By DDR Motorsports PR
Watertown, Conn.—July 9, 2012 — David Gravel had never seen Cedar Lake Speedway in Wisconsin, until last Friday afternoon, but that didn’t seem to matter to the 20-year-old. After just a handful of laps in practice at the high-banked three-eighths-mile, he went out and turned the fastest lap in qualifying with the World of Outlaws for the third time this season. He followed that up with a second-place finish in the 35-lap main event, which was his best performance of the season with the series.
The FVP Outlaw Showdown at Cedar Lake Speedway on Friday, July 6, marked Gravel’s first trip to Wisconsin to race a sprint car, and he would make his second start in the Badger State on Saturday, July 7 at Beaver Dam Raceway.
The native of Watertown, Conn., started the main event at Cedar Lake on the inside of the fourth row. He fell back a few spots early in the race and found himself as far back as 12th on the ninth lap. After the first caution flag flew on lap-19, Gravel began a frenetic charge to the front as the laps wound down.
With just 10 laps remaining, Gravel worked his way into the top-10. On the final restart of the night on the 28th circuit, the East Coast racer powered his way into the Top-Five, but he was not finished there. In the last five laps of the race, Gravel muscled his way past World of Outlaw veterans Joey Saldana, Kraig Kinser, and Kerry Madsen to capture the runner-up spot.
“I fell back at the beginning of the race after starting seventh,” said Gravel. “On the restarts we were fortunate to have the bottom line and I made up a lot of positions there. The restarts are what really helped us tonight and I was able to get my wind back. The end of the race was pretty crazy. It seemed like everyone was trying to wreck each other, but I held the (No.) 89G in the bottom line and was patient, so it worked out for us.”
The following night the DDR Motorsports team headed to north central Wisconsin for a glimpse at another new track – the high-banked one-third-mile Beaver Dam Raceway. Gravel began the night as the 17th-fastest driver in time trials. He then finished sixth in the second 10-lap heat race to transfer into the A-Feature.
Gravel lined up 17th in the 40-lap main event and would battle a very challenging track throughout the contest. In the early laps of the race, he dueled with World of Outlaws regular Lucas Wolfe for position and eventually followed the Pennsylvanian through the pack. Gravel battled both World of Outlaws and IRA (Interstate Racing Association) veterans to record a 13th-place finish.
This week, Gravel and his No. 89G will take to the track for three races in the state of Ohio, as the traditional “Month of Money” begins. The stretch of high profile events kicks on Wednesday, July 11, at Limaland Motorsports Park with the Ohio Logistics 24th Annual Brad Doty Classic Presented by Racing Optics. Action will then shift to the famed Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, for the Knight Before the Kings Royal on Friday, July 13, and the $50,000 to-win Kings Royal on Saturday, July 14.
David Gravel and DDR Motorsports would like to thank: J&J Chassis, JRC Transportation, Kistler Engines, Musco Fuels and P&M Transportation for their continued support.
Keep up-to-date with David Gravel and DDR Motorsports by visiting www.DavidGravel89.com. Follow David on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/DavidGravel89g. Like David on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/David-Gravel-Racing/143538695709198