KNOXVILLE, Iowa — Logan Schuchart won for the second time in the last two races at Knoxville Raceway, claiming the victory Wednesday on the opening night of the 61st annual NOS Energy Drink Knoxville Nationals. Schuchart, who won the Capitani Classic on Sunday night, held off 10-time Nationals champion Donny Schatz for the second consecutive race on what was a very unusual qualifying night at the legendary half-mile track. Schuchart won the feature but qualified only 26th earlier in the night and had poor points night, hurting his position for Saturday night’s program. “I thought I might see Donny there at the end of the night, but we held on for the victory. But the story of the night was the fact that Schatz and David Gravel, who finished third, were the only drivers who qualified in the top 20 and also transferred into the main event. With 500 points possible, Schatz and Gravel led the way on opening night with 469 markers each, generally quite low for a qualifying night. Schuchart, meanwhile, was eighth in the standings with 444 points. Gravel passed Scelzi on the final straightaway to finish third and end up tied with Schatz in the points.

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