Shane Stewart Leads Larson Marks to First Win of 2015 at FVP Outlaw Showdown
Stewart’s win makes him the fourth different winner in four races so far this season
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - March 4, 2015 - Shane Stewart became the fourth different driver in four World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series races to park his car in victory lane following his win at Wednesday night's FVP Outlaw Showdown at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Stewart battled Brian Brown throughout the feature. As the laps wound down and the two cars worked through several cautions and lapped traffic, Brown gave Stewart and his Go-Pro/Eneos team a run for its money.
"It's so hard to dictate your speeds sometimes when you get to the lapped cars," Stewart said. "I thought the one caution when I was in heavy lapped traffic - I didn't think that helped me, I thought it was going to hurt me."
"On the last restart I thought I might want to restart up top but my car was pretty good on the bottom. Brian's a tough competitor and he's proven that he can win these races too… Very happy to get our first win this early in the season and hopefully we keep this momentum for the season."
The win gives Larson Marks Racing its first win of 2015 and first win as a full-time touring team with the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series.
Team co-owner Kyle Larson credited Stewart and crew members Steve Suchy, Scotty Martin and Andrew Seamans for putting in long hours over the winter to get the team in position to win races this early in the season.
"They're still piecing stuff together because the chassis got stuck in customs," Larson said. The team gets its chassis from Australia-based Cool Chassis.
"We didn't run for points last year but I thought consistently Shane was second best to Schatz the last half of the Outlaw season," Larson said. "Hopefully that momentum will carry over to start the season - it already has. Just thankful these guys got a big win tonight."
Brown, who won his last World of Outlaws series appearance at Bad Boy Buggies World Finals, said he had opportunities in the closing laps to make a run at Stewart, but every time Brown tried to chop Stewart, Stewart went across his line.
With Brown's sponsor FVP serving as the title sponsor of the event, he said he hoped to run one spot better but was not upset with a podium finish.
"We left Missouri and if you told us we could run top-three with the Outlaws on the first night we would have took it," Brown said. "Just don't know what I could have did different just maybe got a little bit better of a start or maybe protected my line there in the beginning."
Joey Saldana battled Terry McCarl early on eventually getting around him on lap 13. Saldana then held off challenges from Paul McMahan and Daryn Pittman to take the third spot. If not for the late caution, Saldana said he thought he could have made a run at the lead in his Motter Equipment car.
"The bottom of three and four was coming in and I don't think the 2 and 21 realized it was there," he said. "They didn't need to - they had a pretty good race going on. And then lapped traffic was pretty good. You win them and you lose them that way."
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series returns to action Thursday night for the second and final night of the FVP Outlaw Showdown at The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
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FVP OUTLAW SHOWDOWN NOTES: Dominic Scelzi was the night's KSE Hard Charger, advancing 11 positions to finish in ninth… This was the first World of Outlaws win of the season for Larson Marks Racing… Tonight's win was the sixth of Shane Stewart's career… Jason Johnson, Brian Brown, David Gravel and Terry McCarl all won their heat races Wednesday night7
SEASON WINNERS: Daryn Pittman - 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 13); Donny Schatz - 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 14); Shane Stewart - 1 (The Dirt Track at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on March 5); Brad Sweet - 1 (Volusia Speedway Park on Feb. 15)
- administrator on Mar 05, 2015
- Article Date: 3/4/2015