Kyle Larson Defends Chili Bowl Title At Tulsa Expo
Everyone was gunning for defending Chili Bowl champion Kyle Larson, but no one could catch him.
Larson led every lap of the 35th annual race Saturday at the Tulsa Expo.
The Chili Bowl has had multiple consecutive champions in recent years. First, it was Kevin Swindell who won four in a row. Then, it was Rico Abreu who followed up with two Chili Bowl wins of his own.
Abreu was followed by Norman native Christopher Bell, who won three titles.
Now, it’s Larson who has secured back-to-back Chili Bowl titles.
5 Things You Need to Know before Chili Bowl Saturday Alphabet Soup runs throughout the day.
The Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is dirt racing’s version of the WWE Royal Rumble.
In the Rumble, 30 professional wrestlers periodically enter the ring over the course of an hour, with eliminations taking place as a result of one participant sending another over the top rope.
In the Chili Bowl, instead of 30 participants, there s more than 350, and eliminations occur when competitors fail to finish brief sprint races within the highest percentage of the field.
The first main elimination race, typically lettered N or O starts at 10:30 in the morning, Eastern Time, and races continue in reverse alphabetical order throughout the day.
Mixed Bag for Chase Elliott in Chili Bowl Prelim Debut
The reigning NASCAR Cup champion will begin the Alphabet Soup from a F-Main.
Chase Elliott finished P8 in his Prelim B-Main and will start Saturday in a F.
This isn t a one-off appearance on dirt for the NASCAR star.
NASCAR Cup Series champion Chase Elliott received an education on Wednesday during his debut appearance in a Chili Bowl Midget Nationals preliminary effort.
He received an education, but he earned passing grades, too.
For those who do not typically watch Chili Bowl, there are five nights of preliminary races and each of the 300-plus entrants compete in only one of the five nights that lead up to the alphabet soup on Saturday.
Notable Stats From The Lucas Oil Tulsa Shootout Dec 29, 2020 FloRacing Staff
Before the 36th annual Lucas Oil Tulsa Shootout fires off this week, let’s review some of the most noteworthy statistical finds from the “Mecca of Micros.”
ENTRY EXPLOSION: Since becoming a micro-based event in 2011, car counts at the Tulsa Shootout have skyrocketed. That year in ’11, they welcomed 715 entries; last year in 2020, they nearly doubled that total with a staggering record of 1,384 entries. In fact, five of the last six events have boasted four-figure numbers.
Amazingly enough, the ’20 Tulsa Shootout (35th annual) broke almost every record imaginable with numbers including 333 cars in Stock Non-Wing, 309 cars in A-Class, 306 cars in Outlaw Non-Wing, 224 cars in Winged Outlaw, 112 cars in Restricted, and 69 cars in Jr. Sprints.
A Deep Dive Into Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals Stat Book Unlock this video, live events, and more with a subscription! Get Started
BY THE NUMBERS: 2,000+ drivers have attempted the Tulsa spectacle. Of those, 640 drivers have qualified for a preliminary feature. To narrow it down more, only 244 drivers have started Saturday’s main event. From that group, only 21 drivers have claimed a Lucas Oil Chili Bowl championship. Then, an elite seven drivers have multiple Golden Drillers, including Kevin Swindell, who has amassed four of the coveted trophies. Unlock this video, live events, and more with a subscription! Get Started
PASSING POINTS: Since the expansion to five preliminary nights in 2019, the average total needed to make a preliminary feature straight from qualifiers (Top 16) is 179.6 points. In 2019… Mon (177); Tues (178.5); Wed (175.5); Thur (184.5); Fri (181). In 2020… Mon (170.5.); Tues (185.5); Wed (177.5); Thur (185.5); Fri (180.5).