If the NHRA returns to quarter-mile racing, and some tracks are not
improved, then racing could transpire without the 14-time champion John
Force and the members of his four-car Funny Car team. Force made the
statement on the new online radio show The Race Reporters with Michael Knight.

Force was asked by CompetitionPlus.com senior editor Jon Asher, a guest
on the show, about rumors that suggest he privately said that he would
retire and subsequently pull his daughter Ashley Force Hood from
competition if the NHRA returned to the 1320. Force denied the rumor
but added two prior catastrophic accidents and insurance regulations
would prevent his team from competing on a track deemed unsafe for
quarter-mile competition.

Marvin Rifchin, founder of M&H Tires, died June 3. He was 94.

Rifchin is survived by a daughter Debbie, her husband Bill and two grandchildren. Services will be held Friday at the Sharon Memorial Park in Sharon, Mass.
 

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The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, which has more than 20
sponsors and/or partners who are listed on the New York Stock Exchange,
has been invited by the NYSE to perform the prestigious task of ringing
The Opening BellSM at 9:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, June 10, 2009.

The ringing of the Opening Bell will kick off a momentous week for the
NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, which will be hosting the 40th
annual United Association NHRA SuperNationals June 11-14 at historic
Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, N.J.  The NHRA Full
Throttle Drag Racing Series remains the only major motorsport to host a
race in the New York Area, the nation’s No. 1 DMA.

NHRA President Tom Compton will be joined in ringing the Opening Bell
by Coca-Cola North America Senior Vice President, Integrated Marketing
Beatriz Perez, Coca-Cola North America Director of Motorsports
Marketing Ben Reiling and George Pyne, President of IMG’s Sports and
Entertainment Group.

In support of its unprecedented engine guarantee announced this week, Valvoline® is working with its NASCAR and NHRA teams to build awareness with consumers and support high school vocational programs this fall.

Three different teams will take to the track this weekend with special
Valvoline Engine Guarantee paint schemes. In the spirit of the
“guarantee,” the teams need only to qualify for their respective races
for Valvoline to commit educational materials in the amount of
$300,000, coinciding with the 300,000-mile engine guarantee available
to registered consumers.

The Goodguys 21st Hot Rod Nationals is set to blast off June 12, 13
& 14 at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, officially kicking
off another
hi-revving trio of Midwest vintage drag races for the Goodguys. The Hot
Rod Nationals is one of the country’s largest hot rodding events as it
combines a massive car show featuring over 4,000 ’72 & earlier
rods, customs, muscle cars and classics with a weekend long vintage
drag race on O’Reilly Raceway Park’s vaunted dragstrip. Of course
vendor exhibits, a swap meet and lots more fun is on tap.

A brilliant field of twenty-four fuel cars is confirmed in the
Nostalgia Top Fuel and Nostalgia Funny Car categories. Both classes
will be run as 8-car open shows with qualifying sessions scheduled for
Friday, June 12th at 3pm and Saturday, June 13th at NOON. The first
round for both Top Fuel and Funny Car eliminations is scheduled for
3:30pm Saturday afternoon with final eliminations commencing Sunday
morning the 14th at 10am.

Bob Tasca III, driver of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang, will
host Eddie and Len Wood, co-owners of Wood Brothers Racing, a prominent
NASCAR team. This will mark the first time they have attended an NHRA
Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event. 

Bill Kraft Racing of Tonawanda, NY, has finished their SS/AH 1968 Barracuda.  

Kraft’s 1968 Barracuda chassis was built by F.J. Smith of Smith
Performance Specialties and will run a 438-inch Hemi.  Tuning
assistance comes from Jackson Engine Tech, Competition Transmission, as
well as Howes Racing.  Scott Jahren applied the gorgeous paint scheme
designed by Scott Brown, while lettering and striping were finished by
Dan the Sign Man.

Originally, Ron Capps, the 2009 NHRA Funny Car points leader and
four-time national-event winner this season, was planning to make a
detour to run in tonight's Prelude to the Dream at Eldora Speedway in
Rossburg, Ohio. Instead, persistent rain has postponed that event to
Sept. 9., and Capps is turning around and heading directly to Joliet,
Ill., for this weekend's NHRA Route 66 Nationals at Route 66 Raceway.

"It's unfortunate, but the bright side, and this happened a few years
ago when it was rained out, is that the rain-out date is going to be
Wednesday night, Sept. 9," said Capps. "And it happens to be right
after the biggest race on our NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series
schedule, the U.S. Nationals, which we run on Monday, Labor Day, in
Indianapolis. So, I'll be able to stay in town again and cruise over
and run the Prelude. It will be held prior to what they call ‘The
World,’ which is one of the biggest Late Model races they have. It's
going to be just as big an event and we expect the weather will be good
at that time."

Paul Page, noted sports personality, walked away from drag racing to
pursue even bigger opportunities in the world of television nearly a decade ago.

Page returned to drag racing a couple years ago. The transition back to
the booth alongside Mike Dunn has not been easy. Like everything else
in the sport of drag racing, technology has brought changes to the
booth which confounded Page. While he struggled to catch up, Page found
comfort in the familiar faces within the sport.

“A lot of the faces and the people I knew were still around and that
was great,” Page said. “The sport was more professional, a lot more
showy. Everything about it was a little more glittered up.

In support of FRAM and his Don Schumacher teammate Cory McClenathan, NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Rookie-of-the-Year contender
Matt Hagan will trade the shelor.com Funny Car body for a FRAM Tough
Guard design on the Dodge Charger he will drive in this weekend's NHRA
Route 66 Nationals in Joliet, Ill.

The Top Fuel dragster that McClenathan races for Don Schumacher Racing
will wear a different, unique design for this weekend's event at Route
66 Raceway, outside of Chicago, the details of which will be announced
later this week.

"We've been planning for some time to help provide FRAM some additional
excitement to their branding," said team owner Don Schumacher. "So,
we've come up with a special design for the Funny Car Matt Hagan drives
for DSR to help promote the FRAM Tough Guard brand and as a way to say
thanks to FRAM for their support."