Former Australian Sprintcar Champion Kerry Madsen will contest the majority of the Performance Wholesale World Series Sprintcars championship driving for two teams. Madsen will line up for Round 1 in Todd Wanless ABC Auto Gear Racing #Q2 before returning to the 92.9 Kendrick Racing Team for Speedweek.
“Kerry is signed to Geoff Kendrick and it is only because Geoff and I are mates that he can drive my car this weekend. He won the Queensland Speedway Spares round at Brisbane for me in October while I was in testing Silver Crown car in America. He is just so adaptable. I always knew Kerry was a good driver but when I saw him start out of five at the Belleville high banks (in America) and go to the top and drive away from the field, I knew he was one of the best in Australia,” said Wanless.
For the record it was the first time Wanless raced a Silver Crown car on the 1 mile paved Phoenix International Raceway, putting in an excellent performance. He qualified 19th and finished the 100 lap race 13th out of 22 cars. The 34th Copper World Classic was held on the same weekend as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Checker O''''Reilly Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil.
Meanwhile the 92.9 Kendrick Racing team has also tasted victory with Madsen so far this season in Western Australia and is preparing to hit the road on Boxing Day for a six-week tour of duty taking in the majority of the Performance Wholesale World Series Sprintcars championship and other blue ribbon events. Madsen will drive along side third-year racer Jason Kendrick, providing a balance of youth and experience.
“I was in America looking for a driver to bring out and whilst doing that Buzzy (Kim Buswell) told me Kerry (Madsen) was looking for a ride. So he had Kerry call me and we spoke at length several times about putting together a deal that was amicable for both of us to present the most competitive package possible. I have said this before and I will say it again, Kerry is the best Australian driver so with a great driver and good team we should be more than competitive.
“We have a B-Double semi trailer with 4 complete cars from front to back with Kendrick engines of course plus another 4 engines and all the spares you need to go motor racing. We know what it takes and we will give it our best crack,” stated Kendrick.
Madsen began the American season on the famous World of Outlaws trail however the US recession caught up with the team and his car owner decided to race closer to his home base. “We mainly stayed around Knoxville and traveled when we could. We did okay, missing 4 shows but still finished 6th in points at Knoxville with 1 win. I also picked up a win at Spoon River and Bellville. That one was cool, we won by half a lap from Tmac (Terry McCarl) and the cushion moved up pretty high. I didn’t lift from the throttle for 30 laps,” said Madsen.
Following a broken ankle sustained while playing softball Madsen was unable to contest the prestigious Knoxville Nationals and with a tired motor the rest of the season went down hill from there, however he is excited about driving in Australia. "Geoff and I started talking after we pulled out of the Outlaws deal and things just fell into place from there," explained Madsen. "I have been impressed with everything so far. Geoff is a lot like me in that he just wants to go racing and he wants to win. No one puts more pressure on me winning than I do myself so we should work out pretty well together. We will be in WA for 2 months before we hit east coast so it should give us time to be prepared for all of Australia''''s big races,” said Masden.
The Performance Wholesale World Series Sprintcars championship starts tomorrow night at the Titian Garages Brisbane International Speedway with Madsen confident of beating Australia’s best drivers including defending champion Brooke Tatnell who also raced in America this winter.
2009/10 92.9 Kendrick Racing Road Trip Schedule
Saturday December 26 PWWSS Round 4 Speedway City, Adelaide SA
Sunday December 27 PWWSS Round 5 Murray Bridge Speedway SA
Monday December 28 PWWSS Round 6 Borderline Speedway, Mount Gambier SA
Wednesday December 30 PWWSS Round 7 Avalon Raceway, Geelong VIC
Friday January 1 PWWSS Round 8 Sungold Stadium Premier Speedway, Warrnambool VIC
Saturday January 2 Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway, Sydeny NSW
Sunday January 3 Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway, Sydeny NSW
Saturday January 9 Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway, Sydeny NSW
Friday/Saturday January 15/16 PWWSS Round 11 Tyrepower Parramatta City Raceway, Sydney NSW
January 20 President’s Cup Avalon Raceway, Geelong VIC
January 21 Kings Challenge Borderline Speedway, Mount Gambier SA
Saturday January 22 Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic Night 1 Sungold Stadium Premier Speedway, Warrnambool VIC
Sunday January 23 Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic Night 2 Sungold Stadium Premier Speedway, Warrnambool VIC
Tuesday January 26 PWWSS Round 12 Sungold Stadium Premier Speedway, Warrnambool VIC
Saturday January 20 Southern Thunder Series Round 3 Bunbury Speedway WA
Wednesday February 3 PWWSS Round 13 Kalgoorlie International Speedway WA
Friday/Saturday February 5/6 PWWSS Round 14 Perth Motorplex WA
* The team will then complete the Western Australian season.
2009/10 92.9 Kendrick Racing Sponsors
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