DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Ontario native Taylor Holdaway went where no Canadian racer had gone before when he finished on the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series championship podium in 2015 thanks to his success at Sunset Speedway.
Holdaway, of Orillia, Ontario, racked up 12 wins and 21 top fives in 22 starts behind the wheel of his No. 41 Holdaway Automotive/Image Factor Toyota to capture the NASCAR Ontario championship by 107 points. The performance placed him third in the North American standings, the highest finish for a Canadian in Whelen All-American Series history.
2015 STATE/PROVINCE CHAMPIONS | 2015 TRACK CHAMPIONS
Holdaway's success took the series by storm. The 2015 season was Sunset's first under the NASCAR banner, so he was a relative unknown to late model competitors in the United States. Holdaway himself did not expect to experience that level of success.
"The track and provincial championships were what our main focus was on," Holdaway said. "I never really looked into the national stuff too much, especially with how short our season is versus the amount of races the drivers get to run down south."
With a season limited to five months – May through September – drivers from Canada and the northernmost U.S. states have a smaller margin for error with often half of the possible starts that their southern counterparts can get.
"Looking back at the history you never really saw a Canadian finish up to high in the national deal, so we never really had anything planned as far as competing beyond the track and provincial championship," Holdaway said.
The focus was apropos. Although he was a title contender in the late model division at Sunset in years prior, Holdaway had yet to break through at the .333-mile oval in Innisfil.
"We had finished in the top five the last three years so the main focus was to break through and get a track championship," Holdaway said. "To do it this year was finally a goal that we attained."
The campaign got off to an inauspicious start, however. On opening night of the track's first NASCAR points season, Holdaway experienced fuel problems in the first feature. Not only did it prohibit him from finishing, but he was also unable to compete in the second feature.
"The wind was out of our sails on opening night," Holdaway said. "I had kind of given up, then we went on one of those runs that everyone dreams of and won 11 of 12 races during a stretch."
Holdaway eventually out-distanced late model division runner-up Jason Witty 2,146-2,108 in track points for his first Sunset crown and a trip to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in North Carolina for the annual postseason awards.
He hopes to duplicate that effort in 2016.
"Our goal is definitely to go back and repeat as track champion and try to get a trip back down to Charlotte," Holdaway said. "Obviously we would like to finish that high in the national standings again, but I also realize that it was one of those years that don't come around too often."
As to what the future holds for Holdaway in racing, he's more than content with his current status racing on the weekend at Sunset while helping run the family's automotive business during the week.
"We're still doing it for the hobby part of it," Holdaway said. "We work our 8-6 at the business, work on the race cars at night, then go racing on Saturday nights and have fun."
Holdaway did purchase a pro late model while in North Carolina this past December and hopes to race it in the U.S. in select events at some point. He would also definitely be open to an opportunity to race in the Canada-based NASCAR Pinty's Series at the regional touring series level, but for the time being he's enjoying his current situation.
"Right now I'm fortunate to do what we do and have two race cars that compete at Sunset," Holdaway said.
En route to the 2015 track and provincial NASCAR titles Holdaway received associate sponsorship from Stefco Race Engines, Castrol Motor Oil, Wix Filters, Kart Start presented by Toyota and Yamaha Canada. His team consisted of car owner and father, Fred Holdaway, along with Craig Pearsall, Scott Wylie, Chris Maddox and Brandon Johnston.
Holdaway's 2016 season will commence when Sunset opens up its NASCAR Whelen All-American Series schedule on April 30. For more information, click HERE.
Established in 1982, the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series is NASCAR's national championship program for weekly short track auto racing. In all, 57 paved and dirt tracks throughout the United States and Canada participated in 2015.
Connecticut-based Whelen Engineering is the series' title sponsor. Whelen Engineering is a leading manufacturer of automotive, aviation, industrial and emergency vehicle lighting. NASCAR tracks and pace cars are among the many showcases for Whelen products.
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