Four-Straight For Schatz Again
KNOXVILLE, Iowa — For the fourth-consecutive year, Donny Schatz has been named the 410 sprint car Driver of the Year by the North American 410 Sprint Car Poll voting panel of media members, promoters, sanctioning officials and manufacturers.
However, unlike the previous two years, it was not a unanimous decision. The 2009 World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series champion and the ’09 Knoxville Nationals winner earned 22 of the 30 first-place ballots cast in the year-end poll.
Drivers ranked second through fifth, respectively, are WoO regulars Joey Saldana, Jason Meyers, 14-time Driver of the Year Steve Kinser and All Star Circuit of Champions titlist Tim Shaffer of Pennsylvania.
Kasey Kahne of Kasey Kahne Racing (KKR) was awarded the winged 410-cubic-inch sprint-car Team of the Year award for the first time. A three-time Wild Card Award recipient from the North American Sprint Car Poll himself, Kahne utilized drivers Joey Saldana, Craig Dollansky, Brad Sweet and Cody Darrah in his winged machines in 2009.
Adam Wilt, the top rookie at both the Lincoln and Williams Grove dirt tracks on the tough Central Pennsylvania circuit in 2009, has earned the Rookie of the Year Award in the 410 division of the North American Sprint Car Poll.
Following a tie in the voting, Steve Beitler of Washington’s Skagit Speedway and Steve Sinclair of the Interstate Racing Ass’n will share the Promoter of the Year honors. Sinclair is a three-time winner of this award, while Beitler is a first-time recipient.
Jack Elam of J&J Chassis, a 2009 inductee into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame, earned the Builder/Manufacturer of the Year plaque.
Saldana, the leading feature winner on the ultra-tough World of Outlaws Sprint Car tour, was named the recipient of the Wild Card Award for his exciting 410 sprint-car performances. The Media Member of the Year honors will again be shared, due to a tie in the voting, this year between two past recipients, Tony Veneziano of the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and Justin Zoch of FlatOut magazine.
The top 25:
1. Donny Schatz, 2,560;
2. Joey Saldana, 1,785;
3. Jason Meyers, 1,163;
4. Steve Kinser, 603;
5. Tim Shaffer, 504;
6. Greg Hodnett, 437;
7. Danny Lasoski, 286;
7. Jason Sides, 286;
9. Stevie Smith, 241;
10. Terry McCarl, 239;
11. Dale Blaney, 227;
12. Tyler Walker, 181;
13. Craig Dollansky, 174;
14. Tim Kaeding, 143;
15. Cody Darrah, 130;
16. Fred Rahmer, 120;
17. Todd Shaffer, 100;
18. Johnny Herrera, 94;
19. Sammy Swindell, 60;
20. Jac Haudenschild, 58;
21. Brian Montieth, 31;
22. Jonathan Allard, 20;
23. Brent Kaeding, 17;
24. Ed Lynch, Jr., 15;
25. Daryn Pittman, 14;
25. Shane Stewart, 14.