By T.J. Buffenbarger
(January 13, 2026) – After starting the week with all five of the drivers I felt had the best shot a locking into Saturday’s finale at the 40th Chili Bowl Nationals finishing in the top 10 of their preliminary feature is a good sign that I’ve used all my luck/skill of talent evaluation up during the early portion of the week.
Tuesday’s preliminary main event will not be as clear cut. Choosing Kyle Larson, Briggs Danner, and Cannon McIntosh wasn’t rocket science, but seeing all of them avoid pitfalls that could have sank their Chili Bowl, other than Larson’s spin in his heat race, was remarkable.
Here are the picks for Tuesday, hoping that the momentum carries over from the opening night.
The drivers I feel have the best chance of locking into Saturday’s finale include…
• Kaidon Brown: Brown has been tabbed by Christopher Bell, which is a great endorsement in itself. While Brown only has two preliminary feature finishes of 9th and 24th in 2020 and 2024, his talent has been on display for several years and I don’t feel he’s reached his Chili Bowl potential. I’m thinking we see him closer to that in action on Tuesday.
• Hank Davis: Davis one of the more underrated talents in our sport and seems to be fast in everything he climbs into the past several seasons. One thing I have learned over the past several years is not bet against Matt Seymour Racing in major events.
Seymour’s team does what might be the most unique schedule of everything in the building at Tulsa with a mix of NEMA, Little 500, pavement midgets without wings, and now winged pavement sprint cars, but have been on their game when arrive at the SageNet Center in Tulsa.
While Davis was seventh in his preliminary feature last year, in the previous two seasons he was first and second. Davis overcame that finish on his preliminary night to make the finale through the B-Main last year.
• Landon Brooks: Brooks garnered a considerable amount of attention by winning his preliminary night last year at the Chili Bowl by passing Brenham Crouch on the final lap.
Teamed up with Matt Wood Racing again this season, Brooks will a strong favorite to go back-to-back with preliminary feature wins at the Chili Bowl Tuesday night from seventh starting position at just 21 years of age.
Shane Golobic showed how fast Wood’s team is again this year at the Chili Bowl with a fourth-place finish Monday night, and I expect Brooks to keep things rolling for the team on Tuesday.
• Ryan Timms: The 2026 Knoxville Nationals winner did not make the finale last year at the Chili Bowl finishing 8th in the first C-Main and has a second-place finish on his resume from 2024.
I might have kept Timms on the people to keep an eye on section, but I was impressed with some of the things I saw on track from him last night in the Race of Champions moving up from seventh starting position for a fourth-place finish.
Timms appears to be driving with a lot of confidence this week, and I expect that to show in Tuesday’s preliminary night.
• Michael Pickens: The New Zealand standout might be a reach in this spot only finishing in the top five twice in the past seven preliminary nights he has competed in at the Chili Bowl. Pickens aggressive style can lead to success inside the SageNet Center but can also cause some big swings in finishes.
Pickens is a fixture in preliminary night features at the Chili Bowl the past three years including a third-place finish in 2024. In the end, I stood firm on choosing drivers that do or have done a fair amount of midget car racing, and Pickens does so on the tight confines of New Zealand racetracks.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see anyone from this group of drivers land in the top five…
• Brenham Crouch: Crouch was one lap away from winning his preliminary night in 2025, having that win picked off on the final lap by Brooks. Crouch’s two previous appearances in Chili Bowl preliminary features were 19th place finishes in 2022 and 2023.
Crouch might have been listed in the top group had there been stronger finishes on preliminary nights in the past but felt last year’s performance earned him a place in this group.
• Jonathan Beason: Since 2016 Beason has five top five finishes in Chili Bowl preliminary nights. Beason’s last two finishes of 22nd and 11th the past two years bumped him down to this group from the top, even with his momentum of winning another golden driller during the Tulsa Shootout.
• Ricky Thornton Jr: The past three years Thornton has finishes of sixth, seventh, and 12th in his three preliminary features. Talents combined with being more comfortable in the car could have Thornton surprising us on Tuesday night at the Chili Bowl.
• Zach Daum: In 2019 through 2021 Daugh has three top five finishes before a 16th place finish and a pair of 9th place runs during the last three preliminary features he has made at Tulsa. Daum might be a long shot to surprise us, but felt he was worth going out on a limb for in this second group.
Other noteworthy entries for Tuesday night include…
The NASCAR influence is heavy on Tuesday with Ty Gibbs, J.J. Yeley, Sheldon Creed, and Gavan Boschele among those in action.
Sprint Car standouts Sye Lynch, Parker Price-Miller, and Blake Hahn are also on the docket.
Midget and micro driver turned road racer Kaylee Bryson races in front of her home state audience on Tuesday night in Tulsa.
Our local audience will be following Darin Naida driving Dan Binks’ three-cylinder entry we highlighted on Sunday.
Former Chili Bowl champion John Heydenreich makes another start at the Chili Bowl on Tuesday night while Clinton Boyles leaves the commentary chair at Floracing to compete as well.