(Photo by Studio 92 Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – KNOXVILLE, Iowa (April 22, 2014) – White Lightning Motorsports didn’t get off to the start the team hoped for last Saturday during the Knoxville Raceway season opener.
“We all three had a little bit of a struggle,” Jamie Ball said.
Competing in the 360ci class, Ball qualified fifth quickest and advanced from fifth to fourth place in his heat race. He then started on the outside of the second row for the main event.
“I had an awesome start,” he said. “I went into turn one in third and was right there. Then the car was terrible.”
Ball maintained a top-10 position for the entire race before settling for a ninth-place result. When he came into the pits the team found the reason for the handling issue.
“My left rear wheel nut came loose,” he said. “When I came in it had backed off about a half inch. We drill out the end of our axles and put a pin in case something like this happened. I think that was why I was so loose. As long as you can keep your bad nights not so bad, you can have a good year.”
Larry Ball Jr.’s return to the 410ci class started off on the right foot. He timed in 11th quickest during qualifying. However, Ball Jr. dropped from third to seventh place in his heat race. That sent him to the B Main, which he won to earn a transfer to the back of the main event.
“Just starting back there for him, some of the setup stuff needed to be changed for being in traffic because of the dirty air,” Jamie Ball said. “He was spinning his tries, not really going anywhere. We’ve got a ways to go with the 410, but he didn’t tear anything up.”
Ball Jr. ended with a 22nd-place result.
Devin Kline made his 305ci sprint car debut by qualifying 16th quickest. He then finished third in his heat race to lock into the main event, which he started on the outside of the eighth row. Unfortunately, a driver spun out near the front of the field on the opening lap and Kline had nowhere to go.
“He almost had it missed,” Jamie Ball said. “The guy was sitting there almost dead in the water. Devin just clipped the front end with his right rear. He didn’t even get a lap in. He was pretty bummed on that.”
The impact created too much suspension damage to restart the race and Kline was credited with a 22nd-place finish.
The team will return to Knoxville Raceway for action this Saturday.
QUICK RESULTS –
JAMIE BALL – April 19 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 4 (5); Feature: 9 (4).
LARRY BALL JR. – April 19 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 11; Heat race: 7 (3); B Main: 1 (1); Feature: 22 (19).
DEVIN KLINE – April 19 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 16; Heat race: 3 (1); Feature: 22 (16).
SEASON STATS –
JAMIE BALL – 1 race, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 1 top 10, 1 top 15, 1 top 20
LARRY BALL JR. – 1 race, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 0 top 15s, 0 top 20s
DEVIN KLINE – 1 race, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 0 top 15s, 0 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa
MEDIA LINKS –
Jamie Ball Website: http://www.JamieBall.com
Larry Ball Jr. Website: http://www.LarryBallJr.com
Devin Kline Website: http://www.DevinKline.com
Jamie Ball Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JamieBall5j
Larry Ball Jr. Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/LarryBallJr5j
Devin Kline Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DevinKline5j
APPAREL –
White Lightning Motorsports has t-shirts and hoodies available for purchase at their race trailers in the infield of each sprint car event at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – AIB College of Business
American Institute of Business (AIB) was founded in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1921. AIB College of Business is an independent, nonprofit, coeducational college of business in Des Moines, Iowa. AIB has an enrollment of almost 1,000 day, evening and online students. The campus features 17 buildings on 20 acres (near downtown Des Moines). AIB offers Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S) degree programs and Bachelor of Science degrees. For more information, visit http://www.AIB.edu.
“I am an AIB graduate (Class of 2011),” Jamie Ball said. “Racing has always been a main focus in my life, but I know how important education is. After graduating high school I enrolled at AIB and in less than three years I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. I experienced all types of classes offered (Day, Night and Online). AIB offers a unique educational experience that I highly recommend. It let’s you get down to business and lead a focused and professional life quicker than any other college. Check out http://www.aib.edu for more information.”
White Lightning Motorsports would also like to thank L & J Automotive, Van Gorp Construction, JJ Kane Auctioneers, Timberline Tree Service, Ostrich Racing Engines, Sweet Manufacturing, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Vocon Auctioneers, Iowa State Savings Bank, FK Rod Ends, Fragola Performance Systems, King Racing Products, BR Motorsports, Hoosier Tire, Bell Helmets, MPD Racing, Driver Websites, Champion Oil, Wingdance Graphics, Replay XD, The Hearing Clinic, Shell Shock and Hooker Harness for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program and to join Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or InsideLinePromotions@gmail.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Apr 22, 2014
- Article Date: 4/22/2014 by Inside Line Promotions