Schatz Strikes, Dillon Repeats on Huge Night at DIRTcar Nationals
Tony Stewart Racing driver pushes from 11th to win at DIRTcar Nationals presented by Summit Racing Equipment
BARBERVILLE, Fla. – Feb. 15, 2014 – It was only the second World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series race of the season on Saturday night at Volusia Speedway Park, but Donny Schatz looks like he’s in midseason form after charging from 11th to victory in front of packed grandstands at the DIRTcar Nationals presented by Summit Racing Equipment.
Then in the DIRTcar UMP Modified nightcap, Ty Dillon motored his way to victory lane for second consecutive night, putting himself in prime position for a shot at Monday’s Gator Championship.
But Saturday night belonged to Tony Stewart Racing’s Schatz. Just when it looked like Kasey Kahne Racing’s Cody Darrah was cruising toward victory in the 30-lap main event, Schatz took off, eventually passing last year’s World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series champion Daryn Pittman for second, then charging past Darrah for the win.
“It was a lot of fun, you kind of had to pass everywhere,” said Schatz, the five-time series champion from Fargo, N.D. “We didn’t have the greatest night (Friday) night, but you’ll have that in racing. It’s how quick you rebound, came back today with had an awesome race car and got ourselves qualified well. Every time we made changes we went the right direction. It was a fun race, it was awesome and fast. Sometimes I didn’t know where I was going to end up. I don’t know anybody who doesn’t come to the race to win, but we were extra hungry leaving here (Friday) night, we felt like we had a decent run from the back. It just wasn’t very good and we were a long ways off on balance. Those guys are what make that car fast and I get the fun job.” (more…)
Enfinger Wins 51st Lucas Oil ARCA 200 at Daytona
(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.) — Grant Enfinger, in the Team BCR Motor Honey-Casite-Advance Auto Parts Ford, beat the field to the checkered flag Saturday afternoon, winning the Lucas Oil 200 presented by MAVTV American Real at Daytona Int’l Speedway. It was his third victory in the last 21 ARCA Racing Series races.
Enfinger, from Fairhope, Ala., took the lead from polesitter Dylan Kwasniewski on lap 52 and stayed there.
“Good track position won us this race,” he said. “We had the track position at the end.”
Frank Kimmel finished second in the Ansell-Menards Toyota with Clay Campbell third in the Ken Schrader Racing Federated Auto Parts Chevrolet. Tyler Reddick, 18, finished fifth in his first Daytona start in the Broken Bow-Cunningham Motorsports Dodge, one spot behind teammate Tom Hessert in the CAREGARD-AxiomWarranty.com Dodge. Reddick was the highest-finishing rookie and was named the SCOTT Rookie Challenge rookie of the race.
The rest of the top 10 included Bobby Gerhart, Mason Mitchell, Terry Jones, Chase Elliott and Sean Corr. John Wes Townley was 11th with Brian Silas 12th, Derrick Lancaster 13th, Kwasniewski 14th and Brian Rose 15th.
Enfinger, who won at Mobile and Iowa last year, started second and swapped places with Kwasniewski several times. At one point, he said, he was content with running behind Kwasniewski as he learned more about his own car. Then, he said, he tried a pass.
“I wanted to see what would happen for later in the race,” he said. “Then, I drove by him. It kind of surprised me. (more…)
Bobby Pierce Takes First Career East Bay Win on Saturday Afternoon
TAMPA, FL – Bobby Pierce took the lead at the start of the race and never looked back as he went on to win Saturday afternoon at East Bay Raceway Park. It was Pierce’s first ever win at East Bay as well as his first career Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series victory. Pierce was followed across the finish line by Gregg Satterlee, Steve Francis, Billy Moyer, Jr., and Eddie Carrier Jr.
“It feels great to win here at East Bay. My dad never won here. We have been coming down here for three years now and to finally break through with this win, I don’t know what to say,” said the 17-year-old, who became the second youngest driver to win a Winternationals event in a Late Model at East Bay.
“I am going to have to text my buddy Tyler Reddick, and tell him I won. He is the youngest to win here [when he was 15], so I have to rub it in a little. It was important to win that first heat and get the pole. We have had a tough week with our other car. I am not sure if something is bent on it or what, so we brought this one out today. If dad let’s me, I guess I should drive it tonight,” said the winner.
“My biggest challenge today was to conserve tires. Obviously, in a day race there was no moisture out there. You have to drive the car straighter. Traffic wasn’t too bad out there. I kept some distance between myself and the last place car for a while, and then I thought I had better get going. I knew someone was close behind me, so I had to pick up the pace a little bit,” said the driver of the Pierce Posse, Champion, Bob Pierce Race Cars, Pro Power Racing Engines, Chevrolet. (more…)
Brad Sweet, Ty Dillon Win DIRTcar Nationals Thrillers at Volusia
Sweet captures World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series opener, Dillon holds off his brother to grab DIRTcar UMP Modified feature
BARBERVILLE, Fla. – Brad Sweet powered his Kasey Kahne Racing car to victory in the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series season opener on Friday night at the DIRTcar Nationals presented by Summit Racing Equipment at Volusia Speedway Park while Ty Dillon held off his brother, Austin, over the final three laps to win the DIRTcar UMP Modified feature.
Sweet, who is going to race full-time with the Outlaws in 2014, showed he’ll be a championship contender by surging past Paul McMahan in the first corner with two laps to go for the victory after McMahan and Tim Shaffer battled each other for the first 28 laps in the 30-lap A-main. Australian Kerry Madsen joined the mix and finished third behind Sweet and McMahan.
“It’s always good to start off with a win,” said Sweet, of Grass Valley, Calif. “These races are tough to win. I mean you can win the first race out and not win another one the rest of the year, to get the first one under our belt this quick and feel this good with our car and get a new team together like this and be fast out of the gate quick is a good sign. You always want to start the year out strong. It’s a bit more important this year to be consistent where last few years we would race with these guys and if we had a bad night it was just a bad night, it didn’t hurt us in the points. Now we’ve got to pay attention to that a little bit and be a little more consistent.” (more…)
Billy Moyer Survives Battle with Blankenship to Win Friday Night at East Bay
TAMPA, FL (February 14, 2014) – Billy Moyer survived a back-and-forth battle with John Blankenship to win the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series event on Friday Night at East Bay Raceway Park. Moyer denied Blankenship’s first ever win at East Bay by taking the lead with eight laps to go from Blankenship and went unchallenged the remaining laps. With his win Moyer scored his 778th win of his career. Blankenship finished second, followed by Scott Bloomquist, Don O’Neal, and Gregg Satterlee rounded out the top five.
“The car was just phenomenal all night long. When he (Blankenship) got around me, I thought I was in trouble. There was a bunch of heavy traffic, and I lost contact with him. That caution about halfway through the race really helped me,” said Moyer.
“On the restart I was able to stay with him [Blankenship]. It looked like his car was going away a little bit, then we had that last caution with nine to go, and I was thinking I had a real good shot at him. We were able to get out of the corners better than him. His [Blankenship’s] car would drift up the track, and that’s when we passed him,” said Moyer. (more…)
Brady Smith Steers New Rocket Car To Victory In World of Outlaws Late Model Season Opener At Bubba Raceway Park
Wisconsin Standout Holds Off Substitute Rocket Chassis House Car Driver Brandon Sheppard For $7,000 Triumph
OCALA, FL – Feb. 14, 2014 – Brady Smith loves his new car.
After steering the three-race-old machine to a wire-to-wire victory in Friday night’s caution-free 35-lap World of Outlaws Late Model Series season opener at Bubba Raceway Park, Smith’s decision to join the Rocket Chassis fold in 2014 was vindicated.
“We just couldn’t be happier with the support we’ve been getting (from Rocket Chassis),” Smith said after capturing the milestone 400th WoO LMS A-Main contested since the national tour was reborn in 2004 under the World Racing Group banner. “All those guys over there – (Steve) Baker, Mark (Richards), Cody (Duncan), Matt (Barnes), Josh (Richards) – have been just so helpful. I couldn’t be happier with the effort they’ve been giving me to help us get going here.”
Smith, 36, of Solon Springs, Wis., took off from his pole position starting spot and led the entire distance in his Vic Hill-powered car, but his $7,050 triumph in the first of three Bubba Army Dirt Late Model Winter Nationals events didn’t come easy. He had to hold off a furious late-race challenge from Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill. – the substitute driver of Mark Richards’s Rocket Chassis house car while reigning WoO LMS champ Josh Richards is sidelined by undisclosed medical issues – to secure his fifth career win on the WoO LMS. (more…)
Bronson Edges Dillon for DIRTcar Nationals UMP Modified Victory
Saldana holds off McMahan in sprint cars during 12-day event at Volusia
BARBERVILLE, Fla. – Feb. 13, 2014 – Kyle Bronson edged Ty Dillon, and Joey Saldana held off Paul McMahan, during the DIRTcar Nationals presented by Summit Racing Equipment on Thursday night at Volusia Speedway Park.
As the early leaders in the 20-lap DIRTcar UMP Modified feature found trouble, Bronson kept pushing to the front, eventually moving to the high side of the half-mile oval and edging NASCAR Nationwide driver Ty Dillon by 0.28 at the checkered flag.
“He went with a harder tire and I figured they would be better on the longer runs, but I think my softer tire worked better on the shorter run,” said Bronson, of Brandon, Fla. “Everybody acts like they’ve been given everything, but I’ve raced with them and they’re the best in the business, they should have been in NASCAR a long time ago.”
Earlier in the night, World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series regular Saldana showed off some newfound horsepower as he led the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions main event from wire-to-wire, topping his good friend, McMahan, in the process. Saldana and his Motter Motorsports team came together quickly before last season and struggled early. Now a year under their belts, Saldana has been one of the fastest cars on the track this February. (more…)
Dennis Erb Wins a Wild One at East Bay on Thursday Night
TAMPA, FL (February 13, 2014) – Dennis Erb Jr. earned his first victory of the season on Thursday Night at East Bay Raceway Park. Erb had a fierce battle all race long and finally overtook Billy Moyer for the lead with seven laps to go in the 38th Annual Winternationals event. The race was broadcasted live on MAVTV American Real Network. Trailing Erb and Moyer to the checkers were Jimmy Owens, Scott Bloomquist, and Brandon Sheppard.
“It feels great to beat Billy [Moyer] here and get a win for C.J. Rayburn and Rayburn Race Cars. The last few years we’ve really ran well here. We just got this car at the beginning of January and rushed to get it together to bring it down to Golden Isles and East Bay. When he [Moyer] started running that high-line through one and two, I thought maybe I had a shot at him,” said the winner in Lucas Oil Victory Lane with his Crew Chief, Heather Lyne.
“We got by him a couple of times early on, but never took the lead at the flag stand. Those couple of cautions there really helped me. Then he [Moyer] started going up the track in turn two to get around that hole up there. We stayed glued to the bottom and eventually we were able to get by him,” said the driver of the JR McBride Leasing, Kuntz and Company-powered #28E C.J. Rayburn Race Car. (more…)
Tommy King Named Tech Inspector of Southern Pro Am Truck Series
Driver Seat Racing, Inc., managing sponsor of the Southern Pro Am Truck Series has named Tommy King as its 2014 tech inspector and series consultant. Mr. King, who has an extensive background with the Florida Pro Trucks, will not only be the series’ pre and post race tech inspector, he will also consult on series management, work to align the series with other national pro truck series, and research possible rule revisions that will benefit the series member’s racing budget and safety. Upon agreeing to the tech inspector role, Mr. King communicated that, no matter a driver’s status or involvement with the series, each member will be properly inspected and treated the same.
In addition, the series has named Bobby Owens as its Field Representative. The series’ field representative is responsible for assisting members at series events, membership growth, and networking with prospective and current business partners. Mr. Owens will consult on Driver Seat Racing’s pro truck driver development program and maintain the Driver Seat Racing’s pro truck racing fleet.
“The addition of Tommy King and Bobby Owens improves the series’ integrity,” noted Jim Reppi, President of Driver Seat Racing, Inc and Southern Pro Am Truck Series. “With Tommy and Bobby’s comprehensive understanding of pro truck racing, their impressive seat time in the pro trucks and experience fabricating stock cars, they will be a great resource for our current and prospective members.” (more…)