TULSA, Okla. — Going back-to-back in A-Class at the Lucas Oil Tulsa Shootout, California’s Jake Hagopian became a three-time Golden Driller winner Saturday at Tulsa Expo Raceway.
Hagopian earned the pole in Saturday’s A-Feature and led the distance. Finding traffic quickly, he steered the No. 14q through the back markers quickly while Ricky Thornton Jr. chased.
Moving lines around the race’s mid-point, Thornton brought the distance down several times, only to have traffic hand the car lengths back.
Cautions during the second half of the feature, the final two saw Thornton and Emerson Axsom both shoot to the cushion while Hagopian continued to hustle the bottom. Never breaking stride, Hagopian used the final three laps to pull a .982-second advantage.
Thornton held off the challenge of Axsom and Tim Buckwalter on both restarts to capture second. Axsom grabbed third, with Buckwalter and Cody Christensen completing the top five.
The stock division saw 375 drivers officially draw in for the 2023 event.
The finish:
Feature (30 Laps): 1. 14Q-Jake Hagopian[1]; 2. 20R-Ricky Thornton Jr[4]; 3. 10A-Emerson Axsom[2]; 4. 71-Tim Buckwalter[6]; 5. 88X-Cody Christensen[5]; 6. 7J-Michael Faccinto[7]; 7. 20-Kyle Spence[15]; 8. 36K-Kris Carroll[8]; 9. 17E-Kaylee Esgar[11]; 10. 53X-Daniel Robinson[21]; 11. 86-Zach Wigal[9]; 12. 71K-Daison Pursley[20]; 13. 10Z-Dominic Gorden[17]; 14. 39-Russ Disinger[23]; 15. 4X-Teagen Moles[12]; 16. 11G-Avery Goodman[3]; 17. 89-Jace Park[13]; 18. 21J-Kameron Key[19]; 19. 3J-Cale Coons[16]; 20. 26M-Gavin Miller[14]; 21. 10S-Shane Stewart[10]; 22. 39H-Colton Hardy[18]; 23. (DNF) 77R-Robbie Smith[22]; 24. (DNS) 83X-Jett Hays