BARBERVILLE, Fla. — Feb. 11, 2016 — Donny Schatz battled through the field Thursday night to win the Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions feature at DIRTcar Nationals.
Schatz, who drives for NASCAR champion Tony Stewart, started in 10th position and quickly moved forward. He caught the top-three drivers by lap 15 and passed leader Jason Johnson on lap 20. As Johnson worked to hold off Dale Blaney, Schatz built an insurmountable lead in the final 10 laps.
“It’s an incredible race team,” said Schatz, a seven-time World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series champion. “I didn’t want to have to call the boss tonight and tell him I left anything on the table – just an incredible effort from these guys.”
“You have to go where everyone else isn’t,” Schatz said. “I just had to find a way around. Once we got going, it was just awesome.”
Tyler Nicely fought a wheel-to-wheel battle with Brian Ruhlman and held off NASCAR star Ty Dillon to pick up his first DIRTcar UMP Modified win of DIRTcar Nationals. The win ended the two race streak for Nick Hoffman, but Hoffman had reason to celebrate as the builder of Nicely’s Elite Chassis.
Jason Beaulieu battled with Ruhlman through the first half of the 20-lap feature. Nicely worked his way forward and by lap 11 took over the lead. Nicely and Ruhlman traded position through the next eight laps. As lapped traffic came into play, Dillon closed the gap and passed Ruhlman for second. Off the final turn, Dillon was side-by-side with Nicely, but Nicely held the lead and took the checkered flag.
“It’s awesome to be able to race with someone you trust and not tear up your equipment,” Nicely said of Ruhlman. “I just knew if I could keep it down there in the good dirt, hopefully I could get a good enough run to clear him.”
Nightly doubleheaders at Volusia run through Saturday, Feb. 20. The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series kicks off its 2016 season and the DIRTcar UMP Modifieds return on Friday for night four of DIRTcar Nationals.
For more information and updates on the DIRTcar Nationals, click DIRTcarNationals.com or follow on Twitter at @DIRTcarNats.
DIRTcar Nationals Statistical Report; Feb. 11, 2016; Volusia Speedway Park; Barberville, Fla.
Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions A-Main (30 Laps) – 1. 15-Donny Schatz ($5,000), 2. 1-Dale Blaney, 3. 41-Jason Johnson, 4. 2L-Danny Lasoski, 5. 17W-Bryan Clauson, 6. 71M-Dave Blaney, 7. 1A-Jacob Allen, 8. 49-Brad Sweet, 9. 45-Tim Shaffer, 10. 27-Greg Hodnett, 11. 5-David Gravel, 12. 83-Joey Saldana, 13. 9-Daryn Pittman, 14. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 15. 29-Kerry Madsen, 16. 10H-Chad Kemenah, 17. 70-Danny Holtgraver, 18. 24-Terry McCarl, 19. 7C-Caleb Armstrong, 20. 2-Shane Stewart, 21. 1S-Sammy Swindell, 22. 1Z-Lucas Wolfe, 23. 7-Paul McMahan, 24. 07-Doug Esh.
DIRTcar UMP Modified A-Main (20 Laps) – 1. 56-Tyler Nicely ($1,000), 2. 41-Ty Dillon, 3. 49-Brian Ruhlman, 4. 90-Jason Beaulieu, 5. 2-Nick Hoffman, 6. 33-Jeff Matthews, 7. Z8-Max McLaughlin, 8. 36-Kenny Wallace, 9. 14T-Tyler Clem, 10. 35-David Stremme, 11. 77-Ray Bollinger, 12. 9-Ken Schrader, 13. 3-Austin Dillon, 14. 13-Jacob Hawkins, 15. 16C-Josh Harris, 16. K9-Will Krup, 17. 10-A.J. Fike, 18. 10Y-Trent Young, 19. 72-Todd Neiheiser, 20. 72X-Brian Papiez, 21. 0J-Bryce Jewell, 22. 51-Brandon Green, 23.01L-Patrick Lyon, 24. 12H-Mike Hansen, 25. D4B-Jackie Boggs, 26. 22T-Tony Anderson, 27. 28B-Chad Boone, 28. 27-Michael Turner
DIRTcar Nationals Day-by-Day Schedule (Grandstands open at 5 p.m.)
Friday, Feb. 12 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series & UMP Modifieds
Saturday, Feb. 13 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series & UMP Modified Gator Qualifying 1
Sunday, Feb. 14 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series & UMP Modified Gator Qualifying 2
Monday, Feb. 15 – DIRTcar Late Models & UMP Modified Gator Championship
Tuesday, Feb. 16 – DIRTcar Late Models & UMP Modified Triple 20’s
Wednesday, Feb. 17 – DIRTcar Late Models Swamp King Champ & Super DIRTcar Series
Thursday, Feb. 18 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series & Super DIRTcar Series
Friday, Feb. 19 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series & Super DIRTcar Series
Saturday, Feb. 20 – World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series & Super DIRTcar Series
2016 DIRTcar Nationals is supported by Budweiser, Daytona Harley-Davidson, Hampton Inn-Palm Cost, Ring Power CAT, and Safety-Kleen. The World of Outlaws Craftsman® Sprint Car Series and World of Outlaws Craftsman® Late Model Series is brought to fans by official partners: Bad Boy Buggies (Official Side-by-Side Vehicle), The Kenny Wallace Dirt Racing Experience (Official Racing Experience), Hoosier Racing Tires (Official Racing Tires), Lincoln Welder (Official Welder), and VP Racing Fuel (Official Racing Fuel). Additional support is provided by Arizona Sport Shirts (Official Apparel Company of WoO Late Model), DirtonDirt.com (WoO Late Model Hard Charger Award), McCarthy’s One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning (Raye Vest Memorial Pill Draw Award-WoO Late Model), and Chevrolet Performance. Contingency sponsors include: ASI, Beyea Headers, Bicknell Racing Products, Bilstein Shocks, Butlerbuilt, Cometic Gasket, Comp Cams, Edelbrock, Fox Shocks, JE Pistons, JRI Shocks, KSE Racing Products, Mobil 1, MSD Performance, Penske Racing Shocks, Ohlins Shocks, QA1, QuarterMaster, Sweet Manufacturing, Superflow Dynos and Wrisco Aluminum Manufacturer. Sponsors include: Capital Race Cars, Club 29 Chassis, Impact Racing Products, Intercomp, Motorsports Safety Systems, Racing Electronics, Rocket Chassis, S&S Volvo, and TNT Rescue.
