Sarver, PA-June 18, 2010- Ever since Joey Saldana began racing sprint cars, there have been a few races that he has wanted to win. A couple of them he has already checked off that list, like the Kings Royal at the famed Eldora Speedway and the Gold Cup Race of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway in California, but a couple of races still remain that he wants to conquer before his driving days are up, with one of those being the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup at the historic Lernerville Speedway is Sarver, Pennsylvania.
Saldana, the current World of Outlaws point leader, has finished in the Top-Five three times in the Silver Cup as he looks for his first win in the event, as well as his first A-Feature win at the high-banked four-tenths-mile. He won a preliminary feature with the World of Outlaws in 2005 at Lernerville and will return to the track for the first time since last summer on Tuesday, July 20, for Silver Cup XIX, which will again pay $15,000-to win each of the Twin 30's, making it possible for one driver to walk away with a $30,000 payday, making it the richest one-day event on the World of Outlaws circuit.
"As a sprint car driver, that's definitely one you want to win," Saldana said. "It's been around a long time and is up there with the Kings Royal and Gold Cup. It paid a lot of money back in the day and continues to pay a lot of money. It's definitely one you want to win to put on your resume."
Saldana was consistent last season in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twins, finishing fifth in the finale after working his way from the 24 th starting spot up to 14th in the opener. Saldana has finished sixth or better in three of his last four starts at Lernerville. Following the first A-Feature during the Silver Cup, the teams will be given a short break to work on their cars and then the field will be inverted from the lead lap finishers of the opener. The Twins will be the second inverted race he'll have taken part in this season, as the World of Outlaws also used a similar format at Knoxville Raceway recently, which saw Saldana start 24th after going to the work area prior to the start and work his way back to finish 16th, after a Top-Five finish in the opener, which earned him a spot near the back of the field with the other fast cars.
"Last year was the first time they did that and we had a decent run in the first race and a really good run in the second feature" he noted of the inverted race. "I think the biggest thing is that you just have to have a really good car. You have to have a car that you can maneuver on the race track when they invert the field. You have to have speed, but you also have to be able to maneuver through cars. In that race you have to have a good car and last year Danny Lasoski had a great car and won the Silver Cup. We'll have to work on our car and make sure we have good adjustments for both features."
Lernerville Speedway is one of just a handful of four-tenth-mile tracks on the World of Outlaws circuit. Saldana was victorious on a track that size earlier this year at Volunteer Speedway in Tennessee and finished second at The Dirt Track at Charlotte a few weeks ago. In his career at Lernerville, Saldana has 19 Top-10 finishes with nine of those being Top-Five performances. He set the track record there in qualifying in 2002; a mark that still stands to this day.
"It's a challenging track," explained the second generation driver, when asked if Lernerville is similar to any other track the series races at. "Most tracks with that type of banking are either bigger or smaller. It's very unique and is perfect for our sprint cars. A lot of tracks are too small or too big, but tracks like Lernerville and Dodge City (Raceway Park in Kansas) I think are perfect for a 410-sprint car."
Saldana, who is in the midst of his fifth full season driving for Kasey Kahne Racing, which is owned by the NASCAR star, is the current series point leader as he chases his first World of Outlaws title. He leads the series in Top-Five finishes, though he and his team are still looking to hit their stride in his opinion. He has won five times this season and holds a 32-point advantage over Jason Meyers, who is also chasing his first series title.
"We just have to keep doing what we are doing," Saldana deadpanned. "As a driver, I feel like I am not driving very well and am making a lot of mistakes and we are hanging right in there. Hopefully I can get it turned around and get racing better. You have to be smart and do everything right. We are hanging in there now, but have to get better."
Tickets for the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30's can be purchased online by visiting www.WorldofOutlaws.com/tickets or by calling 704-795-7723. On Tuesday, July 20, general admission tickets will be $29, with reserved tickets $35. Children ages 10-under will be admitted free of charge to the general admission section.
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Chizmark & Larson Insurance , Goodyear Tires (Official Tire), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser), VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, KSE Race Products, Penske Shocks , R2C Performance, Racing Electronics, S&S Volvo; Engine Builder's Challenge participants Don Ott Racing Engines, Kistler Engines, Shaver Specialties and Speedway Engines; and Chassis Builder's Challenge participants J&J Auto Racing, Maxim Racing and XXX Race Company.
Saldana, the current World of Outlaws point leader, has finished in the Top-Five three times in the Silver Cup as he looks for his first win in the event, as well as his first A-Feature win at the high-banked four-tenths-mile. He won a preliminary feature with the World of Outlaws in 2005 at Lernerville and will return to the track for the first time since last summer on Tuesday, July 20, for Silver Cup XIX, which will again pay $15,000-to win each of the Twin 30's, making it possible for one driver to walk away with a $30,000 payday, making it the richest one-day event on the World of Outlaws circuit.
"As a sprint car driver, that's definitely one you want to win," Saldana said. "It's been around a long time and is up there with the Kings Royal and Gold Cup. It paid a lot of money back in the day and continues to pay a lot of money. It's definitely one you want to win to put on your resume."
Saldana was consistent last season in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twins, finishing fifth in the finale after working his way from the 24 th starting spot up to 14th in the opener. Saldana has finished sixth or better in three of his last four starts at Lernerville. Following the first A-Feature during the Silver Cup, the teams will be given a short break to work on their cars and then the field will be inverted from the lead lap finishers of the opener. The Twins will be the second inverted race he'll have taken part in this season, as the World of Outlaws also used a similar format at Knoxville Raceway recently, which saw Saldana start 24th after going to the work area prior to the start and work his way back to finish 16th, after a Top-Five finish in the opener, which earned him a spot near the back of the field with the other fast cars.
"Last year was the first time they did that and we had a decent run in the first race and a really good run in the second feature" he noted of the inverted race. "I think the biggest thing is that you just have to have a really good car. You have to have a car that you can maneuver on the race track when they invert the field. You have to have speed, but you also have to be able to maneuver through cars. In that race you have to have a good car and last year Danny Lasoski had a great car and won the Silver Cup. We'll have to work on our car and make sure we have good adjustments for both features."
Lernerville Speedway is one of just a handful of four-tenth-mile tracks on the World of Outlaws circuit. Saldana was victorious on a track that size earlier this year at Volunteer Speedway in Tennessee and finished second at The Dirt Track at Charlotte a few weeks ago. In his career at Lernerville, Saldana has 19 Top-10 finishes with nine of those being Top-Five performances. He set the track record there in qualifying in 2002; a mark that still stands to this day.
"It's a challenging track," explained the second generation driver, when asked if Lernerville is similar to any other track the series races at. "Most tracks with that type of banking are either bigger or smaller. It's very unique and is perfect for our sprint cars. A lot of tracks are too small or too big, but tracks like Lernerville and Dodge City (Raceway Park in Kansas) I think are perfect for a 410-sprint car."
Saldana, who is in the midst of his fifth full season driving for Kasey Kahne Racing, which is owned by the NASCAR star, is the current series point leader as he chases his first World of Outlaws title. He leads the series in Top-Five finishes, though he and his team are still looking to hit their stride in his opinion. He has won five times this season and holds a 32-point advantage over Jason Meyers, who is also chasing his first series title.
"We just have to keep doing what we are doing," Saldana deadpanned. "As a driver, I feel like I am not driving very well and am making a lot of mistakes and we are hanging right in there. Hopefully I can get it turned around and get racing better. You have to be smart and do everything right. We are hanging in there now, but have to get better."
Tickets for the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30's can be purchased online by visiting www.WorldofOutlaws.com/tickets or by calling 704-795-7723. On Tuesday, July 20, general admission tickets will be $29, with reserved tickets $35. Children ages 10-under will be admitted free of charge to the general admission section.
The World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: Armor All (Official Car Care Products), Chizmark & Larson Insurance , Goodyear Tires (Official Tire), SuperClean (Official Cleaner-Degreaser), VP Racing (Official Racing Fuel); in addition to contingency sponsors, Jake's Custom Golf Carts, KSE Race Products, Penske Shocks , R2C Performance, Racing Electronics, S&S Volvo; Engine Builder's Challenge participants Don Ott Racing Engines, Kistler Engines, Shaver Specialties and Speedway Engines; and Chassis Builder's Challenge participants J&J Auto Racing, Maxim Racing and XXX Race Company.
