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Wednesdays with Wayne – Ohio/Indiana Trip This Weekend!
(Bill W) May 21, 2014 – After pulling double duty at Knoxville, the Wayne Johnson Racing #77x team heads to Ohio and Indiana this weekend. Friday and Saturday, they will race with the All Stars at Fremont Speedway before heading to Lawrenceburg (IN) Speedway with the World of Outlaws on Monday. Last weekend resulted in a 13th place finish in the 410 feature and a blown motor after winning the heat race in the 360.
Wayne would qualify 17th in the 410 class. “We were way too loose in qualifying,” he says. “The driver screwed up. I had Daryl (Turford) change the left rear shock and I forgot to adjust it. It was tied all the way down. Just stupid on my part.”
Despite winning heat races in both classes, Wayne weighed in on tire issues in sprint car racing right now. “Every driver and every fan has a theory on what’s going on,” he says. “And every driver may feel differently than the next one. This is my opinion on it. I won both heats, but in the 410 one, my car sucked. There’s just no way anyone could pass me. I was in clean air with track position. To pass a car, with these tires, you have to be a ton better. Some may not agree with me, but it’s the way I feel.”
He lined up 14th in the 410 feature. “Knoxville is all about momentum,” says Wayne. “There was a little better bottom than when I was there two weeks prior. But every time I would pass a couple of cars, if I messed up one time, six laps of work were down the drain right there. If you miss, you lose all of your momentum and it takes forever to get going again with these tires. Right now, with these tires, you need to follow the driver in front of you, and wait for a mistake. When you start searching and looking for stuff…you’re going to make mistakes and get smoked. Right now, if there is grip on the bottom or on the top with these tires, everyone is going to run that groove because they’re the exact same speed. It’s hard to make anything happen. There’s not a lot of passing going on right now. Most of the passing you see is on the restarts. That’s where (Brian) Brown got them last week too.”
Though he maintained a 13th place finish, Wayne took note of those around him. “Jason Meyers is a two-time World of Outlaws champion,” he says. “He started ninth and backed up. Jason Johnson is an ASCS champion. He backed up. My theory is that you can’t move around and search on the track. I guarantee you that’s what those guys were doing. When Brown passed him, Terry (McCarl) was searching the track trying to catch the leaders. That’s why he got passed. You just can’t do that anymore. There is no better spot right now with these tires. The spot is where everyone is. It’s not the track, it’s the tires. Knoxville has had these kinds of tracks forever. There was some grip on the bottom, you just can’t get there with these tires.”
Despite not running up front, Wayne felt good about the car. “My car felt really good in the feature…but where are you going to pass when everyone is freight-training the top?” he says. “It’s hard to get a run on someone when you’re the same speed. There aren’t any slidejobs going on. If you start one, you don’t know if you’re ever going to quit sliding.”
Unfortunately, after timing in tenth and winning the heat in the 360 class, the motor let go. “The 360 was running really well,” says Wayne. “I screwed up in qualifying. I was way too tight. We worked on it and got it better for the heat. It was just unfortunate that we lost the motor. Dennis Parks built a good one there, and I feel bad for him too.”
Wayne and the team will leave for Fremont on Friday.
Take Advantage of Wayne’s Deals on Apparel!
New Wayne Johnson Racing #77x t-shirts and sweatshirts are in! With any purchase of this year’s apparel, you can get a free t-shirt from 2013 while sizes and supplies last!
Follow Updates on Facebook!
Wayne will update as his race night commences at his Facebook page. Find it by searching for Wayne Johnson Racing or clicking the following link…
http://www.facebook.com/#!/WayneJohnsonRacing
Outlaw Wings – “The Wing with an Attitude”
Check out the new “recessed rivet” design put out by Outlaw Wings. Talk to Wayne about purchasing Outlaw Wings for your car! Outlaw Wings – "The Wing with an Attitude"!
Wayne's Fast Facts
In 2007, Wayne won four USCS features in six tries. They were recorded at North Florida Speedway (2-3-07), Malden Speedway (MO) (4-20-07), Clay Hill Motorsports (TN) (5-28-07) and Columbus Speedway (MS) (11-10-07). The event at Columbus Speedway featured two main events. Wayne won the first one, started 20th in the second and charged to fourth.
Partner of the Week – Schoenfeld Headers
Founded in 1974, Schoenfeld Headers is the largest circle track header manufacturer in the world. At Schoenfeld Headers, they listen to you, the customer, understanding your needs and giving you a quality product at a fair price. Check out their catalog at www.SchoenfeldHeaders.com today!
"Wednesday's with Wayne"
"Wednesday's With Wayne" is an up close look at the past, present and future of colorful and talented sprint car driver Wayne Johnson. You'll never know what to expect next with Wayne, so don't miss us on Wednesdays!
To receive "Wednesday's with Wayne", send an e-mail to [email protected] with"Wayne" in the subject line.
Wayne Johnson Racing would like to thank partners, Todd Carlile, Vern Rengen, Miles with Townline Variety, Russell with Outlaw Wings, Ray with City Vending, Scott with Stone Mountain Access Systems and product sponsors Bill with The Oil Medics, Byron with Sebastian Sandblasting & Powdercoating, Jeff with 517 Design, Shawna and Kaleb with Triple X Race Components, Bob with Rod End Supply, Dave with Astro Titanium, Mark and Doug with Schoenfeld Headers, Desiree at Simpson, Jeannie at Butlerbuilt, Tom at Xtreme Accu-Tach, Carl with Kustom Sprint Car, Brad with Momentum, Charlie with Fisher Racing Engines, Team Achieve and Tim with Canyon Apparel.
Bill W Media
Monroe, IA USA
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