(Bill W) October 24, 2012 – It’s been fifteen years since Wayne Johnson found himself in Victory Lane on the final night at the Short Track Nationals in Little Rock, Arkansas, but the 25th edition would be a good time to do it. The event gets underway tomorrow night and runs through Saturday at the I-30 Speedway. Last weekend, the Knoxville, Iowa driver struggled a bit at the Devil’s Bowl Speedway Winternationals after recording his biggest win of the season the prior weekend at the $13,000 to win Lonestar Nationals.
Things started at the Devil’s Bowl Friday night and Wayne won his heat. “We actually felt really good in the heat race,” he says. “It was nice to start up front. The track was pretty fast at that point.”
The win was enough to get in the redraw and start towards the front. “We ended up starting third in the feature,” says Wayne. “We were able to pass up to second. We were working under Jeff Swindell for the lead, and the caution came out and they put us back in third.”
That’s where Wayne would run most of the way, but things turned for the worse on a late restart. “We kind of maintained there for a little bit,” he says. “I kind of showed the guys behind me where I was running. On the restart with two to go, I thought I made a mistake and I did. I missed the bottom. I got hung out in the middle and fell back to sixth. At that point, the race was over.”
Wayne ran second in his heat race in Saturday’s finale after starting third. “I was a little bit rolled up out there in the heat race,” he says. “I didn’t think much of it, because the track was so greasy. Come to find out we had some issues, and we had to change the motor.”
Wayne would start sixteenth. “We had to start at the back after the change,” he says. “It was just kind of a tough night. We were scheduled to start tenth. We started sixteenth, and I fell to the back right away. It was kind of a lockdown track.”
He would struggle and checkered seventeenth. “The racetrack was one-lane around the bottom, and I couldn’t run it,” says Wayne. “I ended up having to run the top. We just had some issues with the car.”
Wayne and the #77x team are ready to tackle Little Rock and are there tonight. “We’re here and ready to do some testing tonight,” he says. “We’re going to try some things different and try to get this thing rolling again. We were just off a little bit at Devil’s Bowl and we want to get that corrected.”
Follow Updates on Facebook!
Wayne will update as his race night goes on at his Facebook page. Find it by searching for Wayne Johnson Racing or clicking the following link…
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Outlaw Wings – “The Wing with an Attitude”!
Check out the new “recessed rivet” design put out by Outlaw Wings. Talk to Wayne about purchasing Outlaw Wings for your car! Outlaw Wings – "The Wing with an Attitude"!
Wayne’s World
Andy Hopkins asks: How do you feel about your chances of winning the Short Track Nationals?
Wayne answers: 1 in 86! (laughs) I think we have a good shot. This racing deal all comes down to luck. The racecar has been good enough to win. We just have to put ourselves in position to do it, and you have to be pretty lucky.
Got a question for Wayne? Each week, Wayne will answer your questions about "Tech Tips", or anything that's on your mind. If you ever wondered what a part on a sprint car is all about, send an e-mail to us at sprntcar@iowatelecom.net, and we may answer it in this section! Put "? for Wayne" in your subject line. He'll try to keep it clean if you do!
Wayne's Fast Facts
Wayne has made thirteen finales at the Short Track Nationals for seven different owners including himself last year. He has eight top ten finishes. He won in 1997 with Bobby Sparks (91), was second in 2009 for Al Christoffer (14AJ), finished third in 1994 in the Grabel #24, was sixth in 2003 for Donnie Cooper (01) and was seventh in 2002 and eighth in 1999 for Fred & Jo Threatt (29). He also qualified the Hammers #94 for the finale in 2008 before dropping out, and also dropped out last year in his own #77x. He also scored preliminary wins in 1997 and 2009.
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"Wednesday's with Wayne"
"Wednesday's With Wayne" is an up close look at the past, present and future of colorful andtalented sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. You'll never know what to expect next with Wayne, so don't miss us on Wednesdays!
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Wayne Johnson Racing would like to thank Vern Rengen and Missile Motorsports, Sebastian Sandblasting & Powdercoating, City Vending, Outlaw Wings, Team Achieve, The Oil Medics, Century Signs, Smiley’s Racing Products, Hoosier Tire Southwest, Simpson, Butlerbuilt, Super Shox, Maxim, Speedway Motors, Rod End Supply, Schoenfeld Headers and RCM Design.
Attached: Wayne races at the Devil’s Bowl (Patrick Grant Photo)
- Admin Account on Oct 25, 2012
- Article Date: 10/25/2012