TULSA, Okla. - Justin Grant found the high line early and never left it during Friday night’s 25-lap A-Feature in the 32nd Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals at Oklahoma’s Tulsa Expo Raceway.
Rolling past 2008 Chili Bowl champ Damion Gardner on lap 17, Grant went on to score his second consecutive Friday night victory, with Spencer Bayston in second and Andrew Felker third.
“I’m always thinking about going high,” said Grant. “I knew the bottom would be slowing down. It was getting pretty thin there so I figured I could just bail off to the top and make up some ground on them.”
Gardner took the lead on the fourth lap and would hold the top spot through the first caution flag on lap 14.
Grant would take advantage of the slow pace set by Gardner on the restart to power to the second spot, with Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series veteran Kasey Kahne in tow. Grant would use momentum to help him move to the lead on lap 17 with a high-side pass off the second turn.
From there, Grant would drive away to the victory, with Bayston in second and Felker in third. The top three finishers locked themselves into Saturday night’s Chili Bowl Nationals A-Feature.
Gardner finished in fourth, with Kahne in fifth.
Chad Boat, Tim McCreadie, Bricen James, Sheldon Haudenschild and Dave Darland rounded out the top ten.
The final night of the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is slated for Saturday. For more information, visit ChiliBowl.com.
Chili Bowl Nationals
Tulsa Expo Raceway – Tulsa, OK
A-Feature Results – Jan. 12, 2018
1. 39BC-Justin Grant
2. 97K-Spencer Bayston
3. 37-Andrew Felker
4. 71G-Damion Gardner
5. 67Z-Kasey Kahne
6. 84X-Chad Boat
7. 47X-Tim McCreadie
8. 45X-Bricen James
9. 73S-Sheldon Haudenschild
10. 25-Dave Darland
11. 17BC-Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.
12. 28A-Ace McCarthy
13. 15H-Sam Hafertepe, Jr.
14. 37M-Matt Mitchell
15. 88N-D.J. Netto
16. 2X-Brent Beauchamp
17. 16R-Davey Ray
18. 21-Daryn Pittman
19. 23M-David Budres
20. 98-Clinton Boyles
21. 71K-Tucker Klaasmeyer
22. (DNF) 17R-Alex Schutte
23. (DNF) 1R-Thomas Meseraull
24. (DNF) 55K-Nick Knepper
