THREE RACES, THREE PODIUMS, DOUGLAS SECOND IN PRO 4X4 POINTS
Crandon, Wisconsin—The driver with the highest percentage of professional short-course off-road podium (top three) finishes chalked up three more at the 2010 TRAXXAS TORC Series presented by AMSOIL season opener. Scott Douglas, team owner and driver of the AMSOIL Kumho Ford F-150 is currently second in PRO 4X4 points, just six behind Rick Huseman.
Douglas understands that consistent podium finishes are one of the secrets to winning championships and he should know; Scott Douglas has 11 professional off-road racing championships to his credit. “We are here to win races, but you can’t gamble a potential championship away by being overly aggressive on the race track,” stated Douglas. “Crew Chief Jason Schampers and the entire Douglas Motorsports crew prepared a flawless truck for all three races this weekend. We had zero mechanical issues.” That’s impressive considering Sunday afternoon’s action included the round two of PRO 4X4 points race and the all-out 17th Annual Crandon Cup Challenge.
In round one of TORC Series race action, Douglas delivered consistently quick lap times and finished third on the podium. Crandon International Off-Road Raceway is faster than ever due to changes made during the off-season. Added banking and berms in some of Crandon’s trickier corners have changed the lines and passing opportunities drastically. Scott Douglas adjusted quickly, but the crew also went to work on more changes to the truck to make it faster for round two early Sunday afternoon.
When the PRO 4X4 pack rounded turn one in the second points race of the weekend, those changes were obviously right on the money. Douglas was first into and out of turn one and running in clean air was able to open up a
comfortable lead on the field. Lap times for the number 7 AMSOIL Kumho Ford improved on each consecutive circuit until the full-course mandatory yellow that bunches the field back up to a single file restart.
When the green flag dropped on the restart, Rick Huseman had a run on the outside that shuffled the top four positions. Douglas dropped to fourth in the chaos, passed John Greaves and battled Steve Barlow for position on the podium. Douglas gained valuable season points for leading at the mandatory yellow and a third place finish to lock in second place in the 2010 PRO 4x4 championship points race.
For the 17th Annual Crandon Cup Challenge, race officials start the PRO 2WD trucks 12-seconds ahead of the PRO 4X4s. After the delay Douglas pitched the AMSOIL Kumho Ford F-150 into turn one beside Johnny Greaves and on the rear fender of Steve Barlow. Scott wasted little time, passing Barlow for the PRO 4X4 lead two turns later in the “Gravel Pit.” Then it was a flat-out race to catch and pass the PRO 2WDs. Leaders Ricky Johnson and Jeff Kincade were setting a fierce pace, but Douglas was relentless catching the field, and then picking off the PRO 2WDs one-by-one. At the white flag Douglas had Kincade in his sights but it looked like the starting deficit may have been too long. When the two trucks rounded turn one for the last time, the AMSOIL Kumho F-150 had closed the gap even more and the massive Crandon crowd was on their feet screaming and cheering.
Douglas threw his truck into the final turn hard and late, pulling inside Kincade’s rear fender. The Kumho’s found grip and the Pro Power Racing Ford V-8 launched the number 7 toward the checkered flag to a photo finish that gave the Crandon fans the closest race in the Cup’s seventeen-year history. At the line, Jeff Kincade had the edge by just .259 seconds.
On the podium after the race, Scott gave Jeff Kincade and the TRAXXAS team credit for their impressive performance, but joked that “When I got inside of him on that last corner, the thought crossed my mind to just let the truck drift up a little bit – and that’s all it would have taken…Jeff’s a good guy…but now that I see this trophy, I guess I should have!” All kidding aside, Douglas Motorsports congratulates Jeff Kincade and the TRAXXAS team on the well-deserved victory in the 17th Annual Crandon Cup Challenge.
Rounds 3 and 4 of the 2010 TRAXXAS TORC Series presented by AMSOIL is scheduled for July 10th and 11th at Bark River Raceway in Bark River, Michigan. Douglas Motorsports would like to thank all their great fans and sponsors, including; AMSOIL, Kumho Tires, Ford Trucks, Fox Shox, Walker Evans Racing Wheels, KC Hilites, Raceline Oil Pumps, Miller Electric, BorgWarner, ProFab Motorsprts, Pro Power Racing, Ringers Gloves, Stewart Warner, Hawk Performance, MasterCraft Seats, Howe Performance Power Steering, J&H Transmission, McKenzie’s, MSD, Peterson Fluid Systems, and Phil’s Inc. Douglas Motorsports is pleased to welcome their latest sponsor Baileigh Industrial to the team.
