CONCORD, N.C.  At the end of the 2024 season, Drake Troutman was looking for a chance.

The former DIRTcar UMP Modified standout had what he needed to get up and down the road with his own No. 7 late model team, but he was still in search of an opportunity to become a legitimate contender on the national stage. Then came the call from G.R. Smith.

Last year, I ran my own deal strictly off sponsorship and I couldnt continue to do that anymore, Troutman said. That was one of those deals where we just tried to get through last year to turn some heads and hopefully get a ride. Im really fortunate that G.R. reached out to me and gave me this awesome opportunity.

I dont really have an option but to make it a long-term relationship. Now that were in this deal together, I feel like Im a really loyal person and I like to have things long-term. I dont like to be hopping around. Me and G.R. have been clicking really good together, hes been awesome to work with and hes given me everything I need to go out and compete on a national level.

Once the deal was done, Smith and Troutman set their sights on a MD3 Rookie of the Year Award run with the World of Outlaws Late Models, which kicked off at Floridas Volusia Speedway Park.

Finishes of sixth and 15th at DIRTcar Sunshine Nationals made it seem like Troutman was on the right track, giving him reason for optimism going into Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals.

The six-night stretch didnt start off how the No. 22* team were hoping, though. Troutman missed the feature on Mondays opening night of DIRTcar Late Model competition and failed to crack the top 10 in the next four nights.

Entering Saturdays finale, Troutmans only goal was to bring the car home in one piece and move on to the next stop on tour. But as the night progressed, he realized he was capable of much more than that.

We sucked so bad all week, every year I go down there, I dont know what I need to do to be better, Troutman said. I was pretty frustrated. We just kind of threw the kitchen sink at it the last night and it all worked out.

A solid qualifying run put Troutman on the pole of his heat race. After leading all eight laps of that contest to make the Redraw, Troutman pulled the top spot for the 50-lap main event.

The Hyndman, Pa., native quickly pulled out to a five-second advantage over the field, and it looked like Troutman had one hand on his first World of Outlaws trophy. The only problem? The driver trailing him was Jonathan Davenport, whod finished second in three of his last four World of Outlaws starts and already won at Volusia earlier in the week.

Superman made quick work of the gap between he and Troutman and passed him with 11 to go to add another Gator to his trophy case. While the win may have slipped through Troutmans fingers, his runner-up against one of the toughest fields the World of Outlaws face all season proved to the rest of the world what he knew from the start the Team22 Motorsports squad could be a contender against the best.

The track was more to my liking that night, Im not really good whenever its wide open, stand on it and pray to God it turns, Troutman said. As soon as you get done qualifying, thats going to tell you how your night goes for the most part. Especially on a track like that, it can be pretty hard to pass sometimes, and the air plays a huge factor in that place. I knew after qualifying we could win the heat race, and if you start up front, youve got a pretty good shot. At that point, its up to you and making sure everything on the car stays together.

After ending the week on a high note, the teams focus shifted toward preparing for the spring slate of racing, which begins next weekend at Smoky Mountain Speedway  with the Tennessee Tipoff. But in the break between events, Troutman has been getting up to speed at several tracks hell return to later in the year with the Outlaws, including Swainsboro Raceway, which hosts The Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet on March 21-22.

In his Swainsboro debut with the Spring Nationals Series, Troutman instantly became the class of the field by claiming the feature pole. He settled into second behind Team22 teammate Chris Madden.

It was one of the better race tracks weve raced on all year, Troutman said. Im excited to go back there, I thought it raced really well. The track guys did a good job of prepping the track there before the Feature to give us a good, racey race track. I think weve got a pretty good car there, Ive just got to do better behind the wheel. I mean, I knocked the left-front out on Lap 15 or so, that stuffs on me that I need to eliminate.

One night later, Troutman laid down another top-15 showing in his first trip to Senoia Raceway, which will welcome the World of Outlaws for the Billy Clanton Classic on Sept. 13. This weekend, Troutman plans to head to Boothill Speedway in Louisiana to get some laps with the COMP Cams Super Dirt Series ahead of the $50,000-to-win Bayou Classic with the World of Outlaws, Oct. 10-11.

From there, Troutman will head back north to Tennessee for his second trip to the newly-reconfigured Smoky Mountain.

That was a pretty fun race track too, Troutman said. Its all about going to these places and building notebooks. Thats going to be a newer challenge for us this year, we havent really raced at a whole lot of the Outlaw tracks. But in the long run it makes us better, and were excited.