(SOLON SPRINGS, WISCONSIN) Brady Smith Racing (BSR) wrapped up their version of the 2014 racing season on September 25-27 in the 11th Annual ‘Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals’ at the hallowed Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa. The three-day crown jewel spectacular started with a pair of $7,000 to win preliminary programs at the Marion County fairgrounds speedplant. On Thursday night, Brady Smith won his heat race prior to finishing thirteenth in the final rundown of the 25-lap sprint. At Knoxville on Friday evening, Brady was knocked out of a transfer spot in his heat race on the final lap by Scott Bloomquist and was forced to scratch from the remainder of the night due to the damage from the unfortunate incident.
By virtue of his solid point effort on Thursday, Brady earned the rights to the outside of the tenth row for the start of Saturday’s ‘Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals’ headliner, which once again boasted a hefty $40,000 payday. In front of a huge grandstand crowd and the television cameras of the Lucas Oil Production Studios, the Solon Springs, Wisconsin native climbed up inside of the top ten in the first half of the 100-lapper before getting caught up in a tangle with Dale McDowell on lap 49. Brady headed pitside following the wreck and was relegated to a disappointing twenty-sixth place performance. Full results from the season-ending ‘Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals’ can be accessed online at www.lucasdirt.com.
“It is a shame (Dale) McDowell broke right in front of us because I feel like we had a top five car for sure,” commented Smith following his 2014 finale. “We moved up quite a few spots early in the race and I was racing up through there with (Jimmy) Mars and (Mike) Marlar. I may not have had anything for those couple guys out front, but I definitely think we could have ran with some of those cars that wound up finishing inside of the top five.”
As the dust has finally settled on Brady’s 2014 campaign, it may have also settled on his Dirt Late Model racing career. The former ‘Lucas Oil Late Model Knoxville Nationals’ winner announced today that he is selling out all of his equipment and plans to retire from the sport. While a door should always be kept open for the right driving opportunity, Brady is firm in his decision to take a leave of absence and put all of his racing equipment up for sale.
“I feel the exact same way as Brian Birkhofer – pulling the pin is something I’ve been thinking about all season. With all of the things that go along with owning and operating the entire team, it has taken its toll on me. It is just time to walk away. From the escalating financial expense to not being able to find enough crew help to missing out on valuable moments with your wife and kids, it all just adds up to me selling out. I guess I can never say never about driving someone else’s stuff, but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that I am done fielding my own race team. I have to thank all of my great sponsors throughout the years, along with my family and crew for all of their hard work and support,” Smith went on to add.
Brady Smith Racing would like to thank the following group of sponsors for their continued support: Big Red Motorsports, Michaletz Trucking, Permco, Gotta Race, Como Oil & Propane, Badger Storage and Excavating, Willow River Saloon, Cornett Racing Engines, Vic Hill Racing Engines, Rocket Chassis, AluminumCabinetCo.com, AMSOIL, Arizona Sport Shirts, Bell Helmets, Beyea Headers, Braswell Carburetors, Chase Decals, CP Pistons, Dan Olson Racing Products, Dart Heads, Delph Communications, Dyer’s Top Rods, Fairway Ford – Freeport, IL, FYE Motorsports, Hoosier Racing Tires, Integra Shocks, Interstate Batteries, Jesel, Jones Racing Products, Keyser Manufacturing, Manley Performance, McFarland PC, Peterson Fluid Systems, Rick Gondik Attorney, Snap-On, Solon Springs Mercantile, Super Swivels, Sweet Mfg., The Joie of Seating, VP Racing Fuels, Wiles Driveshafts, and Wrisco Aluminum.
Keep up with Brady all year long by visiting his official Internet home, located at www.BradySmithRacing.com.
Media Contact: Ryan Delph – Delph Communications
www.DelphCommunications.com