Wood Brothers

Late Crash Leaves Blaney 39th At Talladega

Late Crash Leaves Blaney 39th At Talladega

May 8, 2017

In an interview on Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway, Ryan Blaney told reporters that you never know what’s going to happen during races at the mammoth 2.66-mile track and that trouble could come at any point on the track.

On Sunday, he was proof of that. After a strong run that saw him earn 10 championship points in the first two stages of the GEICO 500, Blaney was the victim of a crash with less that 30 laps remaining.

His No. 21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Fusion was too damaged to continue and he was left with a 39th place finish. But with several other top drivers also being collected in crashes, Blaney didn’t take much of a hit in the championship standings. He dropped just one spot to 13th. Continue reading Late Crash Leaves Blaney 39th At Talladega →

NHRA

NHRA–Atlanta Results

Top Fuel — Steve Torrence, 3.745 seconds, 320.81 mph def. Tony Schumacher, 4.061 seconds, 243.28 mph.
Funny Car — Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 3.991, 317.79 def. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 3.978, 316.60.

Pro Stock — Bo Butner, Chevy Camaro, 6.569, 211.26 def. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.593, 210.97.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.843, 194.35 def. Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 34.292, 20.68.

Pro Modified — Mike Castellana, Chevy Camaro, 5.776, 249.21 def. Steve Jackson, Camaro, 5.772, 247.61.

Super Stock — David Rampy, Chevy Camaro, 10.198, 129.23 def. Jeff Longhany, Pontiac, Foul – Red Light.

Stock Eliminator — Jimmy Hildalgo Jr., Pontiac GTO, 10.849, 117.56 def. Jerry Emmons, Chevy Camaro, 10.526, 114.62.

Super Comp — Luke Bogacki, Dragster, 8.914, 168.05 def. Tony Helms, Dragster, 8.888, 176.77.

Super Gas — Ray Miller III, Chevy Camaro, 10.549, 117.60 def. David Tatum III, Chevy, Foul – Red Light.

Super Street — Doug Wood, Olds Cutlass, 10.908, 133.50 def. Jeremy Hancock, Chevy Vega, 10.848, 138.34.

Top Sportsman presented by RacingRVs.com — Sandy Wilkins, Chevy, 6.722, 198.70 def. Vince Hoda, Chevy Camaro, 6.892, 198.15.

Top Dragster presented by RacingRVs.com — Joe Fisher, Dragster, 6.391, 191.54 def. Kevin Brannon, Dragster, 7.729, 135.82.

Richard Childress Racing

Richard Childress Racing–Geico 500

Multi-Car Incident Takes Out Austin Dillon and the No. 3 Dow Intellifresh Chevrolet at Talladega Superspeedway

“I was a little bit further back in the pack in the Dow Intellifresh Chevrolet. I just saw somebody come across the field and we all started checking up, but I was pushed back into it. It’s just Talladega and that’s a part of it. We’re three-wide, all trying to get as many positions as we can there at the end. We were just too far back to avoid the incident. Ty Dillon was in that pack with me and bailed out just before the crash because he felt like it was getting too wild. I was hoping one of our RCR or ECR teammates could make it up through there for the end of the race. It’s time to turn this season around. It’s been a rough start, but there are some positives. We have several solid tracks coming up.” Continue reading Richard Childress Racing–Geico 500 →

Mopar Racing

Capps Wins Third Straight in Mopar Dodge Charger R/T NHRA Funny Car at Atlanta

Capps Wins Third Straight in Mopar Dodge Charger R/T NHRA Funny Car at Atlanta

Ron Capps wins 37th annual NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway for his 52nd Funny Car win and third in a row
Mopar Dodge Charger R/T Funny Cars have won six of seven races in 2017
Tony Schumacher goes to final round in Mopar-powered Top Fuel dragster
HEMI® power has advanced to final in every Top Fuel event this year
Leah Pritchett sets Top Fuel track record in round one of eliminations with a 3.699-second pass
Mopar and Dodge maintain top two positions in Funny Car and Top Fuel point standings
Kevin Helms drives 2010 Dodge Challenger Drag Pak to Super Stock semifinals
Helms wins Dodge Top Finisher award in Super Stock, Douglas Duell gets Stock Eliminator prize
May 7, 2017, Commerce, Ga. – Ron Capps’ hot streak continued at Atlanta Dragway this weekend, as the Mopar driver put his HEMI®-powered Dodge Charger R/T NHRA Funny Car in the winner’s circle for the third consecutive Sunday. With the Southern Nationals victory, Mopar has now won at least one of the Nitro categories in all seven of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events in 2017. Continue reading Capps Wins Third Straight in Mopar Dodge Charger R/T NHRA Funny Car at Atlanta →

Erica Enders

Elite Motorsports pro Erica Enders has first chance at NHRA trophy in 32 races

Elite Motorsports pro Erica Enders has first chance at NHRA trophy in 32 races
COMMERCE, Ga. (May 7) — It may be too early to say Erica Enders is completely back to the championship form that carried her to back-to-back world titles in 2014 and 2015, but she certainly seems to be trending in the right direction. That seems to be the general sentiment after her impressive runner-up finish Sunday at the 37th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway, which was highlighted by a pair of Enders’ trademark holeshot wins.
Continue reading Elite Motorsports pro Erica Enders has first chance at NHRA trophy in 32 races →

Chevrolet Racing

JAMIE MCMURRAY LEADS CHEVROLET WITH RUNNER-UP FINISH AT TALLADEGA

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
GEICO 500
TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY DRIVER PRESS CONF. TRANSCRIPT
MAY 7, 2017

JAMIE MCMURRAY LEADS CHEVROLET WITH RUNNER-UP FINISH AT TALLADEGA

Team Chevy Earns Four of the Top 10 Finishing Positions

TALLADEGA, Ala – (May 7, 2017) – Jamie McMurray, piloting the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet SS, earned a runner-up finish in overtime in the GEICO 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway, the 10th event of the 2017 season. The effort is his ninth top 10 finish at the 2.66-mile venue and his sixth top 10 result thus far this season. Continue reading JAMIE MCMURRAY LEADS CHEVROLET WITH RUNNER-UP FINISH AT TALLADEGA →

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race Quotes

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
GEICO 500
TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES & QUOTES
MAY 7, 2017
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S $1 ANY SIZE SOFT DRINK CHEVROLET SS – Finished 2nd DESCRIBE WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO MAKE THOSE MOVES AND HOW IT PLAYED OUT FOR YOU:
“I mean it’s really circumstantial as to what the guys do in front of you and what is happening behind you. I just got a run at the right time. I thought the No. 17 (Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.) was going to get a little bit further out, but when we were coming to the line it just seemed like his car wasn’t going at that point, so it was a good finish. It was a great race. I’m glad everybody is okay, that was a really scary wreck on the backstretch, but really good day for our McDonald’s Chevrolet. We had good pit stops and the guys did a great job.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race Quotes →

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
GEICO 500
TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES & QUOTES
MAY 7, 2017
JAMIE MCMURRAY, NO. 1 MCDONALD’S $1 ANY SIZE SOFT DRINK CHEVROLET SS – Finished 2nd DESCRIBE WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO MAKE THOSE MOVES AND HOW IT PLAYED OUT FOR YOU:
“I mean it’s really circumstantial as to what the guys do in front of you and what is happening behind you. I just got a run at the right time. I thought the No. 17 (Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.) was going to get a little bit further out, but when we were coming to the line it just seemed like his car wasn’t going at that point, so it was a good finish. It was a great race. I’m glad everybody is okay, that was a really scary wreck on the backstretch, but really good day for our McDonald’s Chevrolet. We had good pit stops and the guys did a great job.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race →

John Force Racing

Brittany Force, Monster Energy team go down swinging in first round of Southern Nationals

Brittany Force, Monster Energy team go down swinging
in first round of Southern Nationals

COMMERCE, Ga. (May 7) – Brittany Force and her Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster team didn’t go down without a fight Sunday in the first round of the NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.

Force faced an uphill battle all weekend, starting with driving a re-tooled race car. After the race in Charlotte, her team returned to the John Force Racing shop in Brownsburg, Ind., to put a new front-half on the car. Continue reading Brittany Force, Monster Energy team go down swinging in first round of Southern Nationals →

John Force Racing

PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil driver John Force drops close quarterfinals race in Southern Nationals

PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil driver John Force drops
close quarterfinals race in Southern Nationals

Photo credit: Gary Nastase / Auto Imagery
COMMERCE, Ga. (May 7) – John Force ended up seven-thousandths of a second from creating an all-John Force Racing semifinals and a guaranteed trip to final of Sunday’s NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.

The quickest qualifier in the opening session Saturday and the No. 5 qualifier overall, Force fell just a few feet from defeating Ron Capps in the quarterfinals of the race, despite a slightly better reaction time. Force, as well as teammates Courtney Force and Robert Hight, all won their first-round matchups and were pressing for spots in the semifinals. Continue reading PEAK Coolant and Motor Oil driver John Force drops close quarterfinals race in Southern Nationals →

John Force Racing

Courtney Force, Advance Auto Parts team continue to make progress in Atlanta

Courtney Force, Advance Auto Parts team
continue to make progress in Atlanta

COMMERCE, Ga. (May 7) – Courtney Force and her Advance Auto Parts team had a successful weekend with a backup Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, earning her fourth consecutive No. 1 qualifier and racing to the second round of the NHRA Southern Nationals on Sunday at Atlanta Dragway. Continue reading Courtney Force, Advance Auto Parts team continue to make progress in Atlanta →

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–NHRA–Atlanta– Post Race

CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION
LUCAS OIL NHRA SOUTHERN NATIONALS
ATLANTA DRAGWAY AT COMMERCE, GEORGIA
POST-RACE DRIVER QUOTES
SUNDAY, MAY 7, 2017

BO BUTNER, JIM BUTNER AUTO, BUTNER AUTO SALES CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (No. 1 qualifier; earned second career Pro Stock victory; first two-time winner of the season; all seven Pro Stock events have been won by Chevrolet Camaro SS):

Q: WHAT DOES THIS WIN, FOLLOWING YOUR WIN TWO WEEKS AGO, MEAN TO YOU?
BO BUTNER: “I have to thank KB Racing for giving me one fast race car. I have gained a lot of confidence this year, especially on the Tree. It’s a very tight field among the Chevrolets in Pro Stock, so to win two times in seven races is an accomplishment that I don’t take lightly.” Continue reading Chevy Racing–NHRA–Atlanta– Post Race →

John Force Racing

Robert Hight takes Auto Club Chevrolet to Southern Nationals semifinals

Robert Hight takes Auto Club Chevrolet
to Southern Nationals semifinals

COMMERCE, Ga. (May 7) – Robert Hight set the elapsed-time track record twice in Sunday’s NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway, but he fell in the semifinals to Ron Capps for the second time in three races.

Hight – driving the Auto Club of Southern California Chevrolet Camaro SS – overpowered Chad Head and John Force Racing teammate Courtney Force in consecutive rounds, with record-setting performances in both. His pass of 3.882 seconds at 328.06 mph against Head reset the mark established earlier in the day by Matt Hagan, by five thousandths of a second. That put head in another matchup against Force, whom he bested two weeks ago at Houston.

In the second round, Hight bested the track record again. He posted a run of 3.880 seconds at 320.81 mph, straight down the track, while Force smoked the tires and clocked in at 5.508 seconds at 118.26 mph. Continue reading Robert Hight takes Auto Club Chevrolet to Southern Nationals semifinals →

Chevrolet Racing

Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race

MONSTER ENERGY NASCAR CUP SERIES
GEICO 500
TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
TEAM CHEVY RACE NOTES & QUOTES
MAY 7, 2017

AJ ALLMENDINGER NO. 47 KROGER CLICKLIST CHEVROLET SS – Sidelined in multi-car accident on Lap 168
YOU WERE UPSIDE DOWN IN THAT CRASH. ARE YOU OKAY? WHAT HAPPENED?
ARE YOU OKAY? TELL US WHAT HAPPENED? 
“Yeah, I’m fine. I’m happy I didn’t get hit upside down. I’m all good. Our race team does a great job with safety. It’s just Talladega. It’s all it is. The plan worked out. We waited in the back and got up front and I had (Dale Earnhardt) Junior pushing me, I had the best guy pushing me. I’m not sure. Chase (Elliott) was kind of… the No. 18 (Kyle Busch) and the No. 24 of Chase they were kind of moving around and at the time I think (Kevin) Harvick got behind me and we were shoving and Chase opened the door and then kind of closed it and I tried to check up just a little bit and tapped him and when I checked up it was a big wreck after that. Continue reading Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Talladega–Post Race →

Kalitta Racing

Kalitta Earns Milestone Round Win

Post-Race Report
Event 07: NHRA Southern Nationals
Atlanta Dragway
Commerce, Ga.
May 5-7

Kalitta earns milestone round win
Race Recap: Doug Kalitta came back to the site of one of his most exciting wins, last season’s near tie with his teammate J.R. Todd, which was the closest finish in NHRA history. The Mac Tools team were looking for a repeat.

Kalitta and the Mac Tools team were solid again in qualifying earning another top five start with their 3.764 second effort in the afternoon qualifying session on Saturday. That gave him the fifth starting spot and a first round pairing with Chris Karamesines. Continue reading Kalitta Earns Milestone Round Win →

Chevrolet Racing

CORVETTE RACING AT COTA: Third Straight GTLM Victory and Championship Lead Garcia, Magnussen win second race of 2017 in No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R

CORVETTE RACING AT COTA: Third Straight GTLM Victory and Championship Lead
Garcia, Magnussen win second race of 2017 in No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R

Chevrolet assumes GTLM Manufacturer’s Championship lead
Second win for Corvette Racing at Circuit of The Americas
Milner, Gavin caught up in opening-lap chaos

AUSTIN, Texas (May 6, 2017) – Corvette Racing’s Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen won their second race of the season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship on Saturday with a GT Le Mans (GTLM) victory in the Advance Auto Parts SportsCar Showdown. Continue reading CORVETTE RACING AT COTA: Third Straight GTLM Victory and Championship Lead Garcia, Magnussen win second race of 2017 in No. 3 Chevrolet Corvette C7.R →

Chevrolet Racing

CHEVY FAST FACTS GEICO 500 TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY

CHEVY FAST FACTS
GEICO 500
TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY
May 7, 2017

A total of 18 Team Chevy drivers will start the GEICO 500 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series (MENCS) race at Talladega Superspeedway. The 188-lap/500-mile contest around the 2.66-mile venue is scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m., ET. Live coverage can be found on FOX, MRN, Sirius NASCAR Radio Channel 90 and NASCAR.com.

CHEVROLET DRIVERS STARTING IN THE TOP-10:
Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Nationwide Chevy SS, will start 2nd
Chase Elliott, No. 24 Hooters Chevrolet SS, rolls off 8th
Paul Menard, No. Valvoline/Menards Chevy SS starts 9th Continue reading CHEVY FAST FACTS GEICO 500 TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY →

Chevrolet Racing

Mopar Driver Schumacher Puts Top Fuel Dragster No. 1 in Abbreviated Atlanta Qualifying

Mopar Driver Schumacher Puts Top Fuel Dragster No. 1 in Abbreviated Atlanta Qualifying

­­­­­­­­Tony Schumacher qualifies U.S. Army Top Fuel Dragster in top spot for NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway; it is the 82nd No. 1 qualifying effort of his career
Mopar HEMI®-powered Top Fuel cars have claimed four No. 1 qualifying positions in 2017
Mopar-powered Don Schumacher Racing Funny Cars will begin the day 2nd, 3rd and 4th
Five Dodge Charger R/T Funny Cars qualify for 16-car field
Event featured only two qualifying sessions on Saturday due to Friday rain Continue reading Mopar Driver Schumacher Puts Top Fuel Dragster No. 1 in Abbreviated Atlanta Qualifying →

John Force Racing

Brittany Force, Monster Energy team look to claw their way from the No. 16 spot in Atlanta

Brittany Force, Monster Energy team look to claw
their way from the No. 16 spot in Atlanta

Photo Credit: Gary Nastase and Auto Imagery
COMMERCE, Ga. (May 6) – Brittany Force and her Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster team are more determined than ever to claw their way back to the top, despite a series of misfortune that continued to the NHRA Southern Nationals this weekend at Atlanta Dragway.

After falling in the first round at Charlotte last weekend, Force’s team returned to the John Force Racing shop in Brownsburg, Ind., to work on her dragster. A new front half was constructed and built into the car in an effort to help Force find some consistency. Continue reading Brittany Force, Monster Energy team look to claw their way from the No. 16 spot in Atlanta →

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