Gravel wins Thriller in World of Outlaws Return to Vado
Photo by Trent Gower
VADO, N.M.—The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series return to Vado Speedway Park didn’t disappoint.
The Greatest Show on Dirt invaded Vado on Friday for night one of the Desert Showdown, and the New Mexico oval delivered not one, not two, but three different leaders in a 30-lap thriller.
First, it was polesitter Logan Schuchart taking early command with hopes to snap a 29-race winless streak. Then Kerry Madsen stole the top spot aiming for his first Series victory since 2021. But when all was said and done, it was David Gravel climbing atop the wing of the Big Game Motorsports No. 2 in Vado Victory Lane.
The defending champion capitalized when the “Madman” got held up in traffic with eight laps remaining as Gravel rolled under Madsen in Turns 1 and 2 and executed a race winning slide job in the next set of corners. Once he had the lead, there was no catching Gravel.
“I think he (Madsen) saw me in (Turns) 3 and 4 pressuring him and made him change it up a little bit,” Gravel said of getting the lead. “I felt like he was in a rush to get by that guy, but the bottom was so dominant in (Turns) 1 and 2. That was the place to be, and that’s where I was able to slip up on him, but again I think me poking my nose on him in (Turns) 3 and 4 made him think, ‘I can’t follow this guy another lap.’ Then I got the lead and cleared that one lapped car. I feel like that probably changed the race. I don’t know if he got by as well. You’re running the top as hard as you can wide open, and these guys are hauling ass around the bottom. It was so hard to get around guys.
“I’ve just got to thank Cody (Jacobs), Pete (Stephens), and Zach (Patterson). They perform every night. It’s just my job to get the job done.”
The 2025 World of Outlaws checkered flag count rose to 13 for Gravel and Tod Quiring’s team with Friday’s triumph. The Watertown, CT native becomes the seventh different driver to top a race in the state of New Mexico and the second at Vado alongside Brad Sweet. The win also marked Gravel’s 25th consecutive result of sixth or better as he and the Big Game crew continue to march toward another title.
After leading early before slipping to third, Logan Schuchart rallied to snag second on the final circuit. There’s no doubt he and the Shark Racing team want a win badly, but their recent results suggest one is coming as they’ve put together six consecutive top five finishes. If one or two things go slightly different on Friday, it very well may have been the Hanover, PA native standing in Victory Lane.
“We might’ve gotten a little tight in traffic there but not really bad,” Schuchart explained. “Racing with lapped cars I thought I was holding a good line. Until somebody showed me something I wasn’t going to move on the racetrack. It wasn’t until Kerry got by us on the bottom of (Turns) 1 and 2 that I felt like I could move around a little bit and see what I could get and see what he was getting with his race car when he had to move how I could make up some ground on him. I feel like we were able to do that. I could see David to my inside a few times into (Turns) 1 and 2, and I knew I had to keep gassing it up in (Turns) 3 and 4 then get back to the bottom in (Turns) 1 and 2. Sometimes that line wasn’t always there. If I got the lead back from Kerry coming out of (Turn) 4, it was probably our race.”
Kerry Madsen completed the podium with the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing team. It marked the third time this year the “Madman” has led laps and come home in the top three but first since reuniting with the TSR crew. One ill-timed lane choice from a lapped car might’ve prevented Madsen from securing his first World of Outlaws win since 2021, but he still came away encouraged with the performance.
“I saw David or heard him a couple times and thought, ‘I’ve got to go,’” Madsen said. “I actually had a great run on the lapped car, and that one lap he decided to go middle-top, and I thought, ‘Oh my god. Being half a car back I could’ve zipped under him.’ David was knocking on the door, so you’ve got to go win the race. Honestly, I’m disappointed not to but still pretty excited to have a great run.”
Buddy Kofoid and Landon Crawley completed the top five.
Hunter Schuerenberg earned the KSE Racing Products Hard Charger.
Carson Macedo claimed his fifth Simpson Quick Time of the year and established a new track record in Honest Abe Roofing Qualifying.
Heat Races belonged to Carson Macedo (NOS Energy Drink Heat One), David Gravel (Real American Beer Heat Two), and Buddy Kofoid (WIX Filters Heat Three).
The SPA Technique #1 Redraw went to Logan Schuchart.
Schuchart also topped the Toyota Dash.
The Smith Titanium Brake Systems Break of the Race went to Alex Pettas.
UP NEXT: The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars finish up the Desert Showdown weekend at New Mexico’s Vado Speedway Park on Saturday, Sept. 6. For tickets, CLICK HERE.
If you can’t make it to the track, catch every lap live on DIRTVision.
RESULTS
NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps): 1. 2-David Gravel[2]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart[1]; 3. 15S-Kerry Madsen[3]; 4. 83-Michael Kofoid[4]; 5. 45X-Landon Crawley[8]; 6. 99-Skylar Gee[6]; 7. 41-Carson Macedo[5]; 8. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[10]; 9. 17B-Bill Balog[7]; 10. 23-Garet Williamson[11]; 11. W-Donny Schatz[13]; 12. 2C-Cole Macedo[9]; 13. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[17]; 14. 18-Emerson Axsom[12]; 15. 7S-Chris Windom[16]; 16. 6-Zach Hampton[18]; 17. J2-John Carney II[15]; 18. 2B-Brett Becker[20]; 19. 4J-Tuesday Calderwood[19]; 20. 45-Don Grable[21]; 21. 28M-Conner Morrell[14]; 22. 2X-Alex Pettas[22]
Toyota Dash (6 Laps): 1. 1S-Logan Schuchart[1]; 2. 2-David Gravel[2]; 3. 15S-Kerry Madsen[4]; 4. 83-Michael Kofoid[6]; 5. 41-Carson Macedo[5]; 6. 99-Skylar Gee[3]
Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 41-Carson Macedo[1]; 2. 99-Skylar Gee[2]; 3. 17B-Bill Balog[4]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild[3]; 5. W-Donny Schatz[5]; 6. 7S-Chris Windom[6]; 7. 4J-Tuesday Calderwood[8]; 8. 2X-Alex Pettas[7]
Real American Beer Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 2-David Gravel[1]; 2. 15S-Kerry Madsen[2]; 3. 45X-Landon Crawley[3]; 4. 23-Garet Williamson[6]; 5. 28M-Conner Morrell[4]; 6. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg[5]; 7. 2B-Brett Becker[7]
WIX Filters Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 83-Michael Kofoid[1]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart[2]; 3. 2C-Cole Macedo[4]; 4. 18-Emerson Axsom[3]; 5. J2-John Carney II[6]; 6. 6-Zach Hampton[5]; 7. 45-Don Grable[7]
Honest Abe Roofing Qualifying (2 Laps): 1. 41-Carson Macedo, 00:12.017[8]; 2. 2-David Gravel, 00:12.062[1]; 3. 83-Michael Kofoid, 00:12.114[15]; 4. 99-Skylar Gee, 00:12.117[5]; 5. 15S-Kerry Madsen, 00:12.137[4]; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 00:12.162[14]; 7. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 00:12.197[20]; 8. 45X-Landon Crawley, 00:12.212[19]; 9. 18-Emerson Axsom, 00:12.213[6]; 10. 17B-Bill Balog, 00:12.221[11]; 11. 28M-Conner Morrell, 00:12.239[7]; 12. 2C-Cole Macedo, 00:12.270[16]; 13. W-Donny Schatz, 00:12.295[9]; 14. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg, 00:12.296[22]; 15. 6-Zach Hampton, 00:12.345[3]; 16. 7S-Chris Windom, 00:12.376[17]; 17. 23-Garet Williamson, 00:12.432[21]; 18. J2-John Carney II, 00:12.686[2]; 19. 2X-Alex Pettas, 00:12.744[10]; 20. 2B-Brett Becker, 00:12.819[18]; 21. 45-Don Grable, 00:12.883[13]; 22. 4J-Tuesday Calderwood, 00:12.890[12]
CURRENT WORLD OF OUTLAWS SERIES STANDINGS
Points Updated: August 31, 2025
Pos. No. Driver Hometown Points Gap Starts Wins Top 5s Top 10s
1 2 David Gravel Watertown, CT 7248 53 12 46 52
2 83 Michael Kofoid Penngrove, CA 7080 -168 53 10 32 45
3 41 Carson Macedo Lemoore, CA 7018 -230 53 10 30 41
4 1S Logan Schuchart Hanover, PA 6886 -362 51 2 26 40
5 17 Sheldon Haudenschild Wooster, OH 6738 -510 53 2 22 34
6 15 Donny Schatz Fargo, ND 6622 -626 53 0 8 29
7 17B Bill Balog North Pole, AK 6428 -820 51 2 12 27
8 23 Garet Williamson Columbia, MO 6322 -926 51 0 4 20
9 7S Chris Windom Canton, IL 6286 -962 48 0 4 19
10 2C Cole Macedo Lemoore, CA 6136 -1112 45 0 4 14
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