Terry McCarl celebrates his Thursday win at the Knoxville Nationals (Studio 92 Photography)
by Bryan Hulbert and Bill Wright
Knoxville, IA, August 13, 2015 – For the 56th time in the history of the Knoxville Raceway, Iowa’s Terry McCarl parked the SnowPlow.com No. 24 in Victory Lane, topping the podium in Thursday’s Lucas Oil Qualifying Night in the 55th running of the FVP Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Store.
“Man, I’ve got to thank Doug (Rankin) and Austin (McCarl), and everyone on my crew. We were horrible in the Heat and lucky to finish where we did and we just made wholesale changes on the car and wow!” said a nearly breathless Terry McCarl. “What a racecar. This A.R.T. was rolling great out there, and Tommy Rider gives us awesome engines. We did the best we could qualifying, and missed it by one. What a racecar, I could put it anywhere I wanted.”
Gridding the field ninth, McCarl began working his way through the field as Danny Lasoski took off into the race lead, advancing into the top five on the sixth round as the race from second back was chaos with drivers three wide at both ends of the track following a caution on Lap 4. Keeping low, tight racing off turn four allowed McCarl to jump from seventh to third in a shot.
After a caution on Lap 8 for Dale Blaney, McCarl gave chase as Danny Lasoski was challenged briefly by Jason Johnson who tried to slide the No. 2 in turns three and four, but to no avail.
Building momentum, Terry began to close on the Priority Aviation No. 41. On the back bumper of Johnson on Lap 11, McCarl made a move the following lap without success. Losing little momentum, Lap 13 saw the pass for the runner-up spot.
The red was shown on Lap 14 for Brooke Tatnell, who was able walk away, and the ensuing restart was called back as Clint Garner tagged the cone.
Single file to the green, McCarl tracked high on Lasoski into the first turns, pulling to the hub in turn three. With a full head of steam, Terry let the right rear speak for itself across the racing surface, taking the lead on Lap 15.
Asked about the pass for the lead, Terry replied, “Well, I just knew what he was doing on those restarts, and what he did to Jason. He was eating that top up, and I hadn’t been to the top. We had a start, gave me a chance to practice it, and on the other restart I perfected it a little better, and I think he missed it a little bit.”
Held up briefly on Lap 21 in slower traffic, it would not be enough to deny McCarl victory, netting enough points to start eighth on Saturday night.
Danny Lasoski held on for the runner-up spot, earning the Dover, Mo. shoe the sixth spot in Saturday’s A-Feature. Amid an infamous Terry McCarl kiss, Danny said, “We got good points, just got beat by a good driver, and a good car, that’s all you can say. He had a good pace, and a lot of times, it’s better to be running second. He did what he had to do, and he just got beat.”
Earning his third podium with the World of Outlaws in 2015, Jason Johnson earned the bronze step in the Mesilla Valley Transportation No. 41.
“I tell you what, these Priority Aviation guys have been working their tails off this week. I just can’t say enough about this race team. Phillip and Cole have done a great job. We have a great group of supporters here, and to be on the podium on a prelim night; we’re pretty pleased,” said Johnson who will start ninth in Saturday’s feature event.
Kerry Madsen came up to fourth after starting seventh with Brian Brown coming out of the B-Feature to claw from 23rd to fifth in the Casey’s General Store / FVP No. 21.
Joey Saldana was sixth with James McFadden settling for seventh after starting 13th and bouncing around the top-ten most of the race. Lucas Wolfe crossed eighth, Stevie Smith ninth, and Brad Sweet tenth.
With 57 drivers drawing in, the weekend total comes to 112 drivers making the trip to the 55th annual FVP Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores. Five Heats went to R.J. Johnson, Kerry Madsen, Dusty Zomer, Danny Lasoski, and Sammy Swindell. Kevin Swindell was involved in a violent crash in the first heat and was taken to the hospital for observation.
C-Feature action was topped by Bill Balog with Clint Garner getting the B-Feature win over Greg Wilson by 0.024 seconds. A thrilling race to the end, the top five were separated by only 0.912 seconds.
With the points tallied from Wednesday and Thursday, Donny Schatz will lead the field to the green on Saturday night with a ninth Nationals Championship on his mind. This marks the 18th time Donny has made the cut for Saturday’s feature event. Kerry Madsen will start his ninth championship feature from the outside of the front row.
Join us tomorrow night, Friday, August 14 for night #3 of the 55th FVP Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores! For more information on Knoxville Raceway, visit www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!
410 Results
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 49, Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA (12), 15.086; 2. 29, Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust. (11), 15.175; 3. 1B, Dale Blaney, Hartford, OH (5), 15.201; 4. 71M, Joey Saldana, Brownsburg, IN (8), 15.358; 5. 1, Sammy Swindell, Germantown, TN (24), 15.409; 6. W20, Greg Wilson, Benton Ridge, OH (16), 15.415; 7. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (14), 15.443; 8. 19M, Brent Marks, Myerstown, PA (19), 15.452; 9. 21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO (29), 15.485; 10. 1Z, Lucas Wolfe, Mechanicsburg, PA (25), 15.513; 11. 1ST, Gary Taylor, Snohomish, WA (17), 15.540; 12. 9K, Kevin Thomas Jr., Cullman, AL (3), 15.577; 13. 41, Jason Johnson, Eunice, LA (34), 15.618; 14. 2, Danny Lasoski, Dover, MO (38), 15.627; 15. 24, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (36), 15.645; 16. 55, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (7), 15.648; 17. 19S, Stevie Smith, Broken Arrow, OK (37), 15.664; 18. 28, Jonathan Cornell, Sedalia, MO (9), 15.665; 19. 45, Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, PA (31), 15.676; 20. 9P, Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN (21), 15.685; 21. 10, Matt Moro, Polk City, IA (13), 15.688; 22. 29W, Danny Dietrich, Gettysburg, PA (30), 15.693; 23. 67H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (10), 15.752; 24. 3G, James McFadden, Ormeau, QLD, Aust. (20), 15.752; 25. 17B, Bill Balog, Brookfield, WI (44), 15.752; 26. 2LX, Ed Lynch Jr., Apollo, PA (15), 15.785; 27. 3A, Billy Alley, Bennet, NE (50), 15.811; 28. 23M, Lance Moss, Cherryville, NC (2), 15.820; 29. 3, Tim Kaeding, San Jose, CA (26), 15.836; 30. 93, Glenndon Forsythe, York, PA (18), 15.839; 31. 25, Dylan Peterson, Hartford, SD (4), 15.861; 32. 10H, Chad Kemenah, Alvada, OH (52), 15.873; 33. 82, Dusty Zomer, Sioux Falls, SD (51), 15.882; 34. 70, Dean Jacobs, Wooster, OH (42), 15.896; 35. 7R, Roger Crockett, Medford, OR (27), 15.921; 36. 71A, RJ Johnson, Tampa, FL (32), 15.934; 37. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (57), 15.964; 38. 11N, Randy Hannagan, Pittsboro, IN (35), 16.000; 39. 1X, Don Droud Jr., Lincoln, NE (23), 16.008; 40. 11, Steve Kinser, Bloomington, IN (46), ‘16.009; 41. 71, Kevin Swindell, Bartlett, TN (49), 16.044; 42. O1, Christopher Bell, Norman, OK (28), 16.048; 43. 35, Skylar Prochaska, Lakefield, MN (33), 16.104; 44. 13, Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND (54), 16.128; 45. 17J, Joey Moughan, Springfield, IL (47), 16.149; 46. 88N, DJ Netto, Hanford, CA (43), 16.165; 47. 20N, Hunter Schuerenberg, Sikeston, MO (39), 16.178; 48. 1S, Logan Schuchart, Hanover, PA (53), 16.193; 49. 31B, Shane Golobic, Fremont, CA (45), 16.224; 50. 44W, Austen Wheatley, Lake Stevens, WA (55), 16.308; 51. 47, Jeff Swindell, Bartlett, TN (6), 16.331; 52. 15M, Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA (40), 16.417; 53. 55XM, Brandon Wimmer, Fairmount, IN (22), 16.506; 54. 56B, Ryan Bernal, Hollister, CA (41), 16.511; 55. 2K, Kevin Ingle, Huron, SD (1), 16.581; 56. 1P, Curtis Evans, Norborne, MO (48), 16.909; 57. 23B, Seth Bergman, Snohomish, WA (56), NT.
Heat one (started), 10 Laps, 2:43.7: 1. RJ Johnson (1); 2. Ed Lynch Jr. (3); 3. Brad Sweet (8); 4. Brooke Tatnell (5) / 5. Gary Taylor (6); 6. Dylan Peterson (2); 7. DJ Netto (10); 8. Greg Wilson (7) / 9. Matt Moro (4); 10. Kevin Swindell (9)
Heat two (started), 10 Laps, NT: 1. Kerry Madsen (8); 2. Billy Alley (3); 3. Danny Dietrich (4); 4. Stevie Smith (5) / 5. Clint Garner (7); 6. Chris Martin (1); 7. Christopher Bell (9); 8. Hunter Schuerenberg (10) / 9. Kevin Thomas Jr. (6); 10. Chad Kemenah (2)
Heat three (started), 10 Laps, 2:41.1: 1. Dusty Zomer (2); 2. Jason Johnson (4); 3. Dale Blaney (6); 4. Randy Hannagan (1) / 5. Logan Schuchart (8); 6. Brent Marks (7); 7. Jonathan Cornell (5); 8. Skylar Prochaska (9) / 9. Lance Moss (3); DNS - Sam Hafertepe Jr.
Heat four (started), 10 Laps, 2:41.7: 1. Danny Lasoski (6); 2. James McFadden (4); 3. Joey Saldana (8); 4. Dean Jacobs (2) / 5. Tim Kaeding (3); 6. Tim Shaffer (5); 7. Brian Brown (7); 8. Mark Dobmeier (9) / 9. Don Droud Jr. (1); 10. Shane Golobic (10)
Heat five (started), 10 Laps, NT: 1. Sammy Swindell (6); 2. Terry McCarl (4); 3. Steve Kinser (1); 4. Lucas Wolfe (7) / 5. Roger Crockett (2); 6. Parker Price-Miller (5); 7. Austen Wheatley (8); 8. Joey Moughan (9) / 9. Glenndon Forsythe (3); DNS - Bill Balog
C main (started), 10 Laps, NT: 1. Bill Balog (2); 2. Jeff Swindell (7); 3. Ryan Bernal (9); 4. Bobby Mincer (8); 5. Shane Golobic (6); 6. Curtis Evans (10); 7. Lance Moss (3); 8. Kevin Thomas Jr. (1); 9. Don Droud Jr. (5); 10. Glenndon Forsythe (4); DNS – Matt Moro, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Chad Kemenah, Kevin Swindell, Brandon Wimmer, Kevin Ingle, Seth Bergman
B main (started), 12 Laps, 3:28.8: 1. Clint Garner (2); 2. Greg Wilson (1); 3. Brian Brown (4); 4. Tim Shaffer (7); 5. Brent Marks (3); 6. Roger Crockett (11); 7. Mark Dobmeier (15); 8. Christopher Bell (13); 9. Jonathan Cornell (6); 10. Logan Schuchart (19); 11. Parker Price-Miller (8); 12. Bill Balog (21); 13. Dylan Peterson (10); 14. Jeff Swindell (22); 15. DJ Netto (17); 16. Ryan Bernal (23); 17. Chris Martin (12); 18. Bobby Mincer (24); 19. Austen Wheatley (20); 20. Gary Taylor (5); 21. Hunter Schuerenberg (18); 22. Skylar Prochaska (14); 23. Tim Kaeding (9); 24. Joey Moughan (16)
A main (started), 25 Laps, NT: 1. Terry McCarl (9); 2. Danny Lasoski (1); 3. Jason Johnson (2); 4. Kerry Madsen (7); 5. Brian Brown (23); 6. Joey Saldana (5); 7. James McFadden (13); 8. Lucas Wolfe (3); 9. Stevie Smith (11); 10. Brad Sweet (8); 11. Dusty Zomer (16); 12. Danny Dietrich (12); 13. Dean Jacobs (17); 14. Steve Kinser (20); 15. Dale Blaney (6); 16. Greg Wilson (22); 17. Clint Garner (21); 18. Billy Alley (15); 19. Randy Hannagan (19); 20. Ed Lynch Jr. (14); 21. RJ Johnson (18); 22. Brooke Tatnell (10); 23. Sammy Swindell (4); 24. Tim Shaffer (24). Lap Leaders: Lasoski 1-14, T. McCarl 15-25. Hard-charger: Brown.
A Main Lineup for Saturday (first 8 rows)
15, Donny Schatz, Fargo, ND
29, Kerry Madsen, St. Mary’s, NSW, Aust.
7, David Gravel, Watertown, CT
71m, Joey Saldana, Brownsburg, IN
49, Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA
2, Danny Lasoski, Dover, MO
51, Paul McMahan, Nashville, TN
24, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA
41, Jason Johnson, Eunice, LA
93H, Sheldon Haudenschild, Wooster, OH
1B, Dale Blaney, Hartford, OH
16, Shane Stewart, Bixby, OK
1z, Lucas Wolfe, Mechanicsburg, PA
21, Brian Brown, Grain Valley, MO
9, Daryn Pittman, Owasso, OK
24R, Rico Abreu, St. Helena, CA
B Main Lineup for Saturday (first five rows)
12x, Wayne Johnson, Knoxville, IA
89, Cody Darrah, Red Lion, PA
1, Sammy Swindell, Germantown, TN
1D, Justin Henderson, Sioux Falls, SD
7TAZ, Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville, IA
40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD
19s, Stevie Smith, Broken Arrow, OK
3G, James McFadden, Brisbane, QLD, Aust.
27, Greg Hodnett, Spring Grove, PA
W20, Greg Wilson, Benton Ridge, OH
Combined Points for Wednesday and Thursday
1
15
Donny Schatz
492
2
29
Kerry Madsen
492
3
7
David Gravel
485
4
71M
Joey Saldana
478
5
49
Brad Sweet
476
6
2
Danny Lasoski
472
7
51
Paul McMahan
471
8
24
Terry McCarl
469
9
41
Jason Johnson
469
10
93H
Sheldon Haudenschild
465
11
1B
Dale Blaney
462
12
16
Shane Stewart
460
13
1Z
Lucas Wolfe
459
14
21
Brian Brown
458
15
9
Daryn Pittman
457
16
24R
Rico Abreu
456
17
12X
Wayne Johnson
455
18
89
Cody Darrah
450
19
1
Sammy Swindell
448
20
1D
Justin Henderson
445
21
7TAZ
Tasker Phillips
445
22
40
Clint Garner
444
23
19S
Stevie Smith
443
24
3G
James McFadden
439
25
27
Greg Hodnett
439
26
W20
Greg Wilson
439
27
17W
Bryan Clauson
435
28
18
Ian Madsen
431
29
29W
Danny Dietrich
430
30
56
Davey Heskin
429
31
55
Brooke Tatnell
419
32
82
Dusty Zomer
416
33
19M
Brent Marks
413
34
3A
Billy Alley
411
35
95
Matt Covington
410
36
2LX
Ed Lynch Jr.
409
37
35AU
Jamie Veal
408
38
22
Tony Shilling
404
39
45
Tim Shaffer
403
40
7S
Jason Sides
403
41
71X
Tyler Courtney
402
42
70
Dean Jacobs
401
43
29C
Willie Croft
398
44
11K
Kraig Kinser
394
45
O
Bud Kaeding
393
46
11
Steve Kinser
390
47
81X
Lee Jacobs
390
48
71A
RJ Johnson
390
49
19
Bob Weuve
389
50
12
Lynton Jeffrey
385
51
4
Dakota Hendrickson
384
52
83
Aaron Reutzel
384
53
31C
Justyn Cox
384
54
28
Jonathan Cornell
382
55
11N
Randy Hannagan
381
56
1ST
Gary Taylor
380
57
84
Scott Bogucki
377
58
9P
Parker Price-Miller
377
59
21AU
Jordyn Brazier
376
60
19P
Paige Polyak
370
61
69
Mike Moore
369
62
17A
Austin McCarl
365
63
49J
Josh Schneiderman
362
64
7R
Roger Crockett
360
65
17
Josh Baughman
356
66
17B
Bill Balog
353
67
25
Dylan Peterson
351
68
7D
Dustin Selvage
348
69
4R
Jon Agan
340
70
9K
Kevin Thomas Jr.
340
71
3
Tim Kaeding
338
72
O1
Christopher Bell
336
73
13
Mark Dobmeier
331
74
44
Chris Martin
331
75
1A
Jacob Allen
331
76
13X
Jac Haudenschild
330
77
1S
Logan Schuchart
326
78
10
Matt Moro
316
79
88N
DJ Netto
314
80
5V
Colby Copeland
312
81
23M
Lance Moss
310
82
67H
Sam Hafertepe Jr.
307
83
2KS
Craig Dollansky
304
84
35
Skylar Prochaska
303
85
55W
Logan Wagner
301
86
93
Glenndon Forsythe
300
87
44W
Austen Wheatley
298
88
20N
Hunter Schuerenberg
297
89
17J
Joey Moughan
295
90
2L
Logan Forler
293
91
10H
Chad Kemenah
287
92
1X
Don Droud Jr.
284
93
99
Brady Bacon
281
94
75
Glen Saville
275
95
47
Jeff Swindell
274
96
81
Austin Johnson
272
97
23
Jimmy Light
270
98
31B
Shane Golobic
269
99
71
Kevin Swindell
267
100
20
AJ Moeller
263
101
15M
Bobby Mincer
261
102
56B
Ryan Bernal
255
103
7X
Kaley Gharst
253
104
4S
Danny Smith
236