(Photo by Malcolm White Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – MINOT, N.D. (Aug. 25, 2015) – Austen Wheatley posted his best-ever World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series result last Sunday to cap a busy week.
Wheatley garnered a seventh-place result at Nodak Speedway, which marked his first top 10 with the series since 2012.
“It’s really good,” he said. “I think we’re figuring the new cars out. I took a bit to figure them out, but we’re making progress.”
Wheatley opened the night by qualifying seventh quickest around the fairgrounds track.
“Qualifying is really important and we did that,” he said. “These cars like the high-speed places.”
Wheatley then finished second in a heat race to earn the 10th starting position for the main event.
“Early in the feature we were really tight and weren’t that good,” he said. “I was struggling hitting the middle and the bottom early. The track slicked off and it came to me the longer it went. Everybody started ripping the top, which is where I prefer to race.”
Wheatley maintained a top 10 throughout the feature, but his car started running out of fuel on the final restart. He barely made it across the line in seventh.
“There were a couple of cars who ran out in the end, too,” he said. “If we had a little more left I think we could have got a top five.”
Wheatley kicked off the week last Tuesday at Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb., where he timed in 10th quickest during qualifying. He then finished sixth in a heat race and third in a qualifier to start the main event on the outside of the fifth row.
“It was around the top for the most part,” he said. “It was slick with a big cushion. There were a lot of slide jobs. It was pretty fun. Aaron Reutzel ended up getting me in turn four on the last lap for 10th. It would have been cool to have two top 10s during the week, but it’s still a good finish. I think on lap time we were the seventh quickest in that feature.”
Wheatley finished 11th after spending almost the entire feature in the top 10.
He also competed on Friday at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.D. Wheatley qualified 18th quickest and placed fifth in a heat race before he was caught up in a crash during the main event.
“I was really, really tight,” he said. “I couldn’t run the top. I couldn’t run the bottom. Plus, you’re around a lot of cars and you can’t hustle it because guys are all around. We were running around 15th and a few guys got together, which collected us.”
He was unable to resume the race and was credited with a 22nd-place result.
Wheatley will likely take this weekend off before returning to competition on Sept. 4-5 at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash., with the World of Outlaws.
QUICK RESULTS –
Aug. 18 – Junction Motor Speedway in McCool Junction, Neb. – Qualifying: 10; Heat race: 6 (5); Qualifier: 3 (4); Feature: 11 (10).
Aug. 21 – River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks, N.D. – Qualifying: 18; Heat race: 5 (5); Feature: 22 (15).
Aug. 23 – Nodak Speedway in Minot, N.D. – Qualifying: 7; Heat race: 2 (2); Feature: 7 (10).
SEASON STATS –
21 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 3 top 10s, 4 top 15s, 8 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Sept. 4-5 at Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash., with the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.AustenWheatley.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AustenWheatley
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DownForceDesigns?fref=ts
APPAREL –
Wheatley will have t-shirts and hoodies for sale at every race he competes at this season. For his schedule of races, visit http://www.AustenWheatley.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Astro Titanium
Established in 1999, Astro Titanium manufactures quality titanium fasteners for sprint cars and midgets. Based out of Noti, Ore., owner Dave Sims has developed his business into a titanium leader on a national scale. For more information, visit http://www.AstroTitanium.com.
“Astro Titanium and Dave Sims have been with me since the beginning of my career,” Wheatley said. “Anytime we have a problem, we call Dave up and he helps. He’s a really personable guy and his products work great.”
Wheatley would also like to thank Redlined Welding & Construction, Downforce Designs, Fire-Down Graphics, SpeedMart, Bell and King Racing Products 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 by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Aug 25, 2015
- Article Date: 8/25/2015 by Inside Line Promotions