8/12/2020
Inside Line Promotions
Burke Earns Top-Five Finish During First Career Non-Wing Sprint Car Start
Inside Line Promotions – GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. (Aug. 12, 2020) – Trey Burke was fully prepared to tackle ‘The Sprint Car Capital of the World’ last weekend.
Some of the best sprint car drivers in the country converged upon Knoxville Raceway ready to do battle for a $15,000 top prize in the 360 Knoxville Nationals. Burke was prepared to make his debut at the half-mile track in Knoxville, Iowa, but the biggest obstacle was the sign-in process.
Burke posted his age and was told he couldn’t participate. Drivers have to be 16-years-old to compete at Knoxville Raceway and he is one year shy of that mark.
Burke loaded up and headed to Missouri, where he competed in his first-ever non-wing 360 race at Valley Speedway. It was a leap, but Burke handled it well and came away with a top-five finish in the feature.
“At first, we thought it was a joke because people were signing in and doing their thing,” Burke said. “I put my name on the board and had to put my age. They looked at it and said, ‘Yeah, you can’t race here.’
“We pretty much talked to every official and they said, ‘You’ve got to be 16.’ It was disappointing, but I think what was more disappointing is that I thought we weren’t going to be able to race at all.
“Knoxville is such a big race and most other series aren’t doing anything. So we scoured and found a non-wing 360 race. Not only was it my first non-wing race, but it was also my first 360 race. It was fun for sure.”
It took Burke all of a few laps to get the feel of the car. He lined up sixth in a heat race and charged to third, which put him in a good position for the feature.
Burke held his own against more experienced drivers in the main event. That led to a fun experience and a solid fifth-place effort.
“It’s been two years since I ran the non-wing micro so I thought the same thing, which is get the right rear out and let the right rear drive the car,” he said. “It worked. Dad, Brad and Todd Shores set the car up and it was a blast.”
Burke will enter new territory, again, this week when he competes in the final three nights of ASCS Sprint Week. It will be the first time he runs in the 360 sprint car class with a wing as he plans to finish out the series in Oklahoma and Arkansas. The races are Friday at Creek County Speedway in Sapulpa, Okla.; Saturday at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark.; and Sunday at Diamond Park Speedway in Nashville, Ark.
“We are going to head back to Oklahoma and run the rest of Sprint Week,” he said. “I expected the 360 to be a really huge jump, but after three laps in hot laps I realized it wasn’t too bad.
“I’m pretty excited and ready. We’ve been planning this for a while now and to finally get it in action is nerve-racking but also fun.”
QUICK RESULTS –
Aug. 8 – Valley Speedway in Grain Valley, Mo. – Heat race 3 (6); Feature: 5 (5).
SEASON STATS –
12 races, 1 win, 6 top fives, 10 top 10s, 10 top 15s, 11 top 20s
UP NEXT –
Friday at Creek County Speedway in Sapulpa, Okla.; Saturday at I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, Ark.; and Sunday at Diamond Park Speedway in Nashville, Ark., during ASCS Sprint Week
MEDIA LINKS –
Website: http://treyburke.myracepass.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/treyburkeracing
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/treyburkeracing/
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Todd Shores
“We had to borrow two 360s and, obviously, take the two 305s out of our two cars,” Burke said. “Somebody has to put those in, so for about a week Todd was over at our shop from 8 a.m. to 4:30 in the afternoon working. It’s impressive. He helped set up the car and just kept working. Without him we wouldn’t have been able to do any of this.”
Burke would also like to thank Dooling Machine Products, Momentum Racing Suspension, TJ Forged, Wells Racing Engines, Maxim Chassis and Simpson Race Products for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
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Article Credit: Inside Line Promotions
Submitted By: Shawn Miller