Kings Royal Start and a Pair of Top Tens Highlights Big Week in Ohio

FREMONT, Ohio (July 20, 2026) - Kalib Henry was forced to take in the 2025 Kings Royal from atop the suite tower in turn three. 365 days later, the 26-year-old, Sacramento, California native took the green flag from inside the sixth row. It marked Henry's first ever start in the fabled June classic and brings to a close one of the richest weeks in Ohio sprint car racing.

It all started Monday at Fremont Speedway with High Limit Racing. Henry set quick time in Flight B, besting the likes of Kerry Madsen, Kyle Larson, Zane DeVault, and Rico Abreu in the top five. In heat race action, Henry would start fourth and just needed to transfer out of the heat to qualify for the night's dash. On the initial start, Henry took advantage of the bottom and drove to third, narrowly avoiding disaster after contact with second place starter, Abreu. Henry would be gifted the second spot when race leader, Larson, spun on the entry to turn one. Brock Zearfoss would lead the heat to the finish with Henry in tow.

After completion of the High Limit Dash Redraw Wheel, Henry would line up fifth for the seven-lap affair. An ill handling machine however quickly relegated the Valvoline, Triple J Towing, Butlerbuilt Seats, Pub 400, QuickCar, Rider Racing Engines No. 101 to eighth. When the green flew for A-Main action, Henry moved into seventh on the second lap before beginning a slide to 13th on lap 12. Regrouped, Henry began to move forward on lap 26 and found himself back in the top ten on lap 28, where he would remain for the remaining seven laps. For Henry, it marked his third top ten with High Limit Racing in as many starts and his tenth overall top ten on the season.

The action moved Attica Raceway Park on Tuesday night for the World of Outlaw's Brad Doty Classic. The event marked a full year since Henry's crash in the Last Chance Showdown that resulted in him being flown from the track to a nearby hospital and out of the seat for several weeks to recover.

After posting a time of 12.282 in Flight B qualifying, Henry would go sixth quick behind eventual event winner Bryce Lucius, Tanner Thorson, David Gravel, Logan Schuchart, and Sheldon Haudenschild. It was heat race action that offered the biggest challenge for the 2025 All Star champion as a bad start cost Henry a total of six spots. Henry battled back and a two for one on lap seven moved him into sixth, where he would cross the line at the end of the ten lap heat.

Henry would start the Last Chance Showdown on the outside of the front row and would bring it across the line in second to advance to the A-Main. Starting 19th on the field, Henry didn't begin his charge till lap 18 when he finally moved into 17th. Once the ball got rolling however, Henry didn't stop. Henry was 16th on lap 19, 15th on lap 20, and made a big jump to 12th on lap 21. On lap 23, Henry briefly broke into the top ten before falling to 11th. With eight to go, Henry reemerged into the top ten before picking off one more position by race's end to officially finish ninth. 

Wednesday morning saw teams travel south to the historic Eldora Speedway for four straight nights of action and winner's share totaling more than $300,000 across all four nights. High Limit Racing brought the first two nights to life with the Double Down Duels on Wednesday and the nationally televised Joker's Jackpot on Thursday. Both nights left little to be desired for Henry as the team battled setup demons that prevented Henry from every getting fully comfortable. Wednesday night saw Henry bring home a 20th place finish and Thursday saw a C-Main exit*.

Crew Chief Andy Potter and Henry threw wholesale changes at their Rider Racing Engines powered 410 prior to Friday's Knight Before the Royal event sanctioned by the World of Outlaws. Much of which would be for not as a rain system moved through the area halfway through Henry's qualifying flight. Following a brief pause, action resumed under the night sky, but the now heavily saturated track offered little passing opportunities. Henry qualified 18th before advancing from ninth to eighth in the heat race. Despite advancing three spots in the Last Chance Showdown, Henry's night came to end with a ninth place finish.

The week culminated with the 43rd edition of the Kings Royal and with a $200,000 check on the line. Unlike standard World of Outlaw events with 57 entries, the King's Royal does not feature split qualifying. Henry would go out as the 28th car in qualifying and would set a lap 14.811 on the hard, quickly slickening surface. After qualifying was all said and done, Henry was scored 24th. A King's favor was gifted when quick qualifier Chase Dietz spun the Wheel of Misfortune and landed on an invert of 4 for each heat race, putting Henry on the pole of heat race five.

It was a Henry and Henry show coming to the green as Cap Henry started on the outside of the front row. The heat nearly became a disaster for Kalib through turns one and two when third place starter and King XXXIX Brent Marks launched a slider for the lead. The duo nearly made contact as Henry squeezed around the outside. It would all be for not though as the field stacked up behind them to bring out a red. On the restart, Henry held off Marks briefly before Marks took the spot away for good. Henry would come across the line in second followed by Buddy Kofoid in the final transfer spot. Via his second-place finish, Henry secured the 11th spot in the 43rd Kings Royal.

When the green dropped for the 40 lap Kings Royal A-Main, the field charged into turn one, through turn two, and down the backstretch. Henry fought dirty air initially and fell to 14th. With 2025 World of Outlaw Champion David Gravel nipping at his heels, Henry defended the 14th spot till lap 12 when Gravel and Schuchart both got around the 101. The leaders entered Henry's frame on lap 28, successfully putting Henry a lap down officially on lap 31 while Henry continued to battle Spencer Bayston for position. A caution on lap 34 slowed action for the first time in the A-Main. When the field went back to green, Henry was swallowed up and fell to 22nd before pulling into the infield on lap 37 with a deflating right rear tire. Henry would officially be scored 23rd in his first career Kings Royal start.

"The track stuck around more than we were expecting and that had us a little caught off guard setup wise," said Henry. "I rarely get nervous before a race, but I was nervous for that. We fought hard and I'm honored to represent this team and our partners on one of the biggest stages in sprint car racing."

Henry and the Racers for Life 101 now turn their focus back to the All Star Circuit of Champions schedule in pursuit of another driver's championship and the team's first owner championship. This weekend's racing action is still to be determined. You can find all updates on KHR social media channels.

*Thursday's Joker Jackpot event did not contain qualifying or heat races as lineups were calculated based on points from Wednesday's Double Down Duels.

2026 Season Stats (U.S. Races Only)
23 Races / 3 Wins / 7 Top-5s / 11 Top-10s

Next Events
TBD

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Media Contact
Zane Scott
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Photo By: Bryce Becker Photography