Jesse Love returning to his roots by competing in 40th Chili Bowl Nationals
By NASCAR.com Staff Report
Reigning NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series champion Jesse Love is going back to his roots next week by competing in the 40th running of the Chili Bowl Nationals powered by NOS Energy Drink.
The Chili Bowl , scheduled to take place from Jan. 12-17 inside the SageNet Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the largest Midget car racing event in the world.
The event annually draws more than 300 entries from across the globe to compete on a temporary, quarter-mile dirt oval built inside the SageNet Center.
Love, 20, will compete in a Midget car owned by Hendrick Motorsports' Blake Harris, crew chief for Alex Bowman in the NASCAR Cup Series.
This will mark Love's fourth Chili Bowl attempt dating back to 2021. He has not qualified for the championship finale in his three previous attempts, with his best effort being a 13th-place finish in a B-Main in 2021.
Prior to his NASCAR career, Love, the 2023 ARCA Menards Series title winner and two-time West Series champ, honed his skills racing on dirt tracks across the country. The Menlo Park, California native has multiple Midget car victories on his résumé.
Beginning with Sunday's practice (10 a.m. ET), all seven days and nights of the 40th Chili Bowl Nationals powered by NOS Energy Drink will be shown live on FloRacing. Preliminary night racing begins Monday at 4 p.m. ET.