Category Archives: Uncategorized

MOORESVILLE, NC (September 21, 2023) — Camrie Caruso has made North Carolina her second home for several years since she started her professional drag racing career. The third generation drag racer from New York state will always call the northeast home, but she is becoming more and more comfortable at zMax Dragway with every passing national event. The 2022 NHRA Rookie of the Year is also getting more comfortable behind the wheel of her Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro with KB Titan Racing power and this weekend at the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals Caruso, will be looking to make more of a statement during the second race of the Countdown.

Camrie Caruso and Tequila Comisario Camaro execute burnout at Maple Grove Raceway, photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

“I felt really good going into race day in Reading and I have a race car that can go rounds,” said Caruso, who picked up her first Countdown round win last weekend. “This class is crazy competitive, but this Tequila Comisario Camaro make some great runs on Sunday and I think we can step it up in Charlotte. I love racing at zMax Dragway and I know we’ll have a ton of support in the stands.”

This weekend Caruso will also be representing a local company that is also bringing some female horsepower to the table. Genevieve Aesthetics will be branded on Caruso’s race car for the weekend. Company owner and founder Genny Sears specializes in nonsurgical aesthetics and rejuvenation.

“I have a passion for helping my patients feel like the most beautiful and confident versions of themselves. I love entrepreneurship and I love drag racing. I talked with Camrie and I saw how passionate she was and I wanted to get involved. I can’t wait to get to the track and see her race.”

Genevieve Aesthetics provides a more personalized, customized approach to facial aesthetics with a vision for a high-end, boutique, personalized, modern space where facial aesthetics is prioritized. There is also an emphasis on integrating a wellness approach and aesthetics.

Camrie Caruso and Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro, photo credit Innovation Creative Experts

This season has been a breakout year for Caruso who picked up her first career Pro Stock win at the Arizona Nationals and then a few weeks later turned head by winning the first Pro Stock Allstar Callout event during the Gerber Collision & Glass Rt. 66 Nationals in Chicago. In the eight-car all-star format Caruso was called out twice and took the victory for her Tequlia Comisario and KB Titan Racing team.

“The all-star callout win was big for our team and KB Titan Racing,” said Caruso. “Going into the semifinals it was me and three Elite Motorsports Pro Stock cars. I knew I needed to step up for KB Titan Racing and was really glad to get that win. There is a great rivalry between these two teams and we want to do our part to keep turning on win lights for KB Titan Racing.”

Last weekend at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals Caruso battled through two tough days of qualifying to enter the race as the No. 12 qualifier. Caruso knew she needed to be at the top of her game and that her race car was coming around. She earned the upset win over No. 5 qualifier and fellow Countdown competitor Deric Kramer. In the second round she faced Matt Hartford. It was a close race that did not go Caruso’s way as Hartford would go on to win the event. Caruso was first off the line and was in great shape for the win before her car started drifting to the center line.

“I was bummed we didn’t get that second round win in Reading,” said Caruso. “I was out in front most of the race and then I just started drifting to the centerline and when that happens you have to lift. At over 200-mph you have to check your ego sometimes and live to race another day. We will be ready for Charlotte and I can’t wait to get on the track on Friday night.”

Caruso and the Tequila Comisario Camaro will get one qualifying run on Friday at 6 p.m. and then two qualifying runs on Saturday at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. ET. On Sunday the quickest 16 door-slammer Pro Stock cars will start their eliminations at approximately noon ET. The race will be televised on FS1 nationally.

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Chevy Racing–NASCAR–Texas advance

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

TEAM CHEVY ADVANCE

Texas Motor SpeedwayFort Worth, TexasSeptember 23-24, 2023

THE START OF THE ROUND OF 12Four Team Chevy drivers will continue in the race for the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) Championship with Texas Motor Speedway set to host the first stop in the Round of 12. The 1.5-mile oval sets up the most diverse trio of tracks in the series’ postseason with NASCAR’s longest oval of Talladega Superspeedway and the 2.28-mile, 17-turn Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course making up the Round of 12. With the playoff standings reset, Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron regained the top position in the standings with a 25-point cushion over the cutline. The 25-year-old Charlotte native heads to Texas Motor Speedway with added confidence – earning a win and three top-three finishes on 1.5-mile tracks this season. Byron’s teammate Kyle Larson sits fourth in the standings and 12-points above the cutline. Larson’s one win at Texas Motor Speedway came in 2021 – a victory that earned his spot into the Championship Four race that led to his first career title. Richard Childress Racing’s Kyle Busch also enters the next round above the cutline in the sixth position. Despite a disappointing opening round, the Las Vegas native knows how to navigate his way around Texas Motor Speedway – leading the series’ active drivers with four wins at the track. While on the outside looking in, Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain is currently only three-points outside of the playoff picture.

· Larson Proves to be Championship Contender in Opening RoundLarson’s pursuit in becoming a repeat champion in NASCAR’s premier series started early in the postseason stretch – earning the first ticket into the Round of 12 with a win in the playoff opener at Darlington Raceway. The 31-year-old California native followed up the win with a championship-caliber performance in the next two races – finishing no lower than fourth and earning an average finish of 2.33 in the first three postseason races. With his runner-up finish at Bristol Motor Speedway last weekend, the Team Chevy driver has recorded a series-leading 13 top-five finishes in 29 points-paying races – a percentage of 44.8%.

A look at Team Chevy’s playoff contenders heading into the first race of the NASCAR Cup Series Round of 12 at Texas Motor Speedway:

· Where Team Chevy’s NXS playoff contenders stand with two-to-go: The NXS playoff opener brought mixed results for Team Chevy’s playoff contenders. Kaulig Racing’s Daniel Hemric and Chandler Smith also collected a top-five finish at Bristol Motor Speedway – earning both drivers a spot above the cutline with a double-digit advantage over the cutline. Austin Hill’s race ended early after an incident in the final stage that resulted in a 33rd place finish, but a cushion of playoff points still kept the regular season champion above the cutline in the fourth position. With an 11th place finish, Richard Childress Racing’s Sheldon Creed sits in the eighth position to give the manufacturer five drivers above the cutline heading into race two of the Round of 12 at Texas Motor Speedway.

BOWTIE BULLETS:·       Chevrolet will pace the field in the doubleheader race weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. The Camaro SS 1LE will lead the NASCAR Xfinity Series in Saturday’s Andy’s Frozen Custard 300 and the Camaro ZL1 will lead the NASCAR Cup Series in Sunday’s AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400.
·       Victories by active Chevrolet drivers in the NASCAR Cup Series at Texas Motor Speedway: Kyle Busch – 4 wins (2020, 2018, 2016, 2013)Kyle Larson – 1 win (2021)Austin Dillon – 1 win (2020)
·       Chevrolet has recorded a manufacturer-leading 16 NASCAR Cup Series wins at Texas Motor Speedway, two of which have come in the series’ past two appearances at the track (Tyler Reddick – 2022; Kyle Larson – 2021).
·       Since the debut of the 16-driver playoff field and elimination rounds to the NASCAR Cup Series in 2014, at least five Chevrolet drivers were represented in the playoffs each season.
·       In 29 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series race this season, Chevrolet continues to lead the series in wins (14), top-fives (62), top-10s (123), stage wins (20) and laps led (2,798).
·       Chevrolet leads the series in wins across all three NASCAR national series this season with 14 victories in 29 NASCAR Cup Series races, 14 victories in 27 NASCAR Xfinity Series races and 12 wins in 20 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races.
·       With Kyle Larson’s win in the NASCAR Cup Series playoff opener at Darlington Raceway, Hendrick Motorsports now sits at 299 all-time victories in NASCAR’s premier series – all recorded with Chevrolet.
·       Chevrolet’s series-leading 14 NASCAR Cup Series wins this season have been recorded by drivers from four different Chevrolet teams: Ricky Stenhouse Jr. (JTG Daugherty Racing), Kyle Busch (Richard Childress Racing), William Byron and Kyle Larson (Hendrick Motorsports) and Ross Chastain and Shane van Gisbergen (Trackhouse Racing).
·       Chevrolet drivers have recorded 20 of the 58 NASCAR Cup Series stage wins this season: William Byron (eight; series-leading), Ross Chastain (five), Kyle Larson (four), Kyle Busch (two) and Chase Elliott (one).
·       Chevrolet continues to sit atop the manufacturer points standings in all three NASCAR national series, leading by 62 points in the NASCAR Cup Series, 78 points in the NASCAR Xfinity Series and 67 points in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.
·       Chevrolet has swept the Manufacturer Championships across all three NASCAR national series in a single season four different times (2012, 2005, 1998, 1996). ·       With its 41 NASCAR Cup Series Manufacturer’s Championships, 33 NASCAR Cup Series Driver’s Championships, and 847 all-time NASCAR Cup Series wins, Chevrolet continues to hold the title of winningest brand in NASCAR Cup Series history.

FOR THE FANS:· Fans can visit the Team Chevy Racing Display in the Fan Midway at Texas Motor Speedway.· Fans can check out an assortment of Chevrolet vehicles at the Team Chevy Racing Display including: Camaro 1LZ 1SE, Bolt EUV 2LZ, 2024 Equinox 1LZ, Silverado 1500 Crew High Country 3LZ, 2024 Silverado 2500 3LZ, Suburban High Country, Corvette 3LT, Colorado ZR2. · Fans can also view Chase Elliott’s No. 9 Camaro ZL1 show car.
Team Chevy Driver Appearances at the Display:Saturday, September 23· Daniel Hemric: 11:45 a.m. · Sam Mayer: 12 p.m. · Jeremy Clements: 12:15 p.m. Sunday, September 24· Erik Jones: 10 a.m. · AJ Allmendinger: 11:15 a.m. · Daniel Suarez: 11:30 a.m. Chevrolet Display Hours of Operation: · Saturday, September 23: 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. · Sunday, September 24: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

TUNE IN:NASCAR Cup Series: AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400Sunday, September 24, at 3:30 p.m. ET(USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

NASCAR Xfinity Series: Andy’s Frozen Custard 300Saturday, September 23, at 3:30 p.m. ET(USA Network, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90)

QUOTABLE QUOTES:ROSS CHASTAIN, NO. 1 WORLDWIDE EXPRESS CAMARO ZL1How do you approach Texas with it being the first race in Round 2 of the Playoffs?“It’s preservation at Texas. Don’t do anything to take ourselves out. Since the repave at Texas I’ve struggled at places like that. Super high grip tracks where you have all of this grip until you overstep. I’m pretty good at overstepping and catching it but at Texas it’s so tough to catch. So I just need to stay under my limit as to what I perceive is 100 percent effort.”
Where do you rank Round 2 of the Playoffs to the other rounds?“Last year, I felt like Round 2 was our toughest round because of all of the different types of tracks and then we had an issue at the Charlotte Roval. Key to all of this is to not take ourselves out.”

KYLE LARSON, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1Larson on racing at Texas Motor Speedway:“Looking ahead to Talladega (Super Speedway) it’s a little crazy and there is typically a lot of crashes. So, you put a lot of pressure on this race this weekend, or at least I do, to do a good job. I like Texas (Motor Speedway). Our HendrickCars.com Chevy team won there a couple years ago (2021). So, we hope to do that again and have another good day.”

CLIFF DANIELS, CREW CHIEF, NO. 5 VALVOLINE CAMARO ZL1Daniels on racing at Texas Motor Speedway: “Going into Texas (Motor Speedway) this weekend, we have some strong runs behind us from the last couple of weeks which is good to have that little bit of wind in our sail and momentum behind us. We’ve had this layout of the Texas (Motor Speedway) race track since 2017 and it is such a tough place for an intermediate (track). The two ends are so different with not a lot of banking and a tight radius in (turns) one and two and then a lot of banking and a bigger radius in (turns) three and four. So, it’s a tough place. Our mindset is to get a good solid car on the track and execute a good race to make sure we are there at the end.”

KYLE BUSCH, NO. 8 3CHI CAMARO ZL1Last year the No. 8 team at Richard Childress Racing was eliminated from the Playoffs but rallied back to win one week later at Texas Motor Speedway. How impressive was that accomplishment?“I thought it was pretty cool how the 8 team was able to rally, rebound, have a really fast car and be able to win that race. It’d be cool if you’re eliminated and you win you could put yourself back in, but the rules are the rules. I’d say last year’s elimination in the first round for myself and my old team as well as the 8 car getting eliminated in the first round was quite disappointing. It’s a tough situation but then you got to move on and go into the next week. But just being able to score a win late in the year is always important because it lends itself to a strong finish to the season.”
You have raced on a couple of different designs of the track at Texas. Do you like this configuration? How different is it from when you first started?“Texas went through a reconfiguration and a repave a few years ago. I would say this configuration is definitely the most challenging from a driver’s perspective and from a crew chief’s perspective on how to get both ends of the racetrack to feel similar or to feel good, so that makes it tough on all of us. When I first started, Texas had a lot of grip and was really fast and then right before the repave there it was kind of worn out and you’d slide around a little bit more. You could move around the racetrack, though, which was really cool. You could run low, you run middle, you could run high, and it was pretty fun how the place spread out. Now it seems like there’s one particular groove that you want to run in Turns 1 and 2 and one particular groove that you want to run in 3 and 4, so it’s really tough to make speed and make passes. The mile-and-a-half package has been really good this year and I’m excited about getting to Texas.”

AJ ALLMENDINGER, NO. 16 ACTION INDUSTRIES CAMARO ZL1“Texas is one of the more challenging mile and a half race tracks that we go to with both ends of the race track being completely different. I had a lot of fun in the All-Star race there last year. It’s a tough racetrack, probably one of the fastest we go to. I think we can go there and build off the speed we’ve had at mile and a half tracks this year. It’ll be a fun, hot, slick race and I am looking forward to the challenge.”

ERIK JONES, NO. 43 VSEVERYBODY.COM CAMARO ZL1“Texas has been good to me in a few different series. I’ve been able to win a whole bunch of races there through trucks and Xfinity, but I’ve never closed one out in the Cup Series. We have been close a couple of times. It’s a unique place since the repave; it’s become challenging to race, and there is a bit more groove on the bottom. You have to have track position and be upfront. It does have some of the same old Texas tendencies that the track had before the repave, so you can look back at some of those notes, but overall, it’s a pretty unique place.”

Chevrolet NASCAR Cup Series Statistics Manufacturers Championships:Total (1949-2022): 41First title for Chevrolet: 1958Highest number of consecutive titles: 13 (2003-15) Years Won: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2021, 2022 Drivers Championships:Total (1949-2021): 33First Chevrolet champion: Buck Baker (1957)Highest number of consecutive titles: 7 (2005-11)Most Recent: Kyle Larson (2021) Years Won: 1957, 1960, 1961, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021 Event Victories:Record for total race wins in single season: 26 (2007) 2023 STATISTICS: Wins: 14Poles: 8Laps Led: 2,798Top-five finishes: 62Top-10 finishes: 123Stage wins: 20· Ross Chastain – 5 (Daytona), (Auto Club x2), (Dover), (Darlington)· William Byron – 8 (Las Vegas x2), (Phoenix), (COTA), (Richmond), (Dover), (Charlotte), (Watkins Glen)· Kyle Larson – 4 (Phoenix), (Bristol Dirt), (Pocono), (Kansas)· Chase Elliott – 1 (Talladega)· Kyle Busch – 2 (WWTR), (Sonoma) CHEVROLET IN NASCAR CUMULATIVE STATISTICS:Total Chevrolet race wins: 847 (1949 to date)Poles won to date: 742Laps led to date: 248, 342Top-five finishes to date: 4,283Top-10 finishes to date: 8,835 Total NASCAR Cup Wins by Corporation, 1949 to Date: General Motors: 1,181 Chevrolet: 847 Pontiac: 154 Oldsmobile: 115 Buick: 65 Ford: 826 Ford: 726 Mercury: 96 Lincoln: 4 Fiat Chrysler Automobiles: 467 Dodge: 217 Plymouth: 191 Chrysler: 59 Toyota: 179

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Josh Hart Heads to Charlotte Looking for Second Betway Nationals Win

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

OCALA, FL (September 20, 2023) — Two years ago Josh Hart and the R+L Carriers team rolled into zMax Dragway and a relatively unknown quantity on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. They left the event as the national event winner, a team on the rise and with the attitude that they had something to prove. Since that win Hart has invested in his Top Fuel program with new equipment and built one of the most consistent teams on the tour that entered the 2023 Countdown as team to watch for the Top Fuel championship. An early exit at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals slowed their momentum but not their desire.

Josh Hart and R+L Carriers Top Fuel dragster, photo credit Auto Imagery

“This team has been battling for the past two years,” said Hart, a two-time Top Fuel national event winner. “I knew this was going to be tough, but we had a breakout rookie year on a partial schedule and since then we have been trying to capture some of that momentum. We are a much better team now and this R+L Carriers group has really pulled together. I remember getting that win at zMax Dragway and I would love to add a second Wally from here to my trophy case.”

When Hart took the win in 2021, he started race day as the No. 7 qualified Top Fuel dragster and he took out Alex Laughlin, Mike Salinas, Justin Ashley and finally Brittany Force. The first year driver was on the outside of the Countdown at the time and he ended the day of three championship contending teams.

“No one expected too much from us in 2021 and now we have expectations from the outside but more importantly we expect to win ourselves,” said Hart. “I am not putting any extra pressure on myself, but I want to win and I know we can win out here. The competition is tough, but we have the car and the team to compete. There are five races left and our plan is to start moving towards that Top Fuel championship this weekend.”

Hart has had success at zMax Dragway since he took that first win. Through three four-wide national event he has raced his way to the final quad every race and last year at the Betway Nationals Hart started No. 6 and raced to the quarterfinals, defeating eight-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher in the first round. In five races Hart has never qualified in the bottom half of the field with his best starting spot coming in 2021 when he was the No. 4 qualifier at the Betway Nationals.

“We have a lot of data and I think conditions will be pretty good,” said Hart. “The issue for everyone is getting a good run Friday night and then building on it. We will be one of the first cars on the track and we just need to set the tone and make the other teams try and press to be quicker than our R+L Carriers Top Fuel team.”

The final five races of the Countdown will be Hart’s chance to recapture some of the success he exhibited earlier this season. He opened the season with a win at the Pep Boyos Allstar Callout at Gainesville Raceway and then in May he raced to the final round of the Gerber Collision & Glass Rt. 66 Nationals in Chicago. At the end of the Western Swing he posted a strong semifinal finish losing to eventual winner Justin Ashley in one of the closest semifinal races of the season.

“We have been close a couple times this season and that Pep Boys win was a great way to start the year,” said Hart. “Now we want to close the season with some wins and move up in the Top Ten. We aren’t going to jump to No. 1 after this race, but my goal is to make steady progress every race of the Countdown and then see where we are going into Pomona with points and a half. Anything’s Possible.”

The R+L Carriers Top Fuel team will be on the track for the first time Friday, September 22, at 7 p.m. and then they will have two more qualifying runs on Saturday at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. ET. Final eliminations for the quickest 16 Top Fuel dragsters will begin at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday and FS1 will broadcast the race nationally.

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Dominic Scelzi Produces Podium Performance During World of Outlaws Event at Kings Speedway

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

Inside Line Promotions – PLACERVILLE, Calif. (Sept. 20, 2023) – Dominic Scelzi earned a pair of podium results last weekend at Kings Speedway, including during the Tom Tarlton Classic featuring the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series.

“I was thrilled,” he said. “We ran the 360 race on Thursday and the track was rough and hard to race on. We qualified fifth quickest, won a heat race and placed second in the dash to start the feature on the outside of the front row. We battled, got in the holes and ran third. I was concerned with how the track would be on Friday.”

Scelzi’s podium outing at the dirt oval in Hanford, Calif., on Thursday was followed by similar success at the track on Friday with the World of Outlaws.

“We were the last car out and were fifth quickest, which was our best qualifying performance of the month,” he said. “We ran second in the heat race to do what we needed to get in the dash. We drew the No. 3 to start third and ended up running fourth.”

Scelzi lined up on the outside of the second row in the main event.

“We got to third right away and I paced myself,” he said. “We had a restart and I got pinched down a little, got into the berm and fell to fourth. I got back into third and ran first and second down. Around Lap 25 I started losing brakes and faded to about half a straightway back. The second-place car spun, which moved me to second for a restart with a few laps to go. I was thinking everything was playing into my favor, but I had boiled my brake fluid and my brakes didn’t cool down in time to come back to me. I had a really good pace and was able to maneuver the top of turns one and two, which Brad (Sweet) wasn’t running. I felt I had a clean lane and it just didn’t pan out. I couldn’t get myself slowed down to where I needed to be on the exit of the corners and David (Gravel) drove by me at the end so we ended third.

“It was the highlight of the trip. I’m thankful of the speed we had. Whenever you can run well like that at home it means a lot to your team and sponsors and fans.”

The World of Outlaws West Coast Swing finale was Saturday at Placerville Speedway, which hosted the World of Outlaws 49er Gold Rush Classic.

Scelzi timed in 18 ^th quickest in his heat race before he advanced from ninth to eighth place in a heat race and from 12 ^thto seventh place in the Last Chance Showdown.

“We missed it on the setup and my laps in qualifying,” he said. “We were a little tight and I got into the cushion pretty much both laps and didn’t qualify well. The track was one lane in the heats. We made progress in the Last Chance Showdown, but came up short of making the feature. It’s tough to climb out of a hole when you’re racing with the World of Outlaws.”

Scelzi will take this weekend off before he returns to action at Kings Speedway on Sept. 29-30 during the Cotton Classic and Morrie Williams Twin 20s Memorial with the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour.

QUICK RESULTS –

Sept. 14 – Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 1 (1); Dash: 2 (3); Feature: 3 (2).

Sept. 15 – Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif. – Qualifying: 5; Heat race: 2 (2); Dash: 4 (3); Feature: 3 (4).

Sept. 16 – Placerville Speedway in Placerville, Calif. – Qualifying: 18; Heat race: 8 (9); B Main: 7 (12).

SEASON STATS –

46 races, 11 wins, 31 top fives, 37 top 10s, 41 top 15s, 44 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Sept. 29-30 at Kings Speedway in Hanford, Calif., for the Cotton Classic and Morrie Williams Twin 20s Memorial with the NARC 410 Sprint Car Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour

MEDIA LINKS –

Website: http://www.GaryScelziMotorsports.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DominicScelzi41

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Scelzi41

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Lucas Oil Late Models Set for Record Paying Jackson 100 Weekend

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

BATAVIA, Ohio (September 20, 2023) – The stars of the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will converge in Brownstown, Ind. this Friday, and Saturday for one of the biggest weekends in Brownstown Speedway’s storied history. The festivities will kick off on Friday, September 22 with the 2nd Annual CJ Rayburn Memorial – featuring a full program of Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and a 40-lap, $10,000-to-win A-Main. On Saturday, September 23 another complete show of Dirt Draft Hot Laps, Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains is on tap. Saturday’s 44th Annual Jackson 100 will be highlighted by a 100-lap, $30,000-to-win finale for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series. All gates will open at 12:00 PM (noon) each day with on track action set to begin at 6:00 PM both days. All times are Eastern Time. The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series is joined by the Indiana Pro Late Models on Friday; with Modifieds and Super Stocks on the card for Saturday. To purchase tickets in advance, visit www.brownstownspeedway.com. Ricky Thornton Jr. continues to lead the Big River Steel Chases for the Championship – Presented by ARP. Hudson O’Neal is second followed by Jonathan Davenport and Brandon Overton. Completing the top eight are Tim McCreadie, Devin Moran, Daulton Wilson, and Tyler Erb. For the latest news, results, championship standings and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, please visit www.lucasdirt.com. Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Purses:2nd Annual CJ Rayburn Memorial (Friday): 1. $10,000, 2. $5,500, 3. $3,500, 4. $2,700, 5. $2,500, 6. $2,300, 7. $2,200, 8. $2,100, 9. $2,050, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,400, 13. $1,200, 14. $1,000, 15. $950, 16. $925, 17. $900, 18. $875, 19. $850, 20. $825, 21. $800, 22. $800, 23. $800, 24. $800 = Total $48,575 44th Annual Jackson 100 (Saturday): 1. $30,000, 2. $15,000, 3. $7,000, 4. $5,500, 5. $4,500, 6. $3,500, 7. $3,000, 8. $2,500, 9. $2,400, 10. $2,300, 11. $2,200, 12. $2,100, 13. $2,000, 14. $1,900, 15. $1,800, 16. $1,750, 17. $1,700, 18. $1,650, 19. $1,600, 20. $1,550, 21. $1,550, 22. $1,500, 23. $1,500, 24. $1,500 = Total $100,000 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier (90) NLMT2, (90) NLMT3Right Rear – Hoosier (92) NLMT3, (92) NLMT4*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials and Heat Races Previous Jackson 100 Winners:2022 – Tim McCreadie2021 – Jimmy Owens2020 – Tim McCreadie2019 – Hudson O’Neal2018 – Bobby Pierce2017 – Scott Bloomquist2016 – Scott Bloomquist2015 – Jonathan Davenport2014 – Scott Bloomquist2013 – Don O’Neal2012 – Jimmy Owens2011 – Scott Bloomquist2010 – Scott Bloomquist2009 – Earl Pearson Jr.2008 – Tim McCreadie2007 – Matt Miller2006 – Don O’Neal2005 – Billy Drake2004 – Don O’Neal2003 – Jim Curry2002 – Billy Drake2001 – Brian Brikhofer2000 – Don O’Neal1999 – Billy Moyer1998 – Jim Curry1997 – Rick Aukland1996 – John Gill1995 – Jack Boggs1994 – John Gill1993 – Davey Johnson1992 – Billy Moyer1991 – Scott Bloomquist1990 – Scott Bloomquist1989 – Jeff Purvis1988 – Jim Curry1987 – Billy Moyer1986 – Jack Boggs1985 – Kenny Brightbill1984 – Kenny Simpson1983 – Russ Petro1982 – Russ Petro1981 – Paul Crockett1980 – Charlie Swartz

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Justin Ashley Heads to Charlotte Focused on Building Championship Momentum

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

PLAINVIEW, NY (September 20, 2023) — With five races remaining in the 2023 NHRA Countdown Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel team are in a tight battle for their first world championship. Throughout the season Ashley held either the No. 1 or No. 2 position in the Top Fuel point standings and heading into the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals, the 2020 NHRA Rookie of the Year, is just seven points off the lead. Three rounds of qualifying and a solid race day could propel Ashley back into the points lead and the fourth-year pro is focused on taking it one round at a time.

Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster, photo by Gary Nastase/Auto imagery

“Our Phillips Connect Toyota team performed very well at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals in Reading last weekend,” said Ashley, who finished the regular season as the No. 1 seed. “We came up just short in a close race but gathered a lot of data and information that we can apply in Charlotte. We’re looking at each round in its own sphere and trying to regain our number one position in points as a result.”

During the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series regular season Ashley raced to six Top Fuel wins and seven final rounds. He also picked up wins at six Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenges throughout the season. The number of win lights Ashley turned on in both events made him the category leader and gave the driver who has finished fourth in the Top Fuel point standings the previous two years’ experience and perspective coming into the playoffs in 2023.

“Our approach is going to stay the same throughout the entirety of the countdown regardless of the results,” said Ashley, who was the No. 1 qualifier at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals. “We are in this position for a reason. We have a process and routine that works well for us. Mike Green, Tommy Delago and the team are focused and eager to get back to zMax Dragway.”

Ashley started his career in 2019 at the “Bellagio of Drag Strips” located just north of downtown Charlotte. In his first career start at the Betway Carolina Nationals four years ago Ashley raced to the semifinals turning heads and announcing he was going to be a serious contender. In 2021 he raced to another semifinal finish from the No. 6 spot and last year as the No. 1 qualifier he took three win lights before bowing out in the finals. He moved into the points lead at the time with that effort. Over his past three appearances, including two four-wide national events Ashley has qualified No.1, No. 1 and No. 2 so the opportunity to get off to a fast start is available this weekend.

“We have had a quick and fast race car at zMax Dragway the past two years and I feel confident that we can continue that trend,” said Ashley. “Everyone on this team works really well together and it shows on the racetrack. We are going to continue concentrating on ourselves and finding ways to improve.”

This season has seen Ashley rise to the top of the Top Fuel category in both on-track race car performance and Ashley driving skill. Once again, he has led the class with strong reaction times and a deft touch behind the wheel of his 11,00-horsepower Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster. The young driver and team owner knows that seat time, consistency and patience are the three keys to success on race day.

“I try and do everything the same whether it is a qualifying run, a bye run or the first round of eliminations,” said Ashley. “You only get so many opportunities every weekend to hit the tree and I want to take advantage of every chance. We only have three qualifying runs this weekend in Charlotte so that Friday night session is critical. We want to be really high in the field so we can get aggressive on Saturday.”

In addition to the single round of qualifying on Friday Ashley will be rooting for his Toyota Top Fuel teammate Antron Brown in the Supra Showdown race. Throughout the season Toyota Top Fuel and Funny Car drivers have been battling it out in head-to-head races in high performance Toyota Supras. After 12 races the series is tied at six wins apiece and Brown will race Funny Car driver Ron Capps for all the marbles and serious donation to each category’s charity of choice. If the Top Fuel driver prevail Ashley’s donation will go to the Wyakin Foundation.

“This Supra Showdown has been a lot of fun and I will be up on the starting line pulling for Antron to bring the win home for all the Top Fuel drivers,” said Ashley. “There are a lot of deserving charities involved and I want to thank Toyota for putting this program together. It was a blast to race the Supras during the regular season.”

Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota team will open qualifying on Friday at 7 p.m. ET followed by two qualifying sessions on Saturday at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. ET. The 16 quickest Top Fuel dragsters will begin battling for championship points at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday with FS1 broadcasting the race that afternoon.

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A CHANCE AT HISTORY: Bobby Pierce Looks To Join Elite Group In First World of Outlaws Title Chase

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

The Oakwood, IL driver has a 138-point lead over Brandon Sheppard and Chris Madden entering Atomic Speedway

CHILLICOTHE, OH – September 20, 2023 – Bobby Pierce is on the cusp of World of Outlaws CASE Construction Equipment Late Model Series history.

With nine races remaining in 2023, the Oakwood, IL driver is inching closer to a Series championship, which would make him the fifth driver to win the title in his first full-time season. If he holds on to his 138-point lead, he will join Billy Moyer, Scott Bloomquist, Mike Marlar, and Brandon Sheppard in that category.

But as Pierce prepares for the Outlaw Invasion at Atomic Speedway on Sept. 29-30, he has the same mindset he’s had all season.

“We’re excited to get there because every race is a new opportunity because we can get a win and gain some points,” Pierce said. “That’s how it’s been all year. We just look at every single race as a moment we can capitalize. Now, we’re just trying to stay steady and see what happens.

“We’re getting to the point where we can kind of taste it. But we don’t count our chickens before they hatch.”

Five of the nine remaining races are red-clay tracks in the South, including the World of Outlaws World Finals at The Dirt Track at Charlotte (Nov. 1-4). While those surfaces aren’t Pierce’s forte, he’s found success at them in 2023.

In two races on Southern red-clay tracks, Pierce finished seventh at 411 Motor Speedway and 21st at Talladega Short Track. However, his finish at Talladega is misleading. The “Smooth Operator” was leading the inaugural Alabama Gang 100 finale when he suffered a broken wheel and brake failure with 18 laps to go.

Those runs give him confidence heading into the season’s final stretch, especially with how well his Longhorn Chassis has run.

“We just do our best night-in and night-out to figure out,” Pierce said. “Especially at places we’ve never been before like Talladega. You just never know, though. Competition is tough to where if you miss it a little bit, you qualify bad, and who knows where you start in the Heat Race. That can determine your night. So, right off the bat, you want to learn as much as you can at those places and try to apply that to Qualifying.

“We’ve been fast no matter where we are, so hopefully we can keep that going and maybe win those races, too.”

While 2023 has been a dream season for Pierce, winning 30 times overall, so far, including 11 with the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models, his team had an uphill climb to start the year. Misfortune hit the team during Sunshine Nationals at Volusia Speedway Park, where he opened the year with a 17th and 25th.

It wasn’t long before he got back on the right foot, winning the DIRTcar Nationals opener at Volusia in February. That redemption began a run of 27 top 10s in 29 races—consistency that vaulted him to the top of the Series standings.

“It was tough,” Pierce said. “I was going to possibly list out the things that have happened. But there are a lot of things that haven’t happened, too. There’s some luck that needs to happen to get to 30 wins. But we faced a lot, and we have to keep digging like always. Every race is a new race. You never know what’s going to happen. And heck, we’ve raced a lot of races this year, too. We’ve had a lot of opportunities to get redemption on some of the nights we had bad luck.

“Earlier in the year, when Volusia didn’t start out well, we came back and got that first win, and then a lot of wins started coming. Before we knew it, we had the point lead and had it stretched out. It’s pretty awesome how that can happen, and I have to give a huge thanks to my team for that. Everyone digging down deep and not giving up and trying their best, whether that’s working at the race shop or when we get to the track. It’s also been a big learning curve, so I’m pretty proud of my team.”

After that early season misfortune, he also dealt with adversity off the track. Many posts on social media included comments saying that Pierce would drop off the tour. Pierce chuckled when considering those early season comments, enjoying that he’s proved people wrong.

“It’s pretty nice, I’m not going to lie,” Pierce said. “At the moment, I didn’t think much about it because I didn’t go into the year with a lot of expectations. I set some goals but had no expectations on how it was going to go. We went in kind of blind and said let’s see what happens. I think everyone did assume that, and I was like, I want to run the Outlaws this year. And I want to travel to some of these places, and we’ve been there, done that. We’ve not only stuck it out but maybe getting a championship.

“It feels pretty nice to prove them wrong, but I don’t really do it for what people think. I just do it for us, and that’s the way you have to do it. But it does feel nice to kind of get that last laugh.”

Pierce is nine races away from potentially etching his name in World of Outlaws CASE Late Models history as the next champion. And while he’s earned several accomplishments in his career, like the 2023 USA Nationals, he said he knows the importance of cementing his place in Series lore.

“(Winning) a national Series like this is one of the biggest things you can do in the sport,” Pierce said. “Especially in our first year trying for it. I’ve always thought very highly of the World of Outlaws, and it’s a Series for me that has a lot of nostalgia to it. To possibly go and win it means an awful lot. I’ve had a lot of big race wins throughout my career, but from a championship perspective, it’s by far the biggest. I don’t know how to put it in words, but it definitely holds a lot with me.”

Pierce and the World of Outlaws CASE Late Models continue the road to the World of Outlaws World Finals with the Outlaw Invasion at Atomic Speedway on Friday-Saturday, Sept. 29-30. For tickets, CLICK HERE.

If you can’t make it to the track, watch all the action live on DIRTVision – either online on with the DIRTVision App.

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cruz pedregon–charlotte advance

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

NHRA^® Team Report

NHRA Carolina Nationals – Charlotte 2

Pre-Race Report

Cruz Pedregon and team will head to Charlotte 2 with the tuning that is powering consistent runs for the Snap-on^®“Makers and Fixers” Dodge^®SRT^®Hellcat^®. Building off the 3.92 and 3.93 runs at Maple Grove, Cruz says he is looking forward to taking on zMAX Dragway as a track that has been a previous seasons’ winner for him.

“We are qualified and ready as a Countdown contender to make this second Charlotte race of the season really count,” Cruz says. “It is a super competitive playoffs field this year, so J.C. (John Collins), Ryan (Elliott), the team, and I are ready to put our combined decades of experience into moving up in the Countdown standings.”

Prior to the race, Cruz will visit an auto repair shop in the area with Snap-on Nitro Franchisee Mark Overman, who will have his name on the side of the “Makers and Fixers” Funny Car this week. Mark has had his Snap-on franchise for 21 years after his time as a diesel mechanic in the Army and serving in the National Guard. He has arranged for Cruz to be a guest speaker at Shelby, North Carolina’s Crest High School where the two-time NHRA World Champion will visit with automotive program students.

It’s these future and current “Makers and Fixers” Cruz and his primary sponsor Snap-on honor with the now familiar red and black paint scheme his Funny Car is sporting that pays tribute to the value of their work. Follow Makers and Fixers on Instagram and submit your own story or view stories at makersandfixers.com.

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THE ELITE FLEET AIMS TO ACCELERATE AT ZMAX

September 20, 2023 ARP Trish

CONCORD, N.C. (September 20, 2023) – The Elite Motorsports team is looking forward to the second race of the Countdown to the Championships, the betway NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway, just outside of Charlotte. Not only will the eight Elite Motorsports Pro Stock entries be taking to the track in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, but two Mountain Motor Pro Stock machines piloted by Erica Enders and Richard Freeman will compete as well. Not to mention, David Cuadra in Top Sportsman.
After securing the top three qualifying positions last weekend in Reading, Pa., Elite Motorsports, the largest professional team in drag racing, aims to continue making big moves in the Countdown to the Championship, NHRA’s version of the playoffs.
Reigning five-time Pro Stock world champion Enders had a phenomenal performance in qualifying, She was the low qualifier of all but one qualifying round, gaining her valuable bonus points. Troy Coughlin Jr. also had a solid qualifying performance and was the low qualifier of the one round that Enders did not get. Both talented drivers moved up a position in points. Enders was the No. 1 qualifier at this event last year and she’s won the event two times. After a few setbacks earlier in the season, the fan-favorite driver is more motivated than ever to land her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / SCAG Power Equipment Camaro in the winners circle again.
The Pro Stock field is packed with heavy hitters and the competition is ferocious. Aaron Stanfield won the fall race at zMAX last year and he’s looking for his first win of the season. He’s gaining consistency and valuable momentum coming into this event. As is his Elite Motorsports teammate Bo Butner.
Having made the fastest pass of his career during qualifying last week in Reading, Jerry Tucker is turning up the heat at the right time. The Pro Stock rookie laid down a stout run of 6.535 seconds at 210.14 mph and he’s eager to ride that momentum into this week’s event in Charlotte. While this may be his first season in Pro Stock, his performance in his Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer Camaro keeps getting better, not unlike his teammates, The Cuadra Boys.
Fernando Cuadra Sr. made consistently smooth runs throughout qualifying in Reading, each pass faster than the last. His sons, Fernando Jr. and Cristian, are also finding more speed and consistency. In the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, David Cuadra is coming off of a No. 1 qualifier and looks to amp things up this weekend.
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature one round at 6:00 p.m. ET on Friday, Sept. 22, and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, Sept. 23 at 1:00 and 4:00 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 24. Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 9:30 a.m. ET on Saturday and 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, and then eliminations on FS1 at 2:00 p.m. ET on Sunday.***

Driver Quotes

Photos

Pre-Race Notes

Elite Motorsports: Pre-race notesbetway NHRA Carolina NationalszMAX DragwayConcord, N.C. (Sept. 22-24)
The Elite Motorsports team, the largest team in professional drag racing, has expanded for 2023 and will field a total of 11 entries for this weekend’s betway NHRA Carolina Nationals in Concord, N.C., just outside of Charlotte.
At this event, the Elite Pro Stock team will feature eight Pro Stock drivers including reigning and five-time world champion Erica Enders, Aaron Stanfield, Troy Coughlin Jr., Bo Butner, Fernando Cuadra Sr. and his sons, Fernando Jr. and Cristian, as well as newcomer Jerry Tucker. The event will also feature the Mountain Motor Pro Stock class where Enders will pull double duty alongside Elite team boss Richard Freeman. David Cuadra will compete in Top Sportsman.
In the 19 Pro Stock events contested last season, Team Elite won 15 times and appeared in 26 out of 38 possible rounds. In addition to Enders’ 10 wins, Stanfield collected three victories while Coughlin earned his first two professional victories.
In 2022, Enders had the most dominant season of her career with ten wins in 13 final round appearances and an astounding 55-9 record in elimination rounds. This season, Enders’ impressive roster of supporters includes Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage, Melling Performance, SCAG Power Equipment, PeopleLease and Mark Stockseth.
During her professional career, Enders has accumulated 45 wins in 76 final rounds and has a round-win record of 457-251 for a .645 win percentage. Enders also has a win in Super Gas (2004 Houston) bringing her career total to 46 national event victories.
Enders won two events this season in Bristol and Topeka. She defeated Deric Kramer in the Bristol final and more recently, topped Greg Anderson in Topeka. She currently has an 18-11 record in elimination rounds this season.
Enders reached the semifinals of last week’s event in Reading, Pa., and as a result, she’s moved up in the points standings to second, only 30 points behind the leader, Matt Hartford.
Enders has won at least one Pro Stock event at 17 different NHRA venues including zMAX Dragway. She’s won the fall Charlotte event twice – once in 2012 and again in 2015, both times defeating Vincent Nobile in the final round. Enders also won the spring four-wide event at zMAX in 2018, once again defeating Nobile in the finals. She was a runner-up at zMAX Dragway in 2012 and 2013.
Enders currently holds both the elapsed time and speed records for the NHRA Pro Stock class with bests of 6.450-seconds and 215.55 mph. The elapsed time record was set at the 2022 Gatornationals.
If Enders wins one more event this season, she will surpass three-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Angelle Sampey as the sport’s winningest female driver. Sampey currently has 46 wins while Enders has 45 professional wins and one sportsman win, tying her with Sampey.
Following an impressive fourth-place finish in 2022, Troy Coughlin Jr. is in his fourth full season behind the wheel of the familiar yellow and black JEGS / White Castle Camaro. Coughlin enjoyed a breakout season last year with back-to-back victories in Seattle and Topeka. He also went to final rounds in Phoenix, Reading and Las Vegas.
Coughlin heads to Charlotte as the No. 3 ranked driver in the championship points standings after posting wins at the season-opening Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals and the Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals in Denver to go with a runner-up at the Four-Wide event in Las Vegas. Coughlin, a semifinalist in Reading, has an 18-11 record in elimination rounds this season. He is just 45 points out of first place.
Earlier this season at the NHRA Arizona Nationals near Phoenix, Coughlin became the first winner of the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge. He defeated Greg Anderson in the final with an elapsed time of 6.57, compared to Anderson’s 6.60, to capture the inaugural event victory.
In addition to his four career Pro Stock victories, the multi-faceted Coughlin has additional wins in Top Alcohol Dragster, Super Comp and Super Gas.
Coughlin’s father, Troy Sr., is a 15-time national event winner in Pro Stock, Pro Mod and Super Gas. Including his uncles, John, Mike, and Jeg Jr., the Coughlin family has combined to win 133 national event titles.
Coughlin’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.515-seconds and 212.29 mph, set earlier this year at the season opener in Gainesville.
Aaron Stanfield has also returned to the Elite team for another season behind the wheel of the Janac Bros / Melling Engine Parts / JC3 Energy Camaro. Stanfield, the son of five-time Super Stock world champ Greg Stanfield, is coming off a season where he was the third-ranked driver in Pro Stock.
Last season, Stanfield collected victories in Phoenix, Bristol, and this fall event in Charlotte to go with four runner-up finishes in Pomona, Epping, Norwalk and Denver. Stanfield finished the season with a 38-16 record in elimination rounds.
So far this season, Stanfield has four semifinal and seven quarterfinal finishes to his credit and he’s the No. 6 ranked driver in the class, 86 points out of the lead. Stanfield has also qualified a season-best of No. 2 at the race in Bristol.
Stanfield was recently named the overall season Pro Stock winner of the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty challenge, a specialty event that featured a rematch between the semifinalists from the previous event.
Stanfield won back-to-back titles in the FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown class in 2020 and 2021, and he is the current championship leader in that class, following his most recent win at Maple Grove Raceway.
All told Stanfield has 23 career wins in Pro Stock, Factory Stock, Super Stock, and Top Dragster.
Stanfield’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.457-seconds and 213.47 mph, both set in Gainesville 2022.
Bo Butner is a two-time NHRA world champion in Pro Stock (2017) and Comp Eliminator (2006). He joined the Elite team last season as the driver of the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Camaro.
Last season, Butner drove to a ninth-place finish in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series standings. He enters this race as the No. 11 ranked driver.
Earlier this season in Phoenix, Butner drove to a runner-up finish in Pro Stock, reaching the final for the first time since the 2019 Richmond event. Butner defeated Erica Enders, Fernando Cuadra Jr. and Kyle Koretsky to reach his 26th career Pro Stock final.
Butner recently won his 30th national event title when he claimed the Super Gas victory at the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals. Butner also won the Super Gas title at Indy in 2022.
Butner has 30 career national event victories including 11 in Pro Stock. He also has wins in Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Gas, and Super Street. Additionally, Butner has enjoyed success as a big-money bracket racer with a victory at the K&N Spring Fling Million in Las Vegas in 2021.
Butner has won at least one national event title at 14 different venues but has yet to win in Concord. He had runner-up finishes at this facility in 2013, 2016 and 2019.
Butner’s career bests in Pro Stock are 6.475-seconds and 214.28 mph, set in Dallas (2015) and Gainesville (2017), respectively.
The Cuadra family includes Fernando Sr., and his sons Fernando Jr. and Cristian. The Cuadra family is backed by Corral Handcrafted Boots.
Fernando Sr. and Cristian will continue to race Ford Mustangs under the Elite banner while Fernando Jr. recently made the switch to a Chevy Camaro. Fernando Jr. is driving an Elite entry previously raced by five-time world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Fernando Sr. is a two-time national event runner-up with final-round appearances at the 2019 races in Reading and Pomona.
Fernando Jr. raced to the final round of the prestigious U.S. Nationals last month. Cuadra Jr. is the sport’s No. 12 ranked Pro Stock driver.
Cristian Cuadra was also the runner-up to Enders at the 2022 four-wide event in Las Vegas and he was a semifinalist earlier this year at the Bristol race. He comes into this weekend as the No. 10 ranked driver in Pro Stock.
Earlier this season in Phoenix, Cristian Cuadra became the first Mexican-born NHRA racer to qualify No. 1 in a pro category when he drove his Elite-powered Corral Handcrafted Boots Mustang to a 6.552 pass. C. Cuadra is one of just 11 non-U.S.-born drivers to qualify No. 1 in a professional NHRA class and the only one to accomplish the feat in Pro Stock.
The third Cuadra brother, David, will be racing in the Right Trailers Top Sportsman class this weekend in his new Mustang. David has raced in both Pro Stock and Top Sportsman this season. He made his Pro Stock debut in Charlotte and also competed in Chicago, Bristol, Topeka, and Brainerd.
The Cuadra family has career-best elapsed times of 6.515 (Fernando Jr.), 6.524 (Fernando Sr.), 6.527 (Cristian) and 6.578 (David). Their career-best speeds are 212.13 (Fernando Sr.), 211.43 (Cristian), 210.73 (Fernando Jr.) and 209.39 (David).
New to the Elite Pro Stock team this year is Jerry Tucker, who enjoyed a memorable debut in Gainesville. Tucker qualified his Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer / Elite Motorsports Camaro in the No. 15 spot with a 6.573 and won the first round after teammate Enders encountered a mechanical issue. Tucker has a semifinal finish from Chicago and is No. 12 in the standings. Last week in Reading, Tucker made the quickest pass of his career when he went 6.535 at 210.14.
Tucker, of Lindsay, Okla., has spent the last 30 years racing everything from Sprint cars to Midgets and has also enjoyed success in drag racing. Tucker previously raced in the Top Sportsman class. Tucker is one of the leading contenders for the NHRA Rookie of the Year award.
The Mountain Motor Pro Stock category will make an appearance at the betway NHRA Carolina Nationals with 11 drivers set to take part including Erica Enders and Richard Freeman. The Mountain Motor Pro Stock cars feature large displacement engines and use either carburetors or fuel injection. Typically, they are quicker and faster than the traditional 500-inch Pro Stock cars with elapsed times in the 6.2 second range and speeds of well over 225 mph.
Earlier this season, Freeman won the Mountain Motor Pro Stock event in Chicago. Recently, the class introduced Elite Supporter Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage as the title rights sponsor of a six-race series beginning in 2024.
Collectively, the eight current team Elite drivers have combined to win 109 NHRA national event titles across all classes including 67 in the Pro Stock class.

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WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Final Ohio Trip of 2023 Brings World of Outlaws to Eldora, Sharon

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

The Greatest Show on Dirt heads back east for Ohio doubleheaderROSSBURG, OH (September 19, 2023) – The final stop to “The Buckeye State” this year brings the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series’ title fight to two iconic Ohio tracks.First, The Greatest Show on Dirt kicks off Eldora Speedway’s iconic Four Crown weekend with the BeFour the Crowns Showdown on Friday, Sept. 22. The next night, Hartford, OH’s Sharon Speedway will host the Federated Auto Parts Showdown as the Series completes its 11th and final Ohio race of the season.The pressure continues to mount as the World of Outlaws near the final month of this year’s campaign. The teams will scratch and claw for points as the fight for their share of the more than $1.7 million point fund rolls into Ohio.BUY ELDORA TICKETS BUY SHARON TICKETSLet’s look at the weekend’s top storylines:BIG CAT ON THE PROWL: It’s no surprise that as the season nears its conclusion Brad Sweet is flexing his muscle. His lead atop the standings has grown to 90 markers as he hunts his fifth straight championship. The four-time and defending champ heads to a pair of tracks that have been kind to him this weekend. At Eldora, Sweet is a three-time Series winner, and he topped his Eldora Million prelim earlier this year. In his last 11 World of Outlaws Feature starts at the half mile, Sweet has been in the top five on seven occasions.“The Big Cat” topped the 2022 World of Outlaws visit to Sharon, and he also claimed the 2012 Lou Blaney Memorial. In three career Series starts at Sharon, Sweet has finished no worse than sixth.NOT DONE YET: While Sweet has a decent advantage, David Gravel and Carson Macedo are both still well within striking distance as the pair pursue their first Series title.Gravel is closest to Sweet and hopes to chip away at the 90-point margin that separates the two this weekend. The Watertown, CT native won two World of Outlaws Features at Eldora last year and hasn’t been outside the top five in his last six starts there. At Sharon, Gravel nearly won there in May, finishing second.Macedo is a mere eight markers behind Gravel. Back in July, Macedo drove the Jason Johnson Racing #41 to an Eldora triumph during The Knight Before, one of three “Big E” wins he owns. The Lemoore, CA native has been close to a Sharon victory including a World of Outlaws podium (2021) and a pair of All-Star Circuit of Champions (ASCoC) runner ups (2017 & 2018).OHIO EXPERTISE: Ten-time Series champion – Donny Schatz – has always shined in Ohio throughout his career, and 2023 has proven to be no exception.All three of his wins this season have been Ohio triumphs, including a win at Sharon in May and his sixth King Royal win at Eldora in July – his 18th Series win at “The Big E.” Schatz and his Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing team recently re-entered the top five in points, now only 20 markers behind Logan Schuchart for fourth.SCHUCHART STRENGTH: Over the years, Eldora Speedway has become one of Logan Schuchart’s best tracks – a trend he hopes continues as he looks to hold on to fourth in points.Back in May, Schuchart outdueled Rico Abreu for his fourth Series victory at Eldora, equaling the track as the facility he’s won the most at with The Greatest Show on Dirt. Then two months later, Schuchart etched his name into Sprint Car history by topping the inaugural Eldora Million. A fifth World of Outlaws trip to Eldora Victory Lane would give the track sole possession as his winningest on the tour.Schuchart enters the weekend with a 20-point cushion between himself and fifth-place Donny Schatz in the standings.BUCKEYE BREAKTHROUGH?: In his trip home this weekend, Sheldon Haudenschild, of Wooster, OH, will chase a win that’s continued to elude him.Haudenschild has won at Sharon with the All Star Circuit of Champions in 2015, but on Saturday he’ll try to score his first victory at the track with the World of Outlaws.In three attempts at Sharon, Haudenschild has been on the podium each time. Two years ago brought his closest attempt when he led the first 34 laps before Dave Blaney snuck by on the final lap. In the next two tries, he brought the Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17 home third.BLANEY BROS: In local Sharon action this year, brothers Dave and Dale Blaney have been in control. The duo has combined to win six races this season, splitting three apiece. They’ve claimed the top two spots in the last two races Sharon’s hosted.Dave – the 1995 World of Outlaws champion – who also happens to own Sharon, is a former World of Outlaws winner at his facility, thrilling the crowd with his 2021 triumph for his first Series win in 24 years.Dale is yet to win a World of Outlaws race at Sharon, but he does own seven victories there with ASCoC.If you can’t make it to the track, catch all of the action live on DIRTVision.THIS WEEKEND AT A GLANCEWHEN AND WHEREFriday, September 22 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, OHSaturday, September 23 at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, OHON THE INTERNETWorld of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series
Twitter – @WorldofOutlaws
Instagram – @WoOSprint
Facebook – Facebook.com/WorldofOutlawsSprintCarSeries
YouTube – Youtube.com/WorldofOutlaws
DIRTVision – DIRTVision.com – Platinum annual FAST PASS for $299 or monthly FAST PASS for $39/monthCURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (59/72 Races):1. 49 – Brad Sweet (7964PTS) 2. 2 – David Gravel (-90PTS) 3. 41 – Carson Macedo (-98PTS) 4. 1S – Logan Schuchart (-370PTS) 5. 15 – Donny Schatz (-390PTS) 6. 18 – Gio Scelzi (-400PTS) 7. 17 – Sheldon Haudenschild (-464PTS) 8. 5 – Spencer Bayston (-610PTS) 9. 3Z – Brock Zearfoss (-1106PTS) 10. 7S – Robbie Price (-1504PTS)NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (16 Drivers):10 wins – David Gravel (Big Game Motorsports #2)8 wins – Brad Sweet (Kasey Kahne Racing #49)6 wins – James McFadden (Roth Motorsports #83), Carson Macedo (Jason Johnson Racing #41), Logan Schuchart (Shark Racing #1S)5 wins – Rico Abreu (Rico Abreu Racing #24)4 wins – Kyle Larson (Silva Motorsports #57)3 wins – Donny Schatz (Tony Stewart/Curb Agajanian Racing #15), Sheldon Haudenschild (Stenhouse Jr.-Marshall Racing #17)2 wins – Buddy Kofoid (CMS Racing #11, Roth Motorsports #83JR)1 win – Brady Bacon (TKH Motorsports #21), Anthony Macri (Macri Motorsports #39), Brian Brown (Brian Brown Racing #21), Gio Scelzi (KCP Racing #18), Spencer Bayston (CJB Motorsports #5), Corey Day (Jason Meyers Racing #14)FEATURE LAPS LED (20 Drivers):285 laps – Brad Sweet228 laps – James McFadden204 laps – Rico Abreu195 laps – Carson Macedo193 laps – David Gravel172 laps – Logan Schuchart118 laps – Kyle Larson114 laps – Buddy Kofoid108 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild102 laps – Donny Schatz57 laps – Gio Scelzi43 laps – Brent Marks40 laps – Spencer Bayston, Corey Day24 laps – Brian Brown15 laps – Cole Macedo11 laps – Anthony Macri10 laps – Cory Eliason3 laps – Brady Bacon, Danny Varin1 lap – Austin McCarlSIMPSON PERFORMANCE PRODUCTS QUICKTIME AWARDS (17 Drivers):13 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo10 QuickTimes – David Gravel5 QuickTimes – Logan Schuchart4 QuickTimes – Rico Abreu3 QuickTimes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Buddy Kofoid2 QuickTimes – Anthony Macri, Bill Balog, Justin Peck, Gio Scelzi, Brad Sweet, Tanner Holmes1 QuickTime – Brian Brown, Donny Schatz, James McFadden, Jacob Allen, Kyle LarsonHEAT RACE WINNERS (43 Drivers):29 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo23 Heat Wins – David Gravel16 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet14 Heat Wins – Donny Schatz13 Heat Wins – James McFadden, Buddy Kofoid12 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart11 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild10 Heat Wins – Gio Scelzi, Rico Abreu7 Heat Wins – Spencer Bayston5 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen4 Heat Wins – Brent Marks, Justin Peck, Cory Eliason3 Heat Wins – Anthony Macri, Brian Brown, Bill Balog, Parker Price-Miller2 Heat Wins – Brock Zearfoss, Noah Gass, Kerry Madsen, Robbie Price, Tim Kaeding, Sam Hafertepe Jr.1 Heat Win – Danny Dietrich, Freddie Rahmer, Mark Dobmeier, Kasey Kahne, Austin McCarl, Lachlan McHugh, Ryan Timms, Tim Estenson, Kyle Larson, Shane Stewart, Lance Dewease, Cole Macedo, Chase Randall, Ian Madsen, Tanner Holmes, Dominic Scelzi, Kalib Henry, Dylan Bloomfield, Justin SandersTOYOTA DASH APPEARANCES (47 Drivers):40 Dashes – Carson Macedo37 Dashes – David Gravel35 Dashes – Brad Sweet27 Dashes – Logan Schuchart25 Dashes – Gio Scelzi22 Dashes – Donny Schatz, James McFadden21 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild19 Dashes – Rico Abreu18 Dashes – Spencer Bayston17 Dashes – Buddy Kofoid8 Dashes – Jacob Allen, Brent Marks, Cory Eliason, Brock Zearfoss5 Dashes – Anthony Macri, Justin Peck, Robbie Price, Kasey Kahne, Corey Day4 Dashes – Brian Brown3 Dashes – Danny Dietrich, Parker Price-Miller, Tyler Courtney, Kyle Larson, Cole Macedo, Justin Sanders2 Dashes – Garet Williamson, Austin McCarl, Bill Balog, Tanner Holmes, Dominic Scelzi1 Dash – Freddie Rahmer, Devon Borden, Aaron Reutzel, Brady Bacon, Chad Trout, Dylan Norris, Cap Henry, Stuart Brubaker, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Shane Stewart, Danny Varin, Ian Madsen, Shane Golobic, Kalib Henry, Dylan BloomfieldMICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (33 Drivers):4 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Spencer Bayston, Robbie Price3 LCS Wins – Noah Gass2 LCS Wins – Parker Price-Miller, Logan Schuchart, Carson Macedo, Brock Zearfoss, Tim Estenson, James McFadden, Gio Scelzi1 LCS Win – Hunter Schuerenberg, Wayne Johnson, Ryan Timms, Ayrton Gennetten, Kraig Kinser, Freddie Rahmer, Henry Malcuit, Cole Macedo, Aaron Reutzel, Kerry Madsen, Sye Lynch, Cory Eliason, Donny Schatz, Tyler Courtney, Rico Abreu, Jacob Allen, Daryn Pittman, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Jamie Veal, Kaleb Johnson, Lachlan McHugh, Tanner Holmes, Austen WheatleyKSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (35 Drivers):6 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild5 Hard Chargers – James McFadden3 Hard Chargers – Tyler Courtney, Brad Sweet, Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu, Brock Zearfoss, Donny Schatz2 Hard Chargers – Danny Dietrich, Justin Peck, David Gravel, Spencer Bayston, Corey Day, Robbie Price1 Hard Charger – Gio Scelzi, Blake Hahn, Buddy Kofoid, Joe B. Miller, Kyle Larson, Hunter Schuerenberg, Kyle Moody, Freddie Rahmer, Skylar Gee, Cole Duncan, Austin Pierce, Brenham Crouch, Tim Kaeding, Jacob Allen, Caden Englehart, Zeb Wise, Carson Macedo, Dale Blaney, Tasker Phillips, Brent Marks, Kaleb Johnson, Tanner HolmesPODIUM FINISHES (27 Drivers):27 Podiums – David Gravel25 Podiums – Brad Sweet17 Podiums – Carson Macedo13 Podiums – Donny Schatz, Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu10 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild9 Podiums – James McFadden, Buddy Kofoid6 Podiums – Kyle Larson5 Podiums – Brent Marks, Gio Scelzi4 Podiums – Spencer Bayston3 Podiums – Brian Brown, Jacob Allen, Corey Day1 Podium – Danny Dietrich, Kasey Kahne, Devon Borden, Parker Price-Miller, Brady Bacon, Anthony Macri, Garet Williamson, Dave Blaney, Tanner Holmes, Justin Sanders, Dominic ScelziTOP 10 FINISHES (60 Drivers):52 Top 10s – Brad Sweet50 Top 10s – Carson Macedo48 Top 10s – David Gravel40 Top 10s – Gio Scelzi39 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart38 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild36 Top 10s – Donny Schatz, Spencer Bayston34 Top 10s – James McFadden30 Top 10s – Rico Abreu25 Top 10s – Buddy Kofoid14 Top 10s – Jacob Allen11 Top 10s – Justin Peck, Brent Marks10 Top 10s – Kasey Kahne9 Top 10s – Cory Eliason8 Top 10s – Kyle Larson7 Top 10s – Tyler Courtney, Brock Zearfoss6 Top 10s – Brian Brown, Danny Dietrich, Corey Day5 Top 10s – Dominic Scelzi, Justin Sanders4 Top 10s – Tanner Holmes3 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Bill Balog, Cole Macedo, Chase Randall2 Top 10s – Aaron Reutzel, Blake Hahn, Brady Bacon, Parker Price-Miller, Robbie Price, Zeb Wise, Freddie Rahmer, Tim Kaeding, Shane Golobic1 Top 10 – Devon Borden, Sam Hafertepe Jr., Joe B. Miller, Hunter Schuerenberg, Brandon Rahmer, Chad Trout, Lance Dewease, Cap Henry, Stuart Brubaker, Skylar Gee, Cole Duncan, Austin McCarl, Garet Williamson, Shane Stewart, Dave Blaney, Larry Wight, Dale Blaney, Noah Gass, Rusty Hickman, Kerry Madsen, Jason Solwold, Chase Johnson2023 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)1. Fri, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)2. Fri, Feb 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (2)3. Sat, Feb 11* / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / James McFadden (1)4. Sun, March 5 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Carson Macedo (1)5. Mon, March 6 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (3)6. Sat, March 18 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Rico Abreu (1)7. Fri, March 24 / Talladega Short Track / Eastaboga, AL / Buddy Kofoid (1)8. Sat, March 25 / Magnolia Motor Speedway / Columbus, MS / Brad Sweet (1)9. Fri, March 31 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Brad Sweet (2)10. Sat, April 1 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / James McFadden (2)11. Fri, April 7 / U.S. 36 Raceway / Osborn, MO / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)12. Sat, April 8 / 81 Speedway / Wichita, KS / Rico Abreu (2)13. Fri, April 14 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Brad Sweet (3)14. Fri, April 28 / Tri-City Speedway / Granite City, IL / David Gravel (4)15. Sat, April 29 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Brady Bacon (1)16. Fri, May 5 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Logan Schuchart (1)17. Sat, May 6 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Rico Abreu (3)18. Wed, May 10 / Lincoln Speedway / Abbottstown, PA / Anthony Macri (1)19. Fri, May 12 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Brad Sweet (4)20. Fri, May 19 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Donny Schatz (1)21. Sat, May 20 / Sharon Speedway / Hartford, OH / Donny Schatz (2)22. Fri, May 26 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Brad Sweet (5)23. Sat, May 27 / Atomic Speedway / Chillicothe, OH / Carson Macedo (2)24. Mon, May 29 / Lawrenceburg Speedway / Lawrenceburg, IN / James McFadden (3)25. Fri, June 2 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / David Gravel (5)26. Sat, June 3 / Ogilvie Raceway / Ogilvie, MN / Carson Macedo (3)27. Fri, June 9 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Brian Brown (1)28. Sat, June 10 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / David Gravel (6)29. Fri, June 16 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Gio Scelzi (1)30. Sat, June 17 / Beaver Dam Raceway / Beaver Dam, WI / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)31. Wed, June 21 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Kyle Larson (1)32. Thurs, June 22 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / James McFadden (4)33. Fri, June 23 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / Logan Schuchart (2)34. Sat, June 24 / Huset’s Speedway / Brandon, SD / David Gravel (7)35. Fri, June 30 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / Brad Sweet (6)36. Sat, July 1 / Cedar Lake Speedway / New Richmond, WI / David Gravel (8)37. Sat, July 8 / Wilmot Raceway / Wilmot, WI / Carson Macedo (4)38. Tues, July 11 / Attica Raceway Park / Attica, OH / Kyle Larson (2)39. Fri, July 14 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Carson Macedo (5)40. Sat, July 15 / Eldora Speedway / Rossburg, OH / Donny Schatz (3)41. Thurs, July 20 / BAPS Motor Speedway / York Haven, PA / David Gravel (9)42. Fri, July 21 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Logan Schuchart (3)43. Sat, July 22 / Williams Grove Speedway / Mechanicsburg, PA / Rico Abreu (4)44. Sun, July 30 / Weedsport Speedway / Weedsport, NY / David Gravel (10)45. Fri, Aug 4 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Spencer Bayston (1)46. Sat, Aug 5 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Kyle Larson (3)47. Sat, Aug 12 / Knoxville Raceway / Knoxville, IA / Kyle Larson (4)48. Thurs, Aug 17 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / James McFadden (5)49. Fri, Aug 18 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / James McFadden (6)50. Sat, Aug 19 / Jackson Motorplex / Jackson, MN / Carson Macedo (6)51. Fri, Aug 25 / River Cities Speedway / Grand Forks, ND / Logan Schuchart (4)52. Sat, Aug 26 / Red River Valley Speedway / West Fargo, ND / Logan Schuchart (5)53. Thurs, Aug 31 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Sheldon Haudenschild (3)54. Fri, Sept 1 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Rico Abreu (5)55. Sat, Sept 2 / Skagit Speedway / Burlington, WA / Brad Sweet (7)56. Mon, Sept 4 / Grays Harbor Raceway / Elma, WA / Logan Schuchart (6)57. Sat, Sept 9 / Silver Dollar Speedway / Chico, CA / Corey Day (1)58. Fri, Sept 15 / Kings Speedway / Hanford, CA / Brad Sweet (8)59. Sat, Sept 16 / Placerville Speedway / Placerville, CA / Buddy Kofoid (2)

Uncategorized

You can’t win the race if you don’t show up on race day

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

MARSTONS MILLS, Massachusetts (September 19, 2023)
You can’t win the race if you don’t show up on race day. The Dream Team showed up last weekend, and they certainly were consistent and fast. Unfortunately, the consistency and speed was not enough to win on race day.
The Dream Team made their way back to Jay Blake’s favorite race track, Maple Grove for his birthday weekend and the final scheduled national race of the season. Maple Grove, of course, is the drag strip that crew chief Jay Blake visited over 20 years ago after losing his sight. It is the track where the dream began, and it has always been Jay’s biggest dream to take home a Wally from Maple Grove.
The Dream Team wanted that Wally just as bad and was committed to making Jay’s dream come true. However, after the first qualifying pass another unexpected obstacle was thrown into their path. Clutch mechanics Lukas VanGelder and Joe Driscoll delivered some bad news to the tuners in the form of cracked and crumbled clutch disks. The disks were unusually damaged from their first clean run. Luckily, Lukas and Joe were able to located some old but still usable clutch disks in the transporter, allowing the team to continue racing.
Qualifying runs 1 through 3 yielded a 5.51, 5.50, and 5.51 respectively. Tuner Anthony Terenzio, and tuning consultant Rich Bozzelli were comfortable with the racecar’s consistency and performance. They were ready to push it to the next level, and hoped to dip the funny car into the .40s to snatch the Wally.
The team was poised and confident as the first round of eliminations neared. They heading into the staging lanes to face up against Matt Gill and his Moduline team. Unfortunately, the loss was swift, and by a razor thin margin. Gill cinched the win with a .0017 lead. The team was thrilled with Burkart’s 5.49 at 266.93 mph, but sadly, it was not quite quick enough to beat Matt Gill’s 5.46 at 267.16 mph.
As the car rolled back into the Follow A Dream pit area, the crew could not help but feel disappointed in their early loss. The racecar was finally running in the .40s, but it seemed the season was over for the Dream Team even though the crew was still thirsty for more.
The Lucas Oil Regional Race in Virginia is only two weeks away. Although this race is currently not schedule, team Tuner Anthony Terenzio’s confidence in the racecars potential capabilities was unwavering,
“If we get those new disks, and we run them in Virginia, I feel confident that the car will run faster, the car will run quicker. We absolutely can, and will pull .40s.”
Team owner Jay Blake also seemed torn when asked if the season had really officially ended for Follow A Dream.
“We are not lacking in the confidence, nor the enthusiasm to head to the regional race in Virginia, all we are lacking is a plan and the funds. I’m going to see what I can do about that.”
Jay’s answer seems a bit cryptic, but also hopeful that The Dream Team’s season might not be over, and that the team may have one more chance at winning a Wally this year.

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DYSON WILL FACE “TRAFFIC JAM” ON TIGHT TRACK AT WWTR TRANS AM

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (September 19, 2023) – Looking to pad his current series point lead, two-time Trans Am champion Chris Dyson is aiming for his fourth race win of the year at World Wide Technology Raceway in suburban St. Louis. Almost as much as the wheel-to-wheel challenge from his direct rivals in the headline TA class, Dyson will need to take care as he laps mixed classes with his #16 GYM WEED Ford Mustang over the course of Saturday’s 100-mile sprint race. In total 29 cars, including those in the slower TA2 class, are scheduled to take the green flag on the 1.6-mile, eight-turn “roval” circuit that combines much of the banked oval with a tight six-turn infield section.

“I’m going for the win for sure,” Dyson said. “But I’m also keeping in mind that old racing adage that to finish first, first you must finish. The TA2 class is super competitive and those guys are going to be having a hard race among themselves, fighting for their own championships. We have raced on track with both TA and TA2 classes before, and it’s always action-packed and filled with more than a share of dicey moments, especially as we navigate a very short lap like Gateway. So taking care in – and managing – the traffic will be at a great premium this weekend.”

Dyson also cited the team’s challenge of finding the sweet spot in the compromise between a suspension setup that maximizes speed on the oval part of the circuit and the necessity for nimble handling in the cut-and-thrust of the six infield turns.

“Fortunately between the optional test and regular practice sessions we should have enough time to find the best balance,” Dyson said. “We are confident we have cured the electrical issue we had with our primary car two weeks ago at Watkins Glen, but for this weekend we will be bringing the spare car I used to finish second at the Glen. It has been a while since we raced TA on a short Roval (Homestead, in 2018), but fundamentally the challenges are the same always. You need a car that can handle the G-loads on the banking but also can brake and put the power down well in the infield. If we have a good result this weekend I think that puts us in a very good position for our third straight Trans Am championship.”

World Wide Technology Raceway Schedule

Qualifying takes place Saturday, September 23, 8:30 a.m. — 8:55 a.m. CT (9:30 a.m. — 9:55 a.m. ET)

The 100-mile race takes the green flag Saturday, Sept 23 at 1:10 p.m. CT (2:10 p.m. ET)

Broadcast Schedule

The race will be live-streamed on both the Trans Am and SpeedTour’s YouTube channels.

Additional Broadcast Coverage On MAVTV

In addition to the livestream, 60-minute feature produced by Greenlight TV will be broadcast the following Thursday at 9:00 p.m. ET to MAVTV’s 22 million North American linear households and 175 million connected devices.

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TMS Titanium and Paul Lee Racing Team Up
for Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

CONCROD, NC (September 19, 2023) — Driver and team owner, Paul Lee, welcomes longtime partner TMS Titanium as primary partner on his nitro funny car entry for the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals. TMS Titanium and Paul Lee have been partners for many years both on and off the track. With a special wrap dedicated to the TMS Titanium branding, Paul looks forward to hosting many TMS guests at his pit this weekend. Heading into the final four races of the NHRA season, Lee and the team will continue their efforts for fast and consistent runs.

TMS Titanium, the leading supplier and stocking distributor of titanium mill products, not only work with Paul’s racing team in supplying titanium for race car parts, but also is a titanium supplier for McLeod Racing, the leading company in aftermarket driveline performance and racing products. Todd Harrison, CEO/president of TMS Titanium, and his team supply the titanium inner liners needed for the McLeod Racing SFI aluminum bellhousing for street and racing performance vehicles.

“TMS Titanium products are of the highest quality,” says McLeod Racing owner and driver, Paul Lee. “When we first designed our SFI spun-aluminum performance bellhousing, we needed a dependable supplier for the titanium inner liners for safety in case of a clutch failure. Todd was our first and only call because we knew they could perform in both customer service and delivery. They have been and continue to be a valuable vendor for McLeod Racing.”

Prior to the beginning of the 2023 season, Lee decided to upgrade his five-disc clutch set up to a six-disc clutch for his nitro funny car entry. With the help of Harrison, the TMS team were able to supply all the necessary titanium material to make the off-season change.

“The clutch units in today’s top fuel and nitro funny cars are entirely machined from high strength 6AL4V titanium,” says Lee. “Actually, it’s an NHRA rule, and a good one. Titanium is strong, resists heat, returns to its form when faced with extreme heat. And most importantly it is the safest material for the high stresses of top fuel drag racing.”

Todd Harrison is no stranger to NHRA drag racing. He has become the “go-to supplier” of titanium for the racing industry. Started in Harrison’s garage in 2006, TMS has earned both ISO 9001:2008 and AS9100C quality assurance certifications. With this, TMS began supplying materials to a variety of well-known national aviation, space, and defense organizations. But with a passion for racing, Harrison grew his own racing program.

“This is a huge deal for TMS Titanium,” said Todd Harrison, TMS Titanium CEO/President. “This business is about relationships and working with Paul Lee and Steve Cole is just amazing. We have supported teams across so many motorsport platforms, but this is a real ‘arrival’ moment for our company. To see this Funny Car and know that it will be racing at the Betway NHRA Nationals during the Countdown makes me so happy. Everyone at TMS Titanium is excited about this program.”

With only four races left on Paul Lee’s schedule, this race will be the jumping point of ending the year in a fast funny car. With John Medlen and Jason Bunker tuning, Lee is ready to finish the year with fast, consistent runs to study over the off season.

Qualifying for the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals will kick off with a night-time qualifying session Friday night. Followed by two more qualifying attempts on Saturday and eliminations starting Sunday.

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chevy racing–nhra–maple grove post race

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

CHEVROLET IN NHRA2023 PEP BOYS NHRA NATIONALS MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY MOHNTON, PENNSYLVANIA TEAM CHEVY RACE REPORT SEPTEMBER 18, 2023 CHEVROLET CAPTURES THREE WINS WITH ROBERT HIGHT, MATT HARTFORD, AND AARON STANFIELD IN THE RAIN-DELAYED 2023 PEP BOYS NHRA NATIONALS AT MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY

Robert Hight, in his 100th final round, captured his 64th NHRA win over Chad Green on Monday in the delayed Pep Boys NHRA Nationals finals.Matt Hartford raced to a back-to-back Pro Stock victory over Chevrolet and KB Titan Racing teammate Kyle Koretsky, earning his third NHRA win of the season and eighth of his Pro Stock career.Hartford captured Chevrolet’s 377th Pro Stock victory and 258th in the Camaro body.Aaron Stanfield raced his way to FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown victory Sunday, earning his second win in the category this year and leaves Maple Grove Raceway with the points lead.Rain Sunday forced the semifinals and finals in Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock to be completed Monday at Maple Grove Raceway.Representing Chevrolet at the top of the leaderboard Saturday evening after qualifying, Erica Enders (Pro Stock) qualified No.1 with her Friday night top lap of 6.494 ET at 211.13 MPH.Brittany Force (Top Fuel) led the way for the nitro cars after qualifying completed Saturday, with her fastest lap of 3.689 ET at 336.57 MPH, also the top speed of qualifications.Robert Hight (Funny Car) qualified No. 3 with his Friday night Q2 run of 3.879 ET at 329.32 MPH.

MOHNTON, Pennsylvania (September 18, 2023) – On a rain-delayed Monday finish to the 2023 Pep Boys NHRA Nationals, Chevrolet, along with Robert Hight in Funny Car and Matt Hartford in Pro Stock, celebrated capturing two Wally trophies on the march towards a 28th Manufacturers Cup at Maple Grove Raceway. Hight, driver of the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, raced to his 64th career victory in his 100th final round, after defeating Jim Campbell (Round 1), Matt Hagan (Round 2), Ron Capps (semifinal), and Chad Green (final) on his way to the winner’s circle. With Green making a strong effort on his run of 3.928 ET at 327.27 MPH, Hight’s winning pass of 3.854 ET at 330.39 MPH captured the win light. “You can look back to last year when we were leading the points coming into the Countdown,” said Hight. “We won this race, but we didn’t get (the championship) done in the end. We’re going to celebrate today. We’re going to have a blast, but we’ve got a lot of work to do. We’re focused. This team’s coming into their own right at the right time. I need to thank (Cornwell Tools), AAA, Chevrolet, and Flav-R-Pac. That’s how we got here. We’re going to have some fun tonight, but we’re going to get our act together and we’re going to win Charlotte and celebrate the points lead.” In Pro Stock, Matt Hartford, driver of the Total Seal Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock, and KB Titan Racing teammate Kyle Koretsky, driver of the Michael Waltrip Brewing/Lucas Oil Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock, went head-to-head in the finals in only the second time they’ve faced each other on race day. Hartford, who just got his appendix removed unexpectedly this week, raced to the win light and Wally trophy at Maple Grove Raceway after Koretsky faced issues on the start to Hartford’s 6.054 ET run at 208.26 MPH. Capturing his third victory this season, and his eight Pro Stock win, Hartford said of the win, “You get your appendix out and seven days later, you’re in a race car. The car wouldn’t run, and we had all kinds of electrical issues,” reflected Hartford on the wild event weekend. “Ron Blessler, thank you for letting us use your shop and work on our car. We really appreciate it. You know, Rob was making sure we had that ability. Man, it’s been a great car and my crew is awesome. Eddie Guarnaccia is a genius. Thank you to everybody.” With a Pro Stock field separated and set by just 0.082 as qualifying concluded Saturday night, Erica Enders, driver of the Johnson’s Horsepower Garage Melling Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock, captured her third No. 1 Qualifier of the 2023 NHRA Camping World Series Season and 32nd of her career, Enders was on the hunt for her 47th NHRA victory, 46th in Pro Stock, to become the winningest woman in series history. Aaron Stanfield pulled double-duty once again this weekend in both Pro Stock and FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown, racing his way to the Factory Stock final and facing event No. 1 Qualifier Del Holbrook. With his pass of 7.671 ET at 165.46 MPH to Holbrook’s 9.845 ET at 128.11 MPH, Stanfield hoisted his second Wally trophy of the Factory Stock Showdown season, and his 23rd national event victory. Stanfield additionally leaves Reading with 610 points and a 152-point lead over Stephen Bell in second. “I’ve got to thank my guys,” said Stanfield. “We work really hard at the shop, and we’ve been down and out a little bit, but we’ve been working hard and keeping our head down and it paid off this weekend.” Defending event winner in Top Fuel, Austin Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, qualified No. 8 with a solid effort of 3.728 ET at 329.83 MPH in qualifying. Despite making a strong effort in Round 1, Prock fell to veteran Tony Schumacher and had to settle for an early end at Maple Grove Raceway. Still seeking that elusive first win this year in Top Fuel and to add to her 16 career Top Fuel victories, Brittany Force, driver of the Monster Energy/Flav-R-Pac Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster, defeated Jacob Opatrny before being forced to an early end to her race day by falling to Leah Pruett in a close race of B. Force’s 3.768 ET to Pruett’s 3.744. “Leaving Maple Grove Raceway in the sixth position after a second-round exit,” reflected B. Force. “We qualified No. 2, picked up eight bonus points and are still well within the championship fight. Looking at our season as a whole to now coming into the Countdown, we made some good progress this weekend. It’s still anybody’s game this early on and this team will fight it out until the end. We are ready to get to Charlotte and see what this team can do.” In Funny Car, it was also an early exit for the 16-time champion, legend, and John Force Racing team owner John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car, facing a Round 2 elimination by Ron Capps in a tight race separated by 0.054 seconds or 2.22 MPH. With five races remaining in the 2023 season, NHRA next heads to zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, N.C. for the betway NHRA Carolina Nationals, Sept. 22-24, 2023. Broadcast of Sunday’s eliminations air at 2 p.m. ET on FS1. Coverage streams live throughout the weekend on NHRA.tv, and is available via AppleTV, Android TV, and Roku devices. FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown returns to competition at the NHRA Midwest Nationals in late September at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Ill. Today’s broadcast of the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals will air Monday evening, Sept. 18 at 9 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 (FS1).

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:Austin Prock, driver of the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster for John Force Racing:“Not the day we expected for this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team. Dropped a couple cylinders down track and just didn’t have enough for the first-round win. We’re keeping our heads up. We know that with just one good weekend we can be right back in it. Luckily we get to turn around in just a couple days and go at it again in Charlotte.” John Force, driver of the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car for John Force Racing:“Shorter weekend than we wanted for this PEAK Chevy. Have to thank the fans for packing it in here and the owners the Koretsky Family, great event, sold out days. We dodged some of the rain, NHRA worked hard to try to get it all done,” Force said. “We’ll be ready for next weekend, heading to Charlotte. Still have a shot, just need a couple good days.” Aaron Stanfield, driver of the Janac Brothers Chevrolet COPO Camaro FlexJet Factory Stock Showdown car:“It’s right up our alley. It’s factory cars, heads up racing. I got to give a ‘hats off’ to Reading. I haven’t always done very well here, but man, it’s a heck of a facility. The Koretsky family, we’re lucky to have a family like that to give us a place to race at. I’ve got to thank my guys. We work really hard at the shop, and we’ve been down and out a little bit, but we’ve been working hard and keeping our head down and it paid off this weekend.” Camrie Caruso, driver of the Tequila Comisario Chevrolet Camaro SS Pro Stock for KB Titan Racing:“Getting that first Countdown round win definitely helps. I didn’t like seeing my teammate Dallas Glenn go out so early, but the points are going to tighten up now. We are looking forward to getting to Charlotte and qualifying better and going rounds on Sunday. There are five races left and we want to do everything we can to try and win this championship. We had him on the tree and at the 1,000 but unfortunately when these cars get out of shape you have to get off the gas. If you don’t you going to end up over the wall or on your roof. We got our race car back after Q4 and I didn’t want to do anything to mess that up. We were obviously struggling but now I feel like we have our race car back and we’re ready to go to Charlotte.”

ROBERT HIGHT, DRIVER OF THE CORNWELL TOOLS/AAA CHEVROLET CAMARO SS FUNNY CAR for John Force Racing – Maple Grove Raceway Winner’s Press Conference:
YOUR THIRD WIN OF THE SEASON, 64TH CAREER WIN AND IN YOUR 100TH FINAL ROUND AND SECOND STRAIGHT WIN AT MAPLE GROVE. A WILD WEEKEND THIS WEEKEND WITH SO MANY VARIABLES, TALK ABOUT YOUR WEEKEND…“It was (pretty special). Leaving Brainerd, I felt we kind of got this car back in order and where it needed to be. You’ve got to give credit to NHRA. Those guys work so hard this weekend to give us a race track, and you’re fighting Mother Nature. That’s pretty tough to do, but they did a great job. This track was throw down. It was as good as you could get. It’s tricky when it gets like that. It wants to shake. If you don’t after it, it’s going to shake and come loose. In the final, it rattled. It got my attention. I thought ‘Oh, no.” It went through it and made a great run. But NHRA deserves, and the Safety Safari deserves, a big pat on the back for this weekend. Now they’ve got to truck on down the road to Charlotte and get ready to do it again. Our car is running good right at the right time. It’s hard to get too excited about this. We did exactly what we needed to do this weekend, but it’s hard to get too excited because we came in here last year and won here and didn’t get it done in the end. We’ve got to stay focused and move on to Charlotte. We’ll put this one behind us; hopefully, we learned some things that’ll help us in Charlotte. I haven’t even looked at the weather or what that’s going to be. We’ll keep our heads down because it’s not getting any easier. This win, I knocked off from the second round to the final three Countdown contenders. You go up there against Chad Green, you don’t lay-up. That car has ran a lot of 80’s this weekend. To knock off (Matt) Hagan and (Ron) Capps, it can go the other way. The Hagan race, that was one of the closest races in history, maybe, in Funny Car. That’s insane. We can’t get too carried away yet. We’ve got to go win some more races. My opinion is, you’re going to have to win at least three in the Countdown, maybe four, if you want to be the champ in the end.” YOU SAID YOU FELT THE CAR RATTLE. WAS THAT EARLY IN THE RUN, OR AT THE END?“Probably at 100 feet it had a little right, right in ‘the nervous area,’ the ‘shake zone.’ It was a little nervous, but it went through it. Jimmy (Prock) was really trying to pick it up from the previous run. It ran an 86 and we ran 85 in the final. I probably rolled it in a hundredth. So, maybe, it ran 84 in the final. Job well done. I’m kind of bummed Cornwell had to leave. This is their first win with us in Funny Car, and we’ve been so close this year and didn’t get it done for them. Wish they could’ve been here to celebrate. Those guys work really hard to behind the scenes to build great tools. They deserve trophies and an ‘atta boy’ for standing behind us.” WHEN YOU HAVE A WIN LIKE THAT, YOU GET THE WALLY TODAY. HOW DO YOU KEEP THE TEAM FOCUSED AND LEARNING MORE TO THE NEXT TRACK?“You have to stay humble and you have to remind them it could’ve went either. A race that close could go either direction. If just anything was off, the driver or the car, anything, it goes the other way and he gets the win, and he may be sitting here with the points lead. You can use that as a little confidence, but you have to put it behind you and keep (at it). We have to work hard. This is the toughest Funny Car has ever been and, like I said, it’s going to take some major, major work to win this championship. One down, five to go. I’d give us an A+ for the weekend, but we’ve got to put it behind us.” THIS IS TWO IN A ROW FOR YOU AT MAPLE GROVE. WHAT’S BEEN THE KEY TO YOUR SUCCESS AT THIS TRACK SPECIFICALLY?“The conditions are always good. Great racing surface, great racetrack. Love seeing the fans here and the stands full. This place is amazing, and there is a lot of history here. Love coming back here to the East Coast and race. One of the things I regret in my career is I never go to win Englishtown, another great track with a lot of history. Luckily now, I’ve got to win this quite a few times. The fans are great. We’ve tested here before and it got us out of a funk when we were fighting for a championship, so I love this place. Everything about it.” WHAT’S THE MINDSET ON A MONDAY, STOPPING AND STARTING YESTERDAY. HOW DO YOU GET READY ON A MONDAY SITUATION LIKE THIS?“It’s hard to do. Yesterday, we were in and out of the car three or four times with the rain. You don’t just get in one of these cars and get suited up, belted in, and go up there and make a run. You’ve got to get mentally prepared. You can’t overdo it and get too ramped up, but you have to be on the ragged edge to cut a light and get this thing down a racetrack. So, this rollercoaster of ups and downs all day long, you know, I was exhausted last night. You’ve got to stick with it. You have to do the same things you did today, tomorrow. It worked out. It’s like starting first round again. You have to think overnight about your opponent, and my opponent was Ron Capps. That’s a lot to think about. His car is running well, he’s a good driver. He’s the defending champ. I think I’ve won Maple Grove one other time on a Monday. It’s not the same when you win and there’s not a huge crowd and a bunch of fans here. Usually, you look at the winners circle and there’s thousands of people, but a win is a win.” MATT HARTFORD, DRIVER OF THE TOTAL SEAL CHEVROLET CAMARO SS PRO STOCK CAR for KB Titan Racing – Maple Grove Raceway Winner’s Press Conference:TAKING THE POINTS LEAD FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HIS CAREER, YOU PICKED UP THE SECOND STRAIGHT VICTORY, THIRD WIN THIS SEASON AND EIGHT CAREER WINS. COMING OFF INDY, YOU WENT THROUGH A LOT TO GET HERE. HOW REWARDING IS THIS WIN?“The last week and a half has not been fun until today. It’s not every day you come off of a win, and the next thing you know a couple of days later, you’re getting put out and they’re gutting you in three places taking your appendix out. Not that it’s a huge surgery, but still you’re going under the knife. Trying to explain to the doctor that I’m getting into a racecar, and they’re discussing that I’m not, I’m saying I am, it’s just up to you to decide how comfortable I am going to be getting into the race car. So, we got through all of that and I got my wife convinced I was still going to Reading, and that I wasn’t going to work on the car, well, our car didn’t run after Q1. So, all I did was work on the car all weekend. Our team worked harder this weekend than we have in years. It was a grueling weekend for everyone. Emotions were high. The FOX video of my wife is awesome. We’re going to have to figure out what that tantrum was called. Our team pulled together. Eddie Guarnaccia, Chris Ingleson, Adam Basham, Amber, my wife, we all pulled together. Jerry Haas, our engine builder and truck driver, they all never gave up faith. He said we were the car to beat. Luckily, things went our way. We had a good, nice, break in Round 2. Got through that to get to the semifinals, and we had a really good car today.” NOW YOU’RE ON A STREAK. HOW DOES THIS FEEL KNOWING WITH FIVE RACES LEFT IN THE SEASON?“I said last week at Indy there were 24 more win lights we need this year, and now there are 20. We’re not giving up. We’ve got a great car. I don’t think we have the quickest car in this type of air and these types of conditions. It’s obvious other cars were definitely correcting better than in the past in these conditions. We’re going into Charlotte which is going to be a lot different of conditions, track conditions for sure. I think we have a car that’s good in all conditions. If I keep doing my job and keep my head on straight, I think we walk out of here with a white hat after five more races.” WAS IT EVER A QUESTION THAT YOU COULDN’T RACE THIS WEEK BECAUSE OF YOUR APPENDIX, AND HOW WERE YOU FEELING ROLLING INTO THIS WEEKEND?“It was never, in my mind a question. Now, the doctors and my wife have differences of opinions with me, but at that point in time, I did look in the rule book to see what the protocol was on a driver change if possible, but unless it was COVID-related, you couldn’t do it. At that point in time, after the surgery, I told them you’re not even keeping me – I’m going home and starting my recovery. I’m such an idiot three days later, I started going back to work just to keep myself acclimated of what we were going to need to do. But no, there was never a question I was missing Reading.” DID YOU HAVE TO DO ANYTHING PHYSICALLY DIFFERENT THIS WEEKEND?“My answer to everybody was ‘I feel great.’ Got out of the car, my crew chief gave me a hug and said ‘I’ll be gentle,’ and I told him ‘I’m freaking sore.’” WHAT CAN YOU SHARE ABOUT THE CAR ISSUES? ARE YOU ABLE TO SHARE WHAT HAPPENED SATURDAY GOING INTO SUNDAY?“It started in Q1, the car was misfiring during Q1. We were slow for the session. I mean, we went a 54 but that was slow compared to what we thought. In Q2, it shut off when I put it in second gear and lost fuel pressure. Q3 and Q4, I couldn’t even do a burnout because fuel pressure would go to zero as soon as I put load on the engine. We swapped everything in the car every run thinking we had it fixed, proving that we didn’t. I did go to NHRA and ask if we could go offsite to a gentleman to work on the wiring in our car because he had much better lighting than us, and we did. We started to do some test burnouts and were still having the same problem. We continued to work on the car, and we thought we found something that gave us a good indication of what was wrong, and we definitely had an electrical wiring issue in the car. How that came about from Indy to here, we’re still undetermined but we switched everything in the car – fuel pumps, water pumps, starters, wiring, ignition boxes, cutoffs, batteries – all the way back through on Sunday morning when we got here. We were the first team in the pits, and we were here when it was still dark. Swapped everything in the car and went up for Round 1 and said there’s nothing left to switch but the driver.” HOW DOES THIS POINTS LEAD GIVE YOU THE CONFIDENCE HEADING INTO THE FINAL FIVE IN THE COUNTDOWN?“One round at time. We just need to turn on win light after win light. The points will figure out themselves. If we turn on 20 win lights, the points don’t matter.” YOU’VE HAD SUCCESS ON MONDAYS BEFORE. WHAT’S THE MINDSET WHEN YOU GO THROUGH A DAY LIKE YESTERDAY, HAVE TO COME BACK, AND BE ON IT RIGHT AWAY?“That’s a great question. I said this morning when I was pulling in, this is no different than we pull in on a Sunday. I hate first round, because that’s what it was today was first round.”

Round 1 Recap:Top Fuel:No. 2 Brittany Force defeated No. 15 Jacob Opatrny with her run of 3.714 ET at 333.25 MPH to Opatrny’s 4.328 ET at 203.92 MPH.No. 8 Austin Prock fell to No. 9 Tony Schumacher with his pass of 3.716 ET at 329.91 MPH to Schumacher’s 3.701 ET at 330.88 MPH. Funny Car:No. 7 John Force defeated No. 10 Cruz Pedregon with a chase to the win light after both cars smoked the tires mid-track, with Force running 4.657 ET at 277.37 MPH to Pedregon’s 5.432 ET at 131.19 MPH.No. 3 Robert Hight defeated No. 14 Jim Campbell with his run of 3.875 ET at 331.20 MPH to Campbell’s 6.603 ET at 98.93 MPH. Pro Stock:No. 1 Erica Enders defeated No. 16 Val Smeland with her 6.497 ET pass at 210.83 MPH to Smeland’s 6.604 ET at 209.10 MPH.No. 8 Dallas Glenn fell to No. 9 Christian Cuadra with identical ET’s of 6.539 seconds at Glenn’s 208.81 MPH to Cuadra’s 210.31 MPH.No. 4 Greg Anderson fell to No. 13 Matt Hartford with his run of 6.555 ET at 209.46 MPH to Hartford’s 6.535 ET at 209.49 MPH.No. 5 Deric Kramer fell to No. 12 Camrie Caruso with his pass of 10.932 ET at 82.16 MPH to Caruso’s 6.537 ET at 209.36 MPH.No. 2 Troy Coughlin, Jr. defeated No. 15 Eric Latino with his run of 6.512 ET at 210.08 MPH to Latino’s 17.594 ET at 76.83 MPH facing issues on his run.No. 7 Bo Butner, III defeated No. 10 Fernando Cuadra, Jr. with his run of 6.556 ET at 210.64 MPH to Cuadra, Jr.’s 6.547 ET at 210.08 MPH.No. 3 Aaron Stanfield defeated No. 14 Chris McGaha with his pass of 6.524 ET at 210.90 MPH to McGaha’s 6.583 ET at 209.79 MPH.No. 6 Kyle Koretsky defeated No. 11 Jerry Tucker with a pass of 6.531 ET at 209.07 MPH to Tucker’s 6.557 ET at 209.04 MPH. Round 2:Top Fuel:B. Force fell to Pruett with her pass of 3.678 ET at 317.05 MPH to Pruett’s 3.744 ET at 324.20 MPH. Funny Car:J. Force fell to Capps on his run of 3.953 ET at 328.62 MPH to Capps’ 3.899 ET at 326.40 MPH.Hight defeated Hagan with his pass of 3.852 ET at 327.66 MPH to Hagan’s 3.859 ET at 335.48 MPH. Pro Stock:Enders defeated Cuadra with her run of 6.503 ET at 210.24 MPH to Cuadra’s 6.555 ET at 209.95 MPH.Hartford defeated Caruso with his pass of 6.542 ET at 209.30 MPH to Caruso’s 6.624 ET at 186.77 MPH.Coughlin, Jr. defeated Butner, III on a run of 6.510 ET at 209.62 MPH to Butner’s 6.545 ET at 208.75 MPH.Stanfield fell to Koretsky on his pass of 6.525 ET at 209.36 MPH to Koretsky’s 6.537 ET at 208.65 MPH. Semifinals:Funny Car:Hight defeated Capps after Capps smoked the tires to Hight’s strong 3.861 ET run at 330.31 MPH. Pro Stock:Koretsky defeated Coughlin, Jr. 6.557 ET at 207.27 MPH to Coughlin, Jr.’s 6.547 ET at 209.04 MPH. Hartford defeated Enders after Enders faced issues on the start to Hartford’s 6.541 ET at 208.97 MPH. Finals:Funny Car:Hight defeated Green with his run of 3.854 ET at 330.39 MPH to Green’s 3.928 ET at 327.27 MPH. Pro Stock:Hartford defeated Koretsky with his pass of 6.532 ET at 208.91 MPH to Koretsky’s 7.133 ET at 208.26 MPH.

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ROBERT HIGHT AND CORNWELL TOOLS TAKE POINTS LEAD WITH WIN AT MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

READING, Pa. (Sept. 18, 2023) – After rain delayed the completion of the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway to Monday morning, Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools / AAA Chevrolet Camaro SS team made the day count with their third win of the season, second consecutive at the facility and a jump into the points lead.
Hight and the Cornwell Tools Chevy had already gotten through Jim Campbell and Matt Hagan in the first two rounds of racing on Sunday. They came into the semifinals to face reigning world champion Ron Capps. The Cornwell Tools Camaro had a smooth ride down Maple Grove Raceway recording a 3.861-second pass at 330.31 mph while Capps smoked the tires almost immediately to cross the finish line at 11.331 and only 59.00.
In Hight’s 100th career final round, he’d handle the Cornwell Tools Chevy to a 3.854-second pass at 330.39 mph to defeat Chad Green’s 3.928 at 327.27.
““This Cornwell Tools car is running right at the right time. We did exactly what we needed to do this weekend. But it’s hard to get too excited about it because we won here last year and we didn’t get it done in the end. We have to stay focused and move on to Charlotte,” Hight said. “It’s not getting any easier. This win, from the second round to the final, we knocked down three contenders. You go up there against Chad Green you don’t lay up. That car ran a lot of 3.80’s this weekend. You knock off Hagan and Capps…the Hagan race, that was one of the closest races, maybe in the history of Funny Car. That’s insane. We can’t get too carried away yet. We have to go win some more races. My opinion is, in this Countdown, you’re going to have to win three races, maybe four if you’re going to be the champion.
“I’m a bit bummed that all the Cornwell Tools employees and dealers had to leave. This is their first win on the side of my Funny Car. We’ve been so close this year and didn’t get it done for them,” Hight continued. “I wish they could have been here to celebrate. I’m going to give this trophy and buy another one. It’s going back to Van Wert and Mogadore. their two factories because those guys work really hard behind the scenes to build great tools and they’re also excited about this program. They deserve some trophies and an ‘attaboy’ for this win.”
With the win, Hight and the Cornwell Tools / AAA shifted into the No. 1 spot in the points standings just three points in front of Capps in second with five events left in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship. Brittany Force and the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac team finish the weekend in the No. 6 spot, Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragster team are sitting No. 8 and John Force in the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS are No. 9.
To catch Monday’s racing action from the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway, tune into FOX Sports 1 (FS1) at 9:30 p.m. ET.
The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series continues its NHRA Countdown to the Championship next weekend at zMAX Dragway with the betway NHRA Carolina Nationals Sept. 22-24.-30-

Photo Credit: Gary Nastase, Auto Imagery

Unofficial NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Championship Points Standings
TOP FUEL – 1. Justin Ashley, 2182; 2. Steve Torrence, 2179; 3. Doug Kalitta, 2163; 4. Leah Pruett, 2135; 5. Antron Brown, 2133; 6. Brittany Force, Monster Energy/FLAV-R-PAC dragster, 2118; 7. Mike Salinas, 2064; 8. Austin Prock, Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster, 2058; 9. Tony Schumacher, 2055; 10. Clay Millican, 2050; 11. Shawn Langdon, 2048; 12. Josh Hart, 2031. FUNNY CAR – 1. Robert Hight, Cornwell Tools/AAA Chevy Camaro SS, 2197; 2. Ron Capps, 2194; 3. Bob Tasca III, 2155; 4. Matt Hagan, 2146; 5. Chad Green, 2132; 6. Alexis DeJoria, 2100; 7. J.R. Todd, 2090; 8. Tim Wilkerson, 2076; 9. John Force, PEAK Coolant and Antifreeze Chevy Camaro SS, 2068; 10. Cruz Pedregon, 2032; 11. Alex Laughlin, 2021.

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KALITTA EARNS 50th CAREER WIN AT MAPLE GROVE

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

Toyota continues Top Fuel dominance with sixth consecutive category victory

MOHNTON, Pa. (September 18, 2023) – Doug Kalitta earned his long-awaited 50th career win in an extended Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway by taking home the Wally Trophy in Top Fuel. The milestone victory also came in Kalitta’s 110th career final round appearance.

Now third in the Top Fuel points standings, Kalitta defeated fellow Toyota competitor Steve Torrence in a hotly contested final Monday afternoon after final runs of the event were postponed due to inclement weather. Kalitta‘s Top Fuel victory earns Toyota its sixth consecutive win in the category, which began at Pacific Raceways in Seattle earlier this season. Toyota drivers have now won 15 Wally Trophies across Top Fuel and Funny Car in 2023.

In Funny Car, Ron Capps advanced to the weekend’s semifinals where he came up short against eventual event winner, Robert Hight. Capps heads to zMAX Dragway in Charlotte this week second in the Funny Car points standings, looking for a repeat victory in the Carolina Nationals as his push continues for a second consecutive Funny Car title.

Toyota Post-Race Recap

NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series

Maple Grove Raceway

Race 16 of 21

TOYOTA TOP FUEL FINISHING POSITIONS

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Doug Kalitta	Mac Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Winner	W 3.658 v. 3.783 (J. Hart) W 3.692 v. 3.733 (S. Langdon) Holeshot Win 3.684 v. 3.677 (L. Pruett) W 3.662 v. 3.695(S. Torrence)
Steve Torrence	Capco Contractors Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Finalist	W 3.701 v. 3.789 (M. Salinas) W 3.690 v. 3.728 (A. Brown) W 3.685 v. 4.420 (T. Schumacher) L 3.695 v. 3.662(D. Kalitta)
Justin Ashley	Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W 6.496 v. No Run (S. Farley) L 3.707 v. 3.716 (Holeshot Win – T. Schumacher)
Antron Brown	Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W 3.758 v. 3.771 (D. Foley) L 3.728 v. 3.690(S. Torrence)
Shawn Langdon	Kalitta Air Careers Toyota Top Fuel Dragster	Second Round	W 3.723 v. 6.159 (D. Mercier) L 3.733 v. 3.692 (D. Kalitta)

TOYOTA FUNNY CAR FINISHING POSITIONS

Name	Car	Final Result	Round-by-Round
Ron Capps	NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Semi-Finals	W 3.903 v. 6.589 (D. Richards) W 3.899 v. 3.953 (J. Force) L 11.331 v. 3.861 (R. Hight)
Alexis DeJoria	Bandero Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	Second Round	W 3.879 v. 4.864 (B. Alexander) L 3.904 v. 3.867 (B. Tasca III)
J.R. Todd	DHL Toyota GR Supra Funny Car	First Round	L 3.930 v. 3.871 (M. Hagan)

TOYOTA QUOTES

DOUG KALITTA, Mac Tools Toyota Top Fuel Dragster, Kalitta Motorsports

TF Final Result: Winner

It’s been 1,079 days since your last win. How much did you miss the elation of winning?

“Yeah, this is huge. Connie (Kalitta, team owner) has always had my back. I love and appreciate that guy and how much he does for the three cars we have out here. Getting a win with Alan Johnson (crew chief) has been huge on my list. Can’t thank Brian Husen (co-crew chief), Mac Tools, Toyota and all of the distributors with Mac Tools enough for continuing to support this effort. It’s a great way to start the Countdown to the Championship. Apparently, this car wanted to get off the trailer and prove what it could do. I’m really fortunate to have the guys build a car like this.”

RON CAPPS, NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra Funny Car, Ron Capps Motorsports

FC Final Result: Semi-finals

How would you describe the day and weekend overall?

“Well, if the event in Maple Grove Raceway is any indication on how the Countdown to the Championship is, it’s going to be one heck of a ride. Obviously, we had a great weekend qualifying second. Guido (Dean Antonelli, crew chief) and our NAPA Auto Parts team did a great job going down the track all four runs. We put great times on the board and great speeds. Unfortunately,we didn’t get to the final round, and we had to wait until Monday, which is tough on teams, especially on back-to-back weekends like we have here and then in Charlotte. But, that’s why I brag about the get-up-and-go of our team. We never quit. We got through some tough rounds to get to the semifinals, and it’s a great start to the Countdown. If we can’t win, we can get solid points from a weekend like this. I’m looking forward to getting back on track here in a few days back at the zMAX Carolina Nationals. It’s going to be a busy weekend for us, obviously with a lot of our Toyota folks being there, so I’m looking forward to showing off for them. Being the returning champion of the race, it’s nice to roll back into the event with that and the staff over there know how to treat the racers, so looking forward to that.”

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TRIPLE DOUBLE: McDermand Wins at Red Hill, Third Back-to-Back Win of 2023

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

Avedisian takes points lead by 11 over McIntosh heading into championship weekend SUMNER, IL (Sept. 17, 2023) – With the season winding down, Chase McDermand is heating up at exactly the right time. The 23-year-old from Springfield, IL, notched his second Feature win in two races with the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series presented by Toyota Sunday night in Midget racing’s return to Red Hill Raceway for the first time in 20 years, passing Taylor Reimer early on and holding off all challenges to score his sixth Series victory of the year. The win comes in he and Mounce/Stout Motorsports’ time of great need as they continue to mount a late-season push for the Series championship. Coming into the weekend 118 points out of first place, a perfect night gone wrong in the Feature on Friday set them back to 150 points down. After wins on Saturday and Sunday, McDermand now sits 100 points out with three races left and a shot at the points title. Despite the steep deficit, he’s still keeping the faith. “It’s better late than never, I guess,” he said with a chuckle about his late-season success. “We just try to carry as much momentum as we can when we have it. In racing, sometimes it’s kind of hard to grasp that momentum, and you’ve gotta cling to it as much as you can for as long as you can. You just never know how long it’s gonna be with you.” The momentum was running high on Sunday as the field took to the fast, 4/10-mile of Red Hill Raceway for 25 laps. From the outside pole, Reimer jumped out to the early lead and looked to be in contention for her first win of the season, but McDermand was quickly on her trail. From sixth on the grid, McDermand had jumped all the way to second in only three laps. Reimer was never able to completely break away from the field, and by Lap 7, McDermand was right on her heels. He looked high, he looked low. McDermand tried multiple different avenues to get around the #25K but was finally able to make the move after Reimer stumbled out of Turn 2 on Lap 10. McDermand swung it down low off the corner, drag raced her down the backstretch and threw a slide job into Turn 3 to take the spot. “I had a good enough run down the backstretch,” McDermand said. “It took a couple of times for me to get the right line in Turns 3-4 to be able to pull the pass off completely.” “It’s so tough [leading] on tracks that are this big – it’s all about momentum,” Reimer said. “Turns 1-2, you definitely need to be around the top. I didn’t know that because I was out front, so it’s kinda hard to gauge where you need to be.” Reimer did not go away quietly, however. She moved up to the top lane and caught back up to McDermand, hounding him for several laps, but was unable to find the speed she needed to make the pass. “I just didn’t have the momentum that he did in the drive off,” Reimer said. McDermand soon put Reimer in the rearview and drove the rest of the caution-free main event unchallenged to bag his third back-to-back victory of the season. Each of his six wins this season have come in back-to-back form, in three different states – Kansas in May, Pennsylvania in August and now his home state of Illinois in September. Six wins gives McDermand sole possession of the winningest driver on tour this year and ties him with Jade Avedisian as the Series’ all-time winnigest driver at seven career victories. The wins keep coming, and his confidence keeps rising as the team heads into championship weekend in Oklahoma next month. “We just have to focus on winning, and that’s no different than any other race,” McDermand said. “We always show up to win, but if you’re able to win, it takes care of the rest. You know you’ve done all you can do.” Reimer crossed the stripe with the runner-up spot, but not without a strong challenge from Zach Daum in the final laps. Daum came from seventh on the grid and found his bread-and-butter lane on the bottom, catching all the way up to Reimer and nearly passing her in the final laps. Despite the pressure, Reimer was able to hold off the defending champion for her seventh podium finish of the season. Though she’s not in contention for the points championship, she is focused on winning her first race this year as the season wraps up next month in her home state of Oklahoma. “I know we have the car and I have the ability to win, it’s just whether or not I’m able to put together a whole night,” Reimer said. “I’m looking forward to getting back to my home track at Port City. It would be really awesome if I could get a win there; it would mean a lot to me.” Daum crossed the stripe in third to collect his ninth top-five finish in the last 10 Series races. Jade Avedisian crossed in fourth – two spots ahead of Cannon McIntosh – giving her sole control of the Series points lead by 11 heading into championship weekend, where she’ll aim to clinch her first national Midget championship with Keith Kunz Motorsports. NEXT RACES Championship weekend for the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series consists of a three-race weekend in Oklahoma, starting with a trip to Port City Raceway on Thursday (Oct. 12), and the final two races at I-44 Riverside Speedway on Friday-Saturday (Oct. 13-14). All three races will be co-sanctioned with the POWRi National Midget League, who will also crown a season champion along with an Xtreme Outlaw-POWRi Challenge Series champion on Saturday night. Tickets for all three events will be available at the gate on race day. If you can’t be there to watch in person, stream every lap live on DIRTVision. ABBREVIATED RESULTS (view full results) Feature (25 Laps): 1. 40-Chase McDermand[6]; 2. 25K-Taylor Reimer[2]; 3. 7U-Zach Daum[7]; 4. 71-Jade Avedisian[4]; 5. 97-Gavin Miller[5]; 6. 08-Cannon McIntosh[3]; 7. 1K-Brayton Lynch[1]; 8. 7X-Thomas Meseraull[8]; 9. 97K-Cooper Williams[10]; 10. 81-Dekota Gay[11]; 11. 19AZ-Hayden Reinbold[9]; 12. 31K-Alex Midkiff[12]; 13. 31B-Kyle Beilman[13]

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Cadillac at Indy: Back to the front in title chase

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

Cadillac V-Series.Rs finish fourth, seventh in 2-hour, 40-minute race at IMS

Updates Cadillac Racing place in the GTP Manufacturer Championship standings.
INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 17, 2023) – From a 17-point gap to the championship lead, the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.R will look to wrap up the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Grand Touring Prototype title Oct. 14 at the Motul Petit Le Mans.

No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac V-Series.RPipo Derani: “I’m proud of the whole team. After missing practice 1 and to be in position to lead the race, we fought hard to bring home a solid finish for the championship. We moved up the grid from P8 to P4 and back in the championship lead. Obviously, not the race result we were looking for when we arrived here. We always want to win, but if you can’t win you always try to get your best finish. Considering how we started the weekend, it was a very good effort. Thank you to our Whelen team, Cadillac Racing for always fighting hard.”
Alexander Sims: “Honestly, from where we started, the end was pretty good. The middle of the race it was looking pretty rosy the was the strategy played out. Ultimately, we didn’t quite have the long-run pace of the guys up front. When I got in we were fourth and we finished fourth. I didn’t have the strongest of stints and there is work to do to keep improving. Nevertheless, we go into the last race in a good position and as always in IMSA it’s pretty exciting down to the end. I’m looking forward to it.”

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ROBERT HIGHT AND CORNWELL TOOLS CONTINUE BATTLE FOR REPEAT WIN AT MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

READING, Pa. (Sept. 17, 2023) – After inclement weather-plagued race day Sunday at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway, racing was delayed to Monday morning. Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools Chevy Camaro SS team will continue their event defense when they face off with reigning world champion Ron Capps in the semifinals.
John Force in the PEAK Antifreeze and Coolant Chevy Camaro SS and Brittany Force in the Monster Energy / Flav-R-Pac Chevy dragster had a quarterfinal finish and Austin Prock in the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team had a first-round exit.
Coming in as the No. 2 qualifier, Robert Hight and the Cornwell Tools Chevy continued to keep up their performance with the quickest pass of the round at 3.875 seconds and 331.20 mph to defeat Jim Campbell and his 6.603 at 98.93 after driving into tire smoke. In the second round, Hight had a monster matchup against Matt Hagan with huge points implications. Hight and the Cornwell Tools Chevy laid down a 3.852 pass at 327.66 to defeat Hagan’s 3.859 at 335.48 and move around him in the points standings. His win lines the Cornwell Tools team to take on Ron Capps in the semifinals.
“It’s been a good weekend for the Cornwell Tools team. The weather was unfortunate, thought we might have gotten it done. We’ll just be ready to get the job done on Monday,” Hight said. “Looking forward to racing Capps in the semifinals, we’ll just keep running our race. We were trying to run 3.85 in qualifying and it didn’t cooperate, so we’ve stepped it up. There’s been some pretty stout racing so far. Getting passed Hagan in the second round, those are the type of opportunities we have to take advantage of.”
John Force and the PEAK Chevy made their way out of the first round of eliminations thanks to a 4.657-second pass at 277.37 mph after a pedal fest against longtime rival Cruz Pedregon. Pedregon wouldn’t be able to get his hot rod to hook back up for only a 5.432 pass at 131.19. Force wouldn’t be as lucky in the second round. The PEAK Chevy would run a 3.953 at 328.62 and come up short to Ron Capps and his 3.899 at 326.40. Force will end the first race of the Countdown in the No. 9 points position.
“Shorter weekend than we wanted for this PEAK Chevy. Have to thank the fans for packing it in here and the owners the Koretsky Family, great event, sold out days. We dodged some of the rain, NHRA worked hard to try to get it all done,” Force said. “We’ll be ready for next weekend, heading to Charlotte. Still have a shot, just need a couple good days.”
Brittany Force and the Monster Energy team started their championship defense with a first-round win over Top Fuel newcomer Jacob Opatrny. Force would have a solid 3.714-second pass at 333.25 mph to defeat Opatrny who put a cylinder out for a 4.328 pass at 203.92. In the second round, Force and the Monster Energy team would come up short with a 3.768 at 317.05 after putting a hole out, giving Leah Pruett and her 3.744 at 324.20 the win. Force, who entered the weekend in the No. 5 points position, now leaves sitting …
“Leaving Maple Grove Raceway in the sixth position after a second-round exit. We qualified No. 2, picked up eight bonus points and are still well within the championship fight,” Force said. “Looking at our season as a whole to now coming into the Countdown, we made some good progress this weekend. It’s still anybody’s game this early on and this team will fight it out until the end. We are ready to get to Charlotte and see what this team can do.”
Austin Prock and the Montana Brand team had their first race of the Countdown to the Championship cut short in the first round. Prock would handle the Montana Brand machine to a clean 3.716-second pass at 328.91 mph that just wasn’t enough for eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher’s 3.701 at 330.88.
“Not the day we expected for this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team. Dropped a couple cylinders down track and just didn’t have enough for the first-round win,” Prock said. “We’re keeping our heads up. We know that with just one good weekend we can be right back in it. Luckily we get to turn around in just a couple days and go at it again in Charlotte.”
Racing at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway will be completed Monday at 10 a.m. Racing action will be on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) at 9:30 p.m. ET.
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ASHLEY RACES TO QUARTERFINALS AT PEP BOYS NHRA NATIONALS

September 19, 2023 ARP Trish

READING, PA (September 17, 2023) — Entering the 2023 NHRA Countdown as the No. 1 seed Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota team ran to the No. 1 qualifier position at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals. On Friday night Ashley posted the quickest time of two days of qualifying, a solid 3.687 second pass and went into race day with a first round match up against No. 16 qualifier Scott Farley. Ashley picked up three qualifying bonus points and had lane choice over Farley.

The NHRA moved the start time for the race up to 9:30 a.m. ET and Ashley’s team was ready to go when they pulled up to the water box. The Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel team fired up and began their pre-race routine, but Farley’s team was unable to fire their 11,000-horsepowered Top Fuel dragster. Ashley was awarded a competition bye. The six-time winner this season launched and powered down the left lane before he hazed the tires and coasted across the finish line for the win light with a 6.496 second pass at 91.75 mph.
Justin Ashley and Phillips Connect Toyota dragster, photo credit Gary Nastase/Auto Imagery
The win propelled Ashley to a race with the eight-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher. This season Ashley was 3-0 in his head-to-head races against Schumacher, but he gave up lane choice in the second round. When the dragsters launched it was Schumacher getting off the line first, but Ashley was right beside him flying down the track. Unfortunately, the starting line deficit was too much to overcome and Ashley’s quicker 3.707 second run wasn’t enough to get to the stripe first. At the top end Ashley was complimentary of his opponent but also focused on the overall goals for the team.

“That team deserved to win and Tony did a great job, I’m really happy for them,” said Ashley, who leads the category in reaction time average. “They’ve been struggling all year, but this is a part of racing. It’s disappointing but this sport has so many ups and downs. We get that and we understand that it’s a six-race countdown. There’s plenty of time to win this championship. I apologized to my team, I let us down there but that’s okay. We’ll be fine this Phillips Connect team has been doing such an outstanding job so we’ll put these Mac Tools back to work, and we’ll see everyone in Charlotte.”

Last season Ashley raced his way into the point lead during the Countdown but did not walk away with the championship ultimately finishing fourth for the second season in a row. The fourth-year driver and team owner is leaning on that experience to move past this race.

“Experience helps both on and off the racetrack,” said Ashley. “We will make sure that we’re set with all our parts and pieces. Our approach is not going to change. We’re gonna continue to do the same thing week in and week out just because we are in the countdown doesn’t mean we’re hyper-focused or we are changing anything that we’re doing. We’re just going to stay within our approach and stay within ourselves. The points will take care of themselves.”

Rain halted eliminations one pair into the Top Fuel semifinals with Doug Kalitta advancing to the final round and Steve Torrence versus Tony Schumacher still left to race. As of tonight, with five races left in the Countdown Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota team are sitting No. 1 in the point standings. The eventual outcome of this race could drop the six-time 2023 winner to No. 2. They will be back on track in five days at the Betway Nationals from zMax Dragway, September 22-24.

Qualifying Results
Q1: 5.934 sec, 106.88 mph; Qual. 11
Q2: 3.687 sec, 335.57 mph; Qual. 1
Q3: 3.756 sec, 332.06 mph; Qual. 1
Q4: 3.732sec, 332.18 mph; Qual. 1
Bonus Points: +3 (Quickest of Q2)

Race Results

First RoundJustin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster, (.062), 6.496, 91.75 mph def. Scott Farley, ScottRod Racing dragster, Did Not Run Second RoundTony Schumacher, SCAG dragster, (.025), 3.716, 329.26 mph def. Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster, (.049), 3.707, 333.41 mph

ARP Racing News

Category Archives: Uncategorized

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