New leadership in Ford's motorsports program could bring the Blue Oval back into NHRA Pro Stock, albeit on a limited basis.

Brian Wolfe recently succeeded Dan Davis, who retired last month, as Ford's Director of Racing technology.

A past drag racer himself, he sees the value in Pro Stock
representation for the manufacturer, while continuing to focus on their
programs with John Force and Bob Tasca.

If NHRA President Tom Compton has his way, the next stop on the new track spree will stop in New England.

The thought of a track in the Boston area causes Compton to salivate.

“We’re in many of the top metropolitan areas, 37 out of the 50,”
explained Compton. “We’re just south of New York and Los Angeles, and
Seattle. But we’re not in New England and we’d really like to be in
that market. So hopefully someday we can get up there. Building
facilities in today’s environment is difficult, it takes time and money.

White Runs Record E.T. in Early Dragstock Qualifying

The
Team Titan Scion carries only a single-turboed 183 c.i. engine, but
Gary White drove it to the provisional number-one position after one
round of qualifying for the ADRL’s Hushpower Dragstock V at Rockingham
Dragway.

Gary White of New Market, Florida, made the
first-ever Extreme 10.5 (XTF) pass in the “teens” this afternoon when
he posted an unofficial 4.15-seconds lap over the Rockingham (NC)
Dragway eighth mile during testing for the American Drag Racing
League’s (ADRL’s) Hushpower Dragstock V.

Proving it was no fluke, White drove his turbocharged Titan Motorsports
2007 Scion to the provisional number-one spot with a potentially
record-setting 4.18-seconds pass at 173.32 mph in first-round
qualifying. He needs to back the record time up within one percent this
weekend to make it an official ADRL record.

In the second pair out in Pro Extreme, R.E. Smith walked away uninjured from a scary incident during the ADRL Dragstock event in Rockingham, N.C.

Smith
encountered severe tire shake at the hit and made a hard move to the
right just past the 60' cones. The car was up on two wheels and shot
straight across the track, head on into the right hand wall.
Fortunately it was not a high rate of speed, and R.E. got out of the
car under his own power.

DIXON PROVISIONAL NO. 1 IN TOP FUEL ON FIRST DAY OF NHRA POWERADE SERIES RACING AT SPECTACULAR ZMAX DRAGWAY

Frank Hawley, Kurt Johnson and Matt Smith round out provisional No. 1 qualifiers
 
Larry
Dixon capped off the first day of qualifying at the Inaugural NHRA
Carolinas Nationals with a booming 3.846 at 310.20 to claim the
provisional No. 1 qualifying position in Top Fuel.

The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the first race in the
six-race in the NHRA Playoff, the Countdown to 1, were Frank Hawley
(Funny Car), Kurt Johnson (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock
Motorcycle).

National Guard Pro Mod driver Josh Hernandez is headed to the Rock to
do battle in the Hushpower ADRL Dragstock V, but his heart is in Texas.
The current Pro Extreme points-leader left his home north of Houston
just as hurricane Ike is gaining speed to make landfall on the city's
Gulf coast.
 
"It's hard to get focused because I've never been gone when we've had a
hurricane," Hernandez, a father of two, said. "My wife and the kids
aren't too worried, but I'm still torn. I wish I had bought more gas
for the generator, though.

This weekend's NHRA Carolina's Nationals in Concord, N.C., may be the
first time an NHRA national event has been contested on Lowe's Motor
Speedway grounds, but it is not the first national event. In 1974, the
IHRA staged their Southern Nationals during the last weekend of March.
This event was a one-off largely due to the unfortunate death of jet
car driver Dave Anderson and two crewmembers of a different team.

On
more than one occaison, noted Carolina promoter Tom Ferrell held events
at the storied facility. CompetitionPlus.com has obtained rare footage
from one of those events. Included, you will see notably Roy Hill's
Plymouth Duster and motorcycle icon E.J. Potter. You might even get a
glimpse of Gene Fulton's White Wagon, a three-time championship car
destroyed in a two-car crash in Bristol four years later.

A special feature starring reigning POWERade Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin
Jr., Dave Connolly and NASCAR stars Clint Bowyer and Kenny Wallace will air this
Sunday on two different Speed TV programs that support the channel's NASCAR
coverage.

NASCAR Raceday, Speed TV's prerace show, begins at 11 a.m.,
while Speed Report begins at 7 p.m. Both programs will have segments entitled
"How to drive a Pro Stock car," which was recently filmed at zMax Dragway at
Concord.

NHRA Pro Stock Car vs. NASCAR Stock Car

A comparison between Kurt Johnson’s

ACDelco Chevrolet NHRA Pro Stock Cobalt and a Chevrolet NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Impala SS COT

Due to the threats posed by Hurricane Ike,
the Division 4 Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event scheduled for this
weekend at Red River Raceway in Gilliam, La.,
has been rescheduled to Oct. 3-5. The event will run with the same
daily schedule as before. For more information, contact the Division 4
office.