10 for the feature, you can go out and race,” said Schatz after the race. “I could float the middle there after those restarts, but I wasn’t quite as good as I needed to be coming off the corner.
“We’ll take it. We haven’t had such great finishes. Thanks to the JVI crew for working so hard. The goal was to finish out the season and do the best we could. Tonight was a good night,” said Schatz.
DIRTVision’s Connor Wade followed up by asking Schatz if Friday’s third-place finish felt like a win after the tough year. Schatz responded, “A win is a win. No, this isn’t a win. We aren’t going to substitute anything for wins. As soon as you do that, you start kidding yourself.”
On Saturday, Schatz’s feature ended before it could really begin. In a chain reaction sequence after a congested restart, Schatz jumped over a left rear tire and got upside down.
On Sunday evening at the World of Outlaws awards celebration, a thankful Schatz showed his appreciation to everyone who helped him throughout the season.
From Tony Stewart Racing to Big Game Motorsports to Lunstra Motorsports to the Works Limited X in California, and wrapping up the season in the Sides Motorsports/JVI Group No. 15, Schatz had several key individuals help him along the way.
Schatz’s season ended with 10 top fives, 34 top tens, and a sixth-place finish in the final point standings.