Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) and Jason Johnson Racing.
These are the only two teams to come into Iowa and capture multiple Knoxville Nationals championships in the past 14 years.
Part of that reason is the dominance at the track of Donny Schatz, but the more obscure note is that of JJR doing it with two different drivers. That’s in large part due to the expertise of Philip Dietz in the crew chief role working on the No. 41 team.
In 2021, the team will compete to win Nationals again, this time with Carson Macedo at the wheel.
“I think that’s pretty evident,” Macedo said of having Dietz in his corner. “His success with every driver that he’s ever ran with at Knoxville speaks for itself. He’s huge. His experience at Knoxville Raceway and the package that they’ve come by to have the speed and balance they have there is imperative.”
Dietz crew chief’ed both Jason Johnson’s 2016 Knoxville Nationals win as well as David Gravel’s in 2019.
Now, the Nationals and the Brownells Big Guns Bash are two different things. However, that doesn’t mean Macedo and his JJR pairing will prepare things any differently.
The Nationals are essentially two 25 lap feature races paired into one. The team still expects success this weekend.
“The way JJR does things at Knoxville is probably a little bit different than we did things at Kyle Larson Racing,” Macedo said. “Philip (Dietz) has his way of doing things, his ride heights that work for him and have worked for him. He’s constantly innovating to make things on our race car better.”
Macedo, who filled in to race the car during the 2018 Knoxville Nationals before his two-year stint with Kyle Larson Racing, is off to his most successful start in his career.
The California native owns three World of Outlaws wins already, trying to one-up his own personal best mark of four wins during the 2019 season. He has another 60 or so races to do it, so it can be expected.
That start to the year also came with a pair of runs at Knoxville weekly races when the World of Outlaws tour was either off or rained out. Those starts came with a quick time and also a runner-up finish on separate nights.
It gave Macedo and his team more information on what to do and what not to do going into the pair of big races at Knoxville.
“The first couple of times that we went to Knoxville this year, we tried a few things,” Macedo said. “We really kind of learned not only what worked well, but what didn’t work. Leading into a two-night World of Outlaws show – which is what we were trying to prepare for – I think we have a better idea of what it’s going to take to be successful and win.”
Hot laps for Friday and Saturday night at Knoxville will kick off at or around 6:45 p.m. CT and fans that can’t make it to the race track, as always, can view the racing on DirtVision.
| World of Outlaws Sprint Car Standings | ||||
| Position | Driver | Points | Behind | |
| 1 | Brad Sweet | 3932 | – | |
| 2 | David Gravel | 3876 | -56 | |
| 3 | Carson Macedo | 3828 | -104 | |
| 4 | Donny Schatz | 3786 | -146 | |
| 5 | Sheldon Haudenschild | 3780 | -152 | |
| 6 | Logan Schuchart | 3736 | -192 | |
| 7 | Aaron Reutzel ® | 3710 | -222 | |
| 8 | Kraig Kinser | 3456 | -476 | |
| 9 | James McFadden | 3370 | -563 | |
| 10 | Brock Zearfoss ® | 3308 | -624 | |
2021 World of Outlaws Sprint Cars Winners
Volusia | Brad Sweet
Volusia | Logan Schuchart
Volusia | Carson Macedo
East Bay | Aaron Reutzel
Magnolia | Sheldon Haudenschild
The Rev | David Gravel
Cotton Bowl | Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
Cotton Bowl | Brad Sweet (2)
Lake Ozark | Brad Sweet (3)
Pevely | Brad Sweet (4)
Pevely | Brad Sweet (5)
Kokomo | James McFadden
Haubstadt | Carson Macedo (2)
Bristol | David Gravel (2)
Bristol | David Gravel (3)
Jacksonville | Brad Sweet (6)
I-70 | Brad Sweet (7)
I-70 | Brad Sweet (8)
Eldora | Brent Marks
Eldora | Sheldon Haudenschild (3)
Lincoln | Brad Sweet (9)
Williams Grove | Carson Macedo (3)
Williams Grove | Aaron Reutzel (2)
Bridgeport | Logan Schuchart (2)
Attica | David Gravel (4)
Sharon | Dave Blaney
Lawrenceburg | Kyle Larson
Granite City | David Gravel (5)
