Column: Previewing The WoO Ironman 55 At Pevely This Weekend: By The Numbers

Column By: BRIAN WALKER / WORLD OF OUTLAWS – PEVELY, MO – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series has been competing at Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 for 26 consecutive seasons. For half of that time span, the trademark event of the partnership has been the Ironman 55, a grueling test of man and machine.

Here are numbers to know for the doubleheader event:

0 – Never before has an Ironman 55 winner proceeded to win the Knoxville Nationals the next week.

0.250 – Miles around Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55.

1 – Brock Zearfoss (Jonestown, PA) and Wayne Johnson (Oklahoma City, OK) pursue their first Ironman 55 Feature start this weekend.

2.58 – Average starting position of Ironman 55 winners. The farthest any winner has started is sixth.

3 – Record for most Ironman 55 titles, won consecutively from 2011-13 by “The Crowd Pleaser” Craig Dollansky.

3 – Three former Ironman 55 winners in this weekend’s field: Rico Abreu, who won back-to-back in 2016-17, Logan Schuchart who won in 2018, and Sheldon Haudenschild who won in 2019.

4 – Four consecutive Ironman 55 Features have been won from the pole position, although none have led all 55 laps from green-to-checkered.

4.72 – Donny Schatz’s average finish at the Ironman 55. The Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 has four runner-up finishes and a worst finish of ninth, but still zero Ironman titles.

5 – Victories apiece for Steve Kinser, Sammy Swindell, and Craig Dollansky at I-55, a tie for most all-time. Brad Sweet is behind them with four wins to his credit.

7 – Full-time drivers have won at I-55 with the World of Outlaws before. That list includes Brad Sweet (’19, ’20, ’21, ’21), Sheldon Haudenschild (’19, ’20), Donny Schatz (’06, ’15), Logan Schuchart (’18), David Gravel (’16), Jason Sides (’12), and Kraig Kinser (’05).

9.995 – Track record set by Kyle Larson on May 22, 2020.

10 – Slick Woody’s QuickTimes set by David Gravel aboard the Big Game Motorsports #2 this year.

10.308 – Margin of victory during Haudenschild’s dominant 2018 beatdown at the Ironman 55.

12 – Features for Donny Schatz, Jason Sides & Kraig Kinser, the only three drivers to start every single Ironman 55.

13.75 – Miles to race in Saturday’s 55-lapper, a shorter mileage than many 1/2-mile Features.

16 – Consecutive top-seven results for Carson Macedo and the Jason Johnson Racing #41.

16 – Most positions advanced in an Ironman 55 Feature, set by Logan Schuchart with a 24th-to-8th KSE Hard Charger run in 2015.

30 – Races remaining on the 2021 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series schedule.

55 – Laps in Saturday’s finale, the longest of the season.

63 – Previous races held at I-55, which ranks as the ninth most visited track in Series history.

100 – Winning percentage of Brad Sweet in Missouri this year. He enters five-for-five with two wins at I-55, two wins at I-70, and a win at Lake Ozark.

120 – Points separating Carson Macedo from Brad Sweet for the championship lead.

142 – Laps led by Kerry Madsen at the Ironman 55, most all-time. The Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #14 will sit on the sidelines this weekend preparing for Knoxville next week.

306 – Minutes or roughly five hours overnight from I-55 to Knoxville Raceway, where several teams will race in Sunday’s Capitani Classic in preparation for the Nationals.

700 – Career Feature starts eclipsed by Grass Valley, CA’s Brad Sweet last week.

799 – Miles from Gettysburg, PA to I-55, which will be traveled by Danny Dietrich and the Gary Kauffman Racing #48 to race this weekend at the Ironman.

1987 – Year of the first World of Outlaws appearance at I-55, won by Brad Doty.

2009 – First running of the Ironman 55, topped by Joey Saldana.

6,356 – Points accumulated by James McFadden, who is the new leading contender for the Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award.

10,000 – Fine paid by Roth Motorsports following a rules infraction last weekend. With Aaron Reutzel suspended, Parker Price-Miller will drive the car this weekend at I-55.

20,000 – Included in the “Month of Money,” Saturday’s 55-lap finale pays out $20,000 to the winner.