David Gravel Steals One from Logan Shuchart on the Final Corner to Claim Opening Night of the Outlaw Energy Showdown at Skagit Speedway on Friday
(By Gary Thomas) ALGER, Wash. — Sept. 2, 2016 — The World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series return to the Pacific Northwest on Friday culminated in thrilling fashion, with David Gravel carving his way under Logan Schuchart in traffic to claim a final corner victory on opening night at the Skagit Speedway.
Gravel had stalked Schuchart’s bumper over the final half of the race, before finally making the outstanding move coming down for the checkered flag, winning by just 0.249 seconds. It was a great way for the Watertown, Connecticut native to open the Western Swing, as he is currently locked in a tight three-way battle for the runner spot in the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series standings.
“That sure was an exciting finish tonight so I hope all the fans enjoyed that one,” commented the driver the CJB Motorsports/ Big Game Tree Stands No. 5 machine. “I got a run and saw the opening, so I just went for it. I’m pretty pumped we were able to finally park it for BC tonight. I can’t Barry Jackson, my entire crew and all our sponsors enough for working so hard and giving me great cars. I haven’t competed here at Skagit Speedway a whole lot, but it hasn’t seemed to be my best track. Tonight the third time was the charm I guess. If we get a similar track tomorrow that keeps our confidence up and I think we’ll have a good shot to be back up here.”
The 25-lap main event started out with Schuchart getting the jump on the field, before a yellow flag waved on lap three when six-cars piled up in turn four. Day time rains had left the surface soft & rough in certain areas, which forced officials to utilize single-file restarts in the feature.
Another caution on lap-five then set up a dramatic restart that saw Bixby, Oklahoma’s Shane Stewart power his way to the inside through the first corner and grab the lead heading down the back stretch. As Stewart entered the third & fourth corners however, Schuchart tried to make a move back to his inside, which saw contact ensue, leaving the Larson Marks Racing No. 2 stopped on the high-side with front end damage.
When going back green Schuchart found himself out front once again with Gravel now breathing down his neck. Lapped traffic then made things hectic for the leaders, until the final caution of the night flew on lap 13. The last 12-laps clicked off without incident and featured Schuchart looking to hold on for his second career World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series win.
The Hanover, Pennsylvania wheel-man had done a phenomenal job out front, but with the white flag waving Gravel got the run he needed to tuck up behind the Shark Racing No. 1s mount. He then proceeded to cut a perfect set of corners, rocketing to the inside of Schuchart to steal the win away and earn his eighth triumph of the 2016 campaign. Gravel becomes the second driver to reach at least eight wins this season in World of Outlaws competition.
Despite the tough ending it was still a great outing for Schuchart, who has shown lots of speed over the second half of the season.
“First off I want to apologize to Shane Stewart, because I feel bad about getting into him. He had passed me on that restart and I thought I could make a similar move, but once I started bouncing I just couldn’t stop. It was definitely a demanding track tonight and I want to congratulate David Gravel & CJB Motorsports on the win. Huge thanks to my team and all of our supporters. Any time you can get on the podium with the World of Outlaws it’s a good thing, but I certainly hate losing it like that. We’ll get them next time.”
Recent Knoxville Nationals winner Jason Johnson of Eunice, Louisiana had a strong outing to claim the final spot on the podium aboard the Priority Aviation No. 41 Sprinter.
“I felt like we had a good spot in the dash getting on the front row, but we were just a little too free and lost a front row starting spot there for the feature. You pretty much have to be perfect to win one of these races, but with how rough the track was it’s definitely a feat to be standing up here on the podium. It was the type of track where you really had to be aggressive so I’m happy with our finish. Thank you to all the fans for coming out tonight and be sure to invite all your friends tomorrow.”
Grass Valley’s Brad Sweet came home in fourth, with current World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series point leader Donny Schatz of Fargo, North Dakota rounding out the top-five. Brownsburg, Indiana’s Joey Saldana crossed the stripe in sixth, with Shane Stewart making a nice recovery from the early incident to finish seventh. Owasso, Oklahoma’s Daryn Pittman, Fresno’s Dominic Scelzi and Forni, Texas driver Travis Rilat completed the top-10.
Logan Schuchart captured the night’s dash, while the three eight-lap heat races were picked off by Shane Stewart, David Gravel and Jason Johnson. Stewart opened the night by setting a brand new all-time Skagit Speedway track record with a blistering lap of 10.697.
The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series will return to the Skagit Speedway on Saturday night to finish off the 2016 Outlaw Energy Showdown.
CONTINGENCY WINNERS: MSD Ignitions ($25 cash): Luke Didiuk; MSD Ignitions ($50 cash): David Gravel; Penske Shocks ($50 cash): Donny Schatz; JE Pistons ($50 cash): Joey Saldana; VP Racing Fuels ($50 cash): Darryn Pittman; Edelbrock ($50 cash): Jason Sides; Comp Cams ($50 cash): Jason Sides; Morton Buildings ($50 cash): Jason Sowold; Cometic Gasket ($50 cash): Jason Sides; Super Flow ($50 cash): Jacob Allen; Craftsman Club Fast Five ($100 cash): Logan Schuchart, Shane Stewart; David Gravel, Jason Johnson, Brad Sweet; KSE Hard Charger:Jacob Allen; Comp Cams ($50 product certificate): David Gravel; JE Pistons (Set of Rings): Greg Wilson; JE Pistons (Set of Rings): Luke Didiuk.
SEASON WINNERS: Donny Schatz – 20 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 14, The Dirt Track at Las Vegas on March 4, Stockton Dirt Track on March 18, Stockton Dirt Track on March 19, Silver Dollar Speedway on April 2, Lincoln Speedway on May 19, Weedsport Speedway on May 22, Lincoln Park Speedway on June 8, Knoxville Raceway on June 11, River Cities Speedway on June 17, Rockford Speedway on June 29, Badlands Motor Speedway on July 3, Cedar Lake Speedway on July 9, Attica Raceway Park on July 12, Eldora Speedway on July 16, Ohsweken Speedway on July 26, Junction Motor Speedway on August 16, Angell Park Speedway on August 21, River Cities Speedway on August 26, Nodak Speedway on August 28); David Gravel – 8 (Thunderbowl Raceway on March 12, Tri-State Speedway on May 14, I-96 Speedway on June 6, Eldora Speedway on July 14, Lernerville Speedway on July 19, Wilmot Raceway on July 30, Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on Aug. 5, Skagit Speedway on Sept 2); Daryn Pittman – 7 (Royal Purple Raceway on Feb. 27, Perris Auto Speedway on April 16, USA Raceway on April 18, New Egypt Speedway on May 24, Jackson Motorplex on June 24, Eldora Speedway on July 15, Williams Grove Speedway on July 22); Brad Sweet – 7 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 13, Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 14, Cotton Bowl Speedway on Feb. 26, Ocean Speedway on April 1, Bakersfield Speedway on April 15, Plymouth Speedway on May 13, Badlands Motor Speedway on July 2); Shane Stewart – 5 (Arizona Speedway on March 6, Devil’s Bowl Speedway on April 23, Lawrenceburg Speedway on May 30, Granite City Speedway on June 15, Brown County Speedway on June 19); Joey Saldana – 4 (The Dirt Track at Las Vegas on March 3, Devil’s Bowl Speedway on April 22, Jacksonville Speedway on May 4, I-80 Speedway on June 22); Lance Dewease – 2 (Williams Grove Speedway on May 20, Williams Grove Speedway on July 23); Kerry Madsen – 2 (Eldora Speedway on May 6 and 7);Rico Abreu – 1(Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 on Aug. 6); Bill Balog – 1 (Beaver Dam Raceway on June 25); Chad Kemenah – 1 (Fremont Speedway on June 3); Jason Johnson – 2 (Placerville Speedway on March 24, Knoxville Nationals on August 13);Terry McCarl – 1 (Knoxville Raceway on June 10); Logan Schuchart – 1 (Cedar Lake Speedway on July 9); Jason Sides – 1 (I-30 Speedway on April 26); Greg Wilson – 1 (The Dirt Track at Charlotte on May 27).
World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series Statistical Report; Skagit Speedway, Wash.; Sept 2, 2016
A-Main – (25 Laps) 1. 5-David Gravel [3] [$8,000]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [1] [$4,000]; 3. 41-Jason Johnson [4] [$2,500]; 4. 49-Brad Sweet [5] [$2,200]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [10] [$2,100]; 6. 83-Joey Saldana [7] [$2,000]; 7. 2-Shane Stewart [2] [$1,800]; 8. 9-Daryn Pittman [6] [$1,600]; 9. 41X-Dominic Scelzi [9] [$1,500]; 10. 39C-Travis Rilat [12] [$1,300]; 11. 18-Jason Solwold [8] [$1,200]; 12. 7S-Jason Sides [17] [$1,100]; 13. 21-Robbie Price [14] [$1,000]; 14. 1A-Jacob Allen [22] [$700]; 15. 55-Trey Starks [11] [$600]; 16. W20-Greg Wilson [18] [$600]; 17. 13-Clyde Knipp [23] [$600]; 18. 7-Paul McMahan [20] [$600]; 19. 22X-Trevor Cook [16] [$600]; 20. 44W-Austen Wheatley [13] [$600]; 21. 33V-Henry VanDam [15] [$600]; 22. 9A-Luke Didiuk [19] [$600]; 23. 26-Tayler Malsam [21] [$600]. Lap Leaders: Logan Schuchart 1-24, David Gravel 25. KSE Hard Charger Award: 1A-Jacob Allen [+8]
Qualifying – 1. 2-Shane Stewart, 10.697; 2. 49-Brad Sweet, 10.729; 3. 26-Tayler Malsam, 10.778; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 10.821; 5. 5-David Gravel, 10.872; 6. 41-Jason Johnson, 10.920; 7. 83-Joey Saldana, 10.941; 8. 55-Trey Starks, 10.941; 9. 9-Daryn Pittman, 10.958; 10. 15-Donny Schatz, 10.967; 11. 18-Jason Solwold, 11.044; 12. 33V-Henry VanDam, 11.094; 13. 44W-Austen Wheatley, 11.150; 14. 7S-Jason Sides, 11.189; 15. 39C-Travis Rilat, 11.273; 16. 1A-Jacob Allen, 11.364; 17. 21-Robbie Price, 11.451; 18. 41X-Dominic Scelzi, 11.480; 19. 22X-Trevor Cook, 11.545; 20. 13-Clyde Knipp, 11.549; 21. W20-Greg Wilson, 11.727; 22. 9A-Luke Didiuk, 11.973; 23. 7-Paul McMahan
Heat 1 – (10 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) 1. 2-Shane Stewart [1] ; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [2] ; 3. 83-Joey Saldana [3] ; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [4] ; 5. 44W-Austen Wheatley [5] ; 6. 22X-Trevor Cook [7] ; 7. 9A-Luke Didiuk [8] ; 8. 1A-Jacob Allen [6]
Heat 2 – (10 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) 1. 5-David Gravel [2] ; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [1] ; 3. 18-Jason Solwold [4] ; 4. 55-Trey Starks [3] ; 5. 21-Robbie Price [6] ; 6. 7S-Jason Sides [5] ; 7. 7-Paul McMahan [8] ; 8. 13-Clyde Knipp [7]
Heat 3 – (10 Laps – Top 6 finishers transfer to the A-feature) 1. 41-Jason Johnson [2] ; 2. 9-Daryn Pittman [3] ; 3. 41X-Dominic Scelzi [6] ; 4. 39C-Travis Rilat [5] ; 5. 33V-Henry VanDam [4] ; 6. W20-Greg Wilson [7] ; 7. 26-Tayler Malsam [1]
Dash – (8 Laps, finishing order determined first 6 starting positions of A-feature) 1. 1S-Logan Schuchart [1] ; 2. 2-Shane Stewart [4] ; 3. 5-David Gravel [3] ; 4. 41-Jason Johnson [2] ; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [5] ; 6. 9-Daryn Pittman [6]
Unofficial World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series Championship Standings
| Pos. | Car | Driver | Total | Diff | Wins | Top 5’s | Top 10’s | QT |
| 1 | 15 | Donny Schatz | 8907 | 0 | 20 | 48 | 61 | 5 |
| 2 | 5 | David Gravel | 8640 | -267 | 8 | 37 | 53 | 4 |
| 3 | 49 | Brad Sweet | 8639 | -268 | 7 | 36 | 50 | 11 |
| 4 | 9 | Daryn Pittman | 8628 | -279 | 7 | 36 | 51 | 6 |
| 5 | 83 | Joey Saldana | 8492 | -415 | 4 | 25 | 48 | 10 |
| 6 | 2 | Shane Stewart | 8444 | -463 | 5 | 28 | 53 | 4 |
| 7 | 41 | Jason Johnson | 8004 | -903 | 2 | 14 | 36 | 2 |
| 8 | 1S | Logan Schuchart | 7878 | -1029 | 1 | 11 | 27 | 2 |
| 9 | 7s | Jason Sides | 7720 | -1187 | 1 | 4 | 22 | 2 |
| 10 | 7 | Paul McMahan | 7600 | -1307 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 0 |
| 11 | W20 | Greg Wilson | 7224 | -1683 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 0 |
| 12 | 1A | Jacob Allen | 6940 | -1967 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0 |
| 13 | 29 | Kerry Madsen | 5371 | -3536 | 2 | 12 | 24 | 2 |
| 14 | 13 | Clyde Knipp | 4362 | -4545 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | 24 | Terry McCarl | 3006 | -5901 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 16 | 1 | Sammy Swindell | 2947 | -5960 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| 17 | 11k | Kraig Kinser | 2770 | -6137 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| 18 | 41 | Dominic Scelzi | 2600 | -6307 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 19 | 17W | Bryan Clauson | 2456 | -6451 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| 20 | 18 | Ian Madsen | 2427 | -6480 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
The World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Bad Boy Off Road (Official Side-by-Side Vehicle), Craftsman (Official Tool), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), Morton Buildings (Official Building), Sears (Official Home Store), The Kenny Wallace Dirt Racing Experience (Official Racing Experience) and VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, including: Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Edelbrock, JE Pistons, KSE Racing Products, MSD, Penske Shocks, and Superflow Dynos; along with manufacturer sponsors, including: Impact Racing Products, Intercomp, Racing Electronics, S&S Volvo and TNT Rescue.