GRAIN VALLEY, MO. (September 6, 2019) - A.J Gilbert of Tonganoxie, Kans. won his third POWRi Valley Outlaw Midget Feature of the year on Friday night at Valley Speedway.
A.J. Was fast all evening long winning the first heat over teammate Heath Murry, while taking the feature win over Smokin Joe Walker, Brad Wyatt, Morgan Frewaldt, and Lee Lengel rounding out the top five.
During the feature Gilbert beat second heat winner JD Black to the first turn giving the young Kansas driver a lead he would not relinquish. However, it wasn’t an easy win for the Valley Midget Point Leader. He first had to hold off the advances of Black, and then later his brother Dustin who hounded him throughout much of the race before a late race restart led to his car stumbling and quitting.
Just before the restart on lap 16, veteran midget driver Chad Frewaldt accidentally tagged third-running Wesley Smith going into turn four causing the Nixa, Mo. driver to flip and catch fire. Wesley was fine after being assisted from the wreckage of his Rick Horn owned midget by Frewaldt. But both drivers were unable to continue, and after Dustin Gilbert’s issues on the restart with 4 laps to Go, it was clear sailing for A.J. Gilbert to the finish of the 20 lap race.
The POWRi Valley Outlaw Midgets Return to Grain Valley next Friday night for their final race of 2019. While the POWRi Valley Outlaw Sprints will also return to the Grain Valley oval for a doubleheader not to missed.