Donny Schatz
Hometown: Minot, N.D.
Resides: Fargo, N.D.
Birthday: Aug. 10, 1977
Car: No. 15
Chassis: J&J
Car Owner: Tony Stewart Racing
Web site: http://www.donnyschatz.com
http://www.tonystewartracing.com
2007 Season Review: World of Outlaws Sprint Series Champion
Donny Schatz was on a mission in 2007. After winning 17 A-Feature events in 2006 en route to his first World of Outlaws title, the native of Fargo, North Dakota wanted to reach the winner’s circle more times in 2007, which he did in convincing fashion..
In claiming his second consecutive Advance Auto Parts World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series title, Schatz won 19 A-Feature events, along with winning the Knoxville Nationals for the second straight year. He now has 70 career A-Feature wins with the series, which places him in a tie for sixth on the all-time list.
“We had a great year,” said Schatz. “The crew has worked their tails off all season and we have had a lot of fun. We set our goals pretty high and I have them set really high for next year as well.”
He opened the 2007 campaign the same way he ended 2006, in the winner’s circle. He charged to victory lane on opening night at Volusia Speedway Park and followed that up with two third-place finishes to firmly entrench himself atop the championship standings. A trip to the West Coast brought a win at Manzanita Speedway in Arizona. In the series return to Houston Raceway Park in Texas, Schatz made it two wins in a row.
After seven straight finishes of sixth of better, he returned to victory lane at Knoxville Raceway at the end of April, a week after retaking the point lead from Joey Saldana, which he would not relinquish the rest of the season. During the series first East Coast swing of the season, Schatz continued to show his prowess at the famed Williams Grove Speedway, winning both events in May. In the series first visit of the season to The Dirt Track @ Lowe’s Motor Speedway, he won a thrilling battle with Paul McMahan. This was in the midst of a string of 15 consecutive Top-10 finishes that helped him begin to open a gap between himself and Saldana in the standings.
In the 75 A-Feature events that were contested in 2007, Schatz finished in the Top-10 in 71 of them. Of those finishes, 53 were in the Top-Five. He led the series in a number of other statistical categories including: money earned, laps led, wins in the Crane Cams Dash and pole positions. The racer inside of Schatz wanted to finish in the Top-10 in every race.
“I can tell you all four times where we didn’t finish in the Top-10, because I was pulling my teeth out on those nights,” he said. “One of those was really miserable, but that is just the way it goes. You will have nights like that. The crew definitely worked hard all year.”
Schatz put his name in the record books in 2007 as the first driver in sprint car racing history to win the Knoxville Nationals, Kings Royal, Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup. Williams Grove National Open and Williams Grove Summer Nationals all in the same season.
“You just want to win every night, irregardless of what race it is,” he explained. “It will probably sink in down the road. Every day it does sink in a little more and it’s a confidence booster. Sometimes you can get ahead of yourself and anything less that winning those races again will be a let down to me. That is what I want and that is what I expect out of myself. We’re going try to dig down deep and take ourselves to another level of intensity next year. Hopefully we will be even better.”
Schatz also shined very bright when the television cameras were rolling. He began the inaugural “SuperClean Summer of Money” on ESPN2 with a runner-up finish at Dodge City Raceway Park, and followed that with a win at Black Hills Speedway in South Dakota. After two Top-Six finishes in his home state of North Dakota, Schatz kept his unbeaten streak in South Dakota alive, winning at Huset’s Speedway. Schatz continued to roll through the summer.
After coming so close for so many years to winning the Knoxville Nationals, Schatz and his team claimed sprint car racing’s biggest prize again in 2007. The triumph was worth a record $150,000.
“The second one was just as special,” he noted. “When you take all the competition that is there all week and all of your cards are on the line. We had an awesome car there on Saturday and the weather was trying to mess with us. We had a lot of things that make it a trying week. Normally you come out of Knoxville feeling like you are riding a rollercoaster, but for us we still had a lot of races to win and to try and win this championship. It was a fun time.”
The 2007 season marked his final season behind the wheel of his family’s familiar yellow car. He will join Tony Stewart Racing in 2008, as a teammate to Kraig Kinser. While driving for his parents Danny and Diane, Donny earned 70 A-Feature wins with the World of Outlaws, along with the consecutive two titles, and he also was the 1997 Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” said the second generation driver. “My family has been a big supporter of me since day one, and this is sort of my way of paying them back for everything they have done for me. Hopefully they can enjoy it a little more as spectators. We’ll just see what happens. I won’t know until I get to the first race in the spring and I am in Tony’s (Stewart) car.”
2007 Season Stats: Donny Schatz
Driver Pts. $Earned Wins Top 5 Top 10
Donny Schatz 10519 $470,450 19 53 71
World of Outlaws history: 1996- 19th in points… 1997- 12th in points- Rookie of the Year… 1998- 12th in points- 1 win… 1999- 7th in points- 3 wins… 2000- 11th in points- 1 win… 2001- 5th in points- 6 wins… 2002- 7th in points- 2 wins… 2003- 5th in points- 7 wins… 2004- 3rd in points- 6 wins… 2005- 4th in points- 8 wins…. 2006- 1st in points- 17 wins… 2007- 1st in points- 19 wins
Previous Racing History: 1993- WISSOTA Sprint Car Rookie of the Year… 1994- WISSOTA-5th in National Points- 8 wins… 1996- WISSOTA- National Champion… Has won the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic in Australia twice (2001 & 2002)…Also is three-time winner of the $50K to win Sprintcar International at Parrammatta Speedway in Australia.
Interesting Facts: 1997 World of Outlaws Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year…Has a pilot’s license and is an avid flyer… During the 2006 season took a flight with the Blue Angels… Enjoys outdoor sports of hunting and fishing along with skiing, both water and snow… Is a second generation driver, his father Danny drove sprint cars.