Inside Line Promotions – MESQUITE, Texas (May 9) – It was a long, arduous week for Tony Bruce Jr.
And in the end, it was anything but a happy one.
On Thursday, weather forced his business – TBJ Promotions – to postpone its first race of the season, delaying the 3rd annual Sprintsource.com Rock ‘N Roll 50 at Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Ark., featuring the ASCS National Tour.
“It was really disappointing we weren’t able to run it,” Bruce Jr. said. “It just was a wise decision for all the race teams and the fans coming from out of town.
“Trying to put together a date that works for both the ASCS National Tour and the race track is going to be pretty difficult, but we’re looking into it.”
The team, which had traveled from its base in Tulsa, Okla., to the track earlier in the week to set up, then had to find another race to attend at the last minute. Bruce Jr. and crew traveled to Mesquite, Texas, for Saturday’s ASCS Lone Star vs. ASCS Sooner shootout at Devil’s Bowl Speedway.
A high pill draw forced Bruce Jr. to start on the inside of the last row – ninth – in his heat race. He managed to work his way to fifth, which earned enough points to advance to the feature.
“The car was working really well and we were able to pass quite a few cars in the heat race,” Bruce Jr. said. “We had a new engine from Gaerte Engines that worked great as well.”
That was the shining moment for the seventh-year driver, whose night was ended after a violent wreck on lap four of the feature.
Bruce Jr., who started 15th, passed a couple of cars during the opening laps before contact with another car damaged the nose wing. A caution on the fourth lap allowed the crew to repair the wing.
He rejoined the cars on the track in last place, but another driver spun out entering turn one on the restart. Bruce Jr. was unable to avoid the melee, which destroyed the front end, rear end and wings. The impact forced him to the pits with an 18th-place finish.
Bruce Jr. also competed earlier in the week with the World of Outlaws, falling one position shy of advancing to the feature last Tuesday at Salina Highbanks Speedway in Salina, Okla.
“We timed in pretty bad,” he said. “We just really never got the hang of it all night. We were fast, just not fast enough to pass any cars.”
QUICK RESULTS –
May 3 – Salina Highbanks Speedway in Salina, Okla. – Qualifying: 21; Heat race: 9 (7); B Main: 7 (5).
May 7 – Devil’s Bowl Speedway in Mesquite, Texas – Heat race: 5 (9); Feature: 18 (15).
SEASON STATS –
13 races, 12 features, 0 wins, 1 top five, 4 top 10s, 8 top 15s, 12 top 20s
UP NEXT –
May 27 at RPM Speedway in Hays, Kan., with the NCRA
FAVORITE NUMBER –
.917: Time behind the quickest qualifier for Bruce Jr. at Salina Highbanks Speedway in Salina, Okla.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS –
Website: www.tonybrucejr.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/tonybrucejr
APPAREL –
Bruce Jr. has black t-shirts available for purchase at all of his races this season. The sizes range from small to 3XL. For more information about his schedule, visit www.tonybrucejr.com.
ON THE AIR –
Bruce Jr. was a featured guest on the ASCS Show by Racinboys on April 26. Click on the link below to list to Bruce Jr.’s interview, which begins around the 52:25 mark.
http://www.meridix.com/mbp/general/index.php?liveid=Racinboys&recordid=18733
SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – The Oil Medics
Located in Fort Worth Texas, The Oil Medics services diesel trucks and distributes racing oil for sprint car engines and rear ends. For more information, visit www.theoilmedics.com.
“Bill and the entire Jewell family has been more than just a great sponsor, but also great friends,” Bruce Jr. said. “They specialize in truck maintenance and fuel economy, which has saved us hundreds of dollars the past two years in diesel fuel.”
Bruce Jr. would like to thank his sponsors, including TBJ Promotions, Travelwizer.com, Ticketmob.com, LRB Manufacturing, Hoosier and Smiley’s Racing Products for their continued support.
INSIDE LINE PROMOTIONS –
Inside Line Promotions specializes in affordable public relations, media management and merchandising services for sprint car teams. ILP Founder Shawn Miller leverages professional journalism with new media technologies and social networking to improve your exposure and your sponsors’ return on investment.
To meet the media relations needs of your team, contact Shawn at 541-510-3663 or sprintcarreporter@yahoo.com. For more information on Inside Line Promotions, visit www.insidelinepromotions.com.