Tanner Thorson triumphs in High Limit at Amarillo
Photo by HighLimit Racing
AMARILLO, Texas—Even after a stellar seven-race start which saw a win, a pair of runner-up finishes, and a perfect 7-for-7 top-10s propel him to the championship lead, Tanner Thorson still heard and read what the doubters had to say.
The Rod Gross Motorsports #88 team doubled down on Friday night at Route 66 Motor Speedway to further prove that they're a legitimate championship contender with Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing - whether you like it or not.
Scoring his second win of the season in his first-ever attempt at the West Texas oval, Thorson out-dueled Aaron Reutzel in what became an enthralling chase through lap traffic between two of the most polarizing sprint car drivers in the sport today.
Thorson, of Minden, Nevada, led every lap over the home state hero in Reutzel, but it was a constant cat-and-mouse battle as the #87 followed every move the #88 made while maneuvering the back markers. The closest Reutzel got was Lap 22 when he barely trailed Thorson by 0.133-seconds at the stripe.
Holding on for the win, Thorson booked a second trip to Whiskey Myers Victory Lane, which pushed his total to four career High Limit wins - all of those coming since September when he broke through for his first at Lernerville Speedway. His championship advantage now sits at +21 points following the eighth night of the 64-race season.
Fresh off a win at Vado Speedway Park on FS1 Tuesday night, Reutzel came close to going back-to-back and cashing in on the DURST Dice Roll, but a second-place finish was the fate for the Clute, Texas native. The Ridge & Sons Racing team has now rattled off five podiums through the first eight races as they chase Thorson for the early-season title lead.
Rounding out the podium with a season-best third-place finish was Justin Peck aboard the Rudeen Racing No. 26. A pair of young guns followed him with Daison Pursley finishing fourth in the Kasey Kahne Racing w/ Mike Curb No. 9 and Tanner Holmes earning a season-best fifth-place run in the Buch Motorsports No. 13.
Closing out the top-10 in Route 66's first-ever High Limit event was Brent Marks, Hank Davis, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Kerry Madsen, and Giovanni Scelzi.
THE ALL-IN NOTEBOOK (3/27/26)
Route 66 Motor Speedway (Amarillo, Texas)
Dirt Draft Fastest in Hot Laps - Aaron Reutzel (12.323)
Capitol Custom Trailers QuickTime - Kerry Madsen (11.863) **New Track Record**
TJ Forged Heat One Winner - Brent Marks
DMI Heat Two Winner - Tanner Thorson
BR Motorsports Heat Three Winner - Justin Peck
FK Rod Ends Dash Winner - Tanner Thorson
DURST Dice Roll Driver - Aaron Reutzel (2nd-to-2nd)
Jake’s Golf Carts Fastest Lap - Aaron Reutzel (12.616 on Lap 2)
Rayce Rudeen Foundation Rookie of the Race - Tanner Holmes (5th)
Rod End Supply Hard Charger - Kerry Madsen +10 (19th-to-9th)
Whiskey Meyers Victory Lane Visitors - Brinton Marvel & TJ Nichols
First to the Sunoco Checkered Flag - Rod Gross Motorsports #88
CASM Win Sticker - Tanner Thorson
Angel Donor Charity - The Good Fight Foundation ($1,500)
Lap Leader(s) - Tanner Thorson 1-30
Interstate Batteries A Feature (30 Laps): 1. 88-Tanner Thorson[1]; 2. 87-Aaron Reutzel[2]; 3. 26-Justin Peck[3]; 4. 9-Daison Pursley[8]; 5. 13-Tanner Holmes[5]; 6. 19-Brent Marks[6]; 7. 17GP-Hank Davis[15]; 8. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[7]; 9. 55-Kerry Madsen[19]; 10. 77-Giovanni Scelzi[9]; 11. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[10]; 12. 24-Rico Abreu[4]; 13. 42-Sye Lynch[12]; 14. 24D-Danny Sams III[14]; 15. 9R-Chase Randall[11]; 16. 6-JJ Hickle[17]; 17. 5-Brenham Crouch[20]; 18. 2J-Zach Blurton[18]; 19. G5-Gage Pulkrabek[21]; 20. 16G-Austyn Gossel[16]; 21. 2B-John Carney II[13]; 22. 11-Rodney Huband[22]
FK Rod Ends Dash (7 Laps): 1. 88-Tanner Thorson[1]; 2. 87-Aaron Reutzel[3]; 3. 26-Justin Peck[2]; 4. 24-Rico Abreu[5]; 5. 13-Tanner Holmes[4]; 6. 19-Brent Marks[6]
TJ Forged Heat 1 (8 Laps): 1. 19-Brent Marks[1]; 2. 13-Tanner Holmes[2]; 3. 77-Giovanni Scelzi[3]; 4. 42-Sye Lynch[5]; 5. 24D-Danny Sams III[6]; 6. 6-JJ Hickle[7]; 7. 55-Kerry Madsen[4]; 8. 11-Rodney Huband[8]
DMI Heat 2 (8 Laps): 1. 88-Tanner Thorson[1]; 2. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr[2]; 3. 7BC-Tyler Courtney[5]; 4. 2B-John Carney II[3]; 5. 17GP-Hank Davis[7]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu[4]; 7. 5-Brenham Crouch[6]
BR Motorsports Heat 3 (8 Laps): 1. 26-Justin Peck[1]; 2. 9-Daison Pursley[2]; 3. 9R-Chase Randall[3]; 4. 87-Aaron Reutzel[4]; 5. 16G-Austyn Gossel[5]; 6. 2J-Zach Blurton[6]; 7. G5-Gage Pulkrabek[7]
Capital Custom Trailers Qualifying (2 Laps): 1. 55-Kerry Madsen, 11.863[3]; 2. 24-Rico Abreu, 11.906[1]; 3. 87-Aaron Reutzel, 11.907[16]; 4. 19-Brent Marks, 11.959[12]; 5. 88-Tanner Thorson, 12.084[4]; 6. 26-Justin Peck, 12.094[11]; 7. 13-Tanner Holmes, 12.140[17]; 8. 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr, 12.150[21]; 9. 9-Daison Pursley, 12.162[15]; 10. 77-Giovanni Scelzi, 12.177[18]; 11. 2B-John Carney II, 12.270[8]; 12. 9R-Chase Randall, 12.333[14]; 13. 42-Sye Lynch, 12.336[5]; 14. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 12.342[9]; 15. 16G-Austyn Gossel, 12.395[6]; 16. 24D-Danny Sams III, 12.397[20]; 17. 5-Brenham Crouch, 12.475[19]; 18. 2J-Zach Blurton, 12.502[13]; 19. 6-JJ Hickle, 12.523[7]; 20. 17GP-Hank Davis, 12.686[22]; 21. G5-Gage Pulkrabek, 12.877[10]; 22. 11-Rodney Huband, 13.072[2]
NEW 2026 Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing Championship Standings (After 8/64 Races):
1. Tanner Thorson - Rod Gross Motorsports #88 (542 pts... -)
2. Aaron Reutzel - Ridge & Sons Racing #87 (521 pts... -21)
3. Rico Abreu - Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #24 (482 pts... -60)
4. Giovanni Scelzi - Spire Motorsports #77 (482 pts... -60)
5. Tyler Courtney - Clauson-Marshall Racing #7BC (467 pts... -75)
6. Kerry Madsen - Vermeer Motorsports #55 (438 pts... -104)
7. Justin Peck - Rudeen Racing #26 (425 pts... -117)
8. Brent Marks - Brent Marks Racing #19 (392 pts... -150)
9. Daison Purlsey - Kasey Kahne Racing w/ Mike Curb #9 (391 pts... -151)
10. Tanner Holmes - Buch Motorsports #13 (388 pts... -154)
11. Sye Lynch - Mosites Lynch Racing #42 (372 pts... -170)
12. Hank Davis - Michael Dutcher Motorsports #17GP (328 pts... -214)
13. Chase Randall - Chase Randall Racing #9R (324 pts... -218)
14. Brenham Crouch - CJB Motorsports (312 pts... -230)
15. Danny Sams III - Randerson Racing #24D (302 pts... -240)
WHAT’S NEXT: A four-hour overnight haul from Amarillo, Texas to Dodge City, Kansas will take Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing to Dodge City Raceway Park for the first time ever on Saturday, March 28. Tickets are available for purchase HERE, or you can watch every lap live on FloRacing.
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