#1 - Sammy Swindell (Germantown, TN)

19th Chili Bowl Appearance

Chili Bowl Main Event Starts: 15

Chili Bowl Main Event Finishes:  6th (1987), 14th (1988), 1st (1989), 3rd (1990), 2nd (1991), 1st (1992), 10th (1993), 1st (1996), 7th (1997), 1st (1998), 3rd (1999), 13th (2000), 3rd (2001), 20th (2003), 18th (2006)

2008 Chili Bowl Results:

Thursday: 5th in Heat 6; 3rd in Qualifier 1; 8th in A Main

Saturday: 19th in B Main 2

A competitor in the inaugural Chili Bowl in 1987, Sammy has watched the Chili Bowl Nationals evolve from its humble beginnings into the mind-boggling, blockbuster event that it has become.  Sammy has done more than watch though, as he has authored more than his fair share of pages in the Chili Bowl history books, ranking as the only driver to win the Chili Bowl on four occasions with triumphs coming in 1989, 1992, 1996 and 1998.

Sammy has been close to a fifth win on a number of other occasions as well, perhaps most notably in 2003 when he charged from a Saturday "E" Main all the way up to second midway through the main event when driveline problems finally derailed his heroics.

Sammy's Chili Bowl success is merely a reflection of the success encountered over the course of his unrivaled career that includes World of Outlaws titles, stints in the upper ranks of both Indy Car and NASCAR racing, approximately 600 career feature wins and victories in virtually anything worth winning.

After a selected slate of activity in 2008 that included a feature win at Placerville Speedway just two weeks after his 29th career Knoxville Nationals main event start, Sammy shoots for one for the thumb in January.

Car Owner:  Swindell Motorsports

Chassis:  Spike

Engine:  Esslinger

Sponsors: Venture Racing, ARIENCO, York Excavating, Sander, Hoosier

Photo:  Sammy Swindell in early B-Mod days at Riverside Speedway in West Memphis. (James Daniel photo)