Jade Avedisian claimed her first national midget victory a little more than a week ago at Jacksonville (Ill.) Speedway.
The win was the talk of the motorsports community, as the 15-year-old dominated the Xtreme Outlaw Series event at the quarter-mile dirt track.
“It was a really big night. I definitely didn’t think I was going to win,” Avedisian said. “For it to actually happen was pretty amazing. I knew I had to get a good start to set my own pace. Lapped traffic was pretty tough. At one point it was three wide, and I got really lucky with a late caution. I saw the white flag come out and my only thought was to not plug it into the fence. My team (Chad Boat Industries) deserves all the credit. I had always wanted to stand on top of a midget and celebrate. Hopefully there will be more to come. It’s still a surreal feeling.”
Since that victory, Taylor Reimer was officially announced the winner of the May 25 Xtreme Outlaw Series race at Millbridge (N.C.) Speedway, after Cannon McIntosh was disqualified. Reimer became the first female to win a national midget feature.
Prior to their victories, there had never been a female hoist the winner’s trophy in national midget competition. Now, within the span of a month, both Avedisian and Reimer have put the midget community on notice.
“It’s definitely cool that I’m not the only girl out here,” Avedisian said. “I feel all the women have stepped up out here this year. I think it makes all of us a little more comfortable. It’s awesome to be among the first women to win, but my goal has always simply been to win every time I hit the track. We all have the same goal, and we all race each other the same.”
The goal of winning at every track can be a tall task, especially with limited experience at numerous venues where she’s racing.
As Avedisian continues to acclimate herself with a midget race car, she sees major upside with learning as she goes along.
“Every racetrack seems like a new track for me,” Avedisian said. “When we went through Indiana Midget Week, I had never been at any of those tracks. I feel like any track you go to for a second time, you’re going to feel a little more comfortable. Overall, I think it’s going to make me a better driver just to experience all of these new tracks. It’s definitely tough, but it provides a lot of learning.”
A California native who advanced through the micro sprint ranks, Avedisian, who is part of the Toyota driver development program, is mostly racing on tracks in the Midwest. She hopes to become more consistent as the season progresses.
“After getting that first win, now I just want to start getting consistent top-three and top-five finishes,” Avedisian said. “We have a lot of racing coming up in July and I’m really looking forward to it.”
When asked what her long-term goal is, Avedisian quickly mentioned stock car racing.
“Racing is what I want to do. I love it so much,” Avedisian said. “I’d really like to get into asphalt, so I would say NASCAR is my main goal. We’ve been practicing in a late model if I ever get the opportunity.”