Chili Bowl Race of Champions Voting Concludes; Outcome in Dispute
TULSA, Okla. (January 10, 2009) -- At-large voting to
determine the final two starters in next Tuesday night's Race of
Champions at the 23rd Annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals presented by
General Tire concluded late Friday night.
But the apparent outcome that would have Steve Buckwalter and Tony
Elliott added to the star-studded field that includes eight past Chili
Bowl winners at the QuikTrip Center's Tulsa Expo Raceway is under
dispute, with federal and international officials investigating the final
outcome.
After two preliminary rounds of on-line voting at www.chilibowl.com that
attracted approximately 40,000 votes during each of the periods extending
from December 18-24 and December 25-31, the final round of voting ran
from January 1 through 11:00 p.m. CST January 9. And with more than
800,000 votes cast during that nine-day span, federal officials took
notice and demanded an inquiry into the results.
"It's one thing to have the occasional fraudulent presidential election,
that's something that just happens every decade or so," a member of the
Department of Justice commented on an anonymous basis from his
Mediterranean island estate. "But to have any chicanery in the Chili
Bowl Race of Champions voting process is a slap in the face of democracy,
we simply must get to the bottom of it!"
Pennsylvania's Steve Buckwalter was the week's top vote-getter, receiving
over 244,000 of the 803,042 votes cast, or 30%. Tony Elliott was next
with 26% followed by Matt Westfall (14%), Shane Cottle (13%), Brad Kuhn
(12%) and Davey Ray (5%).
Buckwalter's total is the equivalent of each resident of his home borough
of Royersford, PA, boasting a population of approximately 4,300, voting
for him 56 times apiece. It's a total that has even drawn international
attention.
"There is something that is not quite right," commented the Jamaican
member of the International Olympic Committee who also spearheaded the
Jamaican bobsled effort some years ago. "I admittedly know little about
racing midgets, but since we only work once every couple of years we have
some resources available to assist in this investigation."
The Chili Bowl Race of Champions already includes past event winners
Sammy Swindell, Cory Kruseman, Tracy Hines, Tim McCreadie, Jay Drake,
Damion Gardner, Scott Hatton and Johnny Heydenreich along with perennial
Chili Bowl contenders Kasey Kahne, Dave Darland, J.J. Yeley and Jason
Leffler.
Two at-large candidates, possibly Steve Buckwalter and Tony Elliott
pending the investigation of the voting, will be added to the Tuesday
night event. The 20-lap Chili Bowl Race of Champions will be included on
Tuesday night's Qualifying card, which will feature approximately 75 of
the event record 293 entries.
"We just have a few days to act on this," a federal investigator
explained. "The Blagojevich scandal, the economy and all those other
issues can wait, we'll get to this bottom of this."
Chili Bowl officials are cooperating with the investigation and expect to
have the outcome decided in time for Tuesday night's Race of Champions.
A limited number of tickets remain for the Tuesday night event that kicks
off the 23rd Annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals presented by General
Tire at the QuikTrip Center's Tulsa Expo Raceway for just $26 each by
calling the ticket office at 918-838-3777.
Additional information regarding the Chili Bowl Nationals is available at
www.chilibowl.com.
-credit: cbn/lw
