KENNEDALE, Texas — Not long ago, Zach Hampton was selling his equipment, unsure of the direction of his sprint car racing career.
He knew there was a chance he might not be in a sprint car in 2025, but how quickly things can change.
Hampton linked with Bill Rose Racing for his debut season with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars, and he’s fresh off a run that put his six fellow rookies on notice.
Saturday at Magnolia Motor Speedway began on a low note for the Mooresville, Ind., native as rear-end troubles knocked him out of the heat race, but it was all up from there. He started last in the Last Chance Showdown and advanced to fourth to transfer.
Then, in the feature, he took the No. 6 all the way from 22nd to seventh for his first top 10 with The Greatest Show on Dirt. A run that has Hampton even more ready for the tour’s next stop this weekend at Kennedale Speedway Park in Texas.
“It obviously feels great,” Hampton said. “It’s a huge confidence boost for both Bill and I. I feel like we were progressively getting better every night leading up to that. I don’t think either of us expected that run, especially after blowing up a rear-end in the Heat Race then going from the back of the LCS to a transfer. We were decent in the LCS but nothing crazy. It all just kind of went my way in the feature.”
The night marked a culmination of recent strides Hampton and Rose have made. It’s a dynamic both sides are still adjusting to. Injuries in recent years have forced Rose into a crew chief role from time to time, but his experience behind the wheel still far outweighs his time only on the wrenches. For Hampton, he’s accustomed to driving and calling his own shots, so he’s still finding the fine line of how much feedback to offer Rose on the car’s direction.
“It’s definitely different,” Hampton said. “I’ve been doing it the last couple years and my first two years on my own. It’s a big learning curve, I think, for Bill transitioning from mostly a driver to a crew chief. And it’s a big change for me to go from both to just focusing on being the driver, not having the input on what changes we make.”
Even with those challenges, there’s another side that’s greatly benefitted Hampton. Not having to worry about setting up the car and the day-today maintenance has kept him sharp. He can get a little extra sleep. He can focus on one job and one job only – driving the race car.
“It’s an insane amount of pressure lifted,” Hampton noted. “It’s definitely weird even throughout the week and in between nights. Unless something happens and they need me like when we blew up the rear-end I’m there to help, but on the normal operations I’m not working on it. I can sleep in a little bit later. Drivers get hate for that, but there’s no need to be up at 7 a.m. So, being able to sleep in a little bit later, be less tired at the end of the night, and just not have to have all those other thoughts and so much going on, it makes it so much easier.”
Hampton also had a little fun on social media after Saturday’s charge. He opened X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts and couldn’t help but note his “haters have been uncharacteristically quiet lately.”
Like many racers, Hampton faced criticism online. But his run over the weekend brought overwhelming support.
“It absolutely can be pretty brutal,” Hampton admitted. “I would say I read a lot even when there’s negative stuff only because I’m pretty good at going, ‘This person is either fake, or they rarely know what they’re talking about.’ It can be brutal, and nobody wants to read that stuff about themselves, but the positivity was definitely nice to read. It’s always nice to have a little bit of affirmation, support, or positivity from other people feeling happy for myself or for Bill and I. It’s always nice to have a little bit on the outside, especially in a place that’s usually a lot more dark and gloomy.”
Looking ahead, Hampton isn’t getting ahead of himself. The personal-best run with the World of Outlaws was nice, but there’s a long season ahead.
“It’s definitely exciting, and I’m looking forward to it and happy with the progress we’ve made,” Hampton said. “But I think we’ve got to keep doing what we have been doing, which is just trying to improve even just one thing every night, whether it’s on the track or with the trailer organization or preparedness. I think if we can make one thing better every night, then we can keep trending in the right direction and by the end of the year we can have a better foundation.”
