RAIN INTERRUPTED – AFTERNOON DELIGHT: COMPETING FOR ROYALTY STATUS IN THE 38TH ANNUAL KINGS ROYAL AFTER BEING WASHED OUT THURSDAY RESULTS IN A SIXTH FINISH IN THE FIRST OF TWO CROWN EVENTS

ROSSBURG, OHIO (July 17, 2021 – Afternoon) – It was finally Kings Royal time at Eldora 2021 style after the show was interrupted and postponed Thursday night when rain rolled into town! With this prestigious race not being held last year due to the COVID pandemic and related restrictions, the excitement and buzz amongst the fans and teams this year was palpable all around Eldora Speedway. Following a fantastic race in the Jokers Wild where Carson Macedo dominated and drove the JJR #41 to victory lane to kick off the racing at the ‘Big E’, this afternoon was the time for each of the drivers to test themselves to see if they could earn royalty status for life with a win in the first of two editions of the Kings Royal at the famed oval. The trek to the half-mile track nestled in the middle of the cornfields in northwest Ohio is always worth it. But this year there were two editions of the Kings Royal, with the 38th Annual Kings Royal being held first on Saturday afternoon. They would pick up the show where they left off on Thursday night. There were 61 drivers and teams parked throughout the infield with their eyes and attention focused on winning the $175,000 winner’s check and adding their name to the historic winner’s list that dates back to 1984 when Steve “The King” Kinser won the inaugural event that paid $50,000.

Each driver would randomly draw a pill for their order to go out for Slick Woody’s Qualifying. After drawing the 74 out of 75 in the pill draw, Carson would normally have been the second to last driver out again. But, by virtue of their win in the Jokers Wild, Philip Dietz and Carson had the opportunity to define their own qualifying game plan as they had the right to qualify whenever they chose to on this night. After hot laps, Carson stayed situated in The Boyd Family/High Performance Lubricants/Bell Helmets #41 Maxim so he was prepared. The decision was made. He rolled into the staging area and would be the 11th competitor out on the track for his two laps. He secured himself into his Crow Enterprizes safety belts for his high speed adventure before slipping his hands into his K1 Race Gear gloves. The Lemoore, California native eagerly sat in the staging area awaiting his turn to attack the track. It was 2 car qualifying so he would hit the track with Cory Eliason for his two circuits. The Kistler Engines power came to life under the Indy Performance Composites (IPC) carbon fiber hood of the forty-one. The 25-year old speedster sped under the waving green flag and circled the fast and racy half-mile oval in 13.401 seconds as he took the white flag. He kept his ‘go fast’ foot planted on the accelerator the second time around and when he crossed the timing stripe as he took the checkers the stopwatch read 13.419 seconds. The quicker of his two laps was third quick overall. Brian Brown was the fastest driver in time trials turning in a lap of 13.326 seconds.

With a unique race format for the Kings Royal race, there were six Drydene Heat Races that have the potential to invert the top 36 drivers in the worst case scenario. But, the fate lied in the “Wheel of Misfortune” that Brian Brown got to spin to determine the inversion for the heat races for being quick timer. He reached up and spun the wheel hard as the clicker ticked by the zeros, two, fours, and sixes on the wheel. It almost stopped on the zero, but it ultimately ended up on the four, so that was the inversion for the heat races. Only the top three finishers would lock in a starting position in the 38th Annual Kings Royal, so there was a lot at stake for even the fastest drivers in each heat race. Carson’s qualifying time position him in the third heat race where he would get rolling from the fourth position in the Mesilla Valley Transportation (MVT)/Border International/Durst Inc. #41. Brad Sweet and Bill Balog were in row one. Carson shared row two with Kyle Larson. Jac Haudenschild and Spencer Bayston was in row three. Anthony Macri and Wayne Johnson in row four. And, Carson Short and Jordan Harble in row five. With a lot at stake, it was (almost) time to go racing at Eldora Speedway! But, unfortunately, after the first heat race was completed rain invaded the area and postponed the remainder of the event being run on Saturday afternoon.

With sun shining brightly overhead in the skies the teams were back in the pit area to complete the show on Saturday afternoon. When the third heat rolled out on the track they lined up on the daytime surface and the green flag waved. Brad Sweet drives from the pole position into the lead. Kyle Larson and Spencer Bayston used their inside starting positions in rows two and three to drive in front of Carson Macedo down the front straightaway. Macedo stayed on the top through one, but diamond off turn two and shot low in the Tarlton and Son Frame-2-Finish/Complete Parts & Equipment Solutions/Tiger Towing #41 to pass both of them back down the backstretch. Sweet started to check out already with Bill Balog in second. Carson still had Spencer Bayston to contend with though throughout the early laps. Macedo would solidify ownership of the show position as he chased second running Balog. Sweet was dominant and took the win over Balog and Macedo. Those three drivers locked themselves into the 38th Annual Kings Royal with Spencer Bayston and Kyle Larson rounding out the top five.

The afternoon sun in northwest Ohio was hot, and the action on the famous half-mile was ready to follow suit. The horns sounded indicating eight minutes until staging. The roar from the fans raised the energy at the track as the drivers climbed into their offices and the crews made their final adjustments. It was now time for the running of the 38 Annual Kings Royal 40-lap, $175,000-to-win feature event. The twenty-four drivers came to the green flag on the opening lap of the feature with Tyler Courtney to the lead over Justin Peck and Brad Sweet. Carson blasted forward moving up six spots in the running order coming off turn four, but all was for naught as Kerry Madsen got sideways off turn four and collected Giovanni Scelzi and Cory Eliason to bring out the red flag. The starting grid was reshuffled for a complete restart putting Carson in the Dissolvalloy Downhole Revolution/Winters Performance Products/Bandy and Associates #41 Maxim on the outside of row six beside Brian Brown. When the engines came back to life it was Courtney again with Sweet in hot pursuit. Carson raced into the top ten as the dust started to fly. He was methodically working his way around the half-mile oval while taking care of his tires. On lap 19, the yellow flag was displayed with Brad Sweet in the lead over Tyler Courtney, David Gravel, Daryn Pittman and Donny Schatz. Carson was running tenth and eager to continue his forward march when they got back up to speed. Drama ensued under the yellow as leader Brad Sweet is forced to head to the work area as he cut down his right rear tire. Tyler Courtney inherited the lead with David Gravel perched in the runner-up position. When they got restarted it was Courtney holding the lead with Gravel not letting him out of his sight. Carson moved up to eighth as he was following Bill Balog. At the front, Gravel would dive underneath Courtney with two laps to go but could not make the pass. Tyler Courtney took the win over Gravel, Danny Dietrich, Daryn Pittman, and Bill Balog with Sheldon Haudenschild coming home sixth and Carson Macedo seventh. More drama though at the scales as David Gravel was low on fuel and came up light at the scales resulting in him being disqualified. That moved everyone behind him up one position making Carson Macedo your sixth place finisher. A good run in the first of two Kings Royal with Part II running later in the evening. Another good run for the forty-one!

A Run to Sixth in the 38th Annual Kings Royal Afternoon Show for the JJR #41!

Mesilla Valley Transportation (MVT); Tarlton and Son Inc.; Complete Parts & Equipment Solutions; Saich Family; Border International; Dissolvalloy Downhole Revolution; Jonestown KOA; Durst Inc.; Maxim Racing; The Boyd Family; Liquid Trucking; Meyers Constructors Inc.; Tiger Towing; Pro Powder Coating (PPC); Waco Metal; High Performance Lubricants, LLC; Kistler Engines; Team Jack Foundation; Mark Burch Motorsports; All Pro Auto Reconditioning; K1 Race Gear; AutoMeter; Bandy & Associates Accountancy Corporation; Bell Racing USA; Blackbeard LTD; BR Motorsports; Brown & Miller Racing Solutions (BMRS); Buckwalter Trucking, LLC; C&R Racing; Chalk Stix Torsion Bars; Crow Enterprizes; Engler Machine & Tool, Inc.; Factory Kahne (FK Shocks); Fibreworks Composites; FK Rod Ends; Fuel Safe Racing Cells; Greber Racing Components; Hoosier Racing Tire; ISC Racers Tape; Jansen Transportation; KSE Racing Products; Larry Davis Farms; Logo Daddy Graphics; Mr. Jim’s Racing; MSD Performance; RaceDiecast.com; Sam I Am; Schoenfeld Headers; Smith Titanium; T-FAB Custom Metal Fabrication; Vortex Racing Products; Walker Performance Filtration; Weld Wheels; Wilwood Racing; and Winters Performance Products.

To stay connected with Jason Johnson Racing (JJR), go to www.jasonjohnsonracing.com.

To stay up-to-date with Carson Macedo and his success journey on and off the track, as well as to purchase his gear and merchandise directly, visit www.carsonmacedoracing.com.