Wayne Johnson qualified for his 12th A main at the 360 Nationals during Southern Iowa Sprintweek. Bad luck with a downed nose wing hampered a podium run at the Front Row Challenge in Oskaloosa, and despite a rough start to the week during the Knoxville Nationals the #77x team put the car in the B main. They also took home $500 for being awarded the “Best Dressed Team” of the Nationals. This weekend will see the Knoxville, Iowa driver competing in the Sprint Invaders Nationals in Bloomfield, Iowa Friday, West Burlington, Iowa Saturday and Quincy, Illinois on Sunday.
The 360 Nationals started with a 25th quick qualifying effort on Friday. “We had some motor issues,” says Wayne. “We had a new motor and we just didn’t have it tuned right for qualifying. We were behind the eight-ball at that point.”
Wayne would bounce back in the heat and charge from 15th to 7th in the preliminary feature. “We were able to win the heat and move up through there a ways in the A, but that wasn’t enough to get us into Saturday’s A,” he says.
It would qualify him for the front row of the 360 Nationals B main, and he would transfer with a third place finish. “We made it through the B, but we were still having some motor issues,” says Wayne. “We were able to make the show, but it was $1,000 to start and $1,250 for tenth. We weren’t going to get that far, so we pulled it in.”
The “Capitani Classic” on Sunday, August 3 brought 71 410’s to the pit area. Wayne was on in qualifying. “We were sixth quick, which was good,” he says. “But inverting six and taking three (in the heats) killed us there. We were kind of done after that. We couldn’t make it through the B. We just weren’t good enough.”
The car was at its best in Oskaloosa at the Front Row Challenge last Monday. Wayne would win his heat from the pole, and start the feature outside row two. “We were pretty good at Osky,” he says. “It wasn’t the easiest track to pass on, other than (Brian) Brown. We were really good running in the top three there, but the side panel of the nose wing came loose and got into the right front brake rotor. I about spun out five times.”
Wednesday’s qualifying night was a wash and moved to Friday at the Knoxville Nationals. Wayne would time in 31st quick. “We didn’t qualify well, but we did come back and win the heat,” he says. “We felt good in clean air, but we were still too tight. In the feature, we were just kind of maintaining and trying to get some points (finishing 16th).”
Wayne would pull off during Saturday night’s B main. “We were just way too tight,” he says. “The car has just been so tight when I get in behind cars. It’s tight anyway, but it’s too tight to even turn when I get behind cars right now. We’re looking at the car, we just haven’t found anything yet.”
A silver lining to Saturday night came with the “Best Dressed Crew” Award. “We were looking good, especially with the Joshman (Josh Hegwood) there,” says Wayne. “We had our crew uniforms…we’ve actually had those for three years. I guess we pushed it over the top this year.”
Follow Updates on Facebook!
Wayne will update as his race night commences at his Facebook page. Find it by searching for Wayne Johnson Racing or clicking the following link…
http://www.facebook.com/#!/WayneJohnsonRacing
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 Fast Facts
Wayne has one Sprint Invaders feature win. It came on May 29, 2010 at the 34 Raceway in West Burlington aboard Dale Oaks #41. Matt Sutton was second, ahead of Bobby Mincer, Jerrod Hull and Donnie Steward.
Partner of the Week – The Oil Medics
Wayne says, “We had some problems with our hauler this week around Fort Worth, and Bill Jewell helped get us back on the road. He fixed it, and put some “air tabs” on our truck. It saves us about a mile per gallon with our fuel mileage.”
The Oil Medics provides truck service without the expense or wait of a dealer! Visit them online at www.TheOilMedics.com!
"Wednesday's with Wayne"
"Wednesday's With Wayne" is an up close look at the past, present and future of colorful and talented sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. You'll never know what to expect next with Wayne, so don't miss us on Wednesdays!
To receive "Wednesday's with Wayne", send an e-mail to sprntcar@hotmail.com with"Wayne" in the subject line.
Wayne Johnson Racing would like to thank partners, Todd Carlile, Vern Rengen, Miles with Townline Variety, Russell with Outlaw Wings, Ray with City Vending, Scott with Stone Mountain Access Systems and product sponsors Bill with The Oil Medics, Byron with Sebastian Sandblasting & Powdercoating, Jeff with 517 Design, Shawna and Kaleb with Triple X Race Components, Bob with Rod End Supply, Dave with Astro Titanium, Mark and Doug with Schoenfeld Headers, Desiree at Simpson, Jeannie at Butlerbuilt, Tom at Xtreme Accu-Tach, Carl with Kustom Sprint Car, Brad with Momentum, Charlie with Fisher Racing Engines, Team Achieve and Tim with Canyon Apparel.
Attached: The best looking (well dressed) crew at the Knoxville Nationals
- administrator on Aug 14, 2014
- Article Date: 8/14/2014