KNOXVILLE, Iowa – There are two sides of Donny Schatz to consider when trying to pinpoint his destiny in sprint car racing’s biggest event of the year.
One win in the last 60 World of Outlaws NOS Energy Sprint Car Series races makes it hard to believe there’s good fortune at the other end of this week’s 60th edition of the Knoxville Nationals at Knoxville Raceway.
It has ultimately shuffled the 10-time World of Outlaws champion out of the limelight, where Brad Sweet and Kyle Larson have superseded Schatz’s place, having won a combined 66 sprint car races the last two years.
The headlines have recently centered around Sheldon Haudenschild, winner of three of his last seven races, and David Gravel, winner of Sunday’s Capitani Classic and the 2019 Knoxville Nationals.
Suddenly, Schatz’s most dominant aspect, his 10 career Knoxville Nationals triumphs, all since 2006, is muddied.
“I’m not really worried about what people talk about,” Schatz said on how much he’s paid attention to the evolving rankings of sprint car racing. “I have the ability to control who I surround myself with and what happens to a certain extent when I’m in the car.
“Apart from that, it’s drama, I guess,” he added. “And a lot of people like drama. Me? Not so much. That’s probably why you don’t see me pay attention to what’s going on.
“I do have 10 Nationals wins. … There’s no one active today that’s anywhere near that,” he continued. “You still come in here and you still feel pretty confident and you still feel really good about rolling into town.
“Some people probably aren’t in a position where they feel like I’m over the hill,” Schatz said before shifting from a critical to more optimistic tone. “Man, I just turned 44 yesterday and I feel as good as I did when I was 34. I guess sometimes when you count someone out, that’s what gets you in trouble.”
Schatz spent his birthday Tuesday traveling from his Fargo, N.D., home to Knoxville, and then ended it by watching his niece race outlaw karts at English Speedway, located 15 minutes south of Knoxville Raceway.
On Sunday, Schatz competed in his first Capitani Classic since 2012 to shake down a fresh Ford Performance engine with some bolstered features.
After a parts delay, the Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing No. 15 team changed cylinder heads on their FPS 410 engines and produced positive results in return.
Schatz set quick time in his flight in Sunday’s Capitani Classic, started second, and settled for a third-place finish in the 25-lap feature.
“They make a lot of power,” Schatz said of the bolstered engine. “They make a lot of torque. But as the night goes on, when you have to throttle them, we can’t get the car to respond the way it needs to when someone makes a mistake and be able to pass them. It’s not as simple as something you can do on site at the track every night.
“It’s something that when you get the motor, you run it out until it needs to be freshened,” he added. “Then it’s time to discuss what changes need to be made for the next trial.
“We felt pretty decent,” he continued. “All we can do is go off how we felt the last time on the race track and see what happens. I’m pretty optimistic and realistic.”
Schatz has qualified better as of late. In his last six races, he’s set quick time twice, qualified second twice and hasn’t qualified outside the top 10.
It’s the inconsistencies in slick track conditions with an engine department still developing Schatz is trying to manage. He’ll also manage his social activity in a week known for an exhausting amount of events.
“There’s just some places you have to avoid, Dingus being one of them,” Schatz said. “It’s a great place to go. For me this week, it’s not very relaxing.
“I like showing new fans around, giving them a tour of the place and what not,” he added.
Schatz is set for his qualifying night on Wednesday before he’ll spend a bulk of his day Thursday at his t-shirt trailer signing autographs and taking pictures with fans.
Another autograph session and a luncheon with past Knoxville Nationals champions at the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame and Museum awaits Schatz on Friday.
Then, it’s the event he knows better than anybody.
“Winning the Knoxville Nationals is huge,” Schatz said. “Winning anything this week would get things going in a lot better direction, in a more positive direction.
“It may happen, it may not happen,” he added. “I guess that’s the nice thing about racing. It’s pretty unpredictable.”