ODESSA'S BRADSHAW CLAIMS TOP FUEL'S PROVISIONAL TOP SPOT AT 21ST ANNUAL O'REILLY NHRA SPRING NATIONALS

Cruz Pedregon, Kurt Johnson and Matt Smith round out the first day's provisional No. 1's
 
Odessa,
Tex.-native Alan Bradshaw raced to the provisional No. 1 qualifying
position in Top Fuel during the first day of qualifying at the 21st
annual O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil Friday at
Houston Raceway Park.

Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), Kurt Johnson
(Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) rounded out the
provisional No. 1 qualifiers through the first two of four rounds of
qualifying at the fourth of 24 races on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing
Series.

Bradshaw powered his Vis Viva dragster to a 4.526-second
pass at 323.50 mph to put himself in an excellent position to prove
that his first career No. 1 qualifier, earned just one race earlier at
the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals, was no fluke.

The O'Reilly NHRA Springnationals in Houston, Texas marks the first time Funny Car driver Gary Scelzi will enjoy the luxury
of a round-trip private flight courtesy of team owner Ken Black,
something that was offered him for 10 events at the end of last year in
order to keep Scelzi competing while spending more time with his family
and business in Fresno.

Cinderella received her second chance at
greatness when the clock struck midnight. For Jegs NHRA Pro Modified
driver Joe Baker, the night is still young. He’s entering this
weekend’s NHRA O’Reilly Springnationals in Baytown, Texas armed with
another load of good fortune thanks to the team he knocked out in the
opening round of the NHRA ACDelco Gatornationals in Gainesville,
Florida.

The experience is mind-boggling for the current points leader and
Gatornationals champion who originally didn’t have an invite to the
race he won. Baker will drive for Gotham City Racing this weekend,
filling in for Roger Burgess, who has business commitments.

“I was very fortunate the way the situation worked out,” Baker, a
former Top Sportsman standout, said. “The way things worked out, I was
in the show for the first Pro Modified event and then I wasn’t when the
sponsorship of the series changed. Then, Roger and Mike asked me to
drive at certain events and then the invite for Gainesville came though
after I'd agreed to their request. All the planets were in a row for
sure.

Legendary Funny Car racer, fabricator,
and race car restoration guru Pat Foster died March 27 after a short
illness. A former national event winner and record holder, Foster was
known as one of the best fuel coupe drivers in history with a long
résumé of famous rides in a driving career that spanned 15 years. He
was 68.

Foster had a reputation for being able to drive anything on wheels,
and, as a renowned "test pilot" for wary owners, claimed to have driven
more than 50 race cars from 1964 through his retirement from racing in
1979. His career was saluted when he was named an honoree at the NHRA
California Hot Rod Reunion in 2001, the same year he was voted No. 68
on the list of NHRA's top drivers of its first 50 years.

Foster's greatest acclaim came during a two-year stint, 1971-73,
behind the wheel of the Vega Funny Cars of North Carolina clothing
manufacturer Barry Setzer.

Ashley Force enters her sophomore season as a Funny Car driver, but
when she fires her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang during Friday’s NHRA
O’Reilly Springnationals in Houston, Texas, she will do so as a
freshman.

Force, the daughter of Funny Car legend John Force, sat out last year’s
event following the unfortunate death of teammate Eric Medlen. She’s
run the event before as a Top Alcohol Dragster driver but not in her
current capacity.

"The first thing I'll do when I get there is get with my crew chief,
Dean Antonelli, and put together a mental game plan,” Force said. “I
know dad has run great (at Houston) and so has Robert, so it must be a
pretty good Funny Car track.  We missed the race last year, so I'm
excited about making my first (Funny Car) runs there."

Force failed to make the show in Phoenix, but rebounded two weeks ago
and advance farther than any of the four John Force Racing [JFR] teams
who qualified by reaching the quarter-finals.

Cory McClenathan ranks Houston Raceway Park
high on his favored list of tracks and the reasoning should be obvious.

McClenathan has reached the
Top Fuel final round four times at HRP, winning in 1998 and 2000 (at the
discontinued fall event) and finishing runner-up in 2003 and 2005. He also
qualified No. 1 in 2006. Reunited with former crew chief Mike Green and racing
under the Don Schumacher Racing umbrella in 2008, Top Fuel's most tenured
driver is off to a solid start this season.  

"Sometimes you go to
these race tracks where you've done well and you're not exactly sure why,"
said McClenathan. "Houston
would be one of those places for me. It doesn't matter what kind of year I'm
having. For some reason when we get to Houston
all of a sudden things turn around. We've won there a couple of times and we've
lost there in the final a few times. It's one of those places on the tour I
like strictly because we've run well there and we've enjoyed lots of
success."

Mike Ashley entered Houston Raceway Park in Baytown, Texas, four years
ago with a point to prove. He’s experiencing a bit of déja vu headed
into this weekend’s NHRA O’Reilly Springnationals.

Ashley, a two-time NHRA Pro Modified champion, wants the world to know
he’s still got the team to beat despite a two-year absence from the
class. His No. 1 qualifying effort during the recently completed NHRA
Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla., went a long way to prove his point.

“I knew I had the team and car to do what we did in Gainesville,” said
Ashley, who won this weekend’s event in 2004. “I think it’s been just a
matter of getting the driver back in the routine of doing what he’s
supposed to. We left a little on the table with the run that led
qualifying but this experience was exciting and invigorating.”

Hillary Will has been having so much fun in Top Fuel that a milestone crept upon her.

“I can’t believe we’ve already raced in 50 events in Top Fuel,” Will, a
27-year old native of Fortuna, Calif., said. “It seems like yesterday that I was
getting strapped into the car to get my Top Fuel license.

Pro Stock driver Erica Enders has taken control of her racing future by assuming
the responsibilities of vice president of marketing of Master Formula Xtreme
Polishes, Waxes, Cleaners, and Sealers. The agreement will allow Enders to resume her driving career in an
Allen Johnson-powered Dodge Stratus R/T.

Unlike traditional motorsports marketing programs that promise sales
results in exchange for up-front sponsorship dollars, Enders plans to
use her familiarity with race fans and the business community to
bolster the Southern California-based company's bottom line. As sales
of Master Formula products increase, a percentage of gross revenue will
be allocated to funding her on-track activities.

"We are delighted to associate ourselves with a proven
professional like Erica," said Clarence Larkins, CEO and Founder of Master
Formula. "After meeting with Erica and her father Gregg, along with their team
of business and marketing professionals, we're confident Enders Racing can help
us take our company to the next level very quickly.