MEEKER, Okla. — In a NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midget feature that offered more twists and turns than the country highways and byways leading to Red Dirt Raceway, Logan Seavey emerged to take “Tuesday Night Thunder” honors at the quarter-mile dirt track.
With three and four-wide battles the norm throughout the 30-lapper, the reigning series champion railed the topside of the track to take the lead away from Jerry Coons Jr., on the 24th round and led the final seven circuits to pocket the $3,000 winner’s share aboard the Keith Kunz Motorsports Mobil 1 No. 67.
Posting his second series win of the year, Seavey was chased to the stripe by Clauson-Marshall Racing rep Zeb Wise with fellow CMR shoe Chris Windom edging Coons for the final podium position.
“Once the race came to me, I was patient and when a couple of them crashed out it cleaned up the field and I was able to make the moves I really wanted to make,” Seavey explained. “I was trying to not get crashed, everyone was running so hard. That’s what makes these races so exciting.”
While Seavey gridded the feature field ninth after clinging to the final transfer from B Main action after a late run-in with teammate Tucker Klaasmeyer, point leader Tyler Courtney and Jason McDougal led the way to the green flag.
After the initial start was waved off for a turn four fracas, McDougal gunned into the early lead aboard the FMR No. 76m and paced the initial eight circuits before Courtney pounced on the lead on a lap nine restart with the red flag flying moments later when Holley Hollan exited the venue with a flyer over the turn three wall.
McDougal battled back in front for a lap on the restart, only to have Courtney recapture the lead with chaos soon ensuing in his wake when Tanner Carrick slid McDougal for second getting into turn one on the 16th lap.
With the aspiring flamingo breeder slowed from the contact, top-five contender Kevin Thomas Jr., made contact and flipped with fellow front runner Tanner Thorson also involved as Tyler Thomas got upside down as well in the melee.
Courtney took off on the restart ahead of Carrick, Windom and Wise with Seavey up to sixth, but “Sunshine” surrendered the lead soon after when his NOS Energy Drink No. 7bc slowed on the backstretch with mechanical woes on the 18th round.
Windom assumed the point and traded the lead with Carrick before Coons, Jr., catfished the low line and surged in front in a three-wide battle for the lead. A final caution flew with seven laps remaining when Carrick slowed with a flattened left-rear after contact from a Windom slider.
Up to second by avoiding all the chaos, Seavey made the top of the track work to his advantage and raced past Coons, Jr., on the restart and led the rest of the way to the checkered flag with Wise racing into second place.
“It’s a dream come true to be racing right now, I just can’t thank Keith (Kunz) and Pete (Willoughby) enough for believing in me,” Seavey summed up. “We’re just having a dream year.”
After starting seventh, runner-up Wise commented that, “I knew starting seventh that I had to do what I do to get to the front and we were able to edge them out for second.”
Windom finished third. “There was a lot going on there,” he said. “We got to the lead and the 71k was short sliding guys all night, so I finally took care of that. I didn’t mean to actually hit him, but if he’s not gonna lift then I’m not gonna let him have the position and it bumped us back to about sixth. There was a lot of haymaker slide jobs, this has got to be awesome to watch for the fans.”
Racing from the 15th starting position, Coons, Jr., crossed the stripe fourth with Jonathan Beason earning Hard Charger honors by racing from 17th to round out the top five aboard the Hard Eight Racing No. 8j.
To see full results, turn to the next page.