KNOXVILLE, Iowa — FVP “Hard Knox” Night turned into a long one Friday at the 64th NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s.
In the end, David Gravel emerged with his 14th career win at Knoxville Raceway and a ticket to Saturday’s championship finale.
The driver of the Big Game Motorsports No. 2 will be joined in Saturday’s big show by the second place car of Buddy Kofoid, Cole Macedo and Daryn Pittman, who will start 21st through 24th, respectively, in the $195,000-to-win finale.
Anthony Macri slowed before a lap could be completed in the scheduled 25-lap main event, having gotten over the rear tire of Daison Pursley, and he restarted at the tail.
Madsen led early over Ashton Torgerson, Pittman, Chase Dietz and Gravel. Gravel shot from fifth to third on lap two.
Dietz passed Pittman for fourth on lap three before the seventh place running Kelby Watt blew a right rear tire three laps in, bringing a caution. Madsen led Torgerson, Gravel, Dietz and Pittman back to green. Macedo quickly moved into 5th and then used a slider in turn three to pass Dietz for the fourth and final transfer to the Saturday A main on lap seven.
Nine laps in, Justin Whittall took a scary crash in turn one and was transported for observation.
Gravel and Macedo shot by Torgerson for second and third on the restart, while Pittman returned to the top five.
Gravel reeled in Madsen and passed him for the lead on lap 13, while Kofoid had moved from 19th to take sixth from Donny Schatz. With ten to go, Carson McCarl tipped over in turn three.
Gravel now led Madsen, Macedo, Torgerson and Pittman. Pittman snatched fourth from Torgerson, but a three-way battle for the spot ensued when Kofoid entered the mix, and grabbed the spot on lap 17.
With six to go, Watt jumped the berm, with Brandon Wimmer and JJ Hickle trying to avoid. Jamie Ball took evasive action over the cushion and flipped in turn three. He was uninjured. Gravel led Masden, Macedo, Kofoid and Pittman back to green.
Kofoid quickly took third and then grabbed second from Madsen with three to go. On the last lap, Madsen slowed from his third running position, bringing caution. He slowed again on the ensuing restart, and eventually exited.
A green-white-checkered finish added a lap to the feature, but it was Gravel maintaining his win ahead of Kofoid and Macedo.
Pittman held off a late charge from Schatz to garner the final transfer position for Saturday’s championship.
“Obviously, you don’t want to run on Friday night,” said Gravel. “We felt good all night long. I messed up in qualifying, but the pill draw helped us out there to be in a good spot. Obviously, it must have been a great racetrack if Buddy Kofoid was coming from the back and Donny Schatz was coming from the back.
“I’m sure you guys got a good show. It was treacherous fast for awhile, and the top curbed up. It didn’t feel that good for me on lap five, and I saw the bottom was wet. I’m glad I tried on that restart, because I probably would have been chopped liver and they were probably going to pass me. Thank you to my guys. This is the same car we flipped on Wednesday. It’s not perfect, but it’s good enough.”
“We felt lights out in the B main, and honestly, I think it was a blessing to run it,” said Kofoid beside the Roth Motorsports No. 83. “We were able to get our car better, and we needed laps for the car and laps for myself here. In the feature, I just kept getting really good starts.
“I got to the top and it got treacherous after a few laps. If you told me I would be in the Knoxville Nationals after our qualifying night, I would have told you you were crazy and put money on it. We were happy to make a charge like that against a good group of cars.”
“After our prelim last night, I thought there was no way,” said Macedo of his drive to third in the Todd Carlile No. 2c. “Luckily, I have a great group of guys behind me. They went to work and made the car night and day better. Luckily, the track played into what I do best and that’s go up and pound the curb as hard as I can. I was getting nervous with all those cautions. The bottom was getting better and the top was getting a curb. I’m just so happy. This show is so hard to make. I’m pumped.”
“The way we’ve been running this car, making the A main was going to be a big task,” said Pittman of his ride in the Lunstra No. 3L. “I just have to thank Dave and Jamie Lunstra for giving me a chance to race. Race car drivers without great owners are spectators. I’m proud to be locked in. We’ve got a lot of work to do. We’re not really good, but we have the opportunity to improve that tomorrow night.”
64th NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s FVP “Hard Knox” Night Results
Time Trials Group One (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 1A-Ashton Torgerson, Glendale, AZ, 00:15.510[7]; 2. 3L-Daryn Pittman, Owasso, OK, 00:15.597[29]; 3. 5-Brenham Crouch, Lubbock, TX, 00:15.717[5]; 4. 5W-Lucas Wolfe, Mechanicsburg, PA, 00:15.769[6]; 5. 83H-Justin Henderson, Tea, SD, 00:15.769[22]; 6. 13-Daison Pursley, Locust Grove, OK, 00:15.770[28]; 7. 6K-Kaleb Johnson, Sioux Falls, SD, 00:15.775[15]; 8. 39M-Anthony Macri, Dillsburg, PA, 00:15.786[16]; 9. 27-Carson McCarl, Altoona, IA, 00:15.826[30]; 10. 15-Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND, 00:15.907[35]; 11. 25-Tim Kaeding, San Jose, CA, 00:15.919[2]; 12. 6B-Brandon Wimmer, Fairmount, IN, 00:15.938[3]; 13. 23L-Jimmy Light, Pittsboro, IN, 00:15.940[1]; 14. 88T-Tanner Thorson, Minden, NV, 00:15.952[8]; 15. 28M-Conner Morrell, Bradenton, FL, 00:15.961[19]; 16. 83-Michael Kofoid, Penngrove, CA, 00:15.976[18]; 17. 4W-Jamie Ball, Knoxville, IA, 00:15.986[13]; 18. 17GP-Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, PA, 00:15.988[14]; 19. 52-Blake Hahn, Sapulpa, OK, 00:16.007[10]; 20. 18T-Tanner Holmes, Jacksonville, OR, 00:16.019[12]; 21. 99-Skylar Gee, Leduc, ALB, Can., 00:16.040[21]; 22. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg, Sikeston, MO, 00:16.072[31]; 23. 19H-Kevin Thomas Jr, Cullman, AL, 00:16.075[23]; 24. 4-Matt Wasmund, Jackson, MN, 00:16.088[4]; 25. 44-Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA, 00:16.109[17]; 26. 11-Roger Crockett, Broken Arrow, OK, 00:16.188[11]; 27. 22-Riley Goodno, Knoxville, IA, 00:16.206[32]; 28. 53-Jack Dover, Springfield, NE, 00:16.215[9]; 29. 3-Ayrton Gennetten, Gravois Mills, MO, 00:16.219[34]; 30. 36-Jason Martin, Lincoln, NE, 00:16.290[20]; 31. 09-Matt Juhl, Tea, SD, 00:16.318[27]; 32. 65-Jordan Goldesberry, Springfield, IL, 00:16.537[24]; 33. 40-Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD, 00:16.540[25]; 34. 44X-Scotty Johnson, Melcher-Dallas, IA, 00:16.888[26]; 35. 10W-Matt VanderVere, Burlington, WI, 00:17.199[33]
Time Trials Group Two (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 55V-Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust., 00:15.701[9]; 2. 2-David Gravel, Watertown, CT, 00:15.726[2]; 3. 23D-Chase Dietz, York, PA, 00:15.890[4]; 4. 2M-JJ Hickle, Quilcene, WA, 00:16.068[23]; 5. 1TAZ-Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA, 00:16.148[21]; 6. G5-Gage Pulkrabek, East Grand Forks, MN, 00:16.166[1]; 7. 2C-Cole Macedo, Lemoore, CA, 00:16.213[22]; 8. 1K-Kelby Watt, Adel, IA, 00:16.311[13]; 9. 9R-Chase Randall, Waco, TX, 00:16.313[15]; 10. 24T-Christopher Thram, Sanborn, MN, 00:16.349[14]; 11. 1-Sammy Swindell, Germantown, TN, 00:16.352[12]; 12. 3P-Sawyer Phillips, Pleasantville, IA, 00:16.364[10]; 13. 67-Justin Whittall, Vincentown, NJ, 00:16.403[8]; 14. 23W-Scott Winters, Butterfield, MN, 00:16.405[20]; 15. 32B-Brandon Spithaler, Butler, PA, 00:16.407[11]; 16. 6-Zach Hampton, Plainfield, IN, 00:16.424[17]; 17. 27B-Jake Bubak, Arvada, CO, 00:16.438[28]; 18. 21H-Brady Bacon, Broken Arrow, OK, 00:16.444[16]; 19. 24D-Danny Sams III, North Port, FL, 00:16.507[25]; 20. 87-Justin Sanders, Aromas, CA, 00:16.512[32]; 21. 2KS-Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust., 00:16.564[7]; 22. 33W-Cap Henry, Republic, OH, 00:16.592[5]; 23. 15JR-Cole Mincer, Burlington, IA, 00:16.645[6]; 24. 8-Jacob Hughes, Hartford, SD, 00:16.667[34]; 25. 49J-Josh Schneiderman, West Burlington, IA, 00:16.714[31]; 26. 45X-Landon Crawley, Benton, AR, 00:16.754[27]; 27. 85J-Logan Julien, Oconomowoc, WI, 00:16.835[18]; 28. 10V-Ben Brown, Marshall, MO, 00:16.842[24]; 29. 74-Xavier Doney, Odessa, MO, 00:16.889[33]; 30. 16G-Austyn Gossel, Fort Collins, CO, 00:16.942[30]; 31. 15J-Jack Potter, Lee’s Summit, MO, 00:17.085[26]; 32. 121-RJ Johnson, Tampa, FL, 00:17.086[3]; 33. 11N-Kasey Jedrzejek, Lagrange, OH, 00:17.135[29]; 34. 42-Sye Lynch, Cowansville, PA, NT[19]
First Heat (started), 8 Laps, NT: 1. 15-Donny Schatz[1]; 2. 1A-Ashton Torgerson[4]; 3. 5W-Lucas Wolfe[3] / 4. 83-Michael Kofoid[6] 5. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[8]; 6. 44-Chris Martin[9]; 7. 52-Blake Hahn[7]; 8. 09-Matt Juhl[11]; 9. 44X-Scotty Johnson[12] / 10. 53-Jack Dover[10]; 11. 23L-Jimmy Light[5]; 12. 6K-Kaleb Johnson[2]
Second Heat (started), 8 Laps, 2:13.5: 1. 39M-Anthony Macri[2]; 2. 3L-Daryn Pittman[4]; 3. 83H-Justin Henderson[3] / 4. 25-Tim Kaeding[1]; 5. 4W-Jamie Ball[6]; 6. 19H-Kevin Thomas Jr[8]; 7. 18T-Tanner Holmes[7]; 8. 88T-Tanner Thorson[5]; 9. 3-Ayrton Gennetten[9] / 10. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[10]; 11. 10W-Matt VanderVere[11]; DNS – 11-Roger Crockett
Third Heat (started), 8 Laps, 2:15.3: 1. 6B-Brandon Wimmer[1]; 2. 27-Carson McCarl[2]; 3. 13-Daison Pursley[3] / 4. 5-Brenham Crouch[4]; 5. 99-Skylar Gee[7]; 6. 17GP-Tim Shaffer[6]; 7. 22-Riley Goodno[9]; 8. 28M-Conner Morrell[5]; 9. 40-Clint Garner[11] / 10. 36-Jason Martin[10]; 11. 4-Matt Wasmund[8]
Fourth Heat (started), 8 Laps, 2:14.1: 1. 2C-Cole Macedo[2]; 2. 24T-Christopher Thram[1]; 3. 55V-Kerry Madsen[4] / 4. 2M-JJ Hickle[3]; 5. 67-Justin Whittall[5]; 6. 33W-Cap Henry[8]; 7. 6-Zach Hampton[6]; 8. 24D-Danny Sams III[7]; 9. 49J-Josh Schneiderman[9] / 10. 10V-Ben Brown[10]; 11. 15J-Jack Potter[11]; DNS – 42-Sye Lynch
Fifth Heat (started), 8 Laps, 2:24.5: 1. 2-David Gravel[4]; 2. 1K-Kelby Watt[2]; 3. 1-Sammy Swindell[1] / 4. 27B-Jake Bubak[6]; 5. 1TZ-Tasker Phillips[3]; 6. 87-Justin Sanders[7]; 7. 45X-Landon Crawley[9]; 8. 15JR-Cole Mincer[8]; 9. 74-Xavier Doney[10] / 10. 23W-Scott Winters[5]; 11. 121-RJ Johnson[11]
Sixth Heat (started), 8 Laps, 2:39.0: 1. 9R-Chase Randall[2]; 2. 3P-Sawyer Phillips[1]; 3. 23D-Chase Dietz[4] / 4. 21H-Brady Bacon[6]; 5. 2KS-Brooke Tatnell[7]; 6. G5-Gage Pulkrabek[3]; 7. 8-Jacob Hughes[8]; 8. 85J-Logan Julien[9]; 9. 32B-Brandon Spithaler[5] / 10. 16G-Austyn Gossel[10]; 11. 11N-Kasey Jedrzejek[11]
C Main (started), 10 Laps, 3:23.0: 1. 53-Jack Dover[1]; 2. 10V-Ben Brown[2]; 3. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[3]; 4. 16G-Austyn Gossel[5] / 5. 23W-Scott Winters[4]; 6. 23L-Jimmy Light[6]; 7. 10W-Matt VanderVere[8]; 8. 4-Matt Wasmund[10]; 9. 121-RJ Johnson[9]; 10. 11N-Kasey Jedrzejek[11]; 11. 15J-Jack Potter[7]; DNS – 36-Jason Martin; 6K-Kaleb Johnson; 42-Sye Lynch; 11-Roger Crockett
First B Main (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. 83-Michael Kofoid[1]; 2. 4W-Jamie Ball[5]; 3. 99-Skylar Gee[6] / 4. 22-Riley Goodno[12]; 5. 25-Tim Kaeding[2]; 6. 17GP-Tim Shaffer[9]; 7. 44-Chris Martin[7]; 8. 19H-Kevin Thomas Jr[8]; 9. 18T-Tanner Holmes[11]; 10. 52-Blake Hahn[10]; 11. 3-Ayrton Gennetten[16]; 12. 53-Jack Dover[18]; 13. 09-Matt Juhl[13]; 14. 44X-Scotty Johnson[15]; 15. 28M-Conner Morrell[14]; 16. 40-Clint Garner[17]; 17. 65-Jordan Goldesberry[19]; 18. 5-Brenham Crouch[3]; 19. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[4]; DNS – 88T-Tanner Thorson
Second B Main (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. 67-Justin Whittall[4]; 2. 2M-JJ Hickle[1]; 3. 33W-Cap Henry[7] / 4. 87-Justin Sanders[8]; 5. 1TZ-Tasker Phillips[5]; 6. 21H-Brady Bacon[3]; 7. 2KS-Brooke Tatnell[6]; 8. 74-Xavier Doney[17]; 9. 6-Zach Hampton[10]; 10. 24D-Danny Sams III[13]; 11. 45X-Landon Crawley[11]; 12. 8-Jacob Hughes[12]; 13. 85J-Logan Julien[15]; 14. 49J-Josh Schneiderman[16]; 15. 16G-Austyn Gossel[20]; 16. 32B-Brandon Spithaler[18]; 17. 15JR-Cole Mincer[14]; 18. G5-Gage Pulkrabek[9]; 19. 10V-Ben Brown[19]; 20. 27B-Jake Bubak[2]
Feature (started), 26 Laps, NT: 1. 2-David Gravel[4]; 2. 83-Michael Kofoid[19]; 3. 2C-Cole Macedo[8]; 4. 3L-Daryn Pittman[3]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz[15]; 6. 1A-Ashton Torgerson[1]; 7. 13-Daison Pursley[9]; 8. 39M-Anthony Macri[11]; 9. 1K-Kelby Watt[10]; 10. 23D-Chase Dietz[6]; 11. 9R-Chase Randall[12]; 12. 33W-Cap Henry[24]; 13. 83H-Justin Henderson[7]; 14. 99-Skylar Gee[23]; 15. 5W-Lucas Wolfe[5]; 16. 3P-Sawyer Phillips[18]; 17. 24T-Christopher Thram[14]; 18. 1-Sammy Swindell[16]; 19. 55V-Kerry Madsen[2]; 20. 6B-Brandon Wimmer[17]; 21. 2M-JJ Hickle[22]; 22. 4W-Jamie Ball[21]; 23. 27-Carson McCarl[13]; 24. 67-Justin Whittall[20].
