HammerDownUSA.com
A
Heartfelt Win: Donny Schatz Dedicates Victory to Ted Johnson
Donny
Schatz wants to win every time he takes to the track, but he wanted to win even
more on Saturday night at
On a night
filled with emotion, Schatz led wire-to-wire and dedicated the win to Johnson
and the legacy he created, that will last forever.
“We
definitely wanted to win this one,” said Schatz, driver of the Parker Store
J&J. “Everybody had a heavy heart tonight. I was around ten years ago when
Ted was still here. It was just an emotional night for everybody. I don’t think
anybody wanted to race, but we wanted to go out and do everything that we
could.”
The night
began with a moment of silence at the driver’s meeting, which was later
followed by another moment to reflect on the life of the charismatic and
influential founder of the series, with all the drivers and officials,
assembled on the front straight-a-way. An opening invocation followed this
tribute. As is tradition, the missing man formation was in-place during the
four-wide salute to the fans, to honor Johnson and show respect for all he did
for the sport of sprint car racing.
For Schatz,
who had grown close to Johnson over the last several years, the win was one
that he will always remember. The native of
“I told
myself that I would do my best to try to get a clean sweep for him,” said
Schatz, after making his series best 16th trip to
Schatz
began the night by turning the quickest lap in time trials and followed that up
by winning the first heat. The current series championship point leader set the
stage for a good start in the A-Feature with a very solid second-place run in
the dash that earned him the outside front row starting spot.
Schatz took
the lead from polesitter Jason Solwold
on the initial start in a drag race down the front straight, and opened up a
sizeable lead on the second circuit, when the red flag flew, for a scary
accident involving Gary Taylor among others.
Once racing
resumed, Schatz again darted to a healthy lead before entering lapped traffic
on the eighth circuit. As the race wore on, Schatz had his hands full with the
slower cars, as several drivers tried everything they could to stay on the lead
lap. This included near contact on multiple occasions that forced Schatz to
take evasive action.
“I got
beside with a few of them (lapped cars), and they turned left,” said Schatz.
“You have to be a smart racer. When guys are trying to keep from going a lap
down and swerving at you and things like that, you have to do what you have to
do. Some of these guys don’t race with us everyday and that makes it a little
more interesting. They are racing to stay on the lead lap and we are racing to
stay in the money and get the trophy. I guess that’s the way it goes.”
During the
red flag for Taylor’s accident, while many teams were making adjustments on
their cars, Schatz’s team led by crew chief Ricky Warner,
just checked the air pressure on their tires. Confident with the set-up they
had in the car, Schatz credited his crew for helping him pick up the victory.
“We didn’t
change anything (under the red flag),” said Schatz. “The car felt good and I
was just trying to get to where we were going to run on the race track. You can
only do that by getting in the catbird’s seat, and we never really got in the
catbird seat. We just had to move around and get where we
could on the race track and see what felt best. We struggled
a little to get good everywhere. I just had to be patient and stay on the
bottom in the rubber.”
Brooke
Tatnell piloting the Race Outfitters machine, in his second race back since
returning from spending time in his native
“We came on
strong at the end,” said Tatnell. “We were ‘green’ for the first five or ten
laps because I think we were on a much harder tire than most guys. That is
where the five or ten laps held us up a little. We had a good run. We messed
around with a lapped car for way too long. In the end that was the deficit
between first and second. We had a real good car. The guys did an awesome job.
It’s good to be back, and proved that we are right up there. I don’t think
there is anyone out there with as consistent of a short track program as we
have. Last night we had a good half-mile race and that program is just as good
as anyone else’s.”
Right
behind Tatnell, was Terry McCarl in the
“I had a
great race car tonight because the motor is running so great,” said McCarl. “We
have a new Wesmar with Brodix
Heads. We just needed a yellow flag late and I think we would have had a shot
at winning. I could see Donny (Schatz) at the end and the 8-car (Brooke
Tatnell) the whole time. The guys gave me a good car tonight. When you have
horsepower, it makes this thing fun.”
Craig
Dollansky in the Karavan Trailers Maxim finished fourth, despite running the
last portion of the race with a steadily deflating right rear tire. On top of
this, his crew led by Rob Hart, was using the race as a test session to work on
a few things for next season. While the car was not quiet as comfortable as the
car he is used to, Dollansky was able to steer it through heavy traffic and
keep the leaders in his sights all night long.
“We tried
an experimental car here tonight,” said Dollansky. “We experimented with quite
a few things. It’s just part of what we are doing here at the end of the
season. It didn’t really feel good all night long. We’re trying to figure out
some things for next year. Coming home fourth with what we had going on here
tonight, we are happy with that. It was a good run for the Karavan team. With
the tire going down like that, we were lucky to finish.”
Daryn
Pittman, who won on Friday night at
Joey
Saldana was sixth in the Mopar-powered Dodge/Curb Records JEI. Chad Kemenah,
who is the current leader in the battle for the Kevin Gobrecht
Rookie of the Year Award Presented by Maxim Racing and ButlerBuilt,
finished a very strong seventh aboard the Underground Utilities Inc. Eagle. Jac
Haudenschild was eighth in the Wright One Construction Maxim, after running
second early in the race. Jason Solwold who won the
dash to earn his fifth pole position of the season wound up 10th in
the City Wide Insulation Maxim.
After
losing a tire at
“It was
good for the guys,” said Tatnell. “I am proud of them. They kept plugging away
while I wasn’t here, and the guys that stepped in did an awesome job for the
team. We’ll just keep plugging away until the end of the year and hopefully get
a win, before then.”
While some
drivers may have a tough time hopping back in the car after an extended
absence, the layoff did not seem to affect Tatnell’s
skills, nor did the over 16-hour flight back from Australia to race this
weekend.
“When I
started racing I jumped in and out of people’s cars from night to night to pick
up a ride,” said Tatnell. “It’s not really any different (being out of the
car). The reason I feel so comfortable doing it, is that I have so much faith
in this whole team. When this deal was put together, I was asked who I wanted
as crew chief and I wanted Troy (Renfro.) Troy was our first pick. The reason I
wanted him was because I have the faith in him. I’m proud to be back with this
race team.”
Always
keeping his promoter’s hat close to his racing helmet, McCarl was thrilled at
the hard work of the staff at SLS Promotions to put on a great show for the
fans. With his charge through the field, the fan favorite deserved some credit
as well for keeping the fans on their feet.
“Larry Hillerud (from SLS Promotion) gave us a great race track
tonight,” said McCarl. “You could run all over, high, low, and middle. This
place gave another great race like it did in the spring. The fans get their
money’s worth in Tucson.”
The
USA RACE
PARK NOTEBOOK
• FAST
QUALIFIER: Donny
Schatz paced the 54 cars that took time with an AMB i.t.-timed lap around the 3/8-mile semi-banked oval at
13.609 seconds. For his qualifying effort, Schatz earned five bonus points. The
next four fastest qualifiers also earned bonus points, including Jac
Haudenschild (4), Brooke Tatnell (3), Randy Hannagan (2), and Jason Solwold (1).
• QUALIFYING EVENT WINNERS: Heat race winners included: Jeremy
Campbell, Chad Hillier, Dion Hindi, and Donny
Schatz. …Jesse Baker won the C-Main. Randy Hannagan won the B-Main. …
Jason Solwold won the dash.
• FEATURE
WINNERS: There have been 16 different winners in 55 A-feature events to
visit the
• PRELIMINARY FEATURE WINNERS: There have been 12 preliminary
features run this season by the
•3/8-MILE
WINNERS:
• ON THE WEB: The
Official
• LISTEN ONLINE: If fans can’t get to a track to see the series, they
can experience the excitement of the
• UP NEXT: A very
competitive 2006 season wraps up for the
• SPONSOR SUPPORT: The
Qualifying
1) Donny
Schatz, Schatz 15, 13.609
2) Jac
Haudenschild, Wright 35, 13.854
3) Brooke
Tatnell, Rush Racing 8, 13.856
4) Randy
Hannagan, TH Racing 1X, 13.920
5) Jason Solwold, Carnahan R19, 13.926
6) Joey
Saldana, Kasey Kahne Racing
9, 14.015
7) Paul
McMahan, Stewart 20, 14.025
8) Justin
Henderson, Oswalt D1, 14.060
9)
10) Daryn
Pittman, Titan Racing
11) Craig
Dollansky, Karavan 7, 14.181
12) Danny
Lasoski, Roth 83, 14.239
13) Jason
Sides, Doyle 33D, 14.248
14) Terry
McCarl, McCarl 24, 14.253
15) Tony
Bruce, Jr., Bruce 18T, 14.255
16) Shane
Stewart, Forbrook 5, 14.276
17) James
Mosher, Mosher 12M, 14.387
18) Dion Hindi, Hindi 11D, 14.439
19)
20) Jeremy
Campbell, Campbell 10C, 14.469
21) Travis Rilat, Sander 48, 14.483
22) Gary
Taylor, Herrera 45H, 14.525
23) Johnny
Herrera, Herrera 45X, 14.567
24) Garry
Lee Maier, Brown 11X, 14.588
25) Becca Anderson, Woodring 19, 14.602
26) Jason
Martin, Martin 36, 14.614
27) Brent Kronfuss, Kronfuss 9K,
14.661
28) Ben
Gregg, Gregg 22B, 14.753
29) Zach
Chappell, Kantor 8K,
14.783
30) Toni Lutar, Lutar 4X, 14.799
31) Brandon
Johnson, Johnson 14J, 14.818
32) Bill
Rose, Rose 6, 14.850
33)
34) Kaylene Verville, Verville 01, 14.921
35) Jeff Slinkard, Martin 21AZ, 15.219
36)
37) Jesse
Baker, Baker 22, 15.425
38) Rick Ziehl, Ziehl 20Z, 15.582
39) Marty
Wilcox, Martin 20AZ, 15.702
40) Ronnie
Clark, Clark 94, 15.755
41) Steve
Stone, Top Marketing 57, 15.815
42) Billy
Chester, III,
43) Michael
Bryan,
44) Cole
Boyd, Boyd 66, 16.288
45) John
Van Horn, Van Horn 5AZ, 16.304
46) Bud
Goodwin, Goodwin 15X, 16.311
47) Don
Sink, Sink 55, 16.313
48) Bobby
Taylor,
49) Ron Kratz, Kratz 45, 16.522
50) Brad Buysse, Buysse 82, 16.563
51) Jesse
Stone, Top Marketing 76, 16.680
52) Travis
Cooley, Cooley 67, 17.031
53) Steve Lohn, Lohn 11T, 17.604
54) David
Johnson, Johnson 00, 17.850
55) Sam Hafertepe Jr., Hafertepe
15H, No time
D-main
(10 laps, top 4 finishers transferred to C-main)
1) Billy
Chester, III
2) John Van
Horn
3) Cole
Boyd
4) Bud
Goodwin
5) Travis
Cooley [$100]
6) Don Sink [$100]
7) Brad Buysse [$100]
8) Steve Lohn [$100]
9) Jesse
Stone [$100]
10) David
Johnson [$100]
11) Steve
Stone [$100]
First
Heat Race (8 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Donny
Schatz
2) Garry
Lee Maier
3)
4) Shane
Stewart
5) Justin
Henderson
6) James
Mosher
7) Zach
Chappell
8)
9) Jesse
Baker
10) Becca Anderson
Second
Heat Race (8 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Dion Hindi
2) Johnny
Herrera
3) Daryn
Pittman
4) Paul
McMahan
5) Jac
Haudenschild
6) Tony
Bruce, Jr.
7) Jason
Martin
8) Toni Lutar
9) Rick Ziehl
10) Kaylene Verville
Third
Heat Race (8 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1)
2) Brooke
Tatnell
3) Joey
Saldana
4) Terry
McCarl
5) Craig
Dollansky
6) Gary
Taylor
7) Brent Kronfuss
8) Jeff Slinkard
9) Marty
Wilcox
10) Brandon
Johnson
Fourth
Heat Race (8 laps, top 5 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1) Jeremy
Campbell
2) Danny
Lasoski
3) Travis Rilat
4) Jason
Sides
5) Jason Solwold
6) Randy
Hannagan
7) Ronnie
Clark
8) Ben
Gregg
9)
10) Bill
Rose (DNS)
C-main
(8 laps, top 2 finishers transferred to B-main)
1) Jesse
Baker
2) Rick Ziehl
3)
4) Marty
Wilcox [$100]
5) Ronnie
Clark [$100]
6) Bud
Goodwin [$100]
7) Billy
Chester, III [$100]
8) Cole
Boyd [$100]
9)
John Van Horn [$100]
10) Bill
Rose (DNS) [$100]
Dash (6
laps, finishing order determined first 10 starting positions of A-feature)
1) Jason Solwold
2) Donny
Schatz
3) Brooke
Tatnell
4) Jac
Haudenschild
5) Joey
Saldana
6) Craig
Dollansky
7) Daryn
Pittman
8) Paul
McMahan
9)
10) Justin
Henderson
B-main
(12 laps, top 4 finishers transferred to A-feature)
1)
Randy Hannagan
2)
Tony Bruce, Jr.
3)
Gary Taylor
4)
Jason Martin
5) James
Mosher [$200]
6) Zach
Chappell [$180]
7) Toni Lutar [$175]
8) Brent Kronfuss [$160]
9) Becca Anderson [$150]
10) Rick Ziehl [$150]
11) Brandon
Johnson [$150]
12) Jeff Slinkard [$150]
13) Jesse
Baker [$150]
14)
15) Kaylene Verville
[$150]
16) Ben
Gregg [$150]
A-main
(30 laps)
1)Donny
Schatz [$10,000]
2) Brooke
Tatnell [$5,500]
3) Terry
McCarl [$3,200]
4) Craig
Dollansky [$2,800]
5) Daryn
Pittman [$2,500]
6) Joey
Saldana [$2,300]
7)
8) Jac
Haudenschild [$2,100]
9) Jason Solwold [$2,050]
10) Paul
McMahan [$2,000]
11) Dion Hindi [$1,500]
12) Shane
Stewart [$1,200]
13) Justin
Henderson [$1,100]
14) Jeremy
Campbell [$1,050]
15) Randy
Hannagan [$1,000]
16) Danny
Lasoski [$900]
17) Jason
Sides [$800]
18) Tony
Bruce, Jr. [$800]
19)
20) Travis Rilat [$800]
21) Garry
Lee Maier [$800]
22) Johnny
Herrera [$800]
23) Gary
Taylor [$800]
24) Jason
Martin [$800]
Lap
leaders: Donny Schatz 1-30
Driver
/ Driver Pts. /
Team Pts. / $
/ Team Diff. / Wins
/ Top 5 / Top 10
1
/ Donny Schatz / 8127 / 8127 /
$358,815 / 0 / 16 / 41 / 48
2
/ Craig Dollansky / 7797 / 7797 /
$240,010 / -330 / 6 / 33 / 47
3
/ Joey Saldana / 7653 / 7653 /
$253,690 / -474 / 7 / 25 / 45
4
/ Daryn Pittman / 7642 / 7642 /
$255,850 / -485 / 5 / 28 / 42
5
/ Jac Haudenschild / 7361 / 7361 /
$175,150 / -766 / 4 / 17 / 39
6
/ Brooke Tatnell / 7229 / 7567 /
$217,550 / -560 / 5 / 26 / 39
7
/ Chad Kemenah / 6991 / 6991 /
$114,855 / -1136 / 1 / 10 / 26
8
/ Terry McCarl / 6665 / 7489 /
$180,125 / -638 / 3 / 24 / 39
9
/ Justin Henderson / 6650 / 6650 /
$82,005 / -1477 / 0 / 2 / 17
10
/ Jeremy Campbell / 6569 / 6569 /
$85,910 / -1558 / 0 / 4 / 16
11
/ Randy Hannagan / 6499 / 6858 /
$93,810 / -1269 / 0 / 8 / 21
12
/ Dion Hindi / 5795 /
5795 / $52,445 / -2332 / 0 /
0 / 8
13
/ Becca Anderson / 5541
/ 5541 / $41,720 / -2586 / 0
/ 0 / 5
14
/ Jason Martin / 5521 / 6224 /
$59,840 / -1903 / 0 / 2 / 6
15
/
16
/ Bill Rose / 4881 / 4881 /
$30,200 / -3246 / 0 / 0 / 1
17
/ Jason Solwold / 3274
/ 3349 / $69,350 / -4778 / 0
/ 7 / 14
18
/ Danny Lasoski / 2994 / 2994 /
$86,450 / -5133 / 2 / 11 / 15
19
/ Paul McMahan / 2967 / 2967 /
$57,600 / -5160 / 1 / 4 / 13
20
/ Greg Wilson / 2931 / 2931 /
$29,030 / -5196 / 0 / 1 / 6
STAT
ATTACK, through October 21 at
There have
been 55
A-Feature
winners (16 different drivers) Rank - Driver, Hometown - Wins
1 - #15
Donny Schatz,
2 - #9 Joey Saldana,
3 - #7
Craig Dollansky,
4 - #21
Daryn Pittman,
5 - #35 Jac
Haudenschild,
#8 Brooke Tatnell, San Souci, NSW,
7 – #83
Danny Lasoski,
#24 Terry McCarl,
#5 Sammy Swindell,
10- #8 Mark
Dobmeier,
#30 Doug Esh,
#24
#15K
#20 Paul McMahan,
#22 Fred Rahmer,
#1 Kevin Swindell,
Deepest
starting position to win A-feature Car, driver, hometown - Starting position
#15
Donny Schatz,
Preliminary
Feature winners (8)
1 – #7
Craig Dollansky,
#21 Daryn Pittman,
#15 Donny Schatz,
#R19 Jason Solwold,
3- #83
Danny Lasoski,
#24 Terry McCarl,
#22 Fred Rahmer,
#5 Sammy Swindell,
Lap
leaders, including A-features and preliminary features Car, driver, hometown -
Total laps led (26 different drivers have led a lap)
#15
Donny Schatz,
#21
Daryn Pittman,
#7
Craig Dollansky,
#8
Brooke Tatnell, San Souci, NSW,
#9
Joey Saldana,
#35
Jac Haudenschild,
#83
Danny Lasoski,
#5
Sammy Swindell,
#24
Terry McCarl,
#20
Paul McMahan,
#R19
Jason Solwold,
#2L
Ed Lynch Jr., Apollo,
#22
Fred Rahmer,
#1
Kevin Swindell,
#24
#5
Tyler Walker,
#30
Doug Esh,
#10C
Jeremy Campbell,
#15K
#2
Dale Blaney,
#69
Michael Carber,
#19 Becca Anderson,
#17G
#36
Rob Chaney,
#10
#8
Mark Dobmeier,
Time
trial leaders (26 different drivers)
Rank -
Driver, Hometown - Quick times
1 – #15
Donny Schatz,
2 - #8
Brooke Tatnell, San Souci, NSW,
3 - #24
Terry McCarl,
#9 Joey Saldana,
#7 Craig Dollansky,
#35 Jac Haudenschild,
#D1 Justin Henderson,
#15K
#20 Paul McMahan,
#21 Daryn Pittman,
#R19 Jason Solwold,
13 -#11D Dion Hindi,
#1X Randy Hannagan, San Jose – 2
#24 Sammy Swindell,
#1X Rob Chaney,
#25 Lance Dewease,
#1X Randy Hannagan, San Jose - 1
#8J Kenny Jacobs,
#9K Craig Keel,
#4K Kelly Kinser,
#83 Danny Lasoski,
#2L Ed Lynch Jr.,
#19S Stevie Smith, New
#5 Tyler Walker,
Track
records established in 2006
* Terry
McCarl, March 4, United Sports Arizona Race Park (3/8-mile), Tucson, Ariz.,
13.127 seconds at 102.481 mph.
*
Paul McMahan, May 5, U.S. 36 Raceway (3/8-mile), Osborn, Mo., 9.846 seconds at
135.36 mph.
* Joey Saldana August 19, Nodak Speedway
(3/8-mile),
* Donny Schatz, May 29, Orange County Fair Speedway (5/8-mile),
* Donny
Schatz, August 30 at Southern Oregon Speedway (1/3-mile),
* Jeremy Campbell Sept. 24 at
* Becca Anderson Oct. 14 at Wilmot (Wisc.)
Dash
Winners (26 different winners)*
Rank -
Driver, Hometown - Dash Wins
1 – #7
Craig Dollansky,
2 - #15
Donny Schatz,
#21 Daryn Pittman,
4 - #35 Jac
Haudenschild,
#8 Brooke Tatnell, San Souci, NSW,
6 – #24
Terry McCarl,
7 - #R19
Jason Solwold,
8 – #83
Danny Lasoski,
#22 Fred Rahmer,
#10C Jeremy Campbell,
#36 Rob Chaney,
#1X Randy Hannagan, San Jose - 2
#11D Dion Hindi, Albuquerque - 2
#20 Paul McMahan,
#9 Joey Saldana,
#1 Kevin Swimdell,
#5 Sammy Swindell,
#5 Tyler Walker,
20-#17G
#2 Dale Blaney,
#45x Johnny Herrera,
#24
#15K
#11 Kraig Kinser,
#12
*-Single 10-car dash started on
May 20. Previously there had been two six-car dashes for single-day events.
Pole
Positions (25 different drivers)
Rank -
Driver, Hometown - Poles
1 – #7
Craig Dollansky,
#15 Donny Schatz,
3 - #21
Daryn Pittman,
#8 Brooke Tatnell, San Souci, NSW,
5 – #35 Jac
Haudenschild,
#R19 Jason Solwold,
7 - #24
Terry McCarl,
#1X Randy Hannagan, San Jose - 2
#11D Dion Hindi, Albuquerque - 2
#9 Joey Saldana,
#5 Sammy Swindell,
#22 Fred Rahmer,
#1 Kevin Swindell,
15-#17G
#2 Dale Blaney,
#36 Rob Chaney,
#45x Johnny Herrera,
#24
#15K
#11 Kraig Kinser,
#83 Danny Lasoski,
#20 Paul McMahan,
#5 Tyler Walker,
#1Z Dusty Zomer,
B-main
Winners (36 different winners)
Rank -
Driver, Hometown - "B" Wins
1 - #15K
2- #24
Terry McCarl,
#D1 Justin Henderson,
#36 Jason Martin, Liberal, KS - 3
#15 Donny Schatz,
#7 Craig Dollansky,
#1X Randy Hannagan, San Jose - 2
#35 Jac Haudenschild,
#11D Dion Hindi,
#2L Ed Lynch Jr., Apollo,
#20 Paul McMahan,
#21 Daryn Pittman,
#4J Jeff Shepard, Upperco, Md. - 1
#1 Kevin Swindell,
#71R Ryan Anderson, Charter Oak,
#97 Aaron Berryhill,
#2B Dale Blaney,
#5B
#21X
#25 Lance Dewease,
#86 Don Droud Jr.,
#44G Kaley Gharst,
#24
#9K Craig Keel,
#12M James, Mosher,
#44 Ned Powers,
#9 Joey Saldana,
#79 Davey Sammons,
#19S Stevie Smith, New
#R19 Jason Solwold,
#24 Sammy Swindell,
#20W Greg Wilson,
#15W Brandon Wimmer,
#9W Gary Wright, Hooks,
Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award Presented by Maxim Racing
and ButlerBuilt
Justin
Henderson / 6650 / -341
Jeremy
Campbell / 6447 / -544
Becca
Anderson / 5466 / -1525
Jason
Martin / 5419 / -1572