Saldana wins second qualifying night of 48th Annual Knoxville Nationals
Thursday, August 7, 2008
By Stacy Ervin
It was a fitting tribute for Joey Saldana.
The Brownsburg, Indiana, driver won the second qualifying night of the 48th Annual Super Clean Knoxville Nationals presented by Lucas Oil on Thursday, August 7, at the Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville Iowa. Thursday’s race night was courtesy of Weld Racing, and in victory lane Saldana credited Greg Weld, a former Nationals champion who passed away earlier in the week.
“Greg Weld got me where I’m at today,” an emotional Saldana said in victory lane as he collected his $12,000 payday. Weld won the 1963 Knoxville Nationals and Saldana’s father, Joe, won in 1970.
Saldana, who has finished second to Donny Schatz in the past two Knoxville Nationals, started sixth in the 20-lap qualifying event and took the lead after a lap four restart.
Outside front-row starter Tyler Walker got the jump on polesitter Billy Alley when the race went green, but by the second lap, Saldana was lurking close by. Saldana had just passed Walker for the lead on lap four when the yellow came out for Scott Winters, who had spun.
That yellow negated Saldana’s pass, so after the restart, he went to the high side and made it work to get the lead for good. Behind him, Walker and Alley were exchanging slide jobs in every corner and swapping the second spot.
By lap 10, Saldana had built a substantial lead, but he was coming to traffic. That allowed Alley, Walker and Jason Meyers to close. At the 15th lap, Alley pulled up beside Saldana and they raced side-by-side.
The yellow came back out at lap 16, however, when Terry McCarl’s right-rear tire exploded. When the race went green again, Meyers got around Alley and began chasing Saldana. The next time by, Gary Wright snuck into third around Alley.
As the white-flag was thrown, Brian Brown’s motor went up in a big puff of smoke, his car caught fire and he flipped over the inside berm in turn one. He had been in ninth at the time.
With a green, white, checkered restart, Saldana was able to hold his lead when Meyers missed his groove coming out of turn four and had to settle for second. Wright stayed in third. Alley was fourth. Craig Dollansky was fifth. The checkered and yellow flags actually came out together when Sam Hafertepe Jr. slowed at the finish.
In victory lane, Saldana noted his second-place Nationals finishes.
“The 15 car wasn’t running tonight. I always run second to that guy,” he said of Schatz. “I thought at the end I might have hurt my right-rear tire.”
Wright said his third-place finish was a surprise because he was running an eight-year old motor. He added this was the first 410 race he’s run all year.
Meyers noted he was happy to have a good point run with his second-place finish, as he had set the night’s fastest time trial at 14.990. He was the only driver on this night to turn a lap in the 14-second bracket.
Heat races were won by Brooke Tatnell, Brian Brown, Josh Schneiderman, Lynton Jeffrey and Rob Chaney.
Jeremy Campbell won the C-Main and transferred to the B along with Bob Weuve, Toni Lutar and Billy Balog. Sammy Swindell won the B-Main and transferred to the A along with Jack Dover, Sam Hafertepe Jr. and Stevie Smith.
Another multi-car accident plagued the night at the start of the B-Main. Chad Meyer, Billy Balog, Dean Jacobs, Jeff Shepard, Brian Leppo and Justin Zimmerman all took a nasty ride in turn one. Gregg Bakker and Brock Mayes suffered wing damage in the incident. Shepard took the worst of it and was taken to the local hospital.
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