By Susan Arnold
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (June 15, 2013) – World of Outlaws officials and Knoxville Raceway track personnel put in extra effort to get the Mediacom Shootout underway after late afternoon showers caused delay. Over 40 winged sprint car warriors were on hand to take a final run on the half-mile track that will host the crown jewel of the World of Outlaws circuit, the Aug. 7-10 Knoxville Nationals.
In preliminary action, Joey Saldana drove the Motter Equipment Fatheadz Eyewear 71M around the Knoxville Raceway in 15.373 seconds, placing him 12th in the qualifying order.
This qualifying position translated to a valuable outside front row starting position in heat four. As the green flew, pole sitter Jason Sides took the lead with Saldana in second place fending off a hard-charging Daryn Pittman. Saldana found momentum riding the cushion while Pittman tried to attack from underneath. Saldana held his line and position, finishing second when the checkered flag waved. Jason Sides won the dash
but his engine expired as he crossed the finish line and his team went to work to try to change the engine in time to make the dash.
Because the Mediacom Shootout got a delayed start, Outlaws Officials kept a quick pace, turning the last heat and rolling the field for the start of the dash in eight minutes. Sides was not able to complete his engine change and was credited with a 10th place finish in the dash.
In the dash there were few position changes. Saldana, starting in the seventh position, made a valiant effort to slide by sixth place David Heskin, but ran out of time in the six-lap event. Saldana finished seventh and would start on the inside of the fourth row in the A-Main.
Early in A-Main action, Brian Brown and Donny Schatz traded the lead and began to drive away from the field. With six laps complete they were already in traffic. With nine laps in the books, the red flag was displayed for Mark Dobmeier who had blown a right rear tire, tagged the wall, flipped and landed on all fours. Dobmeier exited the car and was okay but the car was badly damaged and Dobmeier’s night was finished.
On the restart, Kerry Madsen suffered right rear tire damage after hitting the wall. He ended up sideways on the front straight and Jason Solwold and Lynton Jeffrey tangled while trying to avoid Madsen. After this delay, racing resumed with Brown leading the way and Schatz challenging. Past the half way point, Brown tangled with a slower car in turn two and Schatz got by to take the lead. With six laps remaining, the yellow came out for David Heskin who stopped on the backstretch with a flat left rear tire. Racing resumed with no more interruptions to the checkered flag.
Schatz won the Mediacom Shootout, Brown was second and the final spot on the podium went to Paul McMahan.
Between trying to harness an ill-handling race car and trying to navigate a choppy race track, Saldana finished 16th.
The Outlaws will hit the dirt again Friday, June 21 in Grand Forks, N.D. followed by a Saturday stop in Fergus Falls, Minn.