TULSA, Okla. — After five nights of prelim racing, with 10 drivers locked into Saturday’s A main at the 38th annual Chili Bowl Nationals, it’s time to rank the top prospects to win the $20,000 affair.
1. Logan Seavey
After a seventh-to-first effort in Friday’s thrilling preliminary event, it would be difficult not to slot the defending Chili Bowl winner as the favorite in Saturday’s 55-lap feature.
Not only that, but Seavey also won the Invitational Race of Champions on Monday night and drew the “1” for Saturday’s pole shuffle — meaning he’ll start no worse than second in Kevin Swindell’s No. 39 midget. The pole shuffle will be a one-on-one time trial format amongst the 10 drivers who are currently locked in.
All that to say, Seavey is carrying considerable confidence after his preliminary performance on Friday and will be difficult to beat with a front-row starting position.
2. Spencer Bayston
The No. 1s RMS Racing midget led every lap during Thursday’s 30-lap feature with Bayston at the helm, quickly gapping the field after taking off from the pole.
Bayston still has a lot to prove after his DNF in Saturday’s A main in 2023 — a result he calls “self-inflicted” — and his flip during Sunday practice, but he’ll have some of the pressure off his shoulders with a better starting position this time around.
He drew a “5” for the pole shuffle.
3. Buddy Kofoid
After being the high-point man on Tuesday, earning his second career preliminary win and locking into his fourth championship feature, expect Kofoid to be a man on a mission on Saturday as he hunts down his first Golden Driller.
He’s been close enough to taste it in years past, with his highest finish being fourth in 2022.
But after his bad luck inside the SageNet Center last year that led him to finish in a D main, the No. 71w Keith Kunz Motorsports driver is hot in pursuit of redemption.
He drew a “4” for the pole shuffle, which is a time-trial format.
4. Tanner Thorson
At this point, it would be foolish to count out Thorson and his No. 88 midget when it comes to a potential Chili Bowl winner.
The California native won in 2022, narrowly finished second to Seavey in 2023 and continues to impress upon the fact that he’s “here to win.”
Thorson finished second in his prelim on Thursday night against a stacked field. While he didn’t catch Bayston for the lead, Thorson raged fierce battles against Ricky Thornton Jr. and C.J. Leary in his fight for the runner-up spot after starting fourth.
He drew the “6” for Saturday’s pole shuffle.
5. Corey Day
While he typically isn’t a midget driver, the fact hasn’t seemed to matter much for Day this week.
Driving the No. 41 for Willie Kahne, the 18-year-old earned a prelim win by leading every lap on Wednesday night in only his third Chili Bowl appearance. Experience may not be on his side, but speed certainly is and Day has proven he can do it before.
He finished second to Kyle Larson in the Hangtown 100 this past November.
Day also drew a “3” for the pole shuffle.
Who Else To Watch
Ryan Timms was flying in his preliminary feature on Friday and lead 20 of 30 laps in his No. 67 Keith Kunz Motorsports midget. He held off Seavey for several laps at the end, and was hard to catch early on in the feature.
After placing second during Tuesday’s qualifier, Hank Davis is a little bit of a sleeper, although he shouldn’t be. He was especially strong in lapped traffic towards the conclusion of the prelim and was reeling in Kofoid. Davis is also hoping to rewrite his record in the A main, as he was spun in last year’s feature and finished 20th.
While they haven’t secured a spot in the A main yet, a few hard chargers could include Emerson Axsom, C.J. Leary, Cannon McIntosh, Chase McDermand and Jade Avedisian.