BRISBANE, QUEENSLAND – After coming home fourth in Wednesday’s Sprintcar Piston Cup at Ausdeck Archerfield Speedway, seven-time World of Outlaws champion Donny Schatz was determined to start a new winning streak Friday night at the quarter-mile dirt oval near Australia’s Gold Coast. Schatz started seventh in his No. 15 Bad Boy Buggies/Chevrolet Performance J&J and passed race leader Brooke Tatnell with three laps to go to score his sixth straight ENZED World Series Sprintcars in Brisbane.
“We did a lot of experimenting tonight which made me nervous a few times,” admitted the Fargo, North Dakota racer following his fourth victory in five starts. “I think we will just go back to setting the car up the way we know it can work which would make me a lot more confident tomorrow. Winning tonight just helps me claw back some points on Brooke so hopefully tomorrow we can start a little closer to the front because 50 laps of the long way.”
Schatz qualified second in the field of 29 cars before racing from ninth to fifth in the second heat race. In heat six, he started ninth and finished eighth to earn the seventh starting position the 20-lap feature event. Schatz moved up into the top-five at the start of the race before searching the track during the early stages. He found a way to make the cushion work during the middle stages of the race and zoomed past both Andrew Scheuerle and Kerry Madsen to grab second. He then set his sights on leader Tatnell with only two laps remaining he drove around the former Australian champion en route the victory.
Schatz ranks third in points trailing Tatnell and Madsen heading into Saturday’s action which concludes with the 50-lap Australian Open finale that pays $20,000 to the winner.