DONNY SCHATZ CLINCHES FOURTH OUTLAW TITLE
TSR Earns Armor All, Chevy Second Straight WoO Sprint Car Series Crown
CONCORD, N.C. (Nov. 8, 2009) -- Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) driver
Donny Schatz clinched his fourth consecutive World of Outlaws (WoO)
Sprint Car Series championship by finishing sixth in Saturday
night's 30-lap World Finals feature at The Dirt Track @
Lowe's Motor Speedway near Charlotte, N.C. Schatz won the
championship driving the TSR No. 15 Armor All/Chevy/ ParkerStore J&J in
65 events during the 2009 season, earning team sponsors Armor All and
Chevy their second straight championship in Winged Sprint car's
premiere racing division.
The championship marked the third WoO title for Tony Stewart the car
owner. Stewart earned his first WoO championship in 2001 with Danny
Lasoski and his second last year with Schatz. It is also Stewart's
10th championship as a car owner, for he has seven titles in the United
States Auto Club (USAC).
"It feels great to win another championship," said the
32-year-old Schatz, who resides in Fargo, N.C. "All the hard work
from everyone at Tony Stewart Racing paid off and we're still on
top. Winning races is what we shoot for, and even though we didn't
win as many battles as we wanted, ultimately, we won the war.
"Every year, we shoot to end up as champions, and fortunately,
we've been able to do it the last four seasons. It takes a
commitment from sponsors like Armor All, Chevrolet and ParkerStore to
give us a chance to compete for championships. It's a total team
effort and I can't thank the Armor All crew (Rick Warner, Shane
Bowers and Eric Prutzman) enough for everything they did to get us
here."
Heading into Saturday night's event, Schatz carried a 25-point
advantage over his nearest challenger, Jason Meyers. After posting the
fastest qualifying lap behind the wheel of the No. 15 Armor
All/Chevy/ParkerStore J&J, Schatz finished third in the first heat race
to transfer into the dash event. After posting a fifth-place finish in
the dash, he started the 30-lap main event on the inside of row three.
Schatz was able to maintain a top-10 standing to earn his four
consecutive WoO championship.
The 2009 season has been another highlight reel for Schatz and the Armor
All team. The championship title culminated a season that included 12
WoO "A" Feature wins and the 2009 Knoxville (Iowa) Nationals
title -- Schatz's fourth consecutive Knoxville crown and
TSR's fifth Nationals triumph. Schatz earned 39 top-five finishes
and 54 top-10s after racing in 65 events this season.
Stewart, who is competing in today's Dickies 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series race at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, was thrilled to have
Schatz and the Armor All team capture the crown for a second straight
year.
"Donny is a true champion, and this championship says a lot about
the entire TSR operation," Stewart said. "We've had
success before both in the Outlaws and in USAC, but as a competitor, I
know it's always about winning the next race and continuing to
improve. Everyone did an outstanding job in bringing TSR this
championship. Donny is a true talent, and I'm very happy that he
was able to win his fourth Outlaw title as a part of TSR.
"It's also exciting to win our second straight championship
with Armor All. They came on board with TSR last year and have been a
true asset to our organization. I'm also extremely proud to win
another championship with Chevy as part of my open-wheel program.
It's a privilege to present them with their second WoO
championship. Their effort and dedication has directly resulted in us
having success on the track. It's an honor to have them, as well
as our other sponsors, as part of this championship, and we look forward
to many more."
TSR affiliated driver, Josh Richards of Shinnston, W. Va., also captured
his first career WoO Late Model Series championship on Saturday night by
finishing seventh in the World Finals. The 21-year-old Richards, who has
served as Stewart's crew chief in his three Prelude to the Dream
dirt late model victories at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, drove his
TSR/Seubert Farms/Rocket entry to eight WoO Late Model Series victories,
23 top-five finishes and 34 top-10 finishes to become the series'
youngest title winner.
-credit: tsr
