Matt Haufe and Farrell Racing Ready for Jump to OSCAAR Modifieds

After having a successful season at Sunset Speedway, Matt Haufe and Farrell Racing will be taking the next step in joining the Overkill Enterprise OSCAAR Modified tour in 2026.

“I think we're all excited, and we're taking a big step,” Haufe said. “We're going to go to multiple tracks that we haven't been to before as a team. So we got lots of learning to do as far as setup, and some different things about each track and the little variations. But as a whole here, we're excited to take our success from last year and keep moving forward, and try becoming a multi-track team, not just a single-track show essentially.”

Those thoughts were echoed by his team owner Monty Farrell, who knows it will be a learning year despite both driver and owner having experience at each track on the OSCAAR schedule. 

“It's going to be like a whole new, exciting time for us, right? Going faster, going against bigger teams, bigger competition and just hitting the road. It's gonna be a blast. We have a great group of guys and girls - really quite after three we’ve created a family that we're all having a blast and working hard towards the ultimate goal.”

As for those goals, it begins for Haufe in finding speed at each track and gaining respect, in knowing he will be racing against competitors he has not battled yet. 

“Most of the tracks are still like a third-mile but Sunset’s pretty friendly with the banking and the way it kind of laid out,” Haufe explained. “We’re going to have tracks like Flamboro and it gets a little tighter, and they've got that inside the apron, and you’ve got Peterborough where that is challenging because the asphalt's old and the corners aren't exactly round. The rumble strip kind of changes as you go around the corner, so we have some different things to learn about positioning in the car. It is getting used to just how far the car sticks out compared to maybe the Legend car at Peterborough.

“Then the other big one's going to be the half-mile of Delaware, which I'm really excited about since it's been a little while since I've been on a big track. I've always loved the big tracks of the legends like Kawartha and the bullring down in (Las) Vegas and those were always a lot of fun, as well as of course the roll course. Because you get going pretty quick on some of those tracks, and it's a lot of fun, so we've done well in big tracks. So hopefully that will translate to Delaware for us in the mod.”

Farrell says for the team, it will be about splitting the year in two halves. They will be utilizing the first trip to each track to learn as much as they can, and then hopefully come back faster and battle up front in the second visit. 

“At the end of the year, some of the bigger races, I tend to think we shine during those,” Farrell added. “So it’s like a kid in a candy shop when we go to these races. These new tracks are going to be so fun. Like I said, Matt and I have both been racing at all these tracks, except for Delaware. So I think Delaware is certainly on our radar, just because it's the big boy track right, and we're bringing a big boy race car there that's fast with an awesome driver. So ultimately, I just can't wait for that one. 

Although all the tracks are exciting for the duo this season, Delaware is one which Haufe has circled as it is one of the few tracks across Ontario he has yet to race at in his career to date. The OSCAAR Modified schedule will give him an opportunity to knock it off his bucket list, so to speak, in which he likes being able to have a track or two on his schedule each season that is new. 

“I think that makes you better driver like if you can try to go somewhere new and learn the track and be fast,” Haufe expalined. “Generally when you do that, you're not always getting down there for a test or two beforehand - you got like one or two practice sessions like qualifying. You're right into it. So it's a skill to learn to try to go somewhere new and be quick and it's just another track and another opportunity to try to do that, especially with the mods.” 

As previously mentioned, their jump to the tour comes following a successful season at Sunset Speedway. Haufe gained speed as the year went on, posting the quickest lap in time trials a couple times late in the year and battled consistently inside the top-three. Their hard work almost paid off in the season finale, with Haufe leading multiple laps before fading back a couple spots before the checkered. 

“It felt good to know that we have the potential in the speed to be there and move that program to the series this year,” Haufe commented. “It gives us some confidence as well. We did get those fast times, especially the late races last year - we got the fastest time of the year as far as qualifying goes. So that was nice, because now we know we can be fast. We just need to continue to work towards having the car be fast for the entire 30 or 50 laps, depending on what the race is.”

Now as they prepare to make the next step of their racing journey, there’s excitement in becoming part of the OSCAAR banner. 

“It’s great to have OSCAAR doing their things again, let’s call it,” Farrell commented. “It’s exciting to have OSCAAR leading the way and they are big fans of modifieds and the hot rock guys and the super lates. It’s just that's all positive. OSCAAR has always been a strong organization and it looks like that's going to be no different this summer. So we couldn't be more excited to be involved with them.”

“That’s part of the draw - the mods being part of OSCAAR,” Haufe added. “Even racing Legends before we got into this stuff, I remember always like being at Kawartha and the nights OSCAAR was with us, it felt different. We always liked being with them on those nights. They always fit us in the show well and it always brought a lot more fans out. It's great for the sponsors that way, and it's also good for us to have a little bit more eyes on you.”

The change will also bring some new race day procedures, though, in knowing they will be running heats versus the time trial format which Sunset Speedway used.

“I think the heats will be a benefit to our program for the feature and trying to adjust the car for that for the night and day,” Haufe explained. “Now we're going to have the ability to work on some passing and how the car is handling, if you get into that side to side battle for a few laps. Is the car only good by itself in clean air, or is it racy in traffic? So there'll be lots of good practice and a lot of information we'll get from that and I think that'll be big for the overall feature program.”

For Haufe and Farrell, the pairing just seems to fit perfectly together, and it’s even crazier to think about when you realize it came together over social media. Farrell watched some videos on Haufe’s YouTube channel as well as watching race the Legend at tracks across the province prior to reaching out to him via twitter. 

“We’re from the same area so there's a connection there,” Farrell said. “I just feel like we're cut from the same cloth sort of thing. But also to be honest with you, he is an incredible driver and after my first year with the modified, I knew that he could do better, and it's all about going faster and getting better when it comes to racing. So I was able to see Matt race and able to see some of the stuff that he has online, and also it helps his family is just a great race family too. It's really a family affair, and honestly, I couldn't be happier with the way everything is going, just taking the back seat and passing him the wheel.”

Obviously, they could not make it work without the help of their dedicated sponsors including Oslo Laser Welders, Fast Eddie Speedwear, Harvey’s,Fast Eddie Speedwear, and Cooking with Shine.