(Photo by Casey Jones)
Inside Line Promotions – PEVELY, Mo. (April 24, 2018) – Derek Hagar earned his career-best result with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series on Friday at Riverside International Speedway.
“It was awesome,” he said. “We didn’t qualify near as good as what we wanted to, but it gave us a decent starting spot.”
Hagar timed in 18th quickest, which started him on the inside of the third row for a heat race.
“It was unbelievable,” he said. “We went into turn one and got by (David) Gravel and (Kerry) Madsen at the same time. A lap later we slid Shane Stewart for third. I was like, ‘Man, this could be awesome.’ We had a caution with about three or four laps to go and they do a double-file restart. I was on the outside for the restart and we got a good start. We were on the guy’s right rear for second. I was able to cut back across and pass him for second. We had a really good race and ended up coming out second to put ourselves into the dash. I was stoked to be that competitive with those guys who do this professionally. To see the fans standing up and cheering was an energy boost.”
Hagar hustled to a runner-up result during a thrilling heat race performance. It advanced him into the dash, which he finished eighth after starting third.
“We missed it on setup in the dash,” he said. “Everything is different on the 410 versus what we do in the 360. The tires, the motor, everything is just different.
“We went back to our normal basic stuff for the feature and the car was a lot better. We stayed right there in sixth, seventh and eighth most of the race. I tried some stuff on a restart that didn’t work. Whenever you have David Gravel and Donny Schatz behind you they’ll capitalize. We finished 11th with 30 of the best guys in the country and we were competitive so I was happy.”
Hagar held on for an 11th-place finish.
The weekend wrapped up on Saturday at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 during the Spring Classic. Hagar timed in 19th quickest in his group before powering from 10th to seventh place in a heat race.
“We didn’t qualify well and that’s something I need to work on, but we don’t get to qualify very often around here,” he said. “We had a good heat race and were catching Sammy for sixth. Unfortunately, since we didn’t transfer to the main event through the heat race we had to run the C Main and a mechanical problem ended our night early.
“I want to thank Jason Sides for letting us use an engine. He’s an awesome guy who is very laid back and helpful. You don’t see many guys like that in the sport.”
Hagar is slated to make his debut at Paducah International Raceway in Paducah, Ky., on Friday with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com before racing on Saturday at Lexington 104 Speedway in Lexington, Tenn., with the USCS Series.
QUICK RESULTS –
April 20 – Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark. – Qualifying: 18; Heat race: 2 (5); Dash: 8 (3); Feature: 11 (8).
April 21 – Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 in Pevely, Mo. – Qualifying: 19; Heat race: 7 (10); C Main: 11 (5).
SEASON STATS –
11 races, 0 wins, 2 top fives, 3 top 10s, 5 top 15s, 8 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Paducah International Raceway in Paducah, Ky., with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com and Saturday at Lexington 104 Speedway in Lexington, Tenn., with the USCS Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.DerekHagarRacing.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HagarDerek
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – B&D Towing
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“B&D Towing supports racing,” Hagar said. “They can help anyone in the Memphis area. For anyone who needs a hand, B&D is recommended to save the day.”
Hagar would also like to thank Dynotech Performance, DHR Suspension, J&J Auto Racing, Fragola Performance Systems, Xtreme Race Graphics, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Weld Wheels, Hinchman Racewear, Wix Filters, Wings Unlimited, FK Rod Ends, Valvoline and Ti64 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 Apr 24, 2018
- Article Date: 4/24/2018 by Inside Line Promotions