From the World of Outlaws
LAS VEGAS, NV – March 3, 2011 – Steve Kinser survived two double-file restarts in the final three laps on Thursday night in the finale of the Las Vegas Nationals Presented by J.D. Byrider to win his fourth World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event this season.
(Click here to listen to Steve Kinser talk about his victory at Las Vegas)
For 27 laps, Kinser had positioned his #11 Bass Pro Shops/J.D Byrider/Chevrolet Maxim almost perfectly on the track to weave through traffic and hold off longtime rival Sammy Swindell. Then a spin by Kraig Kinser with three to go was followed by Paul McMahan’s flip as Steve Kinser was coming to the white flag and set up a furious battle to the checkered flag with Joey Saldana .
Kinser opted to restart on the top side, hoping to pin Saldana’s Kasey Kahne Racing Red Bull Maxim under him. The two went into the first corner with Kinser blasting around the cushion and Saldana cutting to the bottom and sliding up in front of Kinser in Turn 2. Kinser’s momentum shot him by Saldana down the backstretch and they would repeat the maneuver again on the next lap. Kinser then cut to the bottom in Turns 3 and 4 on the final lap and shot down the frontstretch to the checkered flag.
Kinser’s TSR teammate Donny Schatz wound up third followed by pole-sitter Swindell and Saldana’s teammate, Cody Darrah.
“I wasn’t sure how well our car was going to hold up there on the last restart,” said an exhausted Kinser, the Bloomington, Ind., legend who is chasing his 21st World of Outlaws championship this season. “I knew Joey had a really strong car and I thought he had me beat.”
Saldana, who won his first World of Outlaws race at Las Vegas on Wednesday night, was aiming to complete the Las Vegas Nationals sweep in dramatic fashion but was still pleased with his runner-up finish on Thursday.
“This is traditionally not one of my best race tracks,” said Saldana, of Pittsboro, Ind., who moved into second-place in the standings behind Kinser with his strong Las Vegas run. “To come out of here with a win and second-place finish is huge for us and gives us a lot of momentum heading into the California races that begin next week.”
Schatz was seeking his seventh victory at Las Vegas in the STP/Armor All/Chevrolet J&J, and was in the mix until the end when Saldana shot past him and Swindell on the restart with three-to-go.
“This was just all around great racing tonight,” remarked Schatz, a four-time World of Outlaws champion from Fargo, N.D. “I hope the fans got a real treat tonight because it was a lot of fun for all of us.”
As the evening wore on, the high line became the preferred way around the half-mile oval for many drivers. Coming to the green on the initial start, a pile up in Turn 4 ended the nights of Ben Gregg and Terry McCarl, who was on the pole a night earlier. Kraig Kinser also sustained damage but his Casey’s General Stores team was able to get him back into the event, where raced to a 13th-place finish.
The Outlaws continue to march on their West Coast Spring Break, where they’ll invade California through April 2 with upcoming events on March 12 atSilver Dollar Speedway in Chico, March 18 atGiant Kings Speedway in Hanford, March 19 atThunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, April 1 atMerced Speedway and April 2 at Calistoga Speedway.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway Notebook
Quick Timer – Steve Kinser was the night’s fastest qualifier by turning a lap around the half-mile oval in 15.119 seconds, earning five more championship points. Jac Haudenschild, Paul McMahan, Cody Darrah and Sammy Swindell also earned qualifying points.
Winners – There have been seven World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series feature event winners in 2011. They include Steve Kinser (2-Volusia Speedway Park, Pike County Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway), Jason Sides (1-Volusia Speedway Park), Sammy Swindell (1-Royal Purple Raceway), and Joey Saldana (The Dirt Track at Las Vegas).
Now on iTunes – If you’re looking for something new to listen to on your iPod or iPad, the new Outlaws Unleashed podcast can now be found for free on iTunes. Just go to iTunes and search for Outlaws Unleashed and add it to your library.
New Online Home – Make sure to check out the all-new WorldofOutlaws.com for the latest news and results, plus exclusive driver interviews, video and pictures. Also listen to every event live at DIRTVision.com .
World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Statistical Report; Las Vegas Motor Speedway; Las Vegas, Nevada; March 3, 2011
A-main (30 laps) – Starting Position [#]; – 1) 11-Steve Kinser[2] [$10,000]; 2) 9-Joey Saldana[4] [$5,000]; 3) 15-Donny Schatz[12] [$3,000]; 4) 1-Sammy Swindell[1] [$2,700]; 5) 91-Cody Darrah[10] [$2,500]; 6) 14-Jason Meyers[3] [$2,200]; 7) 7-Craig Dollansky[6] [$2,000]; 8) 5W-Lucas Wolfe[7] [$1,800]; 9) 7S-Jason Sides[9] [$1,600]; 10) 11S-Tony Stewart[14] [$1,450]; 11) 30C-Lance Dewease[8] [$1,300]; 12) 21-Brian Brown[17] [$1,200]; 13) 6-Kraig Kinser[13] [$1,100]; 14) 6R-Bill Rose[21] [$1,000]; 15) 2L-Logan Forler[23] [$950]; 16) 5D-Josh Dewitt[11] [$900]; 17) 63-Chad Kemenah[20] [$850]; 18) 94-Zach Zimmerly[19] [$750]; 19) 55-Trey Starks[22] [$725]; 20) 44W-Austen Wheatley[16] [$700]; 21) 83-Paul McMahan[5] [$700]; 22) 2B-Ben Gregg[18] [$700]; 23) 24-Terry McCarl[15] [$700]; 24) 83SR-Jac Haudenschild[24] [$700]. Lap Leaders: Steve Kinser 1-30. KSE Hard Charger Award: Logan Forler
Qualifying – 1) 11-Steve Kinser 15.119; 2) 83SR-Jac Haudenschild 15.132; 3) 83-Paul McMahan 15.140; 4) 91-Cody Darrah 15.159; 5) 1-Sammy Swindell 15.254; 6) 9-Joey Saldana 15.274; 7) 14-Jason Meyers 15.356; 8) 30C-Lance Dewease 15.392; 9) 5W-Lucas Wolfe 15.395; 10) 7S-Jason Sides 15.432; 11) 7-Craig Dollansky 15.478; 12) 5D-Josh Dewitt 15.496; 13) 63-Chad Kemenah 15.503; 14) 15-Donny Schatz 15.626; 15) 6-Kraig Kinser 15.703; 16) 11S-Tony Stewart 15.737; 17) 24-Terry McCarl 15.755; 18) 44W-Austen Wheatley 15.814; 19) 21-Brian Brown 15.821; 20) 2B-Ben Gregg 15.930; 21) 94-Zach Zimmerly 15.985; 22) 55-Trey Starks 16.025; 23) 6R-Bill Rose 16.104; 24) 2L-Logan Forler 16.353.
Heat 1 (8 Laps, top 6 finishers transferred to A-feature) – 1) 14-Jason Meyers[2]; 2) 7S-Jason Sides[1]; 3) 11-Steve Kinser[4]; 4) 91-Cody Darrah[3]; 5) 11S-Tony Stewart[6]; 6) 21-Brian Brown[7]; 7) 63-Chad Kemenah[5]; 8) 55-Trey Starks[8].
Heat 2 (8 Laps, top 6 finishers transferred to A-feature) – 1) 7-Craig Dollansky[1]; 2) 1-Sammy Swindell[3]; 3) 30C-Lance Dewease[2]; 4) 2B-Ben Gregg[7]; 5) 15-Donny Schatz[5]; 6) 24-Terry McCarl[6]; 7) 6R-Bill Rose[8]; 8) 83SR-Jac Haudenschild[4].
Heat 3 (8 Laps, top 6 finishers transferred to A-feature) – 1) 83-Paul McMahan[4]; 2) 5W-Lucas Wolfe[2]; 3) 9-Joey Saldana[3]; 4) 5D-Josh Dewitt[1]; 5) 44W-Austen Wheatley[6]; 6) 6-Kraig Kinser[5]; 7) 2L-Logan Forler[8]; 8) 94-Zach Zimmerly[7].
Dash (6 laps, finishing order determined first 10 starting positions of A-feature) – 1) 1-Sammy Swindell[1]; 2) 11-Steve Kinser[4]; 3) 14-Jason Meyers[6]; 4) 9-Joey Saldana[5]; 5) 83-Paul McMahan[3]; 6) 7-Craig Dollansky[10]; 7) 5W-Lucas Wolfe[8]; 8) 30C-Lance Dewease[7]; 9) 7S-Jason Sides[9]; 10) 91-Cody Darrah[2].
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Armor All (Official Car Care Products), STP (Official Fuel Treatment), Goodyear Tires (Official Tire), Factory Motor Parts, VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel), Vicci (Official Apparel) and Chizmark and Larson Insurance Agency; in addition to contingency sponsors, Jake’s Custom Golf Carts, RacingJunk.com, KSE Race Products, Racing Electronics, S&S Volvo, JE Pistons, Wix Filters and SuperFlow; Engine Builder’s Challenge participants Kistler Engines, Shaver Specialties and Speedway Engines. Electronics, S&S Volvo, JE Pistons, Wix Filters and SuperFlow; Engine Builder’s Challenge participants Kistler Engines, Shaver Specialties and Speedway Engines.