(Photo by Paige Clark)
Inside Line Promotions – KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 29, 2014) – Spirits are sky high for Josh Baughman and his Jason Johnson Racing team heading into the 360 Knoxville Nationals this week.
Baughman led the first 11 laps before he recorded his career-best finish last Saturday during the final event at Knoxville Raceway prior to this weekend’s 24th annual Arnold Motor Supply 360 Knoxville Nationals.
“We had a pretty good night,” he said. “I would have loved to win the race. Running second to Justin Henderson at Knoxville, I’ll take that any day.”
Baughman kicked off the night by qualifying 10th quickest, which was a feat for when he went out in the order.
“We went out 33rd and we tried the bottom one lap and it didn’t work,” he said. “We went to the top and laid down two good laps. The whole thing about Knoxville is you have to time in good.”
He then finished where he started – fourth – in a heat race to lock into the main event. Because two drivers who qualified faster than Baughman failed to advance through their heat race, it put him into the feature inversion and gave him the pole position for the 18-lap main event.
“To be honest I was nervous,” he said. “Nobody cares if you run 24th and finish 24th. Everybody notices if you start on the pole and finish last. We put the best setup we could on the car, talked about how we were going to race and went out there.”
Baughman took the lead on the opening lap and began to distance himself from the rest of the field.
“In the first turn it stuck real good on the bottom,” he said. “I just stayed down there. The car got a little free as the fuel load went off. When you’re leading the race it’s hard to know what the guys are doing behind you. Justin found the top before I did. I should have moved to the top three laps earlier.”
Henderson took the top spot on Lap 12 and Baughman maintained the runner-up position for the remainder of the event. It was his fourth top five of the season.
Baughman’s 360 Knoxville Nationals preliminary night is scheduled for this Friday prior to Saturday’s $10,000-to-win finale.
“We’re going in this week with the same mindset and the same goals to put a complete night together,” he said. “If we do our part I feel like we’ll have a good Nationals.”
QUICK RESULTS –
July 26 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 10; Heat race: 4 (4); Feature: 2 (1).
SEASON STATS –
30 races, 1 win, 4 top fives, 12 top 10s, 17 top 15s, 24 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday and Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, for the 24th annual Arnold Motor Supply 360 Knoxville Nationals; and Monday at Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa, for the Front Row Challenge with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.JoshBaughman.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Josh_Baughman17
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoshBaughmanRacing
APPAREL –
Baughman will have t-shirts and hoodies available for sale at his race trailer throughout the season. For a list of his scheduled events, visit http://www.JoshBaughman.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Fischer Body Shop
With Missouri locations in Eldon, Jefferson City and California, Fischer Body Shop developed its reputation as a premier body shop by hiring the best guys in the business, investing in the latest technology to improve turn-around times and by getting unlucky drivers back on the road as quickly and safely as possible. For more information, visit http://www.FischerBodyShop.com.
“We’re happy to have Fischer Body Shop as part of our team,” Baughman said. “Without them we wouldn’t be where we’re at today.”
Baughman would also like to thank Hollywood Blasting and Coating, Compression Generation Systems, Beard Equipment, Energy Equipment, Co., Gleco Platings, Factory Kahne, B&H Industrial Supplies, FK Rod Ends, K&N Filters, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, MSD Ignition, Weld Wheels, Vortex Wings, Maxim Chassis, Moss Racing Engines and Oakley for their 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 Jul 29, 2014
- Article Date: 7/29/2014 by Inside Line Promotions