Johnny Sauter Wins!

SafeAuto Insurance Company, a leading state-minimum Insurance provider based in Columbus, Ohio, is the proud sponsor of NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Johnny Sauter and the No.13 SafeAuto Truck. In the final race of the season, Sauter executed a near-flawless performance at Homestead-Miami Speedway, taking home the checkered flag and winning his second race of the 2011 campaign.
“What a phenomenal year,” remarked Sauter. “I’ve always wanted to have two wins in the NASCAR series in the same year, so this is a huge accomplishment.” Earlier in the year, Sauter won one of the most exciting races of the season by defeating Kyle Busch at Martinsville. Sauter finished the 2011 season second in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series points standing and was a threat for the championship all year long. The Necedah, Wisconsin native finished in the top ten an astonishing 16 times!

The No.13 Truck has been vying for the championship all year long and SafeAuto has been thrilled to be a sponsor. The famous SafeAuto logo received amazing exposure throughout the country at famous racetracks such as Daytona, Bristol, and Talladega. SafeAuto also leveraged the sponsorship by conducting nationwide competitions on Facebook for “VIP” trips to races and routinely posting behind-the-scenes videos. “SafeAuto has been a huge supporter!” said Sauter. “They were extremely hands-on with this sponsorship and that was cool to see.”

“ SafeAuto was proud to have its name on the No. 13 truck this season. Johnny Sauter and the ThorSport race team were excellent partners during the 2011 Camping World Truck Series.” exclaimed SafeAuto President Jon Diamond. “We couldn’t have envisioned a better way to end the 2011 season then by winning this final race at Homestead.”

Sauter captured another top 5 finish!

Johnny Sauter, driver of the No. 13 SafeAuto Truck showed his short track roots once again at Martinsville Speedway Saturday afternoon.  Sauter, who started the race in 4th position after wet weather cut practice times in half, led 36 laps and dominated the top five most of the day at the famed "paperclip."  His eventual fourth place finish at the checkered flag after typical short track "beatin' and bangin," as the driver likes to say,  tied him for third place in the championship points race towards Homestead.  He is a mere four points out of second position and just fifteen back from the lead spot.

Early race tire strategy by crew chief Joe Shear, Jr proved nerve-racking but successful for the driver - knowing that at Martinsville, it's a place to trust track position and the ones who have the eyes to make the calls. "Ultimately, it all worked out," SafeAuto Driver Sauter said after the race. "We found our way to the front. This was fun racing and anytime we see Martinsville on the schedule, I'm a happy guy.  While I wanted to be a little closer to the front here, it worked out and we're already working forward to Texas."

Sauter’s No.13 SafeAuto Truck leading the pack!

Sauter, as well as the top five race leaders, narrowly missed several skirmishes on track as caution flags flew left and right during the short 200 lap race.  After staying out when most leaders pit in the initial race caution, Sauter continued to post scalding hot lap times.  He was involved in two separate freight-trained pileups with minor damage to the nose/hood and left rear quarter panel, neither of which affected late-race performance.

Sauter, while keeping the championship attitude, wishes he had a repeat visit to Victory Lane at Martinsville; but knows that the top five bodes well going into Texas next week.  "I think we can go there and win the race, for sure," he said. "We ran second there in both races last year, plus led something like 56 laps back in the Spring there but got the penalty.  It's a strong track for us historically and I'm looking forward to keeping up this momentum.  To win this championship, we're going to have to prove the underdog and race really, really hard.  It's going to be a battle to the end."

Race Recap:

Date: October 29, 2011

Track: Martinsville Speedway

Race: 23 of 25

Started: 4^th

Finished: 4^th

Championship Point Standings: Tied for 3rd (-15)

Up Next on the Truck Series Schedule:
Date: November 4, 2011

Track: Texas Motor Speedway

Event Name: WinStar World Casino 350

Broadcast: SPEED at 7pmCST

This past weekend, SafeAuto Insurance sponsored the Summer Night Cruise-In and Indian Uprising GTO car shows in Dublin, Ohio. The car show, held by the GTO Association of Central Ohio, had a great turn-out with over 100 cars registered for the competition.

The car show provided weekend-long entertainment including a band,  hundreds of classic cars and even NASCAR’s Johnny Sauter.

People visited from all around to see the classic automobiles on display and were also treated to a concert by the Rezes Hall Band on Friday. The music must have had some effect because many GTO lovers took a shot at a $5000 advertising contract by singing the 1-800-SAFEAUTO jingle for the 2012 Do The Jingle contest. Johnny Sauter even showed up to connect with fellow drivers and automobile enthusiasts. The SafeAuto Racing Team driver brought the #13 NASCAR truck and offered autographs to fans on Saturday.

This was a fruitful combination for SafeAuto because the event not only offered the insurance company an opportunity to mingle with locals and help an organization, but all proceeds from the car show went to two great causes: Operation Buckeye and the Society to Prevent Blindness.