8/13/2013
Bill Balog
Gaining Speed in Knoxville
Bristol, WI – August 13, 2013. After a few short days of preparation, Bill and the B2 Motorsports headed back to Iowa this past weekend for the 53rd Annual FVP Knoxville Nationals in Knoxville, IA. Thursday night was the qualifying night for the 17B sprinter and Bill would lay down a lap that was 33rd fastest of the 53 cars in attendance. With an invert of four rows, Bill would line the 17B machine up in the 2nd starting position in the eight lap event. Bill quickly jumped out to a comfortable lead and looked to be heading to a heat race victory, but the caution flag flew with two laps remaining. Stevie Smith would dive under Bill in turns one and two and then “The King” Steve Kinser would sneak past in three and four sending Bill back to 3rd where he would finish transferring Bill into the feature. Lining up in the 15th starting position, Bill would gain a couple spots at the drop of the green where he then battled with “The Wild Child” Jac Haudenchild and Wayne Johnson for several laps before the car began to get tight and began sliding backwards where he would end the night in the 19th position.
Not gaining enough points to be locked in the top sixteen spots in the feature or the top ten positions in B-main, Bill and the team were back in action on Friday night. Bill would lay down the 30th fastest lap of the seventy-one cars on hand setting him up with a 5th place starting position in the sixth heat race. Bill would lose some ground on the start, but around halfway through the eight lap event he would change his line and found some speed as he would make his way by two cars into the 4th position and quickly gaining on the 3rd and final transfer car of Jason Johnson. Johnson and Bill came out of turn four racing side by side to the checkered flag with Johnson just ahead of the 17B sending Bill into the B-main. Bill would line up to start in the 8th position and at the drop of the green a car shot from the bottom to the top spinning out. Bill spun the 17B sprinter to a stop to avoid the car, but was tagged by another car ending the night prematurely setting up a tough Saturday night.
Saturday night saw Bill and the B2 Motorsports team starting in the E-main. Bill would start the ten lap race in the 4th position where he started and finished which would transfer him into the D-main. After some quick changes by the team the 17B sprinter rolled off again for the D-main. Starting 21st in the D-main, Bill put on a charge to try and make it to a transfer. At the end of twelve laps, Bill would pass eleven cars and finish in the 12th position ending his Knoxville Nationals. After four nights of racing at the Sprint Car Capital of the World, the team was very happy with the progress they had made since Sunday night as the car got faster every time it hit the track, but due to the unfortunate wreck in the B-main on Friday, the results didn’t really show the speed that the 17B sprinter really had.
This weekend Bill and the B2 Motorsports team will head south to the Wisconsin/Illinois border to the Wilmot Raceway in Wilmot, WI for a double header weekend during the Kenosha County Fair Friday and Saturday night. Saturday night is also the Roger Isles Memorial race. Bill picked up a victory at the third-mile oval on July 6th and then two weeks later followed that up with a 4th place run when the All Star Circuit of Champions were in town. The following weekend, Saturday, August 24th, the team will make the road-trip down Interstate 39 to the LaSalle Speedway in LaSalle, IL for the 4th Annual Bill Waite, Jr. Memorial. Bill and the B2 Motorsports has picked up the victory the past two years and also ran 5th at the quarter-mile facility back in June with the World of Outlaws. Please check our Facebook page for any last minute changes to our schedule by going to http://www.facebook.com/bsquaredmotorsports. Results throughout the night are also posted on our Facebook page provided there is service at the track. Also remember to check out Bill Balog and the B2 Motorsports Team by visiting www.billbalog.com for driver and crew bios, our schedule, pictures, videos, and to sign our guestbook if you’d like to.
Bill and the B2 Motorsports Team would also like to thank our continued supporters/sponsors including: Buesser Concrete, Maxim Chassis, Hepfner Racing Products, Xtreme Stainless, Gleason Equipment, Super Shox, K&N Filters, FK Rod Ends, Auto Meter, Weld Wheels, Saldana Racing Products, Astro Titanium, DMI, Fibrestar Industries, Stumble Inn Bar and Grill, Allstar Performance, Competition Driveline Service, BLZ, XYZ Machining, Outerwears, and Champion Oil.
Article Credit: Matt Myers
Submitted By: Matt Myers