Boca Raton, FL (May 22, 2012) — Going into the 24th Annual Dollar General NHRA Summernationals in Topeka, KS, the Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patron Toyota Camry Funny Car team looked to get two solid qualifying runs under their belt on Friday evening, when track conditions would likely be at their best. At around 5:30PM, the air temperatures were still pushing ninety degrees, but Team Patron was able to accomplish a nice, clean 4.206-second at 296.76-mph pass in round one, and an impressive 4.135-sec at 303.91-mph, edging out lane partner John Force’s 4.136-sec pass in round two, finishing out the day in the tenth spot.

Sitting in eleventh by the time she went up to the line in round three, it was driver Alexis DeJoria versus Force again, this time against daughter and fellow Rookie of the Year candidate, Courtney. Unfortunately, the Patron car struggled and lost traction at the 330-foot mark, resulting in a 4.78-sec pass.

In what was a seemingly never-ending matchup of Force family members for DeJoria this weekend, she was up against veteran John Force yet again in her last attempt to improve her standings before going into Sunday’s elimination rounds.  The two drivers put on an exciting side-by-side show, with Team DeJoria running a 4.169-sec to Team Force’s 4.19-sec run. Although the run was solid, the Patr?n team remained in the eleventh spot.(...)
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Post tags: alexis dejoria, Funny Car, kansas, NHRA, patron tequilla, topeaka, toyota camry

HOUSTON (April 29) — Karen Stoffer had her best outing of the season Sunday at Royal Purple Raceway, riding her GEICO Suzuki past reigning world champion Eddie Krawiec and Chip Ellis for a steady semifinal finish at the 25th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals.

Starting from the No. 6 qualifying position, Stoffer got a free pass against Ellis when the veteran rider left the Tree -.001 seconds early, an automatic disqualification. Stoffer still rode out the pass and posted a 6.960 at 191.70 mph.

Up next was two-time and reigning Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Krawiec, who had qualified No. 3 on his Harley-Davidson V-Rod. But this time it was Stoffer who had the quicker bike, running a 6.907 at 192.85 mph to Krawiec’s 6.928 at 192.41 mph.(...)
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Post tags: geico, karen stoffer, NHRA, Pro Stock motorcycle

HOUSTON (April 28) – Leah Pruett won’t stay down long after a rare first-round loss in the NHRA Pro Mod Series by ProCare Rx. Pruett and her R2B2 Racing team vow to get back to work after she was eliminated on Saturday night from the O’Reilly Auto Parts Spring Nationals Royal Purple Raceway.

“We’re going to test on Monday,” Pruett said. “We’ve got a lot of things we want to fix with the car, and I’ve got a lot of things I want to fix inside the driver compartment. Hopefully, that will prove advantageous.

“I’m really not sure what’s going on. Last year, I had spectacular lights, and earlier this year in testing, it was awesome. Now, I don’t know, at these races, I just can’t get it. I need to work on something.”

Pruett lost in the first round to Troy Coughlin despite running a better elapsed time. Pruett went 5.972 seconds at 249.86 mph in her ProCare Rx Ford Mustang, but lost to Coughlin’s pass of 5.997 seconds at 247.70 mph. The difference was Coughlin’s better reaction time.(...)
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Post tags: leah pruett, NHRA, Pro mod, r2b2 procar rx

HOUSTON (April 24) – GK Motorsports driver Erica Enders carries some confidence and momentum into this weekend’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway.

Enders is coming off a runner-up finish in the 4-Wide Nationals at zMax Dragway, a result that prompted a phone call from Pro Stock legend Bob Glidden, a 10-time world champion.

“Bob Glidden actually called me on Monday after the race,” Enders said. “We talked a couple weeks ago, too, when I called him after Grumpy (Bill Jenkins) died. He called me on Monday, and the conversation starts out as, ‘Gosh darn it, I thought you were going to win.’”(...)
Read the rest of Erica Enders aims for more history at hometown Houston track

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Post tags: cagnazzi racing, erica enders, NHRA, Pro mod, zaza energy

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (April 24, 2012) – When it comes to competing at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, N.C., Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series competitor Michelle Furr can very nearly do no wrong. Last fall, Furr dominated the Super Comp category there to win her very first national event, and she was also runner-up in Super Street to come oh-so-close to a widely and wildly coveted double victory.

The simple truth is that Furr returned to zMAX Dragway and collected her second national event win at the lauded facility in the recent NHRA Four-Wide Nationals by way of efficient starting line skills and a keen ability to drive the finish line stripe, including a dead-on-the-index 8.90 in round four to earn the Strange Engineering Perfectly Strange Performance Award for the category – a particularly notable fact since she hadn’t even competed at a national event since winning last fall. There’s no doubt about it: Furr and the prestigious North Carolina racetrack make a wicked combination.(...)
Read the rest of Super Comp driver Furr lays claim to victory in Charlotte

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Post tags: michelle furr, NHRA, super comp, zmax

Topanga Canyon, CA (April 25, 2012) — A comprehensive simulated test session at the Lockheed Martin Low Speed Wind Tunnel at Lockheed Martin’s Marietta, Georgia facility coupled with a day spent testing in the hot Carolina sun following the NHRA FourWide race has provided the Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patron Toyota Camry Funny with new critical information which will be applied to this weekend’s 25^th Annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals event.

After a successful weekend at the NHRA FourWide race in Charlotte, NC, Del Worsham, crew chief for Team Patr?n, stayed behind and spent the day testing a new clutch combination that he has been fine tuning all season long with the DHL Funny Car team. While Worsham saw excellent results with the clutch combination and plans to implement it this weekend, another benefit of the test day was being able to run the DHL Funny Car (which is setup identically to the Patron Funny Car) in warm and humid weather conditions.(...)
Read the rest of Team Patron Arrives in Houston Armed with Critical New Information

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Post tags: alexis dejoria, Funny Car, kalitta motorsports, NHRA, Tequila Patron

HOUSTON (April 23) – Karen Stoffer and the GEICO Suzuki Pro Stock Motorcycle team are keeping an eye on this weekend’s weather forecast for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway.

Stoffer and the team are hoping for hot weather conditions in Southeast Texas this weekend because high temperatures and humidity have a balancing effect on the Pro Stock classes.

“Houston has been a good track for us over the years,” Stoffer said. “Hopefully Lady Luck will shine down on us again, we’ll make the right calls and everything will stay together.

“If it’s warm that will help us because the top bikes will have a tougher balancing act fo(...)
Read the rest of GEICO Suzuki pro Stoffer keeping an eye on Houston weather as race approaches

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Post tags: geico, karen stoffer, NHRA, pro stock motorscycle

After a very successful and quite memorable 2011, K&N’s Michelle Furr of Galax, Virginia has set out to acquire some new goals in 2012. With a near NHRA National Event double under her belt from her outstanding performance during the O’Reilly Auto Parts Nationals at zMax Dragway, where she put both her Ohio Crankshaft/K&N rides in the final, taking the win in Super Comp and runner-up in Super Street, Furr is both grateful for her past success and hopeful for her season that lies ahead.

“Winning that first Wally is so much more than I ever thought it would be in a lifetime of dreams,” she reflected back on one of her most exhilarating weekends of her life. “I’m sure that memory will always make me smile and if my racing had to end tomorrow, I’m good. It would be nice to keep marking off that bucket list though, winning two Wally’s at one event, a championship Wally or even the big one – driving a pro stock ride. So, we’ll see what God has planned.”

Some racers go years, decades and unfortunately their entire racing careers without making it to an NHRA National Event final, let alone what Furr was able to accomplish in 2011. To be able to repeat, can put added pressure on some racers, but Furr seems to be taking it in stride. “It’s like the pressure is gone,” she admitted. It’s similar to my first year of Top Dragster in 2006 when I really wanted to join the 200 mph club. I was frustrated in qualifying, as the most I could get was 199 during the first few IHRA national events. Then at MIR that fall, I went 201 mph. It was one of those lifetime memories you keep with you. And while I can run TD now, I am really, really enjoying throttle stop racing.”(...)
Read the rest of ‘Furr-ocious’ Michelle Furr Preps for the 2012 NHRA Season, as Do Her Children

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Post tags: michelle furr, NHRA, super comp

Aiken, SC – Grace Howell entered this past weekend’s NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAx Dragway knowing she would be challenged not only at this track, but with Four-Wide Racing.  The team came through in a big way.  Grace and the Cunningham Motorsports Ford Mustang qualified 13th with a career best 6.554 at over 210 mph.

Having qualified for just one National Event in 9 attempts, a 16th starting spot at this year’s Winternationals in Pomona, CA, the odds seemed stacked against them.  The team, however, knew different.  “We’ve been pulling overtime at the shop and we all knew it was just a matter of time,” said Jim Cunningham, team owner.

“This was an amazing weekend for us,” said Grace.  “We participated in last year’s fall race here at zMax and were unable to get down the track in any of the qualifying sessions.  After that effort last year, I just wanted to go A to B on the first pass.  I’m so proud of this team.  They have been working overtime at the shop to get us more power and it’s starting to show.”(...)
Read the rest of K1 RaceGear sponsored NHRA Driver Grace Howell has a Career weekend

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Post tags: grace howell, k1 racegear, NHRA, pro stock, zMax Dragway

CHARLOTTE (April 15) — It was one of those bizarre things that happen in drag racing once in a blue moon.

Defending zMax Dragway Pro Mod winner Leah Pruett lost a chance to defend her title when her R2B2 Racing team couldn’t repair her ProCare Rx turbo-charged Ford Mustang in time for the final round. So, instead of racing Mike Castellana for the trophy, she could only watch from her assigned lane.

“I was there, I was in my lane, I just didn’t have a racecar,” Pruett said. “All I could do was watch Castellana drive down the track and take the win light. We should have been out there but we weren’t.

“It was a pretty complicated weekend all the way around with the car and the mechanical issues we had. And with the pro classes running four-wide the time between rounds for Pro Mod was really constricted. I sheared the converter off in the semifinals and we just didn’t have time to repair it in the 30 minutes we had to turn the car around for the finals.”(...)
Read the rest of Pruett earns runner-up finish while standing on the starting line

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Post tags: leah pruett, NHRA, Pro mod, r2b2, Road-Rage.com, roger burgess