By Kraig Kinser Racing PR
BLOOMINGTON, Ind.—May 2, 2013— Kraig Kinser has won at a number of tracks over the years in a sprint car and one that he really wants to win at is the famed Eldora Speedway in Ohio. He’s come close in the past to winning at the fabled half-mile and looks to build on a strong run in last year’s Kings Royal, which saw him pass more cars, 18 to be exact, than any other driver in that 40-lap event.
Kinser kicks-off the two-night Outlaw Thunder event for the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series at Eldora Speedway aboard the Casey’s General Store/Mesilla Valley Transportation Maxim on Friday, May 3 and concludes the contest on Saturday, May 4. Each night will consist of a full racing program, capped by a 30-lap, $10,000-to-win A-Feature. The series will visit Eldora three separate times this season for a total of five nights of racing.
The native of Bloomington, Ind., picked up three top-10 finishes in four starts at Eldora in 2012, including the aforementioned charge in the Kings Royal from the 23rd starting position to finish fifth. Kinser ran ninth in the Knight Before the Kings Royal and also was also ninth in the opener of the spring event at the track. The World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series portion of the 4-Crown National last fall at Eldora was rained out and not rescheduled.
“It’s been a while since we raced at Eldora, so we are definitely ready to get back over there,” said Kinser. “We passed quite a few cars in the Kings Royal and the car really came on late in the race. We’ve had a pretty good baseline for Eldora over the last few years and obviously we’ll have to tweak it a bit with the new tires this year.”
In his career at Eldora with the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series, Kinser has made a total of 39 main event starts, including preliminary features. He has scored 12 top-10 finishes, with four of those being top-fives. Kinser finished a career-best third in the spring of 2005 at the half-mile, the same year he won the Knoxville Nationals.
“I’ve had some good runs at Eldora over the years and still continue to learn new things every time I race there,” he shared. “Eldora is a place where you can really get rolling around good and use the banking to keep your momentum up all the way around the track. With just one race so far this year having taken to the track there, we’ll really have to keep an eye on the surface and what it does throughout the night. Hopefully the weather cooperates and we can get both shows in.”
Kinser has a pair of top-10 finishes on half-mile tracks this season. He finished third at Volusia Speedway Park in Florida, on the second night of the season during the UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit. He has qualified among the top-10 three times on half-mile tracks thus far in 2013.
Last weekend, the third-generation driver raced at Salina Highbanks Speedway in Oklahoma, finishing 16th on a blazing fast track that was challenging to pass on. He opened the night by turning the 13th-fastest lap in time trials, just missing the heat race inversion by a single spot. He came home fifth in the first eight-lap heat race and lined up 13th for the 30-lap main event, which after an opening lap yellow flag, went green-to-checkers in just over six minutes.
Kinser makes the trek to Eldora Speedway 10th in the World of Outlaws championship standings on the strength of eight top-10 and three top-five finishes.
“We’ve spent all week working hard in the shop and are ready to get back to the track,” he shared. “We haven’t gotten to race that much the last few weeks due to rain, so it will be nice to get a couple of shows in and continue to gear up for when the schedule really begins to pick up later this month. I just want to be at the race track and mixing it up out there.”
Kraig Kinser Racing would like to thank Casey’s General Stores, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Maxim, Aerodine Composites, Sander Engineering, Integra Shocks, All Star Performance, FK Rod Ends, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Bell, KSE Racing Products, ButlerBuilt, Schoenfeld Headers, Donovan Engineering, Fel-Pro, Brodix, Wilwood, Dyer’s, Barnes Systems, Ringer Gloves, Jakes Custom Golf Carts, and Ben Cook Racing Limited for their continued support.
Kraig Kinser By the Numbers: Eldora Speedway
0.5- Miles around Eldora Speedway
3- Best-career finishing position at Eldora, coming in 2005
4- Top-five finishes in his career with the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series at the half-mile
5- Nights of racing at Eldora in 2013 for the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series
8- Top-10 finishes this season
10- Position in the World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series standings
12- Career top-10 finishes with the series at Eldora Speedway
12.707- Track record at Eldora Speedway
13.7- Average finishing position at Eldora in 39 career starts
39- Career World of Outlaws starts at Eldora, including preliminary features
732- Miles from Salina Highbanks Speedway in Oklahoma, where the World of Outlaws raced on April 27 to Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio
2001- Year of first start with the World of Outlaws at Eldora Speedway
2096- Points earned through April 27
24,005- Dollars earned this season through April 27
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