From NASR Enews, photo by James Baker
American Sprintcar legend Danny Smith will return to our shores this Christmas to contest the remainder of the Performance Wholesale World Series Sprintcars championship driving for ADRAD Racing.
Team owner Trevor Green suffered spinal injuries during Round 2 of the series and is resting at his Adelaide home but says he needs something to keep him occupied while he recovers. “This is by far the worst pain I have ever felt,” ached Green. “ I keep trying to get up thinking that I’m alright but its terrible. I can’t lie down, I can’t stand up for any period of time, it hurts when I cough, getting into and out of the car is difficult so all I can do is rest. I have been told I have to wear this brace for 12 weeks and then I can start rehab but I am hoping I can get out of it quicker than that.
“You have got to set yourself goals and I hope I can get a few meetings in before the Australian Title but at this stage I don’t care if I ever race again, I will be happy if I can walk properly. I left Toowoomba Thursday and sat around at Mouse’s (brother) house in Sydney so it has been hard on all of us. I went to Parramatta Saturday night but by the end of the night I had a headache and you just feel physically sick. I got back to Adelaide Tuesday and my sponsors were excellent saying I could do whatever I wanted, pull out for the year or put another driver in the seat. I will go crazy if I have nothing to do and my sponsors did the right thing by me so I am going to do the right thing by them and put Danny in the car,” explained Green.
Smith is certainly no stranger to the Australian Speedway scene racing for many car owners over the years with six Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic victories. His first career PWWSS main event win came at the Newcaslte Motordrome in 1988 with 11 in total. “The number one reason I decided on Danny was he could race from Boxing night until the end of the series in Perth , He knows all the tracks and the World Series format inside out plus he is very popular which is good for our sponsors. He will do an honest and consistent job and hopefully he can win a few races for us. We will use the Maxim I bought from Terry McCarl instead of the Cool because he is used to running them in the States.
“I have had calls from about 30 drivers and we wanted to put Kraig Kinser in the car but he could only run until January 10, same with Tim Keading. Ian (Madsen) did an excellent job for us in Sydney and I think he will keep getting better but I just didn’t have the money to take that chance so I kept going back to Danny. The motor has just been rebuilt and I will get to as many races as I can but we will just have to wait and see. At least I can arrange fuel and organise accommodation because if I have nothing to do I will go crazy,” said Green.
Smith arrives into Australia on Christmas Eve and Green is hoping he brings a large sack to fill with trophies this holiday season.
Trevor Green would like to thank the generous support of his 2009/10 sponsors: Adrad Radiators, Freightmaster Semi-trailers, Maxwill Racing Engines, Cool Chassis, Weld Racing Wheels, Butler Built, Protec, Gilbert Event Management, The Truck Factory, Steve Wicks and Sons, Treble, BRr Motor Sports, Vin’s Mini Buses and Green Welding.