Scelzi Wins National Sprint League Heat Race and Finishes Seventh during Knoxville Raceway Debut

Inside Line Promotions – KNOXVILLE, Iowa (June 6, 2016) – Dominic Scelzi achieved another dream on Saturday at Knoxville Raceway, where he made his debut and did so in impressive fashion during the National Sprint League event.

“It was so much fun to finally be able to race there,” he said. “It far exceeded any expectations I had. It was so fast and so wide and so big. There’s nothing to compare it to. It was really hard for me in hot laps and qualifying to keep the car smooth.”

Scelzi qualified 13th quickest before he won a heat race after starting on the outside of the front row in his Roth Motorsports backed entry.

“We were thrilled to be as fast as we were from the get-go,” he said. “The biggest part of the night was winning the heat race. That gave me eight laps around that place by myself. I could focus on hitting my lines and not have to worry about dirty air. That made my comfort level go way up. To win a heat race at Knoxville was an absolute dream come true.”

That locked Scelzi into the 10th starting position for the 25-lap main event.

“We were able to go forward to seventh,” he said. “I feel like we were faster than Sammy (Swindell) and faster than Ian (Madsen). I just wasn’t able to pass them. I struggled learning how to pass guys. I got to both of them and I tried to slide Ian and I didn’t go down far enough. I felt like I could catch guys, but I struggled with the air and to pass them correctly.”

Scelzi captured a seventh-place result, which was his eighth top 10 of the season.

It was his only race of the weekend as last Friday’s National Sprint League event at Jackson Motorplex in Jackson, Minn., rained out.

Scelzi is slated to compete this Wednesday at Lincoln Park Speedway in Putnamville, Ind., and Friday and Saturday at Knoxville Raceway with the World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series.

“I feel like my confidence is at an all-time high,” he said. “Lincoln Park Speedway is a small place like you’d see in California. Going into Knoxville Raceway with so many good local guys as well as the Outlaws my focus is putting down a good lap in qualifying and making it through the heat race each night.”

QUICK RESULTS –