WoO: Schatz Wins World Finals

More Racing

ON TV

WoO: Schatz Wins World Finals

Schatz sweeps Lowes Foods World Finals at Dirt Track at Charlotte; leads Tony Stewart Racing to 1-2 finish in final race of 2011.

Tony Veneziano | http://www.worldofoutlaws.com | Posted November 06, 2011

Donny Schatz put an exclamation point on the 2011 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series season. After finishing second at the Sage Fruit Showdown at the Talladega Short Track, Schatz went on a tear.

The four time series champion won the final two races of the season at the Lowes Foods World Finals presented by Tom’s Snacks, Coca-Cola and Nature’s Own at the Dirt Track at Charlotte. Schatz backed up his dominating performance on night number one with an exciting restart pass on Kerry Madsen to end night number two.

“We didn’t have the season that we wanted too but we finished strong,” said Schatz, driver of the #15 STP/Armor All/ Chevrolet. ”We finished second at Talladega and came in here and won both races. It’s a great way to end the season for our STP team here at the Dirt Track at Charlotte. Our car got better as we got the fuel load off and it settled down a little bit. Our line didn’t change much but the way our car went through the line got better.”

Madsen started alongside his brother, Ian, on the front row for the 65th and final series event in 2011. From the drop of the green flag, Kerry was the stronger of the two brothers and quickly walked away from the field. Only lap traffic and a mid race restart was enough to slow the #92 MRN Radio.com KPC. The pass for the lead was the beginning of a slide for Madsen as he slipped to seventh in the late stages. Steve Kinser moved into second to challenge his teammate for the win.

“We had an excellent race car all night long,” said Kinser, who will finish third in the final series standings. ”We should have gotten to the lower line earlier and stayed with Donny. The outside wasn’t too bad but Donny won a great race tonight. I can’t thank everyone on the Bass Pro Shops/J.D. Byrider/Chevrolet enough. It was a great year and we’ll be back.”

Craig Dollansky powered his way to third using the outside line and nearly nabbed second from Kinser.

“The high side was great for us tonight,” said Dollansky. ”I thought we could’ve gotten Steve on that last restart but he had a strong car as well. Big Game Treestands and everyone that stands behind this car make it all happen each and every race. It’s great to be able to come down here to an event like the Lowes Foods World Finals to put on a great race for our fans, sponsors and partners.”

Youngster Cody Darrah charged his way to a fourth place finish, the highest placing Kasey Kahne Racing machine. Greg Hodnett rounded out the top-5 in an exciting 30 lap main event that closed out the 2011 campaign. Jason Meyers finished 8th and officially was crowned as the 2011 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series Champion.

With the 2011 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series in the books, all eyes now turn to the 41st Annual UNOH DIRTcar Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park near Barberville, Fl. February 14 thru 25.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tony Veneziano

World of Outlaws

MORE BY THIS AUTHOR

WoO: 2011 Season Review
What a difference a year can make.
WoO: Tony Stewart Wins In Canada
NASCAR star holds off Sammy Swindell to claim victory at Canada’s…
VIDEO: NASCAR’s Kasey Kahne Flips Over Guardrail
NASCAR star Kasey Kahne somersaults his World of Outlaws Sprint Car…