Inside Line Promotions
– MESQUITE, Texas (Oct. 25) – For the second consecutive weekend, Austen Wheatley had a career-best opportunity come up just short.
The 18-year-old from Lake Stevens, Wash., was one of the few cars on the move in last Friday’s edition of the 38th annual Devil’s Bowl Winter Nationals at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas. However, after climbing to eighth and within striking distance of a career-best ASCS National Tour finish, Wheatley was forced to the pits with three laps remaining.
“It started puking oil,” he said. “About three laps in a row it kept getting worse. It was getting hard to see with all that smoke and the oil pressure was going down and the temperature was getting hotter. If we kept going we probably would have blown it up.”
It cost Wheatley a top 10 as he finished 19th. It also resulted in a lost chance at equaling or breaking his ASCS National top finish of sixth, which he’s recorded twice.
“I think we would have been a top-five car,” he said. “Everybody was so tight and we were pretty free. The track kept getting faster and faster, and everybody kept getting tighter and tighter.”
Wheatley was also one of only a handful of drivers able to pass in his heat race, when the track was greasy and one lane. After driving from fifth to third, he earned the 12th starting spot in the 30-lap main event.
“It’s always good with the ASCS National deal to get a spot in the feature after the heats,” he said. “Otherwise you roll in a B Main and those are always stacked.”
After swapping engines for Saturday, Wheatley again started fifth in his heat race. However, the top groove was more racy than he predicted. After working the bottom early, a couple of cars passed Wheatley in the end and he finished fifth.
That relegated him to start sixth in a B Main. More importantly, it started him behind veterans Danny Wood, Johnny Herrera and Joe Wood Jr. among others with only the top-two finishers transferring to the main event.
“It’s possible to transfer from that position, but it’s just hard,” he said. “The car was fast, but you’ve got to be flawless in that deal. I made a couple of mistakes and it’s hard to gain that back in such a short amount of time.”
Wheatley placed fourth and missed a transfer by two spots.
He will compete for the first time at the prestigious 24th annual Short Track Nationals at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark., this Thursday through Saturday with the ASCS National Tour.
For live updates of Wheatley and all of the events throughout the weekend, visit www.insidelinepromotions.com.
QUICK RESULTS –
Oct. 21 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas – Heat race: 3 (5); Feature: 19 (12).
Oct. 22 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas – Heat race: 5 (5); B Main: 4 (6).
SEASON STATS –
48 races, 31 features, 0 wins, 1 top five, 6 top 10s, 13 top 15s, 24 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Thursday through Saturday at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark., for the 24th annual Short Track Nationals with the ASCS National Tour
FAVORITE NUMBER –
8: Position Wheatley was in before he pulled into the pits last Friday with engine issues at Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS –
Website: www.austenwheatley.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/MiniWheats44w
ON THE AIR –
Click on the link below for video of Wheatley’s bad crash on his qualifying night at the Knoxville Nationals on the Dirt Report on Speed TV:
http://www.speedtv.com//video/newest/dirt-weekend-update-august-14-2011-1110509367001/1#_vtop
Here is another link to the wreck from the Knoxville Raceway network and High Vista Video Productions:
APPAREL –
Wheatley has gray and white t-shirts, gray sweatshirts, and charcoal gray hats and beanies for sale. For more information, visit www.austenwheatley.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – SpeedMart
Established in 2004, SpeedMart has developed into a leading supplier of sprint car and racing products in the Northwest. For more information, visit www.speedmartinc.com.
“We’ve used the SpeedMart store ever since I was in micro sprints,” Wheatley said. “It’s local, so it’s great to find everything that we need close to home.”
Wheatley would like to thank his sponsors, including Wolfweld, The Oil Medics, Fire-Down Graphics, Advanced Racing Suspensions, Astro Titanium, DMI, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Goodyear and Redlined Welding & Construction for their continued support.