It has been a long and successful season for Cole Whitt, Keith Kunz Motorsports, and the entire USAC National Championship.  The more than 40 week season is concluding for both the midget and sprint car series.  For Cole Whitt it has been a tremendous journey in his first full season on the USAC National tour.  A season that has seen him mature and grow as a driver while competing in both series for the overall titles.  

In the chase for the USAC National Midget point title, Cole was able to close the gap in the title chase.  When Whitt and team arrived in Phoenix for the Phoenix International Raceway pavement round, the nearly 50 car field was an impressive ensemble.  The weekend started with a tough break in opening practice when a blown motor meant Cole would miss all of the practice session.  However, in qualifying, the team regrouped, got the motor changed and Cole was able to post a solid sixteenth position in qualifying.  Once the feature began, Whitt was able to make a number of impressive passes on the restarts during the 25 lap race.  Through controlled aggression and tight racing, Whitt earned a solid eighth at the finish.  This result meant that Whitt closed the gap to within 17 points of the leader Tracy Hines as the series heads to the final race of the season at Toyota Speedway’s Turkey Night Grand Prix at Irwindale, Ca.  

Once the action finished at PIR, the USAC drivers and teams moved from the midget class to the dirt sprint car class at Manzanita Speedway.  The track at Manzanita is a high banked 3/8 mile dirt track that is known for very fast racing throughout.  The event found more than 65 sprint cars on hand for the USAC National Sprint Car race.  Whitt was able to avoid a number of qualifying mishaps that other competitors found in qualifying.  In Friday’s prelim night, Cole made a number of great moves from his 18th place starting position to finish in a solid 12th.

The Saturday night event started well for Whitt.  Due to his finish and points tally, he was locked into the feature race and would start 12th in the 28 car field.   After the other 50 plus drivers who did not make the automatic transfer situation worked through the D, C, and B mains, it was on to the 40 lap feature.  In the feature race, Whitt drove a smart race and was up to 7th before a final result of 10th at the finish line.  With one race shy in his schedule due to age restrictions at Richmond International Speedway, Whitt finished the season respectably in 4th place in the USAC National Sprint Car, behind the seasoned veterans of Jerry Coons Jr.,  Levi Jones and Tracy Hines. 

Look for the final race wrap-up after the Turkey Night Grand Prix from Toyota Speedway at Irwindale.