7/11/2012
Sprint Source
David Gravel Embarks on the Month of Money this Week in Ohio
Watertown, Conn.—July 10, 2012 — In winged sprint car racing, the “Month of Money” is not something that just all of a sudden pops up in the middle of the summer. Teams prepare all year for the four week stretch that features high-profile and high-dollar events. David Gravel and his team are no different, as they have been gearing up for the “Month of Money” for quite some time. They’ll have the chance to put all of that hard work and preparation to use this week as the biggest month of the year in sprint car racing kicks off.
Gravel will hit the track first at Limaland Motorsports Park in Ohio, on Wednesday, July 11, for the Ohio Logistics 24th Annual Brad Doty Classic Presented by Racing Optics. The focus will then shift to the famed Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, on Friday, July 13, for the Knight Before the Kings Royal and the $50,000 to-win Kings Royal on Saturday, July 14.
Gravel will be making his first start of the season at Limaland Motorsports Park, after the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions event at the high-banked quarter-mile bulling was rained out during Ohio Sprint Speedweek on June 29. The native of Watertown, Conn., was victorious at Limaland in 2010 with the All Stars during Speedweek. Last season in the Brad Doty Classic, Gravel was eighth-fastest in time trials, of the 39 cars that were in attendance.
“Having won my first All Stars race at Limaland, I always look forward to going there,” said Gravel. “It’s a racy track, and as long as the surface is prepared well, it should be a good night. Brad (Doty) is very involved in sprint car racing and does a lot for the sport. He’s one of the drivers from the old days that I get to talk to, and it’s pretty cool to get to run his race.”
Gravel has made two starts this season with the World of Outlaws at Eldora, setting fast time in both of those contests back in early May. He finished fourth in the finale of that two-night event, which was the best finish of his career at the high-banked half-mile. In the opener, he was battling for the lead on a late race restart, when contact with another driver led to a violent flip, which ended his night.
“Having been fast at Eldora in the spring with the Outlaws definitely sets the bar high, and puts a little pressure on us to do well,” noted the 20-year-old. “We’ll have a fresh engine over there and a good car, so I’m excited. As long as Tyler (Swank, crew chief) and I do our jobs, hopefully we can perform again.”
The format for the finale of the Kings Royal this year will be comprised of six heat races, with the Top-Three finishers from each of those heats transferring directly into the 40-lap main event, with those finishing positions determining where a driver that makes the A-Feature will start, since there will be no dash. In time trials, the Top-24 qualifiers will be inverted for the six heat races.
“The format is always unique at the Kings Royal compared to a regular World of Outlaws race, but you can’t worry about that,” explained the young driver. “You have to start the night off strong in time trials and be good in your heat race to make it into the feature. Our goal is to always be as fast as we can each time we are on the track.”
Gravel has competed in the Kings Royal in each of the last three years, and looks to qualify for the 40-lap main event for the first time in his career this weekend. He has two career Top-10 finishes with the World of Outlaws at Eldora, with the first of those coming last fall in the Four Crown Nationals, and the second this past May.
“Our goal is to make all the shows this week,” said Gravel. “If we are in the main event each night, I’ll be happy. We have a lot of big races coming up and our goal is to make it into each one of them. As long as we don’t crash and make the show and keep the car in one piece, it will be good for us.”
Gravel is currently fifth in points with the UNOH All Star Circuit of Champions on the strength of 12 Top-10 finishes. With the World of Outlaws in 2012, he has seven Top-10 finishes in a limited number of starts. He ran a season-best second last weekend in his debut at Cedar Lake Speedway in Wisconsin, where he also set fast time in qualifying, which marked his third fast time honor of the season with the series.
David Gravel and DDR Motorsports would like to thank: J&J Chassis, JRC Transportation, Kistler Engines, Musco Fuels and P&M Transportation for their continued support.
Keep up-to-date with David Gravel and DDR Motorsports by visiting www.DavidGravel89.com. Follow David on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/DavidGravel89g. Like David on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/David-Gravel-Racing/143538695709198
Tune in: Listen live to each and every World of Outlaws event on DIRTVision.com with “The Voice of the Outlaws” Johnny Gibson on the call. Visit www.DIRTVision.com for live audio of each and every World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series event.
Article Credit: DDR Motorsports PR
Submitted By: Admin Account
