“Why not” Says the Texas Driver


“Why not” Says the Texas Driver

Friendswood, TX driver Chris Davidson is not unfamiliar with big paying Super Late Model events. Davidson has participated in many of the most prestigious Super Late Model events throughout the country. On February 1st, he will participate in the “Sunrise Ford All-Star Showdown 200 presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame”. It won’t be Davidson’s first trip to Irwindale Speedway, as he also participated in two All-Star Showdowns in 2004 and 2005. His best effort was a solid seventh place result.

Davidson has made several trips to the west coast as of late. He has attended four of the five Winter Showdowns at Kern County Raceway and the last three Summer Showdowns at Evergreen Speedway. He has a second and third among those three starts. As he returns to California again, for the $25,000-to-win event, Davidson was chill in his reasoning for attending.

“Why not”, Davidson said?! “It’s been a long time since we’ve been to Irwindale, so it looked like fun.”

After his previous All-Star Showdown appearances, Davidson feels the benefit will be minimal, other than an understanding of the track, after 15 years away.

“The benefit will be not much if any”, Davidson speculated. “It’s been a decade and half, so other than a basic familiarity with the track and line, I would imagine that we’re basically starting over.”

Despite his time away, the two-time United States Racing Association (USRA) Champion recalled how racy the track remained. He feels the fans will get a good show at the half-mile oval.

Davidson suggested, “The track was always good for racing in my opinion. It is very wide, which allowed for a lot of side by side racing, which is what the fans should want to see.”

Davidson is used to challenges with the racing schedule he keeps. The 2016 Southern Super Series Championship Runner-up has top-five finishes in races such as the Snowball Derby and Snowflake 100 at 5 Flags Speedway, the Florida Governors Cup at New Smyrna Speedway, the Baby Rattler at South Alabama Speedway and a win in the Texas Big Shot 250 at Central Texas Speedway. He is coming off a top-10 effort at the 2019 Canadian Short Track Nationals at Jukasa Motor Speedway in a field of 57 Pro Late Models, paying $75,000 in Canadian Dollars.

With his previous experience at Irwindale Speedway, Davidson has expectations about what he needs in the car, to run well in the Showdown. He feels he will need speed in his Super Late Model, but those assumptions are based upon his understanding of the facility, 15 years ago.

“I’d say the biggest challenge, in a race like this, is just to make sure that you have enough raw speed”, Davidson estimated. “Unless the track has changed tremendously since we were last there, it wasn’t really hard on tires, so you really just need to make sure that you have that speed”

The driver of the Davidson Electric Super Late Model, enjoys the challenge of competing at different facilities throughout the country. Part of the fun is travelling to new places, but his favorite element is competing against various competitors. Ones that he may not see too often.

“The thing I enjoy the most is racing against different competitors. These are guys that we don’t get to race with often, some of them ever, so that’s always fun.”

When asked about what his expectations are for the weekend, the 18-time USRA winner had somewhat modest goals.

“We want to be competitive and make sure we’re still around at the end.”

Making the more than 1,500-mile trip from Texas to Irwindale takes a lot of support from the crew and understanding from the family. Davidson is appreciative to both for the opportunity, as he stated.

“I’d like to thank my crew for all of their work, and my wife and kids, for supporting me in all that we do. I’d also like to give a shoutout to my business, Davidson Electric which helps keep the wrenches turning.”