Kye Kelley wins Brainerd over Damon Merchant

By Anthony Caruso III | Publisher

For the second straight weekend, the same two drivers faced off in the final round. And the same driver won.

Team Kye driver Kye Kelley has won the Street Outlaws No Prep Kings event at Brainerd International Raceway in Brainerd, Minnesota. Kelley defeated Team Boddie driver Damon Merchant in the final round.

“Thank you, Brainerd, MN!,” Kelley said in a Facebook post. “Invitational wins two years in a row, and two events in a row this season! We were able to pick up right where we left off in Virginia with JangALang and continue improving with Adam and Jeff tuning. Wizard Race Cars built one heck of a hot rod. Can’t thank you fans enough for coming out and supporting us as always! It wouldn’t be possible without you guys. Thanks again to all the companies and people that believe in and support this program. We’re keeping the momentum going, on to Bowling Green!”

These two drivers also faced each other one week earlier at Virginia Motorsports Park in North Dinwiddie, Virginia. Kelley picked up the win, as Merchant went red for the win.

This was Kelley’s third straight win in Virginia.

Kelley is the first driver this season to have back-to-back wins. He has won both of the points races in his screw blower “JangALang” Buick Regal that he debuted this season.

Kayla Morton won the first race of the season. However, it was a non-points race at National Trail Raceway in Hebron, Ohio.

With the win, Kelley leads the individual points with 120. As a result of his back-to-back wins, his Team Kye is also the points leader for the Team Championship following two races.

Merchant, a newcomer on the scene, is currently second with his 100 points. He has a 9-3 record in his Rogue-nicknamed vehicle.

Kelley is the leader with a 12-1 record thus far.

This was Kelley’s second straight win at Brainerd. He defeated Jeff Lutz in the final round at this venue last year.