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Austin Dominates Rain-Delayed Week 8 Make-Up Feature; Falters in Week 9 Main Event. Concord, N.C. (8/4/09)
Week 9 of the “Summer Shoot-Out” Series saw Austin Langenstein completely dominate the field in the rain delayed Week 8 Feature, run early this evening before the week 9 events at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Starting in the 5th position, it did not take Austin, in the #7 FIREFOLD.com Bandolero, long to grab the lead and take control of the race. By the time the field cleared turn 2 on lap 1, Austin was contending for the lead, and as they came out of turn 4 and headed for the start/finish line, the #7 was out in front, setting a controlled pace. With every lap completed, Austin continued to increase his lead, looking strong in his quest to win the “Young Guns/Outlaw” Championship. The race, however, was not without its incidents. The caution flag came out several times during the race, but, for Austin, the most significant was when points leader Justin Carroll, who started in 6th, spun in turn 3 after making contact with Reid Wilson. “When the green came out after the last caution I knew that I had to beat Justin to the front and that was my main goal. When I got out front I was not sure how he was doing until I saw him sitting in turn 3 when the caution came out again. I knew then that this was an opportunity to gain some points on him, but I still did not center my focus on that alone”, Austin said. On the restart Austin jumped out to a 2 car length lead and cruised on to his second “Shoot-Out” victory of the season, with Tyler Hill finishing in 2nd, followed by Luke Demis, Annabeth Barnes in 4th and Evan Bell rounding out the top 5. Justin Carroll rebounded to finish in 15th place, thus giving up the points lead to Austin and the FIREFOLD.com #7. “I had a lot of race car tonight and I was saving as much as I could incase I needed it. Tyler Hill made a run at me during that last restart and I just focused and hit my marks. In the end all I wanted to do was to secure the win, which was my main goal coming into this evening”, Austin noted. “After the race Justin Carroll came up to me and called me “Champ” and I told him thanks but it was not over yet and I reminded him that we still had a lot of racing to do”, Austin concluded. Little did Austin know at that point his advice was correct? With that win behind him Austin set his mind on keeping his sights on the big picture. Starting in the 10th spot in his heat race he had his hands full making his way to the front to secure the victory and make the statement that he had come to race. “We had a tough heat, and some really good cars were in it, but I knew that I had to send a message to the other competitors that I was here tonight to race and I was focused “, Austin said. In the evenings feature event things changed in a hurry for Austin. Starting in the 6th spot on the grid, and with Carroll and Linker staring in front of him, along with Evan Bell, it was time to roll. “When the green flag came out my car jumped sideways for some reason and we were lucky I was able to save it and not wreck”, noted Austin. Dropping back to 11th place, Austin then began to make his charge to the front, but as he exited turn 2 on the second lap, Annabeth Barnes spun-out in front of the pack. Driving to the outside, Austin easily cleared her, only to have another car, also trying to avoid Annabeth’s car, make contact with the #7 FIREFOLD.com Bandolero, pushing Austin hard into the backstretch wall. “Wow”, exclaimed Austin. “That was the hardest hit I have ever taken. I had the wreck cleared and then, all of the sudden, all I knew I was in the concrete wall”, Austin explained. “I am not sure who hit us but I am pretty sure he had nowhere to go as well,” noted Austin. Contact with the wall, which is covered with a soft material to lessen the impact, was hard enough to force the material in between tire and rim on both wheels on the right side of the car. The impact also badly damaged the right front suspension, ending Austin’s evening. As luck would have it, Justin Carroll, who started 3rd, went on to win the feature, followed by Matt Linker, Evan Bell and Tyler Hill, with Dillon Spain rounding out the top 5. Austin, who had been leading in the points as a result of his victory earlier in the evening, was credited with a 24th place finish and fell to 3rd in the points race. Justin Carroll now leads Evan Bell by 32 points with Austin 37 points out of the lead. “Carroll had a bad race in the beginning and as things would have it we had some misfortune in the 2nd feature. What hurt us the most tonight was that #7 FIREFOLD.com Rifenburg Pizza Log Bandolero was not able to continue and that is where we lost the majority of our points this evening”, Austin said. “Evan Bell has also been consistent and is now back in the mix as well”, Austin noted. Going into week 10 and the final point’s night of the 2009 “Summer Shoot-Out” Series event, next Tuesday night, August 11th, Austin will have to win the feature event and Justin Carroll will have to finish 8th or worse for Austin to clinch the title. “I’m going into next week with one thing on my mind and that is to put pressure on Carroll and Bell and win the feature. I want this Championship and we have worked really hard all season to win it. If we don’t capture the Point’s Championship, it will not be from a lack of trying. I owe that to my team and to all of my sponsors and marketing partners”, Austin added. “I said it before, this is Carroll’s to loose and we plan to race him and Bell hard to the checkered flag on the final night. It’s not over until it’s over. Besides, I haven’t heard the “fat lady” sing, not yet”, Austin laughed. “As always, I would also like to extend my full appreciation to all my “sponsoring partners”: A.E. Smith Electric, AutoTrader.com, Calico High Performance Coatings, Charlie Langenstein Speed Shop, Coconut Island, Design Engineering Inc., Energy Logic, Finger Food Products & Original Pizza Logs, Impact Racing Products, J. Edwards Graphics, John Davison Racers Designs, Lake Norman Soda Blasters, Micro-Armor, Mohegan Sun Casino & Resort, Performance Prime, PUMA, QA-1 Precision Products, Razoos Cajun Eatery, Rifenburg Construction, Scotty’s Fashions, Schroth Racing, Sweeteners Plus, Taste Apple, Tathwell Printing, The Brake Man, Thermal Control Products, TruckSavvy.com, Walker Lawn Mowers by GHS. For more information regarding Austin Langenstein and his sponsoring partners, please visit www.austinlangenstein.com
KAR Racing Communications, Press Release |
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