By Bill Martin
HARKER HEIGHTS, Texas (Oct. 25, 2026) – Most race car drivers are chomping at the bit to get their new season started.
Jason Batt didn’t even have a ride at the start of the 2026 Sunoco IMCA Stock Car point season, so he didn’t mind waiting another week.
The veteran wheelman motored to his career first EQ Cylinder Heads Southern Region crown and fifth Texas State prize, propelled to a runner-up finish in the national points race by bonus points earned along with Heart O’ Texas Speedway and Cotton Bowl Speedway track titles.
“What I’m really on cloud nine about was finishing second in the nation. That’s where we’re really pumped,” Batt said, following his 26th season in the class. “It’s pretty exciting. I’m humbled. We had great seasons in 2017, 2018, 2019 and even further back to 2010 when we finished eighth in the nation. But the last couple seasons have been down and I was kind of thinking my not doing good was my age.”
“Then we got a new car this year, a 2025 Devilbiss Chassis owned by Leslie Gill and Stealth Oil Well Services, and it all came right back.”
Batt began his season solely as crew chief and mechanic for what was then the three-car team comprised of daughters Daphne, Paisley and Vivian.
Daphne ended fourth in Stock Car regional rookie standings in her mother (and former Lady Eagle) Robin’s former ride, a Voodoo Chassis that she’d autographed in chalk and marker multiple times when Batt built the car 13 years ago. Paisley was third in junior limited points at both HO’T and Cotton Bowl while Vivian cut lap times substantially over the course of her rookie campaign in the same class.
“I got to start on front row with Daphne at Kennedale (on May 9) the night I raced to my first-ever win at that track. I don’t know why, but it’s always been my kryptonite track,” Batt said. “Robin helped us get cars to the track and it was a lot of fun traveling and racing with the girls.”
“Every Sunday we’d wash all the cars then made a priority list for which cars went in the shop first. I’d update the list and my notes in the morning, and when I got home from driving truck all day I’d hit the shop running,” he continued. “We met Army Specialists Hiro Kam and Aaron Messick, who are stationed at Fort Hood the next town over, during the season and they helped in the shop every Wednesdays.”
“There were a lot of nights I worked until 2 a.m. or later and there were a couple all-nighters, but I told my daughters I could sleep in November.”
Batt made his first IMCA sanctioned start in 2001, running full schedules when possible and more limited ones when life demanded it since.
After single-win campaigns each of the previous two seasons, he won nine times and had another 22 top five finishes in 48 starts this year.
Now the owner of 140 career wins, Batt is a six-time champ at Heart O’Texas and three-time king at Cotton Bowl. His latest state crown is his career fifth.
“Opening night at Waco rained out and I did not have a Stock Car to race until two days later. At that point, all I wanted this season was the HO’T championship,” he explained. “We weren’t trying for anything else. Then around July 4, Thomas Clark asked me if I’d looked at points. I told him ‘No, not at all, if I had any goal it was to win Heart O’ Texas points.’ He told me ‘Well, you better.’ I looked at ‘em that weekend and thought wow, we had a shot at the region and the national. It wasn’t until July that we started to try for something.”
Batt motored to another career-highlight win this fall, taking the night two checkers at Abilene Speedway’s Ryan Bard Memorial Southern Challenge.
“I think racing can keep you young,” he said. “I’m 48 and right now I feel 20.”
Wins – 9
Top Five Finishes – 22
Starts – 48
HIS CREW: Doug Lorenz, Chris Birmingham, Hiro Kam, Aaron Messick, Shelby Williams, Thomas Clark and Blake Clark.
HIS SPONSORS: Leslie Gill and Stealth Oil Well Services of Odessa; Marty Robbins of Odessa; J.P. Dowell of Killeen; Keith White and Champ 1 Fuels of Little River Academy; Bob Harris Enterprises of Ames, Iowa; and Midstate Machine of Des Moines, Iowa.