“2022 was definitely a year of adversity.” Teenager Will Armitage stated when asked about his first season behind the wheel of a 410 sprint car. “But despite the season-long chain of bad luck, we still deemed ourselves a threat in 410 competition in Illinois.”
Season long bad luck would be an understatement. The XKGLOW #7A team missed a solid chunk of the latter part of their 2022 campaign due to uncontrollable mechanical issues.
“As a driver, I think by the end of the season I was right on the edge of pulling off my season-long goal of winning a local race.” Armitage said. “The engine letting go and ending our season five races short put a damper on that.”
The Athens, IL native did show feature winning pace on a couple occasions with the Midwest Open Wheel Association, most notably at Highland Speedway, where the youngster powered from a 15th starting spot to 2nd late in the feature, before a mechanical issue dropped the Armitage Collision Repair #7A to 5th at the checkered. The family-owned operation finished the 2022 MOWA season 11th in series points, with 1 Top 5 and 3 Top 10’s to their credit.
“Finding our stride with our small team, having little experience with setups, and new tracks were challenging, but learning every weekend allowed us to continue to grow.” The 410-rookie stated.
“My favorite moment of the season would have to be having the opportunity to run up front and race hard alongside some of the best in the area on a tricky track on September 2nd [at Jacksonville Speedway].” Armitage said. “Although the cushion got the best of me, that was the turning point in our season that spiked my confidence and allowed me to believe in myself.”
Armitage also ran several midget events, including his Chili Bowl debut in the O’Dell #97A car (making the F Main on Saturday), and a Top 10 run in his USAC National debut at the Shamrock Classic in March. The rising star ran multiple events for the Schlattweiler #8D team in non-Wing 410 sprint car competition, with a best finish of 9th with the POWRi WAR Sprints at Lake Ozark Speedway.
“It was just about me trying to learn.” The former D2 Midget standout stated. “It was our entire team, my dad, Mike Russel, Jim Craig, Cam, and everyone else that contributed. There were many nights when we were out to “learn something new” or “let's see what this does”, but despite that we still were competitive.”
As for 2023, Armitage has multiple ideas and options for what direction to take his young racing career, but he mulled any official plans.
“Next year stores a lot of unknowns, but I am positive I will be doing a lot of racing and keeping myself in a car more than in 2022.” Armitage stated. “I have to thank all my partners, fans and family for their constant support this past season! I can't wait to announce some new partners, along with many returning to Will Armitage Racing.”
Will Armitage would like to thank his 2022 partners for their support throughout the season!
XKGLOW
Armitage Collision Repair
Alliance Community Bank
Meteer Manufacturing
Gillmore Allen Insurance
Graue Chevrolet/Buick
All American Home Inspections
Outa Space
Canham Graphics
Box3 Media
You can follow Will's race team on his social media channels! You can find Will Armitage Racing on Facebook at Will Armitage Racing (group), Twitter at @armitage_will7 and on Instagram at @will_armitage_7. You can also follow his PR with Box3 Media on Facebook, @box3_media on Instagram, and @box3_racing on Twitter.
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