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Hall of Famers Steve Kinser & Jac Haudenschild Ready for the
Inaugural Hall of Fame Classic Presented by Mediacom at Knoxville Raceway
by: Tony Veneziano
KNOXVILLE, IOWA (June 3) - Steve Kinser and Jac Haudenschild have been part
of many historic events during their illustrious careers in sprint car
racing and with the World of Outlaws. The pair will add to that this week as
they will take part in the inaugural three-day Hall of Fame Classic
Presented by Mediacom for the World of Outlaws at the famed Knoxville
Raceway in Iowa, June 3-5. Both drivers who are members of the National
Sprint Car Hall of Fame will be able to see another class inducted this
weekend as well as compete three straight nights at the legendary half-mile.
The Mediacom Shootout kicks off the event on Thursday, June 3 with a full
night of racing, with time trials, heat races, a dash, a Last Chance
Showdown and an A-Feature event on tap. On Friday, June 4 the Inaugural Hall
of Fame Classic Presented by Mediacom will take to the track, with the
Top-20 finishers from Thursday night's event being inverted for an A-Feature
event with the final four starters racing their way in through either one of
two Last Chance Showdowns depending on car count. The weekend will wrap up
with the finale of the Mediacom Shootout on Saturday, June 5, which again
will feature a full racing program. All three races will pay $10,000 to win,
with the opener and finale offering full points in the World of Outlaws
championship standings, while the middle race will be "Show Up" points.
Kinser turned his first lap at Knoxville Raceway back in 1977 picking up a
couple of Top-10 finishes, including his first Top-Five at the track. He was
victorious for the first time at Knoxville for the first time in 1978 and
won the Knoxville Nationals for the first time in 1980. In his career at the
half-mile, he has won with the World of Outlaws 52 times and has a total of
58 wins at the track which is third-best all-time. Kinser has over 140
career Top-10 finishes with the World of Outlaws at the track and has an
average finish of 4.7 in 167 starts with the series at the half-mile.
"We always enjoy racing at Knoxville," said Kinser, who pilots the Bass Pro
Shops Maxim for Tony Stewart Racing. "You try to work on your set-ups for
the Nationals. Anytime you get there is a big weekend. They have a lot of
stuff going on this weekend and I'm just looking forward to getting to race
there for three days in a row."
Jac Haudenschild visited Knoxville for the first time in 1980 and has
competed at the half-mile over 140 times in his career. He has won nine
times in World of Outlaws events and 15 times overall at the track. The Ohio
native has racked up over 90 Top-10 finishes at the track with nearly 60 of
those being Top-Five performances. Haudenschild, who was was not able to
attend the Hall of Fame induction ceremony last year when he was inducted,
as the World of Outlaws were racing elsewhere that night, is excited to be
able in Knoxville this year on Hall of Fame Weekend.
"I'm looking forward to it," said Haudenschild who drives the Owens-Corning
Fiberglass XXX. "Racing at Knoxville is always a good time. Being in the
Hall of Fame is a real honor. We're definitely looking forward to getting
back there."
Kinser, who has won a record 20 World of Outlaws championships and 554
A-Feature races with the series, was inducted into the National Sprint Car
Hall of Fame in 2005 as part of the 16th Class of Inductees, joining his
father Bob, who was inducted in 1999 as part of the 10th class.
"It's a great thing that they have with the Hall of Fame at Knoxville," he
noted. "They've had it there for quite some time and it's good to have
something like that for sprint car racing. I'm lucky enough to have won a
lot of Knoxville Nationals and a lot of races there and a lot of
championships and have to gotten in there pretty early.
Haudenschild, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame last year, competes on
a nightly basis against Kinser, as well as racing a number of other fellow
Hall of Fame inductees throughout the course of the season including: Brent
Kaeding, Fred Rahmer and Sammy Swindell.
"It is a little surprising a lot of the guys are still racing, but they have
been out there racing for a long time and I imagine they'll still be out
there racing for quite a while," stated the native of Wooster, Ohio, who has
been behind the wheel for over 35 years. "It's always nice to get to race
against guys like that."
As part of the Hall of Fame Weekend, the World of Outlaws will take part in
a special inverted race on Friday, June 4. Kinser has run a number of
inverted races over the years, including last season in the Don Martin
Memorial Silver Cup at Lernerville Speedway in Pennsylvania. He and his Tony
Stewart Racing team look to prepare for Friday's event the same way they are
for the Thursday and Saturday portion of the three-day event as they battle
for wins and looks to stay near the top of the World of Outlaws championship
standings. He enters the event second in points, just 18 markers out of the
lead as he chases his record 21st title.
"You do what you do every other race and treat it the same way," noted the
native of Bloomington, Indiana. "You watch the track and the field and make
adjustments accordingly."
Kinser is looking to use this weekend as well to gear up for the Knoxville
Nationals, which he last won in 2002. While he is very honored and humbled
to be part of the Hall of Fame, his sole focus is on competing for wins and
another championship.
"It's a great honor to be recognized and included," shared Kinser of being
in the Hall of Fame. "Maybe when I'm done racing, I'll be able to really
appreciate it. We're only worried about winning races right now. The other
big thing is trying to learn something that will help us in August during
the Nationals."
All three nights of racing from Knoxville will be part of a DIRTVision.com
cybercast with live streaming video and audio. For more information and to
purchase visit www.DIRTVision.com.
On Thursday, June 3 at Knoxville Raceway, adult general admission tickets
will be $25, with general admission tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $18 and
general admission tickets for kids 12-under will be $12.50. Adult reserved
tickets will be $28, with reserved tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $20, and
reserved tickets for kids ages 12-under will be $14. Special three-day
tickets are also available by visiting www.Knoxvilleraceway.com.
On Friday, June 4 at Knoxville Raceway, adult general admission tickets will
be $30, with general admission tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $20 and
general admission tickets for kids ages 12-under $15. Adult reserved tickets
will be $35, with reserved tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $22, and reserved
tickets for kids ages 12-under will be $17.50. Special three-day tickets are
also available by visiting www.Knoxvilleraceway.com.
On Saturday, June 5 at Knoxville Raceway, adult general admission tickets
will be $30, with general admission tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $20 and
general admission tickets for kids ages 12-under $15. Adult reserved tickets
will be $35, with reserved tickets for teens (ages 13-18) $22, and reserved
tickets for kids ages 12-under will be $17.50. Special three-day tickets are
also available by visiting www.Knoxvilleraceway.com.
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country
by many important sponsors and partners, including: Armor All (Official Car
Care Products), Chizmark & Larson Insurance , Goodyear Tires (Official
Tire), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser), VP Racing (Official Racing
Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, KSE
Race Products, Penske Shocks , R2C Performance, Racing Electronics, S&S
Volvo; Engine Builder's Challenge participants Don Ott Racing Engines,
Kistler Engines, Shaver Specialties and Speedway Engines; and Chassis
Builder's Challenge participants J&J Auto Racing, Maxim Racing and XXX Race
Company.
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