Overton wins Night 2 of 'Gauntlet at the Gap'

BULLS GAP — Brandon Overton, the racer nicknamed "Big Sexy," left "Superman" in his dust Wednesday night at Volunteer Speedway. Overton, driver of the red No. 76, got the jump on polesitter Jonathan Davenport at the start of the Super Late Model feature. He led the rest of the 40-lap race on the second night of "The Gauntlet at the Gap." "We had a great launch. Our car has been taking off good," Overton said after winning the 40-lap feature. "This thing is jumping on the start. That was the key, and then I knew once I had the lead, I couldn't mess it up." For his efforts, Overton picked up the $10,000 winner's purse and put himself in position for a $100,000 bonus on Saturday night. It was his second-ever win on the high-banked, 4/10-mile dirt oval, and it came against some of the best late model racers in the country. "The quality of cars here is jam up. We put ourselves in position, so we have a chance (at the bonus)," Overton said. "We have a day off tomorrow, so we'll go home and then see if we can do it a little better." Davenport hit the wall in his No. 49 which damaged its right front arm. He pulled in the pits on lap 6. Another major contender, Dale McDowell, exited the track with a mechanical issue seven laps later. It left Overton out front with the racing fierce behind him. Benji Hicks and Chris Madden had hard contact in the race for second, which left the right rear of Madden's car crumpled. Hicks, driving the No. 55 car, held on to second place. "This is definitely a confidence booster," Hicks said. "This track is always fast, but we have good balance on our race car. When you get on the podium with guys like Brandon Overton and Ricky Thornton Jr., it gives you a whole lot of momentum." Thornton, the 2024 Lucas Oil National Champion, finished third after he and Zack Mitchell battled multiple laps for the position. "It felt good, but I felt like I needed to win my heat race to have a chance to win the feature," Thornton said. "Starting sixth, I felt like we could run third. The top (groove) was too dominant. Whenever the track started to rubber up, you could fight a guy low, but then he was able to drive back by you." Mitchell finished fourth and defending Lucas Oil champion Devin Moran rounded out the top five. Mike Marlar, who won the World of Outlaws Late Model race at Volunteer Speedway back in March, was ninth. Jimmy Owens, the four-time national champion from Newport, posted an 11th-place finish. SPORTSMAN LATE MODEL Knoxville driver Hayden Cardwell navigated his way through traffic and passed polesitter Jesse Helton for the lead on lap 16 to win the Sportsman Late Model feature. Helton, a Rogersville racer in the black No. 28, got back past Cardwell briefly. Cardwell's orange No. 17 retook the lead on the frontstretch and pulled away over the final three laps. Josh Collins finished third, followed by Heath Alvey and Jody Horton. Volunteer Speedway is hosting a free Fan Fest on Thursday which includes driver meet & greets, live music, a track walk, kid zone and local vendors. Action returns to the track on Friday and Saturday. Friday's schedule includes a $20,000-to-win Super Late Model feature, along with the Street Stock class. Saturday's main event is a $30,000-to-win Super Late Model feature. The Sportsman Late Models will also be in action.