(Photo by Malcolm White Photography)
Inside Line Promotions – YAKIMA, Wash. (Sept. 22, 2014) – Austen Wheatley wrapped up his first weekend at Central Washington State Fair Raceway in five years by garnering a top five last Saturday.
“The speed is definitely there,” he said. “I think we could have had two top fives and possibly a win on Friday.”
Unfortunately, Wheatley ran into mechanical issues during the feature on Friday after he had rallied from a slow start.
“We fought it early on Friday,” he said. “The 360 stuff gets pretty bound up. I dropped from third to sixth in my heat, which wasn’t good.”
Wheatley then maneuvered from sixth to second place in the B Main and from 18th to sixth in the feature.
“We figured it out pretty good,” he said. “It was just really tight on the curb. We freed it up a bunch. We were up to sixth with 12 laps remaining and then we had a caution. Under caution it was cutting in and out and then it just died.”
The electrical problem forced Wheatley to the pits early and he was credited with a 17th-place finish.
He concluded the weekend on Saturday by advancing from seventh to fourth place in his heat race. That earned him enough points to lock into the feature redraw, where he was given the highest number – eight – during the random draw. It started him on the outside of the fourth row for the main event.
“The track took rubber really, really early,” he said. “I think it took everybody by surprise. There was a little bit of a top, but it was so dirty you couldn’t get a hold of it. I got to fourth early on and then Logan (Forler) found the rubber a car width and a half below what I was running. I was just too high in the rubber. I felt it in the middle and it actually came in on the bottom.”
Wheatley maintained a top five for the remainder of the race before ending fifth. It marked his seventh top five of the season.
He is scheduled to compete in his first 360ci sprint car race at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash., since 2010 this Saturday.
QUICK RESULTS –
Sept. 19 – Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash. – Heat race: 6 (3); B Main: 2 (6); Feature: 17 (18).
Sept. 20 – Central Washington State Fair Raceway in Yakima, Wash. – Heat race: 4 (7); Feature: 5 (8).
SEASON STATS –
47 races, 1 win, 7 top fives, 8 top 10s, 12 top 15s, 21 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Saturday at Grays Harbor Raceway in Elma, Wash.
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.AustenWheatley.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AustenWheatley
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DownForceDesigns?fref=ts
APPAREL –
Wheatley will have t-shirts and hoodies for sale at every race he competes at this season. For his schedule of races, visit http://www.AustenWheatley.com.
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Astro Titanium
Established in 1999, Astro Titanium manufactures quality titanium fasteners for sprint cars and midgets. Based out of Noti, Ore., owner Dave Sims has developed his business into a titanium leader on a national scale. For more information, visit http://www.AstroTitanium.com.
“Astro Titanium and Dave Sims have been with me since the beginning of my career,” Wheatley said. “Anytime we have a problem, we call Dave up and he helps. He’s a really personable guy and his products work great.”
Wheatley would also like to thank Redlined Welding & Construction, Downforce Designs, The Oil Medics, Fire-Down Graphics, SpeedMart, Bell and King Racing Products for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program and to join Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or InsideLinePromotions@gmail.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Sep 22, 2014
- Article Date: 9/22/2014 by Inside Line Promotions