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 KNOXVILLE,
IA (August 11-14) -- Danny Lasoski captured the World of Outlaws
Series 44th annual Knoxville Nationals win Saturday and collected the
$125,000 winner's pay check in the process as 128 of the World's-best
sprint car drivers converged on the annual event. The 4-day event,
thought of as sprint racing's equivalent of the Daytona 500, was
Lasoski's 4th title. Last year's event, which attracted 114 drivers,
was also won by the driver of the #20 J.D. Byrider car. With so much
riding on the line, each team had to be at the top of their game to
have a shot at the $125,000 payout. One of the many decisions the
teams had to make going into the event was the choice of which tire
brand had the best chance of getting their name inscribed on the
winner's check. The brand overwhelmingly selected by the vast majority
of sprint teams was Hoosier. Of the 128 teams on hand, 117 opted to
take their chances using Hoosier tires with the remaining 11 teams
split (7-4) among the other two competing tire brands. When the
128-car field had been whittled down to 24 for Saturday's final race
via qualifying points earned during the three preliminary nights, all
but one driver raced on the Hoosier brand.
WEDNESDAY'S OPENER
KNOXVILLE, IA (August 11) -- The 128-car field was split up with 62
drivers competing on Wednesday and the remainder competing on
Thursday. Of the 62 teams competing Wednesday, 58 rode on Hoosier
tires with the remaining four drivers split 3-1 among the other two
dirt tire brands. Craig Dollansky was fast qualifier on Wednesday
circling the Knoxville Speedway 1/2-mile oval in 15.359 seconds. Jason
Sides was second with Fred Rahmer in third as Hoosier-shod teams
claimed 39 of the top 40 times in qualifying.
After a series of heat races and preliminary features
(all won by drivers using Hoosier tires), the 62-car field had been
narrowed to just 24 for the night's final feature--23 of them on
Hoosiers. The winning pass came on lap 13, when Tim Kaeding took the
lead from Chad Meyer with an inside pass. From there, Kaeding, using a
94" Hoosier D12/D12 (LR/RR), led the remainder of the 20-lap race
to claim the win and pocket $12,000. Donny Schatz finished in second
place using the same tire combination as the race winner, while Chad
Meyer settled for a third place finish using a pair of RD12's.
Greg Hodnett was fourth followed by Tim Shaffer, Chad
Kemenah, Fred Rahmer, Brooke Tatnell, Shane Stewart and Randy
Hannagan.
THURSDAY'S PRELIMINARY
KNOXVILLE, IA (August 12) -- The remaining 66 drivers took their
turn posting times in qualifying on the second night of competition in
the 44th annual Knoxville Nationals with 59 drivers on Hoosier tires
and the remaining seven drivers split (4-3) among the other two
competing tire brands.
Paul McMahan earned fast time honors as Team Hoosier
claimed the top 37 times in qualifications. McMahan's time was 15.300
seconds. Mark Kinser was second followed by Kraig Kinser.
After another series of heat races and preliminary
features, the 66-car field was narrowed to 24 for the night's final
race. For the second consecutive night, all but one competitor rode
atop the Hoosier brand. When the race was over, Danny Lasoski was the
winner using a Hoosier 94" D10/D12 set up. The former Knoxville
track champion was followed by Jason Meyers (94" D12/D12) and
five-time Knoxville track champion Terry McCarl (94" D12/D12).
Kenny Jacobs finished fourth followed by John
VanDenBerg, Jesse Hockett, Jeff Shepard, Blake Feese, Kerry Madsen and
Mark Kinser. All told, the first 18 drivers to cross the finish line
did so on Hoosier tires.
FRIDAY'S COMPETITION
KNOXVILLE, IA (August 13) -- In the 20-lap A-Main, Travis Cram was the
race winner using a 94" D10/D12 combination. Sammy Swindell was
second followed by Jeremy Campbell, Joey Saldana and Mark Smith. Max
Dumesny, owner of Hoosier Tire Australia, finished in sixth place with
Loren Langerud, Brandon Wimmer, Garry Lee and Clint Garner rounding
out the top ten--all on Hoosiers.
SATURDAY'S $125,000-TO-WIN RACE
KNOXVILLE, IA (August 14) -- The final night of competition began with
an E Main race and went all the way to a B Main which, in combination
with the qualifying points, set the starting field for the 24-car
feature. Once again, all but one of the 24 starters rode atop the
Hoosier brand. In the 30-lap feature, Terry McCarl took the early race
lead using a pair of Hoosier D12's. McCarl's lead was interrupted on
lap 16, when fourth starting Danny Lasoski moved to the front of the
field.
Lasoski led the remainder of the distance to capture
his 4th Knoxville Nationals title. Chad Kemenah finished in second
place followed by Jeff Shepard, Jason Meyers and Terry McCarl. Craig
Dollansky finished sixth followed by Shane Stewart, Steve Kinser, Mark
Kinser and John VandenBerg. After losing an engine in Wednesday's
opener and finishing last, Steve Kinser battled back to make the
24-car field eventually claiming an 8th place finish. The first 18
drivers to cross the line in the final race were all members of Team
Hoosier.
Our thanks go out to Hoosier's World of Outlaws Track
Service Manager Dave Campbell for providing the details used in this
report. Hoosier Open Wheel Dirt Product Manager Neil Cowman and former
Outlaws Track Service Manager Todd Seitz also traveled to Iowa to
attend the 4-day event.
Congratulations to Danny Lasoski on his win and to all
the drivers who placed their trust in Hoosier at this year's 44th
annual Knoxville Nationals. Lasoski's win was the fourth consecutive
win by a Hoosier-shod driver in the annual event. Prior to that, the
last time a Hoosier-shod driver won the big event was in 1985 with
Doug Wolfgang.
The World of Outlaws Series is back in action this
Tuesday, August 17th, for a one-night show at Rocky Mountain National
Speedway in Commerce City, CO.
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