When Jim Yates asked his rookie driver what her expectations were for the season, she didn't hesitate.
 
"I told him I wanted to win the championship and win races," Caruso said. "And he looked at me and told me, 'Yeah, in five years."
 
"I was like, 'Well, I'm not going to take that answer, so we'll see."
 
In her bid to prove him wrong Friday at the NHRA Springnationals, Caruso, in just her fifth career start, drove to a provisional Pro Stock No. 1 with a 6.547 elapsed time at 209.39 miles per hour behind the wheel of her Sand Haulers of America-sponsored Camaro.
 
"I honestly didn't even know what I ran until I got out of my car," Caruso said. "It felt really smooth, so I wasn't expecting it to be what it was, but I'm really thankful for my guys and my team, and hopefully, it holds."
 
Caruso is on a mission to upset the apple cart of NHRA Pro Stock's power brokers. Her car is the lone entry powered by Titan Racing Engines, with assets from the former Gray Motorsports.
 
"Everybody's a really good competitor out here," Caruso said. "So it's going to be a tough one, but I'm excited for the challenge."
 
With Saturday's qualifying at Houston Raceway Park expected to be in the low-eighties, Caruso couldn't say whether or not the run would hold for her first provision No. 1 qualifier.
 
"Hopefully, we can even improve a little bit," Caruso said.
 
Caruso boldly says she has confidence in her team.
 
When she started, the feeling didn't seem reciprocal, and with a good reason, as Caruso was a rookie driver.
 
"Honestly, when I first met Jim, he told me my goals were too high," Caruso said. "So I told him under the tower here [just before the run], I radioed to him. I was like, 'All right, you ready to go, number one?"
 
"And he was like, 'How about we just go down the race track?"
 
"I was like, "Jim; we got to aim higher than that."
 
"I always aim way higher than I should."
 
Houston native Erica Enders was second with a 6.553, 210.7, followed by Aaron Stanfield with a 6.555. Shane Tucker anchors the 16-car field with a 6.615.