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KANSAS CITY, Kan. (Oct. 18, 2022) – Big Game Motorsports driver David Gravel celebrated the birth of his son by capturing a victory during his first World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series race since the life-changing moment.
The Gravel’s firstborn, Levi, arrived a week ago Monday. The mission on Friday at I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Neb., was to deliver a trip to Victory Lane.
“It’s the end of the year and you want to run well,” he said. “The points thing is a pretty decent gap, but I know if I can continue to apply pressure on Brad (Sweet) you never know what can happen. Also, it’s how I make a living and I have to feed my kid all winter so it’s important to run up front.”
Gravel set quick time during qualifying before he won a heat race to advance into the dash. A runner-up result in the dash lined Gravel up on the outside of the front row.
“It was a night that went smooth and according to plan,” he said. “It felt really, really good to capitalize on that. Running second in the dash was fine. At the start of the A Main I got the jump and was able to control the race. I actually wanted to be second for a few laps to see how everything was going and how the track would change, but luckily nobody really challenged me and I was able to base off lapped cars when I got to traffic to see how they were doing compared to me.”
Gravel led all 30 laps for his seventh triumph of the season with ‘The Greatest Show on Dirt.’ It was his 76th career victory with the series and first ever at the track, which is in its final season.
“I’m sad it’s going,” he said. “I had never got to win there and that was my last opportunity to do that so it feels good to get that done. Trying to get those Outlaws wins are hard to get. I want to get to 100 one day and be in the top 10.”
The weekend wrapped up on Saturday with the Lakeside Speedway Showdown presented by Micro-Lite, which was hosted by Lakeside Speedway. Gravel timed in fifth quickest overall. A second-place result in a heat race was followed by a run from sixth to fourth place in the dash. Gravel capped the night by gaining a position to finish third in the feature.
“It went pretty good,” he said. “We struggled with the car in qualifying and didn’t have it that good for the heat race. The dash gave us an opportunity to try something different. I felt we had a good race car and I was confident going into the feature. I was pretty confident throughout the first half of the race. Then we got a little out of the race track at the end and held on to third. If we wanted to beat the top two we needed to be a little better late in the race.”
Gravel continues to rank second in the World of Outlaws championship standings, but has closed the gap on the leader to only 54 points.
The team heads to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., this Saturday for the Champion Racing Oil National Open. Gravel won the marquee event in 2014 and 2017.
“It all starts with qualifying and putting yourself in position,” he said. “This track is very important with the dash draw. Hopefully we can get into the dash and have a solid pill draw to start in the first couple of rows. All you can ask for is a chance to win and hopefully we can put ourselves in position to contend for the win.”
QUICK RESULTS –
Oct. 14 – I-80 Speedway in Greenwood, Neb. – Qualifying: 1; Heat race: 1 (1); Dash: 2 (2); Feature: 1 (2).
Oct. 15 – Lakeside Speedway in Kansas City, Kan. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 2 (2); Dash: 4 (6); Feature: 3 (4).
SEASON STATS –
68 races, 7 wins, 39 top fives, 60 top 10s, 65 top 15s, 67 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Saturday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., for the Champion Racing Oil National Open with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BigGameMotorspt
HUSET’S SPEEDWAY –
Huset’s Speedway is a dirt oval located in Brandon, S.D. The track opened in 1954 and has undergone a large renovation within the last few years, making it a premier destination for both marquee racing events and weekly programs. For more information, visit http://www.HusetsSpeedway.com.
JACKSON MOTORPLEX –
Jackson Motorplex is a 4/10-mile dirt track located in Jackson, Minn. It hosts special events from May through September, including races with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, Midwest Power Series, Tri-State Late Models and more. For more information, visit http://www.JacksonMotorplex.com.
TICKET LINK –
To purchase online tickets for events at either Huset’s Speedway or at Jackson Motorplex, visit http://mpv.tickets.com/schedule/?agency=JKMV_PL_MPV&orgid=55369#/?view=list&includePackages=true.