Kevin Swindell Racing Produces Numerous Proud Moments During 2017 Campaign

Story By: SHAWN MILLER / KEVIN SWINDELL RACING – GERMANTOWN, TN – Kevin Swindell Racing had a breakout season in its first full year as a winged sprint car team.

Spencer Bayston drove to a pair of feature victories and Sammy Swindell led the Swindell Speed Lab backed team into the Kings Royal A Main.

“It was probably better than we expected,” Kevin Swindell said. “We put ourselves in position to win races a fair amount of time. Whether it was the car, yellows or just circumstances that hurt us, I think we could have won five or six races this year. I’m excited and happy we were able to put as much speed into it. We’ll go into next year with some notes for a lot of tracks that we saw for the first time as well.”

Bayston captured the biggest win of the season on April 15 when he scored an Arctic Cat All Star Circuit of Champions victory at Attica Raceway Park in Attica, Ohio.

“It was a great start to the year,” he said. “I remember right out of qualifying we were fast. I started seventh in the A Main and it took me a minute to get rolling. All of a sudden we hit our stride mid-race. I was able to work in the middle in turns one and two where everyone else was around the top. We got the lead and cruised home. It was a shocking night, but a moment of knowing that we were a competitor.”

Bayston backed up the impressive triumph on June 22 at Muskingum County Speedway in Zanesville, Ohio, with the All Stars.

“We were so good,” he said. “That track was in my comfort zone. I think every time we took the green I was able to drive away from the field. It showed we didn’t get lucky at Attica and that we can contend for wins. That was a sigh of relief to know we were able to do it again.”

Sammy Swindell also had a special summer moment after a last-minute decision to tackle the Kings Royal finale in July, when he made his debut driving for his son’s team.

“Getting in the Kings Royal with dad on a short notice and not our best foot forward was special,” Kevin Swindell said. “That was cool for me to do that with him as tough as that deal can be to get in.”

The Swindell Speed Lab sponsored team produced numerous other strong results and will carry momentum into 2018, when Bayston will drive in approximately 40 races.

“Overall it was a really good year,” he said. “It was a learning year for sure. Going into it knowing it was a new team and new program with a rookie driver and a rookie crew chief, we had a lot to work on and build and I think we did a good job. We were able to work off each other and gain knowledge on the driving and setup side as well. We were in position to win many, many more races. That is a confidence boost to carry into next year.”