The 75th Annual Lucas Oil Little 500 presented by UAW kicked off Wednesday afternoon in front of an eager crowd. With 39 non-wing sprint cars taking the track and setting an official time, Anderson Speedway’s ¼ mile oval was kept busy for the full practice session. Fans saw familiar faces and new news atop today’s scoring chart on what turned out to be a fast day for the field.
Speed was the name of the game on Wednesday with Kody Swanson clocking in a lap time of 11.016, only 0.217 off the official track record set by Tyler Roahrig in last year’s pole day qualifying. Swanson was not the only driver to show consistent speed as Jake trainor, Tyler Roahrig, Kyle O’Gara, and Emerson Axsom were all within two-tenths of Swanson’s fast time. Times were tight across the board as the top 34 drivers in today’s practice session all clocked in within 1 second of each other. Some may argue that with the consistent speeds shown in today’s practice session that this may be the tightest field in Little 500 history.
Storyline from the first day of on track action for the Little 500 include the entry of Kyle O’Gara, the reigning Glen Niebel Champion, and the announcement of two-time Little 500 champion Jacob Wilson replacing Scott Hampton in the #51 United Services Group machine. O’Gara’s entry into the event came when the pit gates opened, causing an instant excitement for Little 500 race fans. After his impressive showing at Anderson lately, winning the 2022 and 2023 Glen Niebel Classic, O’Gara was pegged as an early favorite to compete for a front row spot and a victory. O’Gara started his week off strong, finishing fourth on the speed charts.
An eventful evening led into an eventful morning with the announcement that Scott Hampton had removed himself from the race and Jacob Wilson would be replacing him. Wilson, a two-time Little 500 champion, was the only person Hampton could think of to replace him. The car proved to be strong with Wilson behind the wheel as the team finished seventh in the official time sheets. Wilson will surely be a name to watch heading into CB Fabricating Pole Day.
The 75th Annual Lucas Oil Little 500 presented by UAW is set to be run on Saturday, May 27th at 8:00pm. CB Fabricating Pole Day is scheduled for Thursday, May 25 from 11:30am – 3:30pm. Final practice and Bump Day is set for Friday, May 26 from 11:30am to 3:30pm. Grandstand admission is free for fans Thursday and Friday, and race day tickets are reserved seating only and are $45 each. Tickets for the 75th Annual Lucas Oil Little 500 presented by UAW are on sale now and can be purchased by calling (765) 642-0206 ex. 121 or by stopping by the ticket office. Fans can also stream the event live via MAVTV on Floracing by clicking here to subscribe or stream.
