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CHICO, CA (9-10-05) - The King of the Outlaws admitted himself
that winning back to back events during the three day Gold Cup Race of
Champions is tough to do and winning it from the pole is not easy either,
as Kinser knows very well from past Gold Cup’s where he started on the
point and didn’t win the race. Saturday, however, Kinser beat his own
odds, winning for the second time in two nights and driving from the pole
position to claim the $25,000 victory at John Padjen’s Silver Dollar
Speedway.
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| FINISH |
DRIVER |
START |
| 1. |
Steve Kinser |
(1) |
| 2. |
Tim Shaffer |
(3) |
| 3. |
Craig Dollansky |
(2) |
| 4. |
Donny Schatz |
(8) |
| 5. |
Joey Saldana |
(13) |
| 6. |
Jason Solwold |
(4) |
| 7. |
Jason Meyers |
(7) |
| 8. |
Jac Haudenschild |
(5) |
| 9. |
Paul McMahan |
(11) |
| 10. |
Brooke Tatnell |
(9) |
| Complete Results |
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“Winning back to back races at a race like this is tough to do,”
said Kinser. “In fact to me its nearly not possible not matter where you
start. My team gives me great cars race after race and when you have great
cars you learn how to drive them better. It doesn’t matter how long you’ve
been doing this, you still can learn to drive better when you have a great
car and a great team behind you.”
After winning the preliminary feature event the night before, Kinser
started the 40-lap feature event on the pole with Thursday’s winner,
Craig Dollansky on the outside of the front row. Many times the King of
The Outlaws has earned the point in the 40-lap feature of the Fall Classic
but all too often the good fortune that placed him the top starting spot
would fall short once the race began. The majority of Kinser’s dozen
wins in the Gold Cup have come from within the line up of the field.
With lighting visible to the south and heading towards the Silver
Dollar Fairground the World of Outlaws officiating staff and that of John
Padjen Motorsports worked diligently to keep Saturday’s program running
efficiently and preventing any events from being shortened due to wet
weather. The hard work of the staff produced what many fans were calling
one of the best Gold Cup battles in recent history.
With the waving of the green flag in the A-feature, the early lead was
claimed by Dollansky as he overtook Kinser in the fourth turn of the
opening lap. While Dollansky powered ahead, Kinser was challenged in the
early laps by Tim Shaffer as Jason Solwold, both whom were chasing down
Kinser just prior to an early yellow flag on lap four that regrouped the
field for a restart that played out well for Kinser.
On the restarting green, Kinser overtook Dollansky on the badkstretch
of lap seven. Although the scoresheet for the race show Kinser in the lead
for the remainder of the race, he and Dolansky traded time in the front
position lap after lap, Kinser, however, managed to keep his #11 Quaker
State in front of Dollansky every time they reached the start finish line
to claim the official lead.
Going both high and low, Kinser and Dollansky put on a show for the
lead that kept the fans on the edge of their seats in unusual cool
temperatures. While the two leaders kept the action heated up beneath a
backdrop of lightning just miles away the battle for the next three
positions was far from being lackluster as welll with Jac Haudenschild,
Donny Schatz, Joey Saldana and Solwood all shuffling for position with
lapped traffic for much of the event.
When the checkered flag waved Kinser received a standing ovation from
the crowd while Shaffer passed Dollansky at the finish line to steal the
bridesmaid position. Dollansky finished third followed by Schatz, Saldana
and Solwold.
“The car was tight on the bottom so had to take it in halfway before
I could get it to slide in how I needed it to,” said Kinser, after
winning his 22nd feature of the season. “It felt like I was losing the
lead every lap of this deal, especially when I went to the top and took a
chance a few times.”
In the B-main event Saturday, Shane Stewart won the event ahead of
Jonathan Allard but it was the three positions after that which put on a
show. Brent Kaeding maintained the third position for much of the race
with Greg DeCaires and Dennis Moore Jr. battling for the fourth transfer
position. On the final lap Kaeding broke a water hose and spread fluid on
the high line of the track. Both DeCaires and Moore were forced to brake
to avoid Kaeding and the slick area, allowing Toni Lutar to steal the
transfer position for the checkered flag.
The C-main event was won by Kraig Kinser Saturday. Brett Rollag won the
D-main event aboard a 360 powered car. The E-main was claimed by Troy
DeGaton. Bonus funds were awarded to the top finishing 360’s for the
52nd Annual Gold Cup. Jimmy Trulli of Placerville was the highest finisher
with a ninth place finish in the B-main event. Rollag was the second most
successful 360 driver, placing 7th in the C-feature. Brent Dothag was the
third highest 360, placing 8th in the C-main.
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