KNOXVILLE, Iowa — It was an old-fashioned butt-kicking Saturday night at Knoxville Raceway as a sold-out crowd watched Kyle Larson lead all 50 laps of the 62nd annual NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals.
No one got close to the driver of the Paul Silva-prepared No. 57 sprint car as Larson, who started from the pole after being the high point earner through the two qualifying nights, cruised to his second Nationals triumph in the past three years and a $185,000 payday.
“I was praying for no cautions and it all just worked out,” said Larson after his ninth sprint car victory of the season. “Thanks to the fans. This is my favorite weekend of the year. I look forward to it all year long and you guys make it worthwhile. Paul Silva (car owner and crew chief) works so hard and it is so great to see his hard work pay off. I love him. There is no one else like him.”
David Gravel romped from 22nd on the grid to finish second in the Big Game Motorsports No. 2, while 11-time race winner Donny Schatz came home third.
Gravel crashed on his qualifying night and earned a berth in the A-main by finishing second in Friday’s Hard Knox program.
“Did you like that show from the back?” asked Gravel, who won the Nationals in 2019. “I want to be a two-time winner of the Knoxville Nationals so bad. Two seconds in a row now. Last year I gave one away and tonight I just needed a couple more laps. These Nationals, they till the top and it’s really fast around the top.”
Gravel was seventh at the halfway break and just kept pushing the cushion around the historic half-mile track, getting by Schatz for second with eight laps remaining.
“Gravel had me nervous coming from 22nd or whatever he did,” Larson acknowledged.
Schatz, who won last year’s Nationals and started third, chased Larson throughout the event and ultimately finished third after a torrid fight with Gio Scelzi and Carson Macedo.
“Hats off to Kyle,” Schatz said. “He was in another zip code.”
Scelzi and Macedo completed the top five.
Larson was the second driver to lead all 50 laps. Schatz turned the trick in 2015.
“I just wanted to win. I didn’t car how many laps I led,” Larson said. “I only cared about leading the last one. It was such a fast pace that I really felt like it was going to be difficult for guys to get around me. Track position is important in any kind of race you may be in.”
Cody Ihlen was involved in a vicious crash on the start of the E main and had to be cut from his No. 105 sprint car. He was transported to the hospital in Des Moines.
Matt Covington flipped his No. 95 during the D main and was also transported to the hospital. According to Covington’s Facebook page, he was awake, alert and undergoing CT scans late on Saturday night.
The Boxscore
E Main (10 laps): Brooke Tatnell, Chris Martin, Kevin Thomas Jr., Austin Bishop, Rusty Hickman, A.J. Moeller, Chase Dietz, Kevin Ingle, Jordan Goldesberry, Cole Mincer, R.J. Johnson, Landon Hansen, Matt Wasmund, Bill Rose, Bill Wagner, Frank Rodgers, Gage Pulkrabek, Cody Ihlen.
D Main (12 laps): Lachlan McHugh, Zach Hampton, Kade Higday, Mark Dobmeier, Kraig Kinser, Cap Henry, Cole Macedo, Kalib Henry, Brook Tatnell, Don Droud Jr., Rusty Hickman, Terry McCarl, Kevin Thomas Jr., Skylar Prochaska, McKenna Haase, Kevin Ingle, Chase Dietz, Harli White, Austin Bishop, Matt Covington, A.J. Moeller, J.J. Hickle, Jordan Goldesberry.
C Main (15 laps): Lynton Jeffrey, Justin Sanders, Tim Kaeding, Bill Balog, Shane Golobic, Robbie Price, Tanner Holmes, Chris Windom, Kelby Watt, Blake Hahn, Jake Bubak, Ayrton Gennetten, Dylan Cisney, Brock Zearfoss, Lachlan McHugh, Clint Garner, Sawyer Phillips, Zach Hampton, Kade Higday, Kraig Kinser, Brenham Crouch, Sye Lynch, Christopher Thram, Mark Dobmeier.
B Main (22 laps): Justin Peck, Parker Price-Miller, Brian Brown, Sheldon Haudenschild, Brent Marks, Garet Williamson, Kasey Kahne, Shane Stewart, Zeb Wise, Dustin Selvage, Ryan Timms, Cory Eliason, Tim Kaeding, Bill Balog, Brady Bacon, Austin McCarl, Justin Sanders, Lynton Jeffrey, Kaleb Johnson, Jamie Ball, Brandon Wimmer, Tasker Phillips, James McFadden, Justin Henderson.
Feature (50 laps): Kyle Larson, David Gravel, Donny Schatz, Gio Scelzi, Carson Macedo, Brad Sweet, Rico Abreu, Buddy Kofoid, Kerry Madsen, Sheldon Haudenschild, Spencer Bayston, Corey Day, Chase Randall, Brian Brown, Ian Madsen, Aaron Reutzel, Dusty Zomer, Parker Price-Miller, Justin Peck, Anthony Macri, Davey Heskin, Scott Bogucki, Logan Schuchart, Hunter Schuerenberg.
