YAKIMA, Wash. (April 3, 2017) – The partnership between Austen Wheatley and Doug Rutz yielded immediate results last weekend at Central Washington State Fair Raceway, where the duo captured the season-opening race for the Summer Thunder Sprint Series on Friday.
“It was great for both of us,” Wheatley said. “We’ve both had a lot of speed at Yakima over the years, but neither of us had won. It’s always a little different getting comfortable in a different car, but everything was fairly comparable to my family car so that helped speed up the learning process. It was cool to get quick time and be solid all night.”
The action began on Friday with Wheatley setting quick time during qualifying. He then advanced from fourth to third place in a heat race to lock into the feature redraw, where he pulled the No. 1 to start the main event on the pole.
“I think there were maybe three cautions in the feature,” he said. “The first two were pretty early and then we had a 15-lap run. We got into traffic and I was setting a good pace. I got a little complacent and Jason (Solwold) put his nose underneath me and I had to get going. I got on the outside of a lapped car and Jason passed me. Luckily, a yellow came out, which really helped. On the restart he slid me and I crossed under him to keep the lead.”
Wheatley capitalized on the late-race restart and he held off Solwold in the closing laps to score his first career win at the track.
The event finale on Saturday appeared to mirror Friday’s show. Wheatley again set quick time during qualifying and he finished fourth in a heat race to make the feature redraw. Once again, he pulled the No. 1 during the random redraw to start the main event on the pole.
“I felt lucky, but just because you start on the pole doesn’t mean you’ll finish there,” he said. “The car was really good and it was a winning car. I was too conservative and wasn’t running the top as hard. There wasn’t as much grip as the night before in turns one and two. Jason got by me and then he got in a conservative mode and I caught him back.”
Wheatley led the first 15 laps before Solwold took over the top spot. Wheatley was running second and within striking distance in the closing laps when he was involved in a crash.
“I was right behind Jason and two drivers were racing on the bottom about to go a lap down,” he said. “Jason passed them on the bottom. One driver went to the bottom and the other to the top, where I was. It looked like he was going to spin so I think I overreacted. I half spun down the track and nailed my teammate. It was an unfortunate end to an otherwise outstanding weekend.”
Wheatley, who was credited with a 14th-place finish, said he is unsure of when or where his next race will be.
In the meantime, fans can visit http://www.AustenWheatley.com to purchase one of his racing shirts.