KNOXVILLE, IA: Rico Abreu understands the cars are getting more equal, and the competition is getting tougher every year at the Knoxville Nationals.

What is surprising is that it seems like when the situation gets tougher and the pressure builds, Abreu is better. That’s the pitfalls of going through Friday’s Hard Knox program … the field is larger, and the margin for error is slight.

And yet, Abreu has found a way to dominate these Friday shows. The California native did it again last night, capturing the 25-Lap Hard Knox program for the third time in his career to punch his ticket to Saturday night’s Knoxville Nationals A-Main.

“This race is tough,” Abreu said. “A lot of it comes down to qualifying and track position. I think I’ve noticed over the last three years how tough the competition is getting overall. You have Austin McCarl, who runs weekly here, and he’s on the pole for the Knoxville Nationals.

Brent Smith Photography

“Overall, these Friday nights have become unique to me from our qualifying efforts to getting through the heat race. It’s frustrating for me to be here on Friday nights, but you know, it’s just another opportunity to work on our car.”

KEY TO THE RACE: For Abreu, starting on the front row didn’t hurt his cause in his march to a third Sprint Car race of the season.

Fellow California native and 16-year-old phenom Corey Day lined up on the pole. Abreu was on the outside at the start and blew around the cushion to take the lead through the first and second corner.

Once out front, Abreu didn’t look back. He survived three cautions over the race distance and was never challenged.

“Everything is timing at this place, and it takes a lot of technique and speed,” Abreu said. “Your footwork can be so difficult to focus on when you are racing.

“You get to traffic, and the aerodynamics and turbulence these cars create changes the whole attitude to your racecar from being by yourself out front to getting half a straightaway behind somebody. So, you start searching.”

AUSSIE, AUSSIE, AUSSIE: Kerry Madsen timed 42nd during Thursday’s qualifying night at Knoxville Raceway and was forced out of action early.

That wasn’t the case in the Hard Knox program. He timed third in his group, made it through his heat race, and lined up fourth on the starting grid for the main event.

A solid opening lap paid a hefty dividend in the final outcome. Madsen drove around Day and Bayston to take over the second position by the end of Lap 1.

Once Madsen was in second, he didn’t push the issue too much. He tried a slider through the first two corners on the fifth circuit, but Abreu had the preferred line around the top and opened up a 1.369-second lead.

“I got an excellent start, so after Lap 1, I as running P2,” Madsen said. “I’m like, ‘Alright, I’m in good position.’ I just sat there in a good bubble zone behind Rico where I didn’t want to get any closer, because it would get too bouncy on the cushion.

“The car was pretty comfortable, so I was quite happy to sit there. After the first restart, Rico ran the bottom in three and four, and I got a good run on him. I threw a half-hearted slider, but it wasn’t happening. So, I went straight back to the top and didn’t leave the top.”

ALL-OR-NOTHING RESTART: Brian Brown was in fifth, when he threw a haymaker entering Turn 1 on the Lap 18 restart.

The Missouri driver passed both Sheldon Haudenschild and Spencer Bayston. Haudenschild ducked low off the cushion and drove by both drivers to charge from fifth to third heading into the third corner.

“On that restart, I knew I needed to play it a little different and maybe plan on me being the guy turning down the track,” Haudenschild said. “The 5-Car got a little sideways on the frontstretch, and I got to the right side of his rear bumper and kind of sat there.

“Thankfully, he peeled off a little bit into one, and I was able to turn down and get my left rear nice off of two and get back to the top as quick as possible into three.”

Brown’s big move on the restart didn’t stick, but he wasn’t done. One lap later, he ripped around the outside of Bayston coming off the second corner and was able to hold the crucial fourth position the rest of the way to punch his Knoxville Nationals A-Main ticket.

“I had such a good run, I’m like, ‘Shit, let’s just send it across here and try to get two for one,’” Brown said. “It’s so hard to get it across, stop, and turn. At that point, you are trying to block as many lines as you can as quick as you can.

“Sheldon got by, and Bayston got to my inside and put me in a really bad spot. He was going across, and I was heading to the cushion and was going to have to lift. I was able to get it turned and cheated the cushion getting into one, and he left me enough room. Once I got into fourth, I just made nice, smooth laps and tried not to do anything dumb. Fourth, third, or second, it didn’t really matter as long as I wasn’t fifth.”

410 Sprint Car Feature Finish, 25 Laps: 1. Rico Abreu; 2. Kerry Madsen; 3. Sheldon Haudenschild; 4. Brian Brown; 5. Anthony Macri; 6. Spencer Bayston; 7. Corey Day; 8. Justin Henderson; 9. Brady Bacon; 10. Dylan Cisney; 11. Brooke Tatnell; 12. Sawyer Phillips; 13. Terry McCarl; 14. Brock Zearfoss; 15. Kyle Reinhardt; 16. McKenna Haase; 17. Sye Lynch; 18. Logan Wagner; 19. Cale Thomas; 20. Cory Eliason; 21. Marcus Dumesny; 22. Brandon Wimmer; 23. Hunter Schuerenberg; 24. Ayrton Gennetten.