Kyle Larson and Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. have both filed last-minute entries into the 2024 Chili Bowl Nationals at the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the most prestigious event on the dirt midget racing circuit.
Larson, the 2021 champion of the NASCAR Cup Series, announced his intentions to compete in the event on Tuesday, utilizing an extra vehicle from the Keith Kunz Motorsports-Curb-Agajanian.
The No. 98K, driven by Larson, will feature sponsorship from DH Horton, FloRacing, and HendrickCars.com, as the Hendrick Motorsports driver chases his third victory in the event, after skipping it in 2023.
But, there's one small wrinkle that could seriously impact things for Larson. The 31-year-old driver is double-booked, as he's scheduled to run both the Chili Bowl Nationals (Tulsa, Oklahoma) and the Wild West Shootout (Vado, New Mexico) on Saturday.
Larson is hoping to finish top two in his Prelim A-Main on Thursday, so he can automatically advance to the Chili Bowl A-Main, and take a flight after his race in New Mexico, to Oklahoma, where the main event usually doesn't start until after midnight.
Should Larson not immediately qualify for the A-Main on Saturday, the Elk Grove, California native will have to race through some of the 'Alphabet Soup', which may it logistically difficult to get to Tulsa, Oklahoma in time -- as he says the Wild West Shootout is his main priority.
Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., the 2023 champion of the Daytona 500, is also scheduled to compete in the Chili Bowl Nationals, which comes as a result of a discussion between him and his buddy (and now teammate) Kyle Larson.
A native of Olive Branch, Mississippi, Stenhouse told FloRacing after his announcement on Wednesday that he and Larson were texting back and forth when the idea of reaching out to Keith Kunz, owner of Keith Kunz Motorsports-Curb-Agajanian was floated.
Stenhouse reached out, and that conversation must have gone well, since the JTG Daugherty Racing driver is now set to compete in the Chili Bowl Nationals, driving the No. 71R NOS Energy-sponsored entry.
The 36-year-old driver will make his 17th attempt at the Chili Bowl Nationals, and will look to make his ninth appearance in the A-Main, which throughout the years has netted him three top-10 finishes.
Larson and Stenhouse join others in the NASCAR world at the Chili Bowl Nationals including Josh Bilicki, Chase Briscoe, JJ Yeley, and Alex Bowman - who is strictly there as a car owner, this year.
Photo Credit -- Jonathan McCoy, Racing America
