Belleville, IL. (6/16/24) Notching a podium placement in three straight nights of Land of Lincoln adrenaline-fueled action, Kale Drake, of Collinsville Oklahoma, would seize the moment to claim the 11th Annual POWRi Illinois SPEEDWeek presented by Start2Finish.
Sporting the Keith Kunz-Curb Agajanian Motorsports, Eibach Racing, KKM Giveback Classic, Toyota Racin Development, LYNK Chassis, and Toyota Racing Engine #97K; Kale Drake adds the accomplishment of SPEEDWeek champions to his long list of growing conquests while also snapping the three-year streak of teammate and runner-up placement in the 2024 weeklong POWRi mini-championship in Cannon McIntosh.
Beginning the eventual three-night stretch of action with a strong third-place finish at Coles County Speedway, in Mattoon Illinois, Kale would find himself advancing seven positions to contend for the victory in an instant classic Illinois SPEEDWeek debut night that would witness reigning POWRi National Midget Champion Karter Sarff win.
Keeping the front-running contention flowing the following night at Jacksonville Speedway, the 2023 POWRi Outlaw Micro Champion Kale Drake would again battle among the lead pack after starting eighth on the field only finishing one spot shy of winning to Jacob Denny who claimed the feature checkers.
Wrapping up the SPEEDWeek Championship at Macon Speedway on Saturday night after a Lincoln cancelation, Kale would claim the night’s Victory Fuel High Point Qualifier award to start pole position for the feature race. Leading twelve laps of the thirty-lap feature, Drake would again end the night runner-up placement to eventual winner Cannon McIntosh.
Proving consistency claims championships by contending for the win every night, Kale Drake would win the 11th Annual POWRi Illinois SPEEDWeek presented by Start2Finish by a mere ten points over current POWRi National Midget League championship leader Cannon McIntosh in a great team battle for the title.
Final Top-Ten for the POWRi National Midget League 2024 Illinois SPEEDWeek Championship Standings: 1. 97K-Kale Drake, 2. 71K-Cannon McIntosh, 3. 97-Gavin Miller, 4. 21K-Karter Sarff, 5. 43-Gunnar Setser, 6. 7Z-Zoe Pearce, 7. 56-Mitchell Davis, 8. 66-Jayden Clay, 9. 25-Jacob Denney, 10. 7X-Thomas Meseraull.
Heading into the second half of the season for the POWRi National Midget League, can teammates Kale Drake and Cannon McIntosh continue to ride the hot streaks of momentum as Kale continues to skyrocket up the rankings in his rookie season while Cannon currently resides atop the 2024 point championship standings.
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