(Photo by Paul Arch)
Inside Line Promotions – SPENCER, Iowa (Nov. 8, 2021) – Justin Henderson and car owner Mike Sandvig continued their trek toward becoming one of the elite sprint car teams in the country during the 2021 season.
In their third season together, the duo claimed seven victories between weekly competition at Knoxville Raceway and Huset's Speedway and set career highs as a team with 19 top-five finishes and 24 top 10s.
"I feel like we had a really good season, but I don't feel like it will be our best season ever," Henderson said. "It's a perfect example of what happens when two people work together on the same page and I think we'll continue to go upwards as a team."
Henderson was exceptionally dominant in 2021 at Huset's Speedway. With the Brandon, S.D., dirt track making its return to weekly racing for the first time since 2016, Henderson and Sandvig pledged to be regulars for the season.
The duo competed in 18 races at the high-banked track and the move paid off as Henderson scored 12 top-five finishes and five victories en route to being named the track champion. The championship was the second of Henderson's career in the 410 sprint car division at Huset’s Speedway, while it was a first-ever points triumph for Sandvig as an owner anywhere.
"It's a big commitment to run on a Sunday when you're a father and a business owner and you never know how much you have to give," Henderson said. "But our car was really set up to run there and that just makes it easy to do when you're fast and winning. I was really happy with Huset's and it was cool to get Mike a championship."
The duo also competed weekly at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, where they led the points standings at the famed dirt track for a majority of the season before coming home third on the strength of two victories, five top fives and nine top 10s in 16 total events.
Aside from weekly competition at the half-mile oval, Henderson and Sandvig also competed at the track during the famed Knoxville Nationals. Henderson led 21 laps during a preliminary night of the event before finishing fourth to lock directly into the main event on Saturday. A gear problem relegated him to a 19th-place finish during the finale. However, Henderson was the highest finishing Knoxville Raceway regular and gave Sandvig his first career A Main start during the crown jewel event.
"We should have won a championship at Knoxville and gotten a better finish in the Nationals in my mind," Henderson said. "For the most part we didn't change a whole lot setup-wise, but I think next year we're going to take a bigger swing at things at Knoxville and not be so set in our ways."
Other highlights on the season included a trio of A Main starts with the World of Outlaws during the 43rd annual AGCO Jackson Nationals at Jackson Motorplex in Jackson, Minn., in late June and a runner-up result during the 21st annual Jerry Richert Memorial with the Bumper to Bumper IRA Sprint Cars at Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wis., in September.
While it was a season filled with triumph, it may actually be a trip that yielded marginal success that speaks loudest of the future for the duo. Henderson and Sandvig kicked off their 2021 racing season with a first-ever trip to Central Pennsylvania in March and they picked up a 14th-place finish at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., and a 12th-place result at Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Pa.
While traveling 1,700 miles for a pair of top 15s may seem forgettable to many, it's the experience outside of their comfort zone and the relationships made that will pay huge dividends for the team heading into their fourth year of competition together in 2022.
"When we came out to Pennsylvania earlier in the season it was a huge learning experience and it showed us what we can't do to our car and that obviously paid off in our weekly racing out west," he said. "However, just getting to Pennsylvania and showing our commitment to racing and wanting to branch out shows where we want to go as a program.
"I was able to build on relationships I already have out that way and make some new ones that may really pay off long-term when we start maybe doing this a little more. Seventeen hundred miles is a long way to go for racing, but it's something we're looking forward to maybe trying some more and seeing if we can do again for years to come. I can't thank Mike enough for all he's done for me and I can't wait to see what 2022 holds.”
SEASON STATS –
43 races, 7 wins, 19 top fives, 24 top 10s, 31 top 15s, 38 top 20s
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Henderson_racin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/90850346221/
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Morton Buildings
Morton Buildings builds the finest, pole barns, equestrian buildings, steel buildings and more. For more information, visit http://www.MortonBuildings.com.
“We’ve had a relationship with Morton Buildings for more than four years and they’ve really grown in the racing scene,” Sandvig said. “We’re thrilled to have such a reputable sponsor as part of our team.”
Sandvig would also like to thank Powersports.com, Morton Buildings, Eszlinger Electric, Mamma’s Pizza of Wellsville, Emory Transmission, Heartland Kitchen Solutions DeBerg Flooring, R2 Enterprise, GRP Motorsports, Winters Performance, Schoenfeld Headers, BK Racing TI Components, SBS FK Shocks, Wings Unlimited, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Hinchman Racewear, Rider Racing Engines, Triple X Race Co., Boji Custom Metal Works and Simpson Race 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 Nov 08, 2021
- Article Date: 11/8/2021 by Inside Line Promotions