I don’t think this announcement is a huge shock to most fans. I was skeptical that his career would end at the time of his announcement. The rumors of Sammy returning in 2015 were there all winter, and I heard this was a serious possibility at the Chili Bowl. I have a credible source that told me there was a plan forming in early February for Sammy to be racing a car at a lot of Knoxville and NSL races this summer, but that plan has fizzled.
My take is that Sammy needed to step away for a while to take care of some family issues. He and his wife Amy have split after a 40 plus year relationship. I think most people that have known about this situation have been respectful to Sammy and Amy both. The whole divorce thing sucks for anyone no matter what the circumstances are. I am sure there were a lot of things to deal with and I think that is why Sammy needed time off, to step back and sort out things, and now their divorce is final. So it makes sense that Sammy is going to do what he knows how to do best and that is drive a sprint car.
I really hope that Sammy finds his way to the Midwest this summer. The NSL and Knoxville schedule makes sense. Not to mention he would be more prepared for the Knoxville Nationals in August, which is the race Sammy wants to win more than any I would think. But maybe he would be happier racing closer to home and keeping his options open so he can be by Kevin's side as much as he can if he lands a NASCAR ride.
Sammy, here are some reasons you should consider racing in the Midwest: Financially the NSL makes sense for any race team in my opinion. The purse money each night is decent and no one can match the point fund. If your race shop is located in Knoxville, you would travel approximately 12,000 miles to run the whole NSL schedule. Compare that to a World of Outlaws team that will likely travel 32,000 miles in a season. If these regional series like NSL and All Stars who have new life in them can come up with these big dollars in their point funds, I think we will see more teams start to choose the regional route in the coming years.
I know I have said this before, but Tod Quiring is
making a huge dent in the Midwest this year. He has reunited Danny Lasoski with Guy Forbrook. He is
buying Jackson Speedway and breathing new life into the Minnesota sprint car scene.
The NSL is going to be great! Tod's influence in sprint car racing
today is big and we are so blessed to have a passionate guy like him involved
in our sport here in the “flyover states” of the Midwest.
2015 is going
to be exciting!
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