World of Outlaws STP Sprint Cars Kick Off 2013 Friday Night at Volusia
BARBERVILLE, Fla. – Feb. 14, 2013 – Donny Schatz is a winner. In fact, in the past 10 years nobody has won more World of Outlaws STP Sprint Car Series features than him. He’s captured five of the past seven series championships, he’s won six of the past seven Knoxville Nationals titles and he’s the only driver in history to win the Williams Grove National Open five times. Makes you wonder what he’ll do in 2013.
Clearly, winning is big for Schatz and his Tony Stewart Racing team, but with all his experience Schatz has gained some perspective on the delicate balance between life and racing. In 2013, Schatz says there’s going to be an emphasis on having fun along the journey. When the schedule includes more than 90 races from February to November, that stance might make him even tougher to beat when the season begins on Friday night during the UNOH DIRTcar Nationals Presented by Summit Racing Equipment at Volusia Speedway Park.
“Winning is important,” said Schatz, 35. “It’s what we expect out of ourselves after having won so many things. It’s what our sponsors expect out of us after winning so many things. But the mindset has kind of changed for myself and my race team. You can win every day and not enjoy it. You can win every day and not have as much fun as you should. We’re just kind of attacking it like we’re going to make the best time out of it we can.
“We still expect to win, but you don’t know when your last day is going to be, or if you’re ever going to be able to do it again, so you might as well live every day like it’s the last. Some nights we might not have a very good night at all but we aren’t going to hang our heads. It’s something we enjoy to do, nobody forces us to do this, nobody makes us do this. This is what we want to do and if we’re not having fun then you have to figure out how to make it fun.”
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