DALLAS (August 8, 2023) — Buddy Hull has been steadily building his racing program and heading into the NHRA Topeka Nationals the Dallas-based businessman and Top Fuel racer is eager to make some big strides this weekend. This will be Hull’s fifth event of the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and Hull has faced a plethora of challenges, but the rising star in the NHRA is undeterred. The Renegade Race Fuels Top Fuel dragster with backing from Methanol Moonshine will be ready to race this weekend starting on Friday at Heartland Park Topeka.   “This is one of the hardest things I have ever done but it is also one of the most satisfying,” said Hull, as the team prepares for a return engagement to Heartland Park Topeka. “We had some mechanical issues that really had us scratching our heads at the start of the season. We got those sorted out after Chicago and we had a great race in Denver. We ran really well and most importantly we didn’t hurt any parts. I can’t wait to get to Topeka and really see what we can do. I have to thank my crew chief Mike Guger for really putting in some long hours to get this car where it needs to be.”   Hull and veteran tuner Guger teamed up at the beginning of this year and the partnership has taken Hull’s race team to the next level. Throughout his career Hull has maintained a level of excellence as he has grown his program consistently improving his parts inventory and building a crew that give him a race car that can compete with the full-time operations at NHRA national events. This season Hull has also added additional marketing support to extend his brand as well as the impact for his primary sponsors Renegade Race Fuels and Methanol Moonshine. Hull will also be receiving support from local companies including Laird Noller Ford who is supplying Hull with a tow vehicle to move Hull’s 12,000-horsepower Renegade Fuels Top Fuel dragster from the pits to the starting line. Additionally, Hull is getting support from Equipment Share in Topeka. “We work to present our operation just like the full-time teams because that is where I want to be very soon,” said Hull. “We work with national and regional companies to make sure we are giving them exposure and great customer services. In Denver we hosted guests from a number of different companies and everyone had a blast. NHRA drag racing is one of the most exciting sports on the planet and the marketing opportunities are amazing.”   Last year racing at the Topeka Nationals for the first time Hull qualified 15th and lost a close first round race to Justin Ashley. This year Hull will be looking to improve on that effort and pick up a few round wins in Topeka before turning his attention to the biggest race of the year, the U.S. Nationals.   “No one is looking past Topeka but we are looking to get a lot of things squared away this weekend so we can have a great event in Indy,” said Hull. “The info we got in Denver will hopefully continue to improve in Topeka and we would love to be a Cinderella story at the biggest race of the year. I am very comfortable in the race car and Mike has a solid tune-up. I am sad this will be the final Topeka, but I am excited we will be racing in Kansas City in 2024.”   The final Topeka Nationals will be a bittersweet race for Hull and his team considering it is one of the closer events to his home base in Dallas, Texas. The driver and team owner understands that change is inevitable and he also believed the philosophy that when one door closes another one opens.   “There was a lot of history at the Topeka track but we can make a lot of history in Kansas City starting in 2024,” said Hull. “The events we have raced this season have been packed. Phoenix was a sell-out. Chicago was packed. Denver had so many people it was awesome. I think we will have great crowds in Topeka and Indy. I love racing on the NHRA tour and I am doing everything in my power to get out here full-time. It is a process, but I love a challenge.”   Hull and the Renegade Top Fuel team will get their first crack at the track on Friday night then they will have two more qualifying runs on Saturday, August 12. Final eliminations will commence on Sunday at 11 a.m. The race will be broadcast nationally on FS1 from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. ET.

NHRA^® Team Report

NHRA Menards Heartland Nationals

Pre-Race Report

It’s another bittersweet weekend for Cruz Pedregon and the NHRA family as we say farewell to racing at Heartland Motorsports Park. Topeka has been a winner for Cruz three times and the team is tuned and ready for the Snap-on^® “Makers and Fixers” Dodge^® SRT^® Hellcat^® to go rounds and be a winner again for this one last race at Heartland.

“We tested several new setups and put down some strong runs at ‘Night Under Fire’ last weekend and we are in a good place for the Topeka race,” Cruz says. “All four runs were full passes with a final pass of 3.91 at 326 mph.”

Along with the past weekend’s tuning changes and successful passes, Cruz goes on to say racing before the sold-out crowd in Norwalk with a standing-room-only, 40,000-member crowd was a thrill for him and the entire team and really has them fired up for these last days of racing at Heartland.  

Cruz, Crew Chief J.C. (John Collins), and the team say the work they did at Night Under Fire has them well-prepared for Topeka, Brainerd, and on to Indianapolis. For those races, the Snap-on Funny Car will return to the “Makers & Fixers” paint scheme to honor and highlight the Makers and Fixers among us and provide a call to action for them to share stories of their critical work at makersandfixers.com. 

PLAINVIEW, NY (August 8, 2023) — With five wins and six final round appearances this season Top Fuel points leader Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel team are looking to keep the pressure on the rest of the field as the regular season ends. With three races remaining before the points are reset Ashley, who already has fifteen championship points in the bank, is looking to extend his lead with another Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge win this weekend at the NHRA Topeka Nationals and add another win to his personal record-setting season. The fourth-year driver and team owner knows that there are tough competitors from the top to the bottom of the Top Fuel class but he is ready to take on all challengers.

Justin Ashley and Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

“We had a very productive Western Swing,”. said Ashley, who has 10 career Top Fuel wins. “The highlight was winning Sonoma. But we were able to take something valuable from each race that we can apply moving forward. Finding success at such a critical part of the regular season was important for our Phillips Connect Toyota team.” 
 
This season Ashley has continued to improve and demonstrate that he and his team are serious contenders for the Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Fuel world championship. They have a category leading six final rounds and five wins plus they have not dropped a round in the newly created Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge which will be contested again this weekend at Heartland Park Topeka. The specialty race contested during Saturday qualifying will pit Ashley against his Sonoma semifinal foe Josh Hart with $10,000 and three championship points on the line for the eventual winner among the four semifinalists.
 
“I love everything about the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge and I think it is one of the best competitions the NHRA has put together in recent memory,” said Ashley. “You have a different mindset on Saturday when you are in the Mission Challenge versus just making two qualifying runs. We try and take advantage of every qualifying run and stay within our routine, but there is more to it with championship points and extra money on the line. Our rematch against Josh should be great for the fans on Saturday.”
 
Throughout the season Ashley has been handling his Mike Green and Tommy DeLago tuned 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster like a solid veteran. The second-generation driver is also leading the class once again in reaction time average and his prowess on the starting line has turned on more than a handful of win lights for the team. The combination of a consistently quick race car and a lightning quick driver off the starting line has the team eager to get to Heartland Park Topeka for one last race at the high performance race track.

Justin Ashley exits the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery

 
“There is a lot of history at Heartland Park Topeka and we would like nothing more than to take that final Wally back to our shop,” said Ashley. “Jim Epler, Executive VP of Phillips Connect, made the first 300 mph pass here in Funny Car so our team has plenty of motivation. We have run well here in the past and look forward to an exciting weekend.” 
 
In his two previous appearances at the NHRA Topeka Nationals Ashley has qualified well into the top half of the field starting from the No. 5 post in 2021 and last year heading in to race day as the No. 2 qualifier. In both those races he advanced out of the first round and last year he recorded a semifinal finish losing to eventual winner Toyota teammate Antron Brown.
 
“The competition is so tough in Top Fuel that anyone can win the race,” said Ashley, who won the Sonoma Nationals as the No. 7 qualifier. “The fields are as tight as Pro Stock cars with races being decided by thousandths of a second. Everything on your team has to be nearly perfect for every run. I love this level of competition and I think it really shows how well our Phillips Connect Toyota team is working together. The leadership from Mike, Tommy and Dustin Davis has been incredible and it trickles down the rest of the team, myself included. It a lot of fun and we want to keep the momentum rolling.”
 
Ashley along with the rest of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge competitors will participate in a free fan autograph session on Saturday and the former junior dragster driver will once again host a group of young drivers in the Maynard Ashley Racing pit area on Friday afternoon. These extra fan events keep Ashley grounded and focused on what is truly important at the track.
 
“I am so fortunate to live my dream and race this Phillips Connect Top Fuel dragster,”  said Ashley. “Speaking with the junior drivers and their parents is just a small way of giving back to the youth within the NHRA community. It’s important they know that their dreams are very much attainable if they do the right things. The Mission Foods autograph session is a lot of fun because it gets the drivers together in a more casual setting where they can interact with fans. It’s something I enjoy taking part in when the opportunity is there.”
 
Ashley and the Top Fuel class will be on track on Friday night for one night-time run and then they will have two qualifying runs on Saturday. Final eliminations will begin at 11 a.m. CT with the race broadcast hitting the FS1 airwaves from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. ET.
 

Knoxville Raceway hosts the iconic Crown Jewel boasting a $185,000-to-win, $15,000 to start finale

KNOXVILLE, IA (August 8, 2023) – The Granddaddy of ‘Em All is here. The time has come for the 62nd NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Store.

All eyes of the Sprint Car world will be fixed on Iowa’s Marion County Fairgrounds as the top talents from all of Sprint Car racing converge on the iconic half mile that is Knoxville Raceway. World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car teams. PA Posse. Cali Clique. Gassers from coast to coast. The best drivers from every region are bound for the “Hawkeye State” with dreams of Sprint Car immortality.

This year’s edition has grown even more with the total purse for the four-day event exceeding a million dollars. The winner’s share for Saturday has been upped to $185,000, and making the main event is worth $15,000 – up $5,000 from only a year ago.

The pursuit of Knoxville Nationals glory begins Wednesday, Aug. 9, with the first of two split-field prelims. The second will follow on Thursday and help decide the first 16 starters for Saturday via accumulating points. Friday serves as #HardKnox night which will add four more to the main event. And then Saturday’s alphabet soup will complete the lineup before 24 of the nation’s best lay it all on the line for 50 laps.

BUY KNOXVILLE NATIONALS TICKETS

Let’s look at the weekend’s top storylines:

A CHANCE AT HISTORY: Back in 2002, Steve Kinser scored his 12th Knoxville Nationals victory – a record that many thought couldn’t be touched. At the time, nobody else owned more than five. But thanks to his 11th title last season, Donny Schatz has a chance to equal “The King” this year.

All 11 of Schatz’ triumphs have occurred in the last 16 years. In the five years Schatz didn’t win over that span, he finished second on four occasions. Before he won his first in 2006, Schatz ran runner-up four more times. In 24 career starts in the Knoxville Nationals finale, Schatz has missed the top two only five times and owns a 3.5 average finish.

With such a mind-boggling résumé, it will come as no surprise if Schatz parks the Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15 in Victory Lane when all is said and done to equal one of the sport’s most astonishing records.

AN EXCLUSIVE CLUB: While five former Knoxville Nationals champions are entered for the 2023 edition, only Schatz belongs in the exclusive club of multi-time winners. That leaves four others vying to become the eighth driver in event history to top the Crown Jewel multiple times.

Kraig Kinser triumphed 18 years ago for his one and only Nationals win. The Bloomington, IN native has teamed with Premier Motorsports for a run this year. Kinser also owns three more Knoxville Feature victories including a 2016 Nationals prelim.

Brad Sweet broke through in 2018 at “The Sprint Car Capital of the World.” Sweet and his Kasey Kahne Racing crew carry the point lead into the week, but the Knoxville Nationals is all about the glory of winning as championship points aren’t a factor. In addition to his Nationals title, Sweet has collected three more World of Outlaws wins at Knoxville, most recently in 2019.

A year after Sweet’s win, it was David Gravel’s turn to taste Nationals Victory Lane as he wheeled the Jason Johnson Racing #41 to an emotional victory in 2019. The Watertown, CT native has been incredibly successful at the historic half-mile with 11 total wins including the most recent Knoxville World of Outlaws race in June.

Kyle Larson was the most recent driver to add their name to the list of champions. Two years ago, “Yung Money” parked the Silva Motorsports #57 in Victory Lane for his first title in The Granddaddy of ‘Em All. Larson is fresh off a thrilling Ironman 55 score and looking to become a multi-time Knoxville Nationals champion.

A NEW NAME?: While a handful of drivers have proven they’re capable of winning the Nationals, a few drivers stand out as favorites to claim the Crown Jewel for the first time.

Carson Macedo may not have an eye-popping Knoxville résumé, but his 2023 performance suggests he can’t be counted out. He’s already racked up five wins this season. Jason Johnson Racing is a two-time Nationals winning team (2016 with Jason Johnson and 2019 with David Gravel). Macedo has won a trio of Knoxville Features with JJR including a pair of 2021 World of Outlaws events.

It’s impossible to not mention Brian Brown among the favorites to notch their first Nationals. “Blackjack” is fresh off topping his second 360 Nationals in a photo finish. Brown has nearly done it all at “The Sprint Car Capital of the World.” He’s a multi-time track champion, second on the all-time track win list, and he’s been a Nationals runner-up on three occasions. This week he looks to seal the deal on Knoxville’s ultimate accomplishment.

Rico Abreu has been as strong as any car in the country this year with Ricky Warner on the wrenches. Competing on a part-time basis, Abreu has already racked up four World of Outlaws wins this year. Less than two weeks ago the St. Helena, CA native topped an All-Star Circuit of Champions (ASCoC) race at Knoxville. The last two years Abreu has won the Hard Knox night, but his 2023 speed suggests he may lock in from his prelim and have the privilege of sitting out Friday.

Any Knoxville race is a home race for KCP Racing. The Des Moines, IA based team has Giovanni Scelzi behind the wheel as he continues his rookie World of Outlaws season in the Knoxville Nationals. The combination won the 2021 360 Nationals and sat on the pole of the 410 Nationals the next week before finishing fourth. With their strong track record, “Hot Sauce” could be in the running for the win on Saturday. 

SHARK SWEEP: Last year’s preliminary action was dominated by Shark Racing, and the duo of Logan Schuchart and Jacob Allen will look to replicate that performance in 2023 and punctuate the week with a Knoxville Nationals crown.

A year ago, Schuchart got the week started by claiming the Capitani Classic. He then backed that up with a Wednesday prelim triumph. His teammate – Allen – won his first Knoxville Feature the next night to complete a Shark sweep of the prelims.

The duo finished off the week with impressive charges (Schuchart: 17th to 3rd, Allen 11th to 5th) to put both of 1990 Knoxville Nationals champion – Bobby Allen’s – cars in the top five on the sport’s biggest stage.

ROOKIE RUNS: It’s going to be tough to top Buddy Kofoid’s strong Knoxville Nationals JETCO Rookie of the Year run from last year when he finished 11th, but this year’s rookie crop features 18 names and boasts some notable talent.

With as long as he’s been making waves in a Sprint Car, it’s hard to believe this year will be Ryan Timms’ first Knoxville Nationals attempt. The Oklahoma phenom doesn’t have a ton of Knoxville experience, but he did finish 12th in a local race last month.

Chase Randall has impressed many this year as he continues his rise through the Sprint Car ranks. The Waco, TX driver owns six overall wins this year – three of which have been behind the wheel of a 360 Sprint Car at Knoxville.

Another Texan turning heads this year is Lubbock’s Brenham Crouch. He’s currently leading the Interstate Racing Association (IRA) point standings and will be making his way to Iowa for a rookie run at the Nationals.

HANDIN’ OUT HARDWARE: On top of competing for the glory of a Knoxville Nationals title, teams can also receive a number of awards this week.

Teams and drivers will be recognized for the following accomplishments: Best Appearing Car Award, Best Appearing Crew, Best Appearing Helmet, Mr. Sprint Car Award, Rookie of the Year Award, Hard Charger Award, and Pole Award.

If you can’t make it to Knoxville, catch all of the action live on DIRTVision.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

WHEN AND WHERE

Wednesday-Saturday, August 9-12 at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, IA

CAMRIE CARUSO HOPING TO CONTINUE 
SUCCESS AT “LAST” TOPEKA

MOORESVILLE, NC (August 8, 2023) — Camrie Caruso and the Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock entry and have been gearing up for the NHRA Topeka Nationals for over three weeks since they were last on track at the NHRA Mile High Nationals in Denver. The Pro Stock category didn’t compete in Seattle or Sonoma, but they will get back into high gear this weekend at Heartland Park Topeka for the final Topeka Nationals before the NHRA tour moves to the Flying H Drag Strip for the 2024 season. Caruso has only one Topeka Nationals under her belt, but the 2022 Rookie of the Year is eager to get back to Kansas.

Camrie Caruso and Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro, photo by Innovative Creation Experts

“Last year was a blur to be honest,” said Caruso. “This was the part of the season when we really started to battle to finish the season as a rookie team. We had a solid rookie season, but I feel like this year we have taken a major step forward on so many levels from being a part of KB Titan Racing to my driving getting better. Everyone said it would take time and they were right. I can’t wait to get back into my Tequila Comisario Camaro this weekend. I hated the layoff.”
 
In her young career Caruso Caruso has competed at three “last” races and has a strong success rate. There have been seven last races in recent memory and no one has a better winning percentage than Caruso.  She was runner-up at the last Houston race (2022), won the last Phoenix race (2023) and went to the semifinals of the last Denver race (2023).  She didn’t run the other four — Memphis in 2009, Englishtown in 2017, Atlanta in 2021 and Richmond in 2022 which didn’t run Pro Stock. Her 9-2 winning record (81.8%) has her just ahead of Funny Car’s Matt Hagan (16-5, 80.0%, seven races), Pro Stock’s Greg Anderson (14.4, 77.7%, six races), Top Fuel’s Brittany Force (13-4, 76.4%, five races) and Top Fuel’s Steve Torrence (18-6, 75%, seven races). 
 
“I don’t think there is anything special about doing well at last races other than you want to leave your mark,” said Caruso. “I didn’t even know about this, but I think it is pretty cool. I want to win every race but getting the last Wally from Topeka would be great. I hate to see Topeka go away but I also am excited to see the track in Kansas City come online in 2024.”

 Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro and Pro Stock standout Camrie Caruso, photo by Innovative Creation Experts

Last year at Heartland Park Topeka Caruso qualified No. 13 and lost a close first round race to Pro Stock standout Aaron Stanfield. The highlight of the weekend for Caruso was clinching her spot in the NHRA Countdown. This season with a win at the Arizona Nationals and a victory in the inaugural Pro Stock Stock Allstar Callout Caruso is a lock for the Countdown and will be one of the championship contending Pro Stock drivers when the six-race playoffs start in September. Before that challenge begins Caruso has her attention on Topeka, Brainerd, and the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.
 
“This weekend is the start of a very important three race stretch for our Tequila Comisario Chevrolet team,” said Caruso. “We raced to the semifinals in Denver and we want to keep that momentum going this weekend and beyond. This is the time to get hot and start winning rounds. I know we have a team that can win races and I just want to get back into my car and starting hitting the tree.”
 
Caruso will be competing for the second time this season in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge thanks to her semifinal finish at the Mile High Nationals in Denver. She will face a rematch with KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn and then hopefully a final round race with either Troy Coughlin Jr. or Erica Enders. The Mission event will be contested on Saturday during qualifying and there will be championship points and $5,000 for the winner on the line.
 
“I love the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge and can’t wait to get my rematch with Dallas,” said Caruso. “The first time we competed I was able to pick up a championship point but this weekend I would love to get the three points for winning and that $5,000 check. This race adds a whole new dynamic to Saturday and I know the fans love it. We’ll be signing autographs at the Mission Food tent on Saturday morning and I can’t wait to see the fans.”
 
This season Caruso has come into her own picking up her first career win at the Arizona Nationals and then following that up with her second career No. 1 qualifier the next race at the Winternationals where she raced to the semifinals. Her strong qualifying efforts in 2023 earned her a spot in the first Pro Stock Allstar Callout race in Chicago and the second-year driver took out Cristian Cuadra, Troy Coughlin Jr and Aaron Stanfield to take the title. She has been solidly positioned in the Pro Stock Top Ten and with the playoffs looming she is a serious championship contender.
 
“This season has been very exciting and satisfying but we still have a lot of work to do,” said Caruso, who was also a winner in the Top Alcohol Dragster ranks. “This team has a lot of potential and we are just getting started. I love being a part of KB Titan Racing and we have a lot of strong teams over here so that just makes everyone better. Topeka will be a great test for us to get ready for the lats few races of the regular season and then we will look at the Countdown.”
 
The Pro Stock class will get one qualifying run on Friday and two more on Saturday before final eliminations get underway Sunday, August 13 at 11 a.m. The race will be broadcast on Sunday afternoon from 3 p.m.  – 6 p.m. ET on FS1.

NEWMANSTOWN, PA (Aug. 8, 2023) – The longest and most grueling stretch of the season begins today as the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota kicks off the inaugural Appalachian Midget Week.

Five races in five nights at five different tracks across Pennsylvania and New Jersey carry the Series into the second half of the season as the points battle tightens up in the chase for the season championship. A separate points tally will be kept over all five races, using the current Xtreme Outlaw points championship scale, and award the top five drivers with cash prizes at the conclusion of the final event – $2,500 to the champion, $1,250 for second, $750 for third, $500 for fourth and $250 for fifth.

The week begins Tuesday, Aug. 8 with a debut at Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway, followed by trips to Action Track USA (Aug. 9), Linda’s Speedway (Aug. 10), Path Valley Speedway (Aug. 11) and Bridgeport Motorsports Park (Aug. 12), all paying $4,000 to the Feature winner. Each race is co-sanctioned with the American Racing Driver’s Club (ARDC) and will reward the highest-finishing ARDC driver in each Feature with a $100 bonus.

Tickets for each race will be on sale at the gate; if you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live from all five races with a FAST PASS subscription to DIRTVision.

Here are the drivers to watch and storylines to follow this week:

POINTS BATTLE – What started as a 180-point difference in the Series points standings between Cannon McIntosh and Jade Avedisian six races ago is now down to eight points heading into the biggest racing stretch of the season.

Avedisian, 16, of Clovis, CA, sat fourth place in the standings, 180 points behind McIntosh when the Series came back into action in late July at Doe Run Raceway. With three wins and no finishes worse than sixth in the six races since the break, she has retaken the lead in the standings by eight points over McIntosh.

McIntosh, 20, of Bixby, OK, has cooled off after red-hot start to the season, posting only two top-five finishes since the break. He aims to get back to Victory Lane for the first time since May with the Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #08 this week as one of the few full-timers in the field with prior experience at the lineup of tracks in Appalachian Midget Week.

NEW CAR, NEW TRACKS – Kyle Jones will rejoin the Xtreme Outlaw roster this week for the first time since the end of July, driving for a new team at several tracks he’s never competed at before.

North Carolina car owner John Levecque will field a Ripper Chassis for Jones to compete with Wednesday-Saturday – all but the first race of Appalachian Midget Week. This will be a week of new challenges for the 29-year-old Texan, as he visits each of the PA/NJ tracks for the first time in his career.

Jones was the Series points leader in April, piloting the Trifecta Motorsports #7U before Zach Daum was tapped to fill the seat in early July. He last appeared on the national Midget scene with the Xtreme Outlaws two weekends ago, when he finished 11th in a Branigan Roark-owned Ripper Chassis #33 before taking the Dan Minear-owned #16 out to a fourth-place finish at Southern Illinois Raceway the following night after leading most of the race.

BUCKWILD – Two of Pennsylvania’s best multi-division, open-wheel racers in the Northeast make their Xtreme Outlaw Series debuts this week – Tim and Steve Buckwalter.

Tim, of Douglassville, PA, will pilot the Matt Seymour Racing #29 on Tuesday at Clyde Martin and Wednesday at Action Track. The Marlboro, MA-based team has already seen great heights of success this year, going to Victory Lane at the Chili Bowl Nationals with Oklahoma racer Hank Davis on the Tuesday night preliminary Feature, and later fielding the Little 500-winning asphalt Sprint Car for 18-year-old Jake Trainor in May. As for Tim, he qualified for his second-straight Chili Bowl A-Main this past January in the same car he’ll be racing this weekend.

Steve, of Royersford, PA, more commonly known for his weekly 410 Sprint Car racing efforts around the famed tracks of Pennsylvania, has many years of Midget racing and fabrication experience as builder of Elite Midget Chassis. He’s projected to join the roster at various tracks during the week while also fielding a car for New York racer Kevin Woody and Pennsylvanian Derrick Sheaffer at select events.

NON-WING THING – Briggs Danner is slated for a return to the Xtreme Outlaw roster this week for the first time since May.

Danner, 21, of Allentown, PA, posted finishes of fourth and eighth with the Series during the two-day Double Down Showdown event at Millbridge Speedway in the John Schneider-owned #98. He’s scheduled to be back in the seat of the car at various races this week.

This year, Danner has been full-time at the controls of the Hogue Racing #39 Non-Wing Sprint Car, competing around his home state with the USAC East Coast Sprint Cars, of which he currently leads points with two Feature wins thus far. Some Non-Wing Micro Sprint experience at Clyde Martin, Action Track and Linda’s will also help his case as he aims for his first national Midget series win.

ACTION TRACK TOPPER – Daison Pursley is slated to make his third PA/NJ Midget venture this week behind the wheel of the Reinbold/Underwood Motorsports #19.

Pursley, 18, of Locust Grove, OK, competed with USAC during the Northeast swing of races in 2020 and 2021, and took the checkered flag at Action Track in 2021, which stands as his only Midget win in the area. As part of the Keith Kunz Motorsports stable, Pursley defeated a host of accomplished national Midget talent that night including Logan Seavey, Chris Windom, Tanner Thorson, Zach Daum and others.

He’s headed back to the Northeast for the third time in his career this week, now a part-time teammate to Xtreme Outlaw full-timer Hayden Reinbold. Tuesday at Clyde Martin will be his second appearance with the Series this year, following a start at Tri-City Speedway in June.

THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE

When and where
Tuesday, August 8 – Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway (Newmanstown, PA)
Wednesday, August 9 – Action Track USA (Kutztown, PA)
Thursday, August 10 – Linda’s Speedway (Jonestown, PA)
Friday, August 11 – Path Valley Speedway (Spring Run, PA)
Saturday, August 12 – Bridgeport Motorsports Park (Swedesboro, NJ)

On the internet
Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota
Twitter – @Xtreme_Outlaw
Instagram – @XtremeOutlaw
Facebook – @XtremeOutlawSeries.WRG

Live broadcast
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com. Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/month.

Current championship points standings (view full standings)

1. Jade Avedisian: 3323 points | Keith Kunz Motorsports #71
2. Cannon McIntosh: 3315 points (-8) | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #08
3. Gavin Miller: 3213 points (-110) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #97
4. Zach Daum: 3169 points (-154) | Trifecta Motorsports #7U
5. Chase McDermand: 3147 points (-176) | Mounce/Stout Motorsports #40
6. Taylor Reimer: 3113 points (-210) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #25K
7. Chance Crum: 2910 points (-413) | Rudeen Racing #26
8. Hayden Reinbold: 2633 points (-690) | Reinbold/Underwood Motorsports #19AZ
9. Ethan Mitchell: 1922 points (-1401) | Bundy Built Motorsports #19M
10. Austin Barnhill: 1844 points (-1497) | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #17B

Toyota Feature winners (7 drivers)
4 wins – Cannon McIntosh (Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports), Jade Avedisian (Keith Kunz Motorsports)
3 wins – Zach Daum (Trifecta Motorsports) 
2 wins – Chase McDermand (Mounce/Stout Motorsports)
1 win – Jesse Love (Chad Boat Industries), Daniel Whitley (Abacus Racing), Karter Sarff (Sarff Racing)

Toyota Feature laps led (15 drivers)
78 laps – Cannon McIntosh
70 laps – Jade Avedisian
59 laps – Daniel Whitley
52 laps – Zach Daum
41 laps – Karter Sarff
28 laps – Ryan Timms
26 laps – Thomas Meseraull
24 laps – Chase McDermand
23 laps – Gavin Miller
22 laps – Shane Cottle, Kyle Jones
21 laps – Ashton Torgerson
11 laps – Hayden Reinbold
4 laps – Jesse Love
1 lap – Nick Drake

Whitz RC Racing Products Quick Time Awards (11 drivers)
4 awards – Cannon McIntosh
2 awards – Ethan Mitchell, Daniel Whitley
1 award – Gavin Miller, Hayden Reinbold, Jesse Love, Kevin Thomas Jr, Zach Daum, Joe B. Miller, Corbin Rueschenberg, Chase McDermand

Heat Race winners (20 drivers)
7 wins – Jade Avedisian
5 wins – Cannon McIntosh, Chase McDermand
4 wins – Zach Daum
3 wins – Hayden Reinbold
2 wins – Chance Crum, Nick Drake, Ethan Mitchell, Gavin Miller, Corbin Rueschenberg, Andrew Felker, Daniel Whitley
1 win – Austin Barnhill, Shane Cottle, Thomas Meseraull, Kyle Jones, Rico Abreu, Briggs Danner, Daison Pursley, Chase Johnson

High-points honors (12 drivers)
3 honors – Cannon McIntosh
2 honors – Daniel Whitley, Jade Avedisian
1 honor – Gavin Miller, Chance Crum, Rico Abreu, Landon Brooks, Briggs Danner, Hayden Reinbold, Kyle Jones, Andrew Felker, Chase McDermand

Last Chance Showdown wins (12 drivers)
2 wins – Kyle Jones
1 win – Landon Brooks, Karter Sarff, Howard Moore, Ryan Timms, Taylor Reimer, Henry Chambers, Chance Crum, Chase Briscoe, Mitchell Davis, Cannon McIntosh, Corbin Rueschenberg

DIRTVision Hard Charger Awards (15 drivers)
2 awards – Hayden Reinbold
1 award – Mitchel Moles, Chase Johnson, Ryan Timms, Chance Crum, Zach Daum, Gavan Boschele, Taylor Reimer, Chase McDermand, Shane Cottle, Cooper Williams, Kyle Jones, Cannon McIntosh, Jerry Coons Jr, Jade Avedisian

Podium finishes (16 drivers)
8 podiums – Cannon McIntosh
7 podiums – Zach Daum
6 podiums – Chase McDermand, Jade Avedisian
4 podiums – Gavin Miller
3 podiums – Daniel Whitley, Taylor Reimer
2 podiums – Shane Cottle
1 podium – Thomas Meseraull, Kyle Jones, Ryan Timms, Ashton Torgerson, Landon Brooks, Jesse Love, Jerry Coons Jr, Karter Sarff

Top-10 finishes (38 drivers)
14 top-10s – Cannon McIntosh, Jade Avedisian, Gavin Miller
13 top-10s – Chase McDermand
12 top-10s – Zach Daum
10 top-10s – Taylor Reimer
9 top-10s – Chance Crum
5 top-10s – Landon Brooks, Kyle Jones, Ethan Mitchell, Daniel Whitley
4 top-10s – Gavan Boschele, Karter Sarff
3 top-10s – Thomas Meseraull, Ryan Timms, Corbin Rueschenberg, Austin Barnhill, Hayden Reinbold, Chase Johnson
2 top-10s – Briggs Danner, Shane Cottle, Chase Briscoe, Kevin Thomas Jr, Branigan Roark, Andrew Felker, Jerry Coons Jr, Cooper Williams, Mariah Ede
1 top-10 – Mitchel Moles, Daniel Adler, Sam Johnson, Rico Abreu, Ashton Torgerson, Don Droud Jr, Nick Drake, Jesse Love, Trey Marcham, Joe B. Miller

2023 Schedule & Winners – Race No. Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Fri, March 10 / Southern Illinois Center / Du Quoin, IL / Cannon McIntosh (1)
2. Sat, March 11 / Southern Illinois Center / Du Quoin, IL / Jade Avedisian (1)
3. Fri, April 14 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Cannon McIntosh (2)
4. Fri, May 5 / Humboldt Speedway / Humboldt, KS / Chase McDermand (1)
5. Sat, May 6 / 81 Speedway / Park City, KS / Chase McDermand (2)
6. Tue, May 22 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Cannon McIntosh (3)
7. Wed, May 23 / Millbridge Speedway / Salisbury, NC / Cannon McIntosh (4)
8. Thu, June 1 / Tri-City Speedway / Pontoon Beach, IL / Jesse Love (1)
9. Fri, June 2 / Wayne County Speedway / Wayne City, IL / Zach Daum (1)
10. Sat, June 3 / Wayne County Speedway / Wayne City, IL / Zach Daum (2)
11. Fri, July 21 / Doe Run Raceway / Doe Run, MO / Zach Daum (3)
12. Sat, July 22 / Southern Illinois Raceway / Marion, IL / Jade Avedisian (2)
13. Sat, July 29 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Jade Avedisian (3)
14. Sun, July 30 / Brushcreek Motorsports Complex / Peebles, OH / Daniel Whitley (1)

15. Fri, Aug. 4 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Karter Sarff (1)

16. Sat, Aug. 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Jade Avedisian (4)

CHICAGO, IL (August 8, 2023) — Success is measured differently depending on where a person or team is on their journey. For upstart Funny Car team owner and driver Chris King his most recent event, the NHRA Dodge Mile High Nationals in Denver, Colorado, was a successful event even if he had more than his fair share of struggles. In his second race of the season King qualified and also ran career best numbers but a preparation error in the pits cost him a chance at a first round victory. Despite that King and his Howards Cams/Competition Products Dodge Charger Funny Car will enter their third race of the season this weekend’s Menards NHRA Nationals Presented by PetArmor looking to keep their positive momentum going.   “I am looking forward to running career best numbers again,” said King, as he prepares to head to Topeka. “The team has some good momentum headed into the weekend and I am very positive about the work my crew chief Terry Totten has put into the race car. I feel very comfortable in the car and all those things will work together to give us a good chance for success at Heartland Park Topeka.”   In Denver during round three of qualifying, King made a 4.724 second pass at 242.15 mph, both the quickest and fastest run of his career at the time. He took what he learned in that run and then made a 4.608 second pass at 270.32 mph in the final round of qualifying, outdoing himself and setting a new personal best elapsed time and speed. Racing on the mountain of Bandimere Speedway has its own sets of challenges with thin air and tricky conditions so the move to Heartland Park Topeka and its smooth and quick surface closer to sea level has King and his crew ready to lower his career marks.   “We aren’t going out there looking to set low ET of the race or anything, but we can definitely step up and run much quicker,” said King, a full-time Chicago firefighter. “The best thing about Denver was we didn’t hurt any parts. We made some changes going into Denver that worked and we will improve on those. Dean Antonelli, crew chief for Ron Capps, was a huge help. This whole NHRA community has really been supportive of our efforts. I want to be out here full-time, so we are trying to do everything right.”   King is looking forward to the Menards NHRA Nationals Presented by PetArmor in Topeka on Aug. 11-13, but he also has his eye on a three race stretch that could set his team up for long-term success. After Topeka King plans to compete in the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd on Aug. 17-20 and then the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis on Aug. 30-Sep. 4.   “Our plans now are to do well in Topeka then go back to the shop, go through everything and make any adjustments that we discovered this weekend,” said King. “We want to take everything we learned here in Topeka and be twice as good in Brainerd and then get even better for Indy.”   Before he gets too far ahead of himself King knows he has three qualifying sessions to earn a spot in the 16-Funny Car qualified field. With 17 cars on the entry list, he will have to take advantage of every run starting on Friday night under the lights. The competition level has never been higher in the Funny Car and Top Fuel classes and King relishes the challenge.   “You look at the names on the entry list and there are six guys that have won world championships and then there are three more guys that have won races this season,” said King. “There won’t be any easy rounds and I don’t want to just be out there to fill a spot. I want to make quality runs for our team and sponsor as well as the fans. I want to get into the race and then make good runs on Sunday. On race day anything can happen, you just have to put yourself in position to succeed. That is what we are striving for.”   The Nitro classes will make their first qualifying runs on Friday night at 8:00 p.m. then on Saturday they will run at 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. The quickest 16 Funny Cars will take to the track for the first round at 11:00 a.m. and the race will be televised nationally on FS1.

NORWALK, Ohio (Aug. 08, 2023) – Robert Hight and his Chevrolet Camaro SS, dawning the colors of Crowell Tools and Monster Energy, picked up their fifth win at the famed Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire match race at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park over the weekend. The one-day event included testing, and two rounds of nitro Funny Car competition intertwined with exhibition runs and competition from plenty of fan favorites. After two test sessions, Hight handled the Cornwell Tools Chevy to a 3.92-second pass at 322 mph lined up against Cruz Pedregon who ran 3.94 at 320. Hight’s run would be enough to advance him to the finals against Ron Capps. Hight would stay consistent with another 3.92-second pass at 325 mph over Capps’ 3.96 to win the 46th annual Night Under Fire event. “This is always an exciting event. For the fans, for the competitors. You get some bragging rights. It’s also a nice little boost in confidence to do well,” Hight said. “It makes for a lot of weeks of back-to-back racing, but we love it, I love it. This Cornwell Tools team put in a long day and it paid off. The Bader Family always does an amazing job and John Force Racing is always proud to be part of an amazing night and it always feels better when you win.” John Force, in a specialty-wrapped Night Under Fire PEAK Chevy Camaro SS, would start off with the quickest runs of the day at 3.88 and 3.89 seconds in the two test sessions. In qualifying, an on-track timing error would void Force’s run putting him in the secondary bracket. He would defeat Dale Creasy Jr. to claim fifth place. Force would run 3.894 seconds at 326 mph bettering Creasy’s 4.11 at 297. The two Funny Car teams of John Force Racing will join back with their Top Fuel teammates for the Menards NHRA Nationals at Heartland Motorsports Park August 11-13.

BROOKLYN, MI – August 8, 2023 – Ford Performance and Roush Yates Engines won their ninth straight NASCAR Cup Series race at Michigan International Speedway with Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s Chris Buescher in the FireKeepers Casino 400. This victory marked 724 all-time wins for Ford Performance and back-to-back wins for Chris Buescher and RFK Racing. Ford retained the Michigan Heritage Trophy, presented to the winning manufacturer at the 2-mile track.

“Congratulations to Ford Performance, Jack, Brad, Scott, Chris, and everyone at Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing on back-to-back wins and Ford’s continued success at Michigan,” said Doug Yates, President and CEO of Roush Yates Engines. “We are thankful for the continued leadership and commitment from Ford Motor Company. To win at their home track is monumental.”

“I am so proud of everyone at RFK and what we have been able to accomplish these last few years. To get it here at Ford’s home track, this one is always big. It is Jack’s home track and Brad’s home track and this is where we needed one. To fight for it and have such a clean race there with Truex at the end, he was really close to getting us at one point. We had to keep digging on it. I am really proud of everybody. That was awesome to put our Castrol Edge Mustang in victory lane here at Michigan and we have road courses coming up, I am really excited for those,” commented Buescher.

The FireKeepers Casino 400 was originally scheduled for Sunday but postponed to Monday due to persistent delays for inclement weather. Throughout the race, there were a total of nine cautions for 43 laps, 25 lead changes and 16 different race leaders. Chris Buescher, who started the race in 4th, took the lead for the first time on lap 133 and didn’t back down. After the last round of pitstops, the race came down to a battle between Buescher and Martin Truex Jr. Buescher capped the day by leading a race-high 52 of 200 laps and winning over Truex Jr. by 0.152 seconds. Buescher’s win marks Ford’s 44th Cup win at Michigan International Speedway and extended the longest winning streak by a manufacturer at a track.

Roush Fenway Keselowski teammates Chris Buescher and Brad Keselowski finished in P1 and P4 while Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kevin Harvick finished in P8 and Team Penske’s Ryan Blaney finished in P9.

The NASCAR Xfinity Series also raced at Michigan on Saturday. Stewart-Haas Racing’s Riley Herbst finished in P6. Both the NASCAR Cup and Xfinity Series head to the Indy Road Course in Indianapolis, Indiana this weekend.

35 CHAMPIONSHIPS – 452 WINS – 417 POLES

August 7, 2023

Harrison Burton and the Ford 20 Year Senior Master Service Technicians Mustang rallied from a 29th-place start to finish 17th in Monday’s conclusion of the rain-delayed FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

In the early portions of the 400-miler on the home track for Ford Motor Company, Burton and the No. 21 team worked their way into the top 20 but ended the first Stage outside the top 25.

He was running 14th on Sunday afternoon when rain at Lap 75 forced the postponement of the remainder of the race to Monday afternoon.

Burton and the Ford 20 Year Senior Master Service Technicians Ford moved into the top 10 when others made pit stops just after racing resumed. He was running 11th when he made a pit stop at Lap 104. When the second Stage concluded he was in 17th place.

As teams employed various strategies, Burton ran as high as fourth place for a time and made his final pit stop, at Lap 161, from sixth place.

As the green-flag pit stops cycled out Burton moved back up to 14th at one point before taking the checkered flag in 17th for his ninth top-20 finish of the season.

Burton and the team joined others from the Blue Oval camp in congratulating Chris Buescher for his win in the FireKeepers Casino 400, which delivered Ford Motor Company its ninth-straight Cup Series victory at MIS and returned the coveted Heritage Trophy to Ford headquarters.

Burton and the No. 21 team now turn their attention to the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Sunday’s Verizon 200 at the Brickyard.
 

ROAD TO SCHATZVILLE: A Legend’s Path to History at the Knoxville NationalsDonny Schatz’s journey at “The Granddaddy of ‘Em All” has led him to a shot at tying one of Sprint Car racing’s most revered recordsKNOXVILLE, IA (August 7, 2023) – There’s a massive piece of history on the line at this week’s NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Store for Donny Schatz. For the first time, he’ll have a chance to equal Steve Kinser’s record of 12 Knoxville Nationals titles.But long before this opportunity stood in front of him, Schatz’ experience at The Granddaddy of ‘Em All began like many others – a kid in awe, seated in the Knoxville Raceway stands. Even more than three decades and 11 Knoxville Nationals victories later, Schatz vividly recalls the impact it left. The magnitude of the grandstands. The mass of people. A deeply palpable atmosphere unlike anything he’d experienced.“When I got my first opportunity to go to Knoxville, my father had always hyped it up talking about the Knoxville Nationals,” Schatz said. “When I first went, you got the little town in Iowa that’s got the biggest grandstand you’ve ever seen, even the backstretch grandstands. Everybody that’s anybody is there. It’s pretty intimidating. You look at it like it’s a whole other world. You’re used to seeing from a local level or a local show to the Holy Grail. I guess it’s always kept that feel of the almighty event.”Eventually, Schatz’s budding racing career led him to venturing to the Knoxville Nationals as a competitor for the first time in 1995. For a young driver accustomed to racing primarily on a local basis, it was a somewhat overwhelming experience.“It was definitely intimidating,” Schatz admitted. “When you’re used to racing at racetracks where there’s 20 to 30 cars and then you’re at a place where there’s 100 and you’re all racing for the same thing – the Knoxville Nationals. It’s very intimidating. It was pretty neat to do. I think it’s something that takes a long time to be able to put that in the back of your mind that this is just another race even though it’s Knoxville.”Three years later, Schatz realized a childhood dream by qualifying for his first Knoxville Nationals Feature. And not only did the Fargo, ND driver make the show, he brought his #15 home in fourth.“I had a buddy that I grew up with that was a big Sprint Car fan and we kind of thought along the same lines,” Schatz recalled. “And we talked about getting to Knoxville and making the A-main. I think the most intense moment of the whole week is the four-wide on Saturday night. It just sends chills down your spine. I remember standings there saying ‘I’m going to be in that.’ That was my goal in life was to make that A-main and get in the show… In 1998 we did, and it was the greatest feeling ever, and then to top it off with a top five finish was pretty incredible.”With the satisfaction of a strong showing in his first Feature, the hunger for more grew. It didn’t take long, and Schatz was contending for a Knoxville Nationals title. But like any major accomplishment, tough losses preceded glory. In 2000, Schatz led the opening 24 laps before Mark Kinser got by him late. That was the first of four second-place finishes in six years. While the taste of repeated runner-ups was sour, Schatz knows with hindsight they equipped him with the tools to win.“Obviously, we had a long run of second place finishes that at the time we probably felt we were eluded,” Schatz said. “But that place doesn’t owe anybody anything. The second-place finishes are definitely what I think propelled me to having the record that we do there today. You got to know how to lose it and what not to do before you figure out what it takes to win it.”Then, in 2006, the dam broke. Schatz outdueled Joey Saldana for his first Knoxville Nationals triumph, and there was no slowing him down from there. Schatz topped the next three editions to string together four consecutive titles.Schatz’s streak came to a halt in 2010 when he posted yet another second, but then he promptly began another run. A triumph in 2011 marked the first of five straight victories. He came home runner-up again in 2016 before returning to Victory Lane in 2017 for his 10th. Fast forward five years to a season ago when he upped his total to 11.Among his 11 Knoxville Nationals wins are some memorable moments. In 2013, Schatz rallied from transferring out of the B-main. He wheeled all the way from 21st to the win in the finale. Two years after that, he crushed the field by leading all 50 circuits. While Schatz notes that each is special in its own regard, it’s tough to top the feeling of that first in 2006.“They’re all special in their own way,” Schatz said. “I don’t think you’ll ever be able to equal that first Nationals win, that first sense of you did it. I don’t know if that can ever be toppled… There’s nothing like it. It’s one of those feelings that I wish everyone that wanted to win that race or had the desire or drove a Sprint Car got to have that feeling, that sense of satisfaction and gratitude. But unfortunately, that’s not something they just give out or you can buy at your local T-shirt store. It’s something that’s earned, and very few people get that luxury. I’m just honored to be one of them.”The success has now led Schatz to this week. The first time someone will even have the chance to equal Steve Kinser’s record of 12 Knoxville Nationals titles. When “The King” made it a dozen back in 2002, the next closest total was Doug Wolfgang’s five. The record seemed untouchable, but 21 years later, it’s within Schatz’s reach.But the historic marker isn’t on Schatz’s mind. The 10-time World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series champion and 11-time Knoxville Nationals champion is entirely focused on what got him here – the process.“You race so much, and you don’t think about the success. You think about the process,” Schatz said. “That’s something I feel like I’ve not wavered from is the process.”The pursuit of another Knoxville Nationals title for Donny Schatz begins on Wednesday, August 9. For tickets, CLICK HERE.If you can’t make it to the track, catch every lap of the NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Store on DIRTVision.

NASCAR CUP SERIES MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400 TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE REPORT AUGUST 7, 2023

TOP TEAM CHEVY UNOFFICIAL TOP-10 RESULTS:POS.   DRIVER5th      Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL16th      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL17th      Ross Chastain, No. 1 Jockey Camaro ZL110th    Erik Jones, No. 43 Allegiant Camaro ZL1  TOP-FIVE UNOFFICIAL RESULTS: POS.  DRIVER1.        Chris Buescher (Ford)2.        Martin Truex Jr. (Toyota)3.        Denny Hamlin (Toyota)4.        Brad Keselowski (Ford)5.        Kyle Larson (Chevrolet)  The 2023 NASCAR Cup Series season continues at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course with the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard on Sunday, August 13, at 2:30 p.m. ET. Live coverage can be found on the NBC and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

TEAM CHEVY POST-RACE QUOTES: ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 JOCKEY CAMARO ZL1Finished: 7th“It was a grind all weekend. We started on the front row but didn’t have the balance or the grip level we needed when we got back in traffic. I felt like we were so fast and I just couldn’t get back up there. We just didn’t have the car to do it. The changes that we were able to make were small – air pressures and stuff – but helped the car today.  Thank you to everyone at Trackhouse Racing and Chevrolet to be able to come back on a green race track and make the car better. It was a good run for the No. 1 Jockey Chevy team.” KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 HENDRICKCARS.COM CAMARO ZL1Finished: 5thTop-Five finish for the No. 5 HendrickCars.com team. Is that where this car was or did you think you had some more?“I felt like we were a little bit better, and then after that wreck off of (turn) two, the No. 14 (Chase Briscoe) and I hit pretty decently, and I just felt like we were a little slower after that. I think the handling was still similar, but just a little bit slower overall. We took what we could get out of the day. Happy with the pit strategy there at the end to get some track position and come away with a top-five for the No. 5 HendrickCars.com Chevy. We’ll take it.” KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 KWIK TRIP / KWIK STAR CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage One. Finished: 37th “I put myself in a bad spot. I really hate that I did that. I wish the results were better for the day for our entire RCR team. They work so hard and do so much for me to put myself in a bad spot like that and get crashed. Hate it for Kwik Trip and everybody involved, it was a really short day.” Did your car just snap on you as you got beside him?“We touched a little bit and that’s when you lose all the air and you spin out.” You put yourself in a bad position? Did you feel like (Ryan) Blaney did anything wrong there? “They all run hard. They all want to race to crash. I tried to make a move and in the old days, guys that you were racing would let you go and have that spot and work for it later. But in this day in age, it’s completely different. So I got a guy that ran on my outside and took the air off.” CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage One.  Finished: 36thThat was a hard hit there. Are you feeling alright? “Yeah, I feel good. I hate that it happened. It was really early in the day to have a tire blow like that. It was really weird. It’s a bummer, but not surprised.” Was there no warning that the tire was going? “No, not at all. Obviously we stayed out, but no I didn’t even feel like I was being hard on it. Unfortunately not.” WILLIAM BYRON, NO. 24 LIBERTY UNIVERSITY CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage Two. Finished: 35th“I just got loose trying to get stage points there. We were dicing it up. We didn’t have the best restart, so we were gaining spots back, but just tried too hard. We’ll just regroup and try to get a good couple of weeks before the playoffs. Just made a mistake – was just trying hard and got loose.” JOSH BERRY, NO. 42 SUNSEEKER RESORTS CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage Two.Finished: 34thAny warning that the car was coming around? “No, I had no idea. Just wild restarts here and just trying to learn as much as I can. I just got loose there and backed it into the wall. Just hate it that we didn’t get to run all the laps today because that was the main goal.  Was it traffic, aero-effects or just no warning? “I’ll have to go back and watch it. Obviously it’s a lot to learn here with everything going on back there. I’ll just go back and look, learn and see what I can do better.” ERIK JONES, NO. 43 ALLEGIANT CAMARO ZL1Finished: 10th“It was a good day for the No. 43 Allegiant Chevy team. I thought our Chevy was a top-five car. We just got shuffled around on some restarts. When the No. 48 (Alex Bowman) got wrecked there, we had to come in and change tires; got shuffled to the back and we had that long green-flag run there at the end. To drive from the back up to 10th, it’s good. Obviously we wish it was better, but we had good speed and a good car all race yesterday and today. The balance was just a little tighter today and kind of held us back. We’ll see moving forward. We’re getting faster, we just need to capitalize on these days and go try to make the most of them to get the finishes that we can. Happy with the way we’re going.” DANIEL SUAREZ, NO. 99 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS CAMARO ZL1Finished: 6th“Proud of my No. 99 Worldwide Express Chevy team. This is exactly what we needed after a couple of rough weeks. The team did an amazing job with execution and the car was fast. It wasn’t easy – we had to work for this one. Two days ago in practice, I knew our car had the speed, but we were just very off on balance. Once we found the balance, the car was pretty fast so I’m happy with that. I feel like we still have maybe one more step to go to be able to win races, but it was definitely a race that we needed, especially heading into two road course races. Now we have a little momentum on our side and I’m optimistic for the final three races of the regular season.”

STAGE ONE: ·       Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain led the NASCAR Cup Series to the green flag in the FireKeepers Casino 400 at Michigan International Speedway – his ninth top-10 start of the season and his first career top-10 qualifying effort in NASCAR’s premier series at the two-mile oval. Chastain drove his No. 1 Jockey Camaro ZL1 to the top position in the opening lap – leading the race’s first 16 laps. ·       Two of Team Chevy’s former champions faced trouble in Stage One with Kyle Busch and Chase Elliott making an early exit due to damage sustained in accidents in the race’s first 35 laps. ·       Under caution with 11 laps to go in the stage, crew chief Cliff Daniels opted for track position – calling for Larson to stay out when pit road opened. With varying pit strategies among the leaders, Larson lined up in the seventh position for the final six laps of Stage One. ·       Larson went on to lead Team Chevy to the green-white checkered flag – collecting top-five points at the conclusion of Stage One. The No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 team led the manufacturer to four of the top-10 positions in Stage One:5th      Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL16th      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL17th      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally x Detroit Pistons Camaro ZL19th      Erik Jones, No. 43 Allegiant Camaro ZL1 STAGE TWO: ·       During the Stage break, Larson visited pit road for four tires and fuel. With much of the field staying out, Larson was forced to start in the 21st position for the start of Stage Two. ·       Coming to the end of Stage One, William Byron made contact with the wall while in a three-way battle for top-10 stage points. Crew chief Rudy Fugle called Byron down pit road to assess the damage on the No. 24 Liberty University Camaro ZL1. Unable to make repairs by the end of the DVP clock, Byron was forced to make an early departure from the race for a 35th-place finish. ·       Shortly after the start of Stage Two, the fourth caution of the day flew involving Team Chevy’s Josh Berry following a spin and contact with the wall. With too much damage to continue, the No. 42 Sunseeker Resorts Camaro ZL1 team ended the race in the 34th position. ·       LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’s Erik Jones was in a battle for the lead when the caution flew. Taking the green flag on lap 56, Jones settled his No. 43 Allegiant Camaro ZL1 into the third position on the restart. ·       A trio of Camaro ZL1’s were running in the top-five (Alex Bowman – 2nd, Kyle Larson – 3rd and Erik Jones – 5th) when the caution flew for precipitation, ultimately bring the race to red flag conditions for approximately 85 minutes before being postponed until Monday. ·       Restarting the race with 38 laps left in the Stage, a caution flew for debris in Turn Two at lap 102. Many drivers looking for stage points chose to stay off pit road with seven Team Chevy drivers lining up in the top-10 for the restart with 14 laps left in the Stage. ·       Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez led the manufacturer to the end of Stage Two, driving his No. 99 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL1 to a second-place finish in the Stage. ·       Four Team Chevy drivers collected top-10 points in Stage Two: 2nd      Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Worldwide Express Camaro ZL15th      Alex Bowman, No. 48 Ally x Detroit Pistons Camaro ZL16th      Kyle Larson, No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL18th      AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Farmsmart Camaro ZL1 FINAL STAGE / POST-RACE NOTES: ·       Kyle Larson led Team Chevy to the checkered flag at Michigan International Speedway – driving his No. 5 HendrickCars.com Camaro ZL1 to a fifth-place finish. ·       Four drivers from three different Chevrolet teams took top-10 finishing positions at the two-mile oval with Larson leading Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez and Ross Chastain in the sixth and seventh positions, respectively, and LEGACY MOTOR CLUB’S Erik Jones rounding out the top-10.

CONCORD, NC (Aug. 7, 2023) – The 2023 edition of the World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte is not only bringing more for the fans, but more for the drivers.

While fans will see the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars, World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Models and Super DIRTcar Series Big Block Modifieds all four days of the championship event, Nov. 1-4, the drivers will be racing for a share of more than $700,000, an increase of over $50,000 spread throughout the field.

Thursday and Friday’s Features for the Sprint Cars and Late Models will pay $15,000 to win and $1,200 to start, while Saturday’s Feature will pay $25,000 to win and $1,750 to start.

For the Super DIRTcar Series, its Features on Thursday and Friday will pay $10,000 to win and $750 to start. Then, its finale on Saturday will pay $15,000 to win and $1,000 to start.

The on-track action starts Wednesday, Nov. 1, but the event will kick off on Tuesday, Oct. 31, with the annual hauler parade at 4 p.m. (ET) in front of Charlotte Motor Speedway’s zMax Dragway. Fans can gather along the roadway in front of the building and welcome each World of Outlaws and Super DIRTcar Series team as they make their way to the dirt track.

Wednesday is all about speed. World of Outlaws Sprint Car, World of Outlaws Late Model and Super DIRTcar Series drivers will run multiple qualifying sessions to set the starting line ups for Thursday and Friday’s Heat Races. Once the final Quick Time Award is handed out, there will be a Fan Fest Pit Party at 9 p.m. (ET).

The rest of the week will bring edge-of-your-seat, heart-pounding, action, en route to crowning 2023 champions. Along with competing for series points, drivers will collect event points Thursday and Friday, which will set Saturday’s Heat Race line ups.

The best photo and video opportunity in all of motorsports will take place before Friday’s Features with the famed 3X4 Wide Salute to the Fans, featuring the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars, World of Outlaws Late Models and Super DIRTcar Series.

At noon on Saturday, a thunderous roar will echo between campers as Late Models, Big Block Modifieds and Sprint Cars will parade through the track’s campground.

After the final checkered flag falls Saturday evening, fans will get to watch the three series champions celebrate their 2023 title on the front stretch with a fireworks spectacle.

CLICK HERE for the full 2023 schedule

Last year, fans were treated to exciting racing around the 4/10-mile track from all three series and all roads are pointing another thrilling November finale. By the halfway point of the season, the World of Outlaws Sprint Cars have already had nine different changes for the championship lead, most recently between four-time and reigning Series champion Brad Sweet and David Gravel – looking for his first title.

The World of Outlaws Late Models could see its third different champion in three seasons. Bobby Pierce, in his first full season with the Series, has become an instant standout, leading the title fight with veteran driver Chris Madden. Both are looking for their first World of Outlaws championship.

Recently, the Super DIRTcar Series has had seven different winners in the last eight races, including first time winners and the return to Victory Lane for a Hall of Famer. Reigning Series champion Matt Sheppard will try to make history this season and claim his 10th title.

To be a part of the World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte, get your tickets today, HERE. Make sure to get your four-day package before Aug. 31 to get a free fan pit pass.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (August 6, 2023) – Reigning champion Jared Mees (No. 1 Indian Motorcycle/Rogers Racing/SDI Racing FTR750) fortified his Grand National Championshipadvantage with a trademark performance in The City of Sturgis Black Hills Half-Mile presented by Black Hills Harley-Davidson at Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, South Dakota

Progressive American Flat Track, sanctioned by AMA Pro Racing, took the spotlight at the 83rd Sturgis Motorcycle Rally on Sunday night, and all of its superstars, Mees again shone the brightest. He looked nearly unbeatable entering the Mission SuperTwins presented by S&S CycleMain and then proved those fears well founded as soon as the race began. He shot out into the lead from pole and stretched out a sizable gap within a matter of laps, extinguishing any hopes of an upset as he did so.

Drama-free at the front, the Main Event was anything but from second place on down the order. Despite being in desperate need of a runner-up finish to minimize the damage to his championship chances, Dallas Daniels (No. 32 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) found himself in fourth behind JD Beach (No. 95 Estenson Racing Yamaha MT-07 DT) and Briar Bauman (No. 3 Parts Plus/Jacob Companies KTM 790 Duke) and in danger of being displaced to fifth by Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750).

Fueled by that desperation, Daniels somehow thread the needle, splitting Beach and Bauman to emerge from fourth in second with eight minutes to go. He and Estenson Racing teammate Beach then separated from the fight for fourth and flew their Yamahas in formation from that point forward.

However, Beach didn’t appear to be content to merely follow Daniels to the flag, instead showing his teammate a wheel more than once as the race neared its conclusion. While Beach may have had some pace on Daniels, he was wise enough to hold off on anything but the cleanest of passes – an opportunity for which never showed itself.

As a result of Mees’ victory and Daniels’ runner-up, Mees now leads by 5 points (321-316) and has locked up the tiebreaker with just three races left to determine this year’s champion.

Mees said, “It was a good day for us. We knew we needed to come in and do exactly that. We were dominant all day long. Jimmy Wood had the Öhlins suspension so hooked up – the Indian was probably one of the most hooked up motorcycles on a Half-Mile that I’ve ever been on, honestly. And Kenny Tolbert had the thing tuned-up perfectly, obviously. We were solid right off the truck, and that was a big key to today – not having to search for the speed.”

Meanwhile, nine riders were in contention for fourth place in a wild fracas just behind the podium positions. Fourth and fifth, ultimately went to Davis Fisher (No. 67 Rackley Racing/Bob Lanphere’s BMC Racing Indian FTR750) and Cameron Smith (No. 34 Martin Trucking/Fredericktown Yamaha MT-07). Brandon Robinson (No. 44 Mission Roof Systems Indian FTR750) held on for sixth, while Bauman suffered the most in the fray, dropping all the way down to 12th by the time he took the checkered flag.

Seventh was taken by Kolby Carlile (No. 36 G&G Racing/Yamaha Racing Yamaha MT-07) while Johnny Lewis (No. 10 Moto Anatomy X Powered by Royal Enfield 650), Jarod Vanderkooi (No. 20 JMC Motorsports/Fairway Ford Indian FTR750), and Bronson Bauman (No. 37 Fastrack Racing/2 Wheelz KTM 790 Duke) completed the top ten.

Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER

Reigning Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER champ Kody Kopp (No. 1 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-F) pulled off perhaps the most impressive of his seven race wins this season on Sunday at Black Hills Speedway.

Kopp not only had to work up through a talented field on a slick track after running as low as seventh early, he also had to somehow find a way around the race’s heavy pre-race favorite, Tom Drane (No. 59 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F), to complete that epic charge to victory.

Kopp exploited a high line no one else could quite master to slash up from seventh to second. That strategy could take him only that far, however, as Drane was too fast and too smart to simply power around. Instead, the factory Red Bull KTM ace applied as much pressure as he possibly could and then pounced as soon as Drane made a slight mistake as the two leapt out of Turn 4 with just two laps remaining.

Once into first, Kopp kept it together and held on by 0.227 seconds at the checkered flag.

“That was probably the toughest race of my career,” Kopp said. “I really dug myself out of a hole after a terrible heat, but I knew we had the speed… (But) Tom made it so hard to do. I would roll him – I had a lot of entry speed into (Turn) 1 – but he would see me and come up and block, which is what you have to do at a track like this, and it would cost me all of my momentum. But he just slipped up once coming off 4, and that’s all it took.”

“Last year around this time, when we started thinking about the championship, I feel like I was settling for like fifths and sevenths. This year, I want to get eight wins like Dallas (Daniels did in 2020). This is huge for me and my team.”

The two were joined on the box by Trent Lowe (No. 48 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R), who held off second factory KTM ace Max Whale (No. 18 Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 450 SX-F), by 0.096 seconds for the spot.

Early frontrunner and ‘22 Black Hills HM winner Trevor Brunner (No. 21 Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F) finished in fifth, just 0.005 seconds ahead of Chase Saathoff (No. 88 American Honda/Mission Foods CRF450R).

Rookie Declan Bender (No. 216 Killer Bee Racing/Luczak Racing KTM 450 SX-F) earned the best finish of his Progressive AFT career in seventh. He was followed by Dalton Gauthier (No. 79 D&D Racing/Certified KTM 450 SX-F), Travis Petton IV (No. 82 ECG Racing/3 Bros KTM 450 SX-F) and Tarren Santero (No. 75 Vinson Construction/Eric Hoyt Honda CRF450R) to round out the top ten.

Kopp now leads the championship by 49 points over Drane (298-249). Should he build that advantage by just a single point next weekend at his home race in Castle Rock, Washington, he’ll successfully complete his title defense a full two rounds early.

Next Up:

The battle for the 2023 Grand National Championship resumes in less than a week with the CertainTeed Castle Rock TT presented by Law Tigers at Castle Rock Race Park in Castle Rock, Washington, on Saturday, August 12. Visit https://www.tixr.com/groups/sdiracing/events/castle-rock-tt-59623 to reserve your tickets today.

For those that can’t catch the live action from the circuit, FansChoice.tv is the live streaming home of Progressive AFT. Sign up now and catch every second of on-track action starting with Practice & Qualifying and ending with the Victory Podium at the end of the night at https://www.fanschoice.tv.

FOX Sports coverage of The City of Sturgis Black Hills Half-Mile presented by Black Hills Harley-Davidson, featuring in-depth features and thrilling onboard cameras, will premiere on FS1 on Sunday, August 13, at 11:00 a.m. ET (8:00 a.m. PT)

August 6, 2023 — NASHVILLE, TN

• Kyle Kirkwood scores his second NTT INDYCAR SERIES race victory of 2023 at the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix
• Third consecutive win for Honda at Nashville; fifth street circuit victory of 2023
• Alex Palou increases his championship lead with third-place result

Kyle Kirkwood was letter perfect in today’s Big Machine Music City Nashville Grand Prix, claiming his second victory of 2023 in his Andretti Autosport Honda, and completing a run of NTT INDYCAR SERIES street circuit victories for the manufacturer in 2023.

After starting eighth, Kirkwood’s two-stop pit strategy proved decisive in moving him to the front of the field on Lap 28, and the Andretti driver went on to lead a race-high 34 laps, then surviving two late-race caution periods to score the victory.  Championship leader Alex Palou added to his points advantage with a third-place finish today; with his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate and defending race winner Scott Dixon rebounding from a crash in qualifying yesterday to round out the top five for Honda.

Big Machine Music City Grand Prix Honda Race Results      

1st Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Autosport Honda
3rd Alex Palou	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
5th Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
6th Romain Grosjean	Andretti Autosport Honda
7th Marcus Ericsson	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
9th Christian Lundgaard	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
11th Helio Castroneves	Meyer Shank Racing Honda
13th Marcus Armstrong-R	Chip Ganassi Racing Honda
15th Graham Rahal	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda
17th Sting Ray Robb-R	Dale Coyne Racing with RWR Honda
21st Colton Herta	Andretti Autosport Honda [Did not finish – mechanical]
24th Jack Harvey	Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda [Did not finish – contact]
25th Linus Lundqvist-R	Meyer Shank Racing Honda [Did not finish – contact]
26th Devlin DeFrancesco	Andretti Autosport Honda [Did not finish – contact]
27th David Malukas	Dale Coyne Racing with HMD Honda [Did not finish – mechanical]

R – Rookie

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship (unofficial, after 13 of 17 rounds)
Honda                  1,068 points
Chevrolet             1,015 points

NTT INDYCAR SERIES Drivers’ Championship Standings (unofficial, after 13 of 17 rounds)
1. Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda                 513 points
2. Josef Newgarden, Team Penske                               429
3. Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda                387
4. Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske                               371
5. Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing Honda        357

Quotes
Kyle Kirkwood (#27 Andretti Autosport Honda) race winner, second win of 2023 and second career INDYCAR victory: “I have to give it up to the #27 crew: the Autonation Andretti Honda team. They played everything in my favor, gave me all the tools I needed today.  I really only made a couple of passes on-track, they cycled me to the front on strategy and made smart decisions all day.  I just had to hit my marks, such a solid day for the #27 crew, no doubt. This [second win] definitely feels like some kind of redemption [after crashing out of last year’s race], it’s super cool.”

Alex Palou (#10 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda) finished third, now holds an 84-point drivers’ championship lead with four races remaining: “We had the speed today.  Before the race, we expected more yellows, and that was not the right call. But hey, we survived and made it work. We were saving a ton of fuel throughout the race, which was tough. But we made it work and we’re on the podium.  My team has done a tremendous job throughout the whole year, and we’ll keep on pushing to keep the #10 American Legion Honda on top.”

Rebecca Johnson (Senior Manager and Director of Production, Honda Performance Development) on today’s Honda win in Nashville: “Another great weekend in Nashville for Honda and HPD! Congratulations to Kyle Kirkwood and everyone at Andretti Autosport on another excellent win.  It’s really gratifying to keep our unbeaten streak going here in Music City, and sweep all five temporary street circuits this season.  Thanks to everyone at HPD, and let’s keep up the hard work as we enter the final stretch of the 2023 season.”

Fast Facts

• Honda continues to lead the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship, with eight victories and nine poles in 13 races this season. Honda currently has an unofficial 53-point advantage (1,068-1,015) over rival Chevrolet. The company is seeking its fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES Manufacturers’ Championship in the last six years in 2023.
• Honda drivers and teams have won all five temporary street circuit races on the 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES schedule; with Kyle Kirkwood victorious here today and at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach; Marcus Ericsson winning the season-opening race at St. Petersburg; Christian Lundgaard scoring his first win at the Honda Indy Toronto; and Alex Palou winning the Detroit Grand Prix.
• Honda has now has won all three events held on the temporary Nashville street circuit, including Marcus Ericsson’s win in the inaugural 2021 race and Scott Dixon’s victory here last year.  A new circuit layout will debut in 2024.

Next
The 2023 NTT INDYCAR SERIES next heads back “home” to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the August 11-12 Gallagher Grand Prix, on the IMS road course.

NASCAR CUP SERIES MICHIGAN INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY FIREKEEPERS CASINO 400 TEAM CHEVY DRIVER QUOTES AUGUST 6, 2023

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 KWIK TRIP / KWIK STAR CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage One.

“I put myself in a bad spot. I really hate that I did that. I wish the results were better for the day for our entire RCR team. They work so hard and do so much for me to put myself in a bad spot like that and get crashed. Hate it for Kwik Trip and everybody involved, it was a really short day.” Did your car just snap on you as you got beside him?“We touched a little bit and that’s when you lose all the air and you spin out.” You put yourself in a bad position? Did you feel like (Ryan) Blaney did anything wrong there? “They all run hard. They all want to race to crash. I tried to make a move and in the old days, guys that you were racing would let you go and have that spot and work for it later. But in this day in age, it’s completely different. So I got a guy that ran on my outside and took the air off.”

CHASE ELLIOTT, NO. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS CAMARO ZL1Sidelined by damage sustained in an accident in Stage One.

That was a hard hit there. Are you feeling alright? “Yeah, I feel good. I hate that it happened. It was really early in the day to have a tire blow like that. It was really weird. It’s a bummer, but not surprised.” Was there no warning that the tire was going? “No, not at all. Obviously we stayed out, but no I didn’t even feel like I was being hard on it.”

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIX NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT AUGUST 6, 2023 SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN CAPTURES CHEVROLET’S 304TH PODIUM OF THE V6 ERA IN THE BIG MACHINE MUSIC CITY GRAND PRIXTeam Penske’s Scott McLaughlin finished the 80-lap Big Machine Music City Grand Prix second, capturing Chevrolet’s 20th podium of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR Series season and 304th since 2012.After starting from pole, McLaughlin led 25 of 26 laps led for Team Chevy during the chaotic event that saw a late red flag and three-lap shootout to the checkered flag.Josef Newgarden, of Team Penske, finished fourth in difficult hot and humid conditions.Pato O’Ward of Arrow McLaren INDYCAR, and Will Power of Team Penske, completed the top-10 for Team Chevy by finishing eighth and 10th, respectively.

NASHVILLE (August 6, 2023) – Under sunny, hot, and humid conditions, a charging Scott McLaughlin, driver of the No. 3 DEX Imaging Chevrolet for Team Penske, settled for the second step on the podium for Chevrolet in downtown Nashville. After starting on pole, McLaughlin drove a tough and tricky race on the tight 2.17-mile temporary street circuit in Music City, to give the Bowtie brand their 20th podium finish of the 2023 NTT INDYCAR Series season. Additionally, McLaughlin’s second-place finish gives Chevrolet their 304th podium since 2012 in the V6 2.2-liter twin turbo direct injected era. “I really tried my best but just couldn’t get there,” said McLaughlin reflecting on his Big Machine Music City Grand Prix race. “The DEX Imaging Chevy was great, and I’m very proud of everyone. There’s another top-three, another very good points day. We were really hoping to get the win. But, you know, we weren’t best today compared to Alex (Palou) and props to him.” Not only battling the competition but also the heat, McLaughlin’s Team Penske teammate Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 PPG Chevrolet, was quick to check on McLaughlin post-race after finishing fourth. Reflecting on his top-five finish for Chevrolet, Newgarden said “I felt like we had a little more charge in the beginning of the race that didn’t materialize. It’s a decent top-five that we can come out of here with and be proud of with the PPG car,” continued Newgarden. “There was a little more opportunity that just didn’t materialize in the beginning you know, typical street course stuff. You get used up a little bit at times. It’s just what we always see. It gets tight as everybody knows. I thought it was a really good day for our team, I really thought they executed well.” Rounding out the top-10 for Team Chevy, Arrow McLaren INDYCAR’s Pato O’Ward, driver of the No. 5 Chevrolet, finished eighth, and Will Power, driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Chevrolet, finished 10th after a chaotic 80-lap event. The NTT INDYCAR Series next heads back to Indianapolis for the Gallagher Grand Prix Saturday, Aug. 12. Sharing the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course with the NASCAR Xfinity and Cup series for the racing-packed weekend, Saturday’s race airs live on USA Network at 2:30 p.m. ET. Additional coverage can be found on Peacock, and through INDYCAR Radio and SiriusXM Channel 160. TEAM CHEVY TOP-10 RACE RESULTS:Pos.  Driver2nd    Scott McLaughlin4th     Josef Newgarden8th     Pato O’Ward10th   Will Power

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING (QUOTES):Josef Newgarden, No. 2 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“Fourth was pretty decent on the day. I felt like we had a little more charge in the beginning of the race that didn’t materialize. It’s a decent top-five that we can come out of here with and be proud of with the PPG car. There was a little more opportunity that just didn’t materialize in the beginning you know, typical street course stuff. You get used up a little bit at times. It’s just what we always see. It gets tight as everybody knows. I thought it was a really good day for our team, I really thought they executed well. There are some things we got to work on that I think are pretty visible to us. But you know, everyone’s done a great job. Team Chevy always elevates for us. Great job this whole weekend. Thanks to PPG with their support. I think we can leave here pretty happy, but just wishing we had a little bit more.” On the conditions of the race and talking with Team Penske teammate Scott McLaughlin after the race…“It’s just hot. It’s humid here in Tennessee. It’s tough to make it through here.” Scott McLaughlin, No. 3 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“I really tried my best but just couldn’t get there. On days like today, I probably should have worn the cool suit, but I ate too many pies so it’s a bit heavy for me. The DEX Imaging Chevy was great, and I’m very proud of everyone. There’s another top-three, another very good points day. We were really hoping to get the win. But, you know, we weren’t best today compared to Alex (Palou) and props to him. Hopefully next year we’re on for the championship, and we win, and then we win the championship as well. I felt really good. I’m really proud of everyone. Really proud of the Thirsty 3’s. The pit stops were unreal, and I’m really proud of the effort.” Will Power, No. 12 Chevrolet at Team Penske:“It wasn’t a very good day. I had to use a lot of fuel after getting in the car late. That stopped us from going an extra lap. We lost a lot of positions in that sequence. I think we went from like third, to like 10th or 11th. I couldn’t find my earbuds or head sock. That is why we were late getting on track. I freaked out because normally there are extras in the bag, but they weren’t there. Not a good situation. I’m going to have like five pairs now. That was as good as we can do today. The Verizon 5G car was good, just some things with strategy stuff. Just one of those days.” Pato O’Ward, No. 5 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:“It was a tough day in Nashville. I think we were too late in taking our first pit stop; we lost a lot of time there. It’s pretty much a track position race. It’s tough to pass, especially when you have fuel numbers and you can’t really use the push to pass. I’m bummed we went backwards. We’ll collect and try to have a good Indy road course, just look forward to what’s next.” Felix Rosenqvist, No. 6 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:“Tough weekend overall. There was some hope there after qualifying. I thought we had a bit better car than what showed. In the race, I was struggling a lot with straightline speed and with pace. We were able to follow but couldn’t really get by anyone. I got stuck on the outside in that last restart and hit the marbles. It was like going on ice; the tarmac was kind of breaking up at that point. It was a disappointing weekend. We really didn’t have any positives in the race. We tried to gamble on a strategy, but it didn’t work out. It is a weekend to forget for us.” Alexander Rossi, No. 7 Chevrolet at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:“The good thing is for the first weekend really since Detroit, I had a good race car in the race, so we definitely found a direction, which is what we were really hoping to get coming into this weekend. That’s the positive. There was a bit of a mess out there with Veekay, and then I made a mistake a lap later, brushed the wall, and that kind of ended our day. I’m bummed for the team. That was one of the better cars that we had in quite some time, and we didn’t get anything out of it. We’ll take the good parts from today and move on to Indy next week.” Gavin Ward, Race Director at Arrow McLaren INDYCAR:“Obviously, not the day we were hoping for today with two cars that got caught up in incidents. Pato did well to bring it home, but the race really started to fall apart for him when he couldn’t make the Firestone Reds last on that first stint. I was a little bit surprised on how difficult it was to get a stint like that out of those tires, but that’s part of the game.  “It’s a process; we’ll learn from it and get better. It was a tough day. You have to stay positive. With a stretch like this, it’s about the long game and we’ll keep playing it.” Ryan Hunter-Reay, No. 20 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:“It was a really tough day, a really tough weekend. We just never really found a set up that worked well. The good news is we were able to salvage some points and get out of here cleanly.” Rinus VeeKay, No. 21 Chevrolet at Ed Carpenter Racing:“We almost had a great day! We went from 19th to fourth and then the contact happened. Got a drive-through penalty, which does not make sense to me. Anyway, it was a big step in the right direction for us and a great strategy by the team!” Santino Ferrucci, No. 14 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:“Long day. Just fighting understeer, trying to understand the car. I think we had a good idea of what we think went wrong. The biggest thing is towards the end of the race, we had the correct strategy – we did everything right. That last crash, for whatever reason, the reorder was not favorable. It was favorable to those involved in the wreck and not for the people who avoided it. Finished clean, 18th. Moving on to the (Indianapolis) GP.” Benjamin Pedersen, No. 55 Chevrolet at AJ Foyt Racing:“Pretty tricky day. Honestly, we had really good pace. At times, we had the same pace as the leaders. Unfortunately, caught a yellow at the wrong moment when the pit light came on. We were on the pit commit line and received that penalty. Really just wrong place, wrong time. Had to do a drive-through, but otherwise, a top-15 was looking really promising starting from the back. We had a lot of promising things. Looking forward to continue this pace into the rest of the season. It’s just been a bit of unlucky lately, but there’s been strong, promising points as well. We’re working really hard to get better and better.” Callum Ilott, No. 77 Chevrolet at Juncos Hollinger Racing:“I had a really positive race going from 18th at the start to 12th. It was a bit of a strange race because I really didn’t know exactly where I was for about half of it. We did a bit of a different strategy to have me (pit) early to try and gain some clear track. It kind of worked. I think for a while it was touch and go because we had that early yellow which didn’t quite help us. Our pace was good. We kept the car clean which is necessary here at Nashville. Pit stops were good, and we were very happy. So P12, good points. Off to Indy.”

SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN, No. 3 Team Penske Chevrolet – Post-Race Press Conference:Finishing second today for the second straight year Scott McLaughlin. Second podium in three races in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Third podium of the season. 11th of his career.Scott, another podium for you, although I have a feeling you wanted to finish one step higher. SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, yeah, I’m disappointed. But it is what it is. I think we had a really fast car today. Just that first yellow destroyed a few things, which is probably going to play. You hope it doesn’t come, but it came. You take it or lose your advantage, try to reset and go again. That’s what we decided, the latter. Yeah, we did pretty well. We were able to come back a little bit. But overall Kyle just had that little shorter stop that he could do, away they went. I was trying to do my best to hunt him down at the end. I just had a poor restart. I had no temp in my rear tires for some reason. So annoying. I don’t know what happened. Like I didn’t change my procedure. I’m normally pretty good on restarts, but I was terrible. Yeah, got to do a little bit of study on that. I think if I was a little bit closer, I might have been able to maybe throw a little dive bomb at him. Unfortunately couldn’t. THE MODERATOR: The restarts, I’m sure you’re second or triple guessing what you could have done differently. SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, that last one has me a little confused. I felt like I was harder on the tire, whatever. I just think from a sport perspective, though, the restarts are a joke. We need to, like, I think we need to start on the start/finish line. We cannot pass until the start/finish line. You’re always going to have these yellows. You’re always going to have these clusters that cause red flags and make us look like… Yeah, there’s no cadence. Once there’s a yellow flag on a street circuit, it’s just a free-for-all. People bomb. We’re well within our rights to do that. If we want to have a pure race, we could have had a 10-lap shootout, me and Kyle there at the end. Instead we’re stop, start, stop, start. The action is fantastic. We just have no race. Q. Scott, they changed the restart zone this year and last year. You just want it to be where the start/finish line is?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I just think everywhere we go, we don’t have to have it for ovals, but I think it happens at Long Beach. We talked about doing it, like, about not passing till the apex of the last corner. At least that. I think when it goes green, there’s kamikazes at the back and don’t care. Well within their right to throw it inside when it turns green. That’s fine. But we just have this terrible just stop, start, amateur-ish looking finish to races. I’m going to speak to Jay about it, Novak. We just need to go apex last corner or start/finish line. Just make a point where you can’t pass just to get it going. Look, I might be wrong. I might crash in turn one. What I’m saying, I’ve done it in Supercars. Formula 1 does it. Other sports around the world do it. It just gets the race going. Everyone is on cold tires. Someone is going to have a mistake. The guy behind him is going to go, I have a crack. People getting hurt. Rah-rah. I just think it looks amateur-ish, it really does. Q. At Long Beach, there’s that hairpin that works. Gentlemen’s agreement?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: It’s not a gentlemen agreement. I think VeeKay a couple years ago threw it on the inside, ruined Rahal’s race. Road America this year, I passed Rahal before the last corner. I felt like a kamikaze. You have to run the rules how they’re run. It’s just such a simple thing. We move restarts, we do that, we do that. Nothing works until we, like, police it. We have to police something. It pisses me off, it really does. Q. You said yesterday you felt like last year got away from you. Do you feel the same way this year?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah, that’s how it is. I think if I could have got past Grosjean a little bit earlier, put more pressure on Kyle (Kirkwood). I could have passed him maybe before when he was on greens before he pitted. That’s just how it is. I’m pretty stoked with the result. Bummed that maybe I couldn’t have had too much of a shootout at the end. Like I said, my restart was bad. Yeah, I probably said too much, going to get in trouble over it. Q. (No microphone.)SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I don’t know the rule exactly. I decide not to wear one because as well I’ve had one fail in Supercars. It was so hot. It was almost hotter than it was.The hardest thing today is yellows and red flags. As soon as you stop, it gets 30 degrees hotter right away, knocks you around a little bit. Yeah, we were good. We were good. No dramas. Q. Earlier in the weekend some drivers were saying it’s almost impossible because of how crazy it was. Where was this on your ranking of this is going to happen, this is going to happen?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I knew when the yellow came out, that’s kind of the time, the first yellow, where we didn’t want it. I don’t know what plan that was. We knew it would put us in an awkward spot. If it happened lap 21 or something like that, no-brainer. We lose spots, go back to 10th. People are taking it before the yellow, kind of like last year. But, yeah, it’s hard to plan for this stuff. Q. To have that long of a run, green flag…ALEX PALOU: It was 23 laps max last year. SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: Yeah. Maybe we’re learning. Maybe as a sport we’re getting better driving. Q. Were you surprised by the pace of the race at the beginning or were you just kind of thinking like the guys of NASCAR thinking, that impending doom that something’s going to happen?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: I was just sort of driving within myself. I knew it would get to lap 20 or so. Better in clear air on the green tire to control it, look after the fronts, whatever.But, yeah, I was in a really good spot. I was controlling Pato, saving the fuel I needed. Then I started sort of pushing after the first yellow. We actually gapped them again.The blacks, brought everyone back to us, the gap we gained. Herta was driving around. It is what it is. Q. Did you think the race would continue without yellows?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: No. Q. You’re saying, When is it going to happen?SCOTT McLAUGHLIN: There is going to be a yellow at some point, yeah.

Third-place in class for Garcia, Taylor, No. 3 C8.R

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Aug. 6, 2023) – Corvette Racing finished third Sunday in the GTD PRO class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s feature event at Road America. The No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R of Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor led multiple times in the two-hour, 40-minute race with strong pace and engineering strategy that elevated the team from its third-place starting spot. Taylor got things started early by getting the jump at the drop of the green flag with a run from third to second place by the first corner. He moved into the class lead just shy of 40 minutes running when the class-leading and race-winning Aston Martin made its first stop as differing fuel strategies emerged in the first stint.

Taylor set his best lap of the race a lap later before handing off to Garcia at the 51-minute mark. Having been the last of the top three cars to pit, Garcia and the No. 3 Corvette carried a fuel advantage for the race’s second and final scheduled pit stop. That happened with Garcia leading and taking on fuel and four tires with 52 minutes left. He emerged directly ahead of the Aston Martin and barely in the lead. The two cars raced nose-to-tail and side-by-side for a half-lap before Garcia took charge. Things changed, however, as the No. 3 team was forced to serve a penalty for not meeting the minimum refueling time required by sanctioning body IMSA on the final stop. Team and series officials discussed the matter, but the call stood and Garcia had to give up the lead with 24 minutes left in order to drive through the pitlane. The Corvette Racing team will continue to work with IMSA to understand its process of determining refueling penalties. Corvette Racing’s next event is the Michelin GT Challenge at VIR on August 25-27 from Virginia International Raceway.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FINISHED THIRD IN GTD PRO: “A very disappointing result and a shame about the penalty. We had strong pace and good strategy calls that put us in the lead late. It was a hard but fair fight with the Aston late. Instead of gaining points in the championship, now we have lost more. Winning races is our only goal from now on.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “I was happy with my stint. The Corvette Racing guys did a great job giving us a good setup to move forward and eventually take the lead a couple of times. Things were looking great until the penalty on the last stop. Now we have to focus on getting maximum points in every race from here on.”

Fourth- and sixth-place finishes for Cadillac V-Series.Rs in 2-hour, 40-minute race

ELKHART LAKE, Wis. (Aug. 6, 2023) – Cadillac Racing overcame pre-race and in-race issues to record fourth- and sixth-place finishes Sunday in the IMSA Sports Car Weekend at Road America. The No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R, which qualified third on the 10-car Grand Touring Prototype grid, experienced tire issues in the middle section of the 2-hour, 40-minute race on the recently repaved 4-mile, 14-turn road course that cost Renger van der Zande two positions and effectively the opportunity to compete for a podium spot. He and Sebastien Bourdais drove to fourth place.The pole-winning No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.R experienced adversity two hours before the green flag when Alexander Sims got caught off-guard by cold tires on the fast Turn 12 and made heavy rear impact with the barrier. Sims was checked at the infield care center and cleared to drive, and the crew quickly prepared to commence systematic work on the Cadillac Racing hybrid racecar. After an extensive exchange of parts and bodywork that took less than 90 minutes, the car rolled out of the prep area to cheers from the throng of spectators gathered and joined the grid with Pipo Derani behind the wheel. Per IMSA regulations, the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.R started from the rear of the GTP field. “It was a great effort by the entire team, including Pipo handing off wrenches and being fully engaged, to get the car on the grid for the warmup laps and take the green flag with no mechanical issues,” team manager Gary Nelson said. “The crew worked systematically and, as always, professionally. We are appreciative of the crew of the No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R checking if we needed any parts or assistance. Cadillac Racing works as one team.”

Derani and Sims did not find the pace it had when Derani reset the track lap record in qualifying and soldiered on to sixth place. The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.R fell out of the IMSA Driver/Team Championship lead and enters the penultimate race of the season 14 points arrears. Derani, Sims and Jack Aitken lead the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup standings with one race left. Cadillac retained its IMSA Manufacturer Championship points lead. The No. 7 Porsche 963, which qualified second, won the race to mark the sixth different winner in seven races. Next up is the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks on Sept. 15-17 on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Both Cadillac V-Series.R recently tested on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn circuit that incorporates sections of the famous oval.

No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.RSebastien Bourdais: “I thought we were looking pretty good through my stint. The 7 car was really quick and got a couple of breaks in traffic. The car wasn’t easy to drive but I thought we were en route to a podium finish. Unfortunately, it got clearly more difficult rapidly for Renger with the flat spot on the left-front that he dragged the whole middle stint. It hurt him a lot when he fought it out with the 60 on the way out of the pits, and I think that kind of dictated our race because that middle stint really hurt us when we lost second and third (place). I feel like the team did a really nice job this weekend. We found a few things that we liked on the car at the Indy road course test that seemed to translate well here. We just need to keep working and learning about the car.” Renger van der Zande: “The middle stint was hurt by the flat spot on the front tire and later in that stint I flat-spotted the right-front as well. I don’t know why the second one happened but the first was just cold tire and off-line. It’s just a slippery track. I didn’t expect that to happen but it compromised our race day. I would have been able to fight the Acuras for position on normal tires, but I’m happy with the finish given how tough it is to pass off-line and move on from there.”No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.RPipo Derani: “We take the positives from what the crew and team did to get the car into the race after what happened in warmup to Alex on cold tires. Just to have gone into the race to score some points is great. Obviously, difficult situation with the tires being too cold in warmup and getting Alex off-guard. We’ve being seeing that happen a lot this year. It was us today and could be someone else tomorrow. We leave here without the lead in the championship, but it’s one of those things that are out of your control. But the positive is we finished the race and scored points in the championship.” Alexander Sims: “The real credit today goes to the team that got us back out. They were faced with massive difficult conditions after my mistake in warmup, so they really got us the points today. The race was unfortunately not much better than the start of warmup. It seemed like we really struggled for pace. I was hoping Pipo might have good pace on a new set of tires, but he didn’t seem to be able to pull up. I had only two tires and double stinted right-side tires and it was really tough. It’s the way it goes in IMSA. We got the best points we could get under the circumstances, and we’ll go on to the next one.”

KKM star has taken the Series points lead by eight after McIntosh’s sixth-place run

PEVELY, MO (Aug. 5, 2023) – Coming back into Series competition from a summer break at the end of July, Jade Avedisian sat fourth in the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota standings, 180 points out of first place.

Six races later, she’s come all the way back and climbed to the top of the standings with her fourth Toyota Racing Feature win of the season Saturday night at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

Avedisian, the 16-year-old standout from Clovis, CA, surged from sixth on the starting grid up to second by the halfway point and won a slide job-filled exchange with Karter Sarff to get the lead and bag the $5,000 check.

“Starting sixth, with that kind of track, [I knew] it could be tough,” Avedisian said. “But I knew I had a very fast Mobil 1, Toyota Racing #71. I just needed to make clean laps, and when I got to someone, make the pass stick and get by them as soon as I could.”

She and the Keith Kunz Motorsports team now sit eight points ahead of Cannon McIntosh in the standings with 16 races complete and 15 remaining. After a win to start the season, the 71 crew hit a mild slump, drifting down in the standings. Now, they’re back on top – a spot Avedisian has worked hard to regain as she pushes toward her ultimate goal of a national Midget championship.

“We just weren’t clicking for quite a few weeks, and now, the last three or four weeks, we’ve been really good,” Avedisian said. “Really consistent. That’s what it takes to win a championship – consistency.”

Her sixth career Xtreme Outlaw Series victory, now most all-time of any driver, came in thrilling fashion as she hunted down Friday night winner Karter Sarff through the first half of the race. Starting sixth on the grid, Avedisian favored the high side around the high-banked, 1/3-mile oval and advanced all the way to second slightly before a caution flag was thrown with 16 laps complete.

Sarff, the outside polesitter from Mason City, IL, had led since the drop of the green and was sustaining a healthy advantage over the field when the yellow was thrown. With his gap now gone and a hungry field of competitors behind him, Sarff began to sweat under caution.

“My heart definitely started racing,” he said.

Sitting right behind him, Avedisian devised a plan to take the lead on the restart. She said she knew it was going to take a big-time move to get around Sarff and showed it with a big slide job for the lead into Turn 1 as the field came back to green.

Sarff, however, wasn’t going down without a fight. He battled back into Turn 3 and returned the favor, retaking the lead out of Turn 4. Avedisian once again threw the slider heading back into Turn 1, and that time held on to take the lead away for good.

“I didn’t get the greatest restart, but I knew the momentum from running so hard into Turn 3 would catch up,” Avedisian said. “I just really counted on getting my momentum up and trying to clear him.”

“She just got the bigger run coming into Turn 1,” Sarff said. “With how 1 and 2 were, you couldn’t really cross over and get a run back on her, so I just kinda had to follow her back up into 2 and run my line I had been the whole race down through the middle-bottom of 3-4.”

Though Sarff gave it all he had in the final laps, he was unable to catch Avedisian, and settled for second. In sum, he and his family-owned team walked away from the weekend with a win and a runner-up against some of the nation’s top Midget racing talent.

“Overall, I think we put on a really good race for the fans, and I’m really happy about that,” Sarff said.

Taylor Reimer crossed the stripe in third to bag her sixth-straight top-five finish, while her KKM teammate Gavin Miller finished behind her in fourth and Chase McDermand rounded out the top five. Former points leader Cannon McIntosh finished sixth after starting eighth, dropping him to second in the points standings for the first time since April.

UP NEXT

The Xtreme Outlaw Midgets will get two days off before starting a grueling stretch of five races in five nights this Tuesday-Saturday, Aug. 8-12, in the inaugural Appalachian Midget Week. Tuesday night kicks things off with a $4,000-to-win program at Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway in Newmanstown, PA.

Tickets will be on sale at the gate on race day. If you can’t make it to the track, stream every lap live on DIRTVision.

ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results)

Feature (30 Laps): 1. 71-Jade Avedisian[6]; 2. 21K-Karter Sarff[2]; 3. 25K-Taylor Reimer[3]; 4. 97-Gavin Miller[7]; 5. 40-Chase McDermand[5]; 6. 08-Cannon McIntosh[8]; 7. 31-Chase Johnson[4]; 8. 26-Chance Crum[9]; 9. 19AZ-Hayden Reinbold[11]; 10. 71E-Mariah Ede[15]; 11. 31K-Jaxton Wiggs[13]; 12. 97K-Cooper Williams[10]; 13. 44-Branigan Roark[14]; 14. 7U-Zach Daum[1]; 15. (DNS) 26R-Corbin Rueschenberg