Real-world dirt darling Logan Seavey passed Chase Cabre with 13 laps remaining in the iRacing Saturday Night Thunder event at virtual Bristol Motor Speedway, then sped ahead for the victory in a first-of-its kind eNASCAR showcase.
Seavey, who qualified for the main event by finishing second place in the first heat race of the evening, was the class of the field late in Saturday’s 150-lap race comprised of real-world drivers from NASCAR’s Xfinity Series, Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series, ARCA Menards Series, Pinty’s Series and NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series.
“I kind of put myself in a good spot and my team put me in a good spot,” Seavey said. “We were able to switch strategies around, save tires and pit as much as we could. The last 50 or 60 laps, I just saved until the last 20 or 30 and knew I had enough to run down Chase there.”
RELATED: Complete eNASCAR coverage
Cabre finished second to Seavey, with Alex Labbe, who pushed the leaders late, Anthony Alfredo and Kyle Weatherman rounding out the top five.
iRacing megastar Ty Majeski took sixth, with Justin Allgaier, Blake Koch, Joey Gase and Jeb Burton rounding out the top 10. Koch, who won the first heat race to start the main event from the pole, led the first 67 laps before ceding the lead to pit under caution.
Saturday Night Thunder was the first race in a new esports racing outlet, which complements the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series featuring NASCAR Cup Series stars on Sunday. It was an appetizer of sorts for Sunday’s main event, the Food City Showdown presented by M&Ms (1 p.m. ET, FOX, FS1, FOX Sports App). Even that race, the third of the iRacing Pro Invitational Series, is getting a tweak. The lineup for the field of NASCAR Cup Series drivers will be set after two heat races rather than single-car qualifying.
RELATED: Entry list for Sunday’s race
More than 40 drivers entered Saturday’s race, but only 24 raced in the main event. Drivers qualified for the main event through three 20-lap heat races, with the top four drivers in each heat race advancing to the main event.
| Fin | Str | Car | Driver | Led | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 67 | Logan Seavey | 13 | Running |
| 2 | 7 | 04 | Chase Cabre | 51 | Running |
| 3 | 5 | 90 | Alex Labbe | 19 | Running |
| 4 | 3 | 33 | Anthony Alfredo | 0 | Running |
| 5 | 2 | 54 | Kyle Weatherman | 0 | Running |
| 6 | 12 | 45 | Ty Majeski | 0 | Running |
| 7 | 9 | 7 | Justin Allgaier | 0 | Running |
| 8 | 1 | 57 | Blake Koch | 67 | Running |
| 9 | 19 | 53 | Joey Gase | 0 | Running |
| 10 | 21 | 8 | Jeb Burton | 0 | Running |
| 11 | 18 | 10 | Justin Haley | 0 | Running |
| 12 | 22 | 52 | Stewart Friesen | 0 | Running |
| 13 | 14 | 75 | Landon Huffman | 0 | Running |
| 14 | 23 | 93 | Myatt Snider | 0 | Running |
| 15 | 11 | 36 | Jesse Iwuji | 0 | Running |
| 16 | 6 | 55 | Will Rodgers | 0 | Running |
| 17 | 10 | 029 | Kaz Grala | 0 | Running |
| 18 | 17 | 68 | Brandon L Brown | 0 | Running |
| 19 | 24 | 46 | Chandler Smith | 0 | Disqualified |
| 20 | 8 | 99 | Joshua Bilicki | 0 | Running |
| 21 | 15 | 40 | Ryan Truex | 0 | Disconnected |
| 22 | 13 | 19 | Derek Kraus | 0 | Disconnected |
| 23 | 16 | 27 | Ruben Garcia | 0 | Disconnected |
| 24 | 20 | 20 | Harrison Burton | 0 | Disconnected |
Following the three heats, two 20-lap last chance qualifier (LCQ) races were held with all the drivers who hadn’t already advanced. The top six finishers from each LCQ advanced to the main event.
Below are the full results, and the drivers who advanced to the A-Main through the qualifying process.
ADVANCING FROM HEAT RACE 1
1. Blake Koch
2. Logan Seavey
3. Chase Cabre
4. Kaz Grala
ADVANCING FROM HEAT RACE 2
1. Kyle Weatherman
2. Alex Labbe
3. Josh Bilicki
4. Jesse Iwuji
ADVANCING FROM HEAT RACE 3
1. Anthony Alfredo
2. Will Rodgers
3. Justin Allgaier
4. Ty Majeski
ADVANCING FROM LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER 1
1. Derek Kraus
2. Ryan Truex
3. Brandon Brown
4. Joey Gase
5. Jeb Burton
6. Myatt Snider
ADVANCING FROM LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER 2
1. Landon Huffman
2. Ruben Garcia Jr.
3. Justin Haley
4. Harrison Burton
5. Stewart Friesen
6. Chandler Smith
