CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Confidence is high for 19-year-old Buddy Kofoid as he prepares for the 36th running of the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals next week at Oklahoma’s Tulsa Expo Center.
Kofoid is still soaking in his championship run in the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series, which saw him win six races en route to his first national touring championship. Kofoid won 15 national midget events last year between USAC and POWRi.
He accomplished all that despite a broken right wrist and a broken left foot suffered while racing a pavement late model. Those injuries have since healed and he’s primed and ready to chase Chili Bowl glory with the potent Keith Kunz Motorsports team with which he won the USAC title.
“It feels really good and gives you a lot of confidence going into it,” Kofoid said about entering the Chili Bowl as the reigning USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series champion. “A lot of the guys you have to beat during the outdoor season are the same guys you’ve got to be racing against, obviously, at the Chili Bowl.
“If you beat them at one point or another outdoors, you can, hopefully, do it again. Hopefully, we can do that indoors at the Chili Bowl.”
This will be Kofoid’s third Chili Bowl and he’ll be looking to improve upon his results in the previous two attempts.
In 2020, he finished third in his preliminary night feature, won his B main and finished seventh in the Chili Bowl finale. Last year, he finished second during his preliminary night feature to advance directly to the Saturday finale, where he ultimately finished 19th.
“With this being my third Chili Bowl and I’ve had two outdoors seasons now, we’re in a really good place as far as how I feel and what I’ve learned and how I’ve adapted myself as a midget driver,” Kofoid said. “Hopefully, we can find speed right out of the gate.”
Kofoid says his first goal is to win his prelim night or, at the very least, finish second so he can lock into Saturday night’s 55-lap main event.
“It really starts with your heat race,” said Kofoid, whose preliminary night is Tuesday. “You’ve got to run well in your heat race and you’ve got to go forward. If you start up front you’ve got to win or if you start in the back you’ve still got to win or pass as many cars as you can and get as close to the front as you can and get yourself in a qualifier and get yourself a lot of (passing) points.”
After that, it’s all about taking home the Golden Driller.
“Obviously my goal is to win the Chili Bowl,” Kofoid said. “That’s what we’re going there for.”