Gravel Chases Down Whittall To Win National Open Prelim

David Gravel (2) chases Justin Whittall at Williams Grove Speedway. (Tyler Carr photo)

By Alex Nieten, World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series PR

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. (Oct. 2, 2026) – The drought is over for the two-time defending World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series champion.

The last two months haven’t been ideal for David Gravel and Big Game Motorsports. Sure, they’ve consistently racked up top-10 finishes and maintained a solid point lead, but this crew is accustomed to winning and winning often.

They rolled into Williams Grove Speedway’s J&S Classics National Open weekend on an 18-race winless streak. Oddly enough, their last victory came at none other than Williams Grove, and the historic half mile ended the slump on Friday night.

Gravel fired off on the pole for the 25-lap feature, but it was Justin Whittall sneaking by in the opening set of corners to take command early. The two-time and defending champion didn’t get rattled. He stalked the Rod Gross Motorsports No. 67G as they neared traffic and capitalized when the door opened.

Whittall couldn’t clear a slider on a lapped car and lost momentum, allowing Gravel to drive by down the front straightaway. Anthony Macri worked his way into second, but couldn’t erase Gravel’s gap as the No. 2 motored to victory lane.

“It was just kind of roles reversed from the Dash,” Gravel explained. “He (Whittall) started on the pole, and I was able crossover and get in front of him. He did the same thing to me there in the Feature. At that point, I just had to get in line and try to build some speed up and try not to lose second. When we got to lapped traffic, I knew that would be my time to pounce.

“Once [Whittall] got somewhat close to lapped traffic, he started stalling out. The dirty air definitely affected his race car. Then he got over the cushion once off of (turn) four, and I was able to get the lead that way.”

Gravel’s first win in two months is his 11th of the season and the 130th of his career with the World of Outlaws. A dozen of those have come at Williams Grove for the Watertown, Conn., native. He padded his lead atop the standings to 128 markers over Buddy Kofoid in the process.

The victory also secured bragging rights for the World of Outlaws over the PA Posse in 2026, as the scoreboard now shows a 5-2 advantage for the traveling talent, an insurmountable lead with only one battle remaining.

Macri showed no signs of rust in his second race back from an injury by bringing the Macri Motorsports No. 39M home runner-up. He’ll look to give the PA Posse the National Open title on Saturday.

Rounding out the podium was Justin Peck in the Rudeen Racing No. 26, his best World of Outlaws result at the Mechanicsburg, Pa., oval.

Kofoid and Chase Dietz rounded out the top five.

The finish:

NOS Energy Drink Feature (25 laps): 1. 2-David Gravel [1]; 2. 39M-Anthony Macri [3]; 3. 26-Justin Peck [4]; 4. 83-Michael Kofoid [7]; 5. 23D-Chase Dietz [5]; 6. 13-Tanner Holmes [11]; 7. 1A-Cameron Smith [6]; 8. 67G-Justin Whittall [2]; 9. 17B-Bill Balog [10]; 10. 69K-Daryn Pittman [16]; 11. 51R-Freddie Rahmer [9]; 12. 71-Logan Rumsey [12]; 13. 15-Donny Schatz [8]; 14. 41-Carson Macedo [14]; 15. 18-Sheldon Haudenschild [22]; 16. 23-Garet Williamson [15]; 17. 8-Lance Dewease [20]; 18. 48-Danny Dietrich [26]; 19. 17-Spencer Bayston [24]; 20. 17N-Dylan Norris [18]; 21. 1S-Logan Schuchart [17]; 22. 5-Kasey Jedrzejek [19]; 23. 2C-Cole Macedo [25]; 24. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [23]; 25. 27-Emerson Axsom [21]; 26. 12-Brent Shearer [13].

ARTICLE CREDIT: World of Outlaws Communications