As the Countdown to 1 playoffs point standings tighten up with four national events remaining in the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag
Racing Series, serious contender for the Funny Car championship Jack
Beckman knows he and the Valvoline/Mail Terminal Services Dodge Charger
R/T team cannot afford a slip-up. This weekend's 21st annual NHRA
Mid-South Nationals in Memphis will demand stellar performances from
every driver in the top 10.

Beckman is third in the standings, 29 markers behind first-place Tim
Wilkerson, but with the way the points have see-sawed, even in one
weekend, it is still anybody's race. Beckman has won the most rounds
(21) of any Countdown driver in the last eight events, has reached the
final round at five of those races, winning twice, and is driving one
of the hottest cars in the class.

One of the most coveted and rare pieces of hardware in drag racing -- the JEGS Crown -- will be up for grabs Oct. 3-5 during the JEGS NHRA Pacific SPORTSnationals at Auto Club Dragway in Fontana, Calif.

Since its inception in 2004, only one racer has managed to earn the
beautiful trophy, which signifies that the recipient has won two of the
JEGS SPORTSnationals events in a single season. Mike Ashley pulled off
the feat in 2004 by taking the Pro Mod title at both the JEGS Cajun
SPORTSnationals at No Problem Raceway in Belle Rose, La., and the JEGS
Northern SPORTSnationals at National Trail Raceway in Hebron, Ohio.

Now, 16 talented racers will try to join Ashley in the elite JEGS Crown
club by scoring big wins in Southern California. But it won't be easy,
as the sportsman-only races tend to draw the best racers in the country
and the upcoming JEGS Pacific SPORTSnationals is no exception.

The NHRA race at Memphis Motorsports Park
marks the third event this season that will see three Caterpillar
dealer groups participate in the NHRA technician recruiting program.
The David Powers-owned, Hot Rod Fuller-driven Caterpillar dragster will
fly the logos of Riggs CAT, Louisiana Machinery and Thompson Machinery
during the 21st annual O’Reilly Mid-South Nationals at Memphis Motorsports Park, Sept 26-28. CAT Financial and Nashville Auto Diesel College also will be involved in the team’s activities during the weekend.

The
relationship between David Powers Motorsports, Caterpillar and the
Caterpillar Dealer Groups was designed as a pilot program to increase
technician recruiting. Many Caterpillar dealers are experiencing a
shortage of technicians, and after successful events in several NHRA
markets during the 2007 season, DPM and Caterpillar inked a multiyear
agreement last August to participate in the NHRA dealer recruitment
program.

“There’s no place like home . . . there’s no place like home.”

Dorothy in the “Wizard of Oz” said it with such conviction that you just knew she would eventually find her way back home.

Clay Millican feels the same way.  His big smile gets bigger when he
talks about racing before many of his longtime fans, friends and family
when NHRA’s POWERade Series makes its annual stop at Memphis
Motorsports Park for the 21st O’Reilly Mid-South Nationals, Friday
through Sunday at the Millington track.

Much has changed since Millican’s last Top Fuel race here a year ago.
He and Memphian Mark Pickens formed MPE Motorsports, LLC earlier this
year as the team struggled to overcome an unexpected sponsor loss.  

Although he loves his home, Millican, a Drummonds, Tenn., resident,
will tell you he would have preferred spending a little less time there
and at the new MPE Motorsports shop in neighboring Munford this year. 
He raced just once in the season’s first 16 events before he and
Pickens launched what could be called the “We almost didn’t make it”
tour.

Don Prudhomme Racing announced today it has extended the contracts of
both Crew Chief Don Bender and Co-Crew Chief Todd Smith of the U.S.
Smokeless Tobacco Company Top Fuel dragster for the 2009 NHRA Full
Throttle season.

The tuning tandem of Bender and Smith began in June of 2006, with
the duo hitting their stride the following season in 2007, as driver
Larry Dixon and the Snake Racing team won three out of six final round
appearances, posted a 35-20 round win mark and led the NHRA POWERade
point standings going into the final event of the year.

Clay Millican and Mark Pickens are proud of their new Top
Fuel shop in Munford,
Tenn., so they are inviting
everyone to take a tour of the shop during an open house on Thursday, September
25, from 2 to 6 p.m.  The shop
address is 214 Quinton drive, Munford. 

The crew completed work
on the shop during the team's five-month racing hiatus.

Bryan Pierce and the staff at Virginia Motorsports Park are
conducting an event prior to the NHRA Virginia Nationals for
doorslammers and seek Pro Modified teams wishing to get some test time
in. This Saturday, September 27th, is the date for the event.

Contact Pierce at 804-862-3174 for more information.

To some, Justin Humphreys may seem like an accidental giant killer.

In Charlotte two weeks ago, Humphreys earned his first NHRA
POWERade Series win in just his second year of driving in the Pro Stock
category. And he outlasted none other than Jim Yates, Jeg Coughlin and
Kurt Johnson to do it after facing rookie Rob Mansfield in round one.

The final round itself was unexpectedly anticlimactic. Johnson’s
ACDelco Chevy Cobalt broke on the starting line, giving an automatic
win light to Humphreys. It obviously wasn’t the way he wanted to win,
he said. But he did go three rounds to do it – and after the Wally was
his, Humphreys’ focus naturally gravitated to the round before the
final, where he defeated the ‘natural,’ and current series points
leader, Jeg Coughlin, by .013.

Four of five professional world championships still up for grabs as IHRA heads to Rockingham for the World Finals   

Only Alcohol Funny Car driver Laurie Cannister can breathe easy. The
rest of IHRA’s professional drivers have a frantic weekend in front of
them when the 2008 season comes to an end at Rockingham Dragway Oct.
17-19.

Cannister wrapped up her second career world championship, her first in
an Alcohol Funny Car, when she chalked up a round win at the Amalie Oil
North American Nationals at Epping Sept. 6. So the World Finals at
Rockingham Dragway will be a victory lap of sorts for the Johnstown,
Ohio, resident. For drivers in the four other professional classes,
however, it will not be quite as laid back and relaxing.

Here is a look at the points chases and championship scenarios in the
Top Fuel, Nitro Funny Car, Pro Modified, and Pro Stock classes. The
following scenarios assume none of the drivers are assessed a Black
Flag penalty, thus being docked 15 points.

Dan Brickey, longtime NHRA director of emergency medical services, passed away this morning after a lengthy illness. He was 58.

During Brickey's 17-year tenure with NHRA he was charged with ensuring
the safety of competitors and fans who attended NHRA POWERade Drag
Racing Series events. While working closely with the NHRA Safety Safari
on driver rescue, Brickey coordinated all aspects of facility safety,
as well as all ambulance, fire and other outside emergency services
agencies for each event.