8/14/2025
Bloomington Speedway
Remember when Joey Stopped the Clock!
More history will be made this Friday night when the All Star Circuit of Champions come to the Red Clay for the Kelly Kinser Classic presented by Monroe Hospital one of our great community partners.
The date was July 30, 1999 and it would be the last stop that All Stars made at the Historic Bloomington Speedway until....
On July 30, 1999, the All Star Circuit of Champions returned to the Bloomington Speedway following a five year hiatus. Few would have predicted that the next stop would come 26 years later. The race was the Tribute to Dizz Wilson the iconic owner/mechanic who passed in 1995 was also instrumental in reconfiguring in the early 1960s.
Thirty-six cars signed in and fans were poised for qualifying. The reason was simple. On April 14 the World of Outlaws were at the red clay and when qualifications came to an end Joey Saldana set what was considered a all-time record of 9.388. The rain eventually came, and a double header was held on May 19th with Sammy Swindell winning both races in his beautiful Channellock car. On this evening Joey was still the fastest, and his time of 9.900 while impressive did not top his own record.
In the 40 lap feature Byron Reed led the early going but by the 6th circuit Saldana was in charge. Then here came Kelly Kinser. Veteran fans knew exactly what was going to happen. Joey ran the rim while Kelly hugged the bottom. It was a barnburner. Kinser led for over ten laps and officially the lead was swapped 6 times. It was much more than that. As the laps wound down Kelly was bottled up in traffic and had to move up to try to get the victory. In a four-wide moment Joey actually went over the lip but he got the job done. In victory lane Joey said, “You know, you come out here to run two grooves for the fans and they definitely got a race tonight. That’s what we’re trying to do.
There can be a lot of pressure on second and third generation drivers and there must have been times that Joey Saldana experienced this. After all Little Joe had won the Knoxville Nationals and cracked the starting field in the Indianapolis 500 twice. That said his boy did just fine, thank you. He won 74 times with the All Star Circuit of Champions and notched 105 victories with the World of Outlaws. He would join his dad in the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2023. While his dad hailed from Nebraska we can claim Joey as another Hoosier Sprint Car Legend.
Years from now we will talk about the racers we will enjoy this Friday. History, after all, is what happens right in front of you.
Let's Fill the Hill
Photos of Little Joe and Joey by John Mahoney
Article Credit: Patrick Sullivan
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