(Photo by Malcolm White Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – ALGER, Wash. (June 25, 2018) – Austen Wheatley battled a tight race car throughout the 47th annual Jim Raper Memorial Dirt Cup last weekend at Skagit Speedway.
Wheatley piloted his family owned No. 45 during the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com tripleheader at the high-banked oval, where the action began on Thursday with Wheatley maneuvering from sixth to fourth place in a heat race before he was involved in a crash during a qualifier.
“Our car was really good in the heat races, but we were so tight in the qualifier both nights,” he said. “The track didn’t change much and we didn’t change a lot on the car if anything at all. We were just drastically tight.
“On Thursday in the qualifier we were really tight and were losing spots. I was trying too hard and got it into the curb too deep and couldn’t get out of it. It ended up hurting the frame so we had to build a new car for Friday.”
Wheatley raced the damaged race car in a B Main on Thursday and he advanced a position to finish third, which was one spot shy of a transfer.
The team built a new car for Friday’s program and Wheatley got off to a strong start by winning a heat race. An eighth-place result in a qualifier relegated him to a B Main. He placed second in the consolation race to transfer into the back of the main event. Wheatley capped the night by advancing from 20th to 11th.
“Most of it was attrition,” he said. “People were driving out of control and there were a lot of wrecks. I tried to keep my nose clean and we were able to gain quite a few positions that way.”
Wheatley ranked 16th in overall event points following the two preliminary nights. That locked him into the 16th starting position for Saturday’s A Main.
“I was surprised it went 40 straight green flag laps,” he said. “The track was pretty good and once we got going there wasn’t a caution. We were good early and I think we cracked the top 10. We just faded at the end because we got tight once the curb started to build up and the fuel load went away.”
Wheatley was credited with a 13th-place result.
He is scheduled to compete this Friday and Saturday at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., during the Fred Brownfield Classic with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com.
“I tend to do better there because it fits my style better,” he said. “It’s usually a lot slicker and smoother. I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”
QUICK RESULTS –
June 21 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. – Heat race: 4 (6); Qualifier: DNF (7); B Main: 3 (4).
June 22 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. – Heat race: 1 (2); Qualifier: 8 (5); B Main: 2 (2); Feature: 11 (20).
June 23 – Skagit Speedway in Alger, Wash. – Feature: 13 (16).
SEASON STATS –
4 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 1 top 10, 3 top 15s, 3 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday and Saturday at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., for the Fred Brownfield Classic with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Tour presented by SawBlade.com
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 – Redlined Welding & Construction
Redlined Welding & Construction performs welding and construction for fishing boats and processors. Based out of Lake Stevens, Wash., Redlined Welding & Construction is owned and operated by Austen’s father, Shannon Wheatley.
“Redlined Welding & Construction is a family business and we race with a family team so without Redlined Welding & Construction I wouldn’t be able to race,” Austen Wheatley said. “It is the heart and soul of this team.”
Wheatley would also like to thank Downforce Designs, Astro Titanium, 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 Jun 25, 2018
- Article Date: 6/25/2018 by Inside Line Promotions