Creed Wins in Trans Am and Impresses in Xfinity at Road America

ELKHART LAKE, Wis., August 30, 2017 (Newswire.com) – X-Games Gold Medalist and multiple-time Stadium Super Trucks champion, Sheldon Creed, had been knocking on the door of his first professional win in a car all season long. Creed has run up front all season, from the 2-mile super speedway of Michigan or the clay oval at Springfield, but had not quite closed the deal yet.

Looking at his grid positions for the two races that he would run at Road America on Sunday, would not give one much hope of a breakthrough victory either. Volatile weather conditions caused both Trans Am and Xfinity Series qualifying to be canceled. Therefore, both grids would be set by owner points, meaning Creed would line up 12th in Trans Am and 32nd in Xfinity. However, there was a great wild card in play this time; a very wet race track. Creed had never raced a car in the rain before, and while his experience on dirt would be helpful, not even he knew what to expect.

When the green flag dropped on the Trans Am Muscle Car Challenge TA2 race, Creed had the #11 United Rentals/Speedlogix/A.M. Ortega Construction, Stevens-Miller Racing Dodge into the top-10 almost immediately. By lap 10, Creed had worked his way up to 2nd place behind defending race-winner Tony Buffomante. When he got behind Buffomante, Creed watched and learned, and then passed Buffomante with 5 laps to go and went on to take a dominant win with a 9.5 second lead over 2nd place.

Sheldon Creed on Road America Trans Am:

“My dirt background for sure came into play with a bunch of throttle control,” said Creed. “I’ve never really raced in the rain other than Stadium Super Trucks. I had to be really mindful of the line out there and the throttle control, just getting the tires hooked up — if you spun them, you were going backwards. I just tried to settle in at the start. I followed Shane Lewis around at the beginning and he showed me a few things and Gar Robinson did the same.  But they were for sure being cautious and playing the points game. Then I got in behind Tony, and he was fast. He pulled away for a bit, but then it got stupid slick. I capitalized on one of his mistakes and tried to keep it smooth from there on out.”

Creed was happy to celebrate his first Trans Am Series win and first professional auto racing win, but he still had NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying and the 45-lap race to go that afternoon. With Creed’s new-found rain racing prowess and a soggy forecast in mind, his prospects for a good qualifying spot and a strong race were very positive. But, then it stopped raining and left with a track that was too wet for slicks, and too dry for rain tires. NASCAR made the decision to cancel qualifying, meaning the #01 United Rentals/A.M. Ortega JD Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro would line up 32nd on owner points. Then, some confusion over Driver Introductions caused a to-the-rear penalty for Creed and he would start the race in shotgun position from 40th place.

Without the great equalizer of a wet track, Creed’s ace-in-the-hole was gone, but he still found himself with a competitive race car and steadily climbed his way through the field to take 10th place at the end of Stage 1, for the first stage points by the #01 all season. After pitting in Stage 2, Creed was still solidly in the top-15 when mechanical issues struck and he dropped out of the race on lap 18. He would ultimately be classified with a 38th place finish. It was not the finish that Creed or the JD Motorsports team was looking for, but they definitely made their presence felt to the Xfinity field, including the #51 of eventual race winner Jeremy Clements, who Creed passed early in the race in a fender-banging dispute over the racing line.

Sheldon Creed on Road America Xfinity:

“Coming to Road America was all about getting more seat time on road courses,” said Creed. “I haven’t raced a ton of them in cars, it’s just seat time — it’s what you want.  I’m doing Xfinity this weekend for the same reason. When you get that opportunity with a big-time ride, you want to be ready. This is a good step in the right direction.”

Creed’s next event will be on Labor Day, when he hops back behind the wheel of the No. 78 United Rentals/A.M. Ortega Construction/RTL Leasing Chevrolet for Mason Mitchell Motorsports in the General Tire Grabber 100 at the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds. The Labor Day classic will mark Creed’s first start at the 1.0-mile dirt track. In Creed’s first start for MMM two weeks ago at the Springfield Mile, he finished a fighting 4th after challenging for the lead late in the race. He hopes to keep his winning streak from Road America alive this weekend in DuQuoin.

The 64th running of the General Tire GRABBER-Southern Illinois 100 is scheduled to get the green flag at approximately 3 p.m. local Central time on Monday, September 4th. Practice is from 10:45-11:45 a.m., with General Tire Pole Qualifying at 12:30 p.m.

ARCAracing.com will feature live audio coverage of all on-track activities including flag-to-flag coverage of the General Tire GRABBER-Southern Illinois 100. Live timing and scoring of all on-track activities and live chat will also be available throughout the afternoon at arcaracing.com. The race will air on MAVTV at a later date.

Also of note:

Sheldon Creed has a brand-new website, developed in conjunction with Race Face Brand Development. It features the latest news on Sheldon’s career, as well as lots of great photos, videos, and radio interviews. Check it out at www.sheldoncreedracing.com.

About Sheldon Creed:

Sheldon Creed, nicknamed “The Showstopper” began racing BMX at age 3 and won 2 motocross championships at age 6. He has won at least one championship every year since 2008.

Career Highlights:

•           25 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series 1st Place Finishes

•           5 Championship Off Road Racing Series 1st Place Finishes

•           2015 – X-Games Gold Medalist in Stadium Super Trucks

•           2015 & 2016 Speed Energy Stadium Super Trucks Champion

•           2016 – NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, ARCA Series, & the world-famous Dakar Rally

•           2017 – Competing in the ARCA Series, NASCAR K&N Pro Series East, K&N Pro Series West,            NASCAR Xfinity Series, Trans Am Series, and Stadium Super Trucks Series

Media Contact: Brian Bonner       Email: bonner@brmrace.com       Ph: (978) 361-5295

Source: MyNetworkOne on behalf of Sheldon Creed Racing