Cannon McIntosh passed Chase McDermand on lap 38 of 39, then held off teammate Jade Avedisian on the final lap by just .191 seconds to win the USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series’ Driven2SaveLives BC39 at the Dirt Track at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The victory is McIntosh’s 44th national midget feature win with Toyota, tying him with Buddy Kofoid for second all-time behind only Christopher Bell. It marks his tenth midget feature win this season with three of those coming in USAC competition.
Fellow Toyota driver Daison Pursley led the first two laps of the event with McDermand running second, Kevin Thomas Jr. in third, Kale Drake in fourth, McIntosh in fifth, Justin Grant sixth and Avedisian in seventh.
McDermand was able to move past Pursley for the top spot on lap three and held down the position for much of the way. Behind him, the top five remained intact through lap 19.
It wasn’t until lap 25 when McIntosh would eventually move into the top four with Avedisian in fifth. Three laps Avedisian would thread the needle between Drake and McIntosh to take over the third position.
On lap 33, McIntosh would make a key move going from fourth to second, while Avedisian would also get by Pursley for third.
As the leaders came through turn three heading toward the white flag to begin the final lap, McDermand would hop on the low side and McIntosh quickly went to the top, inching past McDermand at the flag stand. McIntosh would then dive underneath his rival between turns one and two to take the lead heading down the backstraight, while Avedisian would go around McDermand to take second then made a run for the lead coming out of turn four, but McIntosh was able to hold her off for the victory in a Toyota one-two finish.
Behind the top three Pursley would come home in fourth, while Gavin Miller made it four Toyotas in the top 10 with a seventh place showing.
Sunday’s feature event was originally scheduled for Saturday, but remnants of Tropical Storm Helene would postpone both Friday and Saturday’s feature events. Friday’s preliminary feature event was run prior to the finale with Kale Drake winning his first national midget event with Avedisian coming home in third.
The USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series returns at the Hangtown 100 at Placerville (Calif.) Speedway on November 15.
Quotes:
Cannon McIntosh, KKM Toyota: “Coming to the last lap, I was able to make the pass and win. To do this in honor of Bryan Clausen and win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is a special feeling. I’m just thankful for this opportunity.”
Kale Drake, KKM Toyota: (after winning the Friday preliminary event earlier Sunday) “I don’t think there’s anything better than winning here. It’s unreal. These wins don’t come easy. We’re a winner at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, it’s pretty surreal. I had the best race car out there. Without each and every person on this KKM team, it wouldn’t be possible.”
Toyota-Powered Drivers USAC BC39 Sunday Feature Results
Jade Avedisian – 2nd
Daison Pursley – 4th
Gavin Miller – 7th
Ryan Timms – 13th
Zach Wigal – 15th
Emerson Axsom – 17th
Kale Drake – 18th
Justin Grant – 19th
Jacob Denney – 25th
Toyota USAC PR
