TULSA, Okla. — Californian Mitchel Moles was the big winner as the 36th edition of the Lucas Oil Tulsa Shootout wrapped up Saturday night at Tulsa Expo Raceway.
Moles was one of six first-time winners, taking the top honors in the 55-lap Winged Outlaws feature, while Brian Carber led the way by taking Golden Driller trophies in two of the four premier micro sprint classes.
Moles led the final four laps to earn his first career Golden Driller.
Rolling through the field from eighth, the California hot-shoe moved to second on lap 43 when he and Jonathan Beason split race-long leader Joe B. Miller down the back straightaway following a single-file restart.
While Beason was able to win that battle for the lead, it was not meant to be, as that same restart saw Beason advance position on Miller prior to the restart cone.
A caution on Lap 51 for debris in the second turn meant the penalty was assessed at that point, with Beason docked two positions.
That put Moles to the point and the No. 13j was untouchable to the checkered flag, despite a loss of power steering.
Beason got back to second with Tyler Courtney roaring to third from 16th. Cody Key crossed fourth and Miller ended up fifth.
Taking two wins in one of the best performances of the weekend, Carber topped Stock Non-Wing and A-Class and nearly added a third win in Non-Wing Outlaw, but had to settle for second in that event.
That race proved to be an underdog story of the weekend, with Oklahoma’s Kris Carroll denying Carber a third win.
A last-minute decision to be in Oklahoma, the underdog theme continued for Mason Keefer, who dominated the 600cc Modifieds.
Marking his first win atop Tulsa Expo Raceway clay, Keefer’s Golden Driller is the first to travel to Arizona since 2001, when Brandon Young topped Stock Light Karts.
Keeping pace on the field from the start, Jaxton Wiggs took his first win in Restricted A-Class. Stalked by California’s Austin Wood the entire race, the pair played bumper tag a few times, but the Illinois driver stayed unphased.
Barely taking the checkered flag before the caution was called for, Lucas Mauldin just held off a hard-charging Garret Benson to become the third driver in as many years from California to earn a Golden Driller in Junior Sprint competition.
The 36th annual Lucas Oil Tulsa Shootout saw a total of 296 races contested over four days. With the added winners, 364 drivers now account for 596 Tulsa Shootout victories.
The 37th edition of the Tulsa Shootout takes place Dec. 29-Jan. 2 at Tulsa Expo Raceway, located inside the River Spirit Expo Center in Tulsa, Okla.
More information on the event will be posted soon.
To view complete feature results, advance to the next page.