Adams County's Jesse Dennis remains consistent early in 2023 as he looks to repeat Modifieds championship

The defending Modifieds champion at Adams County Speedway has picked up right where he left off last season.

In five Modifieds features so far this year at Adams County, a NASCAR-sanctioned, half-mile dirt track in Corning, Iowa, Jesse Dennis has three wins and five top-five finishes. He has a 40-point lead over second-place Jeff Wiggins in the current standings.

“I‘ve done pretty good,” Dennis said. “My chassis builder, he‘s got a new deal going, and we kind of went with that. He had a pretty good set-up going, so I tried to stick with what he‘s got going. It‘s kind of a different deal than what I was running last year. Just completely different from what I was running last year… Hasn‘t been too bad. The car has been driving good.”

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Last season’s championship marked Dennis‘ sixth NASCAR title at Adams County, where he started driving in 2004. He finished with six wins and 15 top fives in 17 features.

Four of his championships have come since 2018, and he finished second in 2021.

Dennis started racing a go-kart when he was 18 and just out of high school. He didn‘t stay in the starter car long before jumping straight into a modified.

“I was just being a fan in the stands, watching them, and kind of wanted to do it,” he said. “I bought my first go-kart and started racing and kind of got old enough to do it. I was 18, out of high school, and I had enough money to buy a modified, so I bought a modified and have been racing that for 19 years.

“It‘s changed a lot. It‘s getting pretty technical now. It‘s changed quite a bit. It‘s getting more technical, kind of more in depth to what you need to do.”

When Dennis started racing, he had his dad, Frank, helping him. Frank still works on the car with his son every week, but now there‘s also a third generation in the shop and pits, too. Dennis‘s 13-year-old son, Jayden, began helping the team this season.

“It‘s pretty good having him around,” Dennis said. “He listens a little better now. … He just really likes racing; he runs a go-kart. Our other track closed down, so he‘s just kind of helping me out now this year, just learning the ropes on it.”

Jayden hopes to start racing himself next year.

“I think he enjoys it,” Dennis added. “He‘s in a lot of the pictures, and he enjoys doing it. Learning more, that the biggest thing. I don‘t really want him to think he‘s going to have it given to him. He‘s going to have to earn it. He‘s going to have to show he wants to do it, so that‘s probably the main thing.”

Dennis came into this season with the same goal he always has: “Win a championship; that‘s the main goal.”

With three wins in five races, the key, he said, is continuing to be consistent.

“Try to make sure the car just doesn‘t break,” he added. “I know you‘re going to have stuff like that happen, but just try to save as many as you can.

“Try to win as many features as we can and maybe gain some friends, maybe travel some more.”