TWICE AS NICE: David Gravel Doubles Down on Friday at Volusia's DIRTcar Nationals

Gravel Leads Big Gator Championship Ahead of Saturday's Finale

BARBERVILLE, FL - February 10, 2023 - In a span of less than seven hours, David Gravel won not one but two World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series Features on Friday at Volusia Speedway Park.

Continuing his torrid tenure at the Barberville, FL 1/2-mile - three consecutive Series wins - Gravel backed up his season-opening victory at 6:08pm by delivering another checkered flag for the Big Game Motorsports #2 at 12:46am, which came after a lengthy rain delay followed by an exceptional recovery by the VSP track crew.

Starting from the inside of row two - adjacent to his fourth starting spot earlier in the day - Gravel took his time in the second outing. He ran third for the first half of the 30-lapper and finally moved past Cory Eliason to take P2 on Lap 14, but a caution on Lap 21 is what set the stage for another Victory Lane trip.

Capitalizing on Buddy Kofoid's decision to brave the bumps into the bottom of turn one, Gravel throttled the Maxim Chassis powered by Morrison Racing Engines around the outside and promptly cleared the Crouch Motorsports #11 in one clean shot through turn two and down the backstretch. From there, he survived one more restart to seal the deal on a $16,000 payout with his fourth DIRTcar Nationals victory.

"It was weird," Gravel recalled on his pass for the lead. "I felt like something suddenly changed because the bottom was the place to be on that long green flag run, but the top - which felt like crap before - was amazing on the restart. I don't know if it was tire temperature or maybe even moisture from the fog, but it worked out great. I think that rough stuff was just enough to upset the car and it bit Buddy when he went to the bottom."

Gravel's 78th career World of Outlaws win was chalked full of notable numbers as he became the second driver to win three-straight events at Volusia, the sixth driver to win two races in one day, and the seventh driver to open the season with back-to-back wins.

He also expanded his lead in the DIRTcar Nationals standings to 12 points over Carson Macedo and 18 points over Logan Schuchart entering Saturday's finale. If he can finish the week on top, it'll mark back-to-back Big Gator Championships for the 30-year-old native of Watertown, CT.

"This place is so competitive, you just never know what can happen on any given night," Gravel noted on their successes, especially after Qualifying 30th on Wednesday. "You slip up the tiniest bit and you give up so much against this field here. I mean these are probably the best 35-ish drivers in the country all here. Somtimes it's so hard to just get that first win out of the way, so knocking two out right from the start feels like a huge confidence boost."

While Graven won for the second time in one day, Buddy Kofoid also ran runner-up to Tod Quiring's #2 for the second time in one day. The 21-year-old native of Penngrove, CA started on the outside pole and passed Cory Eliason for the lead on Lap 11, builting an advantage as large as 2.490 seconds on Lap 18, but the caution flew and negated his hard work. Gravel ultimately capitalized on the restart and forced Buddy to another second-place finish in the Crouch Motorsports #11.

"This one obviously stings a bit more having actually led the race, but overall this is a really great result," Kofoid mentioned. "I have to keep reminding myself that I'm brand new to this place, our team is still relativiely young, and yet we're competing for World of Outlaws wins. I hope we can get tomorrow in to have another shot at winning of those Gators."

Closing out the podium was Logan Schuchart in the Shark Racing, DuraMAX Oil #1S - who wanted just a few more laps to see what he could've done with Kofoid and Gravel ahead of him.

"I started out bad, but got better and better as the race went on," Schuchart said. "I thought we were the fastest car over the last five laps, honestly. You always say you wish you had three more laps, but man I can't help but think of what would've happened. I felt like I had a different line than both of them and was catching then, so I thought it would've been interesting."

Completing Friday's top-10 was Cory Eliason (4th) in the Indy Race Parts #71, Justin Peck (5th) in the Buch Motorsports #13, Brad Sweet (6th) in the Kasey Kahne Racing #49, James McFadedn (7th) in the Roth Motorsports #83, Carson Macedo (8th) in the Jason Johnson Racing #41, Sheldon Haudenschild (9th) in the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17, and Tyler Courtney (10th) in the Clauson-Marshall Racing #7BC.

NOS Notebook (Volusia Speedway Park, 2/10/23)

David Gravel's 78th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series triumph brings him one away from tying Brad Sweet for 11th on the All-Time Win List. His fourth DIRTcar Nationals Gator trophy ties him for ninth-most in event history. He also joined Steve Kinser (2010-11) as the second driver to win three consecutive Series Features at Volusia Speedway Park.

Gravel is the first driver since Donny Schatz - at Volusia during 2017 DIRTcar Nationals - to win two World of Outlaws Features in the same day, and the sixth in history to achieve that feat. He joins a rare club including Steve Kinser (4), Sammy Swindell (3), Donny Schatz (2), Jac Haudenschild (1), and Jeff Swindell (1).

He also became the seventh driver in Series history to win back-to-back races to start a season - joining Daryn Pittman (2019), Steve Kinser (2011, 1991), Andy Hillenburg (2001), Sammy Swindell (1997, 1986), Brad Doty (1987), and Doug Wolfgang (1981).

As the 36th and final qualifier, Logan Schuchart led Low-E Insulation Qualifying at 13.609 seconds - averaging 112 MPH around Volusia's 1/2-mile. It's his 32nd career QuickTime Award, which ranks seventh-most - behind Gravel (89), Sweet (64), Saldana (55), Schatz (37), K. Madsen (35), and Stewart (35) - over his decade span as a full-time World of Outlaws competitor.

For the second night in a row, Schuchart (108th career) also topped the opening CASE No.1 Engine Oil Heat One, while NOS Energy Drink Heats 2-4 were won by Carson Macedo (83rd career), Buddy Kofoid (4th career), and Brent Marks (28th career).

Cory Eliason won the Toyota Dash, earning his seventh career pole position with the World of Outlaws. Through two nights, only Schuchart, Marks, Kofoid & Gravel have qualified for 100% of the Toyota Dashes.

Parker Price-Miller joined Brock Zearfoss as the second winner of the Micro-Lite Last Chance Showdown. One of the most exciting battles of the night was for the final transfer, which went to Tyler Courtney by 0.040 seconds over Kraig Kinser. Courtney would ultimately go on to win the KSE Hard Charger Award, driving from 24th-to-10th in the Feature.

UP NEXT (Sat) - The 52nd annual Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals concludes on Saturday, February 11 at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, FL. The NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars will race for a $16,000-to-win program as the Big Gator Championship is awarded. For fans unable to attend, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (30 Laps) - 1. 2-David Gravel[3]; 2. 11-Michael Kofoid[2]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart[7]; 4. 71-Cory Eliason[1]; 5. 13-Justin Peck[6]; 6. 49-Brad Sweet[14]; 7. 83-James McFadden[11]; 8. 41-Carson Macedo[5]; 9. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[12]; 10. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[24]; 11. 18-Giovanni Scelzi[10]; 12. 19-Brent Marks[4]; 13. 7S-Robbie Price[9]; 14. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss[26]; 15. 48-Danny Dietrich[13]; 16. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[17]; 17. 9-Kasey Kahne[18]; 18. 5T-Ryan Timms[16]; 19. 5-Spencer Bayston[25]; 20. 15-Donny Schatz[15]; 21. 9P-Parker Price Miller[21]; 22. 21-Brian Brown[20]; 23. 11K-Kraig Kinser[27]; 24. 26-Zeb Wise[23]; 25. 20G-Noah Gass[19]; 26. 39M-Anthony Macri[22]; 27. 1A-Jacob Allen[8]; 28. 6-Bill Rose[28]. Lap Leader(s): Cory Eliason 1-10; Buddy Kofoid 11-21; David Gravel 22-30. KSE Hard Charger: Tyler Courtney +14.

NEW Championship Standings (2/87 Races) - 1. 2-David Gravel (300); 2. 11-Buddy Kofoid (-8); 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-16); 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-26); 5. 41-Carson Macedo (-34); 6. 48-Danny Dietrich (-36); 7. 7S-Robbie Price (-38); 8. 19-Brent Marks (-38); 9. 49-Brad Sweet (-48); 83-James McFadden (-48).

FIRST BLOOD: David Gravel Strikes First, Wins 2023 World of Outlaws Season Opener

Big Game Motorsports #2 Overtakes DIRTcar Nationals Point Lead

BARBERVILLE, FL - February 10, 2023 - David Gravel's pursuit of the 2023 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series championship couldn't have started any better than it did on Friday evening - in Victory Lane at Volusia Speedway Park.

Advancing from fourth to first, the Watertown, CT native quickly pounced during the make-up of Thursday's postponed program. He drove the Big Game Motorsports, Huset's Speedway #2 to the point on Lap 11 when he made the most of traffic hindering early leader Anthony Macri.

The final 15 laps were a breeze for the 30-year-old, who drove off into the Florida sun to collect his 77th career win with The Greatest Show on Dirt - currently ranking 12th on the All-Time Win List. The win was Gravel's third at the Barberville, FL 1/2-mile and his second at the track in World of Outlaws competition.

"I really wanted to race last night after how good our car was in the Dash, but I obviously can't complain now," Gravel said in Victory Lane. "You never know when you race early in the day like this, so I was a bit anxious about how it would play out. It's tough on the equipment being wide open like that, but Brian Morrison builds us a great engine. I was actually trying to save tear-offs as much as I could, that was one of my biggest concerns. Cody [Jacobs], Scott [Vogelsong], and Zach [Patterson] are firing on all cylinders right now. It's awesome to start the year this way."

With two DIRTcar Nationals Features remaining on Friday and Saturday night, Gravel now leads the overall points as he chases back-to-back Big Gator Championships. He currently leads Carson Macedo (-2 PTS), Logan Schuchart (-6 PTS), Brad Sweet (-22 PTS), and Buddy Kofoid (-26 PTS).

Making a late-race pass to secure runner-up honors on Friday evening was 21-year-old native of Penngrove, CA, Buddy Kofoid, who is making his first appearance at Volusia Speedway Park this week. It's already his third podium through only 25 starts with the World of Outlaws.

"We've been decent and getting better and better as the week goes on," Kofoid said. "Leighton [Crouch] has given Brad [Alexander], Stephen [Hamm-Reilly], Jakob [Weaver], and I the best operation we could ask for. These half-miles are hard, especially with the Outlaws, so this feels really good to land on the podium."

After failing to qualify for Wednesday's show with the All-Star Circuit of Champions, Danny Dietrich, of Gettysburg, PA completed an impressive turnaround by driving the Gary Kauffman Racing #48 to his 17th career podium with the World of Outlaws. He started from the outside pole and ran second for much of the 25-lapper, but ultimately slipped back to finish third in the closing stages.

"We chose a gear to get up on the top and get going, but I wasn't able to turn off the curb and get the momentum I needed," Dietrich noted. "I'm probably too fat to get around here as fast as David does, but this is nothing to complain about. My guys have worked their asses off all week long and after starting as bad as we did, this feels awesome."

Sheldon Haudenschild in the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17 and Logan Schuchart in the Shark Racing, DuraMAX Oil #1S rounded out the top five in Thursday's make-up Feature.

Closing out the top-10 in the season opener was Canada's Robbie Price in the Sides Motorsports #7S, Pennsylvania's Brent Marks in the Murray-Marks #19, Indiana's Zeb Wise in the Rudeen Racing #26, California's Carson Macedo in the Jason Johnson Racing #41, and Texas' Aaron Reutzel in the RSR #8.

NOS Notebook (Volusia Speedway Park, 2/10/23)

David Gravel's 77th career World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series victory brings him only two away from tying Brad Sweet for 11th on the All-Time Win List. It's his second Series win at Volusia Speedway Park, and third overall win at the DIRTcar Nationals.

The first Low-E Insulation Qualifying session of 2023 was topped by Anthony Macri, clocking a lap of 13.420 seconds around Volusia's 1/2-mile. It's his fifth career World of Outlaws QuickTime Award.

CASE No.1 Engine Oil Heat 1 went to Logan Schuchart (107th career), while NOS Energy Drink Heats 2-4 were won by Brent Marks (27th career), Buddy Kofoid (3rd career), and David Gravel (209th career). Macri won the Toyota Dash, while Bayston won the MicroLite Last Chance Showdown.

After performing nearly flawlessly through preliminary programs, Anthony Macri led the opening 10 laps of the Feature before Gravel passed him on Lap 11. He held the runner-up spot until a mechanical issue forced him to the infield with a DNF on Lap 17.

Through three of five scheduled Features, the top contenders for the Big Gator Championship are David Gravel (424 PTS), Carson Macedo (-2 PTS), Logan Schuchart (-6 PTS), Brad Sweet (-22 PTS), and Buddy Kofoid (-26 PTS).

UP NEXT (Fri-Sat) - The 52nd annual Federated Auto Parts DIRTcar Nationals continues on Friday and Saturday at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, FL. The NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars will race for a $16,000-to-win program both nights as the Big Gator Championship is concluded. For fans unable to attend, you can watch every lap live on DIRTVision.

NOS Energy Drink Feature Results (25 Laps) - 1. 2-David Gravel[4]; 2. 11-Michael Kofoid[3]; 3. 48-Danny Dietrich[2]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[6]; 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart[7]; 6. 7S-Robbie Price[5]; 7. 19-Brent Marks[8]; 8. 26-Zeb Wise[10]; 9. 41-Carson Macedo[11]; 10. 8-Aaron Reutzel[9]; 11. 9-Kasey Kahne[12]; 12. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss[19]; 13. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[14]; 14. 15-Donny Schatz[17]; 15. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[16]; 16. 5-Spencer Bayston[21]; 17. 21-Brian Brown[13]; 18. 83-James McFadden[24]; 19. 49-Brad Sweet[20]; 20. 18-Giovanni Scelzi[26]; 21. 1A-Jacob Allen[23]; 22. 9P-Parker Price Miller[22]; 23. 11K-Kraig Kinser[27]; 24. 20G-Noah Gass[15]; 25. 39M-Anthony Macri[1]; 26. 17B-Bill Balog[18]; 27. 6-Bill Rose[25]; 28. 5D-Jacob Dykstra[28]. Lap Leader(s): Anthony Macri 1-10; David Gravel 11-25. KSE Hard Charger Award: Brock Zearfoss +7.

NEW Championship Standings (1/87 Races) - 1. 2-David Gravel (150); 2. 11-Buddy Kofoid (-4); 3. 48-Danny Dietrich (-6); 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-8); 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-10); 6. 7S-Robbie Price (-12); 7. 19-Brent Marks (-14); 8. 26-Zeb Wise (-16); 9.