World of Outlaws Invades I-96 Speedway
by Tony Veneziano
LAKE ODESSA, Mich. — The World of Outlaws will return to I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Michigan on Friday, July 27 for the first time since 2005. Donny Schatz and Joey Saldana will try to dethrone Steve Kinser, who has a three-race win streak at the track dating back to 1997, along with 20 more of the best sprint car drivers in the world. This will be the series lone visit of the season to the state of Michigan.
Kinser, the 20-time World of Outlaws Champion, also won at the blazing fast half-mile in 2004 and 2005. He has led a total of 58 laps in the three events that he has been victorious in. In the six events contested by the World of Outlaws at the track, the native of Bloomington, Indiana has finished in the Top-three in all of them. He currently has eight A-Feature wins on the season, including three on half-mile tracks, coming at New Egypt Speedway in New Jersey, Missouri State Fair Speedway and Eldora Speedway.
Joey Saldana heads to I-96 Speedway in the midst of a battle with Donny Schatz for the top spot in the World of Outlaws championship standings. Saldana is currently 119 points behind Schatz and has nine A-Feature wins on the season. Saldana earned his first career World of Outlaws A-Feature victory at I-96 Speedway in 1995, as he ran just a handful of races that season, before capturing the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award in 1996. In that event in 1995, Saldana won the dash to earn the pole position and led all 30 laps of the A-Feature. He finished third in his last visit to the track in 2005.
Donny Schatz remains the series point leader entering the event at I-96, as he looks for his second straight World of Outlaws title. He set fast time at the ultra-fast half-mile in 2004 and went on to finish sixth in the A-Feature that night. He leads the series with eight wins on half-mile tracks, including four at the famed Williams Grove Speedway in Pennsylvania as well at Eldora Speedway. He also has been victorious at Knoxville Raceway in Iowa, where he earned the biggest win of his career in the Knoxville Nationals last season. The native of Fargo, North Dakota leads the series with 13 A-Feature victories and also has 45 Top-10 finishes.
Danny Lasoski finished third at I-96 Speedway in 2004 and also was second there in the World of Outlaws inaugural visit to the track in 1995. The 2001 World of Outlaws champion has three wins on the season and is a very solid third in points.
Jason Meyers has finished seventh in his last two visits to I-96 Speedway. He earned his fourth A-Feature win of the season on Sunday at Lebanon Valley Speedway, which helped him move back into the fourth spot in championship points. He has 32 Top-10 finishes on the season entering action on July 25.
Daryn Pittman finished in the Top-10 in his last visit to the half-mile in 2005. The native of Owasso, Oklahoma and former World of Outlaws Gumout Series champion has three A-Feature wins on the season, including one in the “SuperClean Summer of Money.” He is a very solid fifth in points as the World of Outlaws wrap-up their second East Coast swing of the season before heading to Michigan.
Craig Dollansky finished sixth in the series last visit to I-96 Speedway two years ago. The native of Elk River, Minnesota has one win this season and is seventh in championship points, on the strength of 30 Top-10 finishes.
Paul McMahan has two Top-10 finishes at the half-mile track in his career. He was eighth in 2004 and ninth in 1997. Driving for two-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart, McMahan has two A-Feature wins on the season, including one at his car owner’s track, Eldora Speedway, as well as at Cedar Lake Speedway in Wisconsin.
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