Question: You’ve not competed at Knoxville Raceway since 2006, the year after you won the Knoxville Nationals. Does time away from a facility make it difficult to regain a rhythm?
Kraig Kinser: “I competed in the 2006 Knoxville Nationals but I wasn’t as competitive as I had been in the past. I really wanted to go back that year just to compete in the race. Winning in 2005 was just an unreal experience. I don’t know that time away from a facility makes you forget how to race the track. I think you just have to get your bearings and go from there. Even if the track’s changed since the last time you’ve been there, it doesn’t take long for everything to start coming back to you. You take a look at past notes, and the more laps you get on the track, the more things start to become familiar again. Race tracks tend to stick in your mind as a driver and you learn to adapt and change as needed in order to compete.”
Question: How hard is it to win from a deeper starting position at Knoxville Raceway?
Kraig Kinser: “You can win from farther back in the field at Knoxville but you have to put yourself in a position to win in the early laps. Ideally, you want to qualify well and have a good run in the dash event to put yourself in contention at the beginning of the A-main. The track is so fast that you don’t want to get behind at the start of the race. I think that our Chevy engines will definitely help us this Saturday at Knoxville. It’s got wide, sweeping turns that you really have to have horsepower to drive through. It would be great to get our first win of the season for Bass Pro Shops at Knoxville this weekend.”
Question: Do you recall how you felt at the exact moment you took the checkered flag in the 2005 Knoxville Nationals?
Kraig Kinser: “I really couldn’t believe that I had just won the race. I don’t think I felt the enormity of what had happened at all. I really still don’t feel it. I don’t know if it will ever sink in that I have won the Knoxville Nationals. Every time someone asks me about winning that race, it brings a smile to my face. I don’t know if winning that event will ever be completely real to me. It’s something I’ll never forget.”
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