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August 27, 2010

 

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DRAG RACING NEWS

BODE REACHES FIRST CAREER FINAL, WINS FIRST CAREER RACE
Dixon, Coughlin and Hines round out winners at final Countdown to 10 race

By Michael Padian

BRAINERD, Minn. – Three drivers had a shot at their first career NHRA Full Throttle Series win on Sunday at the 29th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway and Funny Car veteran Bob Bode was the lucky one who struck paydirt.

The other winners at the 17th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Series season – and final race in the Countdown to 10 regular season – were Larry Dixon (Top Fuel), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

Also on Sunday, the final five spots in the Countdown to 1 NHRA Playoffs were determined as Dave Grubnic (Top Fuel), Tony Pedregon (Funny Car), Rodger Brogdon (Pro Stock) and Karen Stoffer and Craig Treble (Pro Stock Motorcycle) clinched berths.

And the final two No. 1 seeds were settled as well with John Force (Funny Car) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) joining Dixon (Top Fuel) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) as top seeds.

Bode defeated Cruz Pedregon, Bob Tasca and Tim Wilkerson to reach the final where he proceeded to celebrate a surprisingly easy win when Jack Beckman struck the wheels on his Freightliner Dodge Charger R/T early and slowed to a 8.338 at 86.32. Bode’s official winning run in the Alard Machine Chevy Impala was a 4.248 at 253.66.

“All of this is kind of like a dream I’m afraid I’m gonna wake up from,” Bode said. “I didn’t know if it would ever happen, but now that it did, I can’t believe it happened. It’s the best thing that ever happened to me in my entire life in the racing world. I have a wife and kid, wonderful things there, but the racing world, this is it.”

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO NO. 8 QUALIFYING SPOT AT BRAINERD

By Ted Yerzyk

BRAINERD, Minn. (Aug. 14, 2010) - Antron Brown, a four-time winner at Brainerd International Raceway, drove his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to the No. 8 qualifying position Saturday at B.I.R.

Brown, who entered the final day of qualifying for the 29th annual Brainerd race in the provisional No. 9 qualifying position after clocking an elapsed time of 5.106-seconds on Friday, improved his position on Saturday's opening pass. The 24-time NHRA winner used a tune-up from crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to power the Matco Tools/U.S. Army car to a lap of 3.923 seconds at 302.62 mph. That placed Brown eighth in the order. On his final qualifying effort, the former college track star's bright blue Matco-backed car lost traction and slowed to pass of 4.585 at 167.66 after losing the blower belt on the run. It is the 15th time in 17 races this season that Brown will start from the top half of the 16-car field. He also qualified eighth at the Joliet race in June. His average qualifying position this season is 4.7 with five No. 1 qualifiers. Doug Kalitta earned the Top Fuel pole on Saturday at Brainerd at 3.842-seconds.

"We struggled during qualifying this weekend here at Brainerd, but we've been trying some things on our Matco Tools car too," Brown said. "We'll go back to what we know for race day and I'm confident we can go some rounds. Morgan (Lucas) will be tough. We'll have to throw down a good lap to get by those Geico boys, but this DSR Matco team is up to it."

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KALITTA EARNS SECOND NO. 1 IN LAST FOUR RACES
Force Hood, Edwards, Hines also top their respective classes

By Michael Padian

BRAINERD, Minn. – Surging Top Fuel driver Doug Kalitta earned his second No. 1 in the last four races Saturday at the 29th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway.

The other No. 1 qualifiers at the 17th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Series season – and final race in the Countdown to 10 regular season – were Ashley Force Hood (Funny Car), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

Also on Saturday, Top Fuel driver Steve Torrence, Pro Stock driver Johnny Gray and Pro Stock Motorcycle riders Eddie Krawiec, LE Tonglet and David Hope secured their berths in the Countdown to 1. That leaves only five positions left to be decided on the final Sunday of the Countdown to 10 regular season – one each in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock and two in Pro Stock Motorcycle.

Kalitta, who is coming off his first win of the season at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, paced the Top Fuel field with a 3.842-second pass at 305.49 mph in his Kalitta Air dragster that moved him around overnight leader Brandon Bernstein and the Copart dragster team.

“We managed to get down both lanes today so I think the track is pretty good,” said Kalitta, a two-time Brainerd winner. “(Sunday) is supposed to be a little cooler so I think the fans are going to be in for a treat with the performances. (Team owner) Connie (Kalitta) won this race in 1985 and I’ve had some luck here as well, so hopefully we can have a good day,”

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BERNSTEIN IN POSITION TO EARN FIRST NO. 1 OF 2010
Force Hood, Allen Johnson, Hines also top their respective classes

By Michael Padian

BRAINERD, Minn. – Former Auto Club Road to the Future winner Brandon Bernstein is in position to collect his first No. 1 of 2010 after Friday’s first qualifying session at the 29th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the 17th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Series season – and final race in the Countdown to 10 regular season – were Ashley Force Hood (Funny Car), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

The surging Bernstein, who has been to the semifinals and finals at the last two races, paced the Top Fuel field with a 3.846-second pass at 309.27 mph in his Copart dragster. It would be only his first No. 1 of 2010, and the 14th of his career.

“This is a great race for us to come on strong,” Bernstein said. “We’ve been right there the last four to six races and to be peaking right now is perfect, right before Indy and the countdown and then charge right on. We hope this is an indication that we’re going to be up there at the top and run for the championship.”

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NHRA STATEMENT REGARDING CRASH AT NHRA NORTHWEST NATIONALS

KENT, Wash. -- Top Alcohol dragster racer Mark Niver, 60, from Phoenix, was involved in a fatal incident today when his dragster crashed in the shutdown area during eliminations at the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways. NHRA officials are investigating the accident.

NHRA and Pacific Raceways officials extend their deepest sympathies to the entire Niver family.

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KALITTA EARNS FIRST NO. 1 SINCE 2006 AUTO CLUB NHRA FINALS
Hight, Edwards also get No. 1s; Kalitta, Brown and Force clinch berths in Countdown to 1

KENT, Wash. – Doug Kalitta ended a three-and-a-half year drought on Saturday at the 23rd annual NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways with his first No. 1 qualifier since the 2006 Auto Club NHRA Finals.

The other No. 1 qualifiers at the 14th of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Robert Hight (Funny Car) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock).

On a cooler day Saturday, many expected change at the top of the qualifying ladder but only Edwards emerged from the pack –Kalitta (3.844, 313.58) and Hight (4.194, 291.57) set the pace in each of their respective classes in the Friday night session.

“Obviously we held on today. Larry Dixon got close (a 3.896 in the third qualifying session). I’m real proud of my guys. It’s nice to get some performance out of (the Kalitta Air dragster) and our first low qualifier in awhile,” Kalitta said.

The No. 1 was Kalitta’s first pole since November, 2006, and it was the 29th of his career.

“(Team owner) Connie (Kalitta), obviously he’s happy, and the whole team is happy. It’s been awhile. Hopefully this will be the beginning of something good for us,” he said.

He will have a bye in the first round tomorrow and when reminded of the incident in Denver where Brandon Bernstein banged the blower on the burnout during a bye run and couldn’t stage, thus forfeiting the gimme 20 points, he said, “We won’t do that …”

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HIGHT LEADS FORD PARADE AT TOP OF FUNNY CAR FIELD
Kalitta, Line round out provisional No. 1 qualifiers at NHRA Northwest Nationals

KENT, Wash. – Robert Hight earned the provisional No. 1 qualifying position in Funny Car after the first two of four rounds of qualifying were run on Friday at the 23rd annual NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the 14th of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel) and Jason Line (Pro Stock).

In Funny Car, Hight set the pace with his 4.194-second pass at 291.57 mph in his Auto Club Ford Mustang.

“It’s supposed to cool off so I don’t know if that 19 is safe,” said Hight, who praised the track condition. “We knew it was going to be better than last year and that 4.19 was better than anyone ran all throughout last year – and it was probably hotter (today than it was at any point in last year’s race) so hat’s off to Seattle.”

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HIGHT STAYS HOT, IN POSITION FOR THIRD STRAIGHT NO. 1 McClenathan, Edwards and Phillips also atop qualifying after two rounds

ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. – Funny Car driver Robert Hight stayed hot on Friday with a 4.025-second pass at 313.00 mph to earn the provisional Funny Car pole at the 41st annual NHRA Supernationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the 11th of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Cory McClenathan (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Michael Phillips (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

The No. 1 qualifier would be the third in a row for Hight and the Auto Club Ford Mustang team and fifth overall this season. Hight, the defending NHRA Full Throttle Series champion, has also been to four straight final rounds – winning three times – to assume the points lead in Funny Car.

"Where was that 4.02 in the final last week in Chicago," said Hight, whose three-race winning streak was snapped by Matt Hagan last week. "I didn?t talk to (crew chief) Jimmy (Prock) much before the run. I didn?t know what he was gonna try to run. Then when we ran that 4.02, I knew (Matt) Hagan was more than capable of making a better run or maybe Ashley (Force Hood). A little surprised it held up.

"I used to come here for the Wednesday match races with John's car and it was always a lot of fun. Tonight reminded me a lot of that," Hight said.

McClenathan secured the provisional No. 1 in the FRAM dragster with the quickest and second-fastest run since NHRA moved to 1000-foot racing two years ago, a 3.752-second pass at 324.75 mph. He also set both ends of the track record.

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NHRA STATEMENT REGARDING HIGH-SPEED CRASH AT NHRA SUPERNATIONALS

ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. -- Top Alcohol Funny Car racer Neal Parker, 58, from Millville, N.J., crashed today at a high rate of speed in the shutdown area during qualifying for the NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park and was pronounced dead. NHRA officials and the New Jersey State Police are investigating the accident. On behalf of everyone at NHRA and Raceway Park, we are deeply saddened and want to pass along our sincere condolences to the entire Parker family.

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO NO. 3 SPOT FRIDAY EVENING AT ENGLISHTOWN

ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. (June 11, 2010) - Antron Brown, a New Jersey native, drove his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to the provisonal No. 3 qualifying position on Friday evening at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. The two-time winner at Raceway Park used a Friday evening elapsed time of 3.819-seconds to finish third in the order.

Brown enters the 11th race on the 2010 NHRA schedule ranked fifth in the NHRA Top Fuel standings with three poles and three final round appearances this season. On Friday's opening qualifying attempt, the Matco Tools/U.S. Army car posted great early numbers but overpowered the track as Brown slowed to a run of 4.209 seconds at 227.65 mph. It was the ninth quickest of the session. On Friday's evening session, the 24-time NHRA winner used a tune-up from crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to power the bright blue Matco-backed rail to a lap of 3.817 at 315.86 to finish in the provisional No. 3 qualifying position. Brown earned the Top Fuel pole at Raceway Park two years ago and qualified fifth last June at the SuperNationals at 3.871-seconds.

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO SECOND ROUND AT JOLIET

JOLIET, Ill. (June 6, 2010) - Antron Brown drove his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to a second-round finish Sunday afternoon at Route 66 Raceway. The 24-time NHRA winner remains fifth in the NHRA Top Fuel standings following 10 of 23 races on the 2010 NHRA schedule.

A day after racing his John Wolfe (Matco Tools' top distributor) tribute car to the No. 8 qualifying position with an elapsed time of 3.872-seconds, Brown bested local favorite T.J. Zizzo before falling to No. 1 qualifier Larry Dixon in the quarterfinals. Brown now has a mark of 13-10 in 23 rounds this season.

As the first pair of cars to race down the Route 66 Raceway track on Sunday morning, Brown scored the wire-to-wire win in his special John Wolfe/Matco Tools car. Brown left first and powered his Brian Corradi/Mark Oswald-tuned car to a lap of 3.899 seconds at 313.15 mph to advance to the second round and earn his 100th career Top Fuel round win. Zizzo, who qualified ninth, lost traction in his dragster and slowed to an elapsed time of 8.067-seconds.

Squaring off against the Al-Anabi team for the third time this season, Brown posted his quickest lap of the weekend, however it wasn't enough to defeat the two-time NHRA champion who ran the quickest pass of the round. Brown powered his John Wolfe/Matco Tools car to a run of 3.839 at 315.78, but Dixon's slightly quicker lap of 3.830 at 317.94 was enough to card the narrow win. Brown is now 0-3 against the Alan Johnson-owned car this season.

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DIXON, HIGHT, EDWARDS AND TREBLE STAY NO. 1 SATURDAY IN CHICAGO

JOLIET, Ill. – Larry Dixon strengthened his points lead in Top Fuel as he raced to the No. 1 qualifier at the United Association Route 66 NHRA Nationals.

Robert Hight, Mike Edwards and Craig Treble also took the top spots in their respective categories at the 10th of 23 events on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

Dixon drove his Al-Anabi Racing dragster to the top of the field and posted a track record of 3.814-seconds at 317.42 mph. It was Dixon’s third No. 1 qualifier of the season and 43rd of his career.

“As in most cases during the year, you have to fire your shot on Friday to try and get on pole,” said Dixon. “Yesterday as late as we ran, we wanted to make a good run and fortunately it stuck. Today, it was a little warmer and the track was a little looser. Fortunatley we stayed on pole. We ran good in the first session and then had a belt come off on the second run. That cost us three bonus points but all and all it was a great job by Alan (Johnson, team manager) and Jason (McCulloch, crew chief).”

Defending world champion Tony Schumacher qualified third for eliminations, while Top Fuel sensation Antron Brown sits in the eighth spot.

In Funny Car, Robert Hight followed up his success of three consecutive race wins for the season by racing to the top of the field. Hight drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to a 4.067 at 313.15. It’s his fourth of the season and 36th of his career.

“It doesn’t change you mindset,” said Hight, who was set to race teammate John Force before Cruz Pedregon was disqualified. “We don’t race the other guy. We go up there and race the conditions. Jimmy knows what he can get away with based on the conditions. We go up there and do our deal. It was just like in Topeka when we had a single we would have looked stupid if we would have gone up there and smoked the tires. What did we do we went out there and set low ET for the whole weekend. There is no difference in how we approach racing Justin (Schriefer) or John tomorrow morning. If I try to make a difference I’ll be late on the light. You have to go up there assuming the other guy is going to be perfect. You just have to do your job. If you don’t he is going to beat you.”

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Houston marks good start to Zizzo's season

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 14, 2010) -- T.J. Zizzo and the PEAK/HERCULINER Top Fuel team made the most of their 2010 debut at the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals this past weekend. The team qualified 12th, improving their position during Saturday's sessions.

"We were happy to be back on the racetrack again," Zizzo said. "It was great meeting new fans and reintroducing myself to the media."

Mike Kern, crew chief of the Illinois based team was also happy with the team's first outing. "After a six month layoff we pulled out of the trailer with a number five qualifying position," Kern said. "After the nitro settled we ended up 12th."

Zizzo would face NHRA points leader Cory McClenathan in round one of eliminations on Sunday. While Zizzo's reaction time would match the efforts of his opponent, McClenathan's car would pull away for the win.

"Overall it was a productive weekend," Zizzo said. "For our first weekend out it was like a test session. We still need to figure out what the car wants. The team assembled the car well and they worked well together. I may not have been the fastest car on the track last weekend, but with PEAK and HERCULINER standing behind us I'm confident it will allow us to improve in the future."

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HAGAN GETS FIRST WIN; DIXON GETS 50TH AT O’REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA SPRING NATIONALS IN HOUSTON:

  

Funny Car driver and sophomore sensation Matt Hagan powered his DieHard Dodge Charger to his first career win while Top Fuel veteran Larry Dixon became only the eighth driver in NHRA history to earn 50 career wins with his victory over Antron Brown at Sunday’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park. Hagan drove past drag racing veterans Melanie Troxel, Cruz Pedregon, Tony Pedregon and Jeff Arend in the final round to earn his spot in the winner’s circle at the end of the day. “Other than my wife and kids, this is the best feeling in the world,” said Hagan. “You don’t understand how frustrating it was coming into the final round, and you’re ready for that first win to be over, well not over, but you’re ready to have it. It’s one of those things where you can taste it, you can feel it. You know, it’s just there, and you’re ready to just grab it. Thank goodness we did that today because that’s the first little hurdle you have to jump over before you go hunting a championship.” With the win, Hagan moved from fourth to second in the point standings, but points leader John Force still has a strong lead over the competition, 70 points ahead of Hagan. Dixon held off a tough competition all weekend enroute to his 50th career win and third at Houston Raceway Park, but the work was well worth the celebration. “Man, No. 50,” said Dixon. “I didn’t even think about it until they started talking about it (at the top end), but, yeah, that’s more than I ever thought I’d do in my lifetime, and I’m not done living yet.” Dixon also moved up from fourth to second in the point standings, just 28 points away from first place Cory McClenathan. For more results, visit NHRA.com.

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ANTRON BROWN AND MATCO TOOLS DRAGSTER TO VISIT STUDENTS AT  WESTERN TECHNICAL COLLEGE ON APRIL 13

By Ted Yerzyk

EL PASO, Texas (April 13, 2010) - Antron Brown, driver of the Don Schumacher Racing-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster, will visit with students at Western Technical College in El Paso on April 13. The former college track star at Mercer (N.J.) Community College will speak to students at Western Tech about education and career choices after competing at the 23rd annual O'Reilly Spring Nationals, April 9-11, in Baytown, Texas near Houston. Brown's 7,000-horsepower Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster also will be on display.

"I really enjoy these school visits we do for Matco (Tools)," Brown said. "I was just like many of these students not too long ago when I was a student at Mercer College in New Jersey. It's nice to give back and speak to the students about career paths and the importance of focusing on education. These are the technicians and mechanics of tomorrow and it's great to meet the students and hopefully deliver a positive message to them. I think it's great that Matco makes this a top initiative for the company.

"We went to Western Tech last year after the Houston race and it was awesome. I was blown away with all the students and how great they treated us. I can't wait to get back and see Allan Sharpe and all the students and that awesome Matco Tools store they have a Western Tech."

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More career bests for McMillen in qualifying not enough on Houston race day

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 11, 2010) -- Terry McMillen piloted his Amalie Oil Top Fuel dragster to his most consistent outing of the 2010 Full Throttle Drag Racing season. Unfortunately it wouldn't be enough for the Elkhart, Ind. based team to earn its first round win.

"My guys did such a great job this weekend," McMillen said of his team. "The Amalie dragster was running like a bracket car all weekend. Losing first round this weekend hurt more than most." A broken blower snout would cause the car to lose a cylinder early in the run, eventually pushing the head gasket

For the fourth time in five races, McMillen's team set new career bests during qualifying, earning him a new personal best 1000 foot speed (313.73 mph) and his best qualifying position, eighth. Neither would be enough to overcome David Grubnic's best pass of the weekend in round one.

"You just have to believe that if we keep improving week in and week out, sooner or later things will start to go our way," a frustrated McMillen said. "I told my guys that if we keep running like we did this weekend we'll string together a few round wins."

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO THIRD STRAIGHT FINAL ROUND SUNDAY AT HOUSTON

By Ted Yerzyk

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 11, 2010) - Antron Brown drove his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to a runner-up finish Sunday afternoon at Houston Raceway Park as the 24-time NHRA winner moved to fourth in the NHRA Top Fuel standings. Brown advanced to his third straight final round.

A day after qualifying the Matco Tools/U.S. Army rail in the No. 2 position with a career-best elapsed time at 3.777-seconds, Brown bested 2009 NHRA Rookie of the Year Spencer Massey, starting-line ace Shawn Langdon, and three-time Top Fuel winner Morgan Lucas, before losing a tire-smoking final to two-time series champion Larry Dixon.

In the opening round, Brown was paired up against the two-time Top Fuel winner, who was competing in his first race of the season. Brown got the jump at the start and raced to the wire-to-wire win in his Matco Tools/U.S. Army rail. The 22-time pole winner powered to the second quickest pass of the round at 3.858 seconds at 315.27 mph to outpace Massey's lap of 4.176 at 235.64. Brown is now 4-3 in seven career races against Massey. It was Brown's 315th career round win.

Facing Langdon for the second time this season, the former NHRA Super Comp champion got the jump at the start, but Brown used a tune-up from crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to power the bright blue Matco Tools car to the semifinals in the left lane at H.R.P. Brown's car clocked a performance of 3.964 at 303.37, while Langdon's rail lost traction and slowed to an elapsed time of 4.806-seconds. Brown is now 2-0 against Langdon this season.

The former college track star advanced to his third straight final round by knocking off Lucas in the semifinals with the quickest pass of the round. The Corradi/Oswald-tuned Matco Tools/U.S. Army car powered to a pass of 3.873 at 314.17 to advance to Brown's 51st career final round and third at Houston Raceway Park. Lucas' rail trailed at 4.006 at 298.80.

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FORCE EARNS 133rd CAREER NO. 1, FIVE SHY OF WARREN JOHNSON ON ALL-TIME LIST
Dixon, Edwards and Arana round out No. 1 qualifiers

BAYTOWN, Texas – NHRA legend John Force inched one step closer to the one major NHRA milestone that eludes him – all-time No. 1 qualifiers – when he set the Funny Car pace at the 23rd O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil on Saturday.

The other No. 1 qualifiers at the fifth of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Larry Dixon (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

The No. 1 qualifier for Force – a 4.021-second pass at 316.08 mph from Friday night – was his second this season and the 133rd of his career, pulling the driver of the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to within five of Warren Johnson (138) for first place on NHRA’s all-time No. 1 qualifiers list.

Force, who has been the Funny Car points leader all season, will open with No. 16 qualifier Tony Pedregon and the NitroFish Chevy team when final eliminations begin Sunday at 11 a.m. and he’ll have a shot at the national record.

He needs to make a pass of 4.061 or better to back up his 4.021, which is two-hundredths quicker than Ron Capps’ 4.023 mark set at Phoenix in February, 2009.

“Warren’s a true legend, but I’m thinking about, I get two shots at that record,” Force said. “There’ll be two shots, first round when it will be coolest and (if I don’t get it there) I’ll have to make it to the final to get another shot. If the condition’s are right, we will go for it first round.”

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PAYNE EARNS FIRST PRO MOD NO. 1 QUALIFIER; FALLS TO TROXEL IN FIRST ROUND OF ELIMINATIONS

BAYTOWN, Texas – Jay Payne raced to his first career No. 1 qualifier in the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series as qualifying came to an end Saturday at Houston Raceway Park.

Payne drove his 1968 supercharged Camaro to a 5.813-second run at 246.21 mph to take his first career No. 1 in the series, but Payne was unable to get around Melanie Troxel in the first round of eliminations.

Troxel, who also competes in the Funny Car class in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, was able to pull away from Payne in the first round, driving her 1963 Corvette to a 6.222 at 242.50. Troxel had qualified 16th, barely making the field, but was able to power past Payne to advance.

“You say never give up on race day, but there comes a time, especially in the Pro Mod class, because the window of what you can get away with in those cars is smaller than most classes,” said Troxel. “The second time I pedaled the car (Jay Payne) was at least eight car lengths ahead of me. I thought, ‘This is stupid, pedaling the car when he is that far out from me.’ It cleared up by half track and I decided to run it on through. By the time I got it in high gear, I thought I was reeling him in awfully fast.”

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO NO. 2 SPOT AT HOUSTON, CLOCKS CAREER-BEST E.T. AND SPEED

By Ted Yerzyk

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 10, 2010) - Antron Brown raced his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to the No. 2 qualifying position Saturday evening at Houston Raceway Park after a rain-filled morning at the 23rd annual O'Reilly Spring Nationals. The 24-time NHRA used a career-best elapsed time of 3.777-seconds to finish second in the 16-car order.

A day after racing to the provisional pole with a lap of 3.803 seconds at 317.64 mph, the Matco Tools flagship driver posted his quickest and fastest pass of the 2010 season to remain atop the 16-car Top Fuel field. Brown used a tune-up from crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to power the Matco Tools/U.S. Army dragster to a run of 3.794 at 321.96, a career-best speed, to improve upon Friday's provisional pole run of 3.803-seconds. On his final qualifying effort, under the lights in Baytown, Brown blistered the H.R.P. track in 3.777 at 318.09 to clocked his quickest 1,000-foot pass. Brown took the win light next to two-time champion Larry Dixon, who earned the pole with an elapsed time of 3.772-seconds. Brown's DSR and U.S. Army Racing teammate Tony Schumacher was third at 3.785-seconds. Brown has qualified fourth, first, third and second at the last four races on the 2010 NHRA schedule. His average qualifying position in five races is 4.2.

"We had an awesome day," Brown said. "We just missed it on that last run. We were going 285 (mph) at half track and the engine let loose just a tad bit early. We should have had the pole and maybe the quickest pass ever, but it's all good for our DSR Matco Tools team. We had great Matco support here in Houston and we're going to go out and race smart, take it one round at at time and try to repeat what we did here two years ago."

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ANTRON BROWN RACES TO PROVISIONAL POLE FRIDAY AT HOUSTON

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 9, 2010) - Antron Brown powered his Don Schumacher-owned Matco Tools dragster to the provisional No. 1 qualifying postion Friday evening at Houston Raceway Park as he looks to earn a second straight pole at the O'Reilly Spring Nationals. Brown's elapsed time of 3.803-seconds paced the Top Fuel field on the opening day of qualifying at the Houston-area track.

Brown entered the fifth race on the 2010 NHRA schedule ranked fifth in the NHRA Top Fuel standings. On his first qualifying attempt on a beautiful afternoon at Houston Raceway Park, Brown's bright blue Matco Tools/U.S. Army rail overpowered the 103-degree race track and slowed to a lap of 7.339 seconds at 85.77 mph. Only Brown's DSR teammate and current points leader Cory McClenathan made a full lap in the FRAM dragster in the right lane in the first qualifying session.

On Friday's second attempt, the Matco Tools/U.S. Army car was in the second pair of cars to blast down the H.R.P. strip. Racing out of the left lane, Brown used a tune-up from crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald to card the quickest run of the day at 3.803 seconds at 317.64 mph. Brown has two career poles at the Houston race and was the top qualifier at the Gainesville, Fla. race last month. He has 22 career No. 1 qualifying awards. Brown's U.S. Army Racing teammate Tony Schumacher finished fifth at 3.848-seconds.

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Bench racing is over - Zizzo returns from Spain ready for Houston

BAYTOWN, Texas (April 6, 2010) -- If competition in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing isn't fierce enough on the track, you can always follow the competition away from the track as well. "I was hoping to have lost more weight than Cory Mac (McClenathan)," Zizzo laughed. "I ran into him at an event this winter and he looked lean. I had lost 12 lbs. until I ate all of those Tapas in Spain. So, now my dad will have to squeeze me in the car with a shoehorn."

Fresh from a trip to Barcelona Spain to make good on a 15-year-old promise to his wife, T.J. Zizzo had time to reflect on the task of competing at this weekend's O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park. During a long winter of "bench racing", teams, crew chiefs and drivers spend endless hours toiling and tuning their dragsters to new world records - or at least new personal bests. The PEAK / HERCULINER Top Fuel team from Zizzo Racing is no different.

"We just dug the transporter out of a snow bank three weeks ago," Zizzo said. "Now, I return from Spain and it's 80 degrees in 'Chitown'. That is crazy. We did a lot of bench racing over the winter. According to our bench racing numbers, we're going to run 3.86 at 315 mph on our first pass in Houston... I love bench racing!"

Zizzo spent his winter managing the family auto body business and updating the racing equipment with the team, and he's confident they're ready.

"I know we'll need a few runs to get up to speed. There is never enough time, but we are as ready as we have ever been. I will need to dust the cob webs off my driving suit and get the paint fumes out of my head from painting cars 12 hours a day. That first pass might be a little bit of shock to my system."

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FORCE EARNS PROVISIONAL NO. 1, CLOSES IN ON ALL-TIME RECORD
Brown, Edwards and Arana round out No. 1 qualifiers

BAYTOWN, Tex. – The ageless John Force earned the provisional pole in Funny Car with a 4.021-second pass at 316.08 mph on the first day of qualifying at the 23rd annual O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals Friday.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the fifth of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

Force, now 60 years old, has already won twice this season in his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang and if the No. 1 holds up it would be the 133rd of his career, leaving him just five shy of Warren Johnson (138) on the all-time No. 1 qualifier list. It’s really the one major NHRA milestone that the 14-time NHRA champion and current points leader does not possess.

Force co-crew chief “Mike Neff said ‘Hang on. I’ll give you eight cylinders and a smooth clutch transition and you keep it in the groove’ – which I know how to do – ‘and it’ll go down there’ … and it went,” Force said of the run that was the second quickest at 1000 feet.

The stunning pass continues a season-long resurgence for Force, who has led the points from Day 1 in 2010 after a three-year stretch from 2007-2009 in which he never led the points.

“My dad always told me, ‘If there’s no oranges on the ground, shake the tree and you’ll have lots of oranges’ and I just kept shaking the tree … I shook our tree and out of it comes, so far so good,” Force said.

There were also a couple of spectacular explosions in the final Funny Car session, first Robert Hight’s Auto Club Ford popped near the finish line and then Tony Pedregon’s NitroFish Chevy blew up sending his body up some 25 feet in the air. Neither driver was injured.

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PAYNE TAKES PROVISIONAL TOP SPOT IN PRO MOD QUALIFYING AT O’REILLY NHRA SPRING NATIONALS

BAYTOWN, Texas – Jay Payne raced to the provisional No. 1 qualifying lead Friday as the second round of NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series qualifying came to an end at Houston Raceway Park.

Payne, of Ontario, Calif., drove his supercharged 1968 Camaro to a 5.813-second run at 246.21 mph to the provisional top spot of the field. For Payne, it would be his first official No. 1 qualifier at the second event of the inaugural season of the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.

“We ran a potential world record in Gainesville (5.809) but we didn’t back it up so maybe this time we can get it done,” said Payne. “The No. 1 goal is winning the race. That never changes. If we can set a national record along the way, all the better.”

Raymond Commisso currently sits third in the field with a run of 5.852 at 251.20. NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series driver Melanie Troxel is in the 16th spot just in the field with her Friday run of 6.072 at 243.99.

Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at 1:15 p.m. along with the first round of eliminations at 4 p.m. Eliminations will continue on Sunday.

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2010 Track Champions crowned at Red River Co-op Speedway

Shane Edginton #5E is the 2010 Track Champion in the WISSOTA Modified division at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway. Edginton finished the season a slim one point ahead of veteran racer Rick Delaine and only five points up on Luke Dykstra #44D and Danny Staff #7 who were both tied for third place in track points. Also winning track championships at the speedway were, Ricky Weiss (Late Model), Colin Kendall (Super Stock), Lee McRae (Super Truck), Henry Peters (Street Stock), and Roland Bernard (Lightning Sprint).    Photo by Tim Johnson

View point standings... CLICK HERE

Mod Feature to Imrie at Red River Co-op Speedway

Ward Imrie #10 won an exciting WISSOTA Modified feature race at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway on Thursday night, August 19, 2010.(Photo by Tim Johnson)

Dykstra leads Mod points at Red River Co-op Speedway

Luke Dykstra #44D holds a slim 3 point lead over Shane Edginton #5E in the WISSOTA Modified division at Red River Co-op Speedway. (Photo by Tim Johnson)

Current RRCS point standings as of August 12, 2010 CLICK HERE

Shaffer wins dramatic 50th Annual Knoxville Nationals

8/15/2010 - By Stacy Ervin

Tim Shaffer of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, won an epic 50th Annual Goodyear Knoxville Nationals presented by Lucas Oil at the Knoxville Raceway in Knoxville, Iowa, on Saturday, August 14. The win was worth $150,000 and was the first time a brand-new winner was crowned since 2006.

This year’s championship main was historic because it was the first time in history that 50 laps were run and the race included an all-inclusive pit stop. Nationals championships in previous years had been 30 laps until 2009 when the race was 40 laps and included a stop for fuel only. This race was the longest in the history of this race track.

It was likely to be remembered as one of the most dramatic races in this track’s history too. Shaffer started seventh on the grid and was relatively quiet through much of the race.

Outside front-row starter Sammy Swindell grabbed the early lead from polesitter Brian Brown on the first lap. Brown stayed with the 1983 Nationals champion though and the pair nearly came together as they crossed the line at lap three.

Joey Saldana’s machine went up in a puff of smoke at lap seven. The lead pair was just about to come to traffic when the yellow flag came out a lap later as Saldana was limping to the pits.


 

River Cities Speedway

Zach Naastad #z17 thought he had the WISSOTA Midwest Modified Feature race in the bag at River Cities Speedway on Friday night. After leading all but the final lap, Naastad was passed by RCS Points leader Aaron Olson in the #14 just feet from the finish line. (photo by Tim Johnson)

Friday the 13th was lucky for Ryan Pommerer #5P as he won the WISSOTA Street Stock Feature at River Cities Speedway.  Just his second visit to the Grand Forks, North Dakota track this season.

(Photo by Tim Johnson)

Exciting night at Red River Co-op Speedway

Colin Kendall #k9 was the WISSOTA Super Stock feature winner on Thursday night at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway.

Glen Manning got his first Super Truck feature win on August 12th at Red River Co-op Speedway.     (Photos by Tim Johnson)

Jamie Vernaus violently flipped his #2T Super Truck on the front straight at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway during the Super Truck Feature on Thursday night. Jamie walked away from this scary wreck. (Photo by Kaz)

A Look Ahead to the 2010 Gold Rush Tour for the World of Outlaws


(2010 file photo by Tim Johnson)

By Tony Veneziano
Concord, NC-August 11, 2010- With another of the closest point races in World of Outlaws history taking shape, the upcoming Gold Rush Tour will play a pivotal role in helping determine the 2010 champion, as 21 A-Feature events remain on the season, with 11 of those taking place during the Gold Rush Tour, which will take the series to six different tracks in four states and one Canadian Province. Nearly $150,000 will be on the line to win those events from a total purse of well over a half-a-million dollars for the 11 races, with the highlights being the $50,000 to-win Gold Cup Raceway of Champions at Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, California and the $20,000 to-win the finale at Skagit Speedway in Washington.

The 2010 Gold Rush Tour kicks off on Friday, August 20 and Saturday, August 21 at Nodak Speedway in Minot, North Dakota with the Gerdau Ameristeel Magic City Showdown Presented by Sleep Inn & Suites, which will mark the World of Outlaws first-ever two-day event at the recently reconfigured 3/8-mile, with its brand new state-of-the-art grandstand, which is closer to the racing surface to provide enhanced viewing. Danny Lasoski was victorious at Nodak Speedway last season and there has been a different winner in each of the World of Outlaws four races at the track dating back to 2006.

The series then heads north of the border for the final time this season for the Fourth Annual Oil City Cup at Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on Friday, August 27 and Saturday, August 28. Joey Saldana, the current World of Outlaws point leader, won both nights of the Oil City Cup last season, while Steve Kinser, Jason Meyers, Donny Schatz and Jac Haudenschild are all former winners at the always racy 3/8-mile in Western Canada.

Cottage Grove Speedway in Oregon then awaits the best sprint car drivers in the world on Wednesday, September 1 for a full night of racing at the high-banked Ľ-mile bullring. Jason Meyers is the defending race winner at the track, while each of the four drivers that are currently at the top of the World of Outlaws standings have won at Cottage Grove Speedway. Steve Kinser and Danny Lasoski are tied for the most wins at the track with the series, with three apiece, while Donny Schatz has two victories at Cottage Grove. Nine different drivers have picked up wins with the series at the track.

Following a travel day, the Gold Rush Tour continues at Skagit Speedway in Washington on Friday, September 3 and Saturday, September 4 for two full nights of racing, with a $20,000 top prize awaiting the winner of the finale. Jason Meyers scored the then-richest win of his career last season at Skagit Speedway, while Joey Saldana was victorious in the opener. A total of nine drivers have won A-Feature events with the series at the high-banked bullring dating back to 1978.


 

Mahder Making Most of Rookie Run
Rocco Maintains NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Lead


Chad Mahder in Victory Lane at Cedar Lake Speedway. (photo Courtesy of CLS)

By Jason Christley, NASCAR
August 10, 2010

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – When the regional touring series Chad Mahder ran last year in Iowa closed down, he went looking for something closer to home. The 25-year-old from Eou Claire, Wisc., found it in the form of Cedar Lake Speedway in New Richmond, Wisc.

He also found plenty of success.

Mahder, who is coming off a weekend where he finished first and third in twin features, has six wins and nine top fives in 12 races in his first year running in a NASCAR Whelen All-American Series Feature Division. That has him leading the track’s Impact Printing Late Model Division, fifth in the Wisconsin state standings and, at 40th in the national standings, Mahder is the highest rookie.

The Rookie of the Year Award presented by Jostens is open to any first-year NASCAR Feature Division license holder and is awarded on the U.S. state and Canadian provincial level as well as to the highest finishing rookie in the nation. California’s Jacob Gomes won the national Rookie of the Year last year.

“Once things started clicking, they were really clicking,” said Mahder of his success this year.
The same can be said for Keith Rocco, who picked up his 18th win of the season last Saturday at Waterford (Conn.) Speedbowl and moved within two races of a perfect season. The 25-year-old from Wallingford, Conn., has led NASCAR Whelen All-American Series national points standings the entire season. Sixteen of the 18 wins Rocco has collected at the three Connecticut short tracks he’s run on a regular basis – Thompson International Speedway on Thursdays, Stafford Motor Speedway on Fridays, and Waterford on Saturdays – have come with a maximum field of 20 cars for 45 points.


 

Brent Larson Dominates Second Night of NASCAR Action During USA Nationals!

8/7/2010 New Richmond, WI- On Friday night, Brent Larson had to race his way from the back of the pack following an early caution to earn a fourth place finish. On Saturday night at the USA Nationals, Larson found his outside front row starting position in the 30 lap NASCAR Late Model main event much more to his liking. With five-time and Friday night winner Chad Mahder drawing the pole position, many on-lookers wondered if he would race to his sixth win at CLS this season. Larson had a different agenda though, as the Lake Elmo, Minnesota driver dominated the feature race. A strong field of 34 NASCAR Late Models were on hand to run a full program as the companion division to the World of Outlaws late models. A very large crowd, one of the biggest in track history, filled the popular western Wisconsin Cedar Lake Speedway for the final night of the 23rd Annual USA Nationals.

The NASCAR Late Models lined up prior to the prestigious USA National 100 for their 30 lap feature event. Chad Mahder and Brent Larson brought the 24 car field to the green. Unlike the previous night, the main event would run the full 30 lap distance nonstop. Larson gained the advantage over Mahder on the opening lap and would never look back, as the 2008 track champion raced to his first victory of the season at CLS. Mahder fell into the runner-up spot ahead of Pete Parker and Toby Patchen in the early part of the race. Ashley Anderson moved by Patchen for fourth on lap seven and then snuck under Parker the next time around for third. Ninth starter Pat Doar began to make his presence felt in the top five one lap later.


 

Chad Mahder Drives to Fifth Win During USA Nationals!

8/6/2010 New Richmond, WI- Chad Mahder has been on a role this season in the NASCAR Late Model division at the Cedar Lake Speedway. The Eau Claire, Wisconsin driver picked up where he left off the previous weekend to score his fifth victory of the season during the Friday night show at the USA Nationals. A season-high 45 NASCAR Late Models signed into the pits for a full night of racing action in front of a large crowd on a pleasant summer evening.

Mahder's victory did not come easy though, as he started ninth in the 24 car field and steadily moved forward during a series of early cautions. A crash on the opening lap knocked out Ashley Anderson while another incident just one lap into the race sidelined Adam Hensel and forced Brent Larson to the work area with a flat tire. The third caution flew with just two laps in for a Jim Carlson spin. One lap later, a six car crash triggered by Jim Bruggeman brought the race under the red flag and eliminated the cars of Eric Pember, Eric Breeschoten, Scott Greer and Bruggeman. Mahder was running seventh at this point, but he would soon move into the top five just a couple of laps later.

Three laps after the green replaced the red, the race was under its final caution when leader Rick Hanestad suddenly shut his car down in turn two and rolled to a stop. This handed the lead over to A. J. Diemel who had worked his way past Mike Nutzmann two laps earlier. On the restart, it was Diemel, Nutzmann, Mahder, Pat Doar, and Terry Anvelink occupying the first five positions. The race would then run twenty two laps nonstop to the finish.


 

World of Outlaws Championship Standings Tighten After Ironman 55 Weekend

Joey Saldana  (photo by Tim Johnson)

By Tony Veneziano
Concord, NC—August 8, 2010— The World of Outlaws championship standings remain extremely close following the Ironman 55 Weekend at I-55 Raceway, which culminated on Saturday night with the Second Annual Ironman 55, the longest, most grueling event of the season for the World of Outlaws. Joey Saldana, Steve Kinser and Jason Meyers are separated by just 46 points, with Saldana leading Kinser by a mere nine markers with Meyers third, only 37 points behind Kinser who is second and 46 behind Saldana.

Saldana charged from 19th to seventh in the opener of the Ironman and was fifth in the finale to earn his 29th Top-Five finish of the season. He continues to lead the series in wins with 10 and is also on top of the leader board in laps led as he battles for his first World of Outlaws title.

Kinser finished fourth on Friday night and sixth on Saturday night to add to his series leading total of Top-Five and Top-10 finishes. The 20-time series champion has 44 Top-10 runs with 31 of those being Top-Five performances as he seeks his record 21st title.

Meyers finished sixth in the opener at I-55 Raceway and led 27 laps en route to the $20,000 win in the finale, which was his eighth win of the season, which is second only to Saldana. The California native has 38 Top-10 finishes on the year with 25 Top-Fives as he chases his first series title.


 

An Amazing Race: Jason Meyers Wins Ironman 55 & $20,000 in Thrilling Fashion over Lucas Wolfe

Jason Meyers #14  (2010 file photo by Tim Johnson)

By Tony Veneziano
Pevely, MO-August 7, 2010- 55 laps at I-55 Raceway and the Second Annual Ironman 55 came down to the final one and just a couple of feet on the race track as Jason Meyers won a thriller over Lucas Wolfe on the final circuit. Wolfe used a huge slide job coming off turn four to take the lead on the 55th and final lap, with Meyers winning a drag race down the front straightaway by a mere 0.092 seconds, which was the closest finish of the season.

The $20,000 win for Meyers was his eighth of the season and his second career triumph at I-55 Raceway, where he has finished in the Top-10 in each of his last seven starts at the high-banked 1/3-mile co-owned by Ken Schrader and Ray Marlar. The win helped Meyers close to within 46 markers of current point leader Joey Saldana, who finished fifth, while he is just 37 points behind Steve Kinser, who finished sixth on Saturday night and is currently second in the standings.

"To win any race here, let alone a 55-lap race is pretty special," said Meyers. "We had a great race car tonight and learned some things last night that we were able to use tonight. We just keep getting better day after day. We struggled a bit here in the middle of the season and kept digging and kept our heads down. This entire team is doing an amazing job."

Meyers took the lead from Tim Shaffer on the 29th lap on the low side of turns one and two and quickly opened a gap once out front. The native of Clovis, California was credited with leading a total of 26 laps en route to the victory. He started on the outside of the front row aboard the GLR Investments KPC and chased Tim Shaffer who started on the pole in the early going, before Sam Hafertepe Jr. took the second spot on the seventh lap. Meyers would move back into the runner-up spot 10 laps later and then worked on Shaffer for the next 13 laps.

"It was a long race and we were a little tight at the beginning, but we set up for that," explained the winner. "I waited for the car to kind of come to me and it did after the fuel came off a little bit. It ended up being a very good car tonight."


 

The Survivor: Bloomquist Fights Through All Obstacles To Win Record-Tying Fifth USA Nationals 100 At Cedar Lake Speedway

By Kevin Kovac
NEW RICHMOND, WI - Aug. 7, 2010 - Scott Bloomquist fought through all obstacles to win a record-tying fifth USA Nationals trophy on Saturday night at Cedar Lake Speedway.

Nothing could stop the superstar driver from Mooresburg, Tenn., from pocketing the $50,000 top prize in the 23rd annual event presented by the U.S. Steel Corporation. He came back from an early spin, a late-race pit stop and a penalty for moving during a red flag to outduel fellow dirt Late Model legend Billy Moyer of Batesville, Ark., for the lead on lap 96 of the 100-lap World of Outlaws Late Model Series A-Main.

Bloomquist, 46, proved to be a survivor, reaching the checkered flag first in a rough-and-tumble race that saw just five cars finish on the lead lap and eight cars still running at the end. The century grind was slowed by 13 caution flags and one red flag and lasted one hour, 18 minutes.

“The track was real demanding,” Bloomquist said of the heavy, high-speed surface conditions that prevailed on the three-eighths-mile oval. “We definitely showed you have to have a strong, tough race car to make it through this thing – and we build some good cars.”


 

Tim Shaffer Slices to Win Opener of the Ironman 55 at I-55 Raceway

Tim Shaffer #83  (2010 file photo by Tim Johnson)

By Tony Veneziano

Pevely, MO-August 6, 2010- Tim Shaffer has been the hottest driver in all of racing over the last week. Heading into the opener of the Ironman 55 weekend on Friday night at I-55 Raceway, the veteran had won in four straight starts over a six-day span. He extended that streak to five consecutive wins in seven days, as he was victorious in the opener of the two-day event at the high-banked 1/3-mile bullring.

Shaffer started on the front row of the 30-lapper and chased Jason Sides, who started on the pole, in the early going. For Shaffer, it was his first World of Outlaws win of the season and the 13th of his career.

"It was a team effort on everyone's part," said Shaffer. "We have a lot of people with this team that can't come to the races all the time and I want to thank every one of them. Aaron Call and Janet Holbrook gave us a great opportunity and a great team and we are trying to make the best we can and it's working out. It makes it special that we can win races for them and it's just fun."

Shaffer used lapped traffic to his advantage on the seventh lap, powering his way to the outside of Sides coming off the high side of turn two aboard the Kistler Engines J&J. Once out front, Shaffer set sail, slicing his way through lapped traffic to open a sizeable lead on the Jason Sides. He had Sides and Craig Dollansky gain some ground on him in the late going, with Dollansky finishing just a half-a-second behind and Sides only eighth-tenths-of-a-second back in third.

"I was too tight early and couldn't do anything with him," Shaffer explained. "I did have to wait, not that I wanted to, but the car was making me and it worked out to our advantage. Sometimes in lapped traffic running second is better, then I got the lead and had to worry about it, but it worked out for me and just made the right decisions and here we are."


 

Weiss wins at River Cities

Current WISSOTA Late Model Points leader Ricky Weiss #7 of St. Francois Xavier, MB is shown at River Cities Speedway (Grand Forks, ND) with Joel Cryderman #51 of Thunder Bay, Ontario on the high side. Ricky powered his Late Model into the lead and went on to win the Friday night Feature race, his second win in two nights, the first coming at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway on Thursday July 29, 2010. (photo by Tim Johnson)

Bob Martin wins Sprint Car Feature at River Cities Speedway

Bob Martin #10 got the win in the NOSA Sprint Car Feature at River Cities Speedway on Friday night July 30, 2010. Winnipeg's Thomas Kennedy #20k finished a close second followed by Lou Kennedy in the # 21k. (photo by Tim Johnson)

Schatz takes All Star Sprint Feature at Red River Valley Speedway

 

Donny Schatz #15 races side by side with Tony Stewart in the #20 on Thursday night during the All Star Circuit of Champions Sprint Car Feature at Red River Valley Speedway in West Fargo, North Dakota. Donny went on to win the feature over All Star points leader Tim Shaffer (2nd) and Tim Kaeding (3rd). (photo by Tim Johnson)

Veert gets Super Stock win at Red River Co-op Speedway

Paul Veert #88 was the WISSOTA Super Stock Feature winner at Winnipeg's Red River Co-op Speedway on Thursday July 29, 2010. The other feature winners included, Ricky Weiss - WISSOTA Late Model, Luke Dykstra - WISSOTA Modified, Darren Pallen - Super Truck, and Henry Peters - WISSOTA Street Stock. (photo by Kaz)

Craig Dollansky Dominates at Cedar Lake Speedway: Scores Second Win of 2010

By Tony Veneziano / Photo Courtesy Stan Meissner

New Richmond, WI- July 11, 2010- While he receives the accolades and the big check following a win, Craig Dollansky always is quick to credit his crew and entire team for their hard work and dedication, which play a very key component to being successful on the road with the World of Outlaws. Dollansky showed the important of a total team effort on Sunday night, as he came out on top at Cedar Lake Speedway in Wisconsin to earn his second A-Feature win of the season with the series and his second career win at the high-banked 3/8-mile.

The native of Elk River, Minnesota had a couple of different drivers chasing him over the course of the 30-lap contest, as first Jason Sides, who started on the pole looked for the top spot at the drop of the green. Sammy Swindell then moved into second and challenged Dollansky, before Jason Meyers moved into the runner-up spot later in the race and got alongside the leader a couple of times just prior to the halfway points of the race.

"It feels great to win," said Dollansky. "We have a very strong team here and everyone works so hard and they certainly deserve to win. It's been a long time since we won a race this year and it's not from a lack of effort, that's for sure. It takes a lot of work to get that done. We had a good dash draw which helped as well, but when you have something like that you have to capitalize on it. I was trying to not give the race away. I feel like I have given a couple away this year and was trying not to beat myself."

Dollansky was out front for three double file restarts on Sunday night and chose the low line on the first two and moved to the top of the high-banked 3/8-mile for the final restart on the 14th lap aboard the Big Game Treestands Maxim. He used a strong start each time to charge into turns one and two as the leader.

"I did not want to give it away," shared the veteran driver, when asked about the move to the top on the double file restart. "I was in the lead at Grand Forks (River Cities Speedway) and gave it away on that final restart and I didn't want to let my team down tonight. My team has worked hard and we have had a couple of races slip away by my fault and a couple of mechanical problems. This is a great team.

The start of Sunday night's racing program was delayed a couple of hours by rain, which marked the second straight night that rain pushed back the start of a World of Outlaws event. Dollansky had a large contingent cheering for him at Cedar Lake, where he picked up his second career win.

"Given the rain they got, my hat is off to these guys," shared Dollansky. "They did a great job tonight. It's great to win with a lot of family and friends here and with our car owner Tod Quiring in the house. I couldn't be happier for everyone involved."


 

Shane Stewart Storms to Lucas Oil ASCS Victory Lane at I-90!


Eventual winner Shane Stewart (57) battles with Jack Dover (53) in the early rounds of Saturday night's Lucas Oil ASCS National feature event at South Dakota's I-90 Speedway.
(Photo by Lonnie Wheatley)

By Lonnie Wheatley,
HARTFORD, S.D. (July 10, 2010) - Reigning Lucas Oil ASCS presented by K&N Filters National Champion Shane Stewart of Bixby, OK, was just fast enough on Saturday night to capture his first series win of the year atop I-90 Speedway's high-banked, 3/8-mile dirt oval.

Stewart bested not only a rugged field of 51 competitors, but also got the nod over Mother Nature even though the scheduled 30-lapper was declared complete after eleven rounds when the skies opened up with severe thunderstorm activity and drenched the Hartford clay in short order.

After starting sixth, Stewart took the point away from early pacesetter Austen Wheatley on the seventh round as lightning flashed and strong winds blew across the track.

When Wheatley flipped in turn two on the twelfth lap, collecting fourth and ninth runners Brady Bacon and Tim Crawley in the melee, Stewart was in the right position for the $6,000 victory aboard Paul Silva's Wesmar-powered Rock Star Energy Drink No. 57 A.R.T. as the skies opened up to bring an early end to the night at just 9:20 p.m. after a 7:45 p.m. heat race start.

With inclement weather fast approaching through the night, the Lucas Oil Sprint Car portion of the card was moved up in the order of events with heat races run first, followed by stock car heats, Lucas Oil ASCS "B" Mains, modified heats and then the Lucas Oil ASCS "A" Main.


 

Naida Outlast ASCS Sprints on Dirt at Owendale


Dain Naida reached ASCS Sprints on Dirt presented by ARP victory lane at Michigan's Owendale Speedway on Saturday night. (Photo by T.J. Buffenbarger)

By T.J. Buffenbarger,

OWENDALE, Mich. (July 10, 2010) - Dain Naida won Saturday night's Engine Pro ASCS Sprints on Dirt presented by ARP feature at Owendale Speedway during Super Race Day. Naida started on the outside of the front row and held onto the lead through several late race restarts for the victory. The win was Naida's first of the season in ASCS SOD competition this season and second during his 2010 campaign.

"This is the first time my son has ever been at the track when I won a race," said Naida while holding four year old son Darren. "My crew chief Dan McCarron made all of the right calls and the car was really hooked up in the feature."

Jim Goetgeluck and Naida shared the front row for the 25-lap feature. Naida jumped into the lead early while Ryan Grubaugh and Louie Carufel swapped second place back several times during the first half of the feature.

While the first fourteen laps clicked off with no interruption, Naida had to wait through multiple cautions during the second half of the feature, including a multiple car accident involved Robert Huisken, Gavin Hunyady, Ben Rutan, Tank Brakenberry, and others.


 

Sean McClelland Scores in ASCS Red River Challenge at Lawton


Sean McClelland took top honors in Saturday night's ASCS Red River Challenge by topping the American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Region vs. ASCS Lone Star main event at Lawton Speedway. (Michael Jackson photo)

By Lonnie Wheatley,

LAWTON, Okla. (July 10, 2010) - Sean McClelland struck a blow for the American Bank of Oklahoma ASCS Sooner Regional forces by topping the third round of the ASCS Red River Challenge at Lawton Speedway on Saturday night.

The past ASCS Sooner Region champion led all 25 rounds of the ASCS Sooner vs. Lone Star main event en route to his 13th career overall ASCS feature win and first since a Sooner score in Oklahoma City in August of 2008.

McClelland held off defending ASCS Sooner champ Joe Wood, Jr., in the final rounds for the win, with Wood, Jr., settling for runner-up honors after starting 18th.

Kolt Walker led the ASCS Lone Star forces with a third place finish, with fellow Texas shoes Scot Reneau and Martin Edwards rounding out the top five.

Sooner shoe Chris Lloyd, two-time Sooner champ Brian McClelland, current Lone Star points leader Eric Baldaccini, past Sooner champion Danny Jennings and Lone Star rep John Ricketts completed the top ten.

Edwards, Kevin Ramey, Baldaccini and Robert Sellers topped heat race action for the 28-car field, with Ricketts winning the "B" Main. Sellers was unable to fire for the main event, while Ramey turned over while running among the top five.


 

BILLY "THE KID" PAUCH IS LATEST ENTRY TO CHASE ROC 'N ROLL
$5,000 TO WIN AT GRANDVIEW SPEEDWAY WEDNESDAY NIGHT

BOB MILLER
JULY 11, 2010

The NAPA Auto Parts Thunder on the Hill Racing Series will present for the first time ever, the Race of Champions (ROC) Double-Header of Big Block Modifieds and Sportsman on Wednesday night, July 14th at the Grandview Speedway. There is a buzz about for this event and the latest entry, Billy "The Kid" Pauch will certainly add to the building excitement. Pauch owns hundreds of modified wins and he'll be glad to add another one to the list, especially with the $5,000 first place prize up for grabs in the 60 lap Big Block Modified feature. BPG Racing/Chad Sinon Motorsports recently sweetened the pot, bumping the first place prize from $4,000 to $5,000 in the ROC N ROLL event on the Hill Wednesday night. General admission for Adults is $20, children 6-11 $5 and children under 6 will be admitted for free.

Interesting fact, Billy Pauch is the winningest sprint car driver in Thunder on the Hill history with eleven wins, but in forty-one modified events, Pauch is still looking for his first modified win under the Thunder on the Hill banner. Of course, Pauch has won many races at Grandview competing in their weekly Saturday night 358 Modifieds. Joining Pauch on an expected star-filled roster is the Doctor himself, Danny Johnson, Brett Hearn, ROC Point Leader Pat Ward, Wade Hendrickson, Stewart Friesen, Bobby Varin and Gary Tomkins. Local Thunder favorites looking to protect their home turf include Craig VonDohren, Duane Howard, Jeff Strunk, Ryan Godown, Rick Laubach, Billy Pauch Jr, Jimmy Horton and Mike Gular just to name a few.


 

RAIN STOPS RANDY WEST FOR ONE WEEK, RISLONE URC SPRINTS EYE A BUSY ENDING TO JULY. . .
FAST TRACK 360 Sprint Shoot Out at Rolling Wheels Quickly Approaching

By BOB MILLER

The forecast of heavy rain most of the day on Saturday, forced the management of the Bridgeport Speedway to cancel their scheduled racing event that included the Rislone URC Sprints. Randy West of Boyertown, PA won the URC feature last Saturday night at the New Egypt Speedway and was looking for a double. West will have to wait until next Saturday night, July 17 when URC heads to the Lincoln Speedway.

A busy two day URC weekend is on tap July 23rd and July 24 at the Rolling Wheels Raceway with The Fast Track 360 Sprint Car Summer Shoot out. The Friday night event will offer the attractive URC weekly payout of $2,000 to win the 25 lap feature event. The following night will be The Fast Track 360 Sprint Summer Shoot out Final, paying $3,000 to the winner. The Rislone URC Sprint Series will close out the month at the Delaware International Speedway on Saturday night, July 31.

The two-day Fast Track 360 Sprint Shoot out is sanctioned by the United Racing Company, but the field of competitors will stretch far and beyond just the best of URC. A field of more then sixty 360 sprint cars are expected for this first time ever, mid-summer sprint car shoot out. In the past, Rolling Wheels was the long time home of the New Sprint Challenge event held during Super DIRT weekend. That event now moves to the Weedsport Speedway as the Rolling Wheels Raceway welcomes the two day Fast Track 360 Sprint Shoot out.


 

River Cities Speedway Fans Ready For Another World of Outlaws Late Model Series Thriller On Friday Night (July 9)



Rick Eckert #24E and Clint Smith #44 are shown in action at River Cities Speedway in 2009.

By Kevin Kovac / photo by Tim Johnson

GRAND FORKS, ND – July 7, 2010 – There’s just one question that needs to be answered when the World of Outlaws Late Model Series makes its annual visit to River Cities Speedway on Friday night (July 9).

What kind of wild moment will make the $10,000-to-win, 50-lap A-Main a thriller this year?

No stalwart track on the renowned national tour has consistently produced more memorable action over the past three years than River Cities, a high-banked, blazing-fast quarter-mile oval just south of the Canadian border. Fans have left the track’s spacious grandstands buzzing about what they witnessed and anxious to return for another installment of Outlaw competition.

“River Cities Speedway has become one of the can’t-miss stops for fans of the World of Outlaws Late Model Series,” said tour director Tim Christman. “Ask anyone who follows the series – for three years in a row our event at River Cities has ended up being one of the most exciting races of the entire tour. The track is a perfect size for close, intense racing and that’s why we’re always excited for our trip there.”


 

Danny Lasoski Seeks a Repeat in the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30’s at Lernerville Speedway: Double Features Highlight Race Program Again in 2010

By Tony Veneziano / Photo by Tim Johnson
Sarver, PA-July 6, 2010- From the first time he turned a wheel at Lernerville Speedway back in 1992, Danny Lasoski has always been fast at the historic four-tenths-mile located in Sarver, Pennsylvania. He had been trying for many years to win at the track, finishing second on four occasions before finally breaking through and reaching Victory Lane last season in the opener of the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twin 30's. Coupled with a strong charge from 19th to seventh in the finale, he was crowned the overall Silver Cup winner, adding his name to an illustrious list of drivers that have won the famed event over the years.

Lasoski will return to Lernerville Speedway along with the rest of the World of Outlaws on Tuesday, July 20 for the 19th Edition of the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup, which again this season will have Twin-30 lap features, with the second feature lined up by an inversion of the finish of the opener, which proved to be a very popular format with the fans last season. The event remains the single richest one-day show on the circuit, with one driving having a shot at taking home $30,000 if they were to win both ends of the Twin 30's.

The Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup is also the only time all season that fans will have the chance to see two full A-Feature events in one night, with the best sprint car drivers in the world doing battle for a total of 60-laps of racing.

"The Silver Cup is definitely one we'll always cherish," said Lasoski of his win in the event last season. "Don Martin was such a great promoter and a great person, so to win that thing will always hold a special place to me. Gary Risch and his people do a fantastic job over there now. We always look forward to going to Lernerville and especially the Silver Cup. It's pretty neat for the fans to get to see two races in one night."


 

Greenbush Race Park

Greenbush Race Park hosted their biggest weekend of racing this season on July 3-4, 2010.

(Photo by Tim Johnson)

Nygaard  takes the Northern Outlaw Sprint  Feature at Greenbush Race Park

Wade Nygaard and crew celebrate their Northern Outlaw Sprint Car Feature Win on July 4, 2010 at Greenbush Race Park, Greenbush, MN. (Photo by Tim Johnson)

Jason Meyers Shows the Way at North Central Speedway: Earns Series Leading Seventh Win of 2010



Jason Meyers #14 in Victory Lane after win at North Central Speedway.
(photo by Tim Johnson)

By Tony Veneziano

Brainerd, MN- July 3, 2010- Jason Meyers certainly has known the way to Victory Lane this season with the World of Outlaws, as he started the year on a tear winning six times in the first 19 races of the 2010 campaign. Entering Saturday's event at North Central Speedway in Brainerd, Minnesota, it had been 12 races since he picked up a win and he wanted nothing more in his second visit to the 1/3-mile bullring than to pick up a victory. The native of Clovis, California did exactly that, besting Donny Schatz and Joey Saldana to score his series-leading seventh A-Feature win of the year.

Meyers used a strong double file restart on the low side of the track with four laps remaining to edge Schatz, after the pair had a great battle on a previous restart only to have the caution fly, setting up the final restart. For Meyers, the $10,000 win was the 42nd of his World of Outlaws career.

"It feels great to win," said Meyers. "We had a little bit of a dry spell after a great start to the season and we've been digging hard here. This entire team has been working hard and I think my confidence was down a little and we are getting that back and really getting rolling now."

On the final restart, Meyers, Schatz and Saldana nearly went three wide into turn one when the yellow flew for Danny Lasoski, who has stopped on the track. With the same restart order, Meyers led the field into turns one and two in the GLR Investments KPC with Schatz diving low and nearly taking the lead on the final green flag as the pair raced side-by-side. Meyers held him off and Schatz again looked low in turns one and two on the next lap, pulling even with the leader, but was not quite able to get a run on him to make a pass.

"All I was thinking was go hard," shared the winner when asked about the final restart. "That's the great thing about Donny (Schatz). He'll race you as hard as can be, but he'll race you clean. That takes a lot of skill to do. Anyone can run in there and run over you and Donny races you hard and I have the utmost respect for him."


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
Red River Co-op Speedway
Feature Winners
 
Ricky Weiss #7 WISSOTA Late Model Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
 
Rick Delaine #1 WISSOTA Modified Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
Scott Brown #15x WISSOTA Super Stock
Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
Lee McRae #9 Super Truck Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
Andy Martins #55 WISSOTA Street Stock Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
Roland Bernard #2 Northern Lightning Sprint Feature Winner - August 26, 2010
 
River Cities Speedway
Feature Winners
 

Casey Mack #8  Sprint Car Feature Winner - August 13, 2010

Joel Cryderman #51 WISSOTA Late Model Feature Winner - August 13, 2010

Aaron Olson #14 WISSOTA Midwest Modified Feature Winner - August 13, 2010

Ryan Pommerer #5P WISSOTA Street Stock Feature Winner - August 13, 2010

VIEW RESULTS

The Wilkes County Bristol Stop

By: Steven B. Wilson

August 9, 2010 – North Wilkesboro, NC

Set in the Brushy Mountains of western North Carolina, lays Wilkes County with a deep history of NASCAR. It is the site of the North Wilkesboro Speedway which hosted NASCAR events for 50 years.

This year on the way to Bristol for the races Wilkes County will be hosting the First Annual “Bristol Stop” on race weekend, Wilkes County hotels will be offering deeply discounted hotels at several of the local hotels that include, Wilkesboro Holiday Inn, Addison Inn, and the Hampton Inn all in the Town of Wilkesboro and close to the North Wilkesboro Speedway, and within 2 hours of Bristol, TN.

Anyone stopping in town on race weekend with a Bristol ticket will be able to take their ticket down to the North Wilkesboro Speedway and take a lap around the track in your street car. Also that weekend on August 21st at 7:00pm, Tim Dugger will be performing in concert at West Wilkes High School, tickets prices are $10 each and will be available during check-in at all participating hotels, all proceeds from the Tim Dugger concert will go to the Benny Parsons Athletic Complex to be built at West Wilkes High School.

Holiday Inn - (336) 838-1800

Addison Inn - (336) 838-1000

Hampton Inn - (336) 838-5000

Red Carpet Inn - (336) 667-2176


 

Wife of Racing Legend Steve Kinser Recovering from Major Heart Surgery

By Tony Veneziano

CONCORD, N.C. - June 11, 2010 - Steve Kinser's world was turned upside down earlier this week when his wife, Dana, fell ill on Tuesday at their Bloomington, Ind., home. She complained of heart pain. Now, 72 hours later, the First Family of Sprint Car racing can catch its collective breath as hundreds of prayers were answered, and will no doubt help to spur Dana Kinser's recovery.

Quickly airlifted to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, Dana underwent 11 hours of extremely complicated open heart surgery. Today she is sitting upright and flashing that smile fans have come to know when seeing her at the track. Steve, a 20-time World of Outlaws champion and racing legend, remained by her side with their family throughout the challenging time. She faces a long and difficult recovery, but promises to be back at the track probably sooner than her doctors would prefer.

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Caleb Holman Snares First
USAR Pro Cup Victory Since 2008

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. (April 17, 2010) – Caleb Holman led twice for 126 laps in Saturday night's Crane Cams 250 at New Smyrna Speedway to record the second victory of his USARacing Pro Cup Series career and his first since 2008.

Holman's only other Pro Cup victory came at Bristol [Tenn.] Motor Speedway two years ago.

“Bristol is kinda like winning at Daytona in that it's really great, everybody loves it and it's a big deal, but it's not your typical race track,” Holman said after taking a 1.791-second victory over John Gibson. “Honestly, I feel like this is our first win on a typical, Pro Cup race track. It's slick, hard to get a hold of. So this win means as much as Bristol to me.”

The Abingdon, Va., driver took the lead for good on lap 152 when leader Stephen Nasse's All American Concrete Chevrolet Monte Carlo slid up towards the fourth turn wall. Nasse's slip allowed Holman and Clay Rogers to scoot underneath him as they exited the corner. That maneuver provided Holman with first and Rogers with second.

Rogers continuously challenged Holman during the remaining laps – first on the high side, then low, and at times, clinging to his rear bumper, trying to force Holman into making a mistake. But Rogers' tactics failed.

“It's not too often you get to make Clay Rogers work, so we were making him work for it. I'm glad of that,” said the 26-year-old Holman, who qualified third for the 250-lap race at the half-mile track. “He drove us real clean. There were several times there he could have wrecked us with lapped cars and stuff.”

Ironically, it was a miscue by Rogers on lap 236 in the second turn that provided Holman with a little breathing room and practically assured him of the victory. Rogers' USG Sheetrock Ford Fusion was too high in turn two as he attempted to pass Holman and it smacked the wall. Rogers managed to nurse his damaged race car to a fourth-placefinish, one lap down. After taking the checkered flag, he parked his car on pit road, climbed from it and walked into victory lane to congratulate Holman, who was still seated in his Food Country USA Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

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Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Legacy Credit Union Highlights from the qualifications at Barber Motorsports Park on April 10, 2010.

Barber Motosports Park in Birmingham, Ala., plays host to the IZOD IndyCar Series for the first time in 2010.

In the last five seasons, three drivers went on to win the series championship after winning an inaugural event at a track. In 2005, Dan Wheldon won the first race at St. Petersburg. In 2006, Dario Franchitti won the first race at Iowa and Scott Dixon won the first race at Edmonton in 2008. Franchitti won both inaugural events in 2009 – Long Beach and Toronto – on his way to capturing the championship.

The event at Barber is the third round of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule. In 14 seasons, only two drivers have won the third race of the year and gone on to win the championship. They are: Dan Wheldon (2005, St. Petersburg); Sam Hornish Jr. (2002, California). The average finish in the third race of the season of drivers who went on to win the championship is 8.5.

Deadline For 2010 Humpy's Heroes Class Approaching

By Deb Williams

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (April 8, 2010) -- Only a few days remain before the 2010 Humpy's Heroes class will be decided and 10 up-and-coming drivers will have the opportunity to receive an educational experience from an esteemed panel of racing industry experts.

The deadline for entering this year's program is April 10. Those chosen to participate in the four-month program will be notified by April 15. An entry form can be downloaded from www.humpysheroes.com.

"The program is a comprehensive educational experience preparing young drivers to make the transition from local short-track racing to NASCAR's big three series," H.A. "Humpy" Wheeler said. "During the program, the participants will be given instruction, counseled, engage in dialog, then judged on their driving ability, interviewing skills, public speaking, and marketability."

Each driver will spend personal time with Wheeler -- legendary Hall of Fame promoter, former president and general manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway, and co-author of the book "Growing Up NASCAR".

Andrew Smith's victory in last year's Humpy's Heroes competition led to a ride in NASCAR's K&N Pro Series East for the Pooler, Ga., native.

"I think it helped me a lot," Smith said about Humpy's Heroes. "It helped me in that it allowed me to show them what I can do. Ken (Ragan) helped us get hooked up with Spraker Racing and having a good word come from Humpy, Ken and Andy (Hillenburg) made a big difference. It helped him [Spraker] open up to us."

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Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Cars Weekend Guide

By Lonnie Wheatley,

TULSA, Okla. (April 8, 2010) - Sure, it's early in the season with just one night of Lucas Oil ASCS Sprint Cars presented by K&N Filters competition officially in the books. But, that doesn't diminish just how critical this weekend's double header in Texas and Arkansas actually is.

In fact, with star-studded fields of 50-ish entries expected both nights, a strong weekend performance could go a long way towards securing a bigger chunk of that season-end $250,000 points fund that has $60,000 earmarked for the champion.

A bad weekend doesn't end it either, but it does make the coming weeks that much more difficult. Friday night, the series takes to Lone Star Speedway in Kilgore, TX, for the first time in nearly eight years. Then, on Saturday night, it's on to I-30 Speedway in Little Rock, AR.

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World of Outlaws News & Notes

Concord, NC- April 5, 2010-

Winning at home: Brian Ellenberger used a rare off weekend from World of Outlaws action to get in a race at his home track of Lernerville Speedway in Sarver, Pennsylvania. The native of nearby Butler won a thrilling duel over multi-time Lernerville track champion Ed Lynch Jr., who is also the winningest sprint car driver in the history of the track. For Ellenberger it was his fourth career win at the four-tenths-mile where the World of Outlaws will compete two separate times this year including the Don Martin Memorial Silver Cup Twins in July.

First win of the year: Lucas Wolfe, the 2008 World of Outlaws Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year Award winner, used each of the last two weekends to compete at his home track of Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. He was victorious on March 26, which was the ninth win of his career at the famed half-mile and the first since 2007. Wolfe followed that up with a ninth-place effort last Friday night at Williams Grove, where the World of Outlaws will compete three separate times this year with the first of those coming on May 13-14.

On sale now: Tickets for the final two rounds of The Showdown for the Bud Crown, which is being promoted by NASCAR star Kasey Kahne in partnership with the World Racing Group, are now on sale at www.worldofoutlaws.com/tickets.  Kahne will compete in the event at Sedalia's State Fair Speedway on June 16. Steve Kinser, the 20-time World of Outlaws champion, currently leads Jason Meyers be seven markers in the standings for the four-race mini-series which will see the Top-Three after the race at LaSalle Speedway in Illinois on July 8 split a $15,000 point fund.

Meet & greet: Jason Meyers, the current World of Outlaws point leader who leads the series with three wins, along Craig Dollansky who was victorious earlier this season, will be on hand at Hooters in Fort Smith, Arkansas this Friday, April 9 to meet and greet fans between 3-5 p.m. Central along with their race cars and haulers for fans to get an up close look at an 850-plus horsepower winged sprint car. The Hooters in Fort Smith, Arkansas is located at 6401 Rogers Avenue. A shuttle will be available from the Best Western in Fort Smith which is the Official Hotel of the event, to Hooters for the Meet & Greet.

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Team 27 Racing displays support to Harvest for Kids
 

WINKLER, MB (April 4, 2010) In August of 2006, a unique event took place in Winkler, Manitoba. More than 100 combines harvested 180 acres simultaneously in just over 10 minutes. The event was called Harvest for Kids. In 2010, the combines are making a return with an even bigger challenge, to have 210 combines harvesting 240 acres in less than 8 minutes.

The true goal of Harvest for Kids is to raise funds and awareness for Children's Camps International, a non-denominational organization that seeks to give kids in third world countries the opportunity to experience camp and to hear the message of the Gospel.

In an effort to help support and promote this year's Harvest for Kids event, Chris Unrau's #27 Lightning Sprint will be carrying the Harvest for Kids logo and event information for the first half of the Northern Lightning Sprint Association racing schedule at Red River Co-op Speedway. Unrau's car will also be displayed at numerous events in Southern Manitoba to help promote the Harvest for Kids program while representing the NLSA.

"We are excited to be a part of this effort to help send kids to camp in countries where these opportunities are rare, if they exist at all", said Unrau. "We would like to encourage all of our fans to attend the Harvest for Kids event on August 7, and to give generously to help send kids to camp."
 
4 new video clips added April 3, 2010
 
 
 
 
Danica Patrick weighs in on the race finish at the streets of St. Petersburg.
 
 

 

Watch the highlights from the Sunday morning IZOD IndyCar Series Warm Up session as the IndyCars prepare for the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

Firestone Indy Lights St. Pete Warm Up Highlights

 

Watch highlights from the Firestone Indy Lights St. Pete Warm Up session from the streets of St. Petersburg.

Firestone Indy Lights St. Pete Race Highlights

 

Watch highlights from the FIrestone Indy Lights race contested on the streets of St. Petersburg.

Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg postponed to Monday March 29

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A weather system that moved across the Gulf of Mexico and quickly dumped more than an inch of rain on the temporary street circuit and produced lightning forced postponement of the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg to 10 a.m. (ET) March 29. The race will be televised by ESPN2.

The last time an IZOD IndyCar Series race was postponed to another day was kin September 2008 at Twin Ring Motegi in Japan (Danica Patrick won on the oval).

Will Power, who set a circuit record of 1 minute, 1.4816 seconds in the second round of qualifications on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn course, will start from the pole. He will be joined on the front row by Tony Kanaan in the No. 11 Team 7-Eleven car for Andretti Autosport. Power won the season opener on the temporary street course March 14 in Brazil.

Drivers participated in a 30-minute warm-up session on a dry racetrack in the morning, while the early afternoon Firestone Indy Lights race was impacted by rain (shortened from 45 to 35 laps). Participants and spectators had enjoyed spectacular weather the two previous days of on-track activity.

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Harvick dominates second consecutive Truck race
Leads 187 of 250 laps to cruise to Martinsville victory

By Sporting News Wire Service
March 27, 2010

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- It was a relatively uneventful day for Kroger 250 winner Kevin Harvick.

The same can't be said for Harvick's teammate, Ron Hornaday, who started deep in the field in Saturday's Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway and survived a late-race dust-up with Johnny Sauter to post a much-needed runner-up finish.

Harvick, who owns his No. 2 Chevrolet and the No. 33 Hornaday drives, led 187 of 250 laps in winning his second Truck Series race of the season in as many starts and the eighth of his career. He started from the pole after rain washed out Friday's qualifying. Brian Ickler ran third, with new points leader Timothy Peters fourth and Johnny Benson fifth.

Harvick chose the outside lane when he and Hornaday teamed up for a side-by-side restart on Lap 232, after contact from Hornaday turned the No. 13 Chevy of Johnny Sauter to cause the 11th and final caution of the race 10 laps earlier. An angry Sauter confronted Hornaday on pit road after the race.

"I don't know if he got into the curb or checked up or whatever, but I got into him pretty good," Hornaday said after the exchange. "It was a tough day. I hate to see that, but Johnny's all mad, and that's what truck racing's all about."

Harvick, working for the first time with new crew chief Butch Hylton, passed Peters for the lead on Lap 190 and held it the rest of the way.

"It was a lot of fun for me, just for the fact that the thing was so dominant to drive," Harvick said. "I didn't really have to do a whole lot different -- I just drove my line every lap, and we were able to make our way through traffic when we needed to.

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Joey Saldana Has Successful Surgery on Broken Left Hand: Expects to be Ready for Event at Tri-State Speedway on April 10

By Tony Veneziano

Concord, NC--March 26, 2010--Joey Saldana had successful surgery today on his broken left hand in Indianapolis to insert 10 screws and a plate to help regain full range of motion, following a very hard crash last Saturday night at Volunteer Speedway after getting caught up in a chain reaction accident after an early race red flag.

Saldana will use the two week gap in the schedule to let the hand heal and will begin rehab next week and expects to compete in the World of Outlaws next scheduled event on Saturday, April 10 at Tri-State Speedway in Pocola, Oklahoma.

Saldana, who was victorious last weekend in the opener of Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser at Volunteer Speedway, is currently third in the World of Outlaws championship standings, just 20 markers behind leader Jason Meyers and 15 behind Steve Kinser who is currently second. Saldana has finished sixth or better in eight of the first nine World of Outlaws events in 2010 and despite the 24th-place finish in the finale at Bulls Gap last weekend, has an average finish of fifth in the first nine races of the season.

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EDDIE WAGNER PLANS BIG 2010 SEASON WHEN URC OPENS SEASON AT BRIDGEPORT APRIL 10
 
2009 Rookie Eddie Wagner III of Franklinville, NJ is returning to the 2010 URC Rislone Sprint Series for his sophomore season. Eddie and his E3Racing team will be starting the season with a previously owned Palladino #99 J&J chassis, powered by a new Bitner Automotive 360 engine. Wagner's list of goals include some top tens, plenty of top fives, and hopefully, if everything goes as planned, his first career URC sprint win. "I am excited about our new equipment this
year. We have more horsepower, a lighter car, and more experience coming into the 2010 season ", says Wagner.

While the season started off rough in 2009, beginning with a blown engine at the May race at Bridgeport, resulting in sitting out four races, Wagner hopes that with a brand new motor, a lot of work and staying focused, he will have a much better and successful year in 2010. Wagner's eye catching #70 finished 19th in the points standings, with his best finish, 6th, at Bedford Speedway. "A heat race win and 6th place feature finish at the year ending race at Bedford, gives me some more confidence for this season".

STOLTZFUS RACING SIGNS PENN WASTE FOR 2010 URC TOUR

Stoltzfus Racing and driver Kevin Nouse welcome Penn Waste Inc. as an Associate Marketing Partner to Team 00 for the 2010 United Racing Company Sprint Tour. Car Owner Elmer Stoltzfus is excited about the 2010 URC Sprint Series especially after winning the main event at what turned out to be the final URC show of 2009. Mechanicsburg, PA "hot shoe" Kevin Nouse held off a hard charging JJ Grasso for the final five laps to score the win at the Bedford Speedway. There is no doubt that Elmer Stoltzfus has some of the best equipment that races on the URC tour, and now, he has one of the top sprint car drivers in the country.

The Rislone URC Sprint Series for 2010 will get underway at the Bridgeport Speedway on Saturday night, April 10. Stoltzfus and Nouse will then officially unveil their #00 URC sprinter that will carry the Penn Waste Inc logo.

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Cody Darrah Continues to Recover from Injury: Visits Volunteer Speedway for Both Nights of Kasey’s King of Bulls Gap Last Weekend

By Tony Veneziano
Concord, NC-- March 24, 2010--Cody Darrah received the best medicine he could over the weekend as he continues to recover from a broken left leg and that was to be at the race track with the entire Kasey Kahne Racing squad including his car owner Kahne himself.

Darrah took in both nights of Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser last Friday and Saturday, at Volunteer Speedway, an event which was being promoted by his car owner. The 20-year old from Red Lion, Pennsylvania continues to recover from a tibial plateau fracture in his left leg which he sustained in an automobile accident just hours before the 2010 World of Outlaws season opener at Volusia Speedway Park in Florida on February 5.

Darrah, who has spent a lot of time in the hospital since the accident and had surgery to help fuse different bones in his left leg, is currently using crutches to get around and still has a long road to recovery, but has a very positive outlook on the situation and is very pleased with how the recovery process is going.

"I'm glad to be at the track and with the guys," said Darrah. "Being able to get off the couch is great. I spent the last couple of months in the hospital and sitting on the couch, so it's good to be out here smelling the race fuel. I feel pretty good. It does wear me out at the end of the day, but I'll get there."

Darrah was at the Kasey Kahne Racing shop in Mooresville, North Carolina last week as the team prepared four cars for the event at Volunteer Speedway and he was able to accompany the team to the track and remained there for the entire weekend. He was able to catch up with teammates Joey Saldana, Paul McMahan who is filling in for him and Brad Sweet. Darrah also was able to visit with various other drivers and crew members as he made the rounds in the pit area with the help of a four wheeler and his crutches.

"It's keeping my mind off my leg," he noted when asked about being at the track. "Watching these guys makes me pretty nervous though. I never really get nervous watching a race, but watching these guys on Friday night made me nervous. It's an exciting group to be with. You can't ask for a better team to be a part of."

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Kasey Kahne's Showdown for the Bud Crown Finale Brings World of Outlaws Back to LaSalle Speedway
Kasey's King of LaSalle Presented By Budweiser set for July 8

By Chris Dolack

CONCORD, N.C. - March 22, 2010 - At Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser Friday at Volunteer Speedway, Kasey Kahne and World Racing Group officials announced the four-race Showdown for the Bud Crown featuring the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series will conclude on July 8 with Kasey's King of LaSalle Presented By Budweiser at LaSalle (Ill.) Speedway outside of Chicago.

Following the first two rounds last Friday and Saturday at Volunteer Speedway in Bulls Gap, Tenn., the Showdown for the Bud Crown moves June 16 to Missouri State Fair Speedway in Sedalia, Mo., before reaching its finale in LaSalle -- about 50 miles from Joliet where Kahne will be competing in NASCAR events that weekend.

"Everything at LaSalle Speedway happens so fast on the track that there's no doubt it will be an exciting night and a great place to wrap up the Showdown for the Bud Crown," Kahne said. "Each stop in the Bud Crown series features a different kind of track, from high-banked Bulls Gap to big Sedalia and the LaSalle bullring. It's a good test for everybody."

Kasey Kahne Racing's Joey Saldana held off 20-time World of Outlaws champion Steve Kinser on Friday night in the first round at Volunteer Speedway. In Round 2 on Saturday at Bulls Gap, Jason Meyers charged from fourth on the grid to capture the checkered flag.

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World of Outlaws Wrap-Up: Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser

By Tony Veneziano / Concord, NC-- March 22, 2010

Another King at the track: " The King" Richard Petty was in attendance on Friday night at Volunteer Speedway for the opener of Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser. The racing legend saw his driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Kasey Kahne, set a new track record in qualifying in his first 410-sprint car race of 2010, which was also his first visit to Volunteer Speedway. Petty, who won seven NASCAR titles and 200 races watched the action from atop the World of Outlaws Command Center in the pit area.

"It's pretty exciting," shared Petty on Friday night. "This is the closest we’ve been to one of these deals and we had the chance to come over here. We got to see a lot of the guys we used to know and see them run. It was a good time."

A NASCAR contingent: Also in attendance on Friday night was longtime NASCAR team owner Jack Roush, who also took in a large portion of the evening standing atop the World of Outlaws Command Center in the pit area. Dave Blaney, the 1995 World of Outlaws champion, was on-hand at Volunteer Speedway as well. Also at the track on Saturday was two-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart, who owns the cars of 20-time series champion Steve Kinser and four-time defending series titlist Donny Schatz.

And then there was one: Jason Meyers was victorious in the finale of Kasey's King of Bulls Gap Presented By Budweiser following a seventh-place run in the opener, to extend his streak of Top-10 finishes to open the 2010 season to nine. He is the only driver that has finished in the Top-10 in each and every World of Outlaws event this year. Meyers also is the current series point leader, holding a five-point advantage over 20-time series champion Steve Kinser, as he chases his first series crown.

"We're very confident right now," shared Meyers after his win on Saturday night. "We have a great race car. We came in here last night (Friday) and second guessed a few things and make a few wrong decisions. These guys keep working hard and now have three weeks to go work and do some testing on things we have been working on. I'm really looking forward to the summer swing."

Injury update: Joey Saldana, who was victorious on Friday night, broke his left hand after getting upside and into the wall in a chain reaction accident following an early race red flag on Saturday night at Volunteer Speedway. He is scheduled to meet with a hand specialist in Indianapolis on Tuesday to determine whether surgery will be needed or not. Saldana is currently third in the World of Outlaws standings and has two wins along with eight Top-10 finishes, with seven of those being Top-Fives.

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