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Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Preview: Williams Grove Summer Nationals
Mechanicsburg, PA— July 16, 2008—The Month of Money rolls on for the Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series this weekend at the famed Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania for the Cleveland Brothers Summer Nationals, with the winner of the finale on Saturday, July 19 taking home $20,000.
With a stout field of cars expected, including the always tough Pennsylvania Posse, the level of competition will be ratcheted to an all-time high at the half-mile. Five current World of Outlaws drivers have won at the track, while 34 total drivers have won with the series dating back to 1978, including preliminary features.
Leading this list is Steve Kinser, the 20-time Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series champion, who has won 38 times in his career at Williams Grove Speedway, including on May 15 in the series first visit of the season to the half-mile. Dating back to 1979, the native of Bloomington, Indiana has nearly 100 Top-Five finishes at the track. He heads to Williams Grove fresh off a win in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup at Lernerville Speedway, which say him lead all 40 laps to take home the $40,000 top prize. It was his third A-Feature win of the season and the 546th of his career.
Donny Schatz, the two-time defending series champion won the Summer Nationals last season, which was one of five wins at Williams Grove Speedway for him during the 2007 campaign. In his career, he has won a total of 14 times at the half-mile. He finished second back in May at the track, after starting 17th in the 25-lap main event. His team had to change engines twice over the course of the night. The North Dakota native leads the World of Outlaws with 10 A-Feature wins this season as he chases his third consecutive title.
Jason Meyers, who is currently second in the World of Outlaws championship standings heads to Williams Grove in the midst of a string of four consecutive podium finishes, including a win in the Brad Doty Classic last week. The native of Clovis, California has 12 career Top-10 finishes at Williams Grove, and charged from the 20th starting spot to finish 11th in May at the track. He has won six A-Feature events this season as he chases his first series title.
Craig Dollansky has won three times in his career at Williams Grove, including earlier this season. He has six World of Outlaws A-Feature wins this season, and is third in points, on the strength of 28 Top-10 finishes.
Joey Saldana has finished second and third this season in two starts at Williams Grove. He has finished seventh or better in each of his last five starts at the track, where he has one career win. The second generation driver has 24 career Top-10 finishes at the half-mile. He recently won the Knight Before the Kings Royal at Eldora Speedway to earn his second A-Feature win of the season, and is just 12 points out of the third position in the championship standings.
Jac Haudenschild has two career wins at Williams Grove and has finished in the Top-10 nearly 60 times in his career at the track. He was sixth in May after turning in the fourth quickest lap in time trials. The veteran driver who hails from Wooster, Ohio has 22 Top-10 finishes this season as he closes in on his first win driving for the Carnahan Motorsports team.
Kerry Madsen finished third last season at Williams Grove on the opening night of the National Open and was running strong the following night when a mechanical failure ended his race. He started ninth back in May when the World of Outlaws visited the track and again had trouble. He finished fifth in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup at Lernerville Speedway on Tuesday night and had 20 Top-10 finishes on the season, as he too closes in on his first win of 2008.
Chad Kemenah finished sixth on Tuesday night at Lernerville Speedway and is just 49 points out of the sixth spot in the championship standings, on the strength of 18 Top-10 finishes. He used a provisional to start 25th in May at Williams Grove and passed 10 cars en route to a very respectable 15th-place finish.
Shane Stewart has won once this season on a half-mile, with that coming at Knoxville Raceway in early June. The native of Bixby, Oklahoma has 16 Top-10 finishes on the season and is solidly in the Top-10 in points. He finishes a career-best second at Williams Grove with the World of Outlaws in 2005.
Terry McCarl won a preliminary feature at Williams Grove in 2006. The six-time Knoxville Raceway and Huset’s Speedway track champion is currently 10th in points, with 12 Top-10 finishes this season.
Daryn Pittman is a former winner of the Summer Nationals at Williams Grove Speedway, taking the checkered flag in 2006. He won the 25th Annual Kings Royal at Eldora Speedway on Sunday night to earn his first win of the season. He has 14 Top-10 finishes this season and is just outside the Top-10 in points.
Sam Hafertepe Jr. made his first trip to Williams Grove last season as a rookie, and finished a very solid 11th on the opening night of last year’s Summer Nationals. The native of Sunnyvale, Texas is also just outside the Top-10 in points and has 11 Top-10 finishes this season.
Kraig Kinser has four Top-10 finishes in his career at Williams Grove Speedway. He finished ninth on Tuesday night in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup, after lining up 22nd to earn the KSE Racing Products Hard Charger Award. He has six Top-10 finishes on the season.
Jason Sides had three Top-10 finishes at Williams Grove Speedway last season and in his career has nine Top-10 finishes at the track. The 2003 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year has five Top-10 finishes this season.
Tony Bruce Jr. and Chad Hillier both continue their sophomore seasons with the World of Outlaws and are gaining more experience each time they visit Williams Grove. Bruce finished in the Top-10 at Knoxville Raceway earlier this season, while Hillier has two Top-10 finishes.
Paul McMahan has won twice during his career at Williams Grove and has 18 Top-10 finishes at the half-mile. Since joining the Parson Motorsports team last month, he has six Top-10 finishes.
Lucas Wolfe, the leading contender for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award this season will miss the event at his home track, where he finished fifth back on May 15, as he continues to recover from a back injury sustained in June.
2008 Race Recaps: Steve Kinser won for the 38th time in his career at Williams Grove Speedway, after a race long battle with veteran Craig Keel.
Kinser took the lead initially on the 12th lap, but there was a red flag period before the full lap was completed. By way of Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws series rules the running order reverts to the last completed lap, which kept Craig Keel, who started on the pole and led from the outset, in the lead. He took the lead from Keel on the 18th lap and would lead the rest of the way.
After Kinser took the white flag while leading, there was another stoppage, and by way of series rules, two consecutive green flag laps have to be completed to end a race, thus adding one more obstacle for him, as he had to fend off the field on one final restart.
The race took three starts to get going, and Craig Keel charged to the lead on all three of them, with Kinser quickly moving into the third position, from his second row starting spot. He would shadow rookie Lucas Wolfe for a number of laps, before sweeping past the freshman driver for the second spot on the 11th lap. From there, Kinser would track down Keel, who had opened some sizeable leads early in the race.
Donny Schatz used a strong restart with five laps to go to move from fifth to third. He would gain one more spot after the checkered flag to finish second, after Keel who lead the first 17 laps of the race was disqualified for being too light at the scales. Schatz also picked up the KSE Race Products Hard Charger Award for passing the most cars in the A-Feature.
Joey Saldana finished third, with Doug Esh fourth and Lucas Wolfe fifth.
2008 A-Feature Results
Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series; Williams Grove Speedway; May 15, 2008
A-main (25 laps) - Starting Position [#]
1) 11-Steve Kinser[4]
2) 15-Donny Schatz[17]
3) 9-Joey Saldana[8]
4) 30-Doug Esh[3]
5) 5W-Lucas Wolfe[2]
6) R19-Jac Haudenschild[12]
7) 88-Todd Shaffer[6]
8) 11E-Mike Erdley[5]
9) 22-Greg Hodnett[7]
10) 1-Jeff Shepard[10]
11) 14-Jason Meyers[20]
12) 35-Alan Cole[13]
13) 2-Craig Dollansky[18]
14) 21P-Brian Montieth[21]
15) 8K-Chad Kemenah[27]
16) 25-Chad Layton[26]
17) 30C-Lance Dewease[28]
18) 24-Terry McCarl[25]
19) 83-Shane Stewart[16]
20) 7S-Jason Sides[19]
21) 51-Fred Rahmer[15]
22) 71-Brian Leppo[24]
23) 3-Pat Cannon[14]
24) 89-Cody Darrah[11]
25) 87-Alan Krimes[22]
26) 15H-Sam Hafertepe Jr.[23]
27) 55-Kerry Madsen[9]
28) 9K-Craig Keel[1]
Lap Leaders: Craig Keel 1-17, Steve Kinser 18-25
Previous Winners
World of Outlaws Sprint Series A-Feature winners at Williams Grove Speedway include:
2008- Steve Kinser on May 15
2007- Donny Schatz on May 17, Donny Schatz on May 18, Donny Schatz on July 19, Brian Leppo on July 20, Donny Schatz on July 21, Donny Schatz on September 29
2006- Fred Rahmer on May 27, Daryn Pittman on July 22; Doug Esh on Sept. 30
2005-Steve Kinser on May 27, Fred Rahmer on July 23, Donny Schatz on Oct. 1
2004-Don Kreitz Jr. on May 28, Danny Lasoski on July 24, Donny Schatz on Oct. 2 2003-Donny Schatz on July 26, Steve Kinser on Oct. 4
2002-Steve Kinser on May 16, Greg Hodnett on July 27, Lance Dewease on Sept. 28
2001-Donny Schatz on July 26 (completed May 18 event), Donnie Kreitz, Jr., on July 27, Lance Dewease on Sept. 29
2000-Fred Rahmer on May 19, Sammy Swindell on July 29, Donny Schatz on Sept. 30 1999-Steve Kinser on May 28, Mark Kinser on July 30, Mark Kinser on Oct. 2
1998-Johnny Herrera on May 22, Stevie Smith on May 29, Kevin Gobrecht on July 31, Mark Kinser on Oct. 2
1997-Mark Kinser on May 23, Jac Haudenschild on May 30, Mark Kinser on Aug. 1, Sammy Swindell on Oct. 4
1996-Mark Kinser on May 25, Steve Kinser on May 31, Mark Kinser on Aug. 2, Lance Dewease on Oct. 5
1995-Steve Kinser on May 26, Mark Kinser on Aug. 4, Mark Kinser on Sept. 30
1994-Steve Kinser on May 27, Andy Hillenburg on June 3, Sammy Swindell on Aug. 5, Steve Kinser on Oct. 1
1993-Donnie Kreitz, Jr., on May 28, Dave Blaney on June 4, Steve Kinser on Oct. 1, Donnie Kreitz, Jr., on Oct. 3
1992-Donnie Kreitz, Jr., on May 22, Donnie Kreitz, Jr., on May 29, Steve Kinser on July 31, Steve Kinser on Oct. 3
1991- Steve Kinser on May 24, Sammy Swindell on May 31, Steve Kinser on Aug. 2, Stevie Smith on Oct. 6
1990-Steve Kinser on May 25, Sammy Swindell on June 1, Steve Kinser on Aug. 3, Steve Kinser on Sept. 29
1989-Sammy Swindell on May 26, Bobby Allen on June 2, Bobby Davis, Jr., on July 28, Stevie Smith on Sept. 30
1988-Bobby Davis, Jr., on May 27, Mark Kinser on June 3, Steve Kinser on July 29; 1987-Steve Kinser on May 22, Steve Kinser on May 29, Steve Kinser on July 31
1986-Doug Wolfgang on May 23, Bobby Allen on May 30, Bobby Allen on Aug. 1 1985-Keith Kauffman on May 24, Steve Kinser on May 31, Doug Wolfgang on Aug. 2 1984-Steve Kinser on May 25, Steve Kinser on Aug. 3
1983-Bobby Davis, Jr., on May 27, Sammy Swindell on Aug. 5
1982-Bobby Allen on May 14, Bobby Allen on May 21
1981-Steve Kinser on June 5, Steve Kinser on June 12
1980-Sammy Swindell on May 16, Keith Kauffman on July 26
1979-Lynn Paxton on July 27
1978-Kramer Williamson on Sept. 24
Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Championship Standings through July 15:
Position
Driver
Points
Difference
Earnings
Wins
Top-5
Top-10
1.
Donny Schatz
4468
$190,235
10
25
31
2.
Jason Meyers
4334
-134
$144,735
6
23
27
3.
Craig Dollansky
4292
-176
$128,800
6
20
28
4.
Joey Saldana
4280
-188
$105,085
2
19
26
5.
Steve Kinser
4114
-354
$127,090
3
14
20
6
Jac Haudenschild
4069
-399
$61,965
0
11
22
7.
Kerry Madsen
3967
-501
$57,865
0
3
20
8.
Chad Kemenah
3918
-550
$58,240
0
5
18
9.
Shane Stewart
3865
-603
$62,360
1
9
16
10.
Terry McCarl
3836
-632
$49,565
0
4
12
11.
Daryn Pittman
3785
-683
$100,010
1
5
14
12.
Sam Hafertepe Jr.
3741
-727
$43,790
0
2
11
13.
Kraig Kinser
3609
-859
$33,950
0
2
6
14.
Jason Sides
3531
-937
$33,475
0
1
5
15.
Tony Bruce Jr.
3396
-1072
$25,015
0
1
1
16.
Chad Hillier
3293
-1175
$25,540
0
0
2
17.
Lucas Wolfe
2957
-1511
$19,080
0
1
4
18.
Tim Shaffer
2891
-1577
$26,375
0
2
4
19.
Paul McMahan
1908
-2560
$25,335
0
1
8
20.
Danny Lasoski
1729
-2739
$28,650
1
1
7
What to look for at Williams Grove Speedway:
* Donny Schatz won five of seven events at the half-mile last season and in his career has a total of 14 wins, including preliminary features. He finished second there earlier this season and is the only driver that has finished in the Top-10 in every event this season.
* Steve Kinser is the winningest driver in World of Outlaws competition at Williams Grove, having scored 38 total wins, dating back to 1979. He won the series most recent visit to the track on May 15 and won the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup on Tuesday night at Lernerville Speedway.
*Craig Dollansky won a weekly event at Williams Grove back in March and has three career victories at the track, to go along with 23 Top-10 finishes.
* Joey Saldana finished third at the famed half-mile in may, and has one career win at the track, along with 24 Top-10 finishes.
* Jac Haudenschild has won twice in his career at the half-mile and has nearly 60 Top-10 finishes, dating back to 1983.
By the Numbers- Williams Grove Speedway:
0.5- Miles around Williams Grove Speedway.
2- Drivers that led laps in the A-Feature event on May 15, Steve Kinser and Craig Keel
5- Wins for two-time defending series champion Donny Schatz at the half-mile last season; Nights of racing this season for the World of Outlaws at Williams Grove Speedway
7- Events for the World of Outlaws in the state of Pennsylvania this season
8- Laps led by Steve Kinser en route to the win at Williams Grove in May
14- Career wins for Donny Schatz at Williams Grove Speedway
16.140- Track record established by Brian Paulus on April 26, 2002
25- Laps in the A-Feature on Friday, July 18
30- Laps in the A-Feature on Saturday, July 19
31- A-Feature events contested by the World of Outlaws through July 15
34- Drivers that have won at Williams Grove with the World of Outlaws, including preliminary features
38- Total wins for Steve Kinser at the half-mile including preliminary feature wins
92- Laps led by Donny Schatz at the track last season
94- A-Feature events contested by the World of Outlaws at Williams Grove Speedway dating back to 1978
134- Points that separate Donny Schatz and Jason Meyers atop the World of Outlaws standings
212- Miles from Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania where the World of Outlaws compete on July 15
1939- Year that racing began at Williams Grove Speedway
1967- Year that weekly sprint car racing began at the track
1978- Year that the World of Outlaws first competed at Williams Grove Speedway
20,000-Dollars the winner will receive on Saturday, July 19
Tickets: On Friday, July 18 at Williams Grove Speedway, Reserved tickets will be $30, with general admission tickets $28, with tickets for students $15 and kids 12-under will be admitted free of charge. For ticket information call: 717-697-5000 or visit: http://www.williamsgrove.com.
• On Saturday, July 19 at Williams Grove Speedway, Reserved tickets will be $30, with general admission tickets $28, with tickets for students $15 and kids 12-under will be admitted free of charge. For ticket information call: 717-697-5000 or visit: http://www.williamsgrove.com.
Next Up: A visit to the high-banked Lebanon Valley Speedway in New York on Sunday, July 20, for a full night of racing.
Headquartered in Roanoke, Va., Advance Auto Parts, a leading automotive aftermarket retailer of parts, accessories, batteries, and maintenance items in the United States, serves both the do-it-yourself and professional installer markets As of April 19, 2008, the Company operated 3,291 stores in 40 states, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Additional information about the Company, employment opportunities, customer services, and on-line shopping for parts and accessories can be found on the Company's web site at www.AdvanceAutoParts.com.
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