The Slider That Made Me a Fan... and the Win That Proved It

I think it’s safe to say every single one of us was screaming at our TVs last night!

Those last couple laps at Florence had the whole damn dirt world losing their minds, and for good reason. Josh Rice didn’t just win the North/South 100... he took it. He earned it. He fought for it. And he did it in his backyard, with the whole state of Kentucky behind him.

I wanted to be there so bad. I had the trip planned, had everything lined up... but life had other ideas. And honestly? After watching what unfolded, I don’t think any of us can be upset with how the night turned out because what we witnessed was special.

My first time seeing Josh Rice wasn’t at Florence...

It was at Atomic Speedway’s Independence 50 last year. Only the second race I’d ever seen in person. I was still green as hell, sitting there in my 49 hat, surrounded by a sea of orange 11 Rice merch. I didn’t get it at first. Why was everyone losing their minds over this kid from Kentucky?

Then Josh showed me just why I'd go on to call him "The Atomic Assassin" and "The Kentucky Wildcard".

He didn’t even start inside the top 15. I was glued to the national stars I’d been watching on TV... but Josh kept slicing through the field like he had something to prove. Every pass he made, the orange sea around me got louder. Rowdier. More electric. And I found myself watching him more than anyone else.

With 12 laps to go, he was up to 4th, right behind my guy at the time, Superman himself, Jonathan Davenport.

Restart comes... JD goes low... and as I now know very well, Josh is gonna send ’er high.

He rockets down the backstretch, throws the slider on Davenport into three, barely clears him, but makes it stick by the line. I didn’t even realize I’d jumped out of my seat. The whole section exploded. My 49 hat was still on my head, but I was cheering Josh Rice... a guy I didn’t even know existed before that night... as he slid my favorite driver.

Five laps later, Devin Moran has to pull off into the hot pit. Josh takes second. Pure guts. Pure heart. Pure chaos.

And from that moment on... I was a Josh Rice fan.

Last night, we saw it again... Josh vs. JD.

Except this time, it wasn’t for third. It wasn’t a breakout moment. It wasn’t a “remember when".

It was for the win. His THIRD win of his ROOKIE SEASON with Lucas Oil... at Florence Speedway... at the North/South 100... in front of his home crowd... on one of the biggest stages in dirt late model racing.

Josh Rice didn’t just win... he proved that even on the biggest of stages, he's a threat to everyone there.

What a race. What a moment. What a night for "The Kentucky Wildcard".

And I’m damn proud to say I’ve been a Josh Rice fan ever since that first slider at Atomic.

Josh Rice lines up for hot laps at Florence Speedway’s 2026 Ralph Latham Memorial