Humphries Wins King of the Wing Midwest Tour Opener in Kentucky

Eric Humphries. (David Sink photo)

From David Sink

WHITESVILLE, Ky. (August 5, 2021) — Eric Humphries continued his hot streak with his most recent King of the Wing victory Thursday night at Kentucky Motor Speedway in Whitesville, Kentucky. The event kicked off the “Midwest Tour” for the winged pavement sprint car series.

The series was making its first-ever visit to the northwestern Kentucky 3/8 asphalt oval. It was also the first winged asphalt sprint car race to be held in the state of Kentucky in the modern era.

Colorado driver Bryan Gossel set a new all-time track record in qualifications with a lap of 13.487 seconds.

Idaho driver Matt Elliott got the jump from his pole position at the start to become the early race leader. Eric Humphries and Bobby Santos III quickly fell in position behind Elliott.

On lap six Florida driver excited he track and pulled into the infield. He promptly bailed out of the car and appeared to be on fire. His lower left leg was ingulfed in flames. Safety officials were quickly on the scene to extinguish the fire. Nichols appeared unscathed after the scary incident.

Two laps later the yellow flew again when Kevin Feeney and Wade Buttrey made contact in turn one. Both were eliminated from the event, but Buttrey’s machine received heavy damage.

When the race resumed, Elliott continued to lead, but Humphries was reeling him in. With less than ten laps remaining, Humphries was able to make the pass when Elliott slipped high in turn four.

Humphries would go on to win by 02.085 seconds over Santos III and third place finisher Elliott. The win was the third out of the last four events King of the Wing has contested.

“Everything is clicking right now” Humphries explained in victory lane regarding his current hot streak. “We’re making great calls and trying new things. As a team everybody’s clicking. We got good equipment and a good motor with great horsepower. Maybe Lady Luck is on our side right now”.

On a night when passing was difficult, Humphries used patience to make his pass for the lead count. “I was hoping to get a good run on him (Elliott in the corner. At this kinda track, you gotta get them off the corner. I was just waiting for my opportunity. This track tonight was all about brakes. I never had any brake fade. We got two more nights. Let’s see what we can do” concluded Humphries.

The series will now head to Veterans Motorplex in Greenbrier, Tennessee Friday before wrapping up the tour at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway Saturday night.

King of the Wing Sprint Car Series
Kentucky Motor Speedway
Whitesville, Kentucky
Thursday, August 5, 2021

1. 15-Eric Humphries (15)
2. 22a-Bobby Santos III (22a)
3. 24-Matt Elliott (24)
4. 42-Jason Blonde (42)
5. 6g-Bryan Gossel (6g)
6. 44-Teddy Alberts (44)
7. 68-Mike Anderson (68)
8. 16-Austyn Gossel (16)
9. 11-Tom Paterson (11)
10. 100-Wade Buttrey (100)
11. 69-Kevin Feeney (69)
12. 55-Tommy Nichols (55)
13. 99-Brian Bowker (99)
14. 22-Johnny Gilbertson (22)