Schatz still in awe of Knoxville Nationals dominance

KNOXVILLE - Back in 2005, before Knoxville Raceway became Donny Schatz's personal playing ground, everyone wondered if the Fargo, N.D. native was ever going to win a Knoxville Nationals. He'd finished second four times, coming agonizingly close.

Ten years and 10 Nationals later, everyone is wondering if Schatz is ever going to lose a Knoxville Nationals again.

The Tony Stewart Racing driver captured his ninth Nationals crown out of those last 10, including his fifth in a row on Saturday night - leading all 50 laps in the process.

'Honestly, you don't look at it as, ‘I've won nine.' You come in here and all I heard all week long was, ‘Go for nine. Go for nine.' It's ‘Go for what you have in front of you this week.' Whether it's one, nine, 20 - it doesn't really matter,” Schatz said. 'I have not gotten here just trying to accumulate another number to the mix. You have to focus on getting the job done this week. If you get the job done, great. The next time you come back, you get the same opportunity.

'It's pretty unreal to think about it, but I didn't get here trying to accumulate some big win total.”

Schatz never left any doubt this time around - not that he's really left any doubt at any point other than his second place finish in 2010 to Tim Shaffer in a race he was leading before his engine went sour.

He was prolific in Turns 3 and 4, using the cushion on the high side to power off the corner and fly down the straightaway, turning away challenges from Danny Lasoski in the first half and Kerry Madsen in the second.

Schatz said based off the last few nights of racing in Knoxville, if a driver could get the top to work they would be pretty good. Between that knowledge and a gear change at the halfway mark, he and his team were clearly steps quicker than the competition.

'They talked about (changing gear) before we started the race, and I just told them, ‘Look, if we're going to be bad, let's be bad in the first 25, not the last 25. So let's just leave it where it's at and be ready to change it at the stop,'” Schatz said. 'That's what these races come down to, making those decisions. That's what this team excels at - making those decisions ahead of time and in the crunch.”

Schatz won ahead of Madsen in second, Brad Sweet in third, Shane Stewart - in a Jeff Gordon throwback paint scheme - in fourth and Joey Saldana in fifth.

While the top three finishers sat at the interview table after the race and Schatz was asked about those nine wins in 10 years, Sweet interjected before Schatz could answer and jokingly said, 'It sucks.” Schatz responded in kind, 'It probably sucks for everyone but me.”

The playful exchange was just to highlight, from Sweet and the competition's perspective, their respect for what Schatz has been able to do.

'You have to respect the guy so much because when a guy dominates a sport with as much as we (other competitors) put into it to try to beat him. It wouldn't be winning if he wasn't there,” Sweet said. 'You need to beat him straight up before you win this race. No one's done it in a long time. He sets the bar super high for us, but it makes us work that much harder.

'Finally, at some point, when someone can beat him straight up, it's going to make that person feel that much better. We had the speed at times tonight. We weren't that far off. That gives me hope and excitement.”

Even after all the wins and continued dominance in Sprint Car racing's biggest race, Schatz clearly still respected impact and weight of what he'd accomplished again.

He was emotional in his Victory Lane interview, and tried his hardest to hide it from TV cameras and onlookers. But to put it simply, it's the race. A person would be crazy not to be moved by a win at Knoxville - no matter how many times it happens, he said.

Throw in seeing his car owner Tony Stewart and crew after the race, and there's no holding in the emotions.

'I just won the Knoxville Nationals, that's where that comes from. The minute you take the checkered flag, I was just teary-eyed,” Schatz said. 'Being able to see the race team, see the excitement in their eyes, all the manufacturers we get to work with. That makes this so much more special than me getting the biggest check and biggest trophy in the most prestigious race of the year. It's the people that get to go along with you to do it.

'They all bust their tails for me, for my safety; for us to be as good as we can be. When you can get them all in one spot and enjoy it, it makes it worth living.”

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