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Schatz schines while Stovall Stellar in opener at Volusia Speedway Park’s Dirtcar Nationals.
by Adam Ross
The car looks different, but the results are the same. Donny Schatz overcame a sluggish start to take home the opening night win at Volusia Speedway Park.
Schatz drew the pole position for the 30-lap O’Reilly All Star Sprints show with Jason Meyers on the outside. At the green Schatz fired first, but Meyers hammered the cushion in turn two to rocket past Schatz and take the early lead.
Meyers looked unstoppable in the early laps as Schatz seemed unable to challenge, but lapped traffic proved difficult for the race leader. Meyers built a lead using the high groove, but lapped traffic forced him to work the inside, and one bobble was all it took for Schatz to find his opening.
Meyers was trying to lap Wayne Johnson in three and four when he lost momentum allowing Schatz to blast past on the outside and take the lead for good. With no cautions to slow the action Schatz continued to pull away through lapped traffic .
The lead duo set a torrid pace leaving most of the field well behind while the King, Steve Kinser, was finding his groove and passing his way to the front. Kinser looked fast enough to mount a challenge, but the caution he needed to close the insurmountable gap never came.
With laps winding down Meyers found bite on the inside groove and started to close on Schatz. When the white flag waved Schatz was 10 car lengths ahead with no lapped cars between him and Meyers. The early race leader was unable to make the move, however, and Schatz held on to win in his new Armor All-sponsored Tony Stewart Racing entry.
“These guys worked awful hard,” said Schatz in victory lane. “They got me a great race car.”
Meyers was gracious in defeat.
“I just got beat,” he said on the Alltel podium. “We had a great race car, and we were catching him at the end, but close doesn’t count.”
Steve Kinser rounded out the top three with fourth and fifth going to Lance Dewease and Daryn Pittman.
In the UMP Dirtcar Modifieds Jessie Stovall dominated a 75-car field to capture the first checkered flag of the 2008 Alltel Dirtcar Nationals. The ecstatic driver surprised even himself with a dominant performance in the 20-lap UMP Dirtcar modified feature.
Kent Robinson drove his 7r machine to an early lead in the event, but Stovall wasted little time in challenging the top spot. Stovall powered off the inside of turn two, and rocketed into the lead as Robinson’s engine started to let go leaving him sputtering down the front stretch on the very next lap.
Stovall didn’t look back once he took the lead as he pulled away from Jason Miller and Tim Hancock to take a commanding lead and the eventual win.
Notables Ken Schrader and Kenny Wallace both qualified for the main event on night one of the Alltel Dirtcar Nationals with Schrader running solidly in the top ten all night while Wallace got tangled up early and struggled at the back. At the checkers it was Stovall taking the win followed by Hancock, Miller, Mike Spatola and Schrader.
Stay tuned for more action from Speedweeks in Florida!
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