World of Outlaws

Contact: Nick Graziano
World of Outlaws PR
ngraziano@dirtcar.com

Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article

Winner Brad Sweet (DB3 Photo)

The “Big Cat” Brad Sweet was starving for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series win at Jackson Motorplex Saturday night.

He’s tasted victory six times already this season – including a win Thursday night at Jackson Motorplex – but with $41,000 and the title of Jackson Nationals champion on the line, his appetite wouldn’t be appeased until the night’s entrée was his.

He had to battle through cautions, lap traffic, smoking tires and an equally as hungry Donny Schatz, but at the end of the 35-lap Feature, Sweet drove his NAPA Auto Parts No. 49 car to Victory Lane for the seventh time this year, claiming the 41st Annual AGCO Jackson Nationals.

“Forty-one thousand, that’s awesome,” Sweet said. “These big money races are hard to win.”

After winning opening night of the Jackson Nationals, Thursday, and finishing fifth Friday night, his total combined points locked him into the pole position for Saturday night’s DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash. He dominated the field in the Dash, pulling away to a 3.5 second lead over second-place Daryn Pittman by the end.

Sweet had the plate of $41,000 in his hands and was ready to walk away with it. But when the Feature went green, he found himself having to brawl for it.

Pittman charged around the outside of Sweet through turns one and two to take the lead. The next time around, Sweet dove underneath Pittman in turn one, putting the two side-by-side at the exit of turn two. Neither were going to lift. But to avoid sliding up into Pittman, Sweet had to jerk his car sideways and allowed the Roth Enterprises No. 83 car to pull away.

Pittman held command of the lead for the next 11 laps before there was contact between he and the lap car of Austin McCarl, which sent McCarl rolling into turn one.

When the race went back green after the red flag, Sweet got the jump on Pittman, clearing him for the lead before they got back to the flag stand. Into turn one, Sweet moved to the top of the track, blocking Pittman’s line. The Grass Valley, Calif-native then pulled away to about a four-car-length lead exiting turn two.

Pittman’s fortunes continued to decline with Schatz working his way by the Oklahoma-native and dropping him to third – where he would remain for the rest of the Feature.

“I keep finding ways to lose races,” said Pittman, whose third-place finish was his seventh top-five in-a-row. “Getting frustrating, but my Roth Motorsports guys keep working really hard. They’re doing a great job.”

Leaving Pittman in third, Schatz began his hunt of Sweet. With just three wins this season, so far, and his last win coming nine races ago, the 10-time Series champion was as hungry as Sweet to return to Victory Lane.

Sweet lost grip exiting turn two on the slick track while trying to pass a lap car, with 11 laps to go. That allowed Schatz to close on Sweet and dive underneath him in turn three. The two were side-by-side exiting turn four with Sweet smoking his tires on the rubbered down groove of the track and Schatz fighting to keep his car straight.

“It didn’t surprise me one bit when the fifteen (car) was sneaking under me,” said Sweet, who has battled Schatz for the points lead all season long. “He’s got me chasing my tail a little bit.”

After Schatz’s attempt at passing the Kasey Kahne Racing car, Sweet got into a rhythm. He found his line and rode it for the remaining 10 laps to claim his 41st career Series win during the 41st Annual Jackson Nationals with a $41,000 payday.

“Once I got in clean track, I knew just to run right in the rubber and I didn’t want to allow any runs to happen,” Sweet said. “It was just one of those things where we were just good enough to get the win tonight. It wasn’t pretty I don’t think, but that’s why you set yourself up all weekend to get in the right position and we were in the right position and we were able to get the win.”

Schatz’s second-place finish was a rebound from Friday when he blew a motor while leading the Dash and ended up eighth in the Feature.

“Hats off to these (Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing) guys,” Schatz said. “They’re digging. They’ve got an awesome race car. The driver’s got to step up to the plate a little bit, start swinging a bigger bat. We’ll work on that.”

Sweet has now won five of the last seven races. That’s resulted in him extending his championship lead to 72-points over Schatz.

“We’ve had a good little run here,” Sweet said. “It’s been a lot of fun.”

While the “Big Cat’s” winning appetite was appeased Saturday night, hunger is sure to return next week.

UP NEXT:

The World of Outlaws on Wednesday, July 3, will return to Brown County Speedway in Aberdeen, S.D. for the Star Spangled Showdown.

As always, you can catch all World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series action on www.DIRTVision.com.

For tickets and more information, go to www.WorldofOutlaws.com.

Race Results: 6/29/19 – Jackson Motorplex

NOS Energy Drink Feature (35 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$41,000]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [4][$20,000]; 3. 83-Daryn Pittman [2][$12,000]; 4. 41-David Gravel [3][$9,000]; 5. 9-James McFadden [9][$8,000]; 6. 21-Brian Brown [6][$7,000]; 7. 1S-Logan Schuchart [17][$6,500]; 8. 18-Ian Madsen [8][$6,000]; 9. 2-Carson Macedo [5][$5,500]; 10. 49X-Tim Shaffer [21][$5,000]; 11. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [19][$4,000]; 12. 55-Brooke Tatnell [12][$3,700]; 13. 5-Shane Stewart [16][$3,600]; 14. 19-Brent Marks [24][$3,500]; 15. 2M-Kerry Madsen [23][$3,400]; 16. 3-Jac Haudenschild [11][$3,300]; 17. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [18][$3,200]; 18. 4-Terry McCarl [10][$3,100]; 19. 7S-Jason Sides [13][$3,000]; 20. 11K-Kraig Kinser [14][$3,000]; 21. O9-Matt Juhl [20][$3,000]; 22. 7-Justin Henderson [15][$3,000]; 23. 1A-Jacob Allen [7][$3,000]; 24. 2KS-Austin McCarl [22][$3,000];
Lap Leaders: Daryn Pittman 1-11, Brad Sweet 12-35
KSE Hard Charger Award: 49X-Tim Shaffer[+11]

DRYDENE Heat #1 (8 Laps) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 9-James McFadden [4]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [2]; 5. 49X-Tim Shaffer [3]; 6. 13-Mark Dobmeier [6]; 7. 44-Chris Martin [8]; 8. 2C-Wayne Johnson [7]; 9. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [10]; 10. 8-Jack Croaker [9]

DRYDENE Heat #2 (8 Laps) – 1. 18-Ian Madsen [1]; 2. 4-Terry McCarl [2]; 3. 11K-Kraig Kinser [4]; 4. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [3]; 5. 44S-Trey Starks [5]; 6. 19P-Paige Polyak [6]; 7. 35-Skylar Prochaska [7]; 8. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [9]; 9. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [8]

DRYDENE Heat #3 (8 Laps) – 1. 1A-Jacob Allen [1]; 2. 3-Jac Haudenschild [4]; 3. 7-Justin Henderson [2]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [3]; 5. 19-Brent Marks [6]; 6. 2KS-Austin McCarl [5]; 7. 16-Travis Whitney [8]; 8. 5J-Jamie Ball [7]; 9. O5-Colin Smith [9]

DRYDENE Heat #4 (8 Laps) – 1. 21-Brian Brown [3]; 2. 55-Brooke Tatnell [6]; 3. 5-Shane Stewart [1]; 4. O9-Matt Juhl [2]; 5. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5]; 6. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [4]; 7. 33M-Mason Daniel [7]; 8. 7W-R.J. Johnson [8]

DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [2]; 3. 41-David Gravel [3]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [5]; 5. 2-Carson Macedo [4]; 6. 21-Brian Brown [8]; 7. 1A-Jacob Allen [7]; 8. 18-Ian Madsen [6]

Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – 1. 49X-Tim Shaffer [1][-]; 2. 2KS-Austin McCarl [4][-]; 3. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5][-]; 4. 19-Brent Marks [8][-]; 5. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [2][$2,900]; 6. 2C-Wayne Johnson [9][$2,200]; 7. 44S-Trey Starks [3][$2,000]; 8. 33M-Mason Daniel [12][$1,800]; 9. 13-Mark Dobmeier [6][$1,750]; 10. 35-Skylar Prochaska [10][$1,700]; 11. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [14][$1,650]; 12. 16-Travis Whitney [15][$1,600]; 13. 19P-Paige Polyak [7][$1,550]; 14. 7W-R.J. Johnson [16][$1,500]; 15. O5-Colin Smith [19][$1,450]; 16. 8-Jack Croaker [17][$1,400]; 17. 5J-Jamie Ball [11][$1,350]; 18. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [18][$1,300]; 19. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [20][$1,250]; 20. 44-Chris Martin [13][$1,200]

World of Outlaws

Contact: Nick Graziano
World of Outlaws PR
ngraziano@dirtcar.com

Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article

Winner Carson Macedo (DB3 Photo)

Rookie Carson Macedo holds off veterans Logan Schuchart and Daryn Pittman for third career win

You couldn’t see it, but Carson Macedo was standing up in the seat of his Kyle Larson Racing No. 2 car for all 30 laps of the Feature at Jackson Motorplex Friday night.

Or at least, that’s how it felt to the rookie driver after holding off veterans Daryn Pittman and Logan Schuchart to claim his third World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series race.

“I knew I needed to stand up in the seat and make it happen,” Macedo said. “These Outlaw races are hard to win and you don’t get those opportunities that often to be up front and be there to capitalize on a win.”

The record book will officially show Macedo led all 30 laps. However, the sweat drenching down his forehead and the lack of breath in his speech know better.

Macedo started on the pole of the Feature, by virtue of winning the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash after Dash leader Donny Schatz blew a motor. When the green flag hit the air, Macedo and Pittman drag raced side by side down the front stretch. Macedo launched his car under Pittman into turn one, sliding ahead within inches of his bumper.

Macedo then sped away, leaving about a three-car gap between he and Pittman.

By Lap seven, Macedo’s pace put him in lap traffic. Behind him, Pittman and Schuchart wrestled for second-place. Schuchart tried to slide in front of Pittman off turn two, but carried too much speed and exited the corner sideways, allowing Pittman to dart back by.

The top three remained unchanged for the next five laps with Macedo cautiously navigating his way through lap traffic. Within those five laps, Pittman closed to about a car length distance from Macedo, while Schuchart stocked them both. The veterans were ready to steal the rookie’s win.

With 15 laps to go, Schuchart powered his Drydene No. 1s around the outside of Pittman in turn one. Then next lap, he attempted a slide job underneath Macedo in turn one, but the Chevrolet Accessories No. 2 car had a strong enough run on the outside to get beside Schuchart before he could slide up in front of him.

When they crossed the line for 13 laps to go, Macedo was given 14 seconds to breathe with no attempts for a pass. But Schuchart was still there. Lurking. Waiting.

With 12 laps to go, Macedo couldn’t sit. Schuchart threw another slide job at him in turn one. This time, it worked. The Shark Racing car cleared Macedo exiting turn two and pulled away down the backstretch.

Macedo was determined to not let the win slip away. With a Hail Marry dive into turn three – closing about a three-car length gap – Macedo sped by Schuchart on the bottom of the track and reclaimed the lead on the exit of the turn.

They charged by the flag stand with 11 laps to go and Schuchart threw his car back underneath Macedo into turn one. They slid through the corner side by side, but Macedo had the advantaged against the cushion and powered to the lead down the backstretch. Behind them, Pittman won his own battle against Ian Madsen to remain third.

“Once I did get by Carson, I was maybe a little too conservative,” Schuchart said. “I had one more shot after I passed him, when he passed me back, to try to throw one more slider on him. I was a little too hesitant to let it go up and I feel like I could have. Once he went by, I feel like he went by in a slower motion, a little bit further than I was expecting him to.”

Six laps went by with Macedo continuing to balance maintaining the lead while negotiating lap cars. He put a comfortable gap between he and second-place, which became a three-way between Schuchart, Pittman and Madsen.

With three laps to go, Pittman slid by Schuchart for second and put together one last effort to run Macedo down. But it wasn’t enough. Macedo cruised to the win during night two of the Jackson Nationals.

“I knew that if we could get in clean air and make good clean laps and get through traffic well we could run OK,” Macedo said.

Pittman finished second and Schuchart held on to third – a big improvement from his 18th-place run during Thursday’s opening night race for the Jackson Nationals.

Pittman’s second-place finish was his fifth top-five in-a-row – after finishing fourth Thursday night. It’s a positive trajectory toward his quest to return to Victory Lane.

“If we keep running, top-three, top-five every night, god, you got to think wins will come,” Pittman said. “We’re close. I think we were closer to winning tonight than we were last night, so I’m happy with the direction we’re going.”

Strong runs from Pittman and Macedo – who finished eighth Thursday night – during the two preliminary opening night Jackson Nationals races have garnered them enough points to lock themselves into Saturday’s DIRTVision Fast Pass, along with David Gravel and Thursday night’s winner Brad Sweet. The remaining four Dash starters will be determined by Saturday's Heat races.

When it comes to Saturday’s 40-lap $41,000-to-win Feature, Pittman said he thinks he and his team are as good as anyone competing.

For Macedo, Friday night was all about his third Series win. The Lemoore, Calif.-native’s first two Series wins came at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif. With his win in Jackson, Minn., people can now stop asking him when he’ll win at another track.

“A couple of people said, ‘We need to see you win an Outlaw race somewhere other than Chico,’” Macedo said. “So, it feels good to do that. This is my third time ever racing at this track.”

His relief and triumphant joy were clear for everyone to see when he went from “standing in his seat” to standing on the back of his car, arms in the air and a joyous yell loud enough to be heard through his helmet.

UP NEXT:

The 41st Annual AGCO Jackson Nationals at Jackson Motorplex will conclude Saturday, June 29.

As always, you can catch all World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series action on www.DIRTVision.com.

For tickets and more information, go to www.WorldofOutlaws.com.

Race Results: 6/28/19 – Jackson Motorplex

NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps) – 1. 2-Carson Macedo [1][$10,000]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [2][$5,000]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3][$3,000]; 4. 49-Brad Sweet [5][$2,700]; 5. 18-Ian Madsen [4][$2,500]; 6. 41-David Gravel [6][$2,000]; 7. 5-Shane Stewart [11][$1,800]; 8. 15-Donny Schatz [8][$1,600]; 9. 1A-Jacob Allen [7][$1,500]; 10. O9-Matt Juhl [10][$1,400]; 11. 7-Justin Henderson [14][$1,300]; 12. 4-Terry McCarl [13][$1,200]; 13. 49X-Tim Shaffer [15][$1,100]; 14. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [18][$1,000]; 15. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [17][$950]; 16. 11K-Kraig Kinser [12][$925]; 17. 3-Jac Haudenschild [16][$900]; 18. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [19][$850]; 19. 44S-Trey Starks [22][$825]; 20. 2KS-Austin McCarl [23][$800]; 21. 55-Brooke Tatnell [20][$800]; 22. 19-Brent Marks [24][$800]; 23. 7S-Jason Sides [21][$800]; 24. 19P-Paige Polyak [9][$800];
Lap Leaders: Carson Macedo 1-30;
KSE Hard Charger Award: 5-Shane Stewart[+4]

Qualifying Flight-A – 1. 41-David Gravel, 12.744; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 12.798; 3. 49-Brad Sweet, 12.943; 4. 2-Carson Macedo, 12.954; 5. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi, 12.968; 6. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey, 13.008; 7. 19P-Paige Polyak, 13.058; 8. 5-Shane Stewart, 13.105; 9. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.106; 10. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 13.129; 11. 4-Terry McCarl, 13.162; 12. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 13.212; 13. 2KS-Austin McCarl, 13.257; 14. 19-Brent Marks, 13.277; 15. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 13.331; 16. 9-James McFadden, 13.336; 17. 7W-R.J. Johnson, 13.422; 18. 5J-Jamie Ball, 13.442; 19. 44-Chris Martin, 13.475; 20. 3P-Sawyer Phillips, 13.598; 21. 8-Jack Croaker, 13.844

Qualifying Flight-B – 1. 18-Ian Madsen, 13.011; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman, 13.017; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.04; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.064; 5. O9-Matt Juhl, 13.148; 6. 15-Donny Schatz, 13.168; 7. 7-Justin Henderson, 13.17; 8. 3-Jac Haudenschild, 13.177; 9. 44S-Trey Starks, 13.235; 10. 35-Skylar Prochaska, 13.268; 11. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.307; 12. 55-Brooke Tatnell, 13.336; 13. 21-Brian Brown, 13.457; 14. 13-Mark Dobmeier, 13.486; 15. 16-Travis Whitney, 13.54; 16. 33M-Mason Daniel, 13.596; 17. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips, 13.784; 18. O5-Colin Smith, 13.894; 19. 97-Alan Gilbertson, 13.939; 20. 1AJ-Trevor Mell, 14.259

DRYDENE Heat #1 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – 1. 41-David Gravel [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 3. 19P-Paige Polyak [4]; 4. 4-Terry McCarl [6]; 5. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [3]; 6. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 7. 2C-Wayne Johnson [8]; 8. 2KS-Austin McCarl [7]; 9. 7W-R.J. Johnson [9]; 10. 44-Chris Martin [10]; 11. 8-Jack Croaker [11]

DRYDENE Heat #2 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – 1. 1S-Logan Schuchart [1]; 2. 2-Carson Macedo [2]; 3. 5-Shane Stewart [4]; 4. 49X-Tim Shaffer [6]; 5. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [3]; 6. 9-James McFadden [8]; 7. 19-Brent Marks [7]; 8. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [10]; 9. 5J-Jamie Ball [9]; 10. 2M-Kerry Madsen [5]

DRYDENE Heat #3 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – 1. 18-Ian Madsen [1]; 2. 1A-Jacob Allen [2]; 3. O9-Matt Juhl [3]; 4. 7-Justin Henderson [4]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6]; 6. 21-Brian Brown [7]; 7. 44S-Trey Starks [5]; 8. 16-Travis Whitney [8]; 9. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [9]; 10. 97-Alan Gilbertson [10]

DRYDENE Heat #4 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – 1. 83-Daryn Pittman [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [3]; 3. 11K-Kraig Kinser [2]; 4. 3-Jac Haudenschild [4]; 5. 55-Brooke Tatnell [6]; 6. 33M-Mason Daniel [8]; 7. 35-Skylar Prochaska [5]; 8. 13-Mark Dobmeier [7]; 9. O5-Colin Smith [9]; 10. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [10]

DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 2-Carson Macedo [7]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [4]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3]; 4. 18-Ian Madsen [2]; 5. 49-Brad Sweet [5]; 6. 41-David Gravel [1]; 7. 1A-Jacob Allen [6]; 8. 15-Donny Schatz [8]

C-Main (10 Laps) – 1. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [2][-]; 2. 5J-Jamie Ball [3][-]; 3. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [7][$125]; 4. O5-Colin Smith [4][$125]; 5. 44-Chris Martin [5][$125]; 6. 8-Jack Croaker [9][$125]; 7. 7W-R.J. Johnson [1][$125]; 8. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [8][$125]; 9. 97-Alan Gilbertson [6][$125]

Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – 1. 7S-Jason Sides [1][-]; 2. 44S-Trey Starks [2][-]; 3. 2KS-Austin McCarl [4][-]; 4. 19-Brent Marks [6][-]; 5. 2C-Wayne Johnson [8][$300]; 6. 9-James McFadden [10][$250]; 7. 21-Brian Brown [5][$225]; 8. 13-Mark Dobmeier [7][$200]; 9. 35-Skylar Prochaska [3][$200]; 10. 2M-Kerry Madsen [14][$200]; 11. 16-Travis Whitney [9][$150]; 12. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [12][$150]; 13. 33M-Mason Daniel [11][$150]; 14. 5J-Jamie Ball [13][$150]

World of Outlaws

Contact: Nick Graziano
World of Outlaws PR
ngraziano@dirtcar.com

Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article

Winner Brad Sweet (DB3 Photo)

Questions with no clear answers lingered in heads of thousands like a painless headache during the final three laps of the Jackson Nationals opening Thursday night race at the Jackson Motorplex.

Could Brad Sweet catch David Gravel? Could Gravel hold Sweet off?

Gravel had the 4/10-mile tamed, leading every lap up until that point. But on a charge behind him, the untamable “Big Cat” Sweet.

With two laps to go, they were side by side down the back stretch. Gravel hesitated for a millisecond on a lap car’s trajectory, while Sweet didn't blink, darting underneath the lap car and Gravel into turn three and claiming the lead off turn four.

From there the answer was clear. Sweet would go on to win his sixth World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series race of the season – his 40th career win and third win in-a-row.

“It’s sure fun to drive this thing right now,” said a jubilant Sweet. “We’ve really hit on some stuff. It’s been a joy to drive good the last few weeks.

“I’m a little worn out, I was really clutching the wheel, trying to hit my marks there late in that race. I knew it was coming down to the white there.”

The win may have been Sweet’s sixth of the season – further extending his title as winningest driver, so far, this year – but it was one of the hardest wins he had to work for.

Starting sixth in the 30-lap Feature, Sweet had a host of competitive cars between he and the lead. Also, on the start, Gravel cruised by Donny Schatz on the outside for the lead and the two pulled away to about a straightaway gap on third-place Brian Brown.

It took Sweet two laps to make his way by Terry McCarl for fifth-place, but it was another nine laps before he caught Brown and Daryn Pittman who were battling for third. He made quick work of the two, passing them both with a daring drive through turn three and four, leaving inches between he and Pittman’s car.

Three laps later Sweet made his way by second-place Schatz and set his sight on closing the half-a-straightaway gap between he and Gravel with 15 laps to go. However, Schatz, who hadn’t won in seven races, was still determined to close that gap himself.

With Sweet getting held up by a lap car in turn four, Schatz throttled back by the NAPA Auto Parts No. 49 car and put his Toco Warranty No. 15 car back in second. Sweet had to regroup and find this rhythm riding the bottom of the track again. Two laps later, with a slide job through turns three and four, Sweet cleared Schatz on the front stretch and reclaimed second-place.

He now had 12 laps to catch the Mesilla Valley Transportation No. 41 of Gravel.

Could he catch him? With three laps to go, Sweet had Gravel in sight. Two laps to go they were side by side. After Sweet darted by Gravel and a lap car in turn three, Gravel had to throw his car sideways on the exit of turn four to avoid hitting another lap car. From there, with one lap to go, Sweet pulled away to a half second lead and a $10,000 victory.

“I was hunkered down and determined to catch him (Gravel),” Sweet said. “It always helps sometimes to be in second, you can watch where he’s not running and try to find a line.”

Carrying the weight of defeat in every word, runner-up Gravel congratulated Sweet on the win, but knew the race should've been his.

“We had the race winning car there,” said Gravel, who set Quick Time and won his Drydene Heat race earlier in the night. “That’s not our issue. As a driver I’ve got to put myself in a better spot there. We’ll come back tomorrow hungrier.”

Schatz’s third-place finish was his first podium finish since he won at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway at the end of May. However, he was still looking for more.

“You slip a little bit, and someone is going to take advantage of it,” Schatz said. “So, it’s one of them nights.”

Sweet has extended his points lead over Schatz, the 10-time Series champion to a 60-point advantage. That stems from Sweet claiming 10 top-five finishes in-a-row and his determination to keep winning.

“When you start winning races you’re just never satisfied unless you’re winning,” Sweet said. “I guess when you get beat down by Donny year after year you just try to keep getting better. I think this year, we’re just a little bit better right now, but that doesn’t mean a whole lot. Everybody’s a half a turn or change or something away from putting the pressure back on us. We’re just ahead right now and that allows me to keep leading laps and winning more race. It just gives me confidence.”

With one more preliminary night of racing at the Jackson Motorplex on Friday, the question of who will win Saturday night’s $41,000-to-win Jackson Nationals finale will linger for the next 48 hours.

However, with a win on night one, Sweet and his Kasey Kahne Racing team have set themselves up to possibly answer that question, as well.

UP NEXT:

Night two of the Jackson Nationals at the Jackson Motorplex with the World of Outlaws will take place Friday, June 28.

As always, you can catch all World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series action on www.DIRTVision.com.

For tickets and more information, go to www.WorldofOutlaws.com.

Race Results: 6/27/19 - Jackson Motorplex

NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [6][$10,000]; 2. 41-David Gravel [2][$5,000]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [1][$3,000]; 4. 83-Daryn Pittman [8][$2,700]; 5. 21-Brian Brown [3][$2,500]; 6. 9-James McFadden [9][$2,000]; 7. 18-Ian Madsen [10][$1,800]; 8. 2-Carson Macedo [14][$1,600]; 9. 1A-Jacob Allen [5][$1,500]; 10. 4-Terry McCarl [4][$1,400]; 11. 5-Shane Stewart [13][$1,300]; 12. 7-Justin Henderson [7][$1,200]; 13. 2M-Kerry Madsen [21][$1,100]; 14. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [15][$1,000]; 15. 49X-Tim Shaffer [18][$950]; 16. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [19][$925]; 17. O9-Matt Juhl [11][$900]; 18. 1S-Logan Schuchart [12][$850]; 19. 13-Mark Dobmeier [17][$825]; 20. 7S-Jason Sides [20][$800]; 21. 11K-Kraig Kinser [22][$800]; 22. 3-Jac Haudenschild [23][$800]; 23. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [16][$800]; 24. 2KS-Austin McCarl [24][$800];
Lap Leaders: David Gravel 1-28, Brad Sweet 29-30;
KSE Hard Charger Award: 2M-Kerry Madsen[+8]

Qualifying Flight-A – 1. 41-David Gravel, 12.752; 2. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi, 12.766; 3. 83-Daryn Pittman, 12.888; 4. 1A-Jacob Allen, 12.916; 5. 9-James McFadden, 12.922; 6. 4-Terry McCarl, 12.943; 7. 5-Shane Stewart, 13.001; 8. O9-Matt Juhl, 13.043; 9. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.08; 10. 44S-Trey Starks, 13.181; 11. 3-Jac Haudenschild, 13.213; 12. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.262; 13. 13-Mark Dobmeier, 13.414; 14. 44-Chris Martin, 13.467; 15. 8-Jack Croaker, 13.518; 16. 5J-Jamie Ball, 13.668; 17. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips, 13.677; 18. 33M-Mason Daniel, 13.706; 19. 2K-Kevin Ingle, 13.868; 20. 1AJ-Trevor Mell, 14.029; 21. O5-Colin Smith, 14.059

Qualifying Flight-B – 1. 49-Brad Sweet, 12.811; 2. 21-Brian Brown, 12.966; 3. 18-Ian Madsen, 12.969; 4. 7-Justin Henderson, 12.995; 5. 2-Carson Macedo, 13.016; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.04; 7. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 13.09; 8. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey, 13.104; 9. 15-Donny Schatz, 13.11; 10. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.156; 11. 49X-Tim Shaffer, 13.178; 12. 19P-Paige Polyak, 13.33; 13. 2KS-Austin McCarl, 13.376; 14. 35-Skylar Prochaska, 13.468; 15. 19-Brent Marks, 13.496; 16. 7W-R.J. Johnson, 13.522; 17. 55-Brooke Tatnell, 13.563; 18. 3P-Sawyer Phillips, 13.617; 19. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 13.618; 20. 16-Travis Whitney, 13.729; 21. 97-Alan Gilbertson, 14.024

DRYDENE Heat #1 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 41-David Gravel [1]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [2]; 3. 9-James McFadden [3]; 4. 5-Shane Stewart [4]; 5. 13-Mark Dobmeier [7]; 6. 11K-Kraig Kinser [5]; 7. 3-Jac Haudenschild [6]; 8. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [9]; 9. 8-Jack Croaker [8]; 10. O5-Colin Smith [11]; 11. 2K-Kevin Ingle [10]

DRYDENE Heat #2 – Flight (A) (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 1A-Jacob Allen [2]; 2. 4-Terry McCarl [3]; 3. O9-Matt Juhl [4]; 4. 41S-Giovanni Scelzi [1]; 5. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [6]; 6. 44S-Trey Starks [5]; 7. 44-Chris Martin [7]; 8. 33M-Mason Daniel [9]; 9. 5J-Jamie Ball [8]; 10. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [10]

DRYDENE Heat #3 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [5]; 3. 18-Ian Madsen [2]; 4. 2-Carson Macedo [3]; 5. 49X-Tim Shaffer [6]; 6. 2M-Kerry Madsen [4]; 7. 55-Brooke Tatnell [9]; 8. 2KS-Austin McCarl [7]; 9. 19-Brent Marks [8]; 10. 2C-Wayne Johnson [10]; 11. 97-Alan Gilbertson [11]

DRYDENE Heat #4 – Flight (B) (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 7-Justin Henderson [2]; 2. 21-Brian Brown [1]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3]; 4. 83R-Lynton Jeffrey [4]; 5. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 6. 19P-Paige Polyak [6]; 7. 35-Skylar Prochaska [7]; 8. 7W-R.J. Johnson [8]; 9. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [9]; 10. 16-Travis Whitney [10]

DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 41-David Gravel [4]; 3. 21-Brian Brown [6]; 4. 4-Terry McCarl [2]; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen [3]; 6. 49-Brad Sweet [7]; 7. 7-Justin Henderson [5]; 8. 83-Daryn Pittman [8]

C-Main (10 Laps) – Top 2 Transfer – 1. 55-Brooke Tatnell [2][-]; 2. 2C-Wayne Johnson [6][-]; 3. 7TAZ-Tasker Phillips [1][$125]; 4. 33M-Mason Daniel [3][$125]; 5. 16-Travis Whitney [8][$125]; 6. 97-Alan Gilbertson [10][$125]; 7. O5-Colin Smith [9][$125]; 8. 1AJ-Trevor Mell [7][$125]; 9. 3P-Sawyer Phillips [4][$125]; 10. 2K-Kevin Ingle [5][$100]

Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer – 1. 2M-Kerry Madsen [2][-]; 2. 11K-Kraig Kinser [1][-]; 3. 3-Jac Haudenschild [5][-]; 4. 2KS-Austin McCarl [6][-]; 5. 44S-Trey Starks [3][$300]; 6. 19-Brent Marks [10][$250]; 7. 19P-Paige Polyak [4][$225]; 8. 2C-Wayne Johnson [14][$200]; 9. 35-Skylar Prochaska [8][$200]; 10. 44-Chris Martin [7][$200]; 11. 5J-Jamie Ball [11][$150]; 12. 55-Brooke Tatnell [13][$150]; 13. 7W-R.J. Johnson [12][$150]; 14. 8-Jack Croaker [9][$150]

World of Outlaws

Contact: Nick Graziano
World of Outlaws PR
ngraziano@dirtcar.com

Please click here for the original World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series article

Winner Brad Sweet (DB3 Photo)

In the words of Brad Sweet, “the more you lead, the better you get at it.” The statement rings like a prophecy he wrote from himself.

Almost halfway through the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series 2019 season, Sweet has made leading a habit and gotten better at it each race.

With more than 100 laps led already this season, the Grass Valley, Calif.-native added another 38 laps to that total after claiming his fifth win of the season Saturday night at Beaver Dam Raceway – and his second win in-a-row.

“I’m just happy we’re clicking them off and have a little bit of momentum on our side,” said Sweet, after claiming his 39th career Series victory.

His second victory at the Wisconsin track wasn’t earned without a few faults and lessons learned along the way.

The 1/3-mile track was slick and technical for the 40-lap Feature, he said. That meant finding the right line at the right time; a feat the Kasey Kahne Racing driver faults himself for not executing perfectly.

But before the track began to take rubber late in the race, forcing Sweet to contemplate the best line, he had to contest with DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash winner Shane Stewart for the lead.

On the initial start, Stewart jumped to the lead riding the high side of the track. Sweet chose the bottom. In two laps, the advantage proved to be Sweet’s. The NAPA Auto Parts No. 49 sped by Stewart, putting close to a second gap between them.

His newfound lead was cut short a few seconds later when Logan Schuchart brought out the first caution of the night by coming to a stop in turn three.

On the restart, Sweet returned to form. He shot to the lead, leaving the remaining 23 cars to content for second amongst themselves. Stewart held on to the position for the next few laps before trying the low line and bicycling his car off turn four, giving Daryn Pittman an easy pass for second-place.

For the remaining 33 laps, third-place was traded between Stewart, David Gravel, Sheldon Haudenschild, Donny Schatz and Ian Madsen. Each driver throwing a slide job on the next to try and claim the position.

By the halfway point, Sweet caught lap traffic and Pittman started to close in. However, navigating lap traffic – a situation Sweet has found himself in several times already this year while leading – only made him faster.

Pittman eventually transitioned to the high side and again began to close in on Sweet. But with 15 laps to go, Sweet also moved to the top and pulled away to the $20,000 victory.

“It was finesse. It was tricky,” Sweet said about the race. “I had to move around on the race track. I think the bottom caught a few guys off guard. I don’t know if they thought they should be on the bottom in (turns) three and four. I kind of had an idea. I did my warm up down there to see how much grip was down there.

“Luckily it was good down there early and I was able to get the lead. I made a couple of mistakes there. I probably stayed down there too long. But I didn’t want to follow lap guys. It’s just tricky sometimes leading and moving around.”

While Pittman’s second-place finish – his third podium finish in-a-row – was a momentum building performance with his Roth Motorsports team, he’s hungry for more.

“It just feels like it’s been a while since I won,” said Pittman, who last won in Florida in February. “I’ve gone from, how do we turn things around, to being consistent, to now dammit I want to win. We’ve still got to get a little bit better, but we’re close.”

The duel for third was won by the Jason Johnson Racing No. 41 car of Gravel. In JJR’s return to Beaver Dam Raceway after Jason Johnson’s fatal accident at the raceway last year, Gravel kept the No. 41 car up front all night. He was fastest in practice, went Quick Time in Qualifying, won his Drydene Heat race and fought hard for a podium.

“We wanted to win tonight, but we’re happy with a podium,” Gravel said. “Third is good. We’ve been rolling pretty good here. Just have to keep it going.”

Gravel’s podium finish leaves him fourth in points – 144 points behind leader Sweet. Pittman is third – 138 points back – and Schatz is second – now 54 points behind Sweet after finishing seventh.

Along with the points lead, Sweet now leads World of Outlaws drivers in the most laps led, the most podium finishes – with 12 – and most wins, so far, this year. To Sweet, though…

“It really doesn’t mean a whole lot,” Sweet said. “It’s not a bad thing ever to, toward the end of June, have the most wins. But I’ve been there before. I’ll keep saying it over and over and over, these next few months, July, August and in even September, those are the months that are going to make or break the season. You can run good all the way to July 1 and never win another race.”

Consistency is key to Sweet and his Kasey Kahne Racing team. Lead more, win more.

The more he leads, the better he gets.

UP NEXT

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series on Sunday, June 23, will venture, for the first time, to Dubuque Speedway in Dubuque, Iowa.

As always, you can catch all World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series action on www.DIRTVision.com.

For tickets and more information, go to www.WorldofOutlaws.com.

Race Results: 6/22/19 – Beaver Dam Raceway

NOS Energy Drink Feature (40 Laps) – 1. 49-Brad Sweet [2][$20,000]; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman [3][$6,000]; 3. 41-David Gravel [6][$3,500]; 4. 5-Shane Stewart [1][$3,000]; 5. 18-Ian Madsen [4][$2,500]; 6. 2M-Kerry Madsen [15][$2,300]; 7. 15-Donny Schatz [5][$2,200]; 8. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [10][$2,100]; 9. 19-Brent Marks [8][$2,050]; 10. 1-Sammy Swindell [20][$2,000]; 11. 7S-Jason Sides [7][$1,500]; 12. 11K-Kraig Kinser [9][$1,200]; 13. 17B-Bill Balog [16][$1,100]; 14. 9X-Paul Nienhiser [11][$1,050]; 15. 1S-Logan Schuchart [13][$1,000]; 16. 1A-Jacob Allen [21][$1,000]; 17. 25-Jake Blackhurst [14][$1,000]; 18. 23-Russel Borland [19][$1,000]; 19. 9-James McFadden [18][$1,000]; 20. 64-Scotty Thiel [17][$1,000]; 21. 2W-Scotty Neitzel [23][$1,000]; 22. 4B-Scott Biertzer [24][$1,000]; 23. 73-Ben Schmidt [22][$1,000]; 24. 2-Carson Macedo [12][$1,000]; Lap Leaders: Shane Stewart 1-2, Brad Sweet 3-40;
KSE Hard Charger Award: 1-Sammy Swindell[+10]

Qualifying – 1. 41-David Gravel, 11.554; 2. 83-Daryn Pittman, 11.657; 3. 18-Ian Madsen, 11.665; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 11.699; 5. 9X-Paul Nienhiser, 11.711; 6. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 11.752; 7. 15-Donny Schatz, 11.803; 8. 49-Brad Sweet, 11.806; 9. 5-Shane Stewart, 11.815; 10. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 11.816; 11. 19-Brent Marks, 11.823; 12. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 11.837; 13. 7S-Jason Sides, 11.887; 14. 23-Russel Borland, 11.894; 15. 2-Carson Macedo, 11.906; 16. 17B-Bill Balog, 11.915; 17. 1-Sammy Swindell, 11.95; 18. 9-James McFadden, 11.963; 19. 1A-Jacob Allen, 12.196; 20. 64-Scotty Thiel, 12.259; 21. 73-Ben Schmidt, 12.309; 22. 5J-Jeremy Schultz, 12.309; 23. 25-Jake Blackhurst, 12.389; 24. 4B-Scott Biertzer, 12.467; 25. 2W-Scotty Neitzel, 12.596; 26. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski, 12.965; 27. 68-Dave Uttech, NT

DRYDENE Heat #1 (10 Laps) – Top 6 Transfer – 1. 41-David Gravel [1]; 2. 15-Donny Schatz [3]; 3. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [2]; 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart [4]; 6. 17B-Bill Balog [6]; 7. 1A-Jacob Allen [7]; 8. 5J-Jeremy Schultz [8]; 9. 2W-Scotty Neitzel [9]

DRYDENE Heat #2 (10 Laps) – Top 6 Transfer – 1. 83-Daryn Pittman [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [3]; 3. 19-Brent Marks [4]; 4. 9X-Paul Nienhiser [2]; 5. 25-Jake Blackhurst [8]; 6. 64-Scotty Thiel [7]; 7. 1-Sammy Swindell [6]; 8. 23-Russel Borland [5]; 9. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski [9]

DRYDENE Heat #3 (10 Laps) – Top 6 Transfer – 1. 18-Ian Madsen [1]; 2. 5-Shane Stewart [3]; 3. 11K-Kraig Kinser [2]; 4. 2-Carson Macedo [5]; 5. 2M-Kerry Madsen [4]; 6. 9-James McFadden [6]; 7. 73-Ben Schmidt [7]; 8. 4B-Scott Biertzer [8]; 9. 68-Dave Uttech [9]

DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (8 Laps) – 0 1. 5-Shane Stewart [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [2]; 3. 83-Daryn Pittman [4]; 4. 18-Ian Madsen [6]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [3]; 6. 41-David Gravel [5]

Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – Top 6 Transfer – 1. 23-Russel Borland [1][-]; 2. 1-Sammy Swindell [2][-]; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen [3][-]; 4. 73-Ben Schmidt [4][-]; 5. 2W-Scotty Neitzel [7][-]; 6. 4B-Scott Biertzer [6][-]; 7. 5J-Jeremy Schultz [5][$300]; 8. 14AJ-Wayne Modjeski [8][$250]; 9. 68-Dave Uttech [9][$225]