Both the Eldora Million and Kings Royal were missing one of the best sprint car drivers in the country. What will happen next with the Macri no. 39M team? Will Anthony return to the seat or will he find another ride? This is your 410 weekend roundup.
Winners
Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu, Brad Sweet, Donny Schatz, Carson Macedo, Mark Dobmeier, Shane Golobic, Austin Pierce, Paul Nienhiser, Mark Smith, Brandon Matus, Logan Wagner, Freddie Rahmer, Austin McCarl, Bob Felmlee, Dusty Zomer
Headliner
The Anthony Macri situation is a wild one. We don’t know if he will ever be back in the family 39M but we do know that someone will offer him a ride. He is way too talented to be sitting out for any period of time. We will have to wait and see what happens with Tyler Courtney’s back injury, but if he has to miss some time, Macri should be the first call the team makes. Outside of that, I think we could see Macri driving the Indy Race Parts no. 71 for High Limit races and other big events. I am not sure how much Shane Stewart wants to be racing, so that seat should be open.
Other rumors have Macri connected to Kasey Kahne Racing, but I’m not sure Kasey is going to step out of the car. He has been running better this season and it doesn’t seem likely they would field a third car. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Anthony return to the 39M, as the team has had some controversy in the past. I’ve also seen people suggest that he is going to drive a second Shuttlesworth no. 23 car. They currently field a car for Devon Borden and Macri has had a past with Chris and Jim Shuttlesworth.
Who I want to see in the 39M
Joe B Miller – long shot but he deserves to be running more national shows.
JJ Hickle – the 97 did not have the speed at Eldora. We know he can wheel.
Chase Dietz – local guy that doesn’t get off the porch much.
Tanner Thorson – did well in PA during Speedweek. Not sure the no. 58 is set up to run a lot of races.
Who I want Anthony Macri to Drive for
Any World of Outlaws team that could fund a second car. Tony Stewart never shies away from talent but he shut down his no. 14 car. We know he has the funds to bring it back but we’re not sure that he wants to do that. Macri in a second KCP car with Gio Scelzi would be badass.
A Sean Michael 410 team. Macri drives a URC 360 sprint car for Michael when he can. They would need some good sponsors to hop on board if they wanted to do a full schedule of racing. I could see them working something out for a more localized schedule.
Notes
Logan Schuchart and Shark Racing won a million dollars. It was such a great moment and it brought out some of the best stories about the early years of Shark Racing. Schuchart failed to qualify for the Kings Royal, but at no fault of his own. Track conditions were unfavorable and his fast car made him a victim to the six car invert. It was still an incredible weekend for him and the team.
Donny Schatz is still the undisputed king. He dominated the 40th running of the Kings Royal from start to finish. Everybody better watch out if he gets hot before Knoxville.
A lot of controversy was made over the Kings Royal format after guys like Brad Sweet and Logan Schuchart did not qualify. The format has always been this way and the drivers knew that ahead of time. The rain made the track super fast and it was hard to pass cars. Maybe make the invert 4 or 5 cars? Maybe add two provisionals for recent past winners of the event? The million point format was excellent and worked to perfection. Maybe make something like that work for the Kings Royal. Honestly, don’t change a thing about it.
After watching some infield interviews with drivers at the Million and Kings Royal, a few stuck out to me the most. Justin Whittall just genuinely looked happy to be there racing sprint cars. He couldn’t stop smiling after he made the million. It was a great moment and it made me a fan. Blake Hahn was always on camera helping another competitor. He wasn’t having the best week but it didn’t matter, he was still there grinding away on his car and on other teams cars. Him and so many others were constantly helping each other all weekend and it was awesome to see. That’s one of the best things about sprint car racing.
The IRA/NOSA King of the Wings weekend needs to be separate from the Kings Royal. I want to be able to focus on both. The racing at River Cities was awesome and Mark Dobmeier is on a small heater right now. That is a bucket list event for me now.
Big shoutout to Bob Felmlee!
Freddie Rahmer wins again. That is all. Hope he comes out and races with the Outlaws this week.
Huset’s on Sunday night is the best way to wind down from a crammed week of sprint car racing. What a great race between Dusty Zomer, Tyler Drueke and Chase Randall for the lead.
Shane Golobic won the NARC410 race at Ocean on Saturday. I hope that team makes the trip to Knoxville this year. His NOS Energy Drink machine looks the best out of all of them.
Hot Takes
The Macri no. 39M will not be seen for a while. It’s fun to make suggestions about who should drive the car but realistically I don’t see it happening.
Justin Henderson could out perform Brian Brown and Austin McCarl at the Knoxville Nationals.
Garet Williamson was really impressive at Eldora and had nothing to show for it. Put him in the 39M for High Limit races!
Ryan Timms should skip the full time midget schedule and run his 410 as much as possible. I want him at Huset’s every Sunday.
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