8/5/2014
Inside Line Promotions
Hafertepe Jr. Scores Runner-Up Result at 360 Knoxville Nationals
(Photo by DB3 Imaging)
Inside Line Promotions – OSKALOOSA, Iowa (Aug. 5, 2014) – Sam Hafertepe Jr. has a ton of momentum heading into the 54th annual FVP Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s General Stores this week.
Hafertepe Jr. captured a runner-up result during the 24th annual Arnold Motor Supply 360 Knoxville Nationals last weekend at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa. He also maneuvered from 14th to a fifth-place result during the Front Row Challenge on Monday at Southern Iowa Speedway.
“We’ve had a pretty good stretch of racing the last four or five days,” he said.
The weekend began last Friday when Hafertepe Jr. qualified second quickest during his preliminary night of the 360 Knoxville Nationals. He then powered from sixth to second place in his heat race, which lined him up on the inside of the fourth row for the main event.
“We were good early on when the track was a little faster,” he said. “In the feature we didn’t have the car balanced right. We were good in some areas and in some areas we were terrible. It really hurt us because if we had a long green flag run we could do some damage and get up there.”
After advancing into the top five, Hafertepe Jr. fell to a 10th-place result once his tires sealed over during a late caution.
Based on ranking fourth in overall preliminary points, Hafertepe Jr. lined up on the outside of the second row for Saturday’s $10,000-to-win feature.
“After our qualifying night we had an idea of some changes we wanted to make to the car,” he said. “We made all the changes and went out there in hot laps and clicked off second quick, so I was very pleased with the changes. I felt really positive going into the feature.”
Hafertepe Jr. held onto fourth place for the opening handful of laps before he advanced to third. He then capitalized on a restart several laps later to take over the runner-up position.
“Where we were really gaining on people was in turns three and four,” he said. “We could almost go flat out around the bottom. That’s where we made all of our time up.”
The night ended with Hafertepe Jr. scoring his best career result at the 360 Knoxville Nationals with a runner-up finish to Brian Brown.
“The way Brian Brown has been running at Knoxville, to run second to him and to beat Sammy Swindell was almost as good as we could ask for,” Hafertepe Jr said.
He also put together a solid performance during the Front Row Challenge on Monday. After moving from fourth to third place in his heat race, Hafertepe Jr. started 14th in the main event.
“The track kind of caught us off-guard in the feature,” he said. “We should have tightened up a bit more. We had a mediocre car and I made some good decisions on some of the restarts. We were pretty strong, just not quite what we needed to be.”
Hafertepe Jr. rallied to post his 13th top five of the season.
This week his FVP Knoxville Nationals preliminary night is set for Thursday with the $150,000-to-win finale on Saturday at Knoxville Raceway.
QUICK RESULTS –
Aug. 1 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 2; Heat race: 2 (6); Feature: 10 (7).
Aug. 2 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Feature: 2 (4).
Aug. 4 – Southern Iowa Speedway in Oskaloosa, Iowa – Heat race: 3 (4); Feature: 5 (14).
SEASON STATS –
48 races, 3 wins, 13 top fives, 22 top 10s, 30 top 15s, 36 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Thursday through Saturday at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, for the 54th annual FVP Knoxville Nationals Presented by Casey’s General Stores
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://www.Sam15.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SamHafertepeJr
VIDEO –
Here is a link to highlights of Hafertepe Jr. winning the ASCS Gulf South Region race at Heart O’Texas Speedway on June 6: http://youtu.be/QWG0RyKXyX8
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Keizer Aluminum Wheels
Keizer Aluminum Wheels has provided custom aluminum racing wheels for any type of racing application for several decades. For more information, visit http://www.KeizerWheels.com.
“I’ve been using Keizer Aluminum Wheels since 2004,” Hafertepe Jr. said. “They are like family to me and have been with me through the highs and the lows.”
Hafertepe Jr. would also like to thank Lonestar Speedway, Kiebler & Sons Lawn and Landscaping, Wells Racing Engines, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, Smiley’s Racing Products, Fisher Racing Engines, J&J Auto Racing, Pro Shocks by OC Shocks, Fire-Down Graphics, ButlerBuilt Professional Seat Systems, Vortex Wings, Kear’s Speed Shop, Pancho’s Racing Products, GPC, Joe Gibbs Racing Oils, Zemco Headers and Simpson Racing Products for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations and media management for motor sports drivers, teams, sponsors, tracks, series, events, organizations and manufacturers. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and the return on investment for your sponsors.
To meet the media relations needs of your program and to join Team ILP, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or InsideLinePromotions@gmail.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit http://www.InsideLinePromotions.com.
Article Credit: Inside Line Promotions
Submitted By: Shawn Miller
