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Daniel Hopeful to Find Rhythm Quickly While Gaining Seat Time in 410 Sprint Car

(Photo by Paul Arch)

Inside Line Promotions – OCALA, Fla. (Feb. 6, 2019) – Mason Daniel doubled his career experience racing a 410ci winged sprint car last weekend when he made a pair of starts with the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions.

Daniel, who entered the season with two career 410 races under his belt, gained valuable seat time during the two season-opening races at Bubba Raceway Park.

“The car had speed; it was more of me getting comfortable at that track,” he said. “It’s not an easy track to run and be fast at. It takes a lot to run well there like the greats of Tim Shaffer and Danny (Lasoski). I was listening to those guys and learning, but it took me awhile to get comfortable.”

Daniel kicked off the action on Thursday by qualifying 25th quickest overall and sixth in his group. He then finished sixth in a heat race to miss locking into the main event by only one position. That relegated him to the B Main, in which he was running in a transfer position when he got hung in the slick and spun midway through the race. Daniel was forced to restart at the back of the field and he rallied to finish sixth – only two spots shy of moving into the A Main.

“We should have made the show and I made a rookie mistake,” he said. “We had a restart and I noticed a car got under me. It turns out he hit the cone so we went yellow. I was trying to be defensive on the restart. On entry I committed too late to the bottom. I tried to get the car to rotate down. I got off the throttle and hit the brake and looped it in the sandy, slick part of the track. Danny said you’re better to drive through it and slide up. After the race we talked and I had the right idea, I just executed how to do it wrong. Now the next time when I see that I know how to react. On these tracks in Florida it’s sandy slick, not slick like back home at Knoxville. It’s a different style on how you handle your car in the slick.”

The team returned to Bubba Raceway Park on Friday and Daniel improved his overall qualifying result by timing in 20th quickest. It ranked seventh in his group – arguably the toughest of all groups with former All Star champion Chad Kemenah, Cory Eliason, Tony Stewart, Jacob Allen, Shane Stewart and Cale Conley all lining up in front of him in a heat race.

A seventh-place run in the heat sent Daniel to the B Main, in which he placed seventh to finish three spots out of a transfer to the main event.

“We were one spot out of the transfer on the first lap,” he said. “On the second lap I got in dirty air, tapped the wall and lost some spots. I was catching the guy for the transfer spot. I had a run on him. He dove down and took the air off my nose. It was my fault for being too close. It will come with experience of when I need to get air on my nose. Air is so crucial in these cars. It was another learning lesson.”

The next test is a five-race slate at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., this Wednesday through Sunday during the DIRTcar Nationals. The first two nights are Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions races before the final three are sanctioned by the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

“I’m excited to see where we stack up,” he said. “I’ll be running with these guys through the next couple of months. Plus, I’m excited to get back to a half mile. I feel more at home at those tracks. I was there at Volusia last year to watch and I’m excited to be able to race this year.”

QUICK RESULTS –

Jan. 31 – Bubba Raceway Park in Ocala, Fla. – Qualifying: 25; Heat race: 6 (6); B Main: 6 (4).

Feb. 1 – Bubba Raceway Park in Ocala, Fla. – Qualifying: 20; Heat race: 7 (7); B Main: 7 (6).

SEASON STATS –

2 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 0 top 15s, 0 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Wednesday through Sunday at Volusia Speedway Park in Barberville, Fla., for the DIRTcar Nationals with the Ollie’s Bargain Outlet All Star Circuit of Champions and World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series

MEDIA LINKS –

Website: http://www.masondanielracing.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MasonDRacing

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Valley Pacific

Valley Pacific has supplied high-quality, competitively priced fuels and lubricants throughout California since 1947. For more information, visit http://www.VPPS.net.

“Every step of the way from micros to midgets to sprint cars they’ve helped us,” Daniel said. “We’re grateful to have a long-term relationship with everyone at Valley Pacific.”

Daniel would also like to thank Young’s Commercial Transfer, Dillon Risk Management, King Racing Products, QA1 Rod Ends, Stevie Smith Titanium, Wings Unlimited, Bell Helmets, Golden State Peterbilt, Fresno Truck Center and Suncrest Bank for their continued support.

INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –

Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.

To meet the media relations needs of your program by joining Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or Shawn@InsideLinePromotions.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.

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