Madden led all 40 Laps at Raceway 7 to score his 37th career World of Outlaws win
CONNEAUT, OH (May 16, 2024) – In a Feature that included twists and turns across Conneaut, OH’s Raceway 7, Chris Madden showed the way for his first win of the 2024 World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models season.
Beginning the night with a win in Heat 3, Madden put himself in the redraw and drew the outside pole, starting on the front row next to Cade Dillard for the 40-lap Feature.
From the drop of the Gorsuch Performance Green Flag, “Smokey” quickly took the lead from Dillard on the high side, using his No. 44 machine to his advantage to create a gap between him and the stout field of Late Models.
Continuous packs of lapped cars hampered Madden’s chances of getting a large gap on the field, giving Brandon, FL driver Kyle Bronson a chance to take away the lead.
When Bronson had his only formidable chance to get by Madden, the only caution flag of the Feature flew with 15 laps to go. The cause was Brandon Sheppard, who blew a right rear tire, putting his points lead in jeopardy.
When the race resumed, Madden got a solid jump on Bronson and kept command of the race.
The closing stages of the Feature saw Bronson using every inch of the track to make his car work. But Madden was too strong and was the first to cross under the twin checkered flags to win the $10,000 bounty.
“We’ve been running good, we just had to get it all together and it hasn’t shown,” Madden said. “We’ve had the speed; we’ve just haven’t been able to put a whole night together. So, we did that and got the lead off the start there. Obviously, that was a big key to it by being in the right place at the right time, then the caution and lap traffic and our tire going down.
“Everything went the way we needed it to tonight for a change instead of going wrong. So, maybe our luck has turned around for a change. We had a great race car throughout the night. Hats off to my guys so that we we’re able to get it done.”
Bronson came home second, happy with the progress of the team as he looks forward to continuing the hunt for his first Feature win of 2024.
“I think we ran over something on the track from the caution about 15 (laps) to go,” Bronson said. “I had one chance to roll (Madden) on the outside there right before the caution came out, so I felt like we we’re gonna get by. But the tire was going down and I couldn’t really turn down the corner the way I wanted it to.
“Overall, I think our car is really good right now. We’re heading in the right direction, got a lot of good folks helping us out, and really looking forward to the next race. It’s been a long time since I’ve said that, but I really do look forward to winning some of these races and seeing what our car can do.”
Dillard rounded out the night’s podium, hoping to have held the lead after a strong night that included a Dirt King Simulator Hottest Hot Lap and Simpson Quick Time Award.
“We definitely had the car to win,” Dillard said. “Madden was good there and got me on the start. We had a third-place car in the Feature, and we brought it home third. We just keep on marching forward and eventually and hopefully the win will come.”
Nick Hoffman took the fourth-place finish after the Feature. With the finish, and Sheppard’s woes, Hoffman is the new leader of the points standings by a slight two-point margin.
MD3 Rookie of the Year contender Dustin Sorensen scored his first top five of the season with his fifth-place result in the Feature. With the result, he extended his points lead on Evans, GA driver Cody Overton by 16 points.
Lake Elmo, MN’s Brent Larson’s 10-pace climb in the Feature rewarded him the FOX Factory Hard Charger Award.
The Heat winners from Raceway 7 included Dillard (Heat 1), Madden (Heat 2), Bronson (Heat 3), and Hoffman (Heat 4).
Dave Hess Jr and Dennis Erb Jr made their way into the Feature with wins in the two Last Chance Showdown races.
Up Next: The World of Outlaws CASE Late Models cross into Pennsylvania for three more nights of racing over the weekend, with Bedford Speedway (May 17), Marion Center Raceway (May 18), and Path Valley Speedway (May 19) up next for the “Most Powerful Late Models on the Planet.” For more information and tickets, CLICK HERE.