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WoO champ falters down the stretch
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Donny Schatz will have to wait until this weekend to claim $50,000.
Schatz dominated early and appeared unstoppable in the second leg of the Ollie's Outlet 360 Challenge at Eldora Speedway on Tuesday, July 8. But just as quickly his night went up in smoke. The two-time defending World of Outlaws champ and defending Kings Royal winner started smoking on Lap 20, just 10 laps from the finish.
He tried limping on, but he slowed down the backstretch for the caution to hand the lead to Jason Johnson. Johnson held off Sam Hafertepe Jr. in a two-wide battle in the final three laps. Hafertepe pulled ahead of Johnson on Lap 27 but couldn't hold the momentum.
"We came out on a mission tonight," said Johnson. "It was my first feature win at Eldora. This is sweet."
Kasey Kahne was running just outside the top five late in the race and Dave Blaney never challenged. Tony Stewart didn't make the show at all. He's still recovering from an illness that also forced him out of his car in the NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Daytona on Saturday.
Rough night: One lap after Ludlow Falls driver Luke Hall was shaken up after hitting the outside wall hard in the second B-Main, Piqua's Mark Hery and Sidney's Lee Stark saw their nights end in a three-car accident.
Hall never made it out of Turn 2 starting on the outside. His sprint car found the catch fence and rolled. Initial reports had Hall complaining of knee pain, but he shook it off and refused additional treatment. Hery ended up on his side, too, but walked away from his accident.
Hot laps
Think Schatz and his team were excited about the chance to win the $50,000 bonus at Eldora? A local team said Schatz's team hauler was pulled over just down the road from the track. Schatz gets another shot at $50,000 this weekend as he attempts to defend his Kings Royal title.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2400, ext. 6991 or gbilling@DaytonDailyNews.com.
