Crouch On Chili Bowl Chances: ‘We Are A Top Contender’

Brenham Crouch in action at Tulsa (Okla.) Expo Raceway. (David Campbell/DPC Media photo)

TULSA, Okla. – For the second straight preliminary night at the Chili Bowl Nationals powered by NOS Energy Drink, a driver left the SageNet Center dejected at a potential victory that got away in the final laps, despite locking into the championship feature.

Monday night, it was Shane Golobic that led late before being denied by Kyle Larson in a green-white-checkered overtime finish.

This time it was Brenham Crouch, the 19-year-old native of Lubbock, Texas, who was the surprise Tuesday polesitter after a wild round of heat races and qualifiers and appeared to have the dominant car when it counted.

Crouch led 28 of the 30 laps in the Horizon Whiskey-sponsored, Stanton SR-11-powered No. 1C LynK Chassis, but was chased down by a hard-charging Landon Brooks in the final laps before having to engage in a no-holds-barred duel for the win.

The pair traded sliders on each of the final three circuits, but ultimately it was Brooks whose last-lap dive into turn one stuck, giving the Californian his first Chili Bowl prelim night triumph.

Meanwhile, Crouch was forced to settle for a bittersweet second-place finish. While it was by far his best preliminary run in three Chili Bowl attempts, it was nearly so much more.

“It’s really hard to hang your head here if you’re standing on stage in any way, but man …  I wanted that one,” Crouch said after the race. “I don’t think losing that race was because the car went away; I think that was all me (as the driver). I just failed to adjust in the last couple of laps and it cost us.”

How, in his view, did Crouch fail to adapt?

“I think, really and truly, if I had just cheated (turn) one a little bit and given myself some wheel spin when I got to the curb, I’d have had a better run off (the corner),” he explained. “In (turn) three, I could get away with doing what I was doing … but you come out of four at such an awkward angle, with a weird attitude in the car … that you have to bow for the backer on the frontstretch and don’t give yourself a good shot down into one.

“If I’d used the fence (outside line) to shoot off into the slick and get the attitude back in the car, I think that would have been a big help to us.”

Despite all that, however, the bigger goal was realized. Crouch will race in his first Chili Bowl championship feature Saturday night, starting no worse than 10th as the winged sprint car regular chases his first Golden Driller trophy.

Though Crouch has experience on marquee stages – he was a full-timer in 2024 with Kubota High Limit Racing in his family car and will take over the CJB Motorsports No. 5 this year – he viewed Tuesday night’s Chili Bowl program as, perhaps, his arrival in the national conversation.

“I’m going to be pretty frank, I hadn’t earned the CJB ride (when it was announced), by any means,” Crouch admitted. “It just kind of worked itself out at that point. But I hope this run, even though it’s in a midget and not a sprint car, shows some of the things we’ve been working on and what (potential) we have in store for the future.

“We paid our dues last year … and you have to take the time to learn from the best if you’re going to beat them.”

With “house money” ahead of him, so to speak, can Crouch be the latest surprise contender to win it all Saturday night when the lights are brightest at Tulsa Expo Raceway?

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe we could give it a shot,” he affirmed.

“Just so pumped for my (crew) guys because they work their butts off and I’m glad I could at least produce (a lock-in spot) for them, even if we didn’t win the thing,” Crouch continued. “This gives us the confidence going into Saturday that we are a top contender, and I feel like we’re starting to prove that. I’ve been working on myself, and our car has been on kill since practice on Sunday.

“Now it’s about studying the racetrack for the rest of the week, because it will change some more before go time at the end of the week, and keeping things as simple as possible so we can enjoy the moment.”

Action from the Chili Bowl Nationals powered by NOS Energy Drink continues Wednesday with York Plumbing Qualifying Night from Tulsa Expo Raceway, while Crouch’s next on-track activity will be Saturday’s #DoItForGrady Pole Shuffle, which sets the starting lineup for the first five rows of the 40-lap finale.

Every lap of Chili Bowl week is available to be streamed through FloRacing.

Race Face Digital’s Chili Bowl coverage is supported by DPC Media, home of longtime motorsports and automotive photographer David Campbell. To purchase DPC apparel or order photos from Chili Bowl 2025, visit www.seemymind.com for more information.