SPEEDWAY, Ind. — It was just a few short years ago that Mitchel Moles hung up the racing helmet and suit to go full-time bass fishing.
Now, with the fishing line reeled in and the worms in the tackle box, the 22-year-old driver is going full-time with the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship for CB Industries.
Moles, the Raisin City, Calif., native who now resides in Oklahoma with Gene and Dennis Gile and builds an array of race cars for a living, is fifth in the standings following finishes of 10th and 5th in his first two outings of the year in February at Florida’s Bubba Raceway Park.
Getting to go full-time USAC National Midget racing is a sweet deal in itself but getting the opportunity to do it with the same team (and car number) that Chris Windom won the 2020 series with, that has Moles grinning, knowing he’s in good hands moving forward.
“I think (team owner) Chad (Boat) and (crew chief) Grant (Penn) run a really great operation,” Moles said. “I can’t thank those guys enough for giving me a shot and we’ll see what we can do coming up here this season.”
Moles began his racing career like so many others, racking up wins in quarter midgets before moving onto Restricted 600 and Non-Wing Micro Sprints in his native California. A half-decade foray into the world of fishing came next during his teenage years as he competed with the Fishing League Worldwide Pro Series and in local tournaments.
“I was all-in, fishing five days a week, every day,” Moles explained. “I fished on the weekends for money, then went fishing during the week with the money I made on the weekends.”
At times, though, when the summers in California became a bit too toasty, the fishing activities slowed down. Moles found himself at the racetrack one summer day and met a friend and past crew chief who offered him an opportunity to jump back into the seat.
A few races later, Moles was already back in victory lane and the professional fishing career was officially put on hold and his racing career resumed.
While racing his father’s winged sprint car and competing in micro sprints – he won the Tulsa Shootout Winged Outlaw feature in 2021 – Moles also found work as a crew member for Matt Wood Racing.
He later found his way into the cockpit of one of Wood’s midgets and earned a USAC Western States Midget victory in April of 2021 at Hanford, California’s Keller Auto Speedway at Kings Fairgrounds.
He had more spurts of success racing sparingly on the national circuit, but he caught the attention of many when he powered past Kyle Larson to score a career-best third-place finish in November’s Turkey Night Grand Prix at Ventura (Calif.) Raceway, which earned him Don Basile Rookie of the Race honors.
Considering his knack as a quick study and the success he’s already accumulated thus far, combined with competing for a championship caliber team has given him high expectations, although it’s still the same he’s always expected from himself every time he’s ever strapped into a race car.
“My expectations are the same anywhere I go, no matter where I go,” Moles said. “Second is unacceptable. Sixth through tenth is its own league. Second through fifth is its own league. But there’s nothing like winning.”