JACKSONVILLE, IL (April 30, 2024) - An action-packed trio of races are next for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars.
A stretch of three races in four nights this week kicks off with a highly anticipated bullring battle at Illinois’ Jacksonville Speedway on Wednesday, May 1, for the Hy-Vee Perks 40. The 1/4 mile in the Land of Lincoln never fails to deliver thrilling action with its tight confines. The Greatest Show on Dirt has made four previous trips to Jacksonville, most recently in 2021.
It’s a diverse week in terms of the style of racetracks. After the midweek stop at Jacksonville, the tour rolls to Rossburg, OH where the wide, high banked, 1/2 mile that is Eldora Speedway awaits. With 235 previous visits, “The Big E” is the most visited track in Series history and will add two more tallies to that total on May 3-4. #LetsRaceTwo gives winged and wingless Sprint Car fans everything they could want as the World of Outlaws are joined by the USAC National Sprint Cars both nights.
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Let’s look at the week’s top storylines:
MACEDO’S MOMENT: The 2024 season has been an uphill battle for Carson Macedo and Jason Johnson Racing since beginning the year with four straight finishes outside the top 10. They’ve clawed their way forward with 11 consecutive top 10s including five podiums, and this week presents an excellent opportunity to gain more ground.
Macedo will be the only driver in the pit area this week with a World of Outlaws win at both Jacksonville and Eldora. Back in 2019 Macedo topped the Jacksonville visit for his fifth career Series victory. Eldora is equaled for the winningest track on Macedo’s World of Outlaws résumé. The Lemoore, CA native has topped a trio of races at “The Big E,” all aboard the JJR #41. The most recent was last year’s Knight Before the Kings Royal.
Three nights at two tracks that have been kind to Macedo offers the chance to make up more ground as he chases a title. He’s currently fifth in points, only four markers behind fourth and 68 behind David Gravel for the top spot.
ELDORA EXCELLENCE: There’s something about Eldora Speedway that seems to perfectly suit Donny Schatz. Maybe he likes to up his game at his race team’s boss – Tony Stewart’s – racetrack. Whatever it is, you can almost always count on Schatz to be up front at Eldora.
The historic half mile is responsible for 18 of Schatz’s 313 career World of Outlaws victories, most recently claiming his sixth Kings Royal crown last July. The 10-time Series champion has 19 total Eldora triumphs having also topped the 2002 Historical Big One.
It’s not just about winning for Schatz at Eldora. He’s also extraordinarily consistent. In his last 90 Eldora Feature starts, Schatz has missed the top 10 only eight times. Exactly half of those starts (45) have resulted in podiums.
BIG E VICTORY: Macedo and Schatz aren’t the only current full-time World of Outlaws competitors with Eldora success under their belt.
The Ohio oval is home to four of Logan Schuchart’s 41 career Series wins. The Shark Racing pilot picked up the most recent of those four during last year’s #LetsRaceTwo opener. Schuchart also famously topped the Eldora Million last July to take home the biggest payday in Sprint Car history.
Current Series point leader David Gravel also owns four Series triumphs at Eldora. They’ve been spread between three teams with a 2014 win with Roth Motorsports, one in 2016 with CJB Motorsports, and a pair in 2022 with his current team – Big Game Motorsports. The Watertown, CT native also scored $52,000 with the All-Star Circuit of Champions at Eldora in 2020.
Ohio’s own Sheldon Haudenschild has made one previous trip to Eldora Speedway Victory Lane, driving the Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17 to the win during 2021’s #LetsRaceTwo. With three victories already in 2024, he’s currently tied with Gravel as the Series leader in wins this season.
BSHEPP’S CROSSOVER: Wednesday’s visit to Jacksonville will serve up one of the most interesting World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car debuts in Series history. Four-time World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model champion – Brandon Sheppard – is trading the fenders for some open-wheel action.
Sheppard is jumping in an entry fielded by his cousins – Jake and Jim Neuman – that will have his familiar #B5 on the wing. It’s set to be a home game Series debut as Sheppard calls New Berlin, IL home – a mere 20 miles from Jacksonville.
The all-time winningest driver with the World of Outlaws Late Models isn’t entirely unfamiliar with Sprint Cars. Sheppard turned some laps from time to time near the end of the 2000s and the beginning of the 2010s.
DIVERSE FIELD: On top of the unique addition of Sheppard to Wednesday’s roster, the Jacksonville pit area is expected to fill with a variety of drivers to create a diverse field.
Chase Briscoe intends to make his first World of Outlaws Sprint Car appearance since a 2018 trip to Tri-State Speedway. The NASCAR Cup Series full-timer is fresh off picking up a Sprint Car win as a car owner as Karter Sarff claimed the Midwest Open Wheel Association (MOWA) checkered flag at Red Hill Raceway aboard the CBR #5 three nights ago. Now, it’s Briscoe’s turn to have some fun behind the wheel at Jacksonville.
On the local side, Pocahontas, IL’s Zach Daum plans to make his second Series appearance of the season. Daum owns plenty of Midget laps around Jacksonville including a POWRi win back in 2016. It’s also home to his one career World of Outlaws top 10 in 2019.
Logan Seavey will be back in the World of Outlaws pit area for the first time in two years as he hops aboard a Landon Simon Racing entry for Wednesday. The Sutter, CA native is a familiar face to Jacksonville fans as he’s won five times at the Illinois oval in POWRi Midget action. Seavey has also raced there twice in a Sprint Car with MOWA, finishing third and fifth.
This trio will be accompanied by many others ready to battle the World of Outlaws in some midweek bullring action.
THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
WHEN AND WHERE
Wednesday, May 1 at Jacksonville Speedway in Jacksonville, ILFriday-Saturday, May 3-4 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, OH
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CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (15/80 Races):
1. David Gravel – Big Game Motorsports #2 (2110 PTS)
2. Donny Schatz – Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15 (-34 PTS)
3. Giovanni Scelzi – KCP Racing #18 (-52 PTS)
4. Logan Schuchart – Shark Racing #1S (-64 PTS)
5. Carson Macedo – Jason Johnson Racing #41 (-68 PTS)
6. Michael Kofoid – Roth Motorsports #83 (-108 PTS)
7. Sheldon Haudenschild – Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17 (-154 PTS)
8. Bill Balog – B Squared Motorsports #17B (-210 PTS)
9. Brock Zearfoss – Brock Zearfoss Racing #3Z (-314 PTS)
10. Landon Crawley – Sides Motorsports #7S (-388 PTS)
NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (10 Drivers):
3 Wins – David Gravel, Sheldon Haudenschild
2 Wins – Donny Schatz
1 Win – Brad Sweet, Tyler Courtney, Brent Marks, Giovanni Scelzi, Carson Macedo, Rico Abreu, Brady Bacon
FEATURE LAPS LED (13 Drivers):
94 Laps – David Gravel
77 Laps – Sheldon Haudenschild
56 Laps – Giovanni Scelzi
55 Laps – Carson Macedo
54 Laps – Rico Abreu
42 Laps – Donny Schatz
26 Laps – Brady Bacon
25 Laps – Brad Sweet
13 Laps – Anthony Macri, Michael Kofoid
11 Laps – Bill Balog
3 Laps – Brent Marks
1 Lap – Tyler Courtney
SIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS QUICKTIME AWARDS (8 Drivers):
4 Quick Times – Carson Macedo
2 Quick Times – Brent Marks, Michael Kofoid, Giovanni Scelzi, David Gravel
1 Quick Time – Landon Crawley, Brian Brown, Aaron Reutzel
HEAT RACE WINNERS (20 Drivers):
8 Heat Wins – David Gravel
6 Heat Wins – Giovanni Scelzi, Sheldon Haudenschild
5 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, Michael Kofoid
4 Heat Wins – Brent Marks, Rico Abreu
2 Heat Wins – Brian Brown, Tyler Courtney, Landon Crawley
1 Heat Win – Corey Day, Justin Peck, Bill Balog, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Logan Schuchart, Bill Rose, Ryan Timms, Donny Schatz, Danny Sams III
TOYOTA DASH APPEARANCES (30 Drivers):
12 Dashes – David Gravel
11 Dashes – Giovanni Scelzi
10 Dashes – Carson Macedo
9 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Michael Kofoid
7 Dashes – Rico Abreu, Bill Balog
5 Dashes – Brent Marks, Donny Schatz, Landon Crawley, Logan Schuchart
4 Dashes – Tyler Courtney, Brian Brown
2 Dashes – Brad Sweet, Aaron Reutzel
1 Dash – Anthony Macri, Justin Peck, Zeb Wise, Corey Day, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Bill Rose, Ryan Timms, Garet Williamson, James McFadden, Logan McCandless, Ayrton Gennetten, Brady Bacon, Emerson Axsom, Danny Sams III
MICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (12 Drivers):
1 LCS – Austin McCarl, Bill Balog, Corey Day, Kasey Kahne, Koty Adams, Jace Park, Anthony Macri, Landon Crawley, Logan McCandless, Garet Williamson, Brock Zearfoss, Kevin Newton
KSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (12 Drivers):
2 Hard Chargers – Carson Macedo, Logan Schuchart, Donny Schatz
1 Hard Charger – Aaron Reutzel, Jace Park, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Brock Zearfoss, Chase Randall, Chris Windom, Noah Gass, Austin McCarl, Giovanni Scelzi
PODIUM FINISHES (15 Drivers):
8 Podiums – David Gravel
5 Podiums – Donny Schatz, Carson Macedo, Michael Kofoid
4 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild
3 Podiums – Brad Sweet, Rico Abreu, Giovanni Scelzi
2 Podiums – Tyler Courtney, Brent Marks
1 Podium – Justin Peck, Anthony Macri, Aaron Reutzel, Bill Balog, Brady Bacon
TOP 10 FINISHES (36 Drivers):
14 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi
13 Top 10s – Donny Schatz, David Gravel, Logan Schuchart
12 Top 10s – Michael Kofoid
11 Top 10s – Carson Macedo
9 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild, Bill Balog
6 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney
5 Top 10s – Brent Marks, Rico Abreu
4 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Brock Zearfoss
3 Top 10s – Brad Sweet, Brian Brown, Aaron Reutzel
2 Top 10s – Ryan Timms, Chase Randall, Cole Macedo
1 Top 10 – Justin Peck, Kasey Kahne, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Zeb Wise, Corey Day, Cory Eliason, Landon Crawley, Jacob Allen, Chris Windom, Garet Williamson, James McFadden, Joe B. Miller, Kraig Kinser, Ayrton Gennetten, Brady Bacon, Emerson Axsom, Scotty Milan
2024 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Wed, Feb 7 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Brad Sweet (1)
2. Thurs, Feb 8 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)
3. Fri, Feb 9 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Tyler Courtney (1)
4. Sat, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)
5. Mon, March 4 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1)
6. Fri, March 15 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Brent Marks (1)
7. Sat, March 16 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Giovanni Scelzi (1)
8. Sat, March 23 / Kennedale Speedway Park / Kennedale, TX / Carson Macedo (1)
9. Sat, March 30 / 81 Speedway / Wichita, KS / Rico Abreu (1)
10. Fri, April 5 / US 36 Raceway / Osborn, MO / David Gravel (2)
11. Sat, April 6 / Arrowhead Speedway / Colcord, OK / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
12. Fri, April 12 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / David Gravel (3)
13. Sat, April 13 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Donny Schatz (2)
14. Fri, April 19 / Paducah International Raceway / Paducah, KY / Sheldon Haudenschild (3)
15. Sat, April 20 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Brady Bacon (1)
For the full 2024 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car schedule, CLICK HERE.
Photo - Trent Gower
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