Henderson and Sandvig Motorsports Experience Heartbreak at Knoxville Raceway

Justin Henderson scored a disappointing 23rd-place finish at Knoxville Raceway on Saturday night after a mechanical issue ended what appeared to be  a promising night behind the wheel of the Mike Sandvig Motorsports No 7 410 Sprint Car.

“Luckily I saved the car from getting into the wall, but overall, a tough night for our team,” said Henderson. “Sometimes I feel like we’d have no luck at all if not for bad luck. So overall it’s not much to write about.”

Henderson began the evening by timing in 5th quickest out of 32 cars in attendance with a fastest lap of 15.837 seconds during qualifying. He then advanced one position in a heat race to finish fourth and secured a spot in the night’s feature event.

“Qualifying well makes  everything easier and it seems we turned the corner there,” said Henderson. “We were not great in the heat race and just managed to hold on to get her in the show, so we’re still working on that part of things.”

Following a fortunate re-draw, Henderson lined up from the 5th starting position for the feature. However, his night practically ended before it ever started when he came to a stop against the outside guardrail on lap two with a broken tie-rod bolt. As a result, he was  credited with finishing in the 23rd position.

“We didn’t really start too well, so there’s not much we can take from that experience,” he said. “I’d have liked to maybe learn a few things from the changes we made, but that’s the way things go sometimes.”

While the finish was frustrating, Henderson was able to find encouragement in the early speed the car had on track.

“We turned the corner a little bit and we’re kind of trial and error until we get it right,” he said. “I feel like we’re getting back on track as a team, and we had some speed. So, we’ll just take the positives we can from it and just keep moving forward.”

Next up for the duo will be another Saturday of racing at Knoxville Raceway, followed by a return to Huset’s Speedway on Sunday. 

Henderson currently sits on top of the point standings at Huset’s, where he holds a 12-point advantage in search of his second consecutive track championship at the Brandon, S.D Speedway.

“We’re leading the points at Huset’s and It’s always a good time when you enter as the points leader, ” said Henderson. “The crazy thing is that I don’t know that we have really scratched the surface in how good we are as a team this season yet.

“We’re really grinding away at this deal and we’re working hard to be ready come Nationals time. I feel like the best is yet to come for this team and I’m looking forward to clicking off a few wins hopefully in the near future.”

WEEKEND RESULTS

July 9 – Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 4 (5); Feature: 23 (5).

SEASON STATS

24 races, 0 wins, 7 top 5’s, 11 top 10’s, 15 top 15’s, 15 top 20’s

UP NEXT

Saturday, July 16th, at Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa., Sunday, July 17th, at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon, S.D

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT – Heartland Kitchen Solutions

Heartland Kitchen Solutions is a Pepperidge Farm route that services the Des Moines, Iowa, area large and small stores. Owned by race fan Curt Plough, who is a retired U.S Army First Sergeant, the business provides exceptional cookies, crackers, breads and more that carry a 75-year tradition of feeding families.

“Mike and Justin are kind of a low budget team and I always enjoy being a part of the underdog mentality,” Plough said. “They kind of remind me of myself and I’m happy to help take them over the hump with our support.”

Sandvig would also like to thank Powersports.com, Morton Buildings, GRP Motorsports, Eszlinger Electric, Maxim Racing Inc, DeBerg Flooring, Kyle Johnson Trucking, R2 Enterprise, GRP Motorsports, Team Enterprise Metal Fabrication and Powder Coating, Rider Racing Engines, Winters Performance, Schoenfeld Headers, BK Racing TI Components, SBS FK Shocks, Wings Unlimited, Keizer Aluminum Wheels, Hinchman Racewear, and Simpson Race Products for their continued support.