ASHLEY FORCE, SCHUMACHER, WARREN JOHNSON AND CHRIS RIVAS TOP QUALIFIERS AFTER DAY ONE AT ROUTE 66

If
Ashley Force holds onto the top spot through Saturday qualifying, she
will become the first female Funny Car driver to qualify No. 1.

It
may seem that, after earning her first career win as a professional
driver more than a month ago, a No. 1 qualifier would be somewhat
anticlimactic for Ashley Force.

But when she drove her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to a 4.759-second pass
at 329.10 mph during the second round of qualifying at the Torco Racing
Fuels Route 66 NHRA Nationals on Friday, those numbers stood for more.
They proved her young team, in only its second year together, is
becoming the kind of consistent and comfortable team that posts
competitive, winning numbers, like her career-best speed.

In the last pair of fuel coupes during Saturday evening's Funny Car
qualifying at the NHRA Torco Race Fuels Route 66 Nationals in Chicago,
Ashley Force and Mark Oswald had a shot at unseating Melanie Troxel but
it was Oswald who came closest with a 4.757 second run pushing Force
into the No. 3 slot with her 4.759 run from Friday night.

“The waiting was not good but thank goodness Mike Neff qualified during
that last round or I wish it would have rained. We lost the No. 1 spot
and we match up now with Robert (Hight) but that is just how it goes,”
said the first woman to win an NHRA Funny Car event. “Sunday is a whole
new day. We are just going to go out there and run the best we can. The
good thing is our car is running great in all the different conditions.”

With GRP Connecting Rods and Winberg Crankshafts operating under the
same roof, the two companies will join forces to host an open house in
conjunction with the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals on July 10, from
noon to 7 p.m. Two of the industry leaders will open their respective
doors to give the racers that rare glimpse into how these engine
components are manufactured and allow teams to gain a better
understanding of the products. With the shops located at 333 West 48th
Ave., which is located where Interstate 25 and Interstate 70 intersect
in Denver, placing the open house on the route from Denver
International Airport to Bandimere Speedway, making it an easy
destination to allow GRP and Winberg to show the racing community what
they are all about.

The almost 10,000 fans who poured through the gates at Tulsa Raceway
Park for the O’Reilly Thunder Jam presented by Warren CAT and
1-800-SAFE AUTO June 7 made one thing perfectly clear…the city of Tulsa
is ready for its Nitro fix. That fix will come August 22-24 when the
IHRA Knoll Gas Nitro Jam comes to town for the Skull Shine Sooner
Nationals.

Fans have until June 14 to take advantage of an out of this world
ticket deal; a deal that will save customers $15.00 on Friday and
Sunday tickets for the Sooner Nationals. The “Nitro Fast Pass” is now
available at Tulsa Raceway Park or online. The Nitro Fast Pass is good
for the discount on all Friday and Sunday general admission tickets for
the Aug. 22-24 Sooner Nationals.

The NHRA issued a technical reminder to
racers in all Top Alcohol Funny Car and Funny Car classes: All body
(hood) burst panels must follow the Rules provision to ensure the
retention of the panel in any incident that may occur per the NHRA
Rulebook:

Jeff Wahl, of New Lennox, Ill., became the 10th NAPA Honorary Crew Member at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Route 66 Raceway

Jeff Wahl, of New Lennox, Ill., became the 10th NAPA Honorary Crew
Member at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Route 66 Raceway, the 10th
round of the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

Wahl had a look of complete surprise when his name was called. He
thought he would be pressed into service as a working crew member on
the NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car driven by Ron Capps. He
was quickly relieved to learn that he had earned the honor but wouldn't
actually have to turn a wrench on the NAPA Funny Car.
 

Even though you’ve seen a movie once, if it’s really good, you watch it over and
over.  And if you heard people talking about a great movie that you missed, you
want to make sure you see it.
 
For those who want to experience the
excitement and camaraderie of the fourth annual Old Spice Prelude to the Dream
presented June 4 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio, HBO Pay-Per-View will
have encore presentations of the all-star dirt late model race available now
through June 15.  Contact your satellite or cable provider and check your local
listings for dates and times.  HBO Pay-Per-View’s racing telecast has a
suggested retail price of $24.95.
 
The race, which drew more than 23,000
fans to Eldora, was broadcast live on HBO Pay-Per-View with proceeds from the
telecast going to support the soon-to-be constructed Victory Junction Gang Camp
– Kansas City and the Tony Stewart Foundation.

Show it, win it and take it to Indy. That's the plan for entrees in the
Top 50 SoffSeal Show 'n Shine at the 6th Holley NHRA National Hot Rod
Reunion, June 13-15, Beech Bend Park in Bowling Green, Ky.

For the first time, the nine "Best of the Best" winners, as well as the
Top 50 SoffSeal Show 'n Shine entries from the Reunion, will be invited
to the NHRA Mac Tools U.S. Nationals (Aug. 27-Sept. 1) at O'Reilly
Raceway Park at Indianapolis. There the vehicles will be displayed in a
special area presented by Hot Hues Custom Finishes by Du Pont and the
participants will select who they think is the "Best of the Best of the
Best." All participants will receive a special memento of the occasion
and the winner will receive the inaugural Bob Daniels Award of
Excellence courtesy of SoffSeal.

It’s not only hot, bad and fast, it’s the creation of legendary custom-car designer – RJ de Vera.

The one-of-a-kind de Vera-inspired 2008 ROUSH Mustang GT-V that
captures a modern yet classic look will be the grand prize for a
Valvoline online promotion.

Known as the Valvoline Challenge, contestants can enter the ROUSH
Mustang giveaway by going to http://www.valvolinechallenge.com.

The first stage of the contest is to answer a Valvoline motor oil quiz.
After answering the questions correctly, contestants are required to
send a picture of their current car and in 20 or fewer words explain
why they should win the ROUSH Mustang, named after the automotive and
racing entrepreneur Jack Roush.

NHRA Top Fuel star Hillary Will, who won her first title
trophy Sunday, June 1, in Topeka, Kan., and Jim Oberhofer, crew chief of her KB
Racing, LLC dragster, are scheduled to be featured guests this Sunday on ESPN2's NHRA Race Day at 10:00 a.m. (CT).