Two-time IHRA Funny Car champion Dale Creasy underwent five hours of
surgery on Monday at Royal Alexandra Hospital in Edmonton, Alb., for
injuries sustained to his legs in a drive line explosion during the
IHRA Rocky Mountain Nationals.

The accident happened during the semi-finals of the Edmonton-based event.

The 52nd annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis, the seventh
of 10 events on the 2008 JEGS ProMod Challenge, will mark the 75th race
in series history. And with every single competitor still very much
alive in this year's championship chase, the fight to win drag racing's
biggest and most prestigious prize should be at an all-time high.

Tony Pontieri has been in control of the class for the last three
races, dating back to May 4, despite the fact he's never won an NHRA
national event. The Ontario, Canada-based professional has come close
on two occasions this year, driving Rob Sporring's Quality Plus
Compressors '57 Chevy Bel Air to runner-up honors in Houston and St.
Louis. It's been Pontieri's consistency that's been the difference as
he remains the only driver with no DNQs or first-round losses.

"We've had our ducks in a row and we need to keep it together moving
forward," Pontieri said. "We can't afford any failures or mistakes
because my favorite friend Joshua (Hernandez) is coming at us. He's
missed a race and yet he's right there.

The cost of nitromethane
is on the rise again for those purchasing through the official supplier of the
NHRA.

CompetitionPlus.com has
confirmed with VP Race Fuels the price will increase in time for this weekend’s
NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals in Denver, Co.

Point standings (top 10) for IHRA professional categories following
the CARS RV & Marine & Motorsports Rocky Mountain Nationals
presented by TORCO Racing Fuels at Castrol Raceway, the fifth of 10
events in the  2008 Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series -

Top Fuel

1.  Bruce Litton, 438; 2.  Spencer Massey, 405; 3.  Bobby Lagana Jr.,
371; 4.  Mike Strasburg, 369; 5.  Kevin Jones, 303; 6.  Terry McMillen,
256; 7.  Scott Palmer, 222; 8.  Chris Karamesines, 108; 9.  Tim
Boychuk, 74; 10.  Michael Gunderson, 50.

Final round-by-round results from the CARS RV & Marine &
Motorsports Rocky Mountain Nationals presented by TORCO Racing Fuels at
Castrol Raceway, the fifth of 10 events in the  2008 Knoll-Gas Nitro
Jam Drag Racing Series:

TOP FUEL:

 ROUND ONE -- Mike Strasburg, 5.551, 224.85 def. Mitch King, 8.534,
84.69; Tim Boychuk, 5.082, 262.33 def. Terry McMillen, 11.225, 83.70;
Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.990, 268.38 def. Bruce Litton, 5.051, 298.34; Kevin
Jones, 5.194, 252.99 def. Spencer Massey, 5.252, 270.05;

SEMIFINALS -- Lagana Jr., 8.018, 93.27 def. Strasburg, 17.996, 77.77; Jones, 4.797, 298.21 def. Boychuk, 4.982, 286.86; 

FINAL -- Jones, 5.271, 280.84 def. Lagana Jr., 6.301, 182.90.

Gary Scelzi credits the NHRA for making the right move in racing 1,000 feet. (Jon Asher Photo)

Gary Scelzi has no problem
with racing 1,000 feet. In fact, the 4-time NHRA nitro world champion lauds the
NHRA for the immediate steps it has taken to help improve the safety in a sport
where Funny Car speeds have exceeded 330 mph in recent years. 

"I'm very proud to
see that NHRA has taken immediate action starting at Denver (to shorten the
track from 1320 ft. to 1000 ft. for the nitro cars)," said Scelzi, who is
No. 12 in the Funny Car point standings, just 54 points short of the top 10.
"I don't know what their reaction is going to be for Seattle and Sonoma
(the two events immediately following the Mopar Mile-High Nationals outside of
Denver this weekend), but I think we should all band together and applaud the
NHRA for trying to make things safer.

Tony Pedregon proved his worth as a racer a long time ago.  When he’s
outside the seat of his Q Horsepower Chevy Impala Funny Car he
continues to prove his worth as a man on a daily basis.  After winning
the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals in Ohio last weekend he offered
up a prayer for Scott Kalitta and then, rather than spitting out a list
of sponsors as if by rote, he talked about the need for the racing
community to heal itself following that tragedy.  Still later,
addressing the fans gathered in the Summit Motorsports Park staging
lanes for the winner’s celebration, he exhorted the parents present to
spend time with their kids, because they’re what really counts in life.

This is not the same Tony Pedregon who raced for, and won his first
championship with John Force.  He’s clearly his own man these days, and
as such remains outspoken about the issues that he believes are
critical to the sport’s success.

Almost a month ago, on Saturday evening, June 7th, Pedregon was making
a qualifying run during the Route 66 Nationals when his Dickie
Venables-tuned engine had some sort of internal “disagreement” and
burst into flames.  Unable to see clearly through the smoke and fire,
Pedregon unintentionally rode the concrete guardwall until his car came
to a sudden and dramatic stop.  It had hit a heavy steel gate that
members of the finish line work team apparently left open after Bob
Tasca’s car had used it to exit the racing surface after an aborted run.

The ADRL was racing on the track and against the sky Sunday at Motor Mile Dragway in Radford, Virginia, as ominous storm

Travis
Swearingen experienced a traditional winner’s bath after earning his
career-first ADRL Pro Extreme race July 6, at Motor Mile Dragway in
Radford, Virginia.

clouds appeared on the horizon just
as the final rounds were about to be run at the 2nd annual Shelor Motor
Mile Independence Drags.

Just minutes after the exhaust notes of Pro Extreme winner Travis
Swearingen’s supercharged 1941 Willys faded into the rolling hills of
southwest Virginia, the skies unleashed a violent storm that sent fans
and teams packing. But they left satisfied, knowing Billy Glidden and
Charlie Prophit also scored their first ADRL wins in Extreme 10.5 and
Pro Extreme Motorcycle, respectively, while Billy Harper continued his
dominance of the Pro Nitrous class with his third-straight ADRL
national-event win.

Defending Mopar-Mile High NHRA Nationals Funny Car champion Jack
Beckman is ready for this weekend's 2008 edition at beautiful Bandimere
Speedway outside of Denver as the nitro teams prepare to compete for
the first time to the 1000-ft. mark instead of the standard 1320-ft.
finish line of a quarter-mile dragstrip.

Beckman, who drives the Valvoline/Mail Terminal Services Dodge Charger
R/T for Don Schumacher Racing, defeated his teammate Ron Capps in last
year's event, then won the next race in Seattle to collect his two
victories of the 2007 season.

"All I want to do is as well as we did last year," said Beckman, who is
13th in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings
this season aiming to be in the top 10 for the Countdown to the
Championship, which begins after the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis on
Labor Day weekend. "It's interesting, because a lot of people said to
me, 'Ah, man you do great in Denver and on the Western Swing.' Well the
reality is we have a different car, different crew this time. The only
thing that hasn't changed on the team is the driver, and I don't know
if that counts for anything.

Laurie Cannister has won four of five races this season. She's reached the finals in every event in 2008.

“Welcome to Alberta.” That’s the response you’ll elicit
most of the time when referring to anything meteorological in this part of the
world. And it will quickly be followed by “if you don’t like the weather, just
wait a minute.”

Stock answers that we’ve all heard
before, for sure, but at Edmonton this weekend, well, you could have written the
owner’s manual for unpredictable weather.

Friday and Saturday rapidly
developing storm cells disrupted qualifying for the CARS RV & Sport & Marine
Rocky Mountain Nationals, limiting pro qualifying to no more than two rounds,
depending on class.