Keep up with the latest in the chase for the 2023 Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota championship.
LATEST RACE(S): Jacksonville Speedway (Sept. 15), Highland Speedway (Sept. 16), Red Hill Raceway (Sept. 17)
CURRENT POINTS LEADER: Jade Avedisian regained the points lead following Sunday’s event at Red Hill and will take an 11-point advantage into the final race weekend of the year next month, looking to hoist her first national Midget series championship in her first year with Keith Kunz Motorsports. The young Californian trailed Cannon McIntosh in the standings by seven points coming into the weekend, but finishes of fourth on Friday, an 18th-to-third comeback on Saturday and fourth again on Sunday combined to eclipse McIntosh for the top spot.
CLOSE GAPS
Cannon McIntosh (-11): Coming into the weekend with a seven-point lead, McIntosh expanded it to 10 after Friday night with a runner-up finish at Jacksonville, but saw it quickly evaporate after blowing a tire late in the main event Saturday at Highland, leaving him with a ninth-place finish. While he finished sixth Sunday at Red Hill, Avedisian ran fourth, putting McIntosh 11 points down heading into the final race weekend of the year – in his home state of Oklahoma.
Gavin Miller (-60): Three-straight top-five finishes for Miller over the weekend kept him in the heart of the points battle heading into championship weekend. He gained 12 total points on leader Avedisian in the standings, shaving the gap down to 60 points from where he started the weekend 72 behind.
Zach Daum (-67): Back-to-back top-fives and a third-place run Sunday have set Daum and Trifecta Motorsports 67 points out of the lead with three races remaining. The defending Series champion is now on a streak of nine-straight top-five finishes in the last 10 Series events as he aims to complete an incredible comeback from what was once a 278-point deficit to defend his title in his team’s home state in October.
Chase McDermand (-100): After securing the pole for Friday’s main event, McDermand ended up going into the work area multiple times after an untimely spin and crossing the stripe in 12th, drawing them 150 points back in the standings. However, he and the Mounce/Stout Motorsports team rebounded Saturday and Sunday, taking the checkered flag in both main events and setting them 100 points back for the final race weekend of the season.
TEAM POINTS
Rarely in motorsports is a different driver and owner hoisting a championship trophy at season’s end. But there is potential for it this year with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series, as Zach Daum and Trifecta Motorsports currently sit 21 points out of the lead in the Series’ team points standings.
At the start of the season, Kennedale, TX-driver Kyle Jones occupied the seat of the Trifecta #7U and posted strong finishes in the opening rounds, giving he and the team the points lead by mid-April. But their success soon faltered, resulting in DNFs and sub-top-10 finishes in the following races. In early June, Jones and Trifecta parted ways, and Daum was called to fill the seat.
Daum has since kept Trifecta’s 7U team in the hunt for the team points championship, which will also be decided after the final race at I-44. He has the potential to win one or both championships (driver and team) if he makes up enough points on the drivers and teams ahead of him in the standings.
Should Daum make up at least 22 points on Avedisian over the next three races, but not enough to eclipse her or each of the others ahead of him in the driver’s standings, a separate driver and team champion will be crowned. If he makes up at least 67 points on everyone ahead of him in the driver’s standings, Daum will win both.
Click here to view team points standings.
TOP-10 IN DRIVER POINTS
- Jade Avedisian: 5369 points | Keith Kunz Motorsports #71
- Cannon McIntosh: 5358 (-11) points | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #08
- Gavin Miller: 5309 points (-60) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #97
- Zach Daum: 5302 points (-67) | Trifecta Motorsports #7U
- Chase McDermand: 5269 points (-100) | Mounce/Stout Motorsports #40
- Taylor Reimer: 5125 points (-244) | Keith Kunz Motorsports #25K
- Hayden Reinbold: 4629 points (-740) | Reinbold/Underwood Motorsports #19AZ
- Austin Barnhill: 3251 points (-2118) | Dave Mac-Dalby Motorsports #17B
- Chance Crum: 2910 points (-2459) | Rudeen Racing #26
- Ethan Mitchell: 2497 points (-2872) | Bundy Built Motorsports #19M
To view the full Series points standings, click here.
NEXT RACE(S): Port City Raceway (Oct. 12), I-44 Riverside Speedway (Oct. 13-14)
