10/17/2019
POWRi
DAUM SITTING OUT I-30 WITH CONCUSSION-LIKE SYMPTOMS
BELLEVILLE, ILL. (October 17, 2019) – Championship contender Zach Daum will miss this Saturday’s POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League race at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark. due to concussion-like symptoms. The Pocahontas, Ill. native already has plans to visit specialists at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) later this month.
“I jarred up some old concussion symptoms last weekend at SIR and Belleville,” noted Daum via Facebook post. “Looking back, I think the Humboldt crash brought them back and I’ve tried to push them away. I’ve noticed small things, but just chalked it up to stress and other things going on. I got caught up in the points race chase and thinking I could handle it, but I was wrong.”
The Humboldt Speedway (Kans.) crash on July 14 was certainly a harrowing one. While contently leading the POWRi National Midget feature in the league’s debut at the Kansas quarter-mile, Daum’s motor locked up down the front stretch with five to go and sent him for a viscous flip.
He quickly climbed out of the car and returned to racing over the following weeks after building a new No. 5D. It seemed as if all was back to normal as Daum consistently ran up front and made the points battle close, but old symptoms returned over the weekend and forced the three-time champion to make a decision on his health.
“Thanks to some good friends, I have an appointment at UPMC (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center) on October 30 for these concussions,” stated Daum. “Hopefully after this appointment I will have a game plan moving forward to finally cure these concussion problems I’ve had for the last couple years.”
Daum’s absence at I-30 on Saturday throws a wrench into the chase for the 2019 POWRi Lucas Oil National Midget League championship. With only three races remaining, Jesse Colwell of Red Bluff, Calif. holds a 50-point lead over Daum, who was once 350+ markers behind just a month ago.
POWRi Racing sends nothing but well wishes to Zach and his family on this road to a healthy mind and commends him for making this tough decision to sit out and find help.
The 2019 POWRi National Midget season rolls on this Saturday, October 19 with the league’s debut at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Arkansas. Along for the ride at “Hammer Hill” will be the POWri West Midgets and the Engler Machine & Tool Outlaw Micros. If you’re unable to attend, you can watch LIVE on www.speedshifttv.com.
For more information on POWRi Racing, visit us online at www.powri.com, like us on Facebook at POWRi, or follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @POWRi_Racing.
Article Credit: Brian Walker
