Jeremie Whorff (00) drives the bottom groove during Pro All Stars Series action at Oxford Plains Speedway on July 10. Oriana Lovell photo
Jeremie Whorff is back at Oxford Plains Speedway, and he’s back in the fast lane.
The 2006 Oxford 250 champion drove to victory lane in a 100-lap race at the speedway last month, and he hasn’t had a car that feels this good since — well, it’s been a while.
“I don’t know, a couple of decades ago,” the Bath native said with a chuckle. “It’s probably been, I bet you, 2008, probably. Because we haven’t, really, we haven’t run a full schedule in 12, 15 years. So, you know, to run with those guys up there, you almost need to run a full schedule and get better and better every week.”
Whorff hasn’t run a full schedule of Super Late Model races at Oxford Plains this season, not even close.
In fact, he’s run just two races at the track, but both times he finished on the podium. He placed third in a Pro All Stars Series 150-lap race on July 10 and then won a 100-lap Port City Race Cars Triple Crown event on July 30.
Whorff said winning the 100-lap race absolutely gave him confidence going into this weekend’s 250.
“I mean, to be able to go out there and run at Oxford with kind of the best of the best, you know, and be able to win one, it definitely gives us some momentum going into the weekend,” he said.
And while winning a 100-lap feature doesn’t always equate to persevering through a 250-lap race, Whorff thinks that what his No. 00 car has shown during his two trips to Oxford Plains bodes well for Sunday’s long race.
“The last couple races we ran at Oxford with the car, we struggled on the short run, and really, really improved on the long run,” he said. “So I’m looking forward to the 250 laps because I think our car is going to improve as the race progresses.”
Jeremie Whorff celebrates in victory lane at Oxford Plains Speedway after winning a Super Late Model race July 30. Oriana Lovell photo
After finishing last in last year’s Oxford 250, Whorff’s 2022 racing season began with a bit of bad luck: a crash in practice at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in April.
“I believe it was probably one of the fastest cars down there at that particular time. So my expectations were pretty high when we showed up at Oxford (later in the year),” Whorff said.
THE CONFIDENCE OF WINNING
Sixteen years ago, a 22-year-old Whorff won the 250 in his first time qualifying for the feature race. The field that day included NASCAR stars Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin and Ricky Craven. It also included Whorff’s dad, Bill, who placed second. The Whorffs remain the only father-son duo to finish one-two at the 250.
Jeremie Whorff, now 38, said luck was on his side when he won the 2006 race, and that winning on Sunday would require more of the same.
“I think it was just a good draw, was number one,” Whorff said. “We had, I wouldn’t say we had the fastest car, either. You know? We probably had maybe a top-10 car, at best. We surely didn’t have the number-one car. … But the fast guys just had a bad day, you know, and we were able to capitalize on that.”
Jeremie Whorff celebrates in victory lane at Oxford Plains Speedway after winning a Super Late Model race July 30. Oriana Lovell photo
Despite going into the 49th edition of the Oxford 250 with some momentum, Whorff said his chances “are pretty much like everybody else: It’s the roll of the dice, like it has been for a hundred years.”
“I think if our luck is good, I think we’ll have a real good shot at it,” he added. “Just the last couple of races we’ve run up there, it’s been like driving a dream.”
Whorff said he didn’t do anything special in 2006 to bring him good luck, and he doesn’t plan to this year, either.
“We just show up, give it 110 percent and hope for the best,” he said.
It’s been long enough since his Oxford 250 victory that there isn’t much useful information, as far as data or car setup, that is transferrable to Sunday’s race. Besides, Whorff noted, Oxford Plains this season has become more of a one-groove race track, which makes track position even more paramount.
But that doesn’t mean that his win 16 years ago doesn’t have some worth to Whorff heading into the 2022 race.
“It still gives me some confidence, knowing that I’m able to win the 250, so I can show up there this weekend, know that I have a shot at it,” Whorff said. “Opposed to prior to that, we showed up, you know, just to have fun and get the experience.
“I mean, every time we go to the race track, we’re there to have fun, whether we finish first or last. And that’s kind of our main goal, and that’s why everybody enjoys going every week. So I think we just keep going, having fun, and if it’s our night, it’s our night.”
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