(Photo by Trent Gower Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – ROSSBURG, Ohio (July 18, 2023) – David Gravel led Big Game Motorsports to five top fives during five straight nights of racing in Ohio last week.
It began a week ago Tuesday during the Ohio Logistics Brad Doty Classic at Attica Raceway Park in Attica, where Gravel qualified fourth quickest in his group. A runner-up result in a heat race was followed by an eighth-place finish in the dash. Gravel gained a trio of positions in the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series main event to garner his 30th top five of the season.
“I felt like we struggled in the middle of the night, but by feature-time we got the car better,” he said. “The track was tricky with a big cushion and the top was the dominant groove. Later in the feature I got the wing back and started working down the track. I liked where we finished compared to where we were in the dash. We made big strides.”
The impressive run also propelled Gravel into the lead in the World of Outlaws championship standings.
The next four nights were spent at Eldora Speedway with the Eldora Million beginning on Wednesday. Gravel set quick time during qualifying and hustled from eighth to fourth place in a heat race. He picked up four positions in the feature during a third-place run.
“We qualified good and heat raced well,” he said. “In the A Main I felt we were almost too good too early. In the middle part of that race we got out of the track a little bit. I was also a little conservative as a driver. I knew we were in good shape and just needed a solid run. It was a good effort overall to put us in a good position in points.”
Gravel ranked third in event points following the Eldora Million preliminary night, which placed him on the pole of a heat race on Thursday. He won that to make the feature redraw and Gravel pulled the No. 5 to garner the fifth starting position in the A Main that paid a record $1,000,000 to the winner.
“The pill draw was the biggest part of the Eldora Million,” he said. “We drew the No. 5. We were back as far as sixth at one point. We closed on Brad (Sweet) and Carson (Macedo) at the end, but the track was so fast. There wasn’t much passing. We were charging at the end, but needed more laps because the track was lightning fast.”
Gravel ended with a fourth-place result.
Friday showcased the Knight Before the Kings Royal. Gravel qualified eighth quickest in his group and finished fourth in a heat race to lock into the 15th starting spot in the A Main. He charged forward 10 positions – the second-most cars passed – in the feature to score a fifth-place finish.
“We drew a late pill that night and the track slowed down in qualifying,” he said. “We had to start fourth in our heat with a lot of good guys in front of us. Starting 15th in the feature, we knew we had to pass some race cars. Cody (Jacobs) made the right calls as we were able to pass some cars. We were good at the end.”
The busy week concluded on Saturday with the 40th annual Kings Royal. Gravel timed in 33rd quickest to catch the heat race inversion. He won a heat race from the pole position to garner the fourth starting position in the $175,000-to-win main event.
“It was a unique circumstance with the rain,” he said. “We put ourselves in position to win that race. It was another fast race track. Donny (Schatz) had the fastest car and the fastest car won. We tried to give it all we could on the restarts and ended up third. It was disappointing not to win that race, but Donny had the fastest car with that unique race track.”
Gravel finished third, which tied his career-best outing at the marquee event.
This week’s World of Outlaws races are Wednesday at BAPS Motor Speedway in York Haven, Pa., for the World of Outlaws Bricker’s Bash and Friday and Saturday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., for the Champion Racing Oil Summer Nationals.
QUICK RESULTS –
July 11 – Attica Raceway Park in Attica, Ohio – Qualifying: 4; Heat race: 2 (2); Dash: 8 (5); Feature: 5 (8).
July 12 – Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio – Qualifying: 1; Heat race: 4 (8); Feature: 3 (7).
July 13 – Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio – Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 4 (5).
July 14 – Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio – Qualifying: 8; Heat race: 4 (4); Feature: 5 (15).
July 15 – Eldora Speedway near Rossburg, Ohio – Qualifying: 33; Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 3 (4).
SEASON STATS –
45 races, 8 wins, 34 top fives, 41 top 10s, 43 top 15s, 43 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Wednesday at BAPS Motor Speedway in York Haven, Pa., for the World of Outlaws Bricker’s Bash and Friday and Saturday at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., for the Champion Racing Oil Summer Nationals with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BigGameMotorspt
HUSET’S SPEEDWAY –
Huset’s Speedway is a dirt oval located in Brandon, S.D. The track opened in 1954 and has undergone a large renovation within the last few years, making it a premier destination for both marquee racing events and weekly programs. For more information, visit http://www.HusetsSpeedway.com.
JACKSON MOTORPLEX –
Jackson Motorplex is a 4/10-mile dirt oval located in Jackson, Minn. It hosts special events from May through August, including races with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, Midwest Power Series, Midwest Sprint Touring Series and more. For more information, visit http://www.JacksonMotorplex.com.
TICKET LINK –
To purchase online tickets for events at either Huset’s Speedway or at Jackson Motorplex, visit http://mpv.tickets.com/schedule/?agency=JKMV_PL_MPV&orgid=55369#/?view=list&includePackages=true.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Jul 18, 2023
- Article Date: 7/18/2023 by Inside Line Promotions