The Main EventSanta Pod RacewayThu.26 – Sun.29 May 2022
Three stories illuminate the feast of motorcycle drag racing promised for The Main Event at Santa Pod Raceway, 26^th-29^th May: 

• It may be the last time that Eric Teboul’s astounding, 280mph rocket bike traverses the Santa Pod quarter-mile
• Hans-Henrik Thomsen aims to make his world’s quickest electric bike the world’s fastest too
• Europe’s quickest, fastest wheel-driven motorcycles will meet up again for the first time since 2019.

It’s not the first time that Eric Teboul has threatened to retire his hydrogen-peroxide rocket-powered bike but this might just be the last time he makes the long haul from southern France to amaze the crowds at Santa Pod. At 5.19 seconds and 281mph over the quarter-mile, it is the quickest-accelerating two-wheeler ever seen. 
Battery power has a more obvious practical future than rocket propulsion and the first time Denmark’s Hans-Henrik Thomsen brought his electric bike to Santa Pod, in 2020, he set a new world record for elapsed time at 6.869sec. Last year he lowered it to 6.740sec in Sweden. Now he eyes the 201.37mph terminal speed record set 10 years ago by American Larry McBride, and matched coincidentally on four wheels earlier this year by another American, Steve Huff. In drag racing’s sound world, an electrical whirr and the squeal of rubber on concrete count as pure silence, but stand by for plentiful noise if Thomsen scores his goal. This won’t just be the quickest, fastest quarter-mile electric bike on the planet, but the quickest, fastest electric vehicle full stop. 
On the competitive racing front – and at the louder end of the sound spectrum – there’s a first confrontation since 2019 promised for the quickest and fastest nitro-burning Top Fuel Bikes in Europe. Sweden’s speed record-holder Rickard Gustafsson (250.55mph) takes on Britain’s multi-championship-winning Puma bike (5.662 seconds) newly piloted by Neil Midgley. Veteran racer Midgley dipped straight into the 5-second zone on his first outing on the bike last month. Gustafsson makes his first Santa Pod appearance since Covid took hold. The pair won’t have the limelight all to themselves. Seven other TF Bike entrants will jostle to steal the show. 
For those who prefer bass notes to their bike racing, five thumping nitro SuperTwin Bikes visit from Europe, again for the first time since 2019. Meanwhile, there’s a new intensity to the gunfire crackle of SuperStreet Bikes’ spooling turbos. Road-going motorcycles to all appearances, even lacking the customary wheelie bars, these phenomenal machines can clock 6-second passes at over 200mph. Last season Steve Venables found fellow Britons Jake Mechaell and Alan Morrison Jr. emerging to challenge his longtime pack leadership. Now Hungary’s Dániel Lencés has raised his game with a new bike from America and promptly set new ACU record figures of 6.776sec/218.97mph. With Lencés absent at the last race, Mechaell beat Venables in the final, 6.872sec to 6.873. SuperStreet Bike alone is worth the price of admission. 
Alongside these highlights, The Main Event provides a complete, four-day programme of championship drag racing, on four wheels as well as on two, across the full array of classes ranging from the kids racing Junior Dragsters and Junior Bikes to the grown-up, 10,000-horsepower Top Fuel Dragsters. 
The Main Event takes place from Thursday 26^th to Sunday 29^th May 2022 at Santa Pod Raceway near Wellingborough NN29 7XA. Detailed event information is available at https://santapod.co.uk/main-event.php . Pre-book tickets online at https://santapodtickets.com/p/mainevent or by telephoning the Box Office at 01234 782828. There is no admission on the gate. Adult prices begin at £20 and children aged 5-15 cost £5 per day. 

Franklin, TENNESSEE – May 10, 2022 – After the trials and tribulations of the Spring doubleheader in California, the Franklin Road Apparel Showtime Motorsports team now head back to the East coast for Round 6 of the 2022 Trans Am presented by Pirelli Championship season. The team is keen to get back in the action in what will hopefully be calmer waters. Lime Rock Park in Connecticut is the popular venue for a tremendous weekend of muscle car action that runs from May 27 to 30 and is billed as the Trans Am Memorial Day Classic. The Showtime outfit led by Ken Thwaits and his Chevrolet Camaro line-up achieved the notable accomplishment out West of having both TA2 cars finish in the top ten. Cameron Lawrence emerged from the Golden State in P5 out of 45 competitors in the overall Driver’s Championship with 90 points, just one point behind fourth placed Thomas Merrill, five points behind Tyler Kicera who is in P3 and seven points behind Mike Skeen, who lies in second. Meanwhile team principal and driver Ken Thwaits is having his own battle with Amy Ruman for third place in the TA Class Driver’s Championship. Chief rival and two-time former Champion Amy Ruman is in P3 overall, just two points ahead of Ken. As we near the halfway point of the season we spoke to Ken about the racing so far and his hopes for the rest of the year, “It’s been a real roller coaster ride! We got our first ever win in TA with Paul Menard at Charlotte so that was great, really special. Cameron is doing great in TA2. He was unlucky a couple of times out west but then weren’t we all! I’m sure he’ll be right back on form at Lime Rock. He won there in TA2 in 2014 driving a Dodge so he has great memories of the place.” About his own season behind the wheel Ken added, “I’ve really enjoyed the competition this year, racing with legendary guys like Greg Pickett, and former Champions like Tomy [Drissi] and Amy. Things haven’t always gone my way but looking at the results I’ve got three podiums from five races and if you’d offered me that at the start of the season, I’d have taken it.” About the upcoming weekend at Lime Rock Park Ken added, “It’s just me and Cameron racing at Lime Rock and hopefully we’ll get a clear run. We want good, clean, exciting racing.” The 1.53-mile Lime Rock track was first thought of in 1956, the brainchild of Jim Vaill, who, along with John Fitch and Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory, built the track utilizing state-of-the-art road and highway safety principles of the time. For years the track was listed as being 1.53 miles in length—the story goes that right after it was built, somebody used the odometer in a Chevrolet to measure the track length—and 1.53 was taken as gospel. Following the 2008 reconstruction, Lime Rock’s operations staff measured all four possible configurations, and as it turns out, each was 1.5 miles long, plus or minus a few hundred feet. The IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship gives the distance of the track as 1.474 miles. Ken first gets on the circuit at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday, May 28, in the morning with practice at 4:15 p.m to follow in the afternoon. The race itself is at 11:55 a.m. on Monday, May 30, since no racing is permitted on Sundays. Cameron will qualify between 5:15 p.m. and 5:45 p.m. on Friday, May 27, with the TA2 Race at 11:50 a.m. on Saturday, May 28. The racing will be screened on the CBS Sports Network the following week. Check local press for details. Tickets are available through this link: https://limerock.com/events/memorial-day-classic/ Discover what everyone is talking about with the Franklin Road Apparel Trans Am clothing here: https://www.franklinroad.com/search/trans+am/ Visit the team’s website for Showtime Motorsports showtimemotorsports.net. Learn more about the Showtime Motorsports team partner, Road Apparel, at franklinroad.com and keep up to date with the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli at gotransam.com. #GoTransAm Check out the Showtime Motorsports Facebook page: facebook.com/showtimemotorsp/ and @ShowtimeMotorsp on Instagram. About Showtime Motorsports:The Showtime Motorsports brand includes Ken Thwaits’ racing team and racecars, and an outstanding classic Camaro collection. Showtime Motorsports brings together a dynamic staff who employ diverse talents and share a passion for cars, racing and caring for clients like they are our own family members.

Inside Line Promotions – FRESNO, Calif. (May 9, 2022) – The Peter Murphy Classic has always been a special event for Dominic Scelzi.

“Peter is a great guy who has meant a lot to me and my racing career,” he said. “We always look forward to racing the Peter Murphy Classic and last year we were able to accomplish something I couldn’t even dream about.”

Scelzi swept the event, winning both the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour feature each night during the doubleheader. He’ll aim for similar success this Friday at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., and Saturday at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif.

“Last year was very special and everything would have to align perfectly to be able to win multiple features let alone sweep all four races this weekend,” he said. “I’ve enjoyed a lot of success in Tulare and Hanford so we’ll go race by race and hopefully be competitive each time we hit the track.”

Scelzi is coming off his 50^th career feature triumph and heads to a pair of tracks where he’s no stranger to Victory Lane. He earned a half-dozen victories at each oval last year.

Additionally, Scelzi enters this weekend leading the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series championship standings after producing podiums during each of the first two races this season.

SEASON STATS –

15 races, 1 win, 7 top fives, 9 top 10s, 12 top 15s, 12 top 20s

UP NEXT –

Friday at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., and Saturday at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif., for the Peter Murphy Classic with the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour

Sent on behalf of 1st Impressions Race Team JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (May 9, 2022) – 1st Impressions Race Team announced today it has signed Chad Cose to compete aboard a Honda CRF450R in the Parts Unlimited AFT Singles presented by KICKER class for the remainder of the 2022 Progressive American Flat Track season. A seat on the four-rider effort opened up following the injury of Michael Lainhart at Texas Motor Speedway. Lainhart suffered a tibial plateau fracture and torn meniscus after colliding with a bike that went down directly in his path and now faces several months of recovery. Despite the disappointing setback, 1st Impressions Race Team was fortunate to land the services of a rider as accomplished and motivated as Cose. The Californian boasts more than a decade of professional experience, during which he has continually improved his racecraft and speed. Over the past five years in particular, Cose has established himself as a genuine front-running force across all three Progressive AFT classes. He took his career to new heights in 2018, earning a first-career premier-class podium finish among his 12 top-ten finishes to secure sixth place in the Grand National Championship. He then took the undercard by storm, winning races in Mission Production Twins presented by Vance & Hines and Parts Unlimited AFT Singles in 2019 while finishing the season ranked inside the top five in both categories. He continued his winning ways in 2020 and 2021, highlighted by championship runner-up honors at the conclusion of his ‘21 Mission Production Twins campaign. In his new position with 1st Impressions Race Team, Cose will focus all his efforts on Parts Unlimited AFT Singles with the goal of securing the team a maiden victory in its third year of competition. Team Owner Eric Hoyt said, “Leading up to this season, (Team Manager) Sandriana (Shipman) and I were set on fielding a four-rider team. Due to the unfortunate injury of Mikey Lainhart at the Texas round, we were left a rider short in our team roster. After discussions with Chad it was agreed that he would be a great full-time addition to the team for the remainder of the season. We are excited to welcome him to the 1st Impressions Race Team.” Five-time Progressive AFT race winner Cose said, “I’m really excited and grateful for the opportunity to race for the 1st Impressions Race Team. I have a great relationship with Eric, and I’m anxious to see what we can do together. I feel they have taken a step forward each year as a team, and I’m confident they will provide me with bikes capable of contending for race wins. “I’m also looking forward to the challenge of racing the singles class. The class is ultra-competitive and full of young talent hungry to win. The whole team has already been super accommodating. It’s pedal to the floor to have us in a really good spot for the Kentucky mile doubleheader.” Cose will make his 1st Impression Race Team debut at the Mission Red Mile Doubleheader presented by Indian Motorcycle of Lexington on May 28-29 in Lexington, Kentucky.

First of 10 World of Outlaws Races in Pennsylvania This Season

ABBOTTSTOWN, PA – May 9, 2022 – Sprint Car racing’s favorite rivalry returns this week as the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series prepares to battle the PA Posse.

The Greatest Show on Dirt is set for three shows over four nights at two of Central Pennsylvania’s finest facilities. It all starts at Abbottstown’s Lincoln Speedway with the DuraMAX/Drydene Gettysburg Clash on Wednesday, May 11, and then transitions to Mechanicsburg’s Williams Grove Speedway with the Morgan Cup on Friday & Saturday, May 13-14.

BUY LINCOLN TICKETS (Wednesday)
BUY WILLIAMS GROVE TICKETS (Fri-Sat)

Here’s what to watch for this weekend on DIRTVision.com:

OUTLAWS VS. POSSE: It’s been a tough go for Central Pennsylvania’s finest over the last few seasons. Of 24 World of Outlaws races on their own turf since 2019, the PA Posse have only scored three victories with Lance Dewease taking two and Brent Marks getting one last year. Over that same span, the Outlaws have claimed 14 victories with outside invaders picking up another seven.

The rivalry reignites for 10 races in 2022 with this week’s trip to Lincoln & Williams Grove, a summer swing to Port Royal & Williams Grove, and then the National Open and Nittany Showdown in the fall.

POSSE POWER: Leading the charge for the PA Posse is a fearsome foursome including Lance Dewease (Fayetteville, PA), Brent Marks (Myerstown, PA), Danny Dietrich (Gettysburg, PA), and Anthony Macri (Dillsburg, PA).

At 17 career World of Outlaws wins, Dewease ranks 33rd on the All-Time Win List but sits even higher when it comes to Williams Grove (1st at 103 wins) and Lincoln (8th at 42 wins). The Fayetteville Flyer was a force to be reckoned with last year and would’ve finished inside the top-seven in all nine Pennsylvania World of Outlaws races if it wasn’t for one mechanical issue in the Kreitz Racing #69K.

Marks is an eight-time World of Outlaws winner with his most recent triumph coming last month in the form of a $20,000 score at Devil’s Bowl (TX). The Myerstown Missile has already won at both Lincoln and Williams Grove this year, and eyes another this week in the Murray-Marks Motorsports #19.

With five World of Outlaws wins, Dietrich is hungry to add a sixth and his first since 2019 at Bridgeport (NJ). He’s beaten the Outlaws at both Lincoln and Williams Grove before and enters as the only multi-time winner of the DuraMAX/Drydene Gettysburg Clash through 11 runnings. In 2022, DD has won four races at Lincoln and currently leads the Williams Grove track standings in the Gary Kauffman #48.

Macri heads into this weekend with the title of winningest Sprint Car driver in 2022. The Concrete Kid has won eight times this season with one victory lane trip each at Lincon and Williams Grove. After 10 top-five finishes, he hopes this is the week he scores his first-career World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series victory in the #39M.

HOME TURF: A quartet of full-time World of Outlaws teams will enjoy racing near home this week as the Series travels to Pennsylvania for the first time in 2022.

Shark Racing of Hanover, PA brings Logan Schuchart and Jacob Allen back home with both teams at the top of their game right now. Schuchart and Allen each own one win this season with Allen banking $15,000 at Lake Ozark (MO) and Schuchart scoring $25,000 at Bristol (TN) last month. The home race is amplified for Schuchart with his partners DuraMAX and Drydene sponsoring Wednesday’s DuraMAX/Drydene Gettysburg Clash.

CJB Motorsports of Carlisle, PA is hauling in Indiana’s Spencer Bayston to race near home for Chad Clemens and Barry Jackson. Bayston is the most recent Series winner with his own $25,000 at Bristol and is also the most recent Outlaw winner in PA with his win at Port Royal last fall.

Brock Zearfoss of Jonestown, PA is back at home base for the Moose’s LZ Bar & Grill #3Z and excited to return to Williams Grove, site of his first-career World of Outlaws win in 2017, as well as James McFadden’s first-career win. Zearfoss owns a trio of other WGS victories to go along with a Lincoln career-best of fourth entering this week.

BIG CAT KRYPTONITE: After winning three consecutive World of Outlaws championships and topping several crown jewel events, Brad Sweet still knew what he wanted to accomplish in this sport: winning at Williams Grove Speedway.

The Grass Valley, CA native has made 49 starts at the Mechanicsburg, PA 1/2-mile with his best result remaining a third-place podium on three occasions in 2016, 2019 & 2020. Overall, his stat line reads as six top-five runs, 22 top-10 results, and an average finish of 12.24, his worst of any track. He’s even led nine laps at the track before, but victory lane has always eluded The Big Cat.

He finally tamed Lincoln last year, and now he hopes this weekend is when he parks the Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49 in Williams Grove victory lane.

TAKING ADVANTAGE: Much like Bristol, Williams Grove offers another prime opportunity for those trailing Brad Sweet in the championship chase to make up some ground. The 36-year-old veteran currently holds a 20-point advantage with 60+ nights remaining, but three promising young superstars are hot on his tail and determined to leave their mark.

Carson Macedo (-20 PTS) enjoyed a breakthrough season last year in the Jason Johnson Racing #41, and they’ve quickly come out of the gates in 2022 to back that up. He leads the league with four World of Outlaws wins this season, and heads for Pennsylvania with momentum from a weekly win at Iowa’s Knoxville Raceway. The Lemoore, CA native was the only driver to top two World of Outlaws races at Williams Grove last year and looks to do it again this weekend.

Behind Donny Schatz’s 21 wins, David Gravel (-30 PTS) is the second-winningest full-time Outlaw at Williams Grove with eight wins to his credit. The Watertown, CT native has won at the 1/2-mile with Roth Motorsports, CJB Motorsports, and Jason Johnson Racing, now he goes for a third win in 2022 aboard the Big Game Motorsports #2.

Sheldon Haudenschild (-68 PTS) checked a Williams Grove win off the bucket list last summer to make him and dad Jac Haudenschild the only father/son duo to score World of Outlaws wins at the track. After winning two of the first four races in 2022, Lil’ Haud has gone through a 13-race dry spell and aims to break that in the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17.

INVADING THE KEYSTONE: The third element of the Outlaws vs. Posse is the invaders, those with no direct affiliation only vying for the cash and the bragging rights. Last year alone, outsiders like Kyle Larson, Kerry Madsen & Spencer Bayston (at the time) rolled into town and walked out with W’s.

Leading the charge for invaders this weekend is a pair of NASCAR Cup Series stars Christopher Bell & Alex Bowman. Bell will trade his Joe Gibbs Racing #20 for the Swindell SpeedLab #39 Sprint Car, while Bowman turns in his Hendrick Motorsports #48 for the Ally Racing #55 Sprint Car.

UNDER THE RADAR: Beyond the most noteworthy names, the PA Posse brings a handful of other stout local competitors to the table when the World of Outlaws comes to town.

Freddie Rahmer of Salfordville, PA owns 19 wins at Lincoln (1 Outlaw win) & 15 wins at Williams Grove. Dylan Norris of Hanover, PA is enjoying a career-year sitting top-five in both track standings to go along with his first win at Williams Grove. Devon Borden of Raymond, WA drives for Central PA legend Mike Heffner and also is top-five in both points with a Williams Grove win as well.

Lucas Wolfe of Mechanicsburg, PA is another winner at both facilities with 22 Williams Grove scores and another six at Lincoln. More names to look for include Chase Dietz of York, PA, Alan Krimes of Denver, PA, Matt Campbell of Fawn Grove, PA, and TJ Stutts of Liverpool, PA, among several others.

WELCOME TO THE RIVALRY: A pair of Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year contenders will officially join the World of Outlaws vs. PA Posse rivalry for the first time this weekend. For Noah Gass, the Mounds, OK 18-year-old will be making his first-ever trip to race in the state of Pennsylvania as he continues learning the ropes.

For Spencer Bayston, the Lebanon, IN 23-year-old is no stranger to the state or the rivalry but now enters with a little extra motivation. His several Pennsylvania wins include beating the Outlaws & Posse at Port Royal, topping the All Stars on Posse ground at Lincoln, and scoring a USAC Midget win at Williams Grove. He heads into this weekend on CJB’s home turf with plenty of momentum from his $25,000 payday in the first win of 2022 at Bristol.

THIS WEEK AT A GLANCE

Wednesday, May 11 at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, PA
Friday-Saturday, May 13-14 at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, PA

On the Internet
World 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/month

CURRENT CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (17/78 Nights):
1. 49-Brad Sweet (2,370 PTS); 2. 41-Carson Macedo (-20 PTS); 3. 2-David Gravel (-30 PTS); 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-68 PTS); 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-102 PTS); 6. 5-Spencer Bayston (-140 PTS); 7. 15-Donny Schatz (-142 PTS); 8. 83-James McFadden (-152 PTS); 9. 1A-Jacob Allen (-224 PTS); 10. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (-292 PTS).

NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (11 Drivers):
4 wins – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41
2 wins – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2
2 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17
2 wins – Giovanni Scelzi, KCP Racing #18
1 win – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne Racing #49
1 win – Logan Schuchart, Shark Racing #1S
1 win – Spencer Bayston, CJB Motorsports #5
1 win – Donny Schatz, Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15
1 win – Jacob Allen, Shark Racing #1A
1 win – Brent Marks, Murray-Marks Motorsports #19
1 win – Kyle Larson, Kevin Kozlowski #57

FEATURE LAPS LED (19 Drivers):
82 laps – Carson Macedo
81 laps – Brad Sweet
71 laps – David Gravel
55 laps – Giovanni Scelzi
49 laps – Spencer Bayston
27 laps – Brent Marks
26 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr.
25 laps – Donny Schatz
24 laps – Logan Schuchart
23 laps – Spencer Bayston
21 laps – Brady Bacon
17 laps – Kyle Larson
13 laps – Cory Eliason
10 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild
9 laps – Dominic Scelzi, Brady Bacon
8 laps – James McFadden
3 laps – Brian Brown
1 lap – Corey Day, Aaron Reutzel

SLICK WOODY’S QUICKTIME AWARDS (12 Drivers):
3 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo
2 QuickTimes – David Gravel, Jacob Allen, Rico Abreu
1 QuickTime – Brad Sweet, Logan Schuchart, Spencer Bayston, James McFadden, Aaron Reutzel, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Giovanni Scelzi*
* Denotes New Track Record

HEAT RACE WINNERS (20 Drivers):
7 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen
6 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet, David Gravel
5 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, James McFadden
4 Heat Wins – Giovanni Scelzi
3 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu, Aaron Reutzel
2 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Spencer Bayston, Brock Zearfoss, Kraig Kinser, Tyler Courtney, Cory Eliason, Kerry Madsen
1 Heat Win – Donny Schatz, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day

DIRTVISION FAST PASS DASH APPEARANCES (28 Drivers):
11 Dashes – Brad Sweet, David Gravel, Jacob Allen
10 Dashes – Spencer Bayston
9 Dashes – Carson Macedo
6 Dashes – Logan Schuchart, James McFadden
5 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Donny Schatz, Kraig Kinser, Cory Eliason
4 Dashes – Rico Abreu, Giovanni Scelzi, Aaron Reutzel
3 Dashes – Tyler Courtney, Kyle Larson, Kerry Madsen
2 Dashes – Brock Zearfoss, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Brent Marks
1 Dash – Anthony Macri, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Colby Copeland, Tanner Carrick, DJ Netto, Brian Brown, Brady Bacon

MICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (9 Drivers):
3 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild
2 LCS Wins – Logan Schuchart, Ayrton Gennetten
1 LCS Win – James McFadden, Spencer Bayston, Anthony Macri, Mitchell Faccinto, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Kerry Madsen

KSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (8 Drivers):
4 Hard Chargers – Logan Schuchart
3 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild
2 Hard Chargers – Carson Macedo, James McFadden,
1 Hard Chargers – David Gravel, Donny Schatz, Brock Zearfoss, Jason Sides, Rico Abreu, Tanner Thorson

PODIUM FINISHES (18 Drivers):
8 Podiums – Brad Sweet
6 Podiums – David Gravel
5 Podiums – Carson Macedo
4 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild, Kyle Larson
3 Podiums – Logan Schuchart, Donny Schatz, Giovanni Scelzi
2 Podiums – Spencer Bayston, James McFadden, Aaron Reutzel, Corey Day, Brent Marks
1 Podium – Jacob Allen, Kraig Kinser, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Brian Brown

TOP 10 FINISHES (30 Drivers):
15 Top 10s – Brad Sweet
14 Top 10s – Carson Macedo, David Gravel
13 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild
12 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart
11 Top 10s – Spencer Bayston, Donny Schatz
10 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi
9 Top 10s – James McFadden
8 Top 10s – Jacob Allen
7 Top 10s – Rico Abreu, Cory Eliason
5 Top 10s – Kyle Larson
4 Top 10s – Brock Zearfoss, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney
3 Top 10s – Brent Marks, Kerry Madsen
2 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Sam Hefertepe Jr.
1 Top 10 – Kraig Kinser, Justin Peck, Shane Golobic, DJ Netto, Brian Brown, Hunter Schuerenberg, Carson Short, Tanner Thorson

2022 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS:
No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins)
1. Thur, Feb. 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1)
2. Fri, Feb. 11 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1)
3. Sat, Feb. 12 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1)
4. Fri, March 4 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Sheldon Haudenschild (2)
5. Sat, March 5 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Carson Macedo (1)
6. Fri, March 11 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (1)
7. Sat, March 12 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Kyle Larson (1)
8. Fri, March 18 / Merced Speedway / Merced, CA / Carson Macedo (2)
9. Fri, March 25 / Bakersfield Speedway / Bakersfield, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (2)
10. Sat, March 26 / Perris Auto Speedway / Perris, CA / David Gravel (2)
11. Tues, March 29 / Vado Speedway Park / Vado, NM / Brad Sweet (1)
12. Sat, April 2 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Brent Marks (1)
13. Sat, April 9 / Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon, MO / Jacob Allen (1)
14. Fri, April 15 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Carson Macedo (3)
15. Sat, April 23 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Carson Macedo (4)
16. Fri, April 29 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Logan Schuchart (1)
17. Sat, April 30 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Spencer Bayston (1)

Next for World of Outlaws is Lincoln (May 11) and Williams Grove (May 13-14)ROSSBURG, OH – May 4, 2022 – Unfortunately, this weekend’s #LetsRaceTwo doubleheader at Eldora Speedway has been called off. An onslaught of rain throughout the week and heavily saturated grounds, parlayed with a new dirt surface, have forced officials to cancel both nights of racing for the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and USAC National Sprint Car Series.“Based on all the information we have gathered today, including current extreme saturation on the track and negative forecasts from our all of weather consultant resources, we made this difficult decision to cancel,” said Jerry Gappens, general manager of Eldora Speedway, which has received approximately 2 inches of rain since Sunday and is expecting another 2 inches by the weekend. “Hopefully, this early notice will help fans, teams, officials, and vendors reduce unnecessary travel costs.”Neither of the two nights will be made up this season. The Greatest Show on Dirt will be back at the Rossburg, OH 1/2-mile for four consecutive nights of racing in July. That historic week is highlighted by Jokers Wild (Wed, July 13), the $100,000-to-win Historical Big One (Thur, July 14), The Knight Before (Fri, July 15), and the $175,000-to-win Kings Royal XXXIX (Sat, July 16).TICKET INFO – The full value of all #LetsRaceTwo reserved tickets, general admission tickets, and campsites will be converted to account credits within each respective patron account. This is an automated process that will be completed on Tuesday, May 10, 2022. Account credits never expire and can be used on any future ticket or campsite purchase. After the account credit process is complete, an email update will be dispatched to each patron. In that same email, there will be a refund request form link. Any #LetsRaceTwo credit may be converted to a refund by completing the form. Refund requests must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. on May 31, 2022. #LetsRaceTwo suite holders will be contacted on an individual basis over the course of the next few days.The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars now turn their attention to the Pennsylvania Posse. Next week the Series has scheduled stops at the DuraMAX/Drydene Gettysburg Clash at Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, PA on Wednesday, May 11, and the Morgan Cup at Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, PA on Friday-Saturday, May 13-14.Fans can BUY TICKETS HERE or you can watch every lap LIVE on DIRTVision.

The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink® Sprint Car Series is brought to fans across the country by many important sponsors and partners, including: NOS Energy Drink (Official Energy Product), Case Construction Equipment (Official Construction Equipment), DIRTVision (Official Live Broadcast Partner), Hoosier Racing Tire (Official Tire), iRacing (Official Online Racing Game), SIS Insurance (Official Insurance Provider) and VP Racing Fuels (Official Racing Fuel); contingency sponsors include ACME Trading, ARP (Automotive Racing Products), Cometic Gasket, COMP Cams, KSE Racing Products (Hard Charger Award), Micro-Lite LLC, MSD, My Place Hotels and Slick Woody’s (Quick Time Award); manufacturer sponsors include Dirt Car Lift, FIREBULL, Intercomp, K1 Race Gear, Racing Electronics, and Sea Foam.Founded in 1978, the World of Outlaws®, based in Concord, NC, is the premier national touring series for dirt track racing in North America, featuring the most powerful cars on dirt, the World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Late Model Series. Annually, the two series race nearly 140 times at tracks across the United States and Canada. CBS Sports Network is the official broadcast partner of the World of Outlaws. DIRTVision® also broadcasts all World of Outlaws events over the Internet to fans around the world. Learn more about the World of Outlaws.

Brings World of Outlaws and USAC Sprint Cars to Same StageROSSBURG, OH – May 4, 2022 – The World of Outlaws NOS Energy Drink Sprint Cars visit Eldora Speedway this weekend for the first of seven races in 2022 at the Rossburg, OH 1/2-mile, as the Tony Stewart owned facility extends its record as the most-visited track in Series history.For fans who make the trip to The House That Earl Built, you’ll not only see The Greatest Show on Dirt but the USAC Non-Wing Sprint Cars as well in the popular #LetsRaceTwo doubleheader on Friday & Saturday, May 6-7. For those unable to attend, you can watch every lap of World of Outlaws action on DIRTVision.com.BUY TICKETS HERE (Fri-Sat)Here’s what to watch for this weekend:CLOSING THE GAP: Last weekend’s Bristol Bash offered plenty of change atop the early-season standings. Three-time and defending World of Outlaws champion Brad Sweet has been nearly invincible aboard the Kasey Kahne Racing, NAPA Auto Parts #49, recording 15 consecutive top-10 finishes before finally faltering with a 13th-place finish at the Tennessee 1/2-mile.Sweet’s struggles allowed his closest challengers in Carson Macedo (-20 PTS) and David Gravel (-30 PTS) to close the gap in the battle for the $200,000-to-win championship. Both Macedo (Jason Johnson Racing #41) and Gravel (Big Game Motorsports #2) own several wins compared to Sweet’s one in 2022, but consistency has ultimately decided things to this point.All three drivers are multi-time winners at Eldora Speedway with Macedo’s success being most recent thanks to a pair of victories last July. Gravel is a three-time winner at the track with a $52,000 Governors Reign in 2020, but his last World of Outlaws win was back in 2016. Sweet has topped races in USAC Midgets, USAC Sprint Cars, and World of Outlaws at the 1/2-mile with his last score coming at the 2019 Kings Royal.HAUD’S HOME: Sheldon Haudenschild of Wooster, OH returns home for the first of 12 appearances in The Buckeye State this year. The 28-year-old son of “The Wild Child” Jac Haudenschild has claimed two of his 24 career World of Outlaws wins in his home state with his first-ever Eldora Speedway victory coming last year when he rode the wall to beat Donny Schatz in the closing laps.The pilot of the Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #17 currently sits fourth in the standings (-68 PTS), but remains winless since topping two of the first four races in 2022. He was a top-five finisher in both Kings Royal finales last July and led during both #LetsRaceTwo Features last May, continuing to solidify his status as a consistent contender at the 1/2-mile.TURNING THE TIDE: The five races within the last month have offered a complete change of scenery for Logan Schuchart and Shark Racing. The DuraMAX, Drydene #1S started 2022 on a sour note with only two top-five runs in the opening 12 races for an average finish of 10.6. The team unloaded at Lake Ozark Speedway in early April, and things haven’t been the same since.The Hanover, PA native rides a streak of five consecutive top-five finishes with a 4th at Lake Ozark, a 2nd at I-55 (near-win), a career-best 5th at Tri-State, 1st win of the season, and then a 3rd at Bristol. He’s back in the top-five of the championship standings (-102 PTS) and heads to Eldora this weekend, where he’s won on three occasions including the most recent race last September.ROOKIE STRIPES: It wasn’t a matter of “if” but “when” would Spencer Bayston and CJB Motorsports break into victory lane this season, and it finally happened on Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway. The 23-year-old Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year contender split the difference between Kyle Larson and the wall at a daunting 130+ MPH pace to score an exhilarating $25,000 payday at the biggest track on tour.Bayston with Barry Jackson on the wrenches continues to prove the Signing Day Sports #5 is one of the fastest cars on tour with a Series-best eight consecutive top-10 finishes driving them up to sixth in the standings. The Lebanon, IN native returns to Eldora this weekend, a track he’s won at before in USAC Midget competition and where he ran seventh last year at Kings Royal in the Sam McGhee #11.LET’S WIN AGAIN: Another three former #LetsRaceTwo winners are expected to chase another May victory at Eldora Speedway this weekend. Leading the charge in that group is 10-time Series champion Donny Schatz, who has earned 17 of his 303 World of Outlaws wins at the track owned by his boss, Tony Stewart. The Fargo, ND native has particularly dominated #LetsRaceTwo with eight total May victories and multiple weekend sweeps.Brent Marks of Myerstown, PA is one of the defending #LetsRaceTwo winners, returning to his #19 last May and scoring the first of three World of Outlaws wins in 2021. He’s already won once this year at Devil’s Bowl last year and looks for his fourth Eldora triumph this weekend.For Kerry Madsen, the Australian has claimed six of his 28 career World of Outlaws wins at Eldora, including a #LetsRaceTwo weekend sweep in 2016. He’s piloting the Roth Motorsports #83JR on a partial schedule this year as a teammate to full-time competitor James McFadden.A KING’S RETURN: With an off-weekend for the All Star Circuit of Champions, King Tyler XXXVIII will return to competition with the World of Outlaws at arguably his best track. Last year alone, Tyler Courtney won at Eldora in every car he competed with including Silver Crown, Non-Wing Sprint Car, Midget, and Winged Sprint Car, highlighted by his $175,000 triumph at the 38th Kings Royal.Sunshine has made seven appearances with the Series in 2022 with three top-10 finishes and a best of fourth in Kevin Kozlowski’s #57 in California. He’s already won three All Star events this year and leads that championship in pursuit of back-to-back titles aboard the Clauson-Marshall Racing, NOS Energy Drink #7BC.FIRST OF MANY: #LetsRaceTwo is the first of three separate trips and the first of seven total races at Eldora for the World of Outlaws in 2022. With 225 Features in the past and plenty more to come, teams will look to use previous notes and experience to master the famed oval.Beyond May’s #LetsRaceTwo doubleheader, the Series will return to Eldora in July for four of the biggest nights in racing with the Jokers Wild (Wed, July 13), the $100,000-to-win Historical Big One (Thur, July 14), The Knight Before (Fri, July 15), and the $175,000-to-win Kings Royal XXXIX (Sat, July 16). The seventh and final trip comes on Fri, September 23 with the BeFour the Crowns Showdown during 4-Crown Nationals weekend.Entering this weekend, Eldora has seen 49 different World of Outlaws winners with Steve Kinser (41 wins), Sammy Swindell (30 wins), Donny Schatz (17 wins), Doug Wolfgang (15 wins), Joey Saldana (13 wins), Dave Blaney (10 wins), and Jac Haudenschild (9 wins) leading the way.THIS WEEK AT A GLANCEFriday-Saturday, May 6-7 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, OHOn the Internet World 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 (17/80 Nights): 1. 49-Brad Sweet (2,370 PTS); 2. 41-Carson Macedo (-20 PTS); 3. 2-David Gravel (-30 PTS); 4. 17-Sheldon Haudenschild (-68 PTS); 5. 1S-Logan Schuchart (-102 PTS); 6. 5-Spencer Bayston (-140 PTS); 7. 15-Donny Schatz (-142 PTS); 8. 83-James McFadden (-152 PTS); 9. 1A-Jacob Allen (-224 PTS); 10. 3Z-Brock Zearfoss (-292 PTS).NOS ENERGY DRINK FEATURE WINNERS (11 Drivers): 4 wins – Carson Macedo, Jason Johnson Racing #41 2 wins – David Gravel, Big Game Motorsports #2 2 wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Stenhouse Jr. / Marshall Racing #17 2 wins – Giovanni Scelzi, KCP Racing #18 1 win – Brad Sweet, Kasey Kahne Racing #49 1 win – Logan Schuchart, Shark Racing #1S 1 win – Spencer Bayston, CJB Motorsports #5 1 win – Donny Schatz, Tony Stewart/Curb-Agajanian Racing #15 1 win – Jacob Allen, Shark Racing #1A 1 win – Brent Marks, Murray-Marks Motorsports #19 1 win – Kyle Larson, Kevin Kozlowski #57FEATURE LAPS LED (19 Drivers): 82 laps – Carson Macedo 81 laps – Brad Sweet 71 laps – David Gravel 55 laps – Giovanni Scelzi 49 laps – Spencer Bayston 27 laps – Brent Marks 26 laps – Sam Hafertepe Jr. 25 laps – Donny Schatz 24 laps – Logan Schuchart 23 laps – Spencer Bayston 21 laps – Brady Bacon 17 laps – Kyle Larson 13 laps – Cory Eliason 10 laps – Sheldon Haudenschild 9 laps – Dominic Scelzi, Brady Bacon 8 laps – James McFadden 3 laps – Brian Brown 1 lap – Corey Day, Aaron ReutzelSLICK WOODY’S QUICKTIME AWARDS (12 Drivers): 3 QuickTimes – Carson Macedo 2 QuickTimes – David Gravel, Jacob Allen, Rico Abreu 1 QuickTime – Brad Sweet, Logan Schuchart, Spencer Bayston, James McFadden, Aaron Reutzel, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Giovanni Scelzi* * Denotes New Track RecordHEAT RACE WINNERS (20 Drivers): 7 Heat Wins – Jacob Allen 6 Heat Wins – Brad Sweet, David Gravel 5 Heat Wins – Carson Macedo, James McFadden 4 Heat Wins – Giovanni Scelzi 3 Heat Wins – Logan Schuchart, Rico Abreu, Aaron Reutzel 2 Heat Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild, Spencer Bayston, Brock Zearfoss, Kraig Kinser, Tyler Courtney, Cory Eliason, Kerry Madsen 1 Heat Win – Donny Schatz, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Dominic Scelzi, Corey DayDIRTVISION FAST PASS DASH APPEARANCES (28 Drivers): 11 Dashes – Brad Sweet, David Gravel, Jacob Allen 10 Dashes – Spencer Bayston 9 Dashes – Carson Macedo 6 Dashes – Logan Schuchart, James McFadden 5 Dashes – Sheldon Haudenschild, Donny Schatz, Kraig Kinser, Cory Eliason 4 Dashes – Rico Abreu, Giovanni Scelzi, Aaron Reutzel 3 Dashes – Tyler Courtney, Kyle Larson, Kerry Madsen 2 Dashes – Brock Zearfoss, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Brent Marks 1 Dash – Anthony Macri, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Colby Copeland, Tanner Carrick, DJ Netto, Brian Brown, Brady BaconMICROLITE LAST CHANCE SHOWDOWN WINS (9 Drivers): 3 LCS Wins – Sheldon Haudenschild 2 LCS Wins – Logan Schuchart, Ayrton Gennetten 1 LCS Win – James McFadden, Spencer Bayston, Anthony Macri, Mitchell Faccinto, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Kerry MadsenKSE HARD CHARGER AWARDS (8 Drivers): 4 Hard Chargers – Logan Schuchart 3 Hard Chargers – Sheldon Haudenschild 2 Hard Chargers – Carson Macedo, James McFadden, 1 Hard Chargers – David Gravel, Donny Schatz, Brock Zearfoss, Jason Sides, Rico Abreu, Tanner ThorsonPODIUM FINISHES (18 Drivers): 8 Podiums – Brad Sweet 6 Podiums – David Gravel 5 Podiums – Carson Macedo 4 Podiums – Sheldon Haudenschild, Kyle Larson 3 Podiums – Logan Schuchart, Donny Schatz, Giovanni Scelzi 2 Podiums – Spencer Bayston, James McFadden, Aaron Reutzel, Corey Day, Brent Marks 1 Podium – Jacob Allen, Kraig Kinser, Cory Eliason, Sam Hafertepe Jr, Brian BrownTOP 10 FINISHES (30 Drivers): 15 Top 10s – Brad Sweet 14 Top 10s – Carson Macedo, David Gravel 13 Top 10s – Sheldon Haudenschild 12 Top 10s – Logan Schuchart 11 Top 10s – Spencer Bayston, Donny Schatz 10 Top 10s – Giovanni Scelzi 9 Top 10s – James McFadden 8 Top 10s – Jacob Allen 7 Top 10s – Rico Abreu, Cory Eliason 5 Top 10s – Kyle Larson 4 Top 10s – Brock Zearfoss, Aaron Reutzel, Tyler Courtney 3 Top 10s – Brent Marks, Kerry Madsen 2 Top 10s – Anthony Macri, Dominic Scelzi, Corey Day, Sam Hefertepe Jr. 1 Top 10 – Kraig Kinser, Justin Peck, Shane Golobic, DJ Netto, Brian Brown, Hunter Schuerenberg, Carson Short, Tanner Thorson2022 WORLD OF OUTLAWS SPRINT CAR SCHEDULE & WINNERS: No. / Day, Date / Track / Location / Winner (Total Wins) 1. Thur, Feb. 10 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Donny Schatz (1) 2. Fri, Feb. 11 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / Sheldon Haudenschild (1) 3. Sat, Feb. 12 / Volusia Speedway Park / Barberville, FL / David Gravel (1) 4. Fri, March 4 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Sheldon Haudenschild (2) 5. Sat, March 5 / Cotton Bowl Speedway / Paige, TX / Carson Macedo (1) 6. Fri, March 11 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (1) 7. Sat, March 12 / Thunderbowl Raceway / Tulare, CA / Kyle Larson (1) 8. Fri, March 18 / Merced Speedway / Merced, CA / Carson Macedo (2) 9. Fri, March 25 / Bakersfield Speedway / Bakersfield, CA / Giovanni Scelzi (2) 10. Sat, March 26 / Perris Auto Speedway / Perris, CA / David Gravel (2) 11. Tues, March 29 / Vado Speedway Park / Vado, NM / Brad Sweet (1) 12. Sat, April 2 / Devil’s Bowl Speedway / Mesquite, TX / Brent Marks (1) 13. Sat, April 9 / Lake Ozark Speedway / Eldon, MO / Jacob Allen (1) 14. Fri, April 15 / Federated Auto Parts Raceway at I-55 / Pevely, MO / Carson Macedo (3) 15. Sat, April 23 / Tri-State Speedway / Haubstadt, IN / Carson Macedo (4) 16. Fri, April 29 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Logan Schuchart (1) 17. Sat, April 30 / Bristol Motor Speedway / Bristol, TN / Spencer Bayston (1)

May 4, 2022

This weekend at Darlington Raceway, Harrison Burton will get a chance to honor both of his parents.

On his dad’s side, the No. 21 DEX Imaging team is running a paint scheme based on one of Burton’s dad, Jeff Burton used during his time behind the wheel of Jack Roush’s No. 99 Ford. That Exide scheme was last used at Martinsville Speedway on Oct. 1, 2000, just eight days before young Burton, now 21, was born.

The paint scheme is a part of Darlington Raceway’s annual throwback-themed weekend, and most of the cars in Sunday’s Goodyear 400 will sport some scheme reminiscent of a car from days gone by.

And since race day at Darlington coincides with Mother’s Day, Burton also will be trying to honor his mom, Kim Burton, who like DEX Imaging has been right there with him through every step of his racing career.

Burton said all that has him looking forward to taking the wheel of the No. 21 Mustang this weekend.

“I’m really excited to get to Darlington,” he said. “It’s one of my favorite tracks, and it will be cool running my dad’s scheme that means a lot to my whole family, especially my mom, who will be there to watch like always on Mother’s Day.”

While Burton has never raced a Cup car on the Track Too Tough To Tame, he does have four Xfinity Series starts there. He has never finished worse than 11^th and had a best finish of second there last fall.

Practice for the Goodyear 400 is set for Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time, followed by qualifying at 11:05.

Sunday’s 293-lap race is set to start just after 3:30 p.m., with TV coverage on FOX Sports 1.

Stage breaks are set for Laps 90 and 185.

New Jersey driver holds off hard-charging Stewart Friesen for $7,500 triumph

SWEDESBORO, NJ– May 3, 2022 –Ryan Godown has accomplished plenty of wins throughout his career, but a Super DIRTcar Series victory eluded him for years.

However, in a 75-lap showdown Tuesday night at Bridgeport Motorsports Park in the Big Block Modified series’ lone stop this season in New Jersey, Godown’s fortune changed when the New Jersey native held off hard-charging superstar Stewart Friesen for his first Series triumph. 

Godown, of Ringoes, NJ, fired from the 10th starting position, quickly working his way to the front. Once he snuck past last season’s World of Outlaws World Finals winner Alex Yankowski for the lead, it was one he wouldn’t relinquish to ultimately be crowned Bridgeport’s King of the Big Blocks and collect the $7,500 top prize.

It was far from easy, though. While the “Ringoes Rocket” was ticking off laps from the front of the field, Friesen was methodically working his way forward, finally picking off Billy Pauch Jr. and setting his sights on Godown as the laps disappeared. With both drivers trying to knock down the wall in Turns 3 and 4, Godown held off the hard-charging Friesen down the stretch, etching his name into Super DIRTcar Series history. 

“I’m speechless here. It’s a little surreal,” Godown said.  “We almost got to the front too quick there at the beginning. The car was really good, then obviously the last 10 laps it kind of backed up a little bit. I didn’t know where those guys were. I saw Stew came from nowhere with two to go. 

“I just had to keep focused and try to get to where he wasn’t going to go or at least protect against the slider so that’s just what we did.”

Friesen, of Sprakers, NY, thundered underneath Godown’s #26 car at the white flag, but it wasn’t enough to steal the win as Godown slid down to the bottom groove to slow Friesen’s momentum.

“Our Halmar 44 really wasn’t too great tonight,” Friesen said. “It could have been a heck of a lot better. We tried some stuff tonight starting that far back and added to the notebook…we had   a really good long-run car, but it wasn’t too good in the short run. Ryan was honestly a little bit better there at the end.” 

Billy Pauch Jr. rounded out the top three, after battling Godown for the lead muich of the event.  He was contending for the win before his tires started going away. 

“We don’t run many Super DIRTcar Series races, so it was a great night tonight,” said Pauch Jr. “I took a few shots at Ryan. I think I got too aggressive, and I chunked my tire. That’s when I started fading at the end.” 

Two-time and defending NAPA Super DIRT Week champion Mat Williamson crossed the line fourth with Max McLaughlin finished fifth. 

UP NEXT: The Super DIRTcar Series travels to Can-Am Speedway in Lafargeville, NY on Wednesday, May 18, along with the opening round of the DIRTcar Pro Stock Series. 

Inside Line Promotions – CHICO, Calif. (May 3, 2022) – Dominic Scelzi achieved a pair of feats last weekend during two nights of competition at Silver Dollar Speedway.

Scelzi captured his 50^th career winged sprint car triumph on Friday during the Brownell/Herseth Classic before using a third-place result on Saturday in the David Tarter Memorial to claim the lead in the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series championship standings.

“It’s pretty neat to get win No. 50,” he said. “It took a long time, 10 years and a few months. I’m so excited with the speed that we have. We’ve been extremely consistent. We don’t have as many wins at this point as we did last year, but we have the consistency. That’s every bit as important as being able to win races. The next big milestone is 75 and then 100 wins. I think we’re on track to be there a lot faster than how long it took to get to 50 wins.”

Scelzi opened Friday by qualifying eighth quickest. He then won a heat race from the outside of the front row before capturing both the dash and feature from the pole position.

“We started on the outside and got a good start as we led every lap of the heat race,” he said. “We led the dash throughout to get the pole for the feature. It was about as treacherous as I’ve seen a curb. We had a good pace early. As the curb got bigger we moved down the track. We had a restart and Corey Day was on the inside of me. He slid me into turn one. Then he slid himself into turn three and I ran the bottom to get back by him. From that point on we went unchallenged to get the win. That’s back-to-back Brownell/Herseth Classic wins, which is really neat.”

The team returned to the oval on Saturday for the second KWS/NARC event of the season. Scelzi timed in 14^th quickest. A heat race win locked him into the 10^th starting position in the A Main.

“With qualifying in the grease it made it tough,” he said. “We did what we needed to do in the heat to win. We missed the dash and started 10 ^th in the feature, but I wasn’t crazy worried because last year at that race we went from 15^th to the lead and lost it on a green-white-checkered finish. On Saturday I had a terrible first start. The outside row biked up against the cushion and I had to check up. That cost me a few spots. I didn’t get back to 10^th until six or seven laps in. As the race went on we made our way forward. We ran second down from a straightaway and got to him, but just couldn’t get by him. On nights we don’t win we want to get the best possible finish, which is critical to defend our series championship. We did that on Saturday.”

The third-place run gives Scelzi a four-point lead in the championship standings.

Scelzi plans to take this weekend off before returning to action May 13 at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., and May 14 at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif., during the Peter Murphy Classic with the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour.

QUICK RESULTS –

April 29 – Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif. – Qualifying: 8; Heat race: 1 (2); Dash: 1 (1); Feature: 1 (1).

April 30 – Silver Dollar Speedway in Chico, Calif. – Qualifying: 14; Heat race: 1 (1); Feature: 3 (10).

SEASON STATS –

15 races, 1 win, 7 top fives, 9 top 10s, 12 top 15s, 12 top 20s

UP NEXT –

May 13 at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, Calif., and May 14 at Keller Auto Speedway in Hanford, Calif., for the Peter Murphy Classic with the King of the West-NARC Fujitsu Series and Sprint Car Challenge Tour

Milner, Tandy eager to keep Sebring momentum in second WEC round of 2022

DETROIT (May 3, 2022) – Corvette Racing begins the European leg of its 2022 global tour this weekend with the Six Hours of Spa and the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship. It’s the second straight year that the program will compete at the fast and historic circuit in the Ardennes region of Belgium and a final tune-up ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Tommy Milner and Nick Tandy will again pilot the No. 64 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R at Spa in the GTE Pro category. The pairing are coming off a satisfying runner-up finish at a storm-shortened 1,000 Miles of Sebring in March – the first race for Corvette as a full-season WEC team. While not as familiar to Corvette Racing as Sebring, the team does have some Spa experience to lean on. Antonio Garcia and Oliver Gavin teamed in the Six Hours a year ago to give the team and the WEC technical group a better understanding of the mid-engine Corvette’s capabilities ahead of its 2021 Le Mans debut. Armed with that data and the mileage gained from Sebring, Corvette Racing is hoping for a solid performance that will go a long way toward its preparation for a potential ninth class win at Le Mans.

Tandy is extremely familiar with Spa. He has logged two previous starts in the WEC at the 4.35-mile, 20-turn circuit that has played host to every major automobile series since it began hosting Grand Prix races in 1925. Tandy also is a past winner of the Spa 24 Hours. That insight will be valuable to the rest of the team and seatmate Milner, who will race at Spa for the first time. Despite never having set foot on the grounds, Milner has logged hours upon hours of laps around the circuit on his personal simulator as well as Chevrolet’s Driver in the Loop sim. The Six Hours of Spa for the FIA World Endurance Championship is scheduled for 7 a.m. ET/1 p.m. CET on Saturday, May 7 from the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium. Qualifying is set for 2:20 p.m. ET/6:20 p.m. CET on Friday, May 6. The race will air live on MotorTrend with live streaming coverage of the race and qualifying on the MotorTrend app. Radio Le Mans will broadcast the race, qualifying and all practice sessions.

CORVETTE RACING MEDIA INFORMATION Corvette Racing media information is updated and available ahead of this weekend’s Six Hours of Spa for the FIA World Endurance Championship. Materials include: · WEC race advance and quotes· Corvette Racing Fast Facts· Corvette Race Car and Production Car Comparisons· Driver biographies

TOMMY MILNER, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “It’s my first time at Spa. This race will be the first time it really feels like a new championship for me and the team. I’ve driven Spa for thousands of laps on a simulator and I’ve been doing more on our Driver in the Loop with the team and engineers. I’ll be ready to go but driving a new track is always something new and unique. As we saw at Sebring, the competition is very, very tough. I’ll be a little bit on the back foot compared to some of these guys who have driven these tracks already in their careers. With the help of the simulator at Chevrolet and my sim at home, I’m excited about getting that experience of learning the track. It’s a great challenge to drive a track like Spa and I’m ready for it.”Spa Special: “For Spa, Eau Rouge and Raidillon are the obvious highlight sections of Spa – much like at Laguna Seca, the Corkscrew is the highlight of that track. But the whole track itself is what’s exciting at Spa. There is a lot more than just that sequence of corners to start the lap. I’m certainly excited for that. For me most of all, I’m excited to take on the challenge of learning a new racetrack.”

NICK TANDY, NO. 64 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R: “Spa is one of the legendary circuits of the world. Driving this car around there is something I’m really looking forward to. It’s super fast. We have the experience from last year’s race and some data we can take forward into this year. If the car behavior is anything like it was at Sebring, it will be a dream to drive around Spa. We hope we can make it a tiny bit faster.”Spa Special: “My favorite part of Spa I’d say is the Fagnes Chicane (turns 12 and 13). It’s a sequence where if you hook it up well and use the curbs perfectly you get rewarded with lap time. Maybe more important for lap time is Les Combes – a section with heavy braking and a three-corner combination. If you get one part wrong, it can lead to a whole world of errors.”

Batavia, OH (May 2, 2022) – The Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series will spend the weekend in the Bluegrass state with a visit to Ponderosa Speedway in Junction City, KY on Friday, May 6th and Florence Speedway in Union, KY on Saturday, May 7th. The 18th Annual John Bradshaw Memorial takes place at “Kentucky’s Baddest Bullring” on Friday with a complete program of: Allstar Performance Time Trials, Heat Races, B-Mains, and a 50-lap, $12,000-to-win main event. Ponderosa Speedway, a unique D-shaped 3/8th mile oval, will also have Crate Late Models, Modifieds, and Super Stocks in competition on Friday night. The pit gate will close at 2:00 PM ET and reopen at 2:30 PM ET, with the general admission gate opening at 4:00 PM ET. On track action will get underway at 7:00 PM ET. On Saturday, May 7th, race teams will vie for a $15,000 top prize in the 36th Annual Ralph Latham Memorial at Florence Speedway. The pit gate will close at 2:30 PM ET and reopen at 3:00 PM ET on Saturday, with the main and back gates opening at 5:30 PM ET. Hot laps begin at 6:30 PM ET with time trials to follow. In addition to the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, Modifieds will compete for $1,500-to-win and the Sport Mods will battle it out for $800-to-win. With five back-to-back winners in the event’s history, a local fan favorite, Josh Rice hopes to up that number to six. Tickets are available online at https://florence.getmytix.net/tickets or by calling the track office at (859) 493-0034. Brandon Sheppard currently leads the points over Devin Moran, as the two have swapped the point lead several times already this season. Tyler Erb is currently third in points followed by the reigning series champion, Tim McCreadie. Track Information:Ponderosa SpeedwayPhone Number: (859) 854-6808Location: 365 Phillips Lane, Junction City, KY 40440Directions: US 127 to Junction City, turn on 300/W Shelby St (stop light), then .7 mile turn left on SR-37/White Oak Road, then 1.2 miles turn left on Phillips Lane, track is 0.4 mile on Left.Website: www.ponderosaspeedway.net Florence Speedway:Phone Number: 859-485-7591Location: 12234 US Hwy 42, Walton, KY 41094Directions: I-75 to exit 180, then 9.2 miles SW on US 42Website: www.florencespeedway.com Ponderosa Speedway Purse: 1. $12,000, 2. $6,000, 3. $3,500, 4. $2,800, 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. $1,100, 15. $1,050, 16. $1,000, 17. $1,000,18. $1,000, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000. = $52,800 Florence Speedway Purse: 1. $15,000, 2. $6,500, 3. $3,500, 4. $3,000, 5. $2,500, 6. $2,400, 7. $2,300, 8. $2,200, 9. $2,100, 10. $2,000, 11. $1,600, 12. $1,400, 13. $1,300, 14. $1,200, 15. $1,050, 16. $1,000, 17. $1,000, 18. $1,000, 19. $1,000, 20. $1,000, 21. $1,000, 22. $1,000, 23. $1,000, 24. $1,000. = $57,050 Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Weekend Tire Rule:Left Rear/Fronts – Hoosier Rib (28.5) 1350Right Rear – Hoosier (29.0) 1350 NRM, (29.0) 1350 NRMW, (92) LM40*Must use the same set of 4 tires for Time Trials, Heat Races, and B-Mains.*For the A-Main, competitors may use a new right rear tire.*Flat tire must be replaced with a used tire of the same compound and construction to retain starting position.

CONCORD, N.C. (May 01, 2022) – Bill Skillman came from behind to take the Circle K NHRA Four-Wide Nationals victory, the first race where the Chevrolet COPO Camaros, Ford Cobra Jets and Dodge Challenger Drag Paks of the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown class have competed in a four-wide format. 

“Coming out here racing four-wide, it was awesome. I really thought every quad that I ran in from qualifying up, everybody did a great job. I was really, really impressed with the guys as we went through the quads,” Skillman said. “It was awesome, my team, my God, I can’t even tell you what a great job those guys do. They crushed me, I was pitiful on the tree all day today, but I got a fast hot rod here. We struggled mightily when we got here but they just kept picking away at it today and they did a wonderful job.”

Bill Skillman winner’s circle, photo by Auto Imagery

In the first round, No. 1 qualifier Geoff Turk and his Wild Turkey Engineering Dodge Drag Pak would go 7.792-seconds at 180.21 mph to win the quad while Skillman took his Ray Skillman Ford Cobra Jet to a 7.784 second pass to advance. 

In the second round, Skillman would reach the finals off his 7.828-second run at 178.33 mph along with quad winner David Barton and his Saw Mill Auto COPO Camaro’s 7.864 at 176.56. On the other side of the ladder, Stephen Bell would come up with the win going 7.838-seconds at 175.78 mph in his Stanfield Racing Engines COPO Camaro along with Scott Libersher’s Mickey Thompson COPO Camaro’s 7.851 at 175.87. 

In the finals, Skillman, surrounded by COPO Camaros, would leave the line last but would reach the line first with Barton slowing near the end of the run. Libersher found issues at about 100 feet and Bell was not able to keep up. 

Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown final round Charlotte, photo by Auto Imagery

“You know what, I love racing with all these guys that are out here. It’s a bunch of great guys. I don’t care if it’s Camaros, Dodges, Fords, or whatever. It’s great,” Skillman said. “But it’s always good to beat the other brand. Always good to beat the other brand.”

Previous event winner Lenny Lottig would have his run at back-to-back victories come to an end in the second quad. Stephen Bell would win the round and take Lottig to earn the $1,000 bounty. 

The ongoing battle between Chevrolet COPO Camaros, Ford Cobra Jets and Dodge Challenger Drag Pakswill pick up the weekend of May 13-15 at Virginia Motorsports Park for the Virginia NHRA Nationals. 

Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Top Ten

1. Bill Skillman                             166

2. David Barton                            165

3. Lenny Lottig                             163

4. Anthony Troyer                       123

5. Stephen Bell                            110

6. Warren Walcher                      109

7. Mark Pawuk                             93

8. Aaron Stanfield                       89

9. Ricky Hord                               86

10. Scott Libersher                      74

CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2022) — Josh Hart came into zMax Dragway with a dominating 6-1 career record in his two previous appearances. The second-year driver of the TechNet Top Fuel dragster that also enjoys support from R+L Carriers throughout the season took full advantage of four rounds of qualifying at the Circle K Four-Wide Nationals. This season Hart and his crew chief Ron Douglas have been breaking in a brand new 11,000 horsepower Top Fuel dragster and they both feel in the past two weeks they have turned an important corner.

TechNet Top Fuel dragster, photo by Auto Imagery

Through two days of qualifying Hart drove the TechNet dragster to three runs within a tenth of a second, 3.780, 3.778 and 3.789 seconds respectively, with a stellar run of 3.715 seconds on Friday night under the lights. That kind of quickness and more importantly, that consistency had eluded Hart for the first five races of the season. He moved into race day as the No. 6 qualifier and was joined in his opening quad by world champions Shawn Langdon and Steve Torrence along with veteran Clay Millican.

Hart had a strong car that powered him to the finish line right behind veteran Clay Millican in front of Langdon and Torrence. Hart and Millican stopped a dominant four race win streak by Torrence which extended back to 2017. Hart’s round advancing time of 3.735 seconds was his second quickest run of the weekend and just a tick off the pace of his Friday night qualifying run. 

Josh Hart, post-run in Charlotte, photo by Auto Imagery

“This weekend was a testament to the magic of our TechNet and R+L Carriers team,” said Hart. “We tried to weather the storm and it got very frustrating at one point or another. You just have to bury your head down and keep charging forward. Every single teammate wanted the same thing and every single teammate muscled through it. I am very happy with this team. I am very happy with this new car. We are mile-an-houring better than we ever did with the old car. I am getting more and more comfortable. I think we found something.”

Hart advanced to his second consecutive final quad of four-wide racing at zMax Dragway with Spencer Massey after both drivers outran Brittany Force and Millican. Hart made the quickest run of the quad, a blistering 3.751 second pass under much warmer temperatures. Again, it was the kind of quick run that had the two-time Top Fuel winner confident he could win his second consecutive race at the track located 25 minutes north of downtown Charlotte.

“One thing the owner of R+L Carriers said to me was I needed to make sure I was still having fun. I would say this weekend was a whole lot of fun. There were a ton of great fans and four-wide is cool. There is nothing better than going rounds,” added Hart.

The last four Top Fuel dragster standing included a mix of independent team operators led by Hart, Mike Salinas, Massey and Cameron Ferre. All four race cars executed their burnouts but Ferre had issues and was eventually pushed back to the starting line. His dragster was able to stage and when the tree flashed Hart and Massey jumped off the line together with Massey going into immediate tire smoke in lane one. Hart was in lane two and made it further down track before having his own issues. Salinas made a smooth run for the win followed by Ferre.

It was another solid effort by Hart who heads to the Virginia Nationals sitting No. 6 in the Top Fuel point standings after six races.

Qualifying Results

Q1: 3.780 sec, 327.59 mph; Qual. 6

Q2: 3.715 sec, 323.89 mph; Qual 6

Q3: 3.778 sec, 329.50 mph; Qual. 6

Q4: 3.789 sec, 323.19 mph; Qual 6

Bonus Points: 0

Race Results

First Quad

Clay Millican, 3.748, 327.51 mph and Josh Hart, Ocala, FL, TechNet dragster, 3.735, 328.38 mph def. Shawn Langdon, 4.028, 225.00 mph and Steve Torrence, 3.967, 270.10 mph

Second Quad

Josh Hart, Ocala, FL, TechNet dragster, 3.751, 323.97 mph and Spencer Massey, 3.881 310.41 mph; def. Clay Millican, 5.381 130.18 mph; and Brittany Force, 5.613 147.05 mph

Final Quad

Mike Salinas, 3.708 330.47 mph (win); Cameron Ferre, 3.986, 272.56 mph (runner-up) and semifinalists Josh Hart, Ocala, FL, TechNet dragster, 9.949, 84.21 mph and Spencer Massey, 13.713, 74.83 mph

Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Ten – Top Fuel

1. Brittany Force                          478

2. Mike Salinas                            461

3. Justin Ashley                            432

4. Steve Torrence                        427

5. Clay Millican                            328

6. Josh Hart                                  294

7. Austin Prock                             288

8. Doug Kalitta                             263

9. Tony Schumacher                    243

10. Antron Brown                        230

Funny Car and Top Fuel Entries at NHRA Four-Wide Nationals

• Dodge//SRT and Mopar supported Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) Funny Car and Top Fuel entries continue to demonstrate consistency steady improvements during first part of National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series’ season by qualifying No. 2 in both Top Fuel and Funny Car categories for elimination rounds of Circle K Four-Wide Nationals at zMax Dragway
• TSR wheelman Matt Hagan muscled his Shelor Motor Mile Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat from the No. 2 position on the eliminations ladder to battle through to the second quad and maintain his lead in the Funny Car championship standings after six national events this season
• TSR pilot Leah Pruett recorded her best qualifying effort of the year thus far by driving the Dodge Power Brokers dragster to a No. 2 starting position at zMax Dragway
• Cruz Pedregon and his Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat stay consistent with a fifth top-five qualifying performance to advance to the second quad of eliminations at the second of the four-wide national events this season

May 1, 2022, Concord, North Carolina — Six events into the 2022 National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Camping World Drag Racing Series’ season and the new Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) nitro team continues to demonstrate consistency and steady improvement with both Dodge//SRT and Mopar-supported entries in Funny Car and Top Fuel as drivers Matt Hagan and Leah Pruett both qualified their 11,000 horsepower machines No. 2 in their respective categories for the elimination rounds of the Circle K NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway on Sunday.

This weekend’s uniquely formatted competition, the second of the two national events this season in which competitors battle across four lanes instead of the usual two, kicked off with four qualifying attempts to set the field for Sunday’s event. Hagan, who arrived at the Charlotte area dragstrip with two wins and three consecutive final round appearance aboard the Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat, set his quickest qualifying lap in the second session with a 3.867 second elapsed time at 330.55 mph to earn the provisional No. 2 spot and two bonus points. He added another bonus point with his final qualifying effort of 3.921 seconds at 328.70 mph which was third quickest of the session. 

From the No. 2 spot on the Funny Car eliminations ladder, Hagan’s Shelor Motor Mile Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat was quickest off the start line and turned on the opening round win light with a 0.086-second reaction time, 3.895-second pass at 331.69 mph ahead of No. 15 seed Mike McIntire Jr. (0.100/3.966/316.01), No.7 seed Blake Alexander (0.097/5.652/127.04) and No. 10 Paul Lee (0.101/13.325/62.51).

The three-time Funny Car world champ advanced to the second stanza along with McIntire to meet up with No. 3 qualifier Ron Capps and No. 6 seed J. R Todd. While Hagan had a quick 0.045-second reaction time, after losing traction early was able to recover (8.168 sec./ 91.59 mph) to beat Todd to the finish but not enough to catch Capps (0.035/3.954/323.89) and McIntire Jr. (0.184/4.031/312.64) to advance further. Hagan’s performance was enough to stay in the Funny Car championship lead with a 22-point advantage over second place contender Robert Hight.

In Top Fuel qualifying, Pruett improved on her first pass of 3.730 seconds at 319.29 mph by taking her Dodge Power Brokers dragster for a stout 3.686-second drive at 327.51 mph with her second lap to earn the No. 2 spot for Sunday’s elimination and collect two bonus points.

Two more solid qualifying laps of 3.773 sec./326.40 mph and 3.734 sec./ 329.10 mph demonstrated consistent performance by the TSR team and driver on their way to race day.

The last time she started eliminations for the No. 2 position, Pruett won the Pomona national event in July 2021. With the hope of repeating that success, the Dodge Power Brokers Direct Connection driver staged her HEMI-powered dragster for Top Fuel’s opening round against No. 7 qualifier Brittany Force, No. 10 seed Spencer Massey and No. 15 seed Tony Schumacher.

Pruett and Force left the line with identical 0.079-second reaction times, but while her adversary recorded the quickest run of the quad (3.732 sec./329.67 mph) and the TSR driver’s run (3.741/323.89) was second quickest, Massey’s slower 3.749/323.27 pass beat Pruett to the finish with the help of a hole shot (0.035 sec. reaction time) to eliminate her from advancing further.

Additionally, in Funny Car action, the Cruz Pedregon Racing team continued their string of consistent qualifying performances by qualifying the Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat in the top-five for a fifth time in the first six national events of the season. Team owner and driver, Cruz Pedregon set the second quickest laps in both Q1 and Q3 session aboard his HEMI-powered machine to earn a total of four bonus points and put himself fifth on the eliminations ladder.

A quick 0.037-second reaction time by Pedregon gave his Hellcat Funny Car the advantage on the start over No. 4 qualifier Robert Hight, No. 12 seed Tim Wilkerson and No. 13 seed Jim Campbell. His 3.921 seconds/ 328.46 mph run helped him finish second to quad winner Hight’s (0.057 sec. reaction time) 3.880/332.67 pass and beat Wilkerson and Campbell to advance.

The second round didn’t go as the Cruz Pedregon team has hoped when a loss of traction at the hit of the throttle ended his hopes of advancing to the final quad in his battle against Hight, No. 1 qualifier John Force and No. 8 seed Bob Tasca III.

Following a weekend off, the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series will return to action May 13-15 at Virginia Motorsports Park for the Virginia NHRA Nationals, the seventh of 22 NHRA national events this season.

ADDITIONAL NOTES and QUOTES:

Leah Pruett, Dodge Power Brokers Top Fuel Dragster 

(No. 2 Qualifier – 3.686 seconds at 327.51 mph)

Round 1: (0.079-second reaction time, 3.741 seconds at 323.89 mph) defeated No. 15 Tony Schumacher, loss to No. 7 Brittany Force (0.079/3.732/329.67) and No. 10 Spencer Massey (0.035/3.749/323.27) 

“I think determination is our key factor here. Having five plain runs down the track and chipping away at it, we are a product of the short end of the stick of a really good race. We missed it by just a couple thousandths [of a second] to advance. Going into Richmond (Virginia Nationals), we will take a lot away from this weekend from the warm track to our warmup and setup. I started out really hitting the tree well in qualifying. As I tried to work on it, I actually graduated the other way. I didn’t have the peak performance that I wanted on Sunday, but it was almost enough to get the job done. I will be right back on my Christmas tree every day and we will be making sure all eight of our Mopar cylinders are lit. The execution of this team has been impeccable and that’s why we have the consistency that we have. We will continue that and look forward. My consolation prize is that I get to spend a lot of time with the fans here in Charlotte. In between this weekend and Richmond, we are working on a spare car, so a lot is happening between now and then.”

Matt Hagan, Dodge Power Brokers Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car  

(No. 2 Qualifier – 3.867 seconds at 330.55 mph)

Round 1: (0.086-second reaction time, 3.895 seconds at 331.69 mph) defeated No. 15 Mike McIntire Jr. (0.100/3.966/316.01), No.7 Blake Alexander (0.097/5.652/127.04) and No. 10 Paul Lee (0.101/13.325/62.51)

Round 2: (0.045/8.168/91.59) defeated No. 6 J.R. Todd (0.060/10.389/89.36), loss to No. 3 Ron Capps (0.035/3.954/323.89) and No. 15 Mike McIntire Jr. (0.184/4.031/312.64)

“I’m glad the four-wides are behind us. I would have loved to have won it, but it is a chaotic event. It is a great show for the fans, but what we normally do is repetition and doing the same thing every time. Swapping lanes, trying to figure out who did what, who to pick and who did what is a lot going on. At the end of the day, we still leave here with the points lead. We have gone some rounds, we’ve been qualifying well and the car is running good. There will be peaks and valleys with drag racing, that’s just part of it. There will be a lot of highs and a lot of lows and a little in between. I would have loved to have won for Shelor Motor Mile and my family’s company. Maybe we will get them in Richmond. I’m looking forward to crawling back in a race car and keep what we’re doing going.”

Cruz Pedregon, Pedregon Racing Snap-on® Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

(No. 5 Qualifier – 3.876 seconds at 325.30 mph)

Round 1: (0.037-second reaction time, 3.921 seconds at 328.46 mph) finishes second to quad winner No. 4 Robert Hight (0.057/3.880/332.67), and defeated No. 12 Tim Wilkerson (0.103/3.918/311.05), and No. 13 Jim Campbell (0.160/4.005/307.44)

Round 2: (0.094/8.660/86.83) loss to No. 4 Robert Hight (0.066/3.902/329.83), No. 1 John Force (0.083/3.934/328.62) and No. 8 Bob Tasca III (0.045/3.975/325.30

“The Snap-on Tools Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat continued its great qualifying performance with runs of 3.87 (seconds), 3.88, and 3.94, all were in the top three of our group and then we spend the tires in Q4. We came right back for the first round of eliminations and ran a great 3.92, but in the second round, the track was a little tricky early in the run. The track has some character at the starting line and that contributed to spinning the tires against our opponents to end our weekend. It was still a great effort by the team and it’s like a prize fight. A lot of these rounds, we going to the body and trying to get better every week. I feel like I’m getting better as a driver. The team’s getting better, so we’re just going to keep on doing our thing, chopping wood, as they say, and get better. I look forward to Virginia. It’s great to go to Richmond again. We’ve been going off and on there for many years since the late nineties, and I always looking forward to getting after it there.”

NHRA CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS STANDINGS:

Following the Circle K NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway

FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Matt Hagan (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 567 (2)

2.  Robert Hight: 545 (2)

3.  Ron Capps: 501 (1)

4.  John Force: 375

5.  Cruz Pedregon (Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat): 340

6.  J.R. Todd: 241

7.  Bob Tasca III: 283

8.  Alexis DeJoria: 273

9.  Chad Green: 269

10. Tim Wilkerson: 217

TOP FUEL (season wins in parentheses)

1.  Brittany Force: 478 (2)

2.  Mike Salinas: 461 (2)

3.  Justin Ashley: 432 (1)

4.  Steve Torrence: 427

5.  Clay Millican: 328

6. Josh Hart: 294

7.  Austin Prock: 288

8.  Doug Kalitta: 263

9. Tony Schumacher: 243

10. Antron Brown: 230

13. Leah Pruett (Dodge Power Brokers): 210

DodgeGarage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News

Fans can follow all the NHRA action this season at DodgeGarage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag-racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise. For more information, visit www.dodgegarage.com.

@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram

The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel continues to share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers on the track. Fans can see action from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers, competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

Dodge//SRT

For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Their influence continues today as Dodge shifts into high gear with muscle cars and SUVs that deliver unrivaled performance in each of the segments where they compete.

Dodge drives forward as a pure performance brand, offering SRT versions of every model across the lineup. For the 2022 model year, Dodge delivers the drag-strip dominating 807-horsepower Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock, the 797-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Redeye, the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world, and the Dodge Durango SRT 392, America’s fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV. Combined, these three muscle cars make Dodge the industry’s most powerful brand, offering more horsepower than any other American brand across its entire lineup.

In 2020, Dodge was named the “#1 Brand in Initial Quality,” making it the first domestic brand ever to rank No. 1 in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). In 2021, Dodge brand ranked No. 1 in the J.D. Power APEAL Study (mass market) — making it the only domestic brand ever to do so two years in a row.

Dodge is part of the portfolio of brands offered by leading global automaker and mobility provider Stellantis. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

Fourth in GTD PRO for Garcia, Taylor and No. 3 Corvette with Le Mans up next

MONTEREY, Calif. (May 1, 2022) – Corvette Racing made the right strategy calls Sunday and put itself in position for another incredible comeback in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. Things didn’t exactly pan out in the best way but Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor still came out better than where they started with a fourth-place finish at the Hyundai Monterey Sports Car Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The No. 3 Mobil 1/SiriusXM Chevrolet Corvette C8.R challenged for a third straight podium in the new-for-2022 GTD PRO class. The team now takes a break from IMSA competition and will prepare for its annual trip to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June with eyes on a ninth class title in France. Starting at the back of the GTD PRO grid Sunday and in the middle of the regular GTD field, Corvette Racing elected for a three-stop strategy in attempt to gain early track position. Taylor brought in the No. 3 Corvette 25 minutes into the race on the strategic call from team engineers for fresh Michelin tires and fuel. The move paid off as Taylor got back around ahead of the No. 14 Lexus, which stopped a lap later in an attempt to mirror the Corvette Racing strategy. Things got better with a full-course caution on the following lap. The Corvette strategists called Taylor back to the pitlane for a fuel top-off under yellow once the GTD pits opened, sending the No. 3 C8.R to the class lead. Misfortune struck on the restart with Taylor falling back slightly and suffering contact, which pushed the No. 3 Corvette to third in class. Any damage was minimal as Taylor drove another 57 minutes until giving way to Garcia, who went the final 60 minutes without another stop. Garcia whittled a four-second deficit to the third-place BMW of Connor de Phillippi to a half-second inside the final seven minutes, with both within 1.5 seconds of the second-place Lexus at the same time. Faster prototype traffic and slower GTD cars stymied Garcia’s challenge in the final laps. Corvette Racing’s next round in IMSA is the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on June 24-26 from Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International.

ANTONIO GARCIA, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FOURTH IN GTD PRO: “Things almost played out our way. We stopped first and the Lexus followed us from the same position to cover us. In a way, I think it was a smart race from our point of view. We got the most out of the pace we showed over the weekend. I knew I had to do more than 40 laps on the last stint on the same tires so I didn’t want to kill them. I think everyone was struggling with tires. It was difficult. The different cars achieve lap times in different ways, so when we race BMW for example, it’s very difficult. I got close to them for about four or five laps before traffic got very bad. Without that, maybe I would have had a shot but it’s the way it is around here. Traffic is always very bad at Laguna when we are all struggling with tire degradation. Coming out fourth and being able to maybe get P2 with what we had, I think we have to be happy. I feel just a little disappointed that I couldn’t find my way through to gain those positions.”On to Le Mans: “It will be fun. Going from this race track with the least amount of grip in GTD PRO, it will feel like we are in LMP1 at Le Mans! It will be nice to get back into WEC and GTE Pro mode as fast possible. I can’t wait to work with the 64 guys again to get a good result for both Corvettes.”

JORDAN TAYLOR, NO. 3 MOBIL 1/SiriusXM CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8.R – FOURTH IN GTD PRO: “From where we started the race, we had to take risks with strategy to make things happen. Fortunately the first call to pit early and the early yellow put us to the lead. I didn’t have a good restart, which shuffled me back to third. I think we were going to be third or fourth on pace with the other guys’ strategies. So it’s not the greatest day but looking at the weekend as a whole, the race is what counts for points. We’ve learned a little bit so hopefully we can go to Watkins Glen and be in a little stronger position.”On to Le Mans: “I’m already thinking about it. It’s nice to shift gears and go back to the GTE spec of the C8.R. I’ll go to the simulator in the next week-and-a-half to do some Le Mans prep, and I’m looking forward to that. It’ll nice to get back over there and redeem ourselves from last year.”

No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R finishes third for the fourth year in a row

MONTERREY, Calif. (May 1, 2022) – Pipo Derani is in a rut at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The reigning IMSA DPi champion has finished third, co-driving the No 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R, in the race on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn natural-terrain road course for four years in a row. But, for accruing championship points anyway, he’ll take it and move on.

Derani, splitting seat time with first-year teammate Tristan Nunez in the 2-hour, 40-minute race slowed by one full-course caution for 18 minutes, led the Cadillac DPi contingent in the fourth round of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship. “I’m really happy to come out of this race with the best Cadillac,” said Derani, who also co-drove to third place in the 12-hour race at Sebring International Raceway in March.  ”I think we did the best we could. It’s a good points day for the team. We had to work hard on the Whelen Engineering car during the weekend. But come race day, it was very good. I’m really happy. To keep the No. 31 car on the podium here for the fourth year in a row is quite positive.” The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R, co-driven by Tristan Vautier and Richard Westbrook, finished fourth overall after earning podium spots in each of the first three races. The No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R, with Alex Lynn and Earl Bamber sharing duty behind the wheel, finished fifth. The No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R co-driven by Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van de Zande, which came into the race weekend off a victory on the streets of Long Beach last month, developed a power supply issue early in the race that affected major systems. The crew spent considerable time attempting to address the problem but eventually the car was retired.

Felipe Albuquerque and Ricky Taylor co-drove the winning Acura. Another 2-hour, 40-inute race is next up for Cadillac teams and drivers on May 13-15 on the 2.258-mile, 13-turn Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R has finished second the past two years at the natural-terrain road course in Lexington. USA Network will telecast the race live at 2 p.m. ET Sunday, May 15, with streaming on Peacock. IMSA Radio will broadcast the race at IMSA.com along with XM 207.

Cadillac Racing results and quotes

No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.RPipo Derani, Tristan NunezFinish: Third Start: SixthPipo Derani: “After we had the yellow flag and I was stuck behind the No. 5, the team pulled me in early (for a pit stop). Then, I had a really good out lap. Eventually, that helped us get ahead, and from there, we could do our own race. I’m really happy to come out of this race with the best Cadillac. I think we did the best we could. It’s a good points day for the team. We had to work hard on the Whelen Engineering car during the weekend. But come race day, it was very good. I’m really happy. To keep the No. 31 car on the podium here for the fourth year in a row is quite positive.” Tristan Nunez: “The start was definitely difficult. I just tried to keep the rears underneath me. We had a good pit stop and we made some adjustments. We’ll take it. It feels like a win to us. We started in the back, and with a little bit of strategy and a major out lap by Pipo, we got into this position. To bring the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac to the podium is a good day.” No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.RTristan Vautier, Richard WestbrookFinish: Fourth Start: FifthTristan Vautier: “We made the most of the opportunity. It was a rough weekend for us. We kind of struggled finding our way but hit it in the race, so we’re happy about that. Some things didn’t play out for us strategy-wise, but if somebody would have told us this morning that we would finish fourth, it would have been fine. A massive job from the team getting us to that point because last year we finished a lap down. We struggled on pace, but this year I think we were the strongest Cadillac over the last stints of the race.” Richard Westbrook: “I think we absolutely maximized what we have. We had a really tough Saturday and a really tough warmup. We scraped it together and had a competitive car. We probably had a fourth-place car and we got fourth. I was surprised by how close all the Cadillacs were and all in all I’m really happy. We’re in a good spot.” No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.REarl Bamber, Alex LynnFinish: Fifth Start: ThirdEarl Bamber: “I think we had a good car today and think we had a car for the podium. But, we didn’t execute well and we got some damage on the nose. So, we just had to bring it to the end to grab some points. It’s a shame to see those ones go away, but that’s motor racing. We will rebuild as a team and come back stronger for the next one in Ohio.” Alex Lynn: “Not the day we dreamed of today. I thought we had a very strong car, but we didn’t make it happen. We will move on to the next one in Mid-Ohio.” No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.RRenger van der Zande, Sebastien BourdaisFinish: Sixth in class (32nd overall) Start: FourthSteve Eriksen (team manager): “During the race, we had an intermittent power issue which causes the whole electrical system to shut down, including the power steering. We took it back to the garage, switched out a couple of components to see if that would make a difference. We were able to get the car started again and it had the same problem, so the more time we spent on it the more we realized we just need to take it back and diagnose the problem.”

CONCORD, NC (May 1, 2022) — Justin Ashley and the Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster powered by Vita C Shotmade two major steps forward this weekend at the Circle k Four-Wide Nationals. The third year pro earned his first No. 1 qualifier and also won his first round of racing in the unique four-wide format. Ashley, the 2022 Winternationals winner and most recent runner-up at the SpringNationals, a three-time national event winner, was confident going into race day. His quickest elapsed time of 3.669 seconds from the Friday night session gave his Davis Motorsports team the latitude to make the most out of the final day of qualifying. His first quad was composed of No. 16 qualifier Cameron Ferre, No. 8 qualifier Austin Prock and No. 9 qualifier Antron Brown.

Justin Ashley and Phillips Connect Toyota Top Fuel dragster powered by Vita C Shot, photo by Ron Lewis

After the tree flashed and all four 11,000 horsepower race cars charged down their respective lanes it was Ashley collecting his first career round win in the four-wide format with a dominant win. Unfortunately, the team did not get any data from the run as the clocks did not record a time. Ashley’s Phillips Connect Toyota crossed the finish line a full dragster length ahead of Ferre, who also moved to the second quad. Since there was no official time recorded Ashley did not have any lane choice in the second round.

“We still got the data and we were able to evaluate that against previous runs,” said Ashley. “We would’ve loved to get our elapsed time but that’s part of racing. We were very happy with how the first run looked on the graph. (Crew chiefs) Mike (Green) and Tommy (DeLago) did an amazing job like they always do.”

Racing from lane two in the second quad Ashley was looking to race to his second consecutive final. It took the quickest elapsed time of the round to defeat Ashley as Mike Salinas posted a strong 3.708 second run. Ashley was looking to make a move, but his race car overpowered the track and moved sideways. Ashley kept it under control, but he was unable to get to the finish line in the second spot. No. 16 qualifier Ferre was able to stay hooked up and move to the final quad. It was an earlier finish to the day than expected for Ashley. 

“You have to look at the weekend as a whole,” said Ashley. “The result wasn’t what we wanted but the team overall did a great job. There were a lot of positives that come from this weekend. We were able to gain a lot of data and information which is important. To be able to qualify No. 1 is a big deal. It’s great to sit back and reflect on how far we have come as a team and organization. To be able to get our first four-wide round win in addition was another stepping stone. We are continuing to learn and will take this knowledge on to the next race.”

Ashley will head to the Virginia Nationals solidly in third place in the Camping World Drag Racing Series point standings.

Qualifying Results

Q1: 3.715 sec, 329.67 mph; Qual. 1

Q2: 3.669 sec, 331.77 mph; Qual. 1

Q3: 3.771 sec, 326.79 mph; Qual. 1

Q4: 8.300 sec, 76.96 mph; Qual 1

Bonus Points: +7 (Quickest in Q1 and Q2, third quickest of Q3)

Race Results

First Quad 

Cameron Ferre and Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by Vita C Shot, 3.740, 329.26 mph def. Antron Brown and Austin Prock

Second Quad 

Mike Salinas and Cameron Ferre def. Justin Ashley, Phillips Connect Toyota dragster powered by Vita C Shot, 3.740, 329.26 mph and Doug Kalitta

Camping World Drag Racing Series Top Ten – Top Fuel

1. Brittany Force                          478

2. Mike Salinas                            461

3. Justin Ashley                           432

4. Steve Torrence                        427

5. Clay Millican                            328

6. Josh Hart                                   294

7. Austin Prock                             288

8. Doug Kalitta                             263

9. Tony Schumacher                    243

10. Antron Brown                        230

CHEVROLET IN NTT INDYCAR SERIES GRAND PRIX OF ALABAMA BARBER MOTORSPORTS TEAM CHEVY POST RACE RECAP WITH QUOTES AND TRANSCRIPT MAY 1, 2022
PATO O’WARD KEEPS CHEVROLET PERFECT IN 2022 WITH AN EXCITING WIN AT BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK
POLE WINNER RINUS VEEKAY FINISHES THIRD TO GIVE CHEVY TWO SPOT ON PODIUM AT ALABAMA GRAND PRIX BIRMINGHAM – For the third time in his NTT INDYCAR Series Career, Pato O’Ward took his No 5 Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet to Victory Lane. As has been his trademark so far in his career, he made an exciting move to pass for the lead on lap 61 overtaking pole sitter  and race leader  Rinus VeeKay in turn five after both had pitted and VeeKay won the race off pit lane. The young driver originally from Monterey, Mexico never looked back.   On the way to keeping  Chevrolet perfect so far this season in the NTT INDYCAR Series, O’Ward led 27 laps in a race that saw one caution flag for a total of three laps. With four races in the books, Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin won the first followed by Josef Newgarden capturing the next two, and now adding O’Ward to the list. The victory is the 99^th for Chevrolet since returning to the Series in 2012 as an engine supplier with the 2.2 liter twin turbo direct injected V6 purpose built engine.  Pole winner and top lap leader with 57 completed from the wave of the green flag,  Rinus VeeKay in the No. 21 Sonax Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet finished third to give the Gold Bowtie drivers two of the three podium positions . Alex Palou finished second. Next on the schedule is the start of the month of May with the GMR Grand Prix on the Road Course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 14^, 2022. DRIVER QUOTESPATO O’WARD, NO. 5 ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET, RACE WINNER:WHAT A SMOOTH WEEKEND FOR THE 5 BUNCH. NICE TO SEE YOU IN VICTORY LANE PATO! WIN NUMBER THREE, BUT I HAVE TO ASK YOU ABOUT HOW AGGRESSIVE YOU HAD TO PLAY THAT PASS ON VEEKAY TO GET THE LEAD. AT THE MOMENT DID YOU KNOW THAT MAYBE THAT WAS THE PASS FOR THE WIN?“Yeah, Taylor told me we are fighting for the win. We almost got them in the pit stops, so I said no this is your chance man. It’s so tough to follow just because it’s such a fast and flowing circuit. I knew if I would have the opportunity, it would have been right then and there. I got on my button and got around him into (Turn) five and then I knew if he would get into clean air, we can kind of control the thing. Once we did that it was a cruise to victory lane.” THERE WAS A LOT OF TURMOIL AROUND THIS TEAM JUST A FEW WEEKS AGO. YOU CAME INTO LONG BEACH SAYING I’M PUTTING IT ALL BEHIND ME. HOW MUCH DID THAT MENTAL SHIFT HELP YOU BEHIND THE WHEEL?“Man, it sucks to be at war within your own team. I’m glad there’s been very positive talks for the future and man I wanted to do it for these guys. I wanted to do it for Arrow McLaren SP, Team Chevy. They’ve swept this year so far, so I think it’s great for them. Yeah, man I was just tired of being 10^th and 11^th and fifth. I said let’s get a win under our belt so we can claw our way back to this championship fight.” RINUS VEEKAY, NO. 21 SONAX ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 3^RD:“It was going really well. The car was really  super fast even saving fuel. Then that last pit stop I was a little too  on the brakes turning into five and that’s where he (Pato O’Ward) got me. Then I lost some time and Alex Palou got me and we dropped to third. Normally I should be the happiest guy on earth with a podium, but now…but we are headed to the Indy Road Course and that’s been good for us, and then the 500. I feel ready and excited to get there.”WILL POWER, NO. 12 VERIZON 5G TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 4^TH:As the race was winding down, I did my very best to take advantage and make those moves early on and get by Dixon and all those guys as quickly as possible. We made some dive bombs to get there. I’m so happy to have this Verizon Chevy up there. I honestly didn’t expect it.“We just have to keep doing the same thing this year, finishing near to top. We have to qualify better, it will make it a lot easier on us during the race. But this team is working hard. We had better tires near the end and great strategy. I’m just trying to enjoy this as I go along. I’ve been here 17 years. Ready for Indy.” JOSEF NEWGARDEN, NO. 2 PPG TEAM PENSKE CHEVROLET, FINISHED 14^TH:“We could just never gather much traction today with the No. 2 PPG Chevy on the three-stop strategy. Obviously, not testing here like the other teams did a few weeks ago put us a bit behind but I felt that we made great gains throughout the weekend. To tell you how well our team is working right now, we completely switched over to the 2 car’s setup yesterday – and it was a much better feel for me – but the two-stop strategy was the way to go in the end. At the end of the day, two wins and a very solid start to the year heading into the month of May. We’re in a good spot, for sure.” FELIX ROSENQVIST, NO. 7 VUSE ARROW MCLAREN SP CHEVROLET, FINISHED 16^TH :”It was a disappointing race. It was a really good first stint that was positive with good pace on the Firestone red tires, but then we had a miscalculation on the fuel. That made us pit way too early, and we had to save a bunch of fuel for the rest of the race. We have to analyze everything to see if our fuel numbers are correct. We were quick, but couldn’t really do anything because of the fuel situation. Congrats to Pato, that is really good for him and the team. Just wish we could’ve been there with him, but we will push to be there next time.” CONOR DALY, NO. 20 BITNILE ED CARPENTER RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 19^TH:: “It was a tough race today. Obviously qualifying yesterday hurt us as it would have been good to start farther up. But now we’ve got the month of May coming up and we’ve been fast on both the road course and the oval at IMS, so we’ll focus on that now and get this BitNile Chevy back towards the front!”KYLE KIRKWOOD, NO. 14 ROKIT AJ FOYT RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 22^ND: DALTON KELLETT, NO. 4 K-LINE AJ FOYT RACING CHEVROLET, FINISHED 23^RD CALLUM ILOTT, NO. 77 JUNCOS HOLLINGER RACING, FINISHED 25^TH::“I honestly don’t even know what to say about that one. We had a great start. Moved up to eighth. We had a good pit stop and I was just pjshing slightly too hard trying to defend from Helio on cold tires. I went a little wide and after that I was just a passenger. It’s a shame to end a good weekend like that, I feel sorry for myself, for the team. It’s just a shame. Will take the positives. We had lots of pace. So we will take the positives and move toward the Grand Prix in Indy.” We have to qualify better, it will make it a lot easier on us during the race. But this team is working hard.  We had better tires near the end and great strategy. I’m just trying to enjoy this as I go along. I’ve been here 17 years. Ready for Indy.” TATIANA CALDERON, NO. 11 ROKIT AJ FOYT RACING, FINISHED 26^TH: NTT INDYCAR SERIES News ConferenceRinus VeeKay, Pato O’Ward, Taylor KielPress Conference Transcript THE MODERATOR: Good afternoon. We are joined by the third-place finisher, Rinus VeeKay.Tell us about your day and maybe after that second pit stop coming back out the battle you had in turn five.RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, actually the weekend has been pretty good. We started out the first two-thirds of the race very strong, leading, saving a lot of fuel. Very happy with that.Unfortunately I got held up a little bit before getting into my second pit stop, so Pato was on me, really on me. I did beat him out of pit lane. Coming into turn five, I just took it a little bit too conservative, and he got around me. Yeah, he drove away basically. Lacked a little bit of pace on the last set of tires. Pato and Alex were a little bit too fast for me to hang with.Yeah, I think third place is pretty good still.THE MODERATOR: It was a 1.8 second gap going into the pit stop. I think I heard you say you were caught up behind Jimmie.RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, Pato was really on my tail coming into the pit box. He was right in front of me in the box. Yeah, I did beat him out so we can a pretty good pit stop.Yeah, unfortunately I didn’t push enough on that out lap. Another lesson learned. Unfortunately the hard way.THE MODERATOR: Questions.Q.Rinus, why do you think you were so conservative?RINUS VEEKAY: Well, I have screwed myself a few times in the past braking a little too deep, locking a tire, yeah, basically destroying my whole last stint.I did not know Pato was going that deep. Yeah, I was looking in my mirrors a lot. Maybe that distracted me a little bit. Yeah, I don’t know. If I could go back, I would go way deeper and stay ahead of him. I was also struggling a little bit more on my last set of tires.Yeah, he was definitely faster on that last stint. Deserved win for him. Fortunately I still got a podium out of it.Q.Considering how you went like this after your injury last year, this weekend, do you feel like this is your first full, complete weekend?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, no, I feel like we’re definitely back. I felt like that at St. Pete already, qualifying fourth, finishing sixth. That was a great way to bounce back. Leading in Texas. Definitely running out of fuel, still finishing 10th.I think we started out really well already. This weekend really, yeah, was the cherry on the cake with the pole position and having a car to win the race, all race.Q.Rinus, the two laps where Pato gets you for the lead, then all of a sudden the very next lap the guy next to you gets in between you and Pato, takes over second, at that point what did you think…RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, you feel bummed at that moment. There’s still so many laps left in the race, you never give up and you kind of reset and try to make the best out of it still.Definitely still surprised by how Alex got between us. Yeah, I think I could have made a run for him. I came out of turn five fully sideways, that’s kind of where I lost touch with him.Yeah, I did not really expect that to happen. It’s INDYCAR. Anything can happen. Level is extremely high. You weaken a little bit for one second and you’re being passed from the lead.Q.Today’s podium, we talk so much about the young drivers in INDYCAR, it’s like today youth wasn’t only on display, it was showcased. What is it like to have that all young podium this week?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, I think it’s great for the youth movement now. All the young guys, of course, Alex has done it a few times last year, and already this year. Same with Pato.I’m happy to get there with those guys. I think it really shows that young guys are coming through, the new generation is kind of taking over.THE MODERATOR: I want to say we’ve had eight different drivers, podiums, in the four races we’ve had so far. It’s a growing number, competitive as ever certainly.Q.Rinus, the first half of the race, two stints, were you managing the gap or is that everything you had? Could you have gone bigger?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, I was managing the gap a little bit, especially on the reds. I tried to keep it around two, two and a half seconds. Yeah, I think also that second run I felt very good just saving fuel. I was all the time saving a little more than the team asked me to. We always had a little bit of a buffer if we needed to go an extra lap or anything. I felt pretty good, good rhythm.Yeah, I was in my element there.Q.Did either of you guys get to spend any time around Romain today?RINUS VEEKAY: No, I think he was behind me at one point just before the caution. But it’s hard to see a different car now. I was always looking at the purple car. Now it was the DHL car, now it’s the blue car.I think it was him behind me at one point, yeah.Q.Rinus, is there a really big confidence booster going into the month of May?RINUS VEEKAY: Yeah, it’s a big confidence booster. Of course I struggled a little bit in Long Beach with pace. That was a tough race. Then coming here, first road course of the season, yeah. Just very happy. We were very fast in qualifying. Just in the race also we had the pace to win the race.Yeah, I’m happy. I think coming into the month of May I know Indy road course is going to be good for us, Indy 500. I think we’re in a good position.THE MODERATOR: Obviously joined now by the champion of this year’s race, Pato O’Ward.Pato, a lot of momentum heading into the month of May. A good ‘W’ for you guys.PATO O’WARD: Thanks, man.Yeah, it was a great day for us. I think it was a very slow-paced race, at least where we were at. Last year we did the strategy that we didn’t do today. Today was a bit different in terms of really seeing where these tires would take us in terms of blacks to reds, reds to blacks.But it was good. I think we managed it. We stayed very patient. Rinus was very quick. Alex was, as well. I think it was definitely kind of like a follow-the-leader type of situation.When the opportunities came, we were able to take advantage of that, yeah, challenge these guys for the lead of the race.THE MODERATOR: Follow the leader was after the pit stop, the scrap between you and Rinus.PATO O’WARD: I knew the only opportunity I was going to have was then and there. Like I said, it’s such a fast and flowing circuit where you stay within probably a second and you can probably get within maybe 7/10ths of the car in front once their tires are heated up. It’s really hard to strike, especially if they are also on the same strategy of fuel saving, ‘push to pass’, et cetera.Yeah, it was a good scramble. I think it was really nice to race along someone where I feel like we’ve always respected each other when we race. I think that’s fantastic to have whenever you’re fighting for the lead.THE MODERATOR: We’ll continue with questions.Q.You ended up with 120 seconds of ‘push to pass’ remaining. Was that a plan going into the race to help fuel saving?PATO O’WARD: I couldn’t use it, man, because I was handicapped by the fuel. I would have loved to use them. I used them whenever they counted.Yeah, I was traveling — I was trying to hit a number, and it was a pretty big number. Obviously when you use the ‘push to pass’, it eats through this mileage of fuel that you have pretty quickly.Yeah, that’s probably why I ended with so much ‘push to pass’ left.Q.The average age of the three guys on the podium is 22.7. I don’t know if that’s one of the younger ones, but I’m assuming it is. What is it like to be part of this youth movement?PATO O’WARD: It’s great, man. I think we’ve seen it not just this year but the past two years. I think it’s awesome to see the young ones coming to the series and giving the veterans a hard time.At the end of the day these guys that we’re racing against, Dixon, Power, Newgarden, we’ve been watching them for so many years. They’re basically idols of all of us when we were coming through the ranks trying to get to INDYCAR.It’s really cool to be able to battle with them. Ultimately what you want to do when you get to race against them, you can have your fan boy moment for a couple seconds, but then you want to beat ’em.THE MODERATOR: Also fortunate to be joined by the president of Arrow McLaren SP, Taylor Kiel. A big win for you heading into the month of May.TAYLOR KIEL: It’s huge for us. We knew we had this potential all year long. We had a rough start to the season. It’s nice to get back on track, perform how we know how to, ultimately bring a win back home for everybody that works at Arrow McLaren SP and our extended family at McLaren. I think it’s a big boost for us heading into the month of May as Pato said.THE MODERATOR: Your thoughts on the battle with Rinus?TAYLOR KIEL: I told him in Victory Lane that pass into five was everything. It was huge for us to be able to clear Rinus, ultimately take the lead. Also it was huge to us to defend against Alex on the overcut as well.The boys did a great job in pit lane to do their job, execute. Pato did what he needed to do. Ultimately it ticked both boxes. We were able to advance our position and defend against Alex who did a great job certainly closing the gap to us.THE MODERATOR: Questions for Pato or Taylor.Q.Pato, I know last year you were bummed out to say the least after starting on pole, finishing fourth. Did you know because of how last year played out that that’s what you were going to shoot for, see how things played out, or was there anything in the race that made you pick that strategy?PATO O’WARD: I think ultimately what allowed us to do it was the pace was honestly super slow. Everybody was doing that. I think that was for sure the fastest way to get around for the 90 laps. Obviously not for the fastest lap, but we wanted to win the race.Last year I think we got fastest lap but we crossed the finish line in fourth. I think it was all about how can we save as much fuel and also we were a bit into the mercy of how long are we going to make the reds last? I think that was probably the biggest thing, just making sure that we can make the reds last up until lap, I don’t know when I pitted, 28 or 30 or something. I think that was the biggest thing, just making sure we didn’t just overshoot the tire in the first 10 laps because we weren’t going to make it to do the two-stopper.I think it’s a combination of a lot of things. Whenever you’re saving so much fuel, it makes the saving of the tire a lot easier.TAYLOR KIEL: I’d say looking, I think the biggest threats to us on that strategy were Newgarden, Herta and Grosjean. We did that last year. It’s really hard to make it work. It’s hard to pass, especially Pato talked about it in our strategy brief this morning. A full fuel car, you can be pushing it, but it’s difficult.To do what you have to do to make that work, you have to make up the pit loss time, pass a lot of cars. It’s just a difficult way to go about it. Our thought was, Let’s make it easy, as easy as we can on ourselves, let’s take advantage of being out front. He had the pace to do it, the tires lasted. He drove in a way that we were able to maintain pace and keep the tires under us. For us it was kind of a no-brainer to stick to that.Q.Pato, you said you were in this great rhythm, your mindset on and off the track had changed completely closing in on your new contract extension. Was today and this weekend’s performance feeding off that or was this just a great race weekend?PATO O’WARD: I think the shift that we kind of felt was in Long Beach actually. I just think we had a great race there. I think a top-five finish in this series is pretty stellar because it’s so competitive, there’s so many factors that have to go right in order to be up there.I just think this weekend was the perfect weekend to do it. I love this place. We had a great car here. No reason why we wouldn’t have had a good car here this weekend, which we just proved that we were the guy to beat. We missed it just by a little bit in qualifying, but I knew I had the pace, I knew the car had the pace. It was just kind of playing a bit of a waiting game.These races are so long where it’s not a sprint race. If would have started, it’s 30 or 40 laps, you maybe approach it a bit different. But it’s 90 laps. It’s so, so long. I wasn’t really stressing. I was just managing my fuel, my tires, and just taking care of everything. Whenever the opportunity would come to us, I was sure to be ready to take advantage of it.Q.Taylor, as someone who is as close as anyone to Pato, have you been able to notably see that mental shift on and off the track?TAYLOR KIEL: Well, I think just as an entire group of people, certainly Pato and our whole team, I think we’ve kind of hit the reset button. As he said, Long Beach was a catalyst for us to show that we can perform at a high level again after last year to back it up.For me, I want to give him the tools to succeed, and the rest is up to him. He takes advantage of it. Certainly when we have a good car to compete at the front, we compete at the front. That’s the goal for us, is to continue to put in the work and put in the effort and make sure we have a car, a team and a group of people that can support Pato. The rest is up to all of us to execute.I think today proves that we can do that and we’ll continue to do that. That’s where we’re at.Q.Did the 5 team need the driver’s mindset to change to reach its potential?TAYLOR KIEL: I don’t know if it needs a mindset. I’ve said to him before, the driver in our team, I don’t know how it is with everybody else, is the quarterback, right? As the quarterback goes, the rest of the team goes. As the driver goes, the rest of the team goes. He has such an infectious spirit, such an energy, that it’s impactful to what we do in a very good way.I think there’s kind of two things there: he’s a very important part of what we do, but as a team you have to be able to compartmentalize things, too. We’re moving from race to race, different circuit type to different circuit type, testing, racing. We’re doing so many things, we have to focus on what we’re doing today.I would say the drivers in our organization are certainly impactful to the general aura of what we’ve got going on. Ultimately us as a team, we have to be able to withstand whatever might happen. That’s kind of where we’re at with that.Q.When he gets out of the car at Long Beach, he is Pato. He’s Pato again here. Do you feel like you can win this week?TAYLOR KIEL: I always feel like we can win honestly.PATO O’WARD: Angry Pato can win, too (smiling).TAYLOR KIEL: I always feel like we can win. That’s the beauty of having Pato drive one of our cars, is that we’ve now won at a road course, we’ve won at a street course, we won at a superspeedway. If we had –PATO O’WARD: I also needed to make sure Josef didn’t win that award.TAYLOR KIEL: I’m just saying, ultimately for us, I think we’ve got a driver that can compete and win at any circuit type. We put a good car together. If we come prepared, roll off the truck in a good window, it’s hard to beat.Q.Pato, I asked you Friday if happy Pato is dangerous to the rest of the field. You said you didn’t know.PATO O’WARD: What do you think?Q.I thought you were a little dangerous going through turn five. Not dangerous bad.PATO O’WARD: Patient Pato (smiling).Q.Now you head into a very important month. What do you got planned?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, the big boy. Everybody wants to win that one. It’s the massive cookie that everybody wants to have in their room, looking at it, thinking about it.I’m pumped. I’ve never been able to do an Indy 500 with a bunch of people. Last year there was a bunch, but this year I think it’s going to be double or something. I’m really excited to see that.There’s nothing like it. It’s just crazy. I tell everybody that you need to go and experience it in person for you to be able to, like, grasp what an event that is. Obviously I can’t even imagine what it would be like winning it.Q.Can you win it?PATO O’WARD: Sure as hell the plan (smiling).Q.Talking about the younger guys coming up, who have you fan boyed over on track?PATO O’WARD: I remember like it was yesterday actually. I was in Sonoma, my first INDYCAR test. I usually look at Dixon, Power and Newgarden. I think I spun four times, so I caused four red flags in the span of like 35 minutes in the chicane in the Sonoma. Every time I spun, Josef come around looking at me, shaking his head. I was like, Shit (laughter).Yeah, but then I had a good race there, which made it a lot better.Q.Oval, road course, street circuit, you checked the box, the bingo card. Did you think you could do all those that quickly from the diversity standpoint?TAYLOR KIEL: Did you just ask him if he thinks he has the talent to win (smiling)?Q.He did those three things that quickly.PATO O’WARD: I was pretty bummed we didn’t win a road course last year. Man, I love this place. I also wanted to complete it because I’ve had the chance to win here in Mazda and in Indy Lights. I really wanted to win in INDYCAR to kind of complete the three formulas that I’ve raced around here.It’s a great circuit. Like ever since the first time I came, I loved it. It’s super well taken care of. It’s just a beautiful facility. I think today was a great turnout, beautiful day, very different than what the rose in the morning like, which was cool to not have a very overcast, cloudy day.Yeah, great day to go racing.Q.Let me ask it a different way. Of the three different circuits you run, would you have thought a road course was first or an oval first or street course?PATO O’WARD: Oval was the last one I think I would have won. It was the first one. First one I think would probably be a street course, then a road course. Kind of switched around. I don’t mind it, though.Q.Pato, you’ve won here in Pro Mazda, Indy Lights, now here. How great is it to say you won in all three of those now?PATO O’WARD: It’s awesome, man. It’s just a track that I really enjoy driving. You can really feel out the limits of whatever car you’re driving, which make it extra fun in terms of just the physical aspect, from a racing standpoint. It’s not an easy track to pass. I think whenever you do see a pass around here, it’s somewhat exciting. I hope that pass was somewhat exciting because I feel like the rest of the race was pretty boring, at least for me up there.Was there a lot of action behind us? That’s good stuff. I can’t wait to watch the race again.Q.(No microphone.)PATO O’WARD: What happened with them? I’ll watch. Two egos going at it (laughter).Q.Rinus had a two-second gap on you before the pit stop. Where did you gain the time where you got the pass on him?PATO O’WARD: I (indiscernible) it on the brakes.Q.Taylor, about a dozen laps left in the race, you told Pato he was free to take overtake. Pato said, I got it, don’t stress. Did your stress level go down after that?TAYLOR KIEL: My stress level is pretty much down all the time.PATO O’WARD: That’s a lie.TAYLOR KIEL: I just try to stay like that.Honestly, when you get feedback like that, it makes you feel comfortable that everything is in our control, which is all you can ask for when you’re leading the race.At that point I would say, yeah, honestly a little bit. But you never know. You never know what he’s experiencing in the car, so… Felt under control. Looked under control. It was.Q.Pato, over the last two, three months, do you feel like you’re in a better place as a person and driver than you were at the end of last season?PATO O’WARD: Yeah, I feel great, man. I think what last year gave us as a group was kind of that year of fighting for a championship under our belt. We obviously didn’t come out on top, but we fought for it until the end of the season. And that’s huge.We had the championship mindset all year, and I think it helps when you have it into your memory bank and going through the calendar, the year after that, and I think sometimes it helps you be patient. I think that’s the best way I can put it. I think you mental-ize and you realize what is needed to win a championship.A lot of the times it just matures your patience levels, which ultimately pay off at the end of the race.Q.I wanted to know how close you are to confirming your contract.PATO O’WARD: I’d say it’s close. But honestly, you know, we’re into the season already, so I’m kind of — I don’t want to worry about it. I think things will shape up. There’s been very positive conversations. I think the vibe in the team is fantastic. I think that’s what we need going into the month of May. The rest I think will take care of itself.I don’t have a date for you. I guess whenever it’s signed, you’ll probably see it in the media somewhere. Probably be one of the first ones to know actually.Q.Taylor?TAYLOR KIEL: Yeah, what Pato said. We’re in a good place.Q.What’s the situation with Felix?PATO O’WARD: All smiles and unicorns, man.TAYLOR KIEL: Situation with Felix? Ultimately for us, I think we want to take our time with any driver decision. His situation, as I’ve talked about it quite a bit, for us, we want to get through a lot of the season, just kind of understand where we’re at. I want to take more of a sample size than what we’ve got.We’ll make that decision when the time’s right and you guys will know.Q.Where do you feel the balance between Chevy and Honda is at at the moment?PATO O’WARD: Do you want to take it?TAYLOR KIEL: I’ll speak.I don’t know where Honda is at. All I know is that Chevy has put a tremendous amount of work into their package in the off-season. I can sit here and say they’ve given us everything that we’ve asked for. They’ve worked relentlessly to close any perceived gaps that they thought they had.We certainly as a team have felt a huge shift in performance from year to year. I think we did a lot in the backcourt as a team to improve car performance. Chevy has done a fantastic job as well.At this stage in the engine game, as far advanced as we are, for them to find the gains they have is remarkable. Kudo to everyone at Chevy, Pratt & Miller, Ilmor, all the work they’ve done.PATO O’WARD: I’ll just add to that.I think they’ve done a great job. They have really brought it to us this year. I think it’s great that they’ve been so open to our suggestions and to all the Chevy teams’ suggestions to making us go faster, to helping us in every way they can.Yeah, I mean, it’s been fantastic. I think it’s a Chevy sweep for all the races so far. That’s awesome. Hopefully we can keep it rolling into the month of May.Q.(Question about the road package.)PATO O’WARD: Like Taylor said, we’re coming into the end of an aero package, the end of these engines, in this specific second. It’s so hard to make gains. The little gains you make make a big difference.We identified our issues last year where we lacked and we’re getting better. We’re getting better. From my side, I think I’m doing the best job that I can in order for us to make those steps.Whenever you make those steps, it just opens your strategy windows. When the races are so long, like here in INDYCAR, it’s all about your strategy. Ultimately it pays off to qualify up front. As we saw today, it was a lot about track position.At the end of the day if you can just open up the decisions that the team can do at certain times in the race to make critical decisions for a pass for the lead or whatever it may be, those little bits and pieces make a big difference.Q.Taylor?TAYLOR KIEL: Yeah, not much else to add to that other than that last year I would say road courses were our biggest weakness. Based on today I would say they’re a strength of ours. That’s really just a testament of identifying what the priorities were in the off-season and tackling those and making sure that we don’t sit on deficiencies, making sure as a team we continue to improve and move forward. Proud of that.THE MODERATOR: Thank you, everyone. 

CONCORD, N.C. (May 01, 2022) – John Force and the PEAK / BlueDEF PLATINUM Chevrolet Camaro SS team dominated the Circle K NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway. After securing the No. 1 qualifying position and setting both ends of the track record, Force, the defending event winner, rallied to his 155th career victory, first of the season and third in the zMAX Dragway Four-Wide. Robert Hight and the Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy finished as runner-up to Force and the PEAK team. On the dragster side, Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac team exited in the second round while Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team went out in the first round. Continuing his record setting ways, John Force and the PEAK / BlueDEF Chevy team would runner-up in the first quad with a 3.892-second pass at a blistering track-record speed of 335.07 mph that bettered his 334.24 from qualifying. Bob Tasca III would win the quad with a 3.878 at 331.20 sending Alexis DeJoria and her 3.899 at 324.98 home. Robert Hight and the Auto Club team left nothing to chance in their first quad, laying down a 3.880-second pass at 332.67 mph to better Cruz Pedregon, who would also advance, Tim Wilkerson and Jim Campbell. In the second quad, Force and Hight would line up with Tasca III and Cruz Pedregon. Force would handle the PEAK Chevy to a 3.934-second pass at 328.62 mph that was only bettered by Hight and the Auto Club Chevy’s 3.902 at 329.83. The John Force Racing teammates would face Mike McIntire Jr. and Ron Capps in the final quad. Force would leave the line first and go straight down the groove as the BlueDEF Camaro crossed the finish line at 3.914-seconds at 328.86 mph. In the Auto Club Camaro, Hight would have issues down track and have to slow going 4.038 at 267.85 for the runner-up finish. With the victory, Force now has more four-wide wins than any other Funny Car driver and is tied at three with Erica Enders for second most overall behind Steve Torrence who has six. This is now the 34th season in which Force has won at least one race. “It was a great weekend for all my sponsors. It was a great weekend for my team. Finally getting a win. This gave me confidence. I think that I can race. I turn 73 this week and I’m still out here winning races,” said Force who is now fourth in points. “Things just seem to happen where you’re destined to win. It was amazing. On some days, magical things just happen. Things went right and we were able to win the race. It was like it was destiny and it was a great weekend for my team. To finally get a win this year gives me a lot of confidence.” It was the 52nd one-two finish for John Force Racing and the third time drivers have finished first and second in a four-wide. “It was a great day for John Force Racing. Any time you can get two cars to the final, it’s a good day. If this Auto Club Chevy team is going to come up short, I’d rather it be to John and that PEAK Chevy than anyone else,” Hight said. “Ran into some issues there at the end that we’ll get figured out and be ready to come do it all again out in Richmond.” Brittany Force and the Flav-R-Pac team were quickest of their quad with a 3.732-second pass at 329.67 mph and would advance with Spencer Massey and his 3.749 at 323.27 that beat Leah Pruett on a holeshot and sent Tony Schumacher and his 3.753 at 320.89 home. In the second quad, the Flav-R-Pac dragster would run into smoke to only go 5.613-seconds for a second-round loss. “It was a tough weekend here in Charlotte. This Flav-R-Pac team came in here with back-to-back wins and just had that momentum moving forward. We went out qualified seventh, and it was a tough position to be in,” Force said. “We got past first round but in that second round we got beat and had to pack up early. It was still a good weekend for the John Force Racing teams with my dad winner and Robert getting the runner-up.” Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / RMT dragster had a short race day at zMAX Dragway. The No. 8 qualifiers, who saw improvement through Friday and Saturday, were on a good pass until mid-track when something blew and disturbed the timing blocks. The NRHA relied on a photo finish that clearly put Prock finishing third despite no official time. Justin Ashley and Cameron Ferre advanced while Antron Brown was also out in the first round. “It was a frustrating way to end our weekend. I felt like we had a competitive car all weekend and I was hoping it would all come together this morning, but it didn’t,” Prock said. “First round losses are always tough to swallow, especially because we all had high expectations going into this morning. It was a tough break but luckily, we get to play again in Richmond. I think the team is definitely on the right track. We just have to get our ducks in a row, and we should be fine.” The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season continues May 13-15 with the Virginia NHRA Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.