World of Outlaws A-Feature Wins: 552
World of Outlaws Championships: 20 (6 as owner/driver)
World of Outlaws A-Feature Wins: 552
World of Outlaws Championships: 20 (6 as owner/driver)
Hometown: Bloomington, Ind.
Resides: Bloomington, Ind.
Family: Wife–Dana, Kids–Kraig, Stevie and Kurt
Car Owner: Tony Stewart Racing
Dubbed the “King of the Outlaws,” no one has done it better than Steve Kinser behind the wheel of a winged Sprint Car. Kinser has set the bar of excellence in the World of Outlaws at the highest of highs.
He has won the coveted championship 20 times and scored 552 A-Main Event victories since his debut in the winged Sprint Car series in 1978. He is the most successful owner/driver in the history of the sport.
For 2010, Kinser joins Donny Schatz, four-time and defending WoO champion at Tony Stewart Racing.
2009 DETAILS:
•Scored two wins, 32 top-five and 49 top-10 finishes
•Won Brad Doty Classic for second time in career
•Finished fourth in final point standings
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
•World of Outlaws A-Feature Wins: 552
•World of Outlaws Championships: 20 (6 as owner/driver)
•Voted Sprint Car racing's greatest driver by a panel assembled by the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame Museum in 2000
•Has won a record 12 Knoxville Nationals championships (1980-1982, 1986-1988, 1991-1995, 2002)
•Has won 12 Gold Cup Race of Champions titles (Silver Dollar Speedway, Chico, CA) (1978-1979, 1983-1984, 1986-1988, 1990, 1992, 2002, 2003, 2005)
•Set the national short-track record with 56 feature victories, including 46 in 69 World of Outlaws main events, in 1987
•Has been voted to the American Auto Racing Writers Broadcasters (AARWBA) All-America team a record 19 times (14 on the Short Track First Team)
•Finished 14th in the 1997 Indianapolis 500 (crashed while running ninth with 12 laps remaining)
•Won an IROC event at Talladega Superspeedway on April 30, 1994, in only his third IROC race
•Kinser has won four races on March 27th
•"The King of the Outlaws" claimed his 100th World of Outlaws Sprint Series victory at Houston's Big H Speedway on April 20, 1983. He has won 18 main events at Houston-area facilities: 10 at Big H Speedway, five at Houston Raceway Park and three at Battleground Speedway. In addition, he earned his 500th win at Houston Raceway Park on March 27, 2004
•Kinser claimed victory #200 at Memphis Motorsports Park on August 22, 1987, victory #300 at San Jose Speedway on September 7, 1991, and victory #400 at Santa Maria Speedway on September 23, 1995
•Kinser has won more "A" Features at Knoxville Raceway (34, including 12 Knoxville Nationals championships) than any other racing facility
•"The King of the Outlaws" has won 34 main events at Eldora Speedway, including the first of his career there on May 21, 1978
•Kinser has won 24 main events at Williams Grove Speedway and 22 at Tri-City Speedway
•"The King of the Outlaws" has claimed 12 Gold Cup Race of Champions titles at Silver Dollar Speedway and West Capital Speedway
(1978, 1979)
•"The King of the Outlaws" has won at least one race at 45 different tracks and at 122 different facilities overall
•Kinser won 46 of the 69 "A" Features the World of Outlaws Sprint Series ran in 1987
•Only eight drivers have won as many as 46 main events in their careers
•Despite finishing last in the first World of Outlaws Sprint Series main event at Devil's Bowl Speedway on March 18, 1978, Kinser won the series' inaugural championship
•Kinser has made a habit of winning when the World of Outlaws Sprint Series visits a racetrack for the first time. He has turned the trick 55 times in his career
ADDITIONAL STATS:
•10-time Eagle Nationals Winner
•6-time Kings Royal Winner
•4-time Williams Grove National Open Winner
•2-time Historical Big One Winner
•Inducted into the Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2005
•Captured his 1st career win at Bloomington Speedway in his hometown of Bloomington, Ind., on June 11, 1976. He won a total of 6 races at Bloomington that year and won the track championship
OTHER RACING STATS:
•1994- International Race of Champions (IROC), 6th in points, won race at Talladega Superspeedway
•1995- IROC, 5th in points
•1996- IROC, 12th in points
•1997- Indy Racing League, 14th in Indianapolis 500
•2003- IROC, 11th in pointsﾠ
•2004- IROC, 11th in points
•2005- IROC, 11th in pointsﾠ
•2006- National Sprint Tour, 2nd in points, 5 wins; IROC, 12th in points
INTERESTING FACTS:
•Steve's son, Kraig, was the 2004 World of Outlaws Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year. They are the only father and son combination to win the Knoxville Nationals to date.
The 2008 World of Outlaws Champion
In 2008, he won 18 WoO A-main events
The 2007 World of Outlaws Champion
The 2008 World of Outlaws Champion
In 2008, he won 18 WoO A-main events
The 2007 World of Outlaws Champion
Hometown: Fargo, N.D.
Resides: Fargo, N.D.
Family: Wife–Erica, Daughter–Savanna
Car Owner: Tony Stewart Racing
In 2009, Donny Schatz continued his reign on top of the Sprint Car world, winning 12 WoO feature events, his second Kings Royal triumph and fourth consecutive Knoxville Nationals crown. With consistency during the final 10 races of the season, Schatz won the closest championship title fight in the series’ 31-year history and became only the second driver to win four consecutive WoO crowns.
Schatz, a resident of Fargo, N.D., started his racing career at the age of 11 in go-karts. After four years of competition, Schatz followed his father’s footsteps and jumped into a Sprint Car at the age of 15. He spent three years racing regionally before joining the sport's premiere series, the World of Outlaws, at age 18. He earned the coveted WoO rookie of the year in 1997 and continued climbing the standings each season. In 2000, he started winning some of Sprint Car racing's biggest races, and by 2003, he was established as one of the best Outlaws with his success on American dirt tracks and Australian soil as well. By the end of 2004, there were only three major Sprint Car race victories not on his resume (the Knoxville Nationals, Kings Royal and Silver Cup). After four times finishing second at Knoxville, Schatz broke through in 2006 and carried that momentum to secure his first career WoO championship.
In 2007, he successfully defended his WoO championship by winning a series-best 19 feature events. The incredible season included his first Kings Royal triumph at Tony Stewart’s Eldora Speedway, another Silver Cup win, his second consecutive Knoxville Nationals victory, and his fourth Williams Grove National Open win.
After 15 seasons behind the wheel of a family-owned No. 15, Donny began a new stage in his career in February 2008 by driving for NASCAR star Tony Stewart. Schatz won his debut in the Armor All-sponsored No. 15 with Chevy horsepower, and ended his first season driving for "Smoke" in victory lane at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway. In between, he claimed his third consecutive Knoxville Nationals with a late race pass for the lead and 17 other WoO triumphs en route to his third consecutive WoO championship.
2009 DETAILS:
• Won the WoO Championship, his fourth consecutive title.
• He also became only the second driver to win four consecutive Knoxville (Iowa) Nationals championships.
• Won 12 WoO A-main events, including his 100th career WoO “A” Main. He ranks fifth all-time in WoO wins.
• En route to the WoO title, he earned 13 fast qualifier awards, 39 top-five finishes and 54 top-10 finishes.
• Was a finalist for the Economaki Champion of Champions Award.
• Was named a “First Team” selection on the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association All-American Team for the “Short Track” division for the fourth consecutive year.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
• The 2008 World of Outlaws (WoO) Champion, his third career title and also captured his third career Knoxville (Iowa) Nationals championship
• In 2008, he won 18 WoO A-main events, earned 46 top-five finishes and 58 top-10 finishes
• Was named a “First Team” selection on the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association All-America Team for the “Short Track” division for the third consecutive year
• Won the 2007 WoO Championship, earning his second series title
• Was named the Australian 410 Sprint Car Driver of the Year for 2007
• Won 19 WoO A-main events in 2007, including the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup at Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pa., as well as the Williams Grove Nationals Open at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pa., the King’s Royal event at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio
• Was awarded the 2007 Economaki Champion of Champions Award
• Was named a “First Team” selection on the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association All-American Team for the “Short Track” division
• Named the 2007 National 410 Sprint Car Driver of the Year
• Was one of 12 finalists for the SPEED Performer of the Year Award
• Won the 2006 WoO Championship for the first time in his career
• Won 19 WoO Sprint Series A-main events in 2006
• Won the 2006 Knoxville Nationals, marking his first career event title
• Named First-Team All-America by American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association in 2006
• Named as the 2006 National 410 Sprint Car Driver of the Year
• Won 10 WoO events in 2005, including the Nationals Open at Williams Grove Speedway
• In 2004, was an eight-time WoO A-main winner
• His 2004 victories included the Gold Cup of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif., and the Nationals Open at Williams Grove Speedway
• Won 12 A-main events in WoO competition in 2003
• In 2002, won the Historical Big One at Eldora Speedway, earning a paycheck of $100,000
• Won 10 WoO A-main events in 2001
• In 2000, won the Williams Grove Speedway National Open
• Won the Western World Open Championship at Manzanita Speedway in Phoenix in 1999
• In 1998, won his first career WoO feature event at Cottage Grove (Ore.) Speedway
• Was the 1997 WoO Rookie of the Year
• Earned the 1996 National WISSOTA Sprint Car Championship title
• Began racing Sprint cars in 1993
• Began career racing go-karts
