As a race car driver, Zach Newlin has had many years of success at various levels, but when his 2021 410 sprint car season opened in Pennsylvania, something wasn’t working. Newlin and the team he started the season with were not gelling. It happens in racing. A lot of combinations just don’t work. A few do.
The Millerstown, PA native was fired from that ride and turned his focus back to 358 sprint cars, wondering if he would get another shot at the top level. That chapter left Newlin in a bad place mentally, his confidence shaken.
Fortunately, the next chapter of his story requires no sugar coating.
Friday 10/8: 38 cars, Qualifying 19th in flight 1, Heat 8th, B-main 5th
Having recently joined forces, Zach Newlin and the Pryde Motorsports team only had four races under their belt coming into the 2-day World of Outlaws event at Port Royal Speedway. Those races had only resulted in a single A-main appearance. That one appearance did result in the Hard Charger Award at Port Royal’s Labor Day Classic, but the new pairing knew it would take time to learn to work together to reach their potential.
A high quality field of 38 teams were on hand Friday night at ‘The Speed Palace’ for The Nittany Showdown preliminary night action. The World of Outlaws format split the field into two flights of 19 cars for time trials, which would set the lineups for four 8-lap heat races.
Newlin was the 18th driver to hit the track for qualifying. He turned in a disappointing lap that left him last in his flight. It would be a tough road the rest of the night.
The Pryde Motorsports team hurried to make changes before rolling out to their 10th starting spot for heat number one. The top five finishers advanced to the A-main, while the remainder of the field, including Newlin who came home in 8th, were relegated to the B-main for a final shot at making the main event.
Newlin, a Millerstown, PA native, took the green for the 12-lap B-main from the 9th position and immediately went to work. The top four finishers would transfer to claim the final four starting spots in the $10,000 to win, 25-lap A-main.
It was clear the team and Newlin were both applying what they were learning as the night went on because the Del Grosso’s Foods, Gio’s BBQ, Robert Lee Jr. Trucking, R&B Auto Proz, Quality Masonry, Grove Financial & Associates, Dillman Hauling, Ron’s RV Sales, Strange Oval No.29 was on the move.
Zach methodically worked his way through the field and appeared poised to accomplish the unthinkable. Making a World of Outlaws A-main after qualifying last in your flight is nearly impossible and certainly uncommon. Newlin came up one spot short, finishing 5th. Had there been a late race caution to tighten up the field, it appeared quite possible he would have pulled it off.
The night ended one step short of the goal, but the team loaded up with smiles on their faces after making great strides during the show. They would be in a much better position going into Saturday night’s finale.
Saturday 10/9: 38 cars, Qualifying 7th in flight 2, Heat 4th, A-main 27th
Saturday night rolled around and once again 38 teams signed in to compete. The Nittany Showdown finale offered $15,000 to the victor. The format would be the same as the prior night. For the second consecutive night, Zach Newlin would take to the track for his laps under the clock late in his flight. This time he fired the engine to go out 16th in flight two.
The night would not be the same in every way though. Newlin powered his way around the big, fairgrounds half-mile in 15.626 seconds, claiming the 7th quickest lap in his flight, a mere 0.113 behind Donny Schatz and 0.120 behind Anthony Macri.
The solid qualifying effort handed Newlin the 4th starting spot in the third heat race. Once again, the top five finishers would transfer to the A-main. Zach would just need to hang on to one of those spots. He did better than that. He got steadily quicker as the race went on, looking like a veteran wheeling the high line. Newlin pulled away from veterans Wayne Johnson and Danny Dietrich, besting Johnson by 1.1 seconds at the checkers and putting himself in his first career World of Outlaws A-main.
The performance caught the attention of the Dirtvision team, the group who broadcasts all Outlaw races live. They selected Zach Daddy to be interviewed on the front stretch following the accomplishment. As reporter Chase Raudman asked him how he felt about what he had just done, Newlin let out a celebratory shout that could be heard anywhere on the Juniata County Fairgrounds, and maybe beyond. In an instant, the weight of everything that had happened earlier in 2021 was gone.
“Oh man, this is awesome! I still don’t even have 20 races under my belt in a 410” an ecstatic Newlin told Raudman. “We started the year out rough, got fired from one ride, then Allen called me up for this car. One door closes and a really good one opens up. I’m so grateful.“
Newlin earned the 14th starting spot in the 30-lap A-main. At the drop of the green, he took to the high side in turn one. In heavy traffic another car slid up across directly in front of Newlin’s No.29, taking the air off the nose of the car. For a split second, the front end got light and Newlin was unable to steer away from the wall. He slapped the wall with the right side of the car, then managed to get off the wall and continue on. He lost several positions during the ordeal but tried to soldier on. It wasn’t to be thought because the W-link had broken on contact and left his machine limping, forcing him pit-side after six laps, officially placing him 27th in the final rundown.
“My mind wasn’t in a good place from the stuff I dealt with in the beginning of the year, but I feel good now. I’m excited as hell” a happy Newlin shared. “I want to thank Allen (Pryde) and all the partners who help make this possible for us. We couldn’t do this without Del Grosso Foods, Gio’s BBQ, Grove Financial & Associates, Dillman Hauling, Ron’s RV Sales, FK Shocks, Strange Oval Torsion Bars, and Newlin Bar Service. I also want to say a special thanks to Jeff Halligan and Kyle Defibaugh for coming out and helping this weekend. Their help and tips were extremely valuable“, Newlin commented.
Car owner Allen Pryde expressed his thanks to all the team’s supporters via a Facebook post and offered a peek at the team’s 2022 plans with Newlin. “Looking forward to a great season next year. Our plans are to be at Port Royal each week“, Pryde posted.
Zach Newlin and Pryde Motorsports rolling into Port Royal together in that open trailer next season is sure to be a story to watch. When they win a race, I have a feeling a microphone won’t be necessary for the folks in the town of Port Royal to hear the excitement when Newlin climbs from the car.
Up Next
Two races remain on the 2021 schedule for Zach Newlin and Pryde Motorsports. They will head to BAPS Motor Speedway for Saturday afternoon shows on October 23rd and November 13th to continue building their notebook for the 2022 season.
