Inside Line Promotions – TAMPA, Fla. (March 8, 2021) – David Gravel highlighted a return to World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series action with his fifth top five of the season last Friday at Volusia Speedway Park.
The Big Game Motorsports driver had been off for nearly a month since opening the 2021 campaign with four straight top fives at the half-mile oval in Barberville, Fla. The speed continued on Friday as Gravel posted the third quickest qualifying time and he won a heat race to make the dash.
“It started off well and we got into the dash,” he said. “I was able to gain a row in the dash and started outside front row for the feature. We ran second for most of the race. There at the end it came down to traffic and making a couple of moves here or there. I ended up on the wrong side of it.
“(Carson) Macedo slid me so I was in third. Donny (Schatz) passed me and I passed him back. Then on the last lap Gio (Scelzi) slid me. I followed him on the top and Donny hit the bottom perfect to beat me to the line. A top five is good, but in my opinion that was a bad top five. You don’t want to run second most of the race and end fifth.”
Gravel ventured to East Bay Raceway Park on Saturday for his first appearance at the oval in seven years. He qualified eighth quickest and finished third in a heat race to lock into the eighth starting position for the A Main.
“It was going good,” he said. “We started the night off solid and starting eighth in the feature I thought we’d be in good shape. After an early crash and passing a guy I was in fifth and felt like we were in a good position. The car got tighter as the race went on. The track tacked up with the rain and it just didn’t play into our favor. We’re going to put this race behind us and move onto this coming weekend.”
Gravel salvaged a 13th-place result. He is tied for fourth in the World of Outlaws championship standings – only 24 points out of the lead.
Next up will be Gravel’s debut at a pair of tracks in the South. The World of Outlaws head to Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Miss., on Friday and The Rev in Monroe, La., on Saturday.
“I don’t really know if any of the Outlaws have been to these tracks,” Gravel said. “It’s going to be very limited experience for everybody. We’ll all be in the same boat. We have to do our homework for how to unload and what gear we’ll need. Hopefully we’ll be on for hot laps and can make minimal adjustments the rest of the night.”
QUICK RESULTS –
March 5 – Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla. – Qualifying: 3; Heat race: 1 (1); Dash: 2 (4); Feature: 5 (2).
March 6 – East Bay Raceway Park near Tampa, Fla. – Qualifying: 8; Heat race: 3 (3); Feature: 13 (8).
SEASON STATS –
6 races, 0 wins, 5 top fives, 5 top 10s, 6 top 15s, 6 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Magnolia Motor Speedway in Columbus, Miss., and Saturday at The Rev in Monroe, La., with the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series
MEDIA LINKS –
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BigGameMotorspt
THE SHOWDOWN –
THE SHOWDOWN is one of the biggest weeks of racing for winged sprint car drivers. The action begins on June 20 with a $5,000-to-win 410ci winged sprint car event followed by two days of the Huset’s 50. All three nights are hosted by Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D., before Jackson Motorplex in Jackson, Minn., showcases the famed AGCO Jackson Nationals June 24-26. The final five nights of THE SHOWDOWN are World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series races with a total purse exceeding $500,000. Additionally, if a driver is able to win the final night of the Huset’s 50 and the AGCO Jackson Nationals he or she will bring home a whopping $180,000.
TICKET LINK –
Advanced tickets for THE SHOWDOWN can be purchased at https://mpv.tickets.com/schedule/?agency=JKMV_PL_MPV&orgid=55369#/?view=list&includePackages=true
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.
*PHOTO BY TRENT GOWER PHOTOGRAPHY*
