World of Outlaws Sprint Cars Set for the NAPA Rumble

World of Outlaws Sprint Cars Set for the NAPA Rumble

The Outlaws head to I-96 Speedway on Saturday, June 2, for Michigan’s only race

 

LAKE ODESSA, Mich. – May 24, 2012 – The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is ready to rumble at the new and improved I-96 Speedway.

After reconfiguring the track from a half mile to the fast 3/8-mile oval during the offseason, the NAPA Rumble – the World of Outlaws lone event in the Wolverine state – is set for Saturday, June 2.

“Those are usually the good races for us whenever we go to places in an area that doesn’t have a whole lot of sprint car racing,” Lucas Wolfe said. “I think it’s always good to go to those events and that’s the only race in Michigan this year.”

It will mark the sixth consecutive year and eighth out of the last 10 seasons that the Outlaws have competed at the semi-banked track.

“It’s always a good weekend when you get to a track that we’ve been to a few times that we’ve had some decent speed at,” Wolfe said.

The track record of 14.834 seconds was established by Joey Saldana in 2010. Saldana claimed the first World of Outlaws event at I-96 Speedway in 1995 and six other drivers have picked up a feature win since.

Steve Kinser, who leads the current Outlaws points, has won a series-best four events and Jason Meyers took two victories. Jason Sides, Craig Dollansky, Stevie Smith and Sammy Swindell are also winners at the facility.

“It’s a unique track,” Kerry Madsen said. “I always look forward to going there. I think we can run well there, so I’m pretty excited about I-96.”

The Dirt Track at Charlotte

World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series at a Glance

The Dirt Track at Charlotte

CONCORD, N.C. – May 21, 2012 – As the World of Outlaws recently surpassed the quarter point to the season, a couple of familiar faces have placed themselves atop the standings.

Steve Kinser, a 20-time Outlaws champion and the series winningest driver, has won two of the last four races en route to an 18-point advantage over three-time champion Sammy Swindell.

The duo and a strong contingent of champion-caliber drivers head to the Circle K NOS Energy Outlaw Showdown at The Dirt Track at Charlotte on Friday night for the season’s first televised race. The event will be broadcast live on SPEED beginning at 8 p.m. (EST).

Additionally, the World of Outlaws have partnered with Cell Phones for Soldiers as part of its “Outlaws Give Back” charitable initiative. Every fan with an adult paid admission ticket who donates a cell phone will receive a free fan pit pass upgrade to the Circle K NOS Energy Outlaw Showdown.

WHEN

Friday, May 25, at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C., for the Circle K NOS Energy Outlaw Showdown. The front gate is scheduled to open at 4 p.m. with an autograph session at the main concourse at 4:30 p.m. Hot laps are slated for 6:15 p.m. and qualifying at 6:45 p.m.

WHERE

The Dirt Track at Charlotte is located at 5555 Concord Pkwy. South in Concord, N.C. Click on the link for a map ( http://g.co/maps/vqu5p).

ABOUT THE TRACK

The Dirt Track at Charlotte is a semi-banked, 4/10-mile oval. The track record of 11.889 seconds was established by Jeff Shepard on Oct. 6, 2001.

World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Returns to Hagerstown

World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Returns to Hagerstown

The Maryland track hosts Round 2 of the Kasey Kahne Challenge on Sunday, May 20

 

HAGERSTOWN, Md. – May 8, 2012 – There is one driver in particular who has his sight set on the upcoming Ollie’s Bargain Outlet presents the Kasey Kahne Challenge brought to you by O’Neill Race Gear event.

Cody Darrah, who drives for the NASCAR star, grew up watching races at Hagerstown Speedway – site for Round 2 of the Kasey Kahne Challenge on Sunday, May 20, with the World of Outlaws.

“Hagerstown is pretty special to me and to our family,” Darrah said. “Ever since I was little, we’d go there and watch my uncle on the late model side. I grew up with a different background, not too much in sprint cars, but in late models. That’s a track that I’ve got to stand on the frontstretch with my uncle and also with Kasey two years ago. So it’s a pretty special race track to me and I’m pretty excited to go there with the Outlaws.”

And the fact that his car owner is co-promoting the race along with SLS Promotions doesn’t hurt.

“To be in a race that he sponsors and to get a little bit of his money back would sure be a bonus for the whole team,” Darrah said as he sported a big grin.

This will be the World of Outlaws first race at the semi-banked, half-mile oval since 2005, when Sammy Swindell claimed the feature. Swindell, who leads the current World of Outlaws points and won the first round of the Kasey Kahne Challenge, has won a series-best seven of the 35 Outlaws events on the racy track.

“It’s a notoriously, fairly slick track by the end of the night,” Kerry Madsen said. “We’re pretty confident on slick stuff, so it’ll be quite interesting to go there.”

Mark Kinser set the track record of 14.945 seconds on July 31, 1999.

The main gate at Hagerstown Speedway is scheduled to open at 4 p.m. with hot laps at 7 p.m., qualifying at 7:30 p.m. and racing at 8 p.m.

World of Outlaws Lincoln Speedway, Williams Grove Speedway

World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series at a Glance

Lincoln Speedway, Williams Grove Speedway

 

ABBOTTSTOWN, Pa. – May 7, 2012 – In the midst of an electrifying championship battle, the World of Outlaws are headed to Posse country this week for the first time during the 2012 campaign.

There have been eight changes atop the points standings this season with Sammy Swindell and Donny Schatz trading the lead the last five races. Swindell, who has won four of the last eight races – including Saturday night at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio – holds an 11-point advantage over Schatz entering this week.

The Outlaws take the fight to Pennsylvania and one of the toughest regions for a trio of competitions this week, beginning on Wednesday with The Gettysburg Clash at Lincoln Speedway. It will be the first World of Outlaws event at the semi-banked, 3/8-mile track since 1998.

The teams will then head to Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg for a doubleheader on Friday and Saturday, capped by the Morgan Cup – pitting five premier World of Outlaws drivers against five Pa Posse drivers in a 12-lap dash. The winner earns $4,000 and the prestigious trophy to their corner for the next year.

WHEN

Wednesday, May 9, at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Pa., for The Gettysburg Clash. The front gate is scheduled to open at 4 p.m. with qualifying at 7 p.m.

Friday and Saturday, May 11-12, at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. The front gate is scheduled to open at 5:30 p.m. with qualifying at 7:30 p.m.

WHERE

Lincoln Speedway is located at 800 Racetrack Road in Abbottstown, Pa. Click on the link for a map ( http://g.co/maps/dqqaj).

Williams Grove Speedway is located at 1 Speedway Drive in Mechanicsburg, Pa. Click on the link for a map ( http://g.co/maps/hechd).

 

ABOUT THE TRACKS

Lincoln Speedway is a semi-banked, 3/8-mile oval. The overall track record of 12.730 seconds was established by Lance Dewease on Oct. 15, 1999. The fastest in World of Outlaws competition is 13.380 seconds by Jac Haudenschild on May 31, 1997.

Williams Grove Speedway is a semi-banked, half-mile oval. The track record of 16.140 seconds was established by Brian Paulus on April 26, 2002.

Swindell Dominates, Schatz Charges at Eldora Speedway

Swindell Dominates, Schatz Charges at Eldora Speedway

The duo swap the World of Outlaws points lead for the fifth consecutive race

 

ROSSBURG, Ohio – May 5, 2012 – Sammy Swindell and Donny Schatz are putting together one of the most intense championship battles in World of Outlaws history.

There have been eight lead changes in the standings in 15 events this season. Saturday was no different as Swindell led all 30 laps to claim Night 2 of the Outlaw Thunder presented by Goodyear at Eldora Speedway, marking the fifth consecutive race that the championship standings have swapped between the duo.

“If you’re looking at the points, we could have a big lead if we just hadn’t gotten in a couple of those crashes,” said Swindell, who has crashed twice while running in the top five this season. “But it’s part of it and we keep coming back.”

Swindell has been victorious in four of the last eight events, including a dominant performance on Saturday as the veteran picked up his 19 ^th career World of Outlaws win at Eldora Speedway. It also pushed him back into the points lead by 11 over Schatz.

After qualifying seventh quickest, Swindell drove from third to second in both his heat race and the dash. He then rocketed to the lead at the start of the feature, which went caution free for 24 laps before Jason Sides’ flat left rear tire brought out a yellow flag.

“The way the car was rolling through there I knew that if somebody was faster, they’d have to be just really awesome because this thing was almost on rails,” Swindell said. “It was just stuck down so hard I could just drive around there like I’m driving down the freeway.”

The caution eliminated nearly a straightaway lead for Swindell, who took little time in reestablishing a sizeable advantage. However, Kraig Kinser sustained a flat left rear tire with two laps remaining to bring out the final caution of the race.

Joey Saldana, who ran second for most of the race, began to slow a couple of laps before the caution because of an engine issue. Swindell chose the outside lane on the double-file restart and Saldana’s car was slow to take off, bogging the inside lane on the start and dropping him to sixth by turn one.

Swindell sailed to the win as Dale Blaney used the late cautions to pick up a pair of positions.

“We were probably going to run fourth until those last couple of yellows,” he said after finishing second. “They kind of helped us out. Sometimes yellows can help or hurt, and tonight they helped a little bit.

“(Swindell) was awful good all night long. He drove away from us early. He was definitely a better car than us and it would have took a little bit of problem from him for us to get up to him. I just wasn’t good enough from the center off to get a run on guys to slide them.”

Craig Dollansky also capitalized on the two cautions to drive from sixth to third in the final five laps.

“My car got good as the race wore on,” he said. “Late in the race was when my car felt the best.

“Any time you can come out with a top three with this group of teams here, it’s a pretty good night.”

David Gravel, who set fast time for the second night in a row, finished fourth and Daryn Pittman drove from 11^th to round out the top five.

Schatz overcame an early issue of his own and rebounded in the feature. After advancing from eighth to third in the Last Chance Showdown to earn a transfer, Schatz started the main event in 24^th. He restarted 14^th on the caution with six laps remaining and then restarted ninth on the green-white-checker.

Schatz finished sixth and he earned the KSE Hard Charger Award for a series-best third time this season.

Saldana placed seventh, Steve Kinser was eighth, Greg Wilson ended ninth and Friday night winner Chad Kemenah rallied from 22^nd to conclude the top 10.

Paul McMahan won a heat race and the dash, and Trey Starks, Steve Kinser and Jac Haudenschild earned heat wins. Tony Stewart claimed the Last Chance Showdown.

Outlaw Thunder presented by Goodyear Notebook

NOTES – David Gravel set quick time for the second night in a row and the third time in his career with the World of Outlaws. … Trey Starks started on the pole of a heat race for the second straight night and he claimed his second career heat race win with the World of Outlaws. … The top 21 drivers in qualifying were separated by less than three-tenths of a second. … Paul McMahan became the 13^th different driver to win a dash this season in 15 World of Outlaws events.

NAPA Auto Parts Outlaw Showdown Nearing for World of Outlaws

 

Eagle Raceway to host first WoO event since 2009 on April 27

 

EAGLE, Neb. – April 6, 2012 – The name “Kinser” is synonymous with Victory Lane at Eagle Raceway.

In 38 World of Outlaws events at the high-banked, one-third mile track, Steve Kinser has claimed 15 victories and his cousin, Mark, has picked up seven wins. In fact, a Kinser was parked in Victory Lane at least once each season between 1990 and 2003.

After not racing at Eagle Raceway the past two years, the World of Outlaws will return to the fast, action-packed track on Friday, April 27, for the NAPA Auto Parts Outlaw Showdown.

“It’s a track that seems to fit the stuff that me and (crew chief) Scott (Gerkin) do,” Steve Kinser said. “Some of the shorter, high-banked tracks we struggle on, but Eagle is a little different. I’m looking forward to returning.”

While the Kinsers have been dominant in the past, there have been five different winners since Steve swept both events in 2005. Danny Lasoski won the last race in 2009 – the same year Sammy Swindell set the track record with a lap of 11.076 seconds.

Craig Dollansky was victorious in 2008, Joey Saldana in 2007, and Daryn Pittman and Donny Schatz each won an event in 2006.

“In today’s competition, everybody splits it up pretty good,” Kinser said.

Jac Haudenschild, Jeff Swindell, Doug Wolfgang, Sammy Swindell and Bobby Davis Jr. have also claimed at least one World of Outlaws victory at Eagle Raceway.

World of Outlaws Thunderbowl Raceway

World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series At a Glance

 

TULARE, Calif. – March 12, 2012 – Joey Saldana has claimed three of the past five World of Outlaws features at the high-banked Thunderbowl Raceway, where the World of Outlaws compete on Friday and Saturday.

However, Californian Tim Kaeding stands in the way. Kaeding, who has spent time on the World of Outlaws tour during his storied career, holds the track record and picked up an Outlaws victory at the one-third mile in 2007.

Adding to the allure, Saldana and Kaeding are the two most recent World of Outlaws winners. Saldana claimed the victory at Perris Auto Speedway in Perris, Calif. at the NAPA Know How SoCal Showdown on Saturday and Kaeding was victorious on Thursday at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas.

 

WHEN

Friday, March 16, and Saturday, March 17, at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif. Front gates are scheduled to open around 4:30 p.m. with racing at 7 p.m. each night.

WHERE

Thunderbowl Raceway is located at the Tulare County Fairgrounds on the corner of E. Bardsley Road and S. K St. at 215 Martin Luther King Junior Avenue in Tulare, Calif. Click the link for a map (http://g.co/maps/mz9e8).

 

ABOUT THE TRACK

Thunderbowl Raceway is a high-banked, one-third mile oval. The track record of 12.651 seconds was established by Tim Kaeding on March 5, 2010.

PREVIOUS WINNERS

World of Outlaws A-Feature winners at Thunderbowl Raceway:

2011 – Joey Saldana on March 19

2010 – Jason Meyers on March 5, Joey Saldana on March 6

2009 – Randy Hannagan on March 20, Joey Saldana on March 21

2008 – Jac Haudenschild on Oct. 18

2007 – Joey Saldana on Feb. 23, Tim Kaeding on Feb. 24, Donny Schatz on Oct. 13

2005 – Tim Shaffer on Feb. 25, Sammy Swindell on Oct. 15

2004 – Terry McCarl on Nov. 1

2003 – Steve Kinser on Sept. 2

ONE-THIRD MILE WINNERS

Thunderbowl Raceway is a one-third mile track. In 2011, there were seven races on a track that size. The winners include: Joey Saldana – 2 (Thunderbowl Raceway on March 19, Beaver Dam Raceway on July 9); Craig Dollansky – 1 (I-55 Raceway on August 6); Paul McMahan - 1 (Brockville-Ontario Speedway on July 29); Jason Meyers – 1 (Fremont Speedway on October 15); David Gravel – 1 (Talladega Short Track on Oct. 22) and Donny Schatz – 1 (Attica Raceway Park on May 20).

NEWS & NOTES

Feature winners in 2012 – Joey Saldana – 1 (Perris Auto Speedway on March 10); Tim Kaeding – 1 (The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8); Craig Dollansky – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Donny Schatz – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Danny Lasoski – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 18).

Tune in: Listen live as the Voice of the Outlaws, Johnny Gibson, calls the action at all World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series events on the DIRT Radio Network, with a number of events throughout the season being featured on the DIRTVision Cybercast. Visit http://www.DIRTVision.com for more information on all the features, including updated results from each night of racing as well as a chat room to interact with other fans listening to the racing action. Also, be sure to check out the all new official Podcast of the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, Outlaws Unleashed, in the iTunes store or at http://www.WorldofOutlaws.com.

On the Web: The all new Official World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Web site is at http://www.WorldofOutlaws.com and includes driver biographies with statistics and pictures, race-by-race stats, detailed track information and race coverage, series news and team press releases.

Up Next: The World of Outlaws head to Northern California for the Mini Gold Cup at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif., on March 23-24.

2012 STAT ATTACK

There have been 5 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series A-Feature events this season.

A-Feature winners (5 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – Wins

1 – JOEY SALDANA, Brownsburg, Ind. – 1

- TIM KAEDING, San Jose, Calif. – 1

- CRAIG DOLLANSKY, Elk River, Minn. – 1

- DONNY SCHATZ, Minot, N.D. – 1

- DANNY LASOSKI, Dover, Mo. – 1

Total laps led (6 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – Laps

1 – JOEY SALDANA, Brownsburg, Ind. – 30

- DANNY LASOSKI, Dover, Mo. – 30

3 – TIM KAEDING, San Jose, Calif. – 28

4 – CRAIG DOLLANSKY, Elk River, Minn. – 25

5 – DONNY SCHATZ, Minot, N.D. – 20

6 – CHAD KEMENAH, Findlay, Ohio – 2

Time Trial leaders (4 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – Quick Times

1 – CHAD KEMENAH, Findlay, Ohio – 2

2 – JASON MEYERS, Clovis, Calif. – 1

- SAMMY SWINDELL, Germantown, Tenn. – 1

- DARYN PITTMAN, Owasso, Okla. – 1

Pole Positions (4 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – Poles

1 – DONNY SCHATZ, Minot, N.D. – 2

2 – JOEY SALDANA, Brownsburg, Ind. – 1

- DANNY LASOSKI, Dover, Mo. – 1

- TIM KAEDING, San Jose, Calif. – 1

Last Chance Showdown Winners (5 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – Wins

1 – BOBBY McMAHAN, Elk Grove, Calif. – 1

- GREG HODNETT, Memphis, Tenn. – 1

- JAC HAUDENSCHILD, Wooster, Ohio – 1

- DARYN PITTMAN, Owasso, Okla. – 1

- TERRY McCARL, Altoona, Iowa – 1

Hard Charger Award (5 Different Drivers)

Rank – Driver, Hometown – H.C. Awards

1 – SAMMY SWINDELL, Germantown, Tenn. – 1

- DONNY SCHATZ, Minot, N.D. – 1

- KRAIG KINSER, Bloomington, Ind. – 1

- JASON SIDES, Bartlett, Tenn. – 1

- BRIAN BROWN, Grain Valley, Mo. – 1

2012 World of Outlaws Schedule & Winners

No. / Day, Date  / Track  / Location / Winner (Number of Wins in 2012)

1. / Saturday, February 18 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, Fla. / Danny Lasoski (1)

2. / Sunday, February 19 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, Fla. / Donny Schatz (1)

3. / Sunday, February 19 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, Fla. / Craig Dollansky (1)

4. / Thursday, March 8 / The Dirt Track at Las Vegas / Las Vegas, Nev. / Tim Kaeding (1)

5. / Saturday, March 10 / Perris Auto Speedway / Perris, Calif. / Joey Saldana (1)

Kaeding Victorious Under Bright Lights of Vegas

Kaeding Victorious Under Bright Lights of Vegas

A last-minute decision to head to ‘Sin City’ pays off for reigning King of California

 

LAS VEGAS – March 8, 2012 – The way Tim Kaeding celebrated, it was as if he hit the jackpot. 

In a way, he did. The Californian outlasted a furious battle with Jason Sides and an onslaught of cautions to claim the $10,000 World of Outlaws victory at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on a windy Thursday night.

It was his seventh career World of Outlaws feature win and his first since April 24, 2009, at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. And Kaeding celebrated in style.

With fists pumping and several shouts, Kaeding drew a loud cheer from the packed crowd when he hopped out of his car on the fronstretch, hugged almost anyone in sight and climbed on the back of the high-powered race car with his arms held high.

“We weren’t even expecting to come here,” the reigning King of California said. “About a week and a half ago we made the decision to come.

“It’s a hard-fought battle when you can start up front and stay up front with the Outlaws. They’re definitely fast on the half miles. Tonight we just got lucky. We just went out, had a lot of fun and enjoyed ourselves.”

Kaeding qualified sixth quickest and finished second in his heat race to earn a spot in the dash. The invert for the dash was “six”, giving Kaeding the pole. He led all six laps to earn the pole for the feature, which he then commanded for all but two of the 30 laps.

However, it was anything but easy. Kaeding survived nine cautions, including one on the opening lap when Brian Brown jumped the start from his 21 ^st starting position. He was penalized a row on the restart.

Kaeding and the rest of the field were slowed on the third lap for a caution by Sammy Swindell, who sustained a flat left front tire. Swindell restarted last – 24^th.

Chad Kemenah, who opened the night as the fastest qualifier with a lap of 15.093 seconds, took the lead for the seventh and eighth laps before Kaeding regained the top position in lapped traffic entering turn three on the ninth circuit.

Jason Meyers brought out a caution on lap 10 as he came to a spinning stop because of front end damage. He then stopped on lap 23 with a similar issue and NASCAR star Tony Stewart was forced pitside because of a flat right rear tire.

Kerry Madsen’s flip in turn one on the restart prompted a red flag. Two laps later, Terry McCarl spun in turn two for the fifth stoppage and Lucas Wolfe ran out of fuel on lap 26 while running fourth. Second-running Kraig Kinser had a flat right rear tire, but elected not to pit and therefore be forced to the back. However, he brought out a caution with two laps remaining because of the flat tire.

Sides, who maintained a close second for most of the second half of the race, dove under Kaeding for the lead entering turn one on the restart. However, Sides slide up the track and Kaeding drove underneath as the duo exited turn two.

“We had a right front tire going low there,” Sides said. “The last couple of laps I’d get in there and get on the right front. The one time I got by Tim, I got in there and he got back underneath me. It took a little push and I think that allowed him to get back underneath us.

“Our car was good. I don’t know that we could have done much better setup-wise or anything like that. We needed longer green-flag runs. It seemed like we were better on longer runs rather than those little short runs.”

Kaeding regained the lead and the final caution came as he received the white flag when Cody Darrah spun out in turn four.

Kaeding again pulled to a good advantage on the restart and held on for the victory with Sides a close runner-up. Steve Kinser, who started 14 ^th, charged to third.

“We passed a lot of cars, got by a few on a restart,” he said. “To get a third after starting 14^th, I can’t complain.

“There at the end, once we got strung out the first couple of laps, the only guys probably making up time were guys that had come in and already had new tires on their right rear.”

Kemenah was fourth and Brown worked his way back to fifth, which earned him the Hard Charger Award.

Swindell, Meyers and Stewart overcame their issues to finish sixth through eighth, respectively. Donny Schatz, who started 16^th, was ninth and Kraig Kinser drove from 20^th to 10^th in the final two laps after his caution for a flat tire.

Swindell, Madsen and Craig Dollansky each claimed a heat race victory and McCarl won the Last Chance Showdown.

The World of Outlaws will compete next on Saturday in the NAPA Know How SoCal Showdown at Perris Auto Speedway in Perris, Calif.

The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway Notebook 

WINNERS – Tim Kaeding – 1 (The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 8); Craig Dollansky – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Donny Schatz – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 19); Danny Lasoski – 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 18).

Schatz’s Quest for Fifth World of Outlaws Crown Begins in Florida

Schatz’s Quest for Fifth World of Outlaws Crown Begins in Florida

Tony Stewart Racing star focused on UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit

CONCORD, N.C. – Feb. 6, 2012 – It wasn’t long ago when Donny Schatz was in a slump. Well, a slump by his standards.

Despite finishing second in the World of Outlaws standings each of the past two seasons, the Tony Stewart Racing driver admitted that he struggled in doing so. While he won the famed Goodyear Knoxville Nationals at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway last year, it was one of only 13 feature victories the past two seasons.

 In winning four consecutive championships from 2006-09, Schatz averaged 16.5 feature wins each season and claimed the Goodyear Knoxville Nationals each year.”The last couple of years we’ve definitely been off our game a little bit,” he said. “You can’t have success without failure. If you don’t learn what not to do you don’t know what to do. The team that Tony (Stewart) has assembled, we’re all competitive people. We pushed each other to limit and maybe even over. The same mentality that got us in trouble is what brought us back to the winning stages and having a dominant race car.”

The Minot, N.D., native said his team that ended last season by sweeping the Lowes Foods World Finals has returned and the focus for 2012 is simple – win races.”We’re kinda just going after wins,” he said. “Win as much as you can and the championship takes care of itself.”

That begins when the World of Outlaws starts its season on Feb. 17-18-19 at the 41^st annual UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. It’s an event that includes World of Outlaws Sprint Cars, World of Outlaws Late Models and Super DIRTcar Series Big-Blocks, plus UMP Modifieds and Late Models and the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions Sprint Cars competing Feb. 14-25.

Schatz has claimed four of the 19 World of Outlaws features at the quick, half-mile oval. In 2009, he won two of the three races.

“Volusia is a place you can go and be extremely good or extremely bad,” Schatz said. “It can set the tone for the whole year.”It’s a big race track and the conditions can be so different from day to day. You just have to keep as much speed up as possible.”