“I Overthought Everything”- Tony Stewart’s Mentee Unravels Disappointing Chili Bowl Showing Amidst Hopes of Main Event Bounce Back

It was a bittersweet ordeal for Stewart-Haas Racing ace, Chase Briscoe who entered the Chili Bowl National Preliminary action on Monday. Starting the prelims at Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma at 12th, Briscoe put on a show, cutting through the field with clinical precision to rack up passing points one after the other to finish fourth in the Monday Night A feature.

However, despite all the efforts, it still wasn’t enough to lock him into the main event. Reflecting on his Monday night performance, Tony Stewart‘s driver and #14 Ford driver shared his thoughts about the fixture, admitting his flaw publicly.

Tony Stewart & Gene Haas’ #14 driver knows exactly what went wrong

Despite the 12th position start, Stewart’s mentee really proved why he is in the Cup Series roster. Putting on a masterclass to outrun the field he gained eight positions to finish fourth in the A Feature. In fact, he did not waste a second as he made the most of his Monday night 30-lap venture. Methodically dissecting the field, Briscoe put on a blistering pace to go up to the fifth position in just under 10 laps.

While his exceptional show got him critical fan acclaim, it did not give him a free pass to the main event. Reflecting on his performance, he said, “I feel like that caution to come out four to go. I was for sure going to run second. I was right beside Shane(Golobic) and you know if I get by him, I don’t think Tanner(Carrick) would have expected anybody to come up on the bottom if I could have timed it right I maybe could have got there but I was for sure, was going to I lock in, I felt like, and then… After the caution, I still had a chance. I just truthfully ran really bad laps. I over-thought everything I’m sure, just wasn’t doing a very good job.“

After admitting his mistake, the racer also shared his delight in having a potent racecar and to be able to put out such a performance, saying, “So should’ve probably ran third. The worst is I ended up costing myself a spot. But yeah, overall that was probably the most fun that I’ve had here. I feel like I had one of the best cars every time I hit the racetrack. So, that was good. We still need obviously a little bit, but to go forward, start 12. I think we were up to fifth in like 10 laps so I felt really good about it.”

WATCH THIS STORY: Tony Stewart unravels his hopes for his roster of young drivers 

Speaking to Matt Weaver, Briscoe also revealed his strategy for Saturday, mentioning his action plan for the main event.

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Briscoe spills the beans, revealing his strategy for Saturday

Despite the Monday night not going his way, finishing fourth, and missing the mark by a whisker, Briscoe’s prelims performance earned fan praise and more importantly got him valuable points. The driver said he realised how good his finishing position is, given that he’s not able to invest as much time into dirt racing as he should.

Sharing his thoughts and hopes with Weaver, Briscoe said, “To do it as little as we do it and even the race champion’s car or other car to run third or fourth. It’s just a testament to how good we do with how little we race. So looking forward to the rest of the week. Obviously, Saturday’s got to be up on the wheel and hopefully, we can race our way in.”

Hinting at his ineffectiveness on the slick surface, Briscoe also subtly mentioned his game plan for Saturday. He said, “I still need a little bit more on the top. Early in the race on the top, I’m really good. It’s just once the track gets really slick, and it’s just slick to curve, I kind of struggle on the top and I think that’s why I’m so good because on the bottom, I’m pretty tight. Now we need to work on this a little bit.” 

READ MORE: Chase Briscoe’s Chili Bowl Dreams Slipping As the SHR Star Gets Outplayed by Own Driver

After Monday’s extravaganza, the driver is pretty confident about his chances of lifting the trophy. He concluded by saying, “I feel really good about it.” Do you think Chase Briscoe will be able to get his hands on the win?