RIGHT PLACE & TIME: Lady Luck Favors David Gravel at Commonwealth Clash
Logan Schuchart and Jason Johnson Racing close in on their championship battles

SARVER, PA — Sept. 26, 2020 — Running second, more than six seconds behind the leader, with two laps to go, was the perfect spot for David Gravel.

His hopes of curing the hunger for another win went from being unattainable to nearly guaranteed with the sound of a pop Saturday night at Lernerville Speedway.

Sheldon Haudenschild, who was in his own world as the leader, lapping up into the top-15 around the 4/10-mile track, blew a tire with two laps to go. His strangle hold on the lead was released and fell to Gravel.

After a month of failing to return to Victory Lane with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, Gravel found a golden horseshoe in Pennsylvania and made the most of the opportunity handed to him. He led the final two laps and parked the Jason Johnson Racing #41 in Victory Lane at Lernerville for the second time in two years – his fourth career win at the track.

“Sheldon was the class of the field,” said Gravel, of Watertown, CT. “If he didn’t blow a tire, I would’ve run second. But a little bit of racing luck got us the win tonight. I don’t know where Sheldon was running, but I’m guessing he was running aggressive on the top and ran a torrid pace.”

Gravel didn’t feel like the team unloaded well at the start of the night, qualifying third in his flight. However, that sentiment changed after he won his Drydene Heat Race.

“The Heat Race, we had a really really good race car,” Gravel said. “Then we drew a seven (in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash draw). I didn’t get too upset because 35 laps here, this is one of the best racing tracks we go to. There’s always lanes to run three wide. That’s why it’s one of my favorite places to go to.”

Gravel started sixth in the 35-lap Feature and quietly made his way up through the field, while Haudenschild set a blistering pace as the leader. He went from sixth to fifth on the initial start but found himself stuck there for the first 18 laps. After moving his wing back, Gravel found traction and speed.

By Lap 19 he was fourth. By Lap 25 he was third. And by Lap 30 he was second. However, with five laps remaining, his chance of a win was out of the question. Haudenschild, coming off a hometown win in Ohio from the night before, made himself untouchable. After taking the lead on the first lap, he pinned his NOS Energy Drink #17 car to the top of the track and found a level of speed others couldn’t.

James McFadden ran second for the majority of the event, before getting passed by Gravel, and only saw Haudenschild for a handful of laps before he was a blur that disappeared in traffic.

Then everything changed with a pop. Haudenschild brought out the first caution of the night with two laps to go as he limped to the infield work area with a deflated right rear tire.

When the race resumed, Gravel pulled ahead of McFadden and ran away with the $10,000 Commonwealth Clash victory – his fifth Series win of 2020. McFadden finished second and Daryn Pittman rounded out the podium. Haudenschild was able to make it back on track and salvage a 13th place finish.

For McFadden, the runner-up finish is his second podium in three races behind the wheel of the Karavan Trailers #9 car.

“We were actually really really good there on the last restart,” said McFadden, of Warrnambool, VIC, Australia. “I started struggling there the last five or eight laps. Whatever happened on that last restart, must have built up air pressure in the tires or something, and started to feel really good again. Hats off to David (Gravel). He doesn’t make many mistakes.”

This week marked Pittman’s first time driving for Heffner Racing in 2020. In three World of Outlaws races, so far, they’ve improved each time. He finished 14th in the Red Robins #72 car at Plymouth Speedway on Thursday. Then finished 10th at Wayne County Speedway the next night. And then third at Lernerville.

“We’re tickled to death,” said Pittman, of Owasso, OK. “That’s a win for us in our first week together in five straight nights. First off, I have to thank Kale (Kahne) and Heath (Moyle) for the amount of work that they put in. Man, we’re ready for a day off tomorrow, I can tell you that, and there’s no better way to finish it up with a solid run like we had here tonight.”

Logan Schuchart put a small stop to the bleeding in his championship hunt by finishing fourth at Lernerville. Points leader Brad Sweet had gained 36 points on Schuchart the two previous nights but lost four points to him after finishing sixth Saturday night.

With nine races remaining this season, five drivers are still in contention for the driver championship and six teams are in contention for the team championship. Sweet leads Schuchart by 40 points for the driver title and his Kasey Kahne Racing team leads Gravel’s Jason Johnson Racing team by 26 points for the team title.

While the crown wouldn’t be for him, Gravel is committed to delivering a championship for JJR.

“Hopefully we’re going to get hot here and finish the season strong,” Gravel said. “We’re in contention to win this points championship, so we’re going to keep fighting until the last race.”

UP NEXT

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, on Fri, Oct. 2 and Sat., Oct. 3, return to Williams Grove Speedway for the Champion Racing Oil National Open, which will pay $75,000-to-win on Saturday. Click here to get tickets.

If you can't make it to the track, you can watch both nights live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS

NOS Energy Drink Feature (35 Laps) – 1. 41-David Gravel [6][$10,000]; 2. 9-James McFadden [4][$5,500]; 3. 72-Daryn Pittman [3][$3,200]; 4. 1S-Logan Schuchart [10][$2,800]; 5. 2M-Kerry Madsen [1][$2,500]; 6. 49-Brad Sweet [8][$2,300]; 7. 11K-Kraig Kinser [5][$2,200]; 8. 2-Carson Macedo [7][$2,100]; 9. 1A-Jacob Allen [12][$2,050]; 10. 15-Donny Schatz [13][$2,000]; 11. 71-Shane Stewart [11][$1,500]; 12. 4-Cap Henry [20][$1,200]; 13. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [2][$1,100]; 14. 14-Parker Price-Miller [9][$1,050]; 15. 55-Hunter Schuerenburg [18][$1,000]; 16. 70-Cale Thomas [21][$900]; 17. 7S-Jason Sides [15][$800]; 18. 3C-Cale Conley [16][$800]; 19. 81-Lee Jacobs [14][$800]; 20. 15K-Chad Kemenah [17][$800]; 21. 6X-Ryan Smith [22][$800]; 22. 7K-Dan Shetler [25][$]; 23. 42-Sye Lynch [23][$800]; 24. 2F-A.J. Flick [24][$800]; 25. 28-Tim Shaffer [19][$800]; Lap Leaders: Sheldon Haudenschild 1-33, David Gravel 34-35; KSE Hard Charger Award: 4-Cap Henry[+8]

Qualifying Flight-A – 1. 14-Parker Price-Miller, 12.746; 2. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 12.808; 3. 72-Daryn Pittman, 12.938; 4. 2-Carson Macedo, 12.961; 5. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.967; 6. 71-Shane Stewart, 13.045; 7. 9-James McFadden, 13.047; 8. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.148; 9. 42-Sye Lynch, 13.177; 10. 28-Tim Shaffer, 13.22; 11. 15K-Chad Kemenah, 13.323; 12. 70-Cale Thomas, 13.338; 13. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 13.344; 14. 6-Bill Rose, 13.368; 15. 22-Brandon Spithaler, 13.4; 16. 5K-Adam Kekich, 13.425; 17. 19R-Michael Walter, 13.468; 18. 11-Carl Bowser, 13.474; 19. 7NY-Matthew Farnham, 13.494; 20. 13-Brandon Matus, 13.505; 21. 3G-Darin Gallagher, 13.764; 22. 33-Brent Matus, 14.766; 23. 4K-Rick Holley, 15.019; 24. 10P-Jim Perricone, 15.382

HOMETOWN HERO: Sheldon Haudenschild Brings Down the House at Wayne County
Brad Sweet once again extended his points lead as Haudenschild won at his home track 

ORRVILLE, OH — Sept. 25, 2020 — Sheldon Haudenschild had to pause. His words caught in his throat.

An emphatic cheer filled the silence while Haudenschild collected his emotions.

The Wooster, OH driver made a dream come true – for himself and thousands of his Ohio fans. He won at home.

After testing the limits of his NOS Energy Drink #17 car for 35 laps around Wayne County Speedway – about 15 minutes from his home – Haudenschild parked it in Victory Lane.

“I don’t even know what to say, man,” Haudenschild said before taking a pause. “These fans are bad ass. I knew when we’d get a race here the fans would show up. I’m glad they did.

“I can’t thank my team enough. To have (Crew Chief Kyle) Ripper back has meant the world to me. These guys know Rip. He’s the man for sure. He’s got it figured out. Just so glad to have him back. And to have (crew members) Nickolas (Goodfleisch) and Drew (Brenner). We’re brothers. I’d do anything for them three and I know they’d do the same for me. Just very grateful to be in this NOS Energy Drink car. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for a 27-year-old from Wooster.”

The win is Haudenschild’s sixth World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series victory of 2020 and his first Series win at his home track. However, it wasn’t his first ever win at the track. Several of the fans who lost their voices cheering for him had watched Haudenschild start his Sprint Car career at Wayne County.

He entered the $15,000-to-win event presented by Slick Woody’s Cornhole Co. with several laps of experience around the 3/8-mile track and seven wins – two with the Buckeye Outlaw Sprint Cars and five with the All Star Circuit of Champions.

That experience proved beneficial as Haudenschild dominated the night. He was fastest overall in Hot Laps; fastest overall in Qualifying – earning himself a prize package from Slick Woody’s; won his Drydene Heat Race and then finished third in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash after starting fifth.

Reigning champion Brad Sweet led the field to the green flag for the 35-lap Feature with second-place Shane Stewart in tow. Haudenschild fell to a few car lengths behind Stewart in the early stage of the race, leaving the top-two to battle for the lead.

While Sweet ran low, Stewart made the most of the top groove against the cushion. He used it to his advantage on Lap 8 by rocketing around the outside of Sweet to claim the lead. Haudenschild tried to make the same move but a caution but a brief pause to his plans.

On the restart, Haudenschild clicked play and launched ahead of Sweet before the first turn to claim the runner-up spot. He then put Stewart in his crosshairs. The Indy Race Parts #71 was in Haudenschild’s desired lane, though, forcing him to try and pass Stewart on the bottom. Haudenschild could dive under Stewart into each corner and exit even with him, but the top lane allowed Stewart to edge ahead each time.

Stewart’s hold of the top lane ended on Lap 11 when he jumped over the cushion, forcing him to slow and regain control of his car. That provided an easy pass for both Haudenschild and Sweet.

Over the roar of the 900hp Sprint Cars, thousands of cheers could be heard when Haudenschild officially claimed the lead. And once he was given free reign out front, the Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing car entered a new dimension of speed.

Haudenschild pulled Sweet by 2.5 seconds in a handful of laps. Slower traffic became a factor soon after and they didn’t make his life easy. Logan Schuchart, who is second in Series points, raced Haudenschild as if they were going for the win. Even with those hinderances, Sweet still couldn’t catch Haudenschild.

Stewart snuck back around Sweet for second with eight laps remaining and was given one shot to upset the Ohio crowd. A caution came out with three laps to go, stacking the field up single file. When the race resumed, Stewart threw his car as deep as he could into Turn 1 to try and get a run underneath Haudenschild, but the NOS Energy Drink machine was too strong up top. By the end of the three laps, Haudenschild had gapped Stewart by a second.

“I felt like if I could get a decent enough start, I could slide him a little bit,” said Stewart, of Bixby, OK. “But what a huge win for him. This is definitely going to be one for him to remember. He did a good job.”

Sweet had to settle for third, but once again made a significant points gain on Schuchart, who finished 15th. He now leads the Shark Racing driver by 44 points for the driver championship. In the team championship points, Sweet’s Kasey Kahne Racing team currently leads Jason Johnson Racing by 38 points.

“I felt like Sheldon was going to be aggressive,” said Sweet, of Grass Valley, CA. “He has a lot of laps here. I knew he was going to be tough. It’s kind of cool to see the crowd behind him and see him win in front of a home crowd… At the end of the day, I wasn’t willing to take the risks they were willing to take. It cost me the win but big picture, sometimes you have to get the best possible finish you can.”

While Haudenschild stood in Victory Lane, holding his NOS Energy Drink, his words escaped him. He didn’t know what to say. His fans helped, though, as they shouted, “Sheldon! Sheldon! Sheldon!”

“It means the world, man,” Haudenschild said. “I’m just so happy to race here, let alone win. It’s just amazing.

“It’s truly a dream come true.”

UP NEXT

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, on Sat., Sept. 26, returns to Lernerville Speedway for the Commonwealth Clash. Click here for tickets.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all of the action live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS

NOS Energy Drink Feature (35 Laps) – 1. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [3][$15,000]; 2. 71-Shane Stewart [2][$6,000]; 3. 49-Brad Sweet [1][$3,500]; 4. 15-Donny Schatz [4][$3,000]; 5. 24-Rico Abreu [8][$2,500]; 6. 14-Parker Price-Miller [6][$2,300]; 7. 83M-Broc Martin [10][$2,200]; 8. 2-Carson Macedo [9][$2,100]; 9. 41-David Gravel [13][$2,050]; 10. 72-Daryn Pittman [5][$2,000]; 11. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [16][$1,500]; 12. 9-James McFadden [24][$1,400]; 13. 3-Jac Haudenschild [14][$1,300]; 14. 7S-Jason Sides [18][$1,200]; 15. 1S-Logan Schuchart [23][$1,100]; 16. 4-Cap Henry [22][$1,000]; 17. 2M-Kerry Madsen [7][$1,000]; 18. 11K-Kraig Kinser [11][$1,000]; 19. 38K-Chris Myers [15][$1,000]; 20. 2C-Wayne Johnson [26][$]; 21. 1A-Jacob Allen [25][$]; 22. 22-Brandon Spithaler [19][$1,000]; 23. 3C-Cale Conley [12][$1,000]; 24. 83-Spencer Bayston [17][$1,000]; 25. 9J-Dean Jacobs [20][$1,000]; 26. 70-Henry Malcuit [21][$1,000]; Lap Leaders: Brad Sweet 1-8, Shane Stewart 9-11, Sheldon Haudenschild 12-35; KSE Hard Charger Award: 9-James McFadden[+12] 

Qualifying Flight-A – 1. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 14.429; 2. 24-Rico Abreu, 14.678; 3. 49-Brad Sweet, 14.732; 4. 2M-Kerry Madsen, 14.788; 5. 83-Spencer Bayston, 14.824; 6. 38K-Chris Myers, 14.884; 7. 2-Carson Macedo, 14.886; 8. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 14.902; 9. 70-Henry Malcuit, 14.913; 10. 22-Brandon Spithaler, 14.919; 11. 41-David Gravel, 14.926; 12. 1A-Jacob Allen, 14.997; 13. 28-Tim Shaffer, 14.998; 14. 23-Cole Macedo, 15.001; 15. 9-James McFadden, 15.054; 16. 4S-Tyler Street, 15.116; 17. 18J-R.J. Jacobs, 15.154; 18. 4-Cap Henry, 15.164; 19. 19-Paige Polyak, 15.17; 20. 33M-Mason Daniel, 15.199; 21. 29-Steve Butler, 15.215; 22. 6-Bill Rose, 15.242; 23. 8M-TJ Michael, 15.381; 24. 20-Danial Burkhart, 15.947; 25. 22X-Ray Miller, 16.16

THE WAY BACK: Donny Schatz Returns To Victory Lane At Plymouth Speedway
Brad Sweet extends his points lead while Schatz cuts into his points deficit

PLYMOUTH, IN — Sept. 24, 2020 — Eighteen races. That’s how long 10-time World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series champion Donny Schatz went without a win.

The last time he went on a winless streak that long was in 2012 when he didn’t win for 33 straight races throughout the summer months.

He put a stop to the idea of going that long without a win again Thursday night at Plymouth Speedway. With one of the best performances he’s had in two months, and a bit of luck, Schatz parked his CARQUEST Auto Parts #15 in Victory Lane at the Indiana track for the first time in his career.

“These (Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing) guys kept digging,” said Schatz, of Fargo, ND. “We know the road to the top. We know the road to the bottom. These guys just keep working. They’ve tried to get a handle on the horsepower (of the Ford FPS 410 engine). This is a different combination for tonight and obviously everything that’s happen shows it’s going in the right direction. We’re happy about that.”

Schatz teased the speed of his TSR car around the 3/8-mile track in August by setting a new track record. However, he had to wait until Thursday night to unleash the full potential of his ride due to rain postponing the August event.

While he wasn’t able to match his track record, qualifying sixth, Schatz did outrun NASCAR-star Christopher Bell in their Drydene Heat Race to claim his ninth Heat win of the season. He then finished second in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash, behind winner Gio Scelzi, to lineup on the outside pole for the 35-lap Feature.

Sheldon Haudenschild spoiled Schatz and Scelzi’s hopes of leading the first lap of the Feature, though. Hooked around the bottom, Haudenschild passed Schatz for second in the first corner and then snuck by Scelzi for the lead the next. His moment of glory lasted for three more turns before Scelzi pulled the trigger on a slide job entered Turn 3 and cleared Haudenschild for the lead before the exit of the corner.

For the next half of the race, Scelzi held Haudenschild at about a car length’s distance back, while Haudenschild did the same to Schatz. Lap traffic changed that. The slower car of Brinton Marvel blocked Scelzi’s line around the bottom for two laps, allowing Haudenschild to close in and plan his attack.

With 17 laps to go, Marvel nearly chopped Scelzi’s nose on the exit of Turn 4. Scelzi had to go from throttle to brake, while Haudenschild was all throttle off the corner and rocketed by the Logan Contractors Supply #18 car to take the lead.

Schatz worked his way by Scelzi for second a lap later. Perfect timing.

After holding the runner-up spot for a lap, Haudenschild handed Schatz the lead. The NOS Energy Drink #17 suffered a broken shock with 15 laps to go. Haudenschild’s time in the work area for repairs expired before the field resumed racing, forcing him to remain there and eventually end the night 23rd.

On the final restart of the night, Schatz powered ahead of the field to lead his first laps of Feature. Reigning champion and current points leader Brad Sweet slid by Scelzi for second on the restart but didn’t have the speed to challenge Schatz.

“Donny was definitely a little better there,” said Sweet, of Grass Valley, CA. “He could get through the lap cars. We caught the first lap car and couldn’t pass them. I just need to be a little better. Obviously, we missed the setup. I think we were better in the Heat Race and made our car worse in the Dash. But they reworked the track. We made some not so great decisions. But we win as a team. Lose as a team.”

Looking like the dominant Schatz of races past, the multi-time champion cruised to a two-second victory over Sweet.

“It feels good to finally get a win here,” Schatz said with a chuckle. “I can’t remember the last time. It’s been a while.”

The victory is Schatz’s fourth of the year and 298th of his career.

Kasey Kahne Racing ended the night with two podium finishes. Sweet finished second and James McFadden finished third in the Karavan #9 car. Jacob Allen nearly edged McFadden for third at the line but had to settle for fourth. Behind him, Tyler Courtney had an impressive fifth-place run – his first top-five finish with the World of Outlaws.

Sweet was able to extend his points lead with 11 races remaining. He entered the night with an eight-point lead over Logan Schuchart and, with Schuchart finishing eighth, ended it 20-points ahead.

Schatz’s win helped him cut his points deficit to 88 points behind Sweet.

Haudenschild took a points hit. He remains fourth in points but is now 148 points behind Sweet. Carson Macedo, who earned the KSE Racing Hard Charger by racing from 22nd to ninth, is fifth in points, only four points behind Haudenschild now.

For the time being, there's one number Schatz is most happy to about. Zero. His new winless streak.

UP NEXT

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series, on Fri., Sept. 25, returns to Wayne County Speedway for a $15,000-to-win event presented by Slick Woody’s Cornhole Co. Click here for tickets.

If you can’t make it to the track, you can watch all of the action live on DIRTVision.

RESULTS

NOS Energy Drink Feature (35 Laps) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [2][$10,000]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [5][$5,500]; 3. 9-James McFadden [8][$3,200]; 4. 1A-Jacob Allen [9][$2,800]; 5. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [6][$2,500]; 6. 18-Gio Scelzi [1][$2,300]; 7. 21-Christopher Bell [4][$2,200]; 8. 1S-Logan Schuchart [12][$2,100]; 9. 2-Carson Macedo [22][$2,050]; 10. 14-Parker Price-Miller [7][$2,000]; 11. 41-David Gravel [15][$1,500]; 12. 41S-Dominic Scelzi [16][$1,200]; 13. 11K-Kraig Kinser [10][$1,100]; 14. 72-Daryn Pittman [14][$1,050]; 15. 7S-Jason Sides [20][$1,000]; 16. 83-Spencer Bayston [13][$900]; 17. 55-Hunter Schuerenberg [11][$800]; 18. 2C-Wayne Johnson [18][$800]; 19. 99-Skylar Gee [17][$800]; 20. 27Z-Zane Devault [23][$800]; 21. 21X-Brinton Marvel [19][$800]; 22. 87-Aaron Reutzel [21][$800]; 23. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [3][$800]; 24. 64-Scotty Thiel [24][$800]; Lap Leaders: Sheldon Haudenschild 1, 18-20; Gio Scelzi 2-17; Donny Schatz 21-35; KSE Hard Charger Award: 2-Carson Macedo[+13]