From Tracy Hines Racing PR
New Castle, IN — (November 4, 2012) — Tracy Hines knew heading into the 17th Annual Budweiser Oval at Perris Auto Speedway in Southern California that he would have as good of a chance as ever to claim a win in the West Coast’s biggest non-wing sprint car race of the season. After all he had a couple of victories at the high-banked half-mile Eldora Speedway in Ohio this season, a track that is similar to Perris in many regards.
When the checkered flag flew on Saturday night, Hines crossed the line second, after leading the first 37 laps of the 40-lap main event to record his best-career finish in the season-ending extravaganza for the USAC Amsoil National Sprint Car Series. The native of New Castle, Ind., came home fourth in the opener on Friday night to lock himself into Saturday’s main event.
“We had a great car all weekend and just came up a little bit short the last few laps,” said Hines. “Mike (Spencer) was a little better, especially at the end. He showed us where to run the one time when he got by us and the yellow came out. Unfortunately he was just too good at the end. We’ll take a second and move on. We have a couple of more sprint car races in Arizona in a couple of weeks, so we’ll head there and see if we can’t get another win or two before the year is up.”
Hines lined up second for the 40-lap A-Feature on Saturday night, following a special six-car “Super-6 Dash,” which was comprised of the top-six finishers from the Friday night portion of the Oval Nationals. The 2002 USAC Amsoil National Sprint Car Series champion used a strong start to take the lead from polesitter Mike Spencer on the opening lap of the main event. Hines would lead the first 37 laps of the race, using a couple of strong restarts, following cautions and red flags to stay on the point. He was out front on the 38th circuit when Spencer used a strong run beginning in turns one and two to take the lead in turns three and four. That pass ultimately was for the win. The second-place finish for Hines was his 13th Top-Five finish of the season aboard the MP Environmental DRC.
“You never know what would have happened if we had not had all of those cautions,” said Hines. “Mike ran a great race and he did what he had to do and sometimes running second is the spot to be in. We’ve been close here at Perris a few times and we’ll come back and try again next year. The Oval Nationals are a great event and we always enjoy racing on the West Coast.”
Hines started seventh on Friday night in the 30-lap main event and ran sixth for most of the first half of the race. The first caution flag of the night flew on the 13th lap, and he restarted in sixth. The veteran driver was running fourth with 10 laps remaining when the red flag was displayed. He gained a couple spots on the ensuing restart and found himself in fourth when the yellow flag came out again. After taking the white flag, the red flag flew one final time, setting up a one-lap shootout. Hines restarted fourth and would finish in that same position when the checkered flag was waved.
“We had a pretty good car all night on Friday,” shared Hines. “The main thing was to get locked in for Saturday night and we were able to do that. We tried a few things on Friday night that really paid off on Saturday night. That’s one of the good things about a two-night show is that you can look at a few different things to gear up for the second night, especially when your car is fast.”
Hines opened the Oval Nationals by turning the seventh-fastest lap in time trials of the 43 drivers that took to the track on Friday, Nov. 2. He competed in the fourth 10-lap heat race and finished in that same position to earn a spot in the 30-lap A-Feature.
The Oval Nationals brought a close to the 2012 USAC Amsoil National Sprint Car Series season. Hines finished fourth overall in points, with two wins and 23 Top-10 finishes, of which 13 were Top-Five performances.
“I have to really thank the whole Calderwood family,” said Hines. “We’ve had a lot of fun this year, even with our patriarch Dave passing away earlier this season. We do this as a family, and I appreciate everyone who helps us so much.”
The native of New Castle, Ind., returns to action next weekend at Canyon Speedway Park in Arizona with the USAC Mopar National Midget Series for the Western Classic. He has made a total of eight starts at Canyon this season in a sprint car, picking up three wins and seven Top-10 finishes.
Tracy Hines Racing would like to thank: MP Environmental, DRC, AFCO Racing Shocks, Bell Race Gear, FatHeadz, Kenny’s Components, Race Bumpers, Rod End Supply, Schoenfeld Headers and Stanton Racing for their continued support.
For more information on Tracy Hines Racing, including a complete 2012 schedule, visit http://www.tracyhinesracing.