ROSSBURG, Ohio — Rico Abreu has won 11 features at Eldora Speedway, but has yet to win one of big-money events at the historic half-mile oval.
Abreu led the first 21 laps from the pole on Thursday night, but finished third in his quest for a $100,000 payday in the Joker’s Jackpot.
“I was really good the first half of the race,” Abreu said. “I just might have given my team a little too much communication on the balance of the car. It didn’t take off as well the second half of the race.
“I really thought through the race and tried to just hit my marks and not get flustered when things were off like that at the end of the race. I really tried to just hit my marks,” he continued. “The cushion is just razor thin on the wall in three and four. One and two you have a little bit more compaction to lean against with the right-rear tire. You just have to be really disciplined.
“That’s what makes these guys flawless that are leading. Clean air is such an advantage at this place. I saw that leading the race.”
Abreu has won nine features this season, and will chase another big-money Eldora victory in Saturday’s $200,000-to-win Kings Royal
“We will try again tomorrow and again Saturday,” he said. “Hopefully, one of these days, I can get a win here.”
• Joker’s Jackpot winner Kyle Larson, the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion, remains loyal to sprint car racing. If you doubt that, read what he had to say about the sport.
“I think a lot of fans see me race (in NASCAR) on Sundays and have a misconception of sprint cars that this isn’t professional and I come ‘down’ to win these races,” Larson said on FS1. “But it is the toughest form of racing that I get the chance to be a part of — the quality of equipment, the quality of drivers and everybody involved.
“This is as professional as it gets for American auto racing.”
• Pennsylvania sprint car ace Anthony Macri charged from 11th to finish second on Thursday night.
“I knew the first couple of laps when we were a little bit tight, we probably had something to work with at the end,” Macri said. “Hats off to these guys. Starting second last night and falling back to fifth wasn’t ideal. These guys don’t give up and they work really hard. They gave me something to work with in the feature and I was able to go where everyone else wasn’t there for a while. Then, those last five laps the tires went away with me and I was dependent on the top.
“Still in shock a little bit, but it honestly pretty cool to be able to put together a run like that here,” Macri added. “It’s not an easy place. When you have a really good car here, it’s really good and when you have a bad car here, it is pretty painful.”
• Kalib Henry crashed Tuesday night at Attica Raceway Park and was transported to a Toledo, Ohio, hospital for observation.
On Thursday afternoon his father Mike Henry posted on social media that the driver of the No. 101 sprint car had improved and was to be released from the hospital.
“He’s doing a lot better, he’s been up and walking with PT. The doctors feel he’s doing well enough to be discharged today at some point. All be it, he’s sore with bruising. With some rest he’ll be back to 100-percent soon,” the elder Henry posted.
• Tyler Courtney was transported to a Dayton, Ohio, hospital after a violent first-lap crash on Thursday at Eldora.
While family reported he was awake and alert on Thursday evening. We will update at as more information is available.
• Defending Joker’s Jackpot and Kings Royal winner David Gravel was disqualified on Wednesday night because of a front wing violation.
His week got worse on Thursday. Starting the Big Game Motorsports No. 2 from 12th in the first B main, Gravel raced into a transfer position within the first half of the race, but the right-rear tire blew on his car entering the first turn sending him into the wall and upside down.
• It was a difficult night for Eldora Million (2023) winner Logan Schuchart. Driving the Shark Racing No. 1s, Schuchart contended for the victory throughout the feature, but was involved in an accident while battling for the lead during the second half of the race.
Schuchart raced back into the top five, but hit the turn-four wall and flipped on the final lap.
• Buddy Kofoid, the big money winner through the first half of the sprint car season, was involved in the first-lap, multi-car crash that sent Tyler Courtney to the hospital on Thursday night. Brad Sweet and Hunter Schuerenberg were also involved in the incident that saw the cars of Courtney and Kofoid flip wildly into the turn-one wall.
• Donny Schatz and the Tony Stewart Racing team showed no signs of life on Thursday at Eldora. Schatz started ninth and finished 11th in the second B main.
• It will be interesting to see where Giovanni Scelzi ends up after leaving KCP Racing on Thursday morning. He had been with the team since 2024.
-Christopher Bell and the Don Kreitz Jr. Racing Team got a lot of attention entering the Kings Royal Week, but Bell was never a factor during the two nights of High Limit action, and he’s now off to Dover, Del., for the NASCAR Cup Series weekend.
