PARAGON, Ind. — Before last year’s Indiana Midget Week, there had not been a USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series event at Paragon Speedway in 35 years.
The generation-plus absence had provided a myriad of questions — will the midgets put on a good show and with no previous experience on the track, who would be the frontrunners?
The 2020 show was a resounding success, and now the three-eighths-mile dirt oval will host the opener for the 17th edition of Indiana Midget Week June 3. This year’s Indiana Midget Week boasts the largest schedule ever with eight races in a 10-night span.
Kyle Larson, who is not expected to compete in this year’s Indiana Midget Week, won the last year’s opener at Paragon with a late-race pass of Tanner Thorson. He also broke Mel Kenyon’s 35-year-old track record by more a second and half with a 14.813-second lap.
Thorson led a race-high 16 laps before, ultimately, finishing second behind Larson. The 2016 series champion owns four career Indiana Midget Week victories, and is fourth in USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget points entering this year’s series.
Second in the series standings is reigning USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget champ Chris Windom, a two-time Indiana Midget Week feature victor, who blitzed from 12th to fourth in last year’s Paragon feature after winning the semi-feature earlier in the evening.
Justin Grant, the third ranking driver in series points coming in, took fifth in the Paragon feature event after starting seventh. The defending USAC Silver Crown champ and one-time IMW feature winner won his heat race earlier that same night.
Logan Seavey was the biggest charger at Paragon a year ago, driving to the victory in the C-main; then went 15th to fourth in the semi; and 22nd to eighth in the feature. The 2019 Indiana Midget Week champ, and one-time IMW winner, was also the 2018 USAC National Midget titlist and is 10th in the series standings at the moment.
Current USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget point leader Buddy Kofoid is eying his first Indiana Midget Week victory after finishing 9th in last year’s Paragon IMW opener.
Kevin Thomas Jr. finished 10th in his 2020 Paragon IMW run.
Other feature starters from last year at Paragon looking to return to the lineup and contend for a win include Thomas Meseraull, Jake Neuman, Daison Pursley, Cole Bodine, Brady Bacon and Cannon McIntosh. Pursley finished third with the USAC Regional Midgets at Paragon in August.
Looking for better fortune this time around after missing the feature lineup last year at Paragon are current top-25 points runners Jason McDougal, Ethan Mitchell, Hayden Reinbold, Kyle Cummins and Kaylee Bryson. Cummins finished second with the USAC Regional Midgets at Paragon in August with Bryson fourth and Reinbold fifth.
Top-20 points drivers hopeful to make their first Paragon IMW appearance a success are Emerson Axsom, who led all 20 laps en route to victory in an August 2020 appearance with the USAC Regional Midgets. Axsom also picked up his first USAC National Midget win at Kokomo (Ind.) Speedway in April.
He’s joined by top-ranking series Rookie Bryant Wiedeman, plus fellow Rookies of the Year contenders Chase Randall, Brenham Crouch and Brian Carber.
Thursday’s Indiana Midget Week round at Paragon features the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship along with the Paragon Sprint Cars.