Minot "Magic City Showdown" preview

The World of Outlaws will invade Nodak Speedway in Minot, North Dakota for the "Magic City Showdown" on Tuesday, August 14.

Leading the way will be Donny Schatz, fresh off his second consecutive Knoxville Nationals win. Schatz, who was born and raised in Minot and now calls Fargo, North Dakota home, thrilled the crowd last season at Nodak Speedway by coming from the 14th starting spot to take the lead on the 22nd lap. Despite sustaining a flat right rear tire, he still rallied to finish seventh. This season, he leads the series with 13 A-Feature wins, including his first career Kings Royal triumph, as well as winning the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup and the Williams Grove Summer Nationals. He has a 93-point lead in the championship standings, as he chases his second straight World of Outlaws title.

Terry McCarl earned the win, in the series inaugural visit to the high-banked 3/8-mile in 2006, after a spirited battle with Schatz and Craig Dollansky, before a record crowd of over 6,000 spectators at the historic track located at the North Dakota State Fairgrounds.

Dollansky jumped to an early lead before McCarl busted into the top spot for a lap, all the while Schatz charged from 14th to the top three. When McCarl and Dollansky made contact on Lap 22, Schatz drove by them both to grab the lead. But the soft tire compound Schatz had on the right rear couldn't handle the heat and finally expired on Lap 28. McCarl would lead the remainder of the distance for the win.

McCarl will head to Nodak Speedway this season, with two A-Feature wins to his credit. He won in June at Knoxville Raceway for the first time in his World of Outlaws career. The native of Altoona, Iowa is a six-time Knoxville Raceway track champion and had been trying to win a series event at the track for a number of years. He also won one of the most thrilling events of the season on July 28 at K-C Raceway in Ohio, holding off reigning World of Outlaws champion Donny Schatz and Chad Kemenah for the victory.

Joey Saldana set fast time last season at Nodak Speedway and finished third in the A-Feature event. He is currently second in championship points on the strength of nine A-Feature wins, along with 43 Top-10 finishes entering action on August 3. He won earlier this season in the state of North Dakota at River Cities Speedway in Grand Forks. He finished second on Saturday night in the Knoxville Nationals for the second consecutive year.

Danny Lasoski will make his first visit to Nodak Speedway on Tuesday, August 14. The 2001 World of Outlaws champion has won three A-Feature events this season and is a very solid third in the standings. He has won twice this season on 3/8-mile tracks including at Paducah International Raceway in Kentucky and Tri-City Speedway in Illinois.

Daryn Pittman was fourth last season at Nodak Speedway. The former World of Outlaws Gumout Series champion has three A-Feature wins this season, including one on a 3/8-mile track at Dodge City Raceway Park in Kansas. He began action on August 3 fourth in championship points.

Steve Kinser will make his first trip to the high-banked 3/8-mile on August 14. The 20-time World of Outlaws champion has won over 50 races in his career when he visits a track for the first time. He added to this record earlier this season in his maiden voyage to USA Race Park in Arizona. The native of Bloomington, Indiana has eight A-Feature wins on the season and is fifth in championship points.

Jason Meyers will also visit Nodak Speedway for the first time. The native of Clovis, California has won four times this season, including most recently on July 23 at Lebanon Valley Speedway in New York. He has won twice on 3/8-miles tracks this season, at U.S 36 Raceway in Missouri, as well as at Dodge City Raceway Park in Kansas.

Craig Dollansky led the first 20 laps at Nodak Speedway last season. The former World of Outlaws Gumout Series champion won his second event of the season on July 27 at I-96 Speedway in Michigan. He is currently seventh in the championship standings heading into action on Tuesday night.

Paul McMahan will make his first appearance at the track located at the North Dakota State Fairgrounds on Tuesday, August 14. In his second season driving for Tony Stewart Racing, McMahan is eighth in points on the strength of two A-Feature wins. He won at Cedar Lake Speedway in July, which is a high-banked 3/8-mile similar to Nodak Speedway.

Jason Solwold also will make his first start at Nodak Speedway this week. The native of Mt. Vernon, Washington began the week, ninth in championship points on the strength of 28 Top-10 finishes. He earned his first career World of Outlaws A-Feature win on August 3 at Charter Raceway Park in Wisconsin.

Jac Haudenschild finished just outside the Top-10 at Nodak Speedway last season. The native of Wooster, Ohio has a pretty good track record in North Dakota this season, as he won earlier this season at Red River Valley Speedway in the state and was second at River Cities Speedway. He also has won at Limaland Motorsports Park in his home state this season in an event honoring Hall of Famer Brad Doty.

Tim Shaffer will take to the high banks of Nodak Speedway for the first time in his career on Tuesday, August 14. The 1999 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year, is just outside the Top-10 in series points as he continues to close in on his first win of the season. He has 23 Top-10 finishes on the season entering action on Tuesday night.

Jason Sides earned his first win of the season in a thrilling race at Ohsweken Speedway in Canada on July 25. It was the series first visit north of the border in 25 years and marked the second win of his career with the series. He was the 2003 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year.

Kerry Madsen continues to lead the battle for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award and will make his first start at the high-banked 3/8-mile on August 14. He won earlier this season at Volusia Speedway Park in Florida and has 11 Top-10 finishes on the season.

Randy Hannagan turned the seventh fastest lap in time trials last season at Nodak Speedway and ran a very solid 12th in the A-Feature. The 1995 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year has five Top-10 finishes this season and led a number of laps while earning a season-best finish of second at Knoxville Raceway earlier in the season.

Justin Henderson competed with the series at the track last season. He currently has 10 Top-10 finishes on the season and led laps at Cedar Lake Speedway earlier this month as he earned a career-best third-place finish.

Chad Kemenah was fifth last season at Nodak Speedway. The reigning Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year matched his season-best finish of third on July 28 at K-C Raceway in Ohio. He joined Hard 8 Racing last month, working with veteran crew chief Ray Brooks.

Jeremy Campbell competed at the high-banked track last season and finished solidly in the Top-15. He won his first Crane Cams Dash of the season on July 28 at K-C Raceway and led the first seven laps of the A-Feature, before earning his fifth Top-10 finish of the season.

Chad Hillier currently is second in the battle for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award. The native of Burlington, Washington will make his first start at Nodak Speedway on August 14.

Sam Hafertepe Jr. another of the rookie contenders will race for the third time this season in North Dakota. He led the first laps of his World of Outlaws career on July 25 at Ohsweken Speedway when he charged to the lead on the opening circuit and showed the way for 13 laps.

Tony Bruce Jr. of Kansas, another of the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year contenders, will make his first visit to Nodak Speedway as well. He has two Top-Five finishes on the season.

Jason Martin finished a very strong ninth last season at the high-banked 3/8-mile. The native of Liberal, Kansas recently earned a Top-10 finish at Williams Grove Speedway in Pennsylvania with a very strong field of 50-plus cars in attendance.

Brian Carlson of Indiana was the 10th fastest in time trials at Nodak Speedway last season. After missing time earlier in the season with a leg injury, he competed in both previous events in the state of North Dakota.

Rookie Zach Chappell will miss the event as he continues to recover from surgery on his left knee.

On Tuesday, August 14 at Nodak Speedway, reserved main grandstand tickets in sections P-Q-R-S-T and sections K-L-M-N-O will be $33 for adults and $15 for kids. General admission tickets in the north and south grandstands will be $28 for adults and $12 for kids (6-12), while children 5-under will be admitted free to the general admission seats. Pit combos are also available for $35, which include a general admission ticket and a pit pass. For tickets call SLS Promotions at 815-344-2023 or www.slspromotions.com.

-credit: woo