BARBERVILLE, FL – Defending World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series champion Donny Schatz made a thrilling charge from deep in the field in Friday night’s WoO 2013 opener at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. The driver of the Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) No. 15 STP/Armor All/Chevy Performance J&J raced from 22nd to eighth in the 30-lap race.
“We were trying something different to start the night and that put us behind a bit,” admitted Schatz. “The STP guys worked hard all night, and by the end, we were able to make some progress. The track was really fast, so to get where we did was an accomplishment. We’ll be ready to attack it pretty hard the next two nights.”
Schatz was the second car on the track in qualifying and ended up 24th in the field of 40 cars. He finished fifth in the fourth heat and started the main on the outside of row 11. By lap 10, he had moved up to 15th and with nine laps remaining he was in 12th. A late restart on lap 26 allowed him to race past Kraig Kinser and Chad Kemenah. He was closing on Jason Sides for seventh on the final lap but ran out of time.
The UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit continues Saturday with another complete program for the WoO STP Sprint Cars.