Schatz Edges Pittman in Cedar Lake Speedway Thriller for His 20th World of Outlaws Victory of the Season

Past two series champions slice and dice through heavy traffic to decide opening night of Outlaw Sprint Car Showdown

NEW RICHMOND, Wis. – July 11, 2015 – Daryn Pittman went high, Donny Schatz went through the middle, they slid each other at least three times for the lead with less than five laps to go in Saturday night's opener of the Cedar Lake Speedway Outlaw Sprint Car Showdown, and after the side-by-side race to the checkered flag it was Schatz standing in victory lane with his 20th World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series win of the year.

CLICK TO WATCH HIGHLIGHTS FROM SATURDAY NIGHT'S EVENT.

Schatz's season of domination in his #15 Bad Boy Buggies ride continued, but it was far from easy on Saturday night at the 3/8-mile dirt oval. Pittman earned his fourth pole of the season by winning the Dash and started alongside Jamie Veal. Schatz quickly worked his way to third in the first few laps, before grabbing second 15 circuits into the 35-lapper.

Pittman's #9 Great Clips car pulled away from Schatz on a restart with 19 laps complete, but Schatz reeled him and the two put on a show in traffic for the huge crowd. Veal hung onto third for his best finish with the Outlaws while Kerry Madsen held off Joey Saldana for fourth.

Historically speaking, the victory is #192 in Schatz's career, moving him even closer to the coveted 200-win mark. Also, in Steve Kinser's record-setting 1987 46-win season, he earned his 22nd victory of the season on July 11 of that year.

"I didn't feel all that good, I just couldn't seem to get locked down like I wanted to," said Schatz, a six-time World of Outlaws champion from Fargo, N.D., who won his fourth Outlaw race at Cedar Lake. "I don't know if there just wasn't enough racetrack there in the middle or what. You could hit it one lap and the next lap you couldn't so I guess we have a little bit of work to do for Sunday. We just got Daryn in traffic. That's what it all boils down to. You win them or lose them in traffic. I was able to get by him. He must have been right there with us because I was about half sideways from somebody at the end. I'm just glad to get the victory."

After leading the first 30 laps, Pittman was disappointed to narrowly miss out on a victory, especially after he and his team battled all night, including changing engines and the rear end.

"We had a great car all night, a car good enough to win," said Pittman, the 2013 series champion from Owasso, Okla. "The driver just didn't get the job done. Lapped traffic is what wins and loses these races. It was my race to give up and I did a good job of giving it away."

Veal, on the other hand, was pleased to earn a podium finish, showing steady improvement since he first came over from Australia in the spring to fill in for Jason Johnson.

"It was a solid night from when we hit the track in hot laps to when we rolled out for the feature," Veal said. "I'm real happy with tonight. It's like a win for us the way we've been running."

The Outlaws are back at Cedar Lake on Sunday for the conclusion of the two-day event. Fans who can't be there can watch it live at DIRTVision.com.

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CEDAR LAKE SPEEDWAY NOTEBOOK

RACE NOTES: Joey Saldana was the night's fast qualifier after a lap of 11.457 seconds. It was the 10th quick time of the season for Saldana … Daryn Pittman won the Dash and started on the feature pole for the fourth time this season… Jason Sides was the night's KSE Racing Hard Charger, advancing 15 positions to finish in sixth … Donny Schatz's win tonight was his 20th of the season and fourth of his career at Cedar Lake.

CONTINGENCY WINNERS - MSD Ignitions ($25 cash): Brian Brown; MSD Ignitions ($50 cash): Donny Schatz; Sweet Manufacturing ($100 cash): Joey Saldana; Penske Shocks