It’s a grinding lifestyle when you’re chasing the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series from sea to shining sea for nine months of the year.
The countless hours of hard work and thousands of miles on the road are often unseen to the general public, but what’s known by everyone is that you won’t find any Outlaw having more fun than “Double Down” Jason Sides.
At 48-years-old, the Bartlett, TN native is still kicking it as a core member of The Greatest Show on Dirt. He surpassed 1,200 Series starts earlier this summer and is still the second-longest tenured driver on tour behind only his good friend Donny Schatz.
Sides’ 2021 season saw a share of ups and downs of course. He announced a new partnership with Rico Abreu joining the ownership stake of his #7S stable, but there was also a late spring accident when a drunk driver rear-ended his hauler on the highway. Between insurance and the damage done, he was kept off the road for more than a month and missed 10 races.
Nonetheless, Sides and his fun-loving attitude returned to tour in June and enjoyed a successful summer. Now only one month remains on the calendar and five other races stand in between him and completing another year at the NGK/NTK World Finals at The Dirt Track Charlotte on November 4-6. Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE or watch Every Lap LIVE on DIRTVision.
He doesn’t know exactly what 2022 has in store, but he does know his passion for Sprint Car Racing has yet to waiver.
“I always have a good time out here,” Sides said. “At the end of the day, if you aren’t having fun you don’t need to be doing this. I mean how many guys can say they’re a lifer? That they’ve been here their entire lives? If I wasn’t here, I don’t know what I’d be doing.”
Among his most notable runs this year was an impressive 12th-to-fifth bid at Cedar Lake (WI) Speedway’s Independence Day Showdown. It marked his 170th career World of Outlaws top-five, but more importantly, it was his first top-five with the Series in four years since July of 2017.
Sides recorded three other top-10 finishes with a seventh at Jackson (MN), a tenth at I-55 (MO), and a tenth at Wilmot (WI). Of the 60 races he entered, the Wetherington Tractor Services, King Racing Products #7S qualified for 44 Features.
He also recorded seven appearances in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash, four wins in Team Drydene Heat Race competition, and two wins in the MicroLite Last Chance Showdown.
“When you come this far you want to make the races, so obviously when you don’t it just sucks,” Sides admitted. “This year has still been more normal than last year, though. It’s been good to get back to the standard schedule we’re used to.”
The #7S pilot, who is still 36th on the All-Time List with 15 career wins, still has another seven races remaining in 2021. Sides is currently sitting 12th in the standings with a $20,000 check awaiting him at the season-ending banquet.
Port Royal (PA) Speedway is on tap this Friday and Saturday, then trips to Lakeside (KS) Speedway on October 22, Lawton (OK) Speedway on October 29, and Devil’s Bowl (TX) Speedway on October 30, before the popular NGK/NTK World Finals on November 4-6.
In 44 starts at The Dirt Track at Charlotte (NC), Sides has collected six top-five finishes and 17 t0p-10 results.
If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch Sides take on all remaining World of Outlaws events live on DIRTVision – either online or through the DIRTVision App.
The post ROAD TO WORLD FINALS: Jason Sides Still Finding Fun on World of Outlaws Tour first appeared on World of Outlaws.