World of Outlaws Points Leader One Race Away from Title
- 23 Oct 2006
Donny Schatz and the ParkerStore Team took their 16th main event win at United
Sports Arizona Race Park but the win was bittersweet. Schatz, the World of
Outlaws points leader was informed Friday that his good friend and Outlaws
founder Ted Johnson, 72, lost his battle with cancer.
Schatz wanted to score a clean sweep in honor of Ted Johnson. The Fargo, North Dakota racer nearly pulled it off at USA Race Park in Tucson. Schatz set the pace in qualifying, won the first heat race and led all 30 laps of the A feature to win it. He also finished second in the dash event.
Donny Schatz wins 16th main event at Tucson
The evening began with a moment of silence at the driver’s meeting, followed
later by another moment to reflect on the life of the series founder. In
tradition, the missing man formation was in place. “It was a pretty emotional
night and I really wanted a clean sweep for Ted,” said Schatz. “The bottom line
was it still was about racing. Even with our minds occupied with thoughts for
the Johnson family, I knew we had to go out and do something special.”
Schatz took the lead from polesitter Jason Solwold on the initial start in a drag race down the front straight for a sizeable lead. Gary Taylor’s car then went through the wooden billboards and out of the track just off the third turn. Taylor walked away from the incident.
During the red flag for Taylor’s accident, Schatz’s team was confident with the set-up they had in the car. “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 get where we could on the race track. We also had to see what felt best. We struggled at little to get good everywhere. I just had to be patient and stay on the bottom in the rubber.”
The dominating night helped Schatz add to his totals across the board including pushing his lead in the point standings to 330 points, his Fast Qualifier Awards to eight, and “A” Feature laps to 419. Schatz and the ParkerStore Team use K&N Engineering Products. The K&N Airbox worked flawlessly,” he said. “We were able to attain maximum horsepower. I have to thank all the folks at K&N for their dedication to building a superior product.”
Schatz simply needs to enter the final two races in Las Vegas to claim the 2006 Championship. The World of Outlaws Sprint Series wraps up a very competitive 2006 season at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 27 and 28.
Follow Donny Schatz's progress throughout the racing season at the K&N news sitete. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.
Schatz wanted to score a clean sweep in honor of Ted Johnson. The Fargo, North Dakota racer nearly pulled it off at USA Race Park in Tucson. Schatz set the pace in qualifying, won the first heat race and led all 30 laps of the A feature to win it. He also finished second in the dash event.
Donny Schatz wins 16th main event at Tucson
Schatz took the lead from polesitter Jason Solwold on the initial start in a drag race down the front straight for a sizeable lead. Gary Taylor’s car then went through the wooden billboards and out of the track just off the third turn. Taylor walked away from the incident.
During the red flag for Taylor’s accident, Schatz’s team was confident with the set-up they had in the car. “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 get where we could on the race track. We also had to see what felt best. We struggled at little to get good everywhere. I just had to be patient and stay on the bottom in the rubber.”
The dominating night helped Schatz add to his totals across the board including pushing his lead in the point standings to 330 points, his Fast Qualifier Awards to eight, and “A” Feature laps to 419. Schatz and the ParkerStore Team use K&N Engineering Products. The K&N Airbox worked flawlessly,” he said. “We were able to attain maximum horsepower. I have to thank all the folks at K&N for their dedication to building a superior product.”
Schatz simply needs to enter the final two races in Las Vegas to claim the 2006 Championship. The World of Outlaws Sprint Series wraps up a very competitive 2006 season at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 27 and 28.
Follow Donny Schatz's progress throughout the racing season at the K&N news sitete. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.
