ST. LOUIS — One night after winning a modified feature during the Kubota Gateway Dirt Nationals, Ricky Thornton Jr. was back in victory lane in the late model division.
Thornton, who reunited with crew chief Anthony Burroughs, blasted from ninth starting spot and grabbed the lead from Mark Whitener on a lap-17 restart.
He led the remainder of the 25-lap event inside The Dome at America’s Center to earn at $10,000 payday and lock into Saturday’s $70,000-to-win main event.
Podium finishers Whitener and Brenden Smith also guaranteed spots in Saturday’s field.
Zack Dohm and Dan Ebert completed the top five.
Josh Rice was the fast qualifier for the 61-car field with a lap of 11.523 seconds.
The finish:
Ricky Thornton Jr., Mark Whitener, Brenden Smith, Zack Dohm, Dan Ebert, Jonathan Davenport, Josh Rice, Clay Harris, Jake Timm, Devin Gilpin, Carson Hocevar, Donald McIntosh, Drake Troutman, Wil Herrington, Kyle Bronson, Tanner English, Hudson O’Neal, Tyler Carpenter.
