West Fargo, ND—June 28, 2007--By: Tony Veneziano, WoO Sprint Series PR Director
The World of Outlaws will wrap up the Duel in the Dakotas on Saturday, June 30 at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota. The high-banked half-mile has hosted a World of Outlaws event for 26 consecutive seasons, with 11 drivers having visited the winner's circle with the series, including six current drivers.
On Saturday, the cameras from ESPN will be rolling as the finale of the Duel in the Dakotas is the third race of the "SuperClean Summer of Money" on ESPN2 to air on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Eastern, 11:30 a.m. Central.
Last season at the half-mile, Donny Schatz swept both nights of racing at his home track en route to his first World of Outlaws title. In the opener he got around Joey Saldana with just six laps remaining to earn the preliminary feature win. In the finale, he led from wire-to-wire to earn the $12,000 payday. He won his first World of Outlaws A-Feature at his home track in 2002.
The native of Fargo will lead the series back to Red River Valley Speedway on the strength of a series-best eight A-Feature wins. He also has a series-best five A-Feature wins on half-mile tracks. In the first 36 events of the season, Schatz has 33 Top-10 finishes as he continues to lead the championship standings, in pursuit of his second consecutive title. He has set fast time three times and also is tied for the series lead with five wins in the Crane Cams Dash.
Joey Saldana finished third in both events at the track last season. He led 19 laps in the opener and also earned a spot in the Crane Cams Dash on both nights. This season he has won seven times, driving for NASCAR star Kasey Kahne. He has been quickest in time trials six times to lead the series, and also has won two dashes to earn the same number of pole positions.
Danny Lasoski finished fourth in his last visit to Red River Valley Speedway in 2005. The 2001 World of Outlaws Champion has three wins this season and is third in points heading into the Duel in the Dakotas. He earned his 27th Top-10 finish of the season on Monday night at Black Hills Speedway when he finished fourth.
Daryn Pittman earned two Top-10 finishes last season at the half-mile. He won last weekend at Dodge City Raceway Park in the second event of the "SuperClean Summer of Money" on ESPN2. He enters the Duel in the Dakotas fourth in championship points on the strength of three A-Feature wins and 25 Top-10 finishes.
Jason Meyers competed at Red River Valley Speedway three times in 2005. He won the finale of the Duel in the Dakotas and finished second in both of the other events. He has won three events this season, including the opener of the Boot Hill Showdown last weekend at Dodge City Raceway Park in Kansas, and is solidly in the Top-Five in points.
Steve Kinser swept the entire night of racing in his last visit to Red River Speedway in the fall of 2005. On that night, he set fast time, won the first heat race, win the Crane Cams Dash, and led every one of the 30 laps in the A-Feature. He enters the Duel in the Dakotas this season with seven A-Feature wins and 23 Top-10 finishes. He has won at Red River Valley Speedway nine times in his career.
Craig Dollansky finished in the Top-Five on both nights of the Duel in the Dakotas last season. He currently holds the track record in qualifying at Red River Valley Speedway with a lap of 14.769 seconds set in 2002. The former World of Outlaws Gumout Series champion has one A-Feature win this season along with 23 Top-10 finishes.
Paul McMahan finished in the Top-10 in his last trip to Red River Valley Speedway in the fall of 2005. The California native who now calls Nashville home is currently eighth in World of Outlaws championships points on the strength of 16 Top-10 finishes, with one of those being his first win of the season at Eldora Speedway earlier this month. He is in the midst of his second season driving for two-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart.
Jason Solwold last competed at the half-mile in 2005. He heads to North Dakota this season ninth in points, on the strength of 20 Top-10 finishes, with seven of those being in the Top-Five. He has set fast time three times and also has a win in the Crane Cams Dash.
Tim Shaffer last competed at Red River Valley Speedway in 2005 and earned two Top-10 finishes. He is coming off a fifth-place run on Monday at Black Hills Speedway. The 1999 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year has 17 Top-10 finishes this season, with 11 of those being in the Top-Five.
Jac Haudenschild finished in the Top-10 on both nights at the half-mile last season. The veteran from Wooster, Ohio is just outside the Top-10 in the championship standings with 14 Top-10 finishes.
Terry McCarl attended the Duel in Dakotas last season, but was not able to compete as he continued to recover from a severely broken left leg. He set fast time on the second night of the Duel in the Dakotas in 2005. He won his first World of Outlaws A-Feature of the season at his home track, Knoxville Raceway on June 16, in the opener of the "SuperClean Summer of Money" on ESPN2.
Jason Sides earned two Top-10 finishes in 2005 at the Red River Valley Speedway. The native of Bartlett, Tennessee and 2003 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year has 11 Top-10 finishes on the season.
Randy Hannagan set fast time in the finale of the Duel in the Dakotas last season, and backed that up with a seventh-place finish in the A-Feature. He earned a season-best second-place finish on June 16 at Knoxville Raceway, after leading the first 18 laps of the event.
Kerry Madsen came with a lap of earning his second A-Feature win of the season on Monday night at Black Hills Speedway. The native of St. Mary's, NSW, Australia led the first 34 laps of the event and finished second to reigning series champion Donny Schatz. Madsen won earlier this season on a half-mile at Volusia Speedway Park in Florida.
Also in action on Saturday, June 30 will be second-year driver Justin Henderson who finished in the Top-10 in both nights of the Duel in the Dakotas last season, as well as reigning Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Chad Kemenah, rookie Chad Hiller of Washington, second-year driver Jeremy Campbell of Michigan who competed in the Duel in the Dakotas last season and rookie Zach Chappell of Oklahoma.
Brooke Tatnell will be in attendance on Saturday, after finishing fourth and seventh last season at the track, as will second-year driver Jason Martin of Kansas, veteran Dion Hindi of New Mexico and Brian Carlson of Indiana, who won a heat race at the track last season.
Other rookie contenders that will make their first visit to the high-banked half-mile will be Tony Bruce Jr. of Kansas and Sam Hafertepe Jr. of Texas.
The finale of the Duel in the Dakotas will be broadcast on ESPN2 as part of the "SuperClean Summer of Money" on Sunday, July 1 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern, 11:30 a.m. Central.
On Saturday, June 30 at Red River Valley Speedway adult reserved tickets will be $33 with adult tickets $35 the day of the race, with reserved tickets for kids 12-under $15. General admission tickets for adults will be $28 in advance and $30 the day of the race, with general admission tickets for kids 6-12 $15, while kids 5-under will be admitted free to the general admission seating area.
Also a two-day ticket is available for the Duel in the Dakota for $62 reserved
Grand Forks (Rows P & Q) / Fargo (Rows 19 & 20 and $52 general admission. (*Plus $5 handling fee until 5 tickets then $1 per ticket thereafter).
For ticket information call SLS Promotions at: 815-344-2023 or visit http:// www.slspromotions.com.
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