by Bryan Hulbert and Bill Wright
KNOXVILLE, Iowa (August 11, 2016) –Cutting some mean doughnuts in celebration, Tim Kaeding reported to Victory Lane for the third time in preliminary night competition at the Knoxville Raceway, as the Lunstra Motorsports No. 3k rocketed to victory on Toyota Qualifying Night in the 56th Annual 5-hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores. The San Jose, California driver earned $12,000 for his win and just beat a severe storm that hit the Knoxville area.
Kaeding’s fifth career triumph at the Knoxville Raceway in 410cid competition, Tim dedicated his win to Bryan Clauson, saying, “I’ve got to give this one to B.C. Here’s another one towards your 200. I grew up racing with his Dad. Just a great family and a hell of a racecar driver.”
“This car was a rocket ship. I’ve got to thank Lunstra Motorsports, Dammer Trucking, and Folkens Brothers Trucking. They stuck their neck out for me just like Dave [Lunstra] did and thanks to all you for sticking through this; I’m ready for a Beer. It’s way too hot to be in this thing,” said Kaeding with a chuckle and a fist pump to the roar of an approving crowd.
Taking off from the fourth starting spot, Kaeding ran to second at the drop of the green with Dale Blaney showing the way. Closing steadily on the No. 1h, Kaeding began his assault on the lead working the eighth round. Racing off the fourth turn, the lead was in the hands of Kaeding by only 0.009 seconds at the line. Battling back, but to no avail, traffic looked to be Blaney’s chance to reclaim the top-spot.
With Tim’s path blocked on Lap 14, Dale closed the gap only to have traffic turn its favor and allow Kaeding to pull away. But the run was short lived as the caution flew for Justin Henderson who rolled to a stop off the fourth turn while running third.
Getting a nice jump over the field, the race on the track was from second through fifth as Blaney lost the spot to Louisiana’s Jason Johnson. With Terry McCarl in tow, the Price Chopper No. 7x was on Johnson for the runner-up spot on Lap 22, but would not be able to hold the spot as the pair exchanged slide jobs around the Knoxville Raceway.
While Johnson was able to make up some ground, the checkered flag dropped with Kaeding winning by 2.273 seconds. With the win, Tim will lineup up ninth in Saturday’s $150,000 to win A-Feature event.
With the runner-up finish, Johnson will see his Mesilla Valley Transportation No. 41 on the front row on Saturday night.
“I tell you what, these Priority Aviation, Mesilla Valley Transportation guys have been working their tails off this past month. Just an outstanding job,” said Johnson from his side of the podium. “It was a good run tonight. Definitely good for our confidence. We’ve got a lot of great supporters here, and I can’t thank them enough for making Jason Johnson Racing possible and there’s no doubt we’re racing with heavy hearts for Bryan Clauson. Condolences to the family. We’re definitely thinking of them.”
Taking off sixth in a car dedicated to the memory of his father, Lenard McCarl, Terry had to bounce back from an engine swap after his Heat Race, “Hats off to all my crew. My boys were out there helping Doug and Sunshine and everybody,” said Terry. “This No. 7x is a tribute to my Dad, and I’ve got to thank Octane Ink for making this thing so beautiful.”
McCarl will grid the Saturday lineup tenth.
Kerry Madsen advanced to a fourth place finish in the 1AUS after starting eighth. After leading the first eight rounds, Dale Blaney ended his night fifth. Pennsylvania’s Brent Marks from 11th crossed sixth with James McFadden seventh. Having to advance out of the B-Feature, Brad Sweet rocketed from 21st to eighth. Ninth went to Mark Dobmeier with Cap Henry from 16th crossing tenth.
Brad Sweet was quickest in Qualifying with a time of 15.465 seconds. Brad has been fastest on his qualifying night at the Knoxville Nationals on three occasions. Heat Race wins went to Rager Philips, Ryan Bunton, Brent Marks, Jac Haudenschild, and Brooke Tatnell. C-Main victory went to Jon Agan with the B-Main won by Brad Sweet.
A look at the top-five in points following Thursday night finds Daryn Pittman on the pole of the 56th annual 5-hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores. Jason Johnson is second, followed by Kerry Madsen, Jamie Veal, and Donny Schatz.
The 56th Annual 5-hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores continues Friday night! Tickets are still available! To order tickets, or find more information about the Nationals, visit www.KnoxvilleRaceway.com!
Results from Night #2 of the 56th Annual 5-hour ENERGY Knoxville Nationals presented by Casey’s General Stores – Toyota Qualifying Night
Time Trials (Qualifying Order), 2 laps: 1. 49, Brad Sweet, Grass Valley, CA (3), 15.465; 2. 83, Joey Saldana, Brownsburg, IN (56), 15.520; 3. 5, David Gravel, Watertown, CT (9), 15.527; 4. 1AUS, Kerry Madsen, St. Marys, NSW, Aust. (30), 15.541; 5. 41, Jason Johnson, Eunice, LA (54), 15.595; 6. 1ST, Gary Taylor, Snohomish, WA (2), 15.626; 7. 57, Kyle Larson, Elk Grove, CA (21), 15.654; 8. 77X, Parker Price-Miller, Kokomo, IN (26), 15.656; 9. 23C, Tyler Courtney, Indianapolis, IN (1), 15.676; 10. 1Z, Lucas Wolfe, Mechanicsburg, PA (29), 15.678; 11. 7X, Terry McCarl, Altoona, IA (46), 15.680; 12. 3H, James McFadden, Alice Springs, NT, Aust. (59), 15.686; 13. 3K, Tim Kaeding, San Jose, CA (28), 15.693; 14. 99, Brady Bacon, Broken Arrow, OK (33), 15.695; 15. 55, Brooke Tatnell, Sans Souci, NSW, Aust. (19), 15.705; 16. 11K, Kraig Kinser, Bloomington, IN (7), 15.715; 17. 71M, Dave Blaney, Concord, NC (39), 15.729; 18. 55L, Aaron Reutzel, Clute, TX (24), 15.74; 19. 2, Danny Lasoski, Dover, MO (31), 15.749; 20. 51S, Stevie Smith, Broken Arrow, OK (23), 15.763; 21. 1D, Justin Henderson, Sioux Falls, SD (11), 15.771; 22. 1H, Dale Blaney, Hartford, OH (25), 15.799; 23. 15H, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Sunnyvale, TX (43), 15.800; 24. 13JT, Mark Dobmeier, Grand Forks, ND (48), 15.800; 25. 17B, Bill Balog, Hartland, WI (38), 15.811; 26. 1XX, Don Droud Jr., Lincoln, NE (45), 15.811; 27. 23S, Trey Starks, Puyallup, WA (12), 15.831; 28. 19M, Brent Marks, Myerstown, PA (51), 15.841; 29. 22, Jac Haudenschild, Wooster, OH (44), 15.853; 30. 7D, Dustin Selvage, Indianola, IA (8), 15.857; 31. 10V, Rager Phillips, Pleasantville, IA (5), 15.870; 32. 6R, Ryan Bunton, Morton, IL (27), 15.873; 33. 21H, Cap Henry, Bellevue, OH (17), 15.877; 34. 1A, Jacob Allen, Hanover, PA (10), 15.916; 35. 4, Jon Agan, Knoxville, IA (47), 15.944; 36. 40, Clint Garner, Sioux Falls, SD (41), 15.957; 37. 44, Chris Martin, Ankeny, IA (15), 15.979; 38. 71A, RJ Johnson, Tampa, FL (37), 15.985; 39. 18JS, Jason Solwold, Mount Vernon, WA (50), 15.991; 40. 7M, Kaley Gharst, Decatur, IL (18), 16.043; 41. 88N, DJ Netto, Hanford, CA (34), 16.080; 42. W20, Greg Wilson, Benton Ridge, OH (42), 16.114; 43. 20N, Hunter Schuerenberg, Sikeston, MO (16), 16.135; 44. 00, Dane Lorenc, Lancaster, NY (4), 16.151; 45. 5H, Cory Eliason, Selma, CA (22), 16.176; 46. 5R, Byron Reed, Monclova, OH (35), 16.193; 47. 49X, Tim Shaffer, Aliquippa, PA (52), 16.227; 48. 7J, Joe Swanson, Etna Green, IN (20), 16.280; 49. 3, Billy Alley, Bennet, NE (58), 16.304; 50. 31B, Shane Golobic, Fremont, CA (53), 16.332; 51. 21T, Ray Allen Kulhanek, Magnolia, TX (36), 16.352; 52. 13V, Seth Brahmer, Norfolk, NE (14), 16.395; 53. 28AM, Brian Paulus, Mooresville, IN (40), 16.427; 54. 19, Bob Weuve, Newton, IA (55), 16.435; 55. 23, Jimmy Light, West Springfield, PA (57), 16.442; 56. 4K, Kody Kinser, Bloomington, IN (32), 16.487; 57. 13, Clyde Knipp, California, MO (60), 16.743; 58. 83C, Adam Cruea, Troy, OH (6), 16.757; 59. 15B, Bobby Mincer, Burlington, IA (49), 16.849; 60. 71B, Robert Bell, Colfax, IA (13), 17.370
Heat one (started), 10 Laps, 2:42.6: 1. Rager Phillips (2); 2. Clint Garner (1); 3. Justin Henderson (4); 4. Terry McCarl (6) / 5. Brad Sweet (8); 6. Don Droud Jr. (3); 7. Gary Taylor (7); 8. Kraig Kinser (5) / 9. DJ Netto (9); 10. Byron Reed (10);
Heat two (started), 10 Laps, 2:43.7: 1. Ryan Bunton (2); 2. Dale Blaney (4); 3. Chris Martin (1); 4. James McFadden (6) / 5. Dave Blaney (5); 6. Joey Saldana (8); 7. Kyle Larson (7); 8. Trey Starks (3) / 9. Tim Shaffer (10); 10. Greg Wilson (9);
Heat three (started), 10 Laps, 2:42.1: 1. Brent Marks (3); 2. RJ Johnson (1); 3. Tim Kaeding (6); 4. Cap Henry (2) / 5. David Gravel (8); 6. Aaron Reutzel (5); 7. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (4); 8. Parker Price-Miller (7) / 9. Joe Swanson (10); 10. Hunter Schuerenberg (9);
Heat four (started), 10 Laps, 2:44.0: 1. Jac Haudenschild (3); 2. Jason Solwold (1); 3. Mark Dobmeier (4); 4. Kerry Madsen (8) / 5. Danny Lasoski (5); 6. Jacob Allen (2); 7. Brady Bacon (6); 8. Tyler Courtney (7) / 9. Billy Alley (10); 10. Dane Lorenc (9);
Heat five (started), 10 Laps, 2:44.3: 1. Brooke Tatnell (4); 2. Bill Balog (2); 3. Dustin Selvage (3); 4. Jason Johnson (6) / 5. Lucas Wolfe (7); 6. Kaley Gharst (1); 7. Stevie Smith (5); 8. Cory Eliason (8) / DNS – 9. Jon Agan 10. Shane Golobic
C main (started), 10 Laps, 2:50.7: 1. Jon Agan (1); 2. Tim Shaffer (5); 3. Greg Wilson (3); 4. DJ Netto (2) / 5. Byron Reed (4); 6. Shane Golobic (8); 7. Brian Paulus (7); 8. Kody Kinser (14); 9. Seth Brahmer (10); 10. Bob Weuve (12); 11. Joe Swanson (6); 12. Bobby Mincer (13); 13. Clyde Knipp (11); 14. Jimmy Light (9); 15. Adam Cruea (15) DNS – 16. Hunter Schuerenberg 17. Dane Lorenc 18. Billy Alley 19. Ray Allen Kulhanek 20. Robert Bell
B main (started), 12 Laps, NT: 1. Brad Sweet (1); 2. David Gravel (3); 3. Kyle Larson (5); 4. Gary Taylor (4) / 5. Danny Lasoski (13); 6. Joey Saldana (2); 7. Stevie Smith (14); 8. Tyler Courtney (7); 9. Aaron Reutzel (12); 10. Parker Price-Miller (6); 11. Trey Starks (17); 12. Jacob Allen (18); 13. Dave Blaney (11); 14. Tim Shaffer (22); 15. Greg Wilson (23); 16. Kraig Kinser (10); 17. Cory Eliason (20); 18. Kaley Gharst (19); 19. Brady Bacon (9); 20. DJ Netto (24); 21. Sam Hafertepe Jr. (15); 22. Lucas Wolfe (8); 23. Don Droud Jr. (16); 24. Jon Agan (21);
A main (started), 25 Laps, NT: 1. Tim Kaeding (4); 2. Jason Johnson (7); 3. Terry McCarl (6); 4. Kerry Madsen (8); 5. Dale Blaney (1); 6. Brent Marks (11); 7. James McFadden (5); 8. Brad Sweet (21); 9. Mark Dobmeier (9); 10. Cap Henry (16); 11. David Gravel (22); 12. Jac Haudenschild (12); 13. Bill Balog (10); 14. Kyle Larson (23); 15. Dustin Selvage (13); 16. Brooke Tatnell (3); 17. Gary Taylor (24); 18. Clint Garner (17); 19. Chris Martin (18); 20. Jason Solwold (20); 21. Ryan Bunton (15); 22. Justin Henderson (2); 23. Rager Phillips (14); 24. RJ Johnson (19). Lap Leaders: Dale Blaney 1-7, Kaeding 8-25. Hard-charger: Sweet.
Qualifying Point Totals from Wednesday and Thursday (Top 16 locked into Saturday’s A; Next 10 locked into Saturday’s B)
Drivers Locked into Saturday’s A main
1 9 Daryn Pittman 485
2 41 Jason Johnson 481
3 1AUS Kerry Madsen 479
4 71 Jamie Veal 477
5 15 Donny Schatz 476
6 10H Chad Kemenah 476
7 49 Brad Sweet 474
8 2S Shane Stewart 472
9 3K Tim Kaeding 470
10 7X Terry McCarl 467
11 5 David Gravel 464
12 1 Sammy Swindell 459
13 3H James McFadden 457
14 82 Dusty Zomer 456
15 2KS Craig Dollansky 454
16 47 Jeff Swindell 452
Drivers Locked into the first five rows of Saturday’s B main
17 18 Ian Madsen 449
18 1H Dale Blaney 447
19 57 Kyle Larson 444
20 2C Wayne Johnson 443
21 55 Brooke Tatnell 442
22 1ST Gary Taylor 440
23 19M Brent Marks 436
24 13JT Mark Dobmeier 432
25 12 Lynton Jeffrey 429
26 29 Danny Dietrich 427
Others
27 17B Bill Balog 425
28 83 Joey Saldana 423
29 22 Jac Haudenschild 422
30 09 Matt Juhl 422
31 24 Rico Abreu 420
32 10 Dakota Hendrickson 417
33 70 Danny Holtgraver 416
34 17A Austin McCarl 414
35 27 Greg Hodnett 412
36 1D Justin Henderson 412
37 21H Cap Henry 409
38 21 Brian Brown 409
39 7D Dustin Selvage 408
40 1S Logan Schuchart 405
41 23C Tyler Courtney 399
42 6R Ryan Bunton 398
43 77X Parker Price-Miller 397
44 10V Rager Phillips 396
45 2 Danny Lasoski 394
46 40 Clint Garner 393
47 12H Daniel Harding 393
48 49J Josh Schneiderman 392
49 56N Davey Heskin 391
50 7S Jason Sides 390
51 7 Paul McMahan 390
52 44 Chris Martin 386
53 19P Paige Polyak 386
54 55L Aaron Reutzel 385
55 18JS Jason Solwold 383
56 18W Colby Copeland 383
57 51S Stevie Smith 382
58 71M Dave Blaney 382
59 20 AJ Moeller 381
60 28 Jonathan Cornell 380
61 1Z Lucas Wolfe 378
62 45X Johnny Herrera 377
63 71A RJ Johnson 377
64 84 Scott Bogucki 376
65 99 Brady Bacon 370
66 11K Kraig Kinser 369
67 93 Sheldon Haudenschild 368
68 7W Tasker Phillips 362
69 23S Trey Starks 357
70 26 Willie Croft 349
71 15H Sam Hafertepe Jr. 348
72 1A Jacob Allen 347
73 55W Logan Wagner 345
74 3G Brandon Wimmer 343
75 68 Chase Johnson 342
76 1XX Don Droud Jr. 341
77 2M Matt Moro 331
78 7M Kaley Gharst 323
79 17 Josh Baughman 316
80 W20 Greg Wilson 313
81 4 Jon Agan 312
82 5H Cory Eliason 309
83 49X Tim Shaffer 308
84 88N DJ Netto 308
85 75 Glen Saville 307
86 95 Matt Covington 304
87 11N Randy Hannagan 302
88 1X Chad Trout 298
89 4S Danny Smith 291
90 97 Dean Jacobs 280
91 02 Mike Reinke 275
92 5R Byron Reed 275
93 31B Shane Golobic 265
94 7J Joe Swanson 262
95 20N Hunter Schuerenberg 259
96 00 Dane Lorenc 255
97 3 Billy Alley 246
98 13V Seth Brahmer 229
99 28AM Brian Paulus 228
100 19 Bob Weuve 217
101 21T Ray Allen Kulhanek 214
102 4K Kody Kinser 211
103 23 Jimmy Light 204
104 13 Clyde Knipp 196
105 15B Bobby Mincer 188
106 83C Adam Cruea 187
107 71B Robert Bell 167