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Tony Veneziano
World of Outlaws http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
World of Outlaws http://www.worldofoutlaws.com
05/16/2008 - 08:12 AM
Mechanicsburg, PA
“I choked the car low and may have been better off running up top, but we got to the checkered flag first and that’s the main thing,” said Kinser. (Photo: World of Outlaws) » More Photos
There were a lot of firsts on Thursday night at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. It was the first Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event at the famed half-mile since a brand new Musco light system was installed. It also was the first event of the season that the cameras from SPEED were on hand for, to capture all of the action for broadcast on May 31. Last but certainly not least, it was Steve Kinser’s first series win of the 2008 season.
The 20-time series champion led the final seven laps to take home the $8,000 top prize in the first of two consecutive nights of racing for the Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series at the hallowed track. Both nights of racing will be taped for broadcast on SPEED.
“It is always special to win here, especially with how this season has started,” said Kinser. “I always enjoy winning here. The competition is as tough here, as it is anywhere.”
Kinser took the lead initially in the Q Oil Maxim on the 12th lap, but there was a red flag period before the full lap was completed. By way of Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws series rules the running order reverts to the last completed lap, which kept Craig Keel, who started on the pole and led from the outset, in the lead. Then after Kinser took the white flag while leading, there was another stoppage, and by way of series rules, two consecutive green flag laps have to be completed to end a race, thus adding one more obstacle for him, as he had to fend off the field on one final restart.
“It was a little frustrating, especially trying to win your first race of the year,” noted the winner, of the two red flags that came at inopportune times for him. “The track was pretty much the same all around, whether you were running the middle, bottom or top if you car was running right. I choked
The race took three starts to get going, and Craig Keel charged to the lead on all three of them, with Kinser quickly moving into the third position, from his second row starting spot. He would shadow rookie Lucas Wolfe for a number of laps, before sweeping past the freshman driver for the second spot on the 11th lap. From there, Kinser would track down Keel, who had opened some sizeable leads early in the race.
“I was sort of taking my time,” Kinser said. “I was feeling pretty good and ran him down pretty hard. I felt like I was getting faster as the race went on. I was pretty sure I could handle the guys in front of me, I just didn’t know what the guys behind me were doing.”
The win was the 38th of Kinser’s career at Williams Grove Speedway and the 544th A-Feature win with the World of Outlaws. He has three Top-Five finishes this season and moved into the Top-Five in points, as the series has battled Mother Nature all season long.
“It’s been hard to get into a rhythm with all of the rain that we have had,” explained the native of Bloomington, Indiana. “We’ve been getting better at times and also falling backwards at times. We ran good tonight and we’ll see if we can repeat it. It will take the same thing tomorrow. You have to qualify decent and get through your heat and get a good starting spot. Everyone is so close right now that’s it’s tough to give up a whole lot.”
After starting 17th, Donny Schatz methodically worked his way to the front aboard the Armor J&J for Tony Stewart Racing. He picked up three spots on the first lap of the 25-lap contest and just six laps into the event he was already in the Top-10.
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