Armstrong Paces Team Mopar® at 'Turkey Night Grand Prix'
Team Mopar® driver Dakoda Armstrong continued his 2008 pattern of turning heads in major Midget races on Thursday, Nov. 27, by posting an eighth-place finish in the 68th annual "Turkey Night Grand Prix" at Southern California's Irwindale Speedway. The event, sanctioned by the United States Auto Club (USAC) as part of the Mopar Midget National Championship, drew a staggering 64 entries, making Armstrong's achievement even more commendable.
In August, the 17-year-old won a 400-lap USAC special event at Anderson Speedway in his home state of Indiana. At Irwindale, young Dakoda kicked off his evening with a stellar third-place time-trial run aboard his family-owned racer.
The 98-lap "Turkey Night" feature was not nearly as kind to other Mopar entrants. While Brad Sweet turned in a solid effort en route to a 12th-place finish, his team owner, NASCAR star Kasey Kahne, struggled all evening. After fuel issues in practice, Kahne qualified 27th and could never rebound, ultimately finishing the main event in 22nd.
Among the night's hard-luck stories was Brady Bacon, Sweet's teammate on the Kasey Kahne Racing Mopar squad. Bacon time-trialed 38th, then placed ninth in a "last chance" consolation round which transferred only the top eight finishers to the feature. Thus, Bacon—among the favorites entering the event—was forced to watch the "Turkey Night" feature from the sidelines.
The Irwindale event concluded the 2008 USAC Mopar Midget National championship, with Sweet third in the final points standings and Bacon, despite his Thanksgiving woes, retaining fifth place. Team Mopar's two-time defending USAC Midget champion and 2008 USAC Sprint car champ, Jerry Coons Jr. (who did not compete at Irwindale), finished eighth in the standings. For more information, visit http://www.usacracing.com.