(Photo by Scott Frazier)
Inside Line Promotions – WHEATLAND, Mo. (June 22, 2016) – Brandon Hanks earned a pair of top-10 finishes during the 24th annual Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour Sizzlin’ Summer Speedweek.
However, he doesn’t look back on the busy week with fond memories.
“I’m disappointed in the whole week,” he said. “It was very up and down. It was a tough week. Lawton and Sedalia were on us trying to find more speed. If you don’t keep searching for speed you’ll get caught in a hurry.”
Last week began on Wednesday at Lawton Speedway in Lawton, Okla., where Hanks advanced from fourth to second place in a heat race. That earned him enough points to lock into the feature redraw.
“When I went there a few weeks ago and we finished in the top five we were good, but we weren’t great,” he said. “We were trying something a little different to find more speed in the main event and it obviously didn’t work.”
Hanks, who redrew the No. 2 to start the main event on the outside of the front row, dropped to an eighth-place result.
The most challenging night of the week came the ensuing evening at Creek County Speedway in Sapulpa, Okla.
“Creek County was disastrous,” he said. “Nothing went right that night. We wrecked on the first lap of the heat race. I tried to go three wide right off the bat. There was a door in the middle and I went for it, but it closed in a hurry.”
Hanks had a DNF in the heat race and a DNS in the B Main after a mechanical problem derailed the team before the green flag.
Hanks found speed and the right balance at the start of Friday’s event at Missouri State Fair Speedway in Sedalia, Mo. He won a heat race to lock into the feature redraw. This time Hanks pulled the No. 1 to start the main event on the pole.
“We were awesome in the heat race,” he said. “When I was there earlier this season the track was rubber down on the bottom. This time it was a totally different situation. We weren’t happy with the speed we had before and wanted to try to get faster. What we tried didn’t work.”
Hanks led several laps before ending 10th.
Speedweek wrapped up on Saturday at Lucas Oil Speedway, where Hanks won a heat race and placed fifth in a qualifier. That locked him into the 13th starting position for the main event.
“We went back to what we normally do and we were fast again,” he said. “In the feature we were fighting John Carney II for a top 10. All of us were hammer down around the top hoping the guy in front of you made a mistake. Unfortunately, we had a mechanical problem with a few laps remaining and that ended the night early.”
Hanks was credited with a 19th-place finish.
QUICK RESULTS –
June 15 – Lawton Speedway in Lawton, Okla. – Heat race: 2 (4); Feature: 8 (2).
June 16 – Creek County Speedway in Sapulpa, Okla. – Heat race: DNF (9); B Main: DNS (10).
June 17 – Missouri State Fair Speedway in Sedalia, Mo. – Heat race: 1 (2); Feature: 10 (1).
June 18 – Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Mo. – Heat race: 1 (3); Qualifier: 5 (5); Feature: 19 (13).
SEASON STATS –
25 races, 3 wins, 8 top fives, 14 top 10s, 15 top 15s, 20 top 20s
UP NEXT –
TBD
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.HanksMotorsports.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brandon_K_Hanks
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hanks-Motorsports/135263046488177
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – R.E. Enterprises
Based in Memphis, Tenn., R.E. Enterprises is a one-stop solution for sprint car parts and racing supplies, racing and performance shock services, chassis repairs and fabrication, and custom welding or machining needs. For more information, visit http://www.RacingEclipse.com.
“R.E. Enterprises has been in my corner since I was racing mini sprints,” Hanks said. “I can’t thank them enough for their support in my racing endeavors as well as with my powder coating business.”
Hanks would also like to thank Performance Powder Coating, D&B Farms, Wesmar Racing Engines, Penske Racing Shocks, Walls Paint and Body Shop, Acme Graphix, Hinchman Racewear, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems and J-R1 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 Jun 22, 2016
- Article Date: 6/22/2016 by Inside Line Promotions