6/15/2015
Sprint Source
David Gravel Ready for Inaugural World of Outlaws Event at Granite City Speedway
It is not very often that a young driver has an advantage when competing against drivers that have been racing longer than they’ve been alive, especially when it comes to facing the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series. That is the equation that awaits David Gravel each and every night when he competed with the World of Outlaws. For the 22-year-old, about as even of a playing field as can be expected awaits on Tuesday, June 16 as the series is set for an inaugural event at Granite City Speedway in Sauk Rapids, Minnesota, as Marthaler Chevrolet of Glenwood Presents the World of Outlaws. Every single driver competing full-time with the series will be seeing the venue for the first time.
Gravel, who hails from Watertown, Conn., was victorious in a debut event for the series in Minnesota in 2013. That night he started on the pole and paced all 30 circuits to pick up the win over Daryn Pittman, who would go on to win the series title later that season. Three-time series champion Sammy Swindell finished third that night.
“Going to new places is something that we as drivers really enjoy,” said Gravel. “You get a couple of hots laps to try to figure it out quicker than anyone else. I was pretty fortunate to get a win in Minnesota a couple of years ago at a new place and that is bragging rights, since there is only one inaugural winner at a track. Granite City (Speedway) sounds like a very racy track and there should be a solid field of cars there.”
Gravel, who drives for the Destiny Motorsports team, started the year in a different car and is continuing to gel with his new team. The pairing picked up their best finish to date on Memorial Day weekend, with a second-place run in Charlotte. They followed that up with a third-place showing in Ohio a week later.
“When you are confident in yourself you know what you have to do,” he explained. “I know what I am capable of and can do at the end of the day. I’m still on the Outlaws tour, so everything is good at the end of the day. I didn’t panic when the changes were happening and the next day I had a new ride. Sometimes that’s how this business works. Everything happens for a reason and I think we are headed in the right direction.”
Gravel, who won five races last season, including the prestigious National Open, has set small goals each race night as he builds consistency. He seeks to make the most of every on-track session, whether it’s hot laps, heat races, the dash or main events.
“We made the dash at Charlotte and that was the first time I made the dash in this car and we ended up second and had a shot to win,” stated Gravel. “I think you need more times on the track each night to be ready for the feature, so getting in that dash is important to help. There are a lot of variables throughout the night, especially after the heat race as the track surface changes.”
When Gravel joined the Destiny Motorsports team in April, long-time sprint car mechanic Scott Benic was turning the wrenches. With a business of his own to run, Benic welcomed veteran crew chief Lee Stauffer recently to take on the day-to-day operation of the team. Benic is still heavily involved in the decision-making process and team management. The team has been burning the midnight oil to prepare for the current stretch of 14 races in 22 nights.
“The rainouts helped us, because we were in no shape to run 20 races in 30 nights,” said Gravel. “We were able to get caught up on things like work area items and spares. All of that stuff helps. I’m confident right now and my guys are confident. If we have a week off, that’s okay, because that helps us get rested up and ready to go. We obviously want to race and the races that have been rained out have been rescheduled, so it’s not like we’ll be racing any less.”
Entering the inaugural World of Outlaws event at Granite City Speedway, Presented by Marthaler Chevrolet of Greenwood on Tuesday, June 16, Gravel is ninth in points. He has 13 top-10 finishes on the season, with four of those being top-five performances. Gravel also has stopped the clock fastest in time trials once in 2015.
“I just want to win races and see where we end up,” Gravel said. “I don’t like to points race too much. If you are running ninth see what you can do to get eighth. If you are running second with a couple to go, see what you can do to try and win. Every night you try to finish the best you can and at the end of the night you know that you gave it your all and try to figure out what to do to finish even better next time.”
Tickets for Marthaler Chevrolet of Glenwood Presents the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series at Granite City Speedway on Tuesday, June 16 can be purchased online at: http://slspromotions.ticketforce.com and at the track on race day.
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Article Credit: Tony Veneziano