Joe Boniferro has long been known in Ontario and Western New York drag
racing circles for piloting some of the quickest Mopar-powered
doorslammers in the area. Now he is ready to put something back into
the sport. The 2006 joint Pro Modified Racing Association Pro Modified
Champion and his soon to be opened Boniferro Speed & Custom speed
shop are proud to unveil the Boniferro Speed & Custom Six Thirty
Club. The Club will be formed by the first nine racers (six plus three)
to run in the 6:30-second range during PMRA competition and each
qualified racer will receive a hand- crafted commemorative ring and
certificate.
 
“I know there are guys out there running with us who can run in the
6:00s, but this is a regional series and not everyone can run the
numbers seen at IHRA events,” Boniferro explained. “This club is a
thank you to the racers who support the series and a bit of incentive
for the rest of us to step up and run a bit quicker. The fans will have
something more to get excited about as the elapsed times drop. It is
also a way to introduce Boniferro Speed & Custom to the racers and
the fans. I just hope I can manage to get one of those rings myself!”

Final qualifying is complete at the Budweiser/Ohio Lottery NHRA Lucas Oil
“Cavalcade of Stars”.  Among the stars
were two defending Lucas Oil champions Frank Manzo in Top Alcohol Funny Car and
Bill Reichert in Top Alcohol Dragster. 
Both drivers finished qualifying with impressive runs and will begin
eliminations on Sunday in the number one position.

 
Ten-time Lucas Oil Champion Manzo of
Morganville, N.J., was the star of the show in Saturday’s qualifying running a
pass of 5.614 seconds at 260.91 mph. 
Marty Nothstein of Orefield, Penn., with only two years of Top Alcohol
Funny Car driving experience under his belt, grabbed the second qualifying
position with a pass of 5.656 seconds at 254.76 mph.  Interestingly, Nothstein is also a well
accomplished cyclist having won an Olympic gold and silver medal, seven world
championships and 35 national titles.

Over 500 racers converged on Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park
today for the inaugural running of the Budweiser/Ohio Lottery NHRA
Lucas Oil “Cavalcade of Stars”.  This event, continuing Saturday and
Sunday, features Top Alcohol Dragsters and Funny Cars along with Bob
Motz’ Jet Kenworth, Jet Funny Cars, and Fuel Altereds reaching speeds
of over 260 mph.   Number one qualifiers for today were Top Alcohol
Funny Car driver and defending national champion Frank Manzo and Top
Alcohol Dragster pilot Dave Heitzman.         

Manzo of Morganville, N.J., used his vast championship experience to
jump out to a quick start with a pass of 5.671 seconds at 260.36 mph. 
John Foster of Davenport, Iowa, took the next position behind Manzo
with a run of 5.727 seconds at 249.81 mph.

With a rare weekend off from the NHRA POWERade drag racing series, our trusty staff photographer Roger Richards made the trip to Motor Mile Dragway in Radford, Va., located just outside of Roanoke for the Mean 16 action along with the Matt Hagan versus Mike Janis match race.

PHOTO GALLERY 

The inaugural NHRA Lucas Oil Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser and the
Ohio Lottery kicked off Friday, May 18 with a full day of qualifying at Summit
Motorsports Park. At the end of the first day the Bader family, owners and
operators of the track, invited all racers and their families participating at
this weekend's race to a cookout courtesy of NHRA, the Bader family, and Summit
Racing Equipment, the facility sponsor.

It was an unexpected surprise for
the racers. The picnic was supplied with hamburgers, hot dogs, baked beans,
potato salad and cookies and served about 1,250
people.

The idea started with Kirk Heinbuch,
Motorsports & Events Manager at Summit Racing Equipment. “We want to support
the sportsman racers who came to the track with our name on it. We’re not just
putting our name on the place, we’re a participant,” said
Heinbuch.

Top Fuel driver Melanie Troxel is an avid drag racer with a mind-set that won't
allow her to ever back off, empowering her instead to charge forward until the
race is over. That spirit led her to her first win of the 2007 season in
Madison, Ill., bringing her Top Fuel total to three in the sport's premier
class. In the days after the event, Troxel took time to reminisce about her win,
talking openly about the events that led her back to the winner's circle and the
hectic schedule that followed that winning performance.

“St. Louis is one of those races where you just don't know
what's going to happen,” said Troxel. “We weren't the fastest qualifier, but
when it comes to race day at Gateway Int'l Raceway, it doesn't really matter
what anybody ran on Friday night. It's who can handle those tricky track
conditions. We were fortunate to be able to do that better than
anyone.

No good deed goes unpunished as the Buell
riders have found out. Following Matt Smith's record-setting
performance in St. Louis, the NHRA has announced the following rule
change.  

Over
the years Matt Smith traveled many roads with his championship-winning father,
Pro Stock and Pro Mod standout Rickie Smith. This year the roles have reversed,
with the elder Smith tagging along with his Pro Stock Motorcycle-racing son.
 

“I
went everywhere I could go with him,” Smith said. “St. Louis was the first race of mine that
he’s missed this year.”

Matt
didn’t fret about his father’s absence during the NHRA O’Reilly Midwest
Nationals at Madison, Illinois,
near St. Louis.
He simply went out and claimed the maximum points allowable on the tour. Where
was dad? He was at an ADRL event at South Georgia
Motorsports Park
near Valdosta, Georgia, where he went to the Pro
Nitrous final.

The East Coast’s most prominent bracket racers convene on May 25 through May 28
at Rockingham Dragway to race not only for a cash purse but also for IHRA
Ironman trophies in the annual Memorial Weekend Bracket Nationals and North
Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame Race.

 The Ironman trophies
awarded during the weekend are identical to those presented at events in the
IHRA’s Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Series.  One Ironman will be awarded to the winner of
a special daily runoff between the Footbrake and Top Eliminator champions and
one will be awarded in Jr. Dragster following a special Monday runoff involving
all weekend winners and runners-up.

 As an added
incentive, a special North Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame trophy will be
presented to the Top Eliminator or Footbrake driver who earns the most
accumulative points over the course of the Memorial weekend, part of a year-long
celebration of the sport’s rich drag racing
heritage.

Keystone Automotive Operations, Inc., the leading distributor and marketer of
specialty automotive equipment and accessories, has signed an agreement to
become the series title sponsor of the NMRA Ford Nationals and the Official
Performance Parts Supplier of the NMRA and the NMCA Muscle Car Nationals.
Keystone joins forces with ProMedia Events, producers of the leading
street-legal motorsport shows in the U.S.

Keystone will leverage the
sponsorships by providing the benefits and exposure opportunities directly to
its jobbers, who can “sponsor” the event in their area. Since Keystone is a
wholesale only distributor, the exposure associated with these sponsorships will
help drive sales to retailers in Keystone’s Performance Dealer
Network.