(Photo by Rob Kocak Photos)
Inside Line Promotions – KNOXVILLE, Iowa (July 19, 2021) – Kaleb Johnson advanced to a sixth-place finish in 360ci sprint car competition at Jackson Motorplex on Friday before seeing a potential podium finish go away in the final laps at Knoxville Raceway on Saturday.
After qualifying fifth quickest in his group during the Midwest Power Series and Midwest Sprint Touring Series event at Jackson Motorplex, Johnson’s heat race did not go as well as he hoped after starting on the outside of the front row.
“I knew I had to finish in the top two to qualify for the redraw and to have much of a chance of winning the feature,” he said. “I made a mistake going into turn one at the start. I got behind Cody Ledger and let Matt Juhl get by me on the outside. After that, there wasn’t much passing and I finished third.”
Johnson started 11th in the feature after narrowly missing the feature redraw.
“The feature went all right,” he said. “I got up to fifth at one point then lost a spot and wound up finishing sixth. The track was kind of tricky. The bottom held moisture so you had to wait for someone to make a mistake to pass.”
It marked Johnson’s 10th top 10 of the season.
Johnson’s night began well the following evening at Knoxville Raceway, where he qualified sixth quickest out of 33 drivers and advanced from fifth to second in his heat race.
“For when we went out (21st) I felt we qualified well,” he said. “We also had a good run from the back in our heat race. It was shaping up to be a good night.”
Johnson rolled off third on the starting grid for the A Main.
“We were running well,” he said. “After dropping back to fourth, we were able to get by Ryan Giles for third and were gaining on Jamie Ball for second late in the race. I had to run the top in turns one and two because that was the faster line since my car was too free to run the bottom. With five laps to go I drove it in a little too hard, got over the cushion and into the wall, ending our night.
“I felt like we had a second-place car. We’ve been getting better at Knoxville every week and it was the best I have ever felt there. I hate that it happened, but it’s a learning experience and we’ll move forward.”
Johnson plans to return to Knoxville Raceway this Saturday after competing with the Midwest Sprint Touring Series on Tuesday night at Rapid Speedway in Rock Rapids, Iowa, in conjunction with the Lyon County Fair.
“I enjoy the fair race,” he said. “It’s just three classes of cars and usually gets done earlier. We had a good run (second) there earlier this year and hopefully our notes from then will help us to do well again. They’ve added extra money to the purse so there should be some good competition.”
QUICK RESULTS –
July 16 – Jackson Motorplex in Jackson, Minn. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 3 (2); Feature: 6 (11).
July 17 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 6; Heat race: 2 (5); Feature: DNF (3).
SEASON STATS –
21 races, 0 wins, 4 top fives, 10 top 10s, 12 top 15s, 16 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Tuesday at Rapid Speedway in Rock Rapids, Iowa, with the Midwest Sprint Touring Series and Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.kalebjohnsonracing.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kaleb___Johnson
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KalebJohnsonRacing22
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Merle Johnson Farm Toys
Merle Johnson Farm Toys in Jackson, Minn., has been a buyer and seller of new and used toy tractors and diecasts around the Upper Midwest for more than 30 years. They also ship nationally and internationally. For more information, call 507-847-2798.
“Merle Johnson Farm Toys is owned by my grandpa and grandma,” Johnson said. “They’ve been a supporter of my racing since I began in go-karts when I was 5-years-old. I’m really grateful for all of the support they’ve given me throughout my racing career.”
Johnson would also like to thank Oddson Underground, GRP Motorsports, Innovative Design/Sletten Properties, Sea Foam, Snyder Tree Service, Guaranteed Rate-Mike Brudigan Home Loans, The Ron Weber Team, State Bank of Fairmont, Big Al’s Diecast, Dave’s Lawn Care & Landscaping, JF Capital, Last Deck, Hepfner Racing Products, Schaeffer’s Oil and TL Racing for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
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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 Jul 19, 2021
- Article Date: 7/19/2021 by Inside Line Promotions