By Bill W
February 3, 2010 – Wayne Johnson scored two podium runs including a third at the President’s Cup and a second with the World Series Sprintcars at Premier Speedway during his trip “Down Under”, driving the Brett Smith #USA39. He has returned to the States and will wrench for Glenn Styres this week in Florida. Just in case, he has brought his helmet bag in his quest to land a ride for 2010.
A six race schedule in Australia started with the President’s Cup at Avalon Raceway near Lara, Victoria on January 20. An 18th quick qualification run didn’t bode well, but Wayne came back strong in his heat races. “The car wasn’t great to start out with,” he says. “We got lucky and passed some cars in the heat races. That gave us enough points to start on the front row of the feature.”
Starting on the outside of row one, Wayne made a move for the lead when the green flag fell. In the end, he would run third. “(Brooke) Tatnell started on the pole, and I took the high side around one and two,” he says. “That let the (James) McFadden kid get by us, and we just ran third. We weren’t great to be honest; we were just hanging on. After the race, the car in front of me had a wheel fall off and he spun in front of me, and I ran into him…so we bent some stuff after the checkers.”
The move to the King’s Sprintcar Challenge at Borderline Speedway in Mt. Gambier, South Australia, and the Grand Annual Classic at the Premier Speedway near Warrnambool, Victoria both started with poor qualifying times (25th out of 41 and 56th out of 76). “There were some issues with the car that I had overlooked and missed,” says Wayne. “We were able to find the problem the final night of the Classic, and we fixed it. We won the D main, and we were coming up through there in the C, but we missed a transfer by a couple of spots. We registered the fastest one-lap time of the night in the D, so that helped our confidence heading into the World Series race.”
The WSS is the premiere traveling series in Australia and the event took place at Premier Speedway on January 26. Wayne registered the 12th quick time of the night amongst 55 cars assembled. He ran fifth in both of his heat races, setting him up outside row five for the feature. He immediately raced forward and was in the runner-up position rather quickly. “The car was running really well,” he says of Brett Smith’s mount. “There was a time when I thought I had (leader) Terry (McCarl), but I caught a rut at the wrong time and it shot me out in the middle of the racetrack. We had a restart with eight to go, and that gave him a clean track. We were within a car length or two the rest of the race. They said the two of us just drove away from everyone else, so that was a good feeling.”
The Sprintcar Nationals at Speedway City near Richmond, South Australia marked the final event of Wayne’s tour. The race occurred Saturday, and the format called for a heat race draw. After heat runs of third and fifth, Wayne found himself in row three of the B. His trip ended with a crunch. “We got upside down in the B there on the last night down there,” he says. “Danny Smith and another car were crashing in front of me. I got on the gas and headed down low to get by them. There was another car involved that I never saw. With the way the wings are now, it’s hard to see to the right. The guy had his front end knocked out, but he stayed on the gas and drove right in front of us. We hit him and tipped over.”
All in all, it was a good trip for Wayne and the Brett Smith Racing team as well as all the partners including Truckmaster and Australian Scrap Batteries. “We were able to get on the podium a couple of times with some good competition,” says Wayne. “Brett and the team were very pleased compared to the season prior, when we just hadn’t run together before. Hopefully, we can be even better next year.”
Wayne will enjoy the Florida sunshine, working for Glenn Styres and both Volusia and East Bay. However, he didn’t forget his driving gear. “You never know,” he says. “We just need to find something solid to drive this season, and Florida is where it starts.”
Meanwhile, Wayne is looking for 2010. Look him up at the Chili Bowl, or e-mail him at WayneJohnsonRacing@yahoo.com!
Buy Your ARP Wings from Wayne
Wayne is an ARP Wings dealer located in the Knoxville, Iowa area. Wayne credits the new ARP top wing for his wins at Little Rock and Cowtown. Contact Wayne for your ARP Wing, as he has some special Holiday deals going! ARP Wings – “When Downforce Matters”!
Wayne’s Website
To learn more about Wayne and the team, log on to www.WayneJohnsonRacing.com!
Wayne’s World
Monica Wilke asks: You’ve been living in Iowa a few years. How often do you get back to Oklahoma City?
Wayne answers: I try to get back as much as possible, because that’s where my family, other than my immediate family now, is. It ends up being about a half a dozen times, but for me, it’s not as much as I’d like to.
Wayne’s Fast Facts
Wayne’s run of three straight years with a win in Florida could be coming to an end. In 2007, he won with USCS at the North Florida Speedway, topping Gary Wright, Kenny Adams, Justin Barger and Travis Rilat. In 2008, he defeated an All Star/WoO cast at Volusia, topping Sam Hafertepe Jr., Danny Lasoski, Craig Dollansky and Donny Schatz. Last year, he won a 410 event at East Bay over Greg Hodnett, Daryn Pittman, Mark Smith and Terry McCarl.
Got a question for Wayne? Each week, Wayne will answer your questions about “Tech Tips”, or anything that’s on your mind. If you ever wondered what a part on a sprint car is all about, send an e-mail to us at sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, and we may answer it in this section! Put “? for Wayne” in your subject line. He’ll try to keep it clean if you do!
“Wednesday’s with Wayne”
“Wednesday’s With Wayne” is an up close look at the past, present and future of colorful and talented sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. You’ll never know what to expect next with Wayne, so don’t miss us on Wednesdays!
To receive “Wednesday’s with Wayne”, send an e-mail to sprntcar@iowatelecom.net with “Wayne” in the subject line.