COULD THERE BE TROUBLE AHEAD FOR PRUDHOMME’S SPONSOR?

Congress is
in the midst of pushing a bill forward that would turn tobacco regulation
over to the Food & Drug Administration, 
potentially resulting in “…the
most draconian ad curbs ever imposed on a consumer product by the U.S.
government,” according to the April 2nd issue of the respected publication
“Advertising Age.”  The Senate already approved similar legislation, which
would move the government’s oversight of tobacco from the Federal Trade
Commission to the FDA.  The legislation further directs the FDA to impose
the tobacco ad curbs that were first proposed in 1996, which are considerably more stringent than those currently being
enforced.

Defending IHRA Top Fuel World Champion Bruce Litton is ready to get his title
defense underway. After a pair of strong showings in the NHRA circuit, a pair of
quarterfinal losses in Gainesville and Houston, the Indianapolis, Ind. driver will be looking to put his Lucas
Oil sponsored rail into the Winner’s Circle at San Antonio Raceway for a second
consecutive season. Litton defeated TJ Zizzo in the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals
last season.

“We’re
looking forward to getting this thing started,” Litton said of the 2008 IHRA
season. “The first event is an eighth-mile race and our car has been very strong
to the eighth so far this season. There is going to be a strong field at San
Antonio Raceway this weekend, but if we can get down the track I think we’ll be
in pretty good shape. I just have to make sure my lights are strong because in
an eighth mile race there’s not a lot of time to make up for any
mistakes.”

Dream House for Medically Fragile Children will be the benefactor of a special
fund-raising event featuring National Hot Rod Association race car drivers and
true American heroes on Saturday, April 27, at Chateau Élan Winery & Resort
in Braselton, Ga.
 
The event organizers are Roger Burgess and Mike
Ashley, co-owners of Gotham City Racing, drivers and successful businessmen who
recognize the impact Dream House has in providing for medically fragile
children.
 
Racing fans will have an opportunity to mix and mingle with
NHRA drivers – who will be competing at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, April 26-28
– throughout the evening.  Some of the drivers who will be attending include
Burgess and Ashley, Melanie Troxel, Gary Scelzi, Frank Hawley, Jack Beckman,
Matt Smith, Raymond Commosso and Danny Rowe.

A long-time supporter in drag racing, Rupture Street Wear has announced
it will be a part of Matt Hagan’s new Nitro Funny Car effort in 2008.
 
The new car, a Chevy Monte Carlo SS bodied flopper, will run at all
IHRA (International Hot Rod Association) events this season as part of
the IHRA Knoll Gas Motorsports Nitro Jam Series.
 
“We’re very proud and excited to be a part of Matt’s new car,
especially as he’s stepped up with a Nitro Funny Car,” said Rupture’s
Chris Morrison. “Matt and his team have proven themselves over the
years in Pro Modified racing, and Rupture is happy to go to the next
level of racing with them.”
 
Hagan, who is from Christianburg, VA, has toured both the IHRA and NHRA
Pro Modified circuit with his Corvette and Camaro. Highlights in the
popular Pro Mod division include qualifying for all IHRA National
meets, and winning the AMS ProMod NHRA Rookie of the Year honors.

Inside Drag Racing, a Masters TV production, will premiere on Saturday,
May 3, 2008, at 4:30 pm eastern time on the ION Media Network. The
award-winning, weekly half-hour program will cover the fast paced world
of sportsman drag racing. The debut edition will feature the latest in
speed innovations from the SEMA Show.

The NHRA has assured Torco's CompetitionPlus.com the track situation
at Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga., is already being rectified.

The
Fun Ford Weekend event scheduled for April 10 - 13, 2008 in Commerce
has been postponed until the weekend of June 12 - 15, 2008 for what is called "unavoidable track maintenance." 

Wondering how bad the situation is? We came across this interesting pic on the Nitromater.com message board. Here's the picture of the track seperation .

After beginning the 2008 NHRA
POWERade Drag Racing Series as co-crew chief at Tasca Racing, Chris
Cunningham will immediately assume full crew-chief responsibilities for
Funny Car rookie Bob Tasca III.

“With his technical experience and leadership ability, I have
all the confidence in the world that Chris Cunningham will take this
team to the next level,” said Tasca. “We're a new team this year, and
we're building this thing from scratch. Chris has my full support to
lead this team going forward.”

The
Snyder Motorsports Top Alcohol Funny Car Team is elated to announce
that Powersource Transportation, Inc. has signed on as their major
sponsor for the 2008 season.  The power-only trucking company,
satisfies a unique niche within the trucking industry by providing a
power-only source for hauling empty or loaded trailers or
trailer-mounted equipment.  After sponsoring the Team in an associate
roll last year, they were excited to have the opportunity to step up to
a major roll this season.

“Skip and all the people at Powersource Transportation were great to
work with last year.  And when we were trying to figure out what we
were going to do this year, we were very fortunate to have them come
back on board to help us out.  Now we can concentrate on getting our
new car together and focus on getting them in the winner’s circle,”
said driver, Mick Snyder.