News Director 
Story By: CLAYTON JOHNS / HOLDAWAY RACING – ORILLIA, ONT – Taylor Holdaway jumped out of the starting blocks with a strong opening night at Sunset Speedway. Now after a week off, the Orillia, Ont. native is excited to return to NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action on Saturday night.
Holdaway’s performance in the April 29 opener was certainly welcome to the No.41 team. Holdaway was third-fastest in time trials aboard his KartSTART by Toyota No.41 Camry. He used the top-five starting position to earn the first feature win of the season in the Sauble Falls Limited Late Model division.
Later in the night, Holdaway rallied to race from the 12th starting spot in the second Feature following the 12-car finishing inversion. He raced to the fifth position late in the race to complete opening night with a top-5 finish. With a strong opening night, Holdaway is already a step ahead of his 2016 campaign.
“It’s always nice to start the year off with a pair of top-5s,” Holdaway said. “The previous two years we started out with bad luck with three DNFs in four races. So to start the year off and not be behind the eight-ball is always a good feeling.”
It can be easy to look at the five month racing schedule and take a relaxed approach to the beginning of the season. However, Holdaway is well aware the races in April and May count just as much as the races in August and September. The No.41 is already up to full speed.
“With the short schedule we have and the level of competition at Sunset, every race is as important as the last race,” Holdaway stated. “There is no room for error in any race. Getting caught up in something throughout the season is inevitable, but being prepared every week to try and finish in the top-5 is a realistic goal for our team.”
The return to competitive racing was just what the doctor ordered for Holdaway after the long off-season. A strong opening night was rewarding for Holdaway and his team following a long winter of building and preparation for the new campaign.
“We really didn’t have an offseason this year. We worked all winter preparing our cars for this season to make sure we were prepared for each event in 2017,” Holdaway said. “After the long winter it always feels great to get back on track.”
Starting the season with two strong results allows Holdaway to build momentum entering the second week of Sunset competition. Following last week’s rainout, Holdaway will next be in action on Saturday, May 13 for another double feature night of NASCAR Whelen All-American Series action. Race time is 5:00pm. Additional event information is available at www.sunsetspeedway.ca.
