KNOXVILLE, Iowa — As Kyle Bronson stood in street clothes eyeballing his wrecked race car, he was asked again and again — by fans, fellow racers and media members — what had caused him to spectacularly flip out of second place late in Saturday’s 75-lap Knoxville Lucas Oil Late Model Nationals.

Amid two red flags, multiple brushes with the backstretch wall and an early back-and-forth battle with three-time race winner Mike Marlar, polesitter Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., was worried he was going to blow it in Saturday's bid to sweep the lucrative three-race Knoxville Lucas Oil Nationals weekend.

Finding Chad Simpson outside his trailer in Knoxville Raceway’s pit area after Friday’s Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals preliminary program was a difficult task. He was simply engulfed by the thick crowd in his pit stall.

Just as Jonathan Davenport was gliding into the lead on lap 17 of Thursday evening’s 25-lap Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals preliminary feature, he suddenly ran into … A hurricane? A tornado? A wind tunnel? Wicked gusts across a bridge?

Executing a slider on Brandon Overton at the exit of turn two, eighth-starting Ricky Thornton Jr. of Chandler, Ariz., led the final lap to win Thursday's first $7,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals preliminary night at Knoxville Raceway. Thornton notched his 14th full-field Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory of the season and the 18th of his career as the last among four leaders of the 25-lapper.

The 19th running of the Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals is set for this Thursday thru Saturday, September 14-16 at the famed Knoxville Raceway.

Here's how to watch the 2023 Lucas Oil Late Model Nationals at Knoxville Raceway on FloRacing.