John Zappia is using his home track knowledge as a weapon against 11 other Top Doorslammers competing in the 37th Chill Westernationals this weekend at the Perth Motorplex. The event is Round 5 of the ANDRA Australian Top Doorslammer Championship, and the Striker Monaro is in top form after running three consecutive five second passes to finish runner-up at the recent Summernationals at Western Sydney International Dragway.

Zap leads the current Championship by 143 points with three rounds to go, and his Zappia Racing Team is keen to stay on top and secure the Championship for the season.

"Our plan is on track for this weekend after a great Summernationals", said Zap this week in Perth, "Finally the HQ Monaro is five second reliable, and we learnt a lot about how to make it even quicker over the week in Sydney. Several teams broke through into the fives, but no other team has done it consistently on all three major tracks yet".

"We would count the Perth track as a definite advantage for us, having done so many passes in competition testing at local National Open events. I expect some great Doorslammer racing this weekend, as more and more teams are making the necessary incremental changes to make the jump to the level we have set".

"Make no mistake - these 3,000 horsepower machines are very difficult to get right - we are balancing hundreds of variables to get everything all working right. Local Perth fans saw first hand what happens when a variable is not right - our recent clutch testing turned our super reliable car into an uncontrollable animal".

"We draw deeply on our twenty years of racing history, with nitro and alky guru Graham Jones from Southside Engine Centre guiding the Zappia Racing crew on race day. We now have a mix of very experienced crewmembers, and new crew being trained for the second Striker Top Doorslammer due to come online next season. The new car is our own creation, with all the modifications developed in Zap's Rat included, with new technology incorporated throughout".

Top Doorslammer racing will commence on Saturday with qualifying runs at 6pm, 8pm and 10pm - twelve teams battling it out to secure one of the eight positions for eliminations. Elimination racing commences on Sunday at 6pm, with the semi-final at 8pm, and the final at 10pm.