FARGO, N.D. (August 17, 2020) – There were many oddities during this week’s World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series three-day special at Knoxville Raceway. From the unique event format to the limited fan attendance, even to the luck had by the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing No. 15 team.
The week began on Thursday with a promising run in the feature that resulted in a rare DNF after 10-time Knoxville Nationals champion, Donny Schatz, was involved in an incident, not of his doing.
Schatz was able to rejoin the field after several teams assisted the DieHard crew in the work area, making repairs on the Ford-powered J&J. Unfortunately, further damage forced Schatz back into the pits shortly after taking the green flag on the restart, leaving him with a 22nd-place finish.
Schatz returned on Friday night with a solid run from 25th to 11th in the A-main, putting him 21st in event points heading into Saturday’s $50,000-to-win Capitani Classic.
Lining up fifth in Saturday’s first qualifier race, with the top four going directly into the main event, Schatz suffered a mechanical failure in the closing laps, which forced the team to swap powerplants before the C-Main.
Schatz made quick work of the C-Main, charging from 17th to take the lead from Lynton Jeffrey with two laps to go to take the win.
That put the DieHard / Ford Performance No. 15 in the 18th starting position for the B-main. A great start put Schatz into 11th on lap two before he made his way into sixth in the closing laps. A timely caution gave the 10-time World of Outlaws champion a shot at the final transfer spot on the green-white-checkered restart.
Schatz moved past both Jason Sides and Kerry Madsen to claim the final transfer spot at the checkers.
Schatz’s run through the alphabet continued in the 30-lap main event. Starting shotgun on the field in 24th, Schatz kept passing cars. At the checkers, Schatz finished 12th and earned the night’s KSE Hard Charger award. In total, he passed 42 cars.
“This Advance Professional team never gave up. We had to battle adversity all week long and they kept battling,” said Schatz. “I’m proud of their effort and I’m glad we were able to salvage a decent finish for DieHard.”
This week, the World of Outlaws head to Schatz’s home state of North Dakota. On Friday, the series returns to River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.D. On Saturday, the Greatest Show on Dirt visits Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, N.D.
Schatz and the entire Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing team would like to thank all of their great partners for their continued support!
DieHard, Advance Professional, Carquest Auto Parts, Technet Professional Automotive Service, Ford Performance, Mobil 1, Sage Fruit, Curb Records, Absolute Automation & Security, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Digital Ally, J&J Auto Racing
Schatz’s Statbook:
World of Outlaws results:
Races: 32
Wins: 3
Top Fives: 15
Top Tens: 22
STAY CONNECTED:
Website: DonnySchatz.com
Store: Store.DonnySchatz.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DonnySchatz15/
Twitter: www.twitter.com/DonnySchatz
Instagram: www.instagram.com/donnyschatz/
Tony Stewart Racing:
Website: TonyStewartRacing.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/TonyStewartRacing
Twitter: www.twitter.com/TonyStewart_Rcg
Instagram: www.instagram.com/tonystewart_rcg/
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Contact:
Mike Spieker
SpiekerPromotions.com
Photo Credit: Speedway Shots