TRENTON, N.J. Briggs Danner heads to the East Coast Indoor Dirt Nationals this weekend at the CURE Insurance Arena on an Indoor Auto Racing Series hot streak.

The young star of sprint car racing ended the concrete series with three podium finishes in four races and a third place in the final points. A victory in the series only race on dirt in Trenton, would cap off his indoor racing this season on a high point.

After a fast time at the indoor series TQ Midget opener on Jan. 3 in Allentown, Pa., Danner came up two spots short of a big payday. The 23-year-old ended the two-day stint in his hometown with a disappointing mechanical issue that forced him out of Saturdays feature.

The event airs LIVE on SPEED SPORT Affiliate DirtTrackDigest.tv. 

Rebounding in Atlantic City on Jan. 31-Feb. 1 with impressive back-to-back third-place finishes, Danner heads to Trenton seeking a first win in the sixth running of the Dirt Nationals. His record on the high-banked clay oval dictates that hell be one of the favorites.

Last year he finished on the podium both nights in Fridays preliminary main and Saturdays Dirt Nationals A-Main event.

After five third-place finishes in the last six Indoor Series races, Danner is ready to take the next step up in Trenton, driving the potent Dave Bodine No. 99. To say hes in race shape would be putting it mildly.

After the Allentown indoor races, Danner raced at the Chili Bowl Nationals in Tulsa, Okla. After Atlantic City, he competed in five USAC National Sprint Car series events in Florida from Feb. 11-15.

With no repeat winners in the previous five Trenton dirt races held, Danner, who will race full-time this year on the USAC National Tour for the first time after winning three events in 2024, hopes he keeps that streak alive.

It wont be easy. Defending race winner Anthony Perrego,  a rookie at the event last year, plans to be the first repeat winner, as does 2023 victor Tim Buckwalter and 2020 winner Jon Keller.

Perrego, a star in dirt Modified competition, advanced from the B-Main to win last year with a pass of Danner with eight laps to go. Keller pulled off the unspeakable when he transferred from the E-Main to start last in the A-Main and then pulled off the stunning upset.

Racing at Trenton has proven to be incredible, with the outside lane brought to life with banking and a cushion. In three out of the five running of the Trenton Dirt race, the winner started outside the top 10 and needed to transfer from at least one qualifier on Saturday to make the A-Main.

No one has been more consistent at the Trenton dirt race than Billy Pauch Jr., who has qualified for all five features. A Friday night preliminary night winner last year, Pauch wants badly to win Saturdays A-Main after finishing twice in 2018 and 2023, along with a third in 2020. Issues in the A-Main last year pushed him back to a disappointing 11th-place finish.

Like Danner, Pauch and Buckwalter have already shaken off the rust running the Indoor TQ Midget Series races on the concrete floor. Others who have also run the TQ Midget indoor events include Scott Kruetter, a guaranteed 11th starter at Trenton following a 600 win in Atlantic City, Kyle Lick and Stephen Kemery.

After racing in the ARCA 200 at Daytona, Lavar Scott is returning to the event along with his brother Wayne. Sprint car ace Steve Buckwalter will be in the field racing his cousin Tim.

The 600 Sprint division will be well represented with big 2024 winner Steven Snyder Jr., who was fourth in last years Trenton race, joined by Lindas National Open 600 winner Christian Bruno and Brian Carber, all who had a shot at the victory last year.