Brad Sweet finished in the top five in three World Finals races at the Charlotte Motor Speedway dirt track, ending the 2023 season with his first win at the track and marking his fifth straight victory. Won the World of Outlaws Championship.
Sweet got into the required weekend Must finish 7th or better in three races to clinch the title. David Gravel needed to dominate the series to put pressure on Sweet, who had finished seventh or worse in only 15 of 71 races (21%). And Gravel did so on opening night last Thursday. But Sweet finished fourth, making the magic number even more elusive.
Friday night’s victory came from Brent Marks, who once again finished fourth, but this time ahead of his main rival Gravel, who took sixth. By the time he lined up in the field Saturday night, Sweet only needed to finish 22nd out of 26 cars. Gravel struggled throughout Saturday’s program. He was not able to advance directly to the main, starting in 21st place after winning the Last Chess Qualifier.
Sweet’s victory Saturday night surpassed Rico Abreu, who led the most laps of the race. Gravel finished 7th.
“I’m really happy to be here in front of this big crowd.” Sweet said in a press release.. “I was happy to get the NAPA Auto Parts car in Victory Lane. We’ve been working hard here for a long time. I think we’re always conservative when it comes to points, but tonight we had a car that could do it. I was quite conservative at the bottom and was able to get the tires under me and at the end I snuck up on Rico and tried to stop him heading into the checkers.”
Gravel’s win on Thursday night was his 12th of the season. It was Sweet’s 11th win in the finale, but more consistency and no DNFs in 2023 made the difference.
The win moves Sweet five wins behind Dave Blaney for eighth place on the Outlaws’ all-time wins list.
“It’s really nice to finish with a win like this. It’s basically like a walk-off home run,” Sweet said. “I’m feeling really good and I was going to celebrate. … I’m really happy. It’s such a relief. This season is so long, so tough, so hard. It’s great that we were able to accomplish what we were able to accomplish. It’s really unbelievable.”
Sweet’s “walk-off home run” comment comes amid rumors that he could be a full-time member of the All-Star Circuit of Champions in 2024. The Rivals series he and brother-in-law Kyle Larson recently purchased From Tony Stewart earlier this year.
He has just been chasing Larson in his quest to become the first High Limit Sprint Car Champion.Abreu finished second twice in the three-race series, including Saturday night, after Sweet took the lead late in the race.
“I think you learn more by losing than by winning in races like this,” Abreu said. “You’re racing the best in the country, so there’s minimal room for error. Eight laps into the race, you’ve circled traffic in front of you. Control and choose which lane to run in. My car was set up to run at the top, so I gave it my all to get there. In those races, you win and you lose. That’s just part of it. ”
Giovanni Scelzi finished his Rookie of the Year campaign in fourth place in points, tying Jeff Swindell (1981) and Brad Doty (1982) for the best debut season in Outlaws history.
The full schedule for the World of Outlaws Sprint Car has not yet been released, but the 2024 season will open in just over three months on February 8th at Volusia Speedway Park in Barbourville, Florida.
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