Inside Line Promotions – SOMERTON, Ariz. (July 2, 2015) – As the midpoint of the 2015 season arrives plans are going into effect for the newest marquee event of the offseason.
The second edition of the Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown, which is a prominent 410ci sprint car event that debuted at Cocopah Speedway in 2015, is only six months away. The 3/8-mile oval will host Winter Heat races on Jan. 1-2, Jan. 5 and Jan. 8-9, 2016, and will feature the same purse of approximately $250,000. The four weekend races pay $12,000 to win and $1,000 to start with the midweek race providing $5,000 to the winner.
“We had a very successful inaugural Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown and we’re looking for things to be bigger and better in 2016,” Cocopah Speedway Director of Operations Greg Burgess said. “We have some big announcements to make in the near future and can’t wait to continue the momentum from this past January.”
The first-ever Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown was a throwback to the Slick 50 days in the early 1990s, when many of the prominent sprint car competitors headed to the desert during the offseason for several premier races.
“I’ve always wanted to promote one of the biggest sprint car events and after a couple of years of planning, with the help of Tony Stewart and others, we decided to debut the Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown in 2015,” Burgess said. “There was a lot of risk involved, especially in the first year. We believed if we worked hard it would come together and everything worked extremely well for the first year. Now the plan is to make this an annual event for the drivers, teams and fans to look forward to.”
More than 35 of the top sprint car competitors in the country, including drivers from the West Coast to the East Coast and former champions with the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, All Star Circuit of Champions and ASCS National Tour as well as NASCAR stars Kasey Kahne and Kyle Larson, embarked upon Cocopah Speedway during the first two weeks of the year.
World of Outlaws veteran Paul McMahan held off fellow Outlaw Joey Saldana to claim the opening round before Larson outlasted Stevie Smith during an epic slide-fest in thick traffic to win Round 2.
Steve Kinser, who is the winningest driver in the history of the World of Outlaws, powered to the victory during the midweek race as McMahan used a runner-up result to regain the lead in the championship standings during the midpoint of the event.
Danny Lasoski capitalized on a last-lap pass in traffic to garner the triumph during Round 4 after Dale Blaney, the winningest driver in All Star history, led the majority of the main event.
Aaron Reutzel capped the inaugural Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown by earning his first career 410ci feature victory during the finale. Meanwhile, Lasoski earned the Hard Charger Award for maneuvering from 16th to sixth, which also propelled him into a tie with Smith for the overall championship. However, Lasoski was awarded the title based on the first tiebreaker of feature victories.
Saldana, McMahan and Northwest standout Roger Crockett rounded out the top five in the championship standings, respectively.
Parity was the name of the game throughout the event as there was a first-time winner in every main event and B Main during all five races and there wasn’t a repeat Hard Charger Award recipient.
Eight different drivers led at least one feature lap, including Reutzel, whose 46 laps led was the event high.
Reutzel and Lasoski were the only feature winners to have not won a B Main. McMahan, Kinser and Larson each recorded a consolation victory.
A total of 13 drivers scored at least one heat race win with Craig Dollansky recording an event-best three.
Kahne and Sam Hafertepe Jr. each claimed three qualifiers to lead the 13 drivers who recorded at least one.
2016 WINTER HEAT SPRINT CAR SHOWDOWN –
Dates: Jan. 1-2, Jan. 5 and Jan. 8-9, 2016
Track: Cocopah Speedway in Somerton, Ariz.
Prize: $12,000-to-win, $1,000-to-start each night (Jan. 1-2, 8-9); $5,000-to-win (Jan. 5); approximately $250,000 total prize money
Type: 410ci sprint cars
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.CocopahSpeedway.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CocopahShowdown
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WinterHeatSprintCarShowdown
THE EVENT –
The 2nd annual Winter Heat Sprint Car Showdown will showcase the top sprint car drivers in the world in sunny Southwest Arizona during the first two weeks of January in 2016. The four weekend races pay $12,000 to the winner and at least $1,000 to every driver who advances to the main event with the midweek show paying $5,000 to win.
COCOPAH SPEEDWAY –
Cocopah Speedway is a semi-banked, 3/8-mile dirt track located in Somerton, Ariz. It has a concrete wall perimeter, television-quality lighting and the pits are located outside turns three and four. There is also dry camping free of charge on the property. For more information, visit http://www.CocopahSpeedway.com.
COMETIC GASKET –
Cometic Gasket, Inc., is a leading worldwide supplier of shelf stock, custom and short-run gaskets for the performance aftermarket, original equipment and motor sports industries. The company, which is located in Concord, Ohio, was created in 1989 and ships out more than 5,000 types of gaskets to customers worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.Cometic.com.
JE PISTONS –
JE Pistons is the leader in high performance forged pistons. Based in Irvine, Calif., the company has more than 60 years of experience and has a history of manufacturing the highest quality pistons and components that professional engine builders, race teams and high-performance enthusiasts trust and rely on. For more information, visit http://www.JEPistons.com.
K1 TECHNOLOGIES –
K1 Technologies, which is located in Mentor, Ohio, has many years in the field of designing, engineering and manufacturing connecting rods and crankshafts. For more information, visit http://www.K1Technologies.com.
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 by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
- Shawn Miller on Jul 02, 2015
- Article Date: 7/2/2015 by Inside Line Promotions