By Tony Veneziano

With a pair of rainouts this past weekend at Jacksonville Speedway in Illinois and Tri-State Speedway in Indiana, Mother Nature has now won exactly half of the scheduled races for the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series so far in 2018. 

A total of nine of the first 18 races this season have been affected by rain. Four of those events have been rescheduled, including both races from this past weekend. 

Head East

Daryn Pittman and the No. 9 Kasey Kahne Racing team made a beeline to Central Pennsylvania on Saturday to compete with the Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions at Port Royal Speedway, where the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series will contest a two-night event in October. 

The veteran driver finished ninth in the 30-lap main event, with a stout field of 47 entries in attendance. Pittman opened the night by turning the fourth-quickest lap in Group D of time trials. The 2013 Outlaws champion then finished second in the fourth heat race, which put him in the second dash. 

Pair Of Invaders

Chase Briscoe Racing is tentatively scheduled to make its World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series debut next weekend at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55, with a two-car effort. 

Team owner Chase Briscoe, who is part of the Ford Driver Development program in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and IMSA Continental Tire Series will pilot one of the entries, while fellow NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Christopher Bell will drive the other car. Briscoe has not raced a winged sprint car in six years and only has five total winged starts in his career. 

The third-generation driver cut his teeth racing non-wing sprint cars in his home state of Indiana. Bell, the reigning NASCAR Truck Series champion, won with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 in 2015.

True Outlaw Schedule

Tim Shaffer and the Demyan-Rudzik Racing team recently left the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series tour to follow a “True Outlaw” schedule this season. It was previously announced, during the West Coast Swing, that Shaffer and the team had signed a Platinum Agreement, making them a full-time World of Outlaws team. 

Expect to see Shaffer compete against the Outlaws in Ohio and Pennsylvania races this season, as well other high-dollar events.

Up Next

The World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series has a triple-header weekend on tap at a trio of bullrings. First up, on Friday, April 20, is a visit to Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, AR. 

The last time the series raced at the quarter-mile, affectionately known as “The Ditch,” in 2009, Tim Kaeding was victorious. Donny Schatz and Daryn Pittman are also past winners at the track. On Saturday, April 21, the series heads to Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 in Pevely, MO, where Pittman won last year. Joey Saldana, Shane Stewart, David Gravel, Jason Sides, and Schatz are all past winners at the third-mile. 

The weekend concludes on Sunday, April 22 at Tri-State Speedway in Indiana, where Parker Price-Miller scored his first-career Outlaws win last season.