Surprise winners are one of racing's exciting aspects, and fans who attended Saturday night's Black Diamond 125--sanctioned by the World of Outlaws Late Model Series--at West Virginia's Tyler County Speedway saw a shocker.

Local driver Jared Hawkins collected the biggest win of his career, earning $20,000 for winning the 45-lap Sweet Sixteen finale in an event that featured a unique format. The field was split into a pair of 40-lap qualifying features with the top eight finishers in each transferring to the Sweet Sixteen nightcap.

Driving for local car owner Bobby Lake, who had never won a race which paid more than $5,000, Hawkins charged from the fourth starting spot and held off Dan Stone.

“This is unreal,” said Hawkins. “I'm waiting to wake up from this.

“I've dreamed about [winning a major race] my whole life, and to win here in my home state at my favorite track with all these guys here--the 20 grand's nice, but beating these guys feels so damn good.”

Pat Doar and Steve Shaver each banked $10,000 for winning the 40-lap qualifying races.

The World of Outlaws Late Model Series was rained out Sunday night at Pennsylvania's Roaring Knob Motorsports Complex.

Classic Weekend

One of short-track racing's best events is the Oswego Classic, held annually over Labor Day weekend at New York's Oswego Classic.

Otto Sitterly won Sunday afternoon's 55th-annual Budweiser International Classic for nonwinged Supermodifieds. He earned $15,000 for outrunning a stellar field of 34 cars from throughout the country at the half-mile asphalt oval.

The three-day racing weekend got under way on Friday night and continued on Saturday.

Chris Perley won for the seventh time at Oswego, claiming Friday's 55-lap International SuperModified Association feature, while Alison Cumens topped the American Three Quarter Midget Racing Association's main event.

The Race of Champions asphalt modified series took center stage on Saturday, with former NASCAR Truck Series driver Chuck Hossfeld taking the checkered flag. Andrew Schartner captured the small-block Supermodified feature.

Finally

Sam Hafertepe Jr. on Saturday night picked up a check for $20,000 after he won his first World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series feature, at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash.

Ironically, after several years touring the country with the series while wheeling his own No. 15 sprint car, Hafertepe was a hired driver for the weekend at the 3/10-mile dirt track. It paid off as the 25-year-old Texan drove the familiar Northwest-based Rudeen No. 26 to victory, holding off 20-time series champion Steve Kinser on several late-race restarts.

Craig Dollansky posted his series-leading eighth win of the season in Friday night's preliminary event at Skagit. The series returns to action on Monday night (Sept. 5) at Oregon's Cottage Grove Speedway.

Hillbilly Hustle

Scott Bloomquist banked $10,000 on Saturday night after holding off teammate Jimmy Owens to win the 50-lap Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series feature at Ohio's Portsmouth Raceway Park.

The pair were just tuning up for Sunday night's prestigious Hillbilly Hundred dirt-late-model race at the three-eighths-mile dirt track. However, rain delayed the $25,000-to-win event until Monday night.

The Dirt Mile

The Traxxas USAC Silver Crown Series and the ARCA Racing Series came together for the second time in three weekends as the two series made their annual Labor Day weekend stop at the DuQuoin (Ill.) State Fairgrounds one-mile dirt track.

Nineteen-year-old Kyle Larson continued to enjoy his breakout season. He won Sunday's Ted Horn 100 USAC Silver Crown race, giving him a victory in all three USAC national divisions (Silver Crown, sprint car and midget) this season. The Elk Grove, Calif., resident also won the Belleville Midget Nationals earlier this summer.

The ARCA stock cars were scheduled for Monday at DuQuoin.

Victory Lane

-- Andy Eckrich collected $10,000 for winning the Pepsi Nationals for the Deery Brothers Summer Series late models on Sunday night at Iowa's 34 Raceway.

-- Tim Shaffer picked up his third consecutive All-Star Circuit of Champions win on Saturday night at Ohio's Attica Raceway Park. Shaffer also prevailed the previous night at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa.

-- Brad Kuhn won the Bob Tattersall Memorial USAC midget race on Friday at LaSalle (Ill.) Speedway.

-- Mike Spencer and Robert Ballou (USAC-CRA sprint cars) and Jonathan Henry and Scott Pierovich (USAC Western midgets) were winners during the two-night Louis Vermeil Classic held on Saturday and Sunday at California's Calistoga Speedway.

-- Eric Holmes topped Saturday night's NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Spokane County Raceway in Washington. Holmes's 15th career win came in the series' first race at the track since 1979.

-- Ron Silk extended his points lead with a victory in Sunday's NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour event at Ontario's Delaware Speedway.

-- Andy Seuss nabbed his second-straight NASCAR Whelen Southern Modified Tour triumph on Saturday at Langley, Va.

-- Woody Pitkat banked $5,000 for winning the 15th-annual Budweiser Modified Nationals at Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl.