We knew the heat races for one million dollars were going to be crazy, but did we think they would be 40 minutes long? Heat one of the final night of the Eldora Million provided us with one of the most chaotic heat races we will ever see. The first qualifier of the night went so long, that multiple drivers ended up running out of fuel. It caused quite the shakeup, as one of the favorites coming in, Brent Marks ran out of gas on the final restart while running second. Marks would win the B Main, but Austin Bishop and Justin Peck also ran out of fuel in the heat. Luckily for Peck, he was far enough ahead to transfer to the A Main. Justin Whittall was able to capitalize on the chaos and advance to the feature.
This was a hot topic on social media, as Brady Bacon and others expressed their displeasure with the call to keep racing instead of giving the drivers a chance to add fuel. Marks questioned the officials after the race, as his night was put in jeopardy due to running out of fuel.
Sheldon Haudenschild’s epic alphabet soup run came to an end in the B Main, as contact ended his night while he was battling for the final transfer spot. Haudenschild came from deep in the C Main and was passing a ton of cars in the B Main.
Some surprising drivers were able to race their way in out of the B Main. Kyle Reinhardt, Lachlan McHugh, and CJ Leary found themselves in the top six when the checkered flag waved. Brent Marks and Buddy Kofoid traded sliders for the lead before Marks prevailed. It was an impressive run for Leary, as he has limited time with the wing on the car. Daryn Pittman was acting like he never retired, racing the Alex Bowman machine into the A Main.
The A Main began with absolute heart break for Ohio native Cole Duncan. Duncan smacked the wall and ended his night immediately after the green flag. He had himself a fantastic week going and hopefully he sticks around for the Kings Royal.
Logan Schuchart led every lap prior to the scheduled caution on lap 20. A scary crash caused by Aaron Reutzel spinning in turn two and collecting Kyle Larson, Spencer Bayston, Gio Scelzi and Lachlan McCugh happened on the restart. Larson got upside down and was hit by McHugh at full speed, ripping the fuel tank off the no. 57. Luckily, all drivers involved were okay.
When the green flag dropped again, Schuchart continued his domination and led the remaining 30 laps on his way to the biggest victory in sprint car history. Carson Macedo finished in second and Brad Sweet rounded out the podium in third. Schuchart was the car to beat all weekend and he earned every dollar.
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