Momentum is a big factor in just about every sport, and it certainly plays a factor in the world of auto racing. Following the Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws (WoO) Sprint Series recent three-race weekend, it would seem the 2008 campaign is finally gaining steam after Mother Nature affected 15 of the first 22 races scheduled. This weekend, two-time defending WoO champion Donny Schatz and the Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) team welcome warmer weather and the challenge of consecutive races on contrasting high-banked dirt ovals in Ohio.
The upcoming events offer Schatz, who will pilot the No. 15 Armor All/Chevy/ParkerStore J&J, the opportunity to race both on a small bullring and a high-speed momentum track. First, he’ll take on some of Ohio’s best racers Friday night in the Kistler Engines Classic at Attica (Ohio) Raceway Park. The weekend will continue as the Outlaws stars make their second 2008 stop at Tony Stewart’s Eldora Speedway in Rossburg on Saturday night.
Friday night’s event at Attica will be Schatz’ third career visit to the high-banked one-third-mile dirt oval. In July 2005, he bounced back from qualifying 20th to charge to an eighth-place finish in the 40-lap feature event. Last April, he qualified fourth and raced from his eighth starting position to a third-place feature finish.
Saturday’s stop at Eldora will be his 63rd career WoO appearance at the “Big E.” Schatz has three career wins at the high-banked half-mile oval, including the $100,000-to-win Historical Big One in 2002, and last year’s 24th annual Kings Royal. In April, Schatz and the Armor All team made a pair of visits to the track, first on April 11 when they set quick time in qualifications and finished second in the WoO 30-lap feature, and then he came home third in the All-Star Circuit of Champions feature event on April 26.
The Fargo, N.D., resident recently completed the series’ first Eastern Swing of the season posting top-seven finishes in all five events, including a third-place finish Monday night at Rolling Wheels Raceway in Elbridge, N.Y. Schatz currently holds the second position in the WoO standings with 1,716 points, trailing leader Jason Meyers by 28 markers. Schatz has finished in the top-three at seven of the season’s first 12 events and is the only driver to finish every race inside the top-10 this season.
The Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series doubleheader in Ohio begins Friday at Attica Raceway Park, located northeast of SR 4 & US 224 in Attica. The traveling Outlaws will journey approximately 140 miles southwest for Saturday’s race at Eldora Speedway, which is located 2.5 miles north of Rossburg on SR 118.
Friday at Attica, pit gates open at 3:30 p.m. EDT and grandstand gates open at 5 p.m. Hot laps are tentatively scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. At Eldora on Saturday, pit gates and grandstand gates open at 3 p.m. EDT. Hot laps are tentatively scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m.
