[flagboy55]

Chuck is 💯 right. It was 40 till the 50th running. They did 50 in honor of that and I get it. The small fuel cells are unnecessary. They could run a 10 gallon larger tank and you wouldn’t know the difference. Unless it’s the little 500 sprint cars shouldn’t have to stop for fuel

[Andrew S. Quinn]

Originally Posted by flagboy55 Chuck is 💯 right. It was 40 till the 50th running. They did 50 in honor of that and I get it. The small fuel cells are unnecessary. They could run a 10 gallon larger tank and you wouldn’t know the difference. Unless it’s the little 500 sprint cars shouldn’t have to stop for fuel

No it was 30 laps till the 50th running....

[opnwhlmnd]

My opinion about this topic is a large majority of this forum do nothing but bash wing racing yet are concerned about the Knoxville Nationals format.

There were 25,000 people in the stands and another 4,000 in the suites and pits. I'd say the format is working pretty well for Knoxville.

[ThrowbackRacingTeam]

It always amused me when they went from 41 gallon tanks to 28 gallon and then complained they run out of fuel.

[1121]

I hate to be the voice of reason here, but the WoO rule book states that they "recommend" a 33 gallon tank. They mention that their race length (green and yellow flag laps) will be based on that tank. I'm sure Knoxville is the exception. My observation is that most, if not all of the full time teams run the 33 gallon tank. The 33 gallon tank is the biggest Outlaw style tank that is currently available. Outlaw style means that the tank has inserts so you can bolt it in from the side. This is the way most chassis manufacturers have their chassis set up. It is also a lot safer than the old way we used to do it where we ran bolts with a washer through the tank. I honestly don't know for sure if a 410 outlaw motor can go 50 laps on 33 gallons of fuel. But even if it can, it wouldn't take many yellow flag laps for them to be out. Then you would need a fuel stop anyway. So being pro-active and having a mandatory stop makes sense to be. While I agree that a sprint car race should actually be a sprint, as a fan, I kind of like the longer races.

Tom Paterson

[Andrew S. Quinn]

Originally Posted by BrentTFunk I can live with the break since they actually invert the heats.

They used to invert 10 when I first started going to Knoxville,and it was great watching Kinser set fast time,start 10th in the first heat,and have the lead going into the 3rd turn! It was nights like this that made everyone say that the qualifying nights were the best.

In later years if you set quick time,you were lucky to make it to 7th at the end of 10 laps. They changed the invert to 8,and you'd still be lucky to qualify. Look at the point scores from this past weekend. There were a lot of years someone would get a perfect score of 500 and it would break down from there.

Top points was like 470 something without looking.......

[BrentTFunk]

Originally Posted by Andrew S. Quinn They used to invert 10 when I first started going to Knoxville,and it was great watching Kinser set fast time,start 10th in the first heat,and have the lead going into the 3rd turn! It was nights like this that made everyone say that the qualifying nights were the best. In later years if you set quick time,you were lucky to make it to 7th at the end of 10 laps. They changed the invert to 8,and you'd still be lucky to qualify. Look at the point scores from this past weekend. There were a lot of years someone would get a perfect score of 500 and it would break down from there. Top points was like 470 something without looking.......

And people still complain about the invert. The Outlaws have good features when they get into lapped traffic. Their heat races are normally terrible. Like I said earlier, if you can't pass when the track is heavy, maybe the problem isn't the track, maybe it's the cars.

[badcoupe]

Anytime of the few times I’ve watched outlaws their heats are always “fence post formation” as Chet would say. I did watch the highlights this morning and man the outlaws need two new announcers those guys wore me out in a 5 minute highlight reel.

[Stevensville Mike]

Originally Posted by flagboy55 Pit stops or fuel breaks in Sprint Car racing is wrong! If you’re going to run a 50 lap race, make sure you can carry enough fuel to run it. I hate that break at the Knoxville Nationals.

Nope, it is not right '55. Agree 100%. A sprint car race does not need a NASCAR caution.

Originally Posted by opnwhlmnd My opinion about this topic is a large majority of this forum do nothing but bash wing racing yet are concerned about the Knoxville Nationals format. There were 25,000 people in the stands and another 4,000 in the suites and pits. I'd say the format is working pretty well for Knoxville.

Point made, sir. I can also remember the grandstands being packed at Daytona and Talladega for NASCAR restrictor plate races. They sold the "race fans" on that and packed the place with follow-the-leader laps. NASCAR was great at getting the fans to believe that entertainment was racing. Those were some GREAT races.

A lot of those grandstands are now gone for they cannot fill them and they have been moved to places like Kokomo, Plymouth, Spartan Speedway, etc. I think the fan base wised up.

As good as the racing is at Knoxville, I have to revert to P.T. Barnum's saying wherein "There is a sucker born every day." I just hope some day they make the Knoxville Nationals a sprint car race. Again.

[cornerthree]

Originally Posted by BrentTFunk I can live with the break since they actually invert the heats. I get tired of people complaining about racers having to race. If you can't pass unless the track is dry and slick, maybe the problem isn't the track, maybe it's the cars.

100% correct