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 TALLADEGA,
AL (April 19-20) -- Danny Lasoski won both night's feature races at
the Talladega Short Track in the Pennzoil World of Outlaws Series over
the weekend. Lasoski's two victories brought Team-Hoosier's season
total to 17 wins in 19 events and rocketed Lasoski, the defending
series champion, back into the series points lead. Both nights also
ended in a 1-2-3 finish by Hoosier-shod drivers--the 16th time
Team-Hoosier has swept the all three podium positions.
PRELIMINARY
-- Friday, April 19
Thirty-four cars were on hand for qualifying--28 on Hoosier tires
and the remaining six cars split equally among the two other competing
tire manufacturers. Tim Shaffer set fast time (11.792 seconds) on the
1/3-mile track while using a pair of Hoosier D10's. All four 10-lap
preliminary heat races were won by cars using Hoosier tires. Danny
Lasoski, Craig Dollansky, Daryn Pittman and Wayne Johnson each won
their respective heat race. Both 7-lap dash races were also won by
members of Team-Hoosier. Brad Furr won the first dash, while Danny
Lasoski won the second. In the 30-lap feature, Brad Furr got the
jump at the green flag to take the early race lead. Furr led until lap
10 when Danny Lasoski moved into the race lead. Lasoski led the
remainder of the way to capture the $5,000 opening night win. Lasoski
was using a D10/RD12 combination on his left and right rear
positions. Finishing in second, after starting fourth, was
Shane Stewart. Stewart earned $3,000 for his runner-up finish. Stewart
opted to run the 30-lap feature on a pair of Hoosier RD12's. Brad Furr
wound up third and collected $2,500 on a D10/D12 set-up to complete
the 1-2-3 Team-Hoosier sweep. In fact, Team-Hoosier swept the top seven
finishing positions. Rounding out the list of Hoosier-shod drivers in
the top ten were: Steve Kinser, fourth; Tim Shaffer, fifth; Donny
Schatz, sixth; Paul McMahan, seventh; and Daryn Pittman, tenth. FINALE
-- Saturday, April 20
In the finale, Danny Lasoski and Donny Schatz put on arguably the
most exciting race in the history of the Pennzoil World of Outlaws
Series. Over 20 lead changes occurred during the thrilling 40-lap
feature. In the end, it was Danny Lasoski taking the win, his second in as
many nights. Schatz wound up second followed by Steve Kinser in third
place for the 16th 1-2-3 finish, in 19 races, for Team-Hoosier. The
four top finishers in Friday's preliminary earned the first four
starting positions in the night's dash which left 27 cars to post
times in qualifying. Tim Shaffer, for the second consecutive night,
set fast time (13.021 seconds). Donny Schatz was second followed by
Craig Dollansky third in qualifying. All three drivers used a pair of
Hoosier D10's during their qualifying efforts. All three
preliminary heat races were won by drivers on Hoosier tires. Tim
Shaffer, Donny Schatz and Randy Hannagan were each winners in their
respective heat races. The lone dash had eight starters--seven
on Hoosier tires. Shane Stewart was the dash winner followed by Danny
Lasoski, Steve Kinser, Donny Schatz, Tim Shaffer, Brad Furr and Craig
Dollansky in second through seventh, respectively. In the 40-lap
feature, it was the Danny and Donny show as the two swapped the lead
back and forth in one of the most exciting races in the series'
24-year history. Over 20 lead changes occurred during the 40-lap
event, which ultimately ended with Danny Lasoski taking the win by
less than a car length over Schatz at the checkered flag. The win
not only earned Lasoski $12,000, but also propelled him back into the
series points lead. Lasoski ran the 40-lap race on a Hoosier D10/RD12
combination. Finishing in second place on a pair of D12's and matching
his best performance of the season was Donny Schatz. Schatz collected
$6,000 for the runner-up finish. Steve Kinser, on a D12/D15 set-up,
took third and pocketed $4,000. Brad Furr, Tim
Shaffer and Craig Dollansky finished fourth through sixth,
respectively, rounding out the top six sweep for Team-Hoosier. Also
finishing in the top ten on Hoosier tires were Joey Saldana ninth and
Mark Kinser tenth. Danny Lasoski took over the points lead with 2040
markers followed closely by Steve Kinser with 2038 points and Mark
Kinser with 2036 points. Craig Dollansky, Tim Shaffer, Joey Saldana
and Brad Furr round out positions four through seven as Team-Hoosier
continues to hold the top seven positions in sprint racing's premier
series. Racing resumes this Wednesday at Kansas City's Lakeside
Speedway where Team-Hoosier was undefeated at in 2001. |
