By Bill Klingbeil
INDIANAPOLIS (Aug. 23, 2011) – Winning is contagious and normally the result of hard work. On the rugged World of Outlaws (WoO) Sprint Car Series tour, any sort of win streak is recognized as a huge accomplishment. Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) is currently enjoying a four-race win streak with the Outlaws and both Steve Kinser and Donny Schatz are hoping keep it going this weekend as they compete in the fifth annual Oil City Cup at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, Alberta, on Friday and Saturday nights.
On Tuesday night, Schatz continued TSR’s WoO winning streak by racing the TSR No. 15 STP/Armor All/Chevrolet J&J to a flag-to-flag victory at Black Hills Speedway in Rapid City, S.D. The win followed a pair of WoO triumphs by Kinser aboard the TSR No. 11 Bass Pro Shops/J.D. Byrider/Chevrolet Maxim last weekend. “The King of Outlaws” first out-dueled Schatz in a 40-lap thriller at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.D., that saw the two TSR teammates swap the lead nine times during final 10 laps. Last Saturday at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D., Kinser raced from the eighth starting position to score his 568th career WoO A-Feature triumph. Schatz began the streak by charging from 13th to win the biggest race of the year, the Goodyear Knoxville (Iowa) Nationals at Knoxville Raceway on Aug. 13.
With both the Bass Pro Shops and STP teams performing at a high level, Kinser and Schatz have plenty to be excited about as they venture to Edmonton this weekend. In August 2007, when the Outlaws visited the semi-banked, 3/8-mile oval for the first time, both drivers were winners. Kinser led all 35 laps in his debut at the track while Schatz charged from his 11th starting position to finish third in that inaugural race. Two nights later, Schatz established the current track record in qualifying and led the final 13 laps to score his first WoO triumph in Canada. Schatz has six top-three finishes in eight starts at Castrol while Kinser has five. Last August, Kinser led the first 15 laps of the opening-night feature before finishing 11th. He came back to finish seventh in the finale despite qualifying 14th. Schatz qualified 14th in the opener and charged forward to finish third, and followed that up with a second-place finish in the finale.
Kinser’s two-race sweep in the Dakotas last weekend marked the first time a single driver has swept a weekend at two different facilities since April 2009 when Joey Saldana won at Lonestar Speedway in Kilgore, Texas, and Houston Raceway Park on consecutive nights. The wins marked the second time in 2011 that the 20-time WoO champion scored consecutive wins. Friday’s victory also ended a 22-race winless streak.
Schatz’s victory Tuesday night at Black Hills continued a personal three-race winning streak for the four-time WoO champion. In 2006, just days after winning his first Knoxville Nationals A-Main, Schatz won a WoO A-Feature on the 3/8-mile dirt oval in Rapid City. He came back the following June and used a final-lap pass of Kerry Madsen to make it two straight. Since 2007, the track has been reconfigured back to its original size of a half-mile. Following this year’s Nationals victory, Schatz won an All-Star Circuit of Champions feature worth $12,000 at Red River Valley Speedway in Fargo, N.D., on Aug. 17, giving him three wins in his last five race starts. It could have been four had Kinser not made a dramatic final-lap pass at River Cities last Friday night.
The TSR tandem needs to keep winning during the final 19 races if Kinser and Schatz are going to close the gap in the 2011 WoO championship standings. The duo entered Tuesday night at Black Hills tied for second, 89 points behind leader Jason Meyers. The one-two finish allowed them to chip away at the lead, but only slightly. Schatz holds second 83 points back, while Kinser is 87 points behind Meyers. Kinser has seven A-Feature wins in 2011, which is tied for the series high, 22 top-fives, and 36 top-10s. Schatz has six victories, 22 top-fives and 37 top-10s.
Friday and Saturday at Castrol, the pit gates will open at 2 p.m. MDT with the grandstands opening at 4 p.m. Hot laps are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. For more details and ticket information, call Castrol Raceway at (780) 468-3278 or visit www.castrolraceway.com.
Race fans unable to attend this weekend’s races can catch all of the action on DIRTVision.com. Fans can listen live as Johnny Gibson, “Voice of the Outlaws,” calls the action. Go to www.DIRTVision.com for more information on all the site features, including updated results from each night of racing, as well as a chat room to interact with other race fans.
Steve Kinser, Driver of the No. 11 TSR/Bass Pro Shops/J.D. Byrider/Chevrolet Maxim:
With two wins and a second-place finish in the last three races, you have shown that your season isn’t quite over. What’s been the key to your recent turnaround?
“We were all disgusted with the way things finished up at Knoxville. That’s the biggest race of the year and it kind followed what we had been doing for about a month and we had to change things up. Everyone went back to Bloomington (Ind.) after the Nationals and we talked about what we thought might help us get things turned around. We got ourselves back to square one and put some basic stuff out there to race with these last three races and things have worked out. It started Friday by putting a good qualifying lap on the board and I know everyone was excited that we were able to win. Then we came back and had another really good night and won at Huset’s. We almost made it three straight Tuesday night but came up a little short. The plan now is to keep it simple and see if we can stay up front every night.”
You won the first time the Outlaws raced in Edmonton but haven’t been able to repeat since. Does your recent success give you optimism about this weekend’s doubleheader?
“I think so. The first night last year, we led the feature early and then I just got messed up and spun out. Like I said, we’ve gone back to some basics and Castrol is a pretty racy little place. Grand Forks and Sioux Falls are pretty racy, too, so I think we’ll have a good chance. It’ll be just like all of the other races. You have to get timed in good and advance to the dash through your heat race. It’s too hard to come from the sixth row or farther back and win these races.”
Donny Schatz, Driver of the No. 15 TSR/STP/Armor All/Chevrolet J&J:
The month of August has been pretty good for the STP team. What does Tuesday’s win do for you and the team as you look to conclude the month on a high note?
“I said (Tuesday) night that winning never gets old and I meant it. Winning kind of spoils you. You want to win every night, but that’s not always possible. Since we left eastern Canada at the end of July, the STP guys (Rick Warner, Steve Swenson and Bob Curtis) have really given me a good car every night. We’ve won a few races and that keeps everyone hungry for more. Knoxville was a huge win for us. I know we’re all a little disappointed about what happened at Huset’s. We had a mechanical failure and it’s going to be tough to make up an even bigger deficit, but we’re all about winning races. If we can win a few more races in the next couple of weeks, that gap will get closer. I know these guys have been doing an amazing job with the car, and I’m just the lucky one who gets to drive it.”
Your results in Edmonton are very good. That has to be another reason you’re excited about getting back on the track this weekend?
“Absolutely. We want to put together a winning streak. We’ve handled the first part and now it’s time to come back out and get another win. Castrol is a really good place for me to race. I know we’ve been right there just about every time out. It’s been a while since we won there, so that’s our focus this weekend. Like I said, these STP guys are motivated to win. They want to win everything we have left. I know I’ll have a really good car there. If we can work ourselves into a decent starting spot, I think we’ll have a great chance to keep it going.”
Tony Stewart Racing’s Steve Kinser and Donny Schatz: Career Results at Castrol Raceway
Year
Date
Steve Kinser
Qualifying
Start
Finish
Donny Schatz
Qualifying
Start
Finish
2010
8/28
World of Outlaws
14
6
7
World of Outlaws
3
3
2
8/27
World of Outlaws
5
1
11
World of Outlaws
14
14
3
2009
8/29
World of Outlaws
5
4
3
World of Outlaws
6
8
5
8/28
World of Outlaws
5
4
2
World of Outlaws
3
3
3
2008
8/23
World of Outlaws
9
1
3
World of Outlaws
16
2
2
8/22
World of Outlaws
6
8
3
World of Outlaws
2
3
9
2007
8/19
World of Outlaws
10
1
4
World of Outlaws
1
3
1
8/17
World of Outlaws
11
2
1
World of Outlaws
3
11
3
About Armored AutoGroup
Armored AutoGroup Inc., headquartered in Danbury, CT, is primarily comprised of the Armor All® and STP® brands. Armor All’s® current product line of protectants, wipes, tire and wheel care products, glass cleaners, leather care products and washes is designed to clean, shine and protect interior and exterior automobile surfaces. STP’s® offering of oil and fuel additives, functional fluids and automotive appearance products has a broad customer base ranging from professional racers to car enthusiasts and ‘‘Do-it-Yourselfers’’. The company has a diversified geographic footprint with direct operations in the United States, Canada, Australia and the U.K. and distributor relationships in approximately 50 countries. For more information, please visit www.armorall.com and www.stp.com.
About Bass Pro Shops Group
Bass Pro Shops – 56 retail stores in 26 states and Canada visited by over 109 million people annually, international catalog and internet retailing, American Rod & Gun wholesale division selling to over 7,000 independently owned retail stores worldwide, Outdoor World Incentives also selling Bass Pro Shops gift cards through over 132,000 retail outlets across America and a restaurant division with 26 locations. For more information regarding Bass Pro Shops store locations, products or special events, please visit www.basspro.com. To request a free catalog call 1-800-BASS PRO.
Tracker Marine Group – Manufactures and sells Tracker, Nitro, SunTracker, Tahoe, Grizzly and Mako boats through Bass Pro Shops retail stores and over 400 dealers worldwide.
Visit www.trackerboats.com
Resort Group – Big Cedar Lodge and other resort properties including restaurants and golf course. Visit www.bigcedar.com for more information.
-www.TonyStewartRacing.com-