May the 8th represented hope, triumph and pride for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the entire dirt racing community last year. It was the day the Series overcame one of its greatest adversities and returned to racing during a pandemic.
This year, May 8 is a day of hope, triumph and pride for Brent Marks.
Back behind the wheel of his family-owned #19m Sprint Car with the World of Outlaws for the first this year, the Myerstown, PA driver overcame a poor qualifying effort to claim his fifth Series victory Saturday afternoon during the first round of the #LetsRaceTwo at Eldora Speedway. It was also the Series’ first time back at the “Big E” since 2019.
“This is awesome,” Marks said. “A very surreal moment. We’ve been running good here the past couple of weeks. The car has been awesome.”
The first of two #LetsRaceTwo events was scheduled to run Friday night, but after heavy rain showers pushed the start of the event past midnight and cold temperatures didn’t allow for suitable track conditions for racing, the cars only practiced and qualified – with David Gravel setting Quick Time – and the rest of the event ran Saturday afternoon.
In the early morning qualifying, Marks knew he’d been too cautious after qualifying 27th. But with a good night’s rest and waking up to clear skies and a clear mind, Marks was ready to hold nothing back.
He lived up to his nickname, the “Myerstown Missile,” by seemingly breaking the sound barrier with his run from seventh to second in the opening two laps of his Drydene Heat Race. From there, the fuse was lit, and target was acquired. A direct hit on his first World of Outlaws win since the National Open in 2019 was in his crosshairs.
However, in his way were two fierce fighter pilots fueled by human horsepower. NOS Energy Drink sponsored drivers Sheldon Haudenschild and Tyler Courtney held a comfortable one-two finish in the DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash to start on the front row of the 30-lap Feature. Haudenschild, an Ohio native, was on the hunt for his first home-state win at Eldora, and Courtney was looking to sweep round one, having won the USAC Sprint Car event before the World of Outlaws Feature.
When the green flag unraveled into the crisp air, Haudenschild launched ahead of the field to claim the early lead while Courtney faded, giving second to Marks and third to Gravel.
Two cautions plagued the momentum of the first four laps, but not Haudenschild’s command of the lead. He pulled away from Marks on each restart, finding the dangerous combination of speed around the top and bottom of the track. Marks maintained about a second gap behind Haudenschild but initially couldn’t find the grip to catch the NOS Energy Drink #17 machine, even while Haudenschild struggled to navigate the slower traffic.
As the green flag run continued, new threats began to emerge behind them. Aaron Reutzel was on the move, making his way from 16th to third in the first five laps and Logan Schuchart – the last World of Outlaws driver to win at Eldora – was also hunting his way forward from fifth.
However, Schuchart’s streak of bad luck continued when he was the caution with 14 laps to go. While trying to pass Reutzel for third, the two made contact and Schuchart slammed the wall off Turn 4 with his right rear tire and blew it. A red flag on the restart gave his team more time to fix the damage and he ended up savaging a ninth-place finish by the end of the race.
“I have to apologize to Logan there, I definitely didn’t mean to get into the back of him,” Reutzel said. “I was trying to just let him slide by and try to get going in the rubber… I must have just caught him when he went by. That was definitely my fault.”
Before the caution for Schuchart, Marks had cut the gap between him and Haudenschild in half. He made sure to not let the yellow defuse his run when the race resumed. He stayed locked on Haudenschild’s bumper, finding grip through the middle of Turns 1 and 2 and setting up a run into Turn 3. By the time they saw the flag stand again, Marks was out front.
His red and white #19m pulled away with 13 laps to go. Reutzel was stuck in third with a hard charger Donny Schatz on the move behind him from the 17th starting position.
Haudenschild pushed his Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing machine to its limits in the closing laps, bouncing off the wall a couple of times but never losing speed. That began to pay off in the final three laps as Marks took ease with his throttle around the slick track.
Three car lengths. Two car lengths. Haudenschild was at Marks’s bumper in Turn 4 with the white flag in the air. Marks’s name couldn’t grace the $10,000 check just yet.
Perfecting his line one more time, Marks was able to hold off Haudenschild and earn his third overall win at Eldora and third win in three weeks behind the wheel of his own car.
“This thing was just really, really good,” Marks said. “It started taking rubber with about 15 or 16 to go. I was gaining on Sheldon a little bit and he found it. I knew I had to get him on the restart and do everything I could. This is awesome to get my first Outlaw win in a little while.”
Haudenschild’s car was found to be light at the scales after the race, taking him off the podium and giving him a 24th-place finish. That gave second place to Reutzel (the KSE Hard Charger) and third to Schatz.
“We just went back and changed everything,” Reutzel said. “We’ve been struggling the last few weeks. We went back to some stuff we did two years ago, and it helped a lot. We still have some work to do. Just have to start farther up in these races.”
While he may not have earned the podium on track, Schatz was happy to walk away with a decent finish before having to climb back into his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 machine later tonight for #LetsRaceTwo round two.
“Hats off to our CARQUEST guys, they’ve got all the dig in the world,” Schatz said. They keep trying to make things better. Thanks to all the fans for sticking with us today. It’s challenging to get it in, but we’ve got our full USAC show and Outlaw show and we can start again. Just glad to have a decent day and get a good finish.”
NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps) – 1. 19M-Brent Marks [3][$10,000]; 2. 83-Aaron Reutzel [16][$5,500]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [17][$3,200]; 4. 2-David Gravel [4][$2,600]; 5. 41-Carson Macedo [11][$2,350]; 6. 11-Ian Madsen [12][$2,150]; 7. 14-Kerry Madsen [13][$2,100]; 8. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [2][$1,950]; 9. 1S-Logan Schuchart [9][$1,900]; 10. 21-Brian Brown [5][$1,850]; 11. 11K-Kraig Kinser [14][$1,400]; 12. 9-James McFadden [7][$1,200]; 13. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [21][$1,000]; 14. 49-Brad Sweet [15][$950]; 15. 13-Justin Peck [10][$900]; 16. 1A-Jacob Allen [23][$900]; 17. 2C-Wayne Johnson [24][$900]; 18. 24-Rico Abreu [20][$900]; 19. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [8][$900]; 20. 22-Jac Haudenschild [18][$900]; 21. 10-Zeb Wise [22][$900]; 22. 39-Daryn Pittman [19][$900]; 23. 5-Spencer Bayston [6][$900]; 24. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [1][$900]. Lap Leaders: Sheldon Haudenschild 1-17, Brent Marks 18-30. KSE Hard Charger Award: 83-Aaron Reutzel[+14]
Slick Woody’s Qualifying – 1. 2-David Gravel, 12.608; 2. 21-Brian Brown, 12.721; 3. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 12.745; 4. 5-Spencer Bayston, 12.795; 5. 9-James McFadden, 12.831; 6. 13-Justin Peck, 12.837; 7. 41-Carson Macedo, 12.838; 8. 11-Ian Madsen, 12.858; 9. 14-Kerry Madsen, 12.861; 10. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss, 12.872; 11. 39-Daryn Pittman, 12.884; 12. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 12.888; 13. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.894; 14. 10-Zeb Wise, 12.904; 15. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 12.919; 16. 83-Aaron Reutzel, 12.922; 17. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 12.93; 18. 1A-Jacob Allen, 12.93; 19. 26-Cory Eliason, 12.932; 20. 7S-Jason Sides, 12.94; 21. 19-Parker Price-Miller, 12.946; 22. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.007; 23. 49-Brad Sweet, 13.058; 24. 24-Rico Abreu, 13.067; 25. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.067; 26. 22-Jac Haudenschild, 13.083; 27. 19M-Brent Marks, 13.104; 28. 18X-Cole Macedo, 13.154; 29. 97-Cole Duncan, 13.183; 30. 18S-Bryce Schmitt, 14.406; 31. 35-Zach Hampton, NT; 32. 20G-Noah Gass, NT; 33. 18-Giovanni Scelzi, NT; 34. 11N-Harli White, NT; 35. 15H-Sam Hafertepe, NT; 36. 49D-Shawn Dancer, NT
DRYDENE Heat #1 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 2-David Gravel [1]; 2. 9-James McFadden [2]; 3. 1S-Logan Schuchart [5]; 4. 14-Kerry Madsen [3]; 5. 15-Donny Schatz [4]; 6. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [9]; 7. W20-Greg Wilson [7]; 8. 97-Cole Duncan [8]; 9. 19-Parker Price-Miller [6]
DRYDENE Heat #2 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 21-Brian Brown [1]; 2. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [3]; 3. 13-Justin Peck [2]; 4. 11K-Kraig Kinser [6]; 5. 22-Jac Haudenschild [7]; 6. 10-Zeb Wise [4]; 7. 1A-Jacob Allen [5]; 8. 11N-Harli White [9]; 9. 18S-Bryce Schmitt [8]
DRYDENE Heat #3 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [1]; 2. 19M-Brent Marks [7]; 3. 41-Carson Macedo [2]; 4. 49-Brad Sweet [6]; 5. 39-Daryn Pittman [3]; 6. 26-Cory Eliason [5]; 7. 35-Zach Hampton [8]; 8. 2C-Wayne Johnson [4]; 9. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [9]
DRYDENE Heat #4 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [3]; 2. 5-Spencer Bayston [1]; 3. 11-Ian Madsen [2]; 4. 83-Aaron Reutzel [4]; 5. 24-Rico Abreu [6]; 6. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 7. 18X-Cole Macedo [7]; 8. 49D-Shawn Dancer [9]; 9. 20G-Noah Gass [8]
DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [4]; 2. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [1]; 3. 19M-Brent Marks [3]; 4. 2-David Gravel [5]; 5. 21-Brian Brown [2]; 6. 5-Spencer Bayston [6]; 7. 9-James McFadden [7]; 8. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [8]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer – 1. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [3][-]; 2. 10-Zeb Wise [1][-]; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen [7][-]; 4. 2C-Wayne Johnson [2][-]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson [6][$300]; 6. 7S-Jason Sides [5][$250]; 7. 18X-Cole Macedo [9][$225]; 8. 97-Cole Duncan [10][$200]; 9. 19-Parker Price-Miller [13][$200]; 10. 49D-Shawn Dancer [12][$200]; 11. 11N-Harli White [11][$200]; 12. 20G-Noah Gass [16][$200]; 13. 18S-Bryce Schmitt [14][$200]; 14. 35-Zach Hampton [8][$200]; 15. 26-Cory Eliason [4][$200]; 16. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [15][$200]
Saturday’s #LetsRaceTwo finale felt like the symbolical beginning of a new era in more ways than one.
For starters, Sheldon Haudenschild finally achieved one of his biggest personal goals: winning at Eldora Speedway. The 27-year-old gasser grew up only two hours away from the 1/2-mile in Wooster, OH sitting in the shadows behind his legendary father, Jac Haudenschild.
Jac’s legacy at The Big E is undeniably amongst the all-time greats. He won three Kings Royal’s, the Mopar Million, and countless other features in his heyday. Now, Sheldon is getting his chance to shine at The House That Earl Built. On Saturday, he did it while racing against his father in his farewell season aboard the Pennzoil #22, too.
On another level, Sheldon’s momentous breakthrough was special because it came against Donny Schatz. The 10-time World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series champion is easily the greatest Eldora icon of his era, winning almost 20 times at the Rossburg, OH facility. Simply put, he’s the man to beat there.
Schatz and his Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing crew were poised for a milestone victory until Sheldon spoiled their moment. Stalking Schatz over the final ten laps, Haudenschild slowly reeled in the Ford Performance, Carquest #15 before pouncing at the white flag and sending his NOS Energy Drink, Stenhouse Jr. Marshall Racing #17 to the lead.
He survived an extra 1/2-mile to score his 17th career World of Outlaws victory and the third of his 2021 season.
“Donny is the best in the business,” Haudenschild acknowledged on a man he grew up watching. “He schooled me early in the race, so I just fell into second and watched him for a bit. Sometimes it’s better to not be out front. I just kept telling myself to hit my marks and stay smooth. You have to be perfect at this place, and we finally did it tonight.”
From the outset, Haudenschild and Schatz were the two to watch in the #LetsRaceTwo finale.
Schatz somehow picked his way from seventh-to-second in the first two laps of the 30-lapper, but then Haudenschild blasted by he and leader Ian Madsen thanks to a monster slide job into turn one. The #17 paced the following four laps before Schatz perfected the low line and cruised into command on Lap 8.
A gnarly crash collecting top-five runners Giovanni Scelzi and Carson Macedo – all were okay – set the stage for the final restart on Lap 16. Electing to restart on the bottom, Schatz (Fargo, ND) quickly pulled away and seemed as if he was finally due to collect his first win of the 2021 season.
However, with 10 laps to go, you could feel the tide change. The momentum was swiftly changing, and it was changing away from Schatz’s #15.
With every passing lap, Haudenschild cut into the lead and withered it away until he was hounding Schatz with three to go. But the next time around, he was all over his back bumper. The next time? He was leading as the white flag waved and the #17 drove around the #15.
Haudenschild drove away to officially claim his first Eldora triumph by 0.930-seconds over Logan Schuchart, who stole second from Schatz on the final lap.
“As long as we can keep this team, these group of guys together for a long time, we could do something special,” Haudenschild said while realizing the magnitude of this moment. “If you look at the #15 [Schatz] or #49 [Sweet] over all these years, the crew is a huge part of their legacy. This win is at the top of my list, and it wouldn’t come without my guys [Kyle] Ripper, Nickolas [Goodfliesch] and Drew [Brenner]. I can’t wait for our big July shows here.”
Coming home with a second-place finish at Eldora was Logan Schuchart of Hanover, PA. He earned KSE Hard Charger honors with a jaw-dropping 21st-to-2nd (+19) bid aboard his Drydene Performance Products #1S.
“Man, we needed this run,” Schuchart said following his recent run of bad luck. “We’ve had a fast car all year, but those little problem have hurt us. Confidence is huge in this sport, and we just got a lot back tonight. I knew we had a good car, especially as the track came in. I’m so happy to be back here at Eldora. I love this place.”
Finishing a heartbreaking third was Schatz, who led 21 laps until Haudenschild went by at the white flag.
“He just had everything to gain by moving around the race track,” Schatz said on Haudenschild catching him. “We were solid out front, but kept fading there at the end. We were better in the middle and lower early on, but sometimes you get to see what’s going on if you’re bak there. I couldn’t move around, it’s just the way it goes. Would’ve been nice to win, but we didn’t. We’ll get another chance on Wednesday.”
Behind Haudenschild, Schuchart and Schatz was Ian Madsen in fourth after leading the first three laps aboard the McGhee #11, and Jacob Allen with his first top-five finish of the season aboard his Shark Racing, Drydene #1A.
Rounding out the top ten at Eldora was Brian Brown, David Gravel, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney and Parker Price-Miller.
NOS Energy Drink Feature (30 Laps) – 1. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [4][$10,000]; 2. 1S-Logan Schuchart [21][$6,000]; 3. 15-Donny Schatz [7][$3,500]; 4. 11-Ian Madsen [1][$2,800]; 5. 1A-Jacob Allen [3][$2,500]; 6. 21-Brian Brown [9][$2,300]; 7. 2-David Gravel [5][$2,200]; 8. 83-Aaron Reutzel [11][$2,100]; 9. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [14][$2,050]; 10. 19-Parker Price-Miller [23][$2,000]; 11. 49-Brad Sweet [8][$1,600]; 12. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [25][$400]; 13. 14-Kerry Madsen [17][$1,200]; 14. 9-James McFadden [10][$1,100]; 15. 24-Rico Abreu [24][$1,050]; 16. 5-Spencer Bayston [15][$1,000]; 17. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [19][$1,000]; 18. 19M-Brent Marks [20][$1,000]; 19. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [2][$1,000]; 20. 41-Carson Macedo [6][$1,000]; 21. 10-Zeb Wise [22][$1,000]; 22. 26-Cory Eliason [18][$1,000]; 23. 2C-Wayne Johnson [16][$1,000]; 24. 11K-Kraig Kinser [12][$1,000]; 25. 22-Jac Haudenschild [13][$1,000]. Lap Leaders: Ian Madsen 1-3; Sheldon Haudenschild 4-7, 28-30; Donny Schatz 8-27. KSE Hard Charger Award: 1S-Logan Schuchart[+19]
Slick Woody’s Qualifying – 1. 2-David Gravel, 12.73; 2. 9-James McFadden, 12.866; 3. 83-Aaron Reutzel, 12.884; 4. 15-Donny Schatz, 12.887; 5. 21-Brian Brown, 12.906; 6. 39-Daryn Pittman, 12.922; 7. 11-Ian Madsen, 12.926; 8. 2C-Wayne Johnson, 12.931; 9. 49-Brad Sweet, 12.962; 10. 18-Giovanni Scelzi, 13.004; 11. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild, 13.023; 12. 19-Parker Price-Miller, 13.034; 13. 14-Kerry Madsen, 13.036; 14. 26-Cory Eliason, 13.037; 15. 5-Spencer Bayston, 13.04; 16. 1A-Jacob Allen, 13.064; 17. 7S-Jason Sides, 13.091; 18. 41-Carson Macedo, 13.122; 19. 15H-Sam Hafertepe, 13.141; 20. 13-Justin Peck, 13.186; 21. 22-Jac Haudenschild, 13.188; 22. 7BC-Tyler Courtney, 13.203; 23. 10-Zeb Wise, 13.217; 24. 11K-Kraig Kinser, 13.246; 25. 1S-Logan Schuchart, 13.295; 26. 97-Cole Duncan, 13.302; 27. 35-Zach Hampton, 13.334; 28. 24-Rico Abreu, 13.379; 29. 19P-Paige Polyak, 13.384; 30. W20-Greg Wilson, 13.46; 31. 11N-Harli White, 13.468; 32. 19M-Brent Marks, 13.494; 33. 49D-Shawn Dancer, 13.552; 34. 18X-Cole Macedo, 13.582; 35. 20G-Noah Gass, 13.754; 36. 18S-Bryce Schmitt, 14.471; 37. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss, NT
DRYDENE Heat #1 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 2-David Gravel [1]; 2. 49-Brad Sweet [3]; 3. 21-Brian Brown [2]; 4. 22-Jac Haudenschild [6]; 5. 14-Kerry Madsen [4]; 6. 1S-Logan Schuchart [7]; 7. 7S-Jason Sides [5]; 8. 49D-Shawn Dancer [9]; 9. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [10]; 10. 19P-Paige Polyak [8]
DRYDENE Heat #2 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [3]; 2. 41-Carson Macedo [5]; 3. 9-James McFadden [1]; 4. 7BC-Tyler Courtney [6]; 5. 26-Cory Eliason [4]; 6. W20-Greg Wilson [8]; 7. 97-Cole Duncan [7]; 8. 18X-Cole Macedo [9]; 9. 39-Daryn Pittman [2]
DRYDENE Heat #3 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 11-Ian Madsen [2]; 2. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [3]; 3. 83-Aaron Reutzel [1]; 4. 5-Spencer Bayston [4]; 5. 15H-Sam Hafertepe [5]; 6. 10-Zeb Wise [6]; 7. 20G-Noah Gass [9]; 8. 11N-Harli White [8]; 9. 35-Zach Hampton [7]
DRYDENE Heat #4 (8 Laps) – Top 5 Transfer – 1. 15-Donny Schatz [1]; 2. 1A-Jacob Allen [4]; 3. 11K-Kraig Kinser [6]; 4. 2C-Wayne Johnson [2]; 5. 19M-Brent Marks [8]; 6. 24-Rico Abreu [7]; 7. 19-Parker Price-Miller [3]; 8. 13-Justin Peck [5]; 9. 18S-Bryce Schmitt [9]
DIRTVision Fast Pass Dash (6 Laps) – 1. 11-Ian Madsen [1]; 2. 18-Giovanni Scelzi [2]; 3. 1A-Jacob Allen [5]; 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild [4]; 5. 2-David Gravel [3]; 6. 41-Carson Macedo [6]; 7. 15-Donny Schatz [7]; 8. 49-Brad Sweet [8]
Last Chance Showdown (12 Laps) – Top 4 Transfer – 1. 1S-Logan Schuchart [3][-]; 2. 10-Zeb Wise [5][-]; 3. 19-Parker Price-Miller [2][-]; 4. 24-Rico Abreu [6][-]; 5. W20-Greg Wilson [4][$300]; 6. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss [14][$250]; 7. 7S-Jason Sides [7][$225]; 8. 20G-Noah Gass [9][$200]; 9. 13-Justin Peck [13][$200]; 10. 18X-Cole Macedo [11][$200]; 11. 11N-Harli White [12][$200]; 12. 49D-Shawn Dancer [10][$200]; 13. 18S-Bryce Schmitt [16][$200]; 14. 97-Cole Duncan [8][$200]; 15. 39-Daryn Pittman [1][$200]; 16. 35-Zach Hampton [15][$200]; 17. 19P-Paige Polyak [17][$200]