Friday

KNOXVILLE, Iowa — Ever since Shane Stewart and his team rolled out a new car a couple of weeks ago, they have been blazing fast.
After coming close a couple of times to picking up their first A-Feature win of the season with the Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series, they broke through Friday night at Knoxville Raceway.
Stewart, who started fifth in the 25-lap contest, charged around two-time defending series champion and current point-leader Donny Schatz for the lead with just four laps to go. He pulled away from there, en route to the $10,000 triumph.
Stewart was also awarded $5,000 on Friday night for winning the inaugural Qwik Liner Cup, which went to the driver who earned the most points in time trials over the course of the first 13 events of the season.
“It feels great,” said Stewart, who drives Dennis Roth’s No. 83. “We have been knocking on the door the last five or six nights. I can’t say thanks enough to Dennis and Teresa (Roth). It just feels great to break through. Dennis kept saying if you put yourself in the right position, then you’ll start winning races. Hopefully, there are many more to come. I think this team has more wins underneath its sail and hopefully we can keep this good streak going.”
On a restart with seven laps to go, Stewart, driving a Steve Kent-built machine, looked high for a way around Schatz on consecutive laps as the pair exited the second turn and again the fourth turn. The next lap he even looked low off the fourth turn before the final caution flag of the night waved.
 On the ensuing restart, Stewart kept pace with Schatz and on the next lap he made his move to take the lead and ultimately the win.
“To pass the (No.) 15 at this track feels great,” Stewart said. “Those guys, as everyone knows, are on their ‘A-Game’ night in and night out, especially here. Steve Kent has done a great job for us in the car department and Paul Kistler has been just as good in the motor department. Bonzai (Bruns, crew chief) and Kevin (Loveys) have also been working very hard and doing a great job.”
Schatz, who is chasing his third-consecutive World of Outlaws title, finished second aboard the Armor All J&J. He remains the only driver that has finished in the top 10 in all 15 events this season.
Jason Meyers began the night by turning the fastest lap in time trials of the 53 cars that took to the famed half-mile and finished third.
Tony Bruce, Jr. earned his best finish of the season in fourth, with Jac Haudenschild fifth.

Saturday

KNOXVILLE, Iowa — After finishing second on Friday night at Knoxville Raceway, Donny Schatz said that his team would find what was amiss on their car, even if it took them all night.
Long after every other team had left the pit area on Friday night, his crew was still working into the wee hours of the morning, combing over every inch of his Armor All J&J to ensure he had an even faster car for Saturday night’s event.
This hard work paid off to the tune of $10,000, as Schatz won his fourth Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series A-Feature event of the season, edging Joey Saldana for the victory.
Schatz and Saldana had the crowd on its feet as they traded the lead officially three times, but exchanged the top spot several other times before hitting the start/finish line where the official leader of the race is scored.
Schatz has won three of the last four Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series events and has nine events at the historic Marion County Fairgrounds oval. He is the only driver that has finished in the top 10 in all 16 World of Outlaws events this season.
“That was an awesome race,” said the two-time defending series champion. “That was worth the price of admission, even for me. That was fun racing with Joey (Saldana) like that. We got three- and four-wide all over the race track, sliding, slipping and banging the cushion. I can’t say enough about it. I’m glad to be back in victory lane after last night.”
After a yellow flag before a full lap was completed, leading to a complete restart, the remainder of the race went all 25 laps non-stop, putting the drivers in traffic for the majority of the event.
Schatz made a number of bold moves in traffic, including after taking the lead on the 23rd lap, as he threaded the needle, splitting two lapped machines.
“You have to do that,” he noted. “We haven’t been on race tracks where we have been able to get into traffic like that. That is where I feel like the races should be won and lost. You had to pick your way through where you wanted to go and sometimes you had to go where you didn’t want to go. That’s what really makes this fun, is that nothing is ever predictable. My hat is off to these guys for the way they got the race track tonight.”
Saldana led 21 laps en route to a runner-up finish. Terry McCarl  finished third. Jason Meyers and Craig Dollansky rounded out the top five.