Inside Line Promotions – OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (March 28, 2018) – Zac Taylor fought a couple of gremlins last weekend when he competed in the 5th annual Turnpike Challenge at I-44 Riverside Speedway.
The Lucas Oil POWRi National Midget Series event drew more than 60 midgets from across the country and Taylor had a lot of confidence going into the weekend following his most successful effort to date in the Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Midget Nationals last January. Unfortunately, brake issues on Friday followed by fueling system problems Saturday left him frustrated.
“Todd (Henry, the car owner) went through the car completely after the Chili Bowl,” Taylor said. “For some reason we had no brakes on Friday, but the car was really fast. I really like that track. It’s not just a track you show up to and go fast. You have to put laps in to get a handle on it. I found out this car does not want to be finessed. You have to drive it in hard.”
Taylor charged from seventh to fourth place in his heat race on Friday, giving him an outside front row starting spot in a B Main.
“We thought we had the brake issue fixed,” he said. “I had plenty in the pits, but when we got racing they were gone. We got up Saturday and replaced the entire brake system so we thought we were good to go Saturday.”
Taylor placed 12th in the consolation race on Friday before Saturday brought a new set of problems. In the heat race Taylor drove from eighth to sixth, putting him in one of the two C Mains.
“The good news is the brakes worked great, but we had some sort of problem with the fuel system,” he said. “Todd and I talked and we would much rather have issues now when we aren’t chasing points. We learned a lot about the car and what we need to do to be a great midget team. I also want to thank Keith Rauch for coming along to tune on the car.”
A fifth-place result in the C Main capped the weekend.
Taylor, who is coming off a year that saw him claim multiple championships in 305ci sprint car racing, plans to race more midget events in 2018 with Henry along with 360ci and 305ci sprint races in the family machine.
“I will also compete in five races with the Grand American Modifieds on asphalt,” he said. “But the midget is the priority this year and we will fill in with the sprint car.”
QUICK RESULTS –
March 23 – I-44 Riverside Speedway in Oklahoma City, Okla. – Heat race: 4 (7); B Main: 12 (2).
March 24 – I-44 Riverside Speedway in Oklahoma City, Okla. – Heat race: 6 (8); C Main: 5 (2).
SEASON STATS –
2 races, 0 wins, 0 top fives, 0 top 10s, 0 top 15s, 0 top 20s
UP NEXT –
TBD
MEDIA LINKS –
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Zac-Taylor-Racing/176561235888527
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zac86taylor
Website: http://www.zactaylorracing.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA1su-PDXOb8wWUoLAw_POQ/videos
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – H&H Resurfacing in Englewood, Colo.
“H&H is Todd’s business,” Taylor said. “I can’t thank him enough for the fantastic opportunity he’s given me to drive his midget. I’m going to work very hard to get him wins and a championship this year.”
Taylor would also like to thank GatorStake, Open Season Construction, SuperClean, Pitt Stop Signs, Bessemer Auto, RADCO, USA Performance Engines, Joe Gibbs Driven Racing Oil, the Kaiser Family, Pro Shocks, Triple X Racing Company and Hoosier Racing Tires for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
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