From legends of the short track world to rising stars who left their mark, the Slinger Nationals has hosted some of the most iconic names in racing history. As one of the crown jewel events in asphalt Late Model racing, it’s only fitting to look back at the drivers who’ve defined greatness at Slinger Speedway as we approach this year's 46th Annual Slinger Nationals. 

• FloSports, Slinger Speedway Sign Multi-Year Streaming Agreement
• Subscribe To Watch The 2025 Slinger Nationals On FloRacing

Before we get into the list, it's important to clarify that the Slinger Nationals record book is broken into two eras: the series era and the event era. Since 2000, the race has been contested as a single 200-lap race to determine the champion. However, prior to that the event champion was determined by a series of races. 

Now that we've clarified that, here are the top 10 drivers in Slinger Nationals history.

1) Matt Kenseth (94, ‘02, ‘06, ‘08, ‘09, ‘12, ‘16, ‘19 Champion)

Only one driver can say they won the Slinger Nationals title eight times, and that driver is former NASCAR Cup Series champion Matt Kenseth. 

Kenseth was a force in the Slinger Nationals. He cut his teeth running the race in the series era where the Slinger Nationals crown was decided over a series of races. He moved on to the event era and continued his dominance with nine top-five finishes and seven wins in 14 starts. 

Series Era

Starts - 22

Wins - 1

Top Fives - 11

Top 10s - 15

Event Era

Starts - 14

Wins - 7

Top Fives - 9

Top 10s - 9

2) Rich Bickle (‘92, ‘96, ‘03, ‘13 Champion)

Overall, Rich Bickle has more race wins than Kenseth at the Slinger Nationals, but the event used to be run over a series of races and the points decided the champion. Bickle is still a four-time champion with over 20 finishes in the top five. The Wisconsin legend claimed two Slinger Nationals titles in the series era and two titles in the event era.

Series Era

Starts - 43

Wins - 10

Top Fives - 21

Top 10s - 30

Event Era

Starts - 19

Wins - 2

Top Fives - 2

Top 10s - 5

3) Lowell Bennett ('97, ‘00, ‘04, ‘07, ‘10 Champion)

Only one driver has more wins than Lowell Bennett in the event era at the Slinger Nationals, and that is Matt Kenseth. Bennett finished first or second from the years 2000 to 2004, including a run of three straight second-place finishes for 2001 to 2003. Bennett has posted nine top-five finishes and 12 top 10s since the event went to the single-race format. He also won the Nationals in 1997 in a three-race format.

Series Era

Starts - 25

Wins - 1

Top Fives - 5

Top 10s - 12

Event Era

Starts - 16

Wins - 4

Top Fives - 9

Top 10s - 12

4) Dick Trickle ('82, ‘83, ‘85, ‘89 Champion)

For one decade Dick Trickle ruled the Slinger Nationals. With nine wins and four overall crowns as the champion, he is one of the most decorated drivers at the Slinger, Wisconsin track. Trickle won nearly 31% of the races he ran at the Slinger Nationals during the 1980s. With 40 overall top-10 finishes, he has the most of anyone on the list.  

Series Era

Starts - 55

Wins - 9

Top Fives - 30

Top 10s - 40

5) Joe Shear (‘87, ‘90, ‘91, ‘93 Champion)

Did Joe Shear have to deal with Dick Trickle or did Dick Trickle have to deal with Joe Shear?  The two driver’s eras overlapped and together they won eight titles over 12 years. Shear won seven times in the series era, including four crowns in seven years. Shear shatters all records with 32 top-five finishes in the event.  

Series Era

Starts - 43

Wins - 7

Top Fives - 32

Top 10s - 38

6) Butch Miller (‘88, ‘95 Champion)

Butch Miller was the first Michigan driver to tame the Slinger high banks back in 1988 when he captured the overall points title thanks to a three-race clean sweep. Miller had three top-five finishes again in 1991 but lost the title to Shear. He would return to claim another crown in 1995 and finished his career with eight wins on the high banks.

Series Era

Starts - 32

Wins - 8

Top Fives - 19

Top 10s - 24

7) Alan Kulwicki ('81 Champion)

A lot of things led Alan Kulwicki to where he was in 1992 when he won the NASCAR Cup Series title. Slinger Speedway was certainly one of those things. Once someone has seen a lap at Slinger, you can understand why Kulwicki was so good at Bristol. 

Kulwicki won two of the four races in 1981 when he won the crown. The fact he only finished five races outside the top 10 shows how good he was in his era. 

Series Era

Starts - 27

Wins - 4

Top Fives - 17

Top 10s - 22

8) Mark Martin (‘84 Champion)

Martin was one of the first outsiders to do well at the Slinger Nationals. His lone overall win in 1984 didn’t show his ability, as he ran 22 races and posted finishes outside the top 10 only twice. Factoring in his two ASA races at the track, Martin’s average finish was 4.63 at Slinger. In 1984 his average finish was 1.75 with the Slinger Nationals and the ASA race. He didn’t finish off the podium for almost three years.  

Series Era

Starts - 22

Wins - 4 

Top Fives - 16

Top 10s - 20

9) Ty Majeski (‘18, ‘20, ‘23 Champion) 

At this point in his career, Ty Majeski has made a sizable mark in the history of the Slinger Nationals.  Now, Majeski has the opportunity to put himself into the elite category by joining other four-time winners like Matt Kenseth, Rick Bickle, Lowell Bennett, Dick Trickle, and Joe Shear, whose son (Joe Shear Jr.) is his crew chief in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

Event Era

Starts - 11

Wins - 3

Top Fives - 6

Top 10s - 7

10) Brad Mueller ('24 Champion)

Brad Mueller is looking to come back and win the race outright on the track in 2025 after inheriting the victory in post-race technical inspection last year. Mueller has been in the mix a bunch with eight top-five runs and 15 overall top 10 finishes in the event era.  Prior to that, he did well in the series era with more top five runs and top 10 finishes. He has long been a staple at the Slinger Nationals.

Series Era

Starts - 9

Wins - 0

Top Fives - 3

Top 10s - 5

Event Era

Starts - 22

Wins - 1

Top Fives - 8

Top 10s - 15