:::::: News ::::::

GAINES ENJOYS DARK HORSE ROLE

Pro Stock racer and Countdown finalist V. Gaines has no problem
whatsoever if race fans want to consider his Kendall Dodge as a dark
horse for the title.

Gaines, the highly successful businessman who escapes the business
demands by racing Pro Stock, entered the championship phase as the
eighth seeded driver.

“We look forward to the challenge and opportunity,” Gaines said. “We
know we have an extremely fast car, and a great team, we just have to
do the right things at the right times. Right now we’re hampered a
little bit by not having our crew chief Clyde but hopefully he’ll be
back next week. If we can just get by the next couple of weeks here,
we’re going after that championship.”

JEGS PRO MOD CHALLENGE OFFERS STEVE ENGEL AWARD

On the eve of the JEGS ProMod
Challenge event to be held at this weekend's 23rd annual O'Reilly Super Start
Batteries NHRA Nationals at the Texas Motorplex, series organizers have
announced the creation of a new and perpetual award to honor the memory of Pro
Mod racer Steve Engel, who died Sunday in Indianapolis.

Beginning this
year, the Steve Engel "Big Man, Big Heart" Award will be handed out annually to
the Pro Mod racer that best exemplifies Engel's gregarious spirit and generous
nature. The award will be accompanied by a $10,000 cash prize that will be
donated to the charity of the recipient's choice in Engel's name.

"Steve
was a formidable racer, but he was an even better man," fellow driver Troy
Coughlin said. "There are very few people that have the zest for life and the
complete passion for drag racing that Steve exhibited every day.

NJSP RELEASE KALITTA REPORT

The New Jersey State Police released their findings regarding Scott Kalitta’s tragic Englishtown racing accident.

The results mirrored what many suspected; that Scott Kalitta died as the result of blunt force trauma.

The NJSP confirmed an engine explosion transpired prior to the finish
line and when the vehicle's body separated from the chassis, it
deployed a damaged parachute system. Kalitta, according to the report,
was running 300-miles per hour when he crossed the finish line.

Damage to the parachute included tearing, burning and tangling.

ROCKINGHAM SPECTATOR ARRESTED

He should have known better.

A race fan hurled a water bottle onto the Rockingham Dragway racing
surface just moments before two cars were to stage during the recently
completed ADRL Dragstock event in Rockingham, N.C.

There’s never a good time for an object to be hurled onto the racing surface but this incident had championship implications.

Charles Carpenter and Burton Auxier were battling for the last
remaining spot in the ADRL’s Battle of the Belts Championship
competition scheduled for next month in Dallas, Texas.

Carpenter came into the race ninth in the points, with Burton Auxier
trailing closely behind. When Harold Martin, who was in the eighth and
final points position, failed to qualify, it left the door wide open
for Carpenter and Auxier to stage a battle for last man standing.

NEW MOTOSPORTS AGENCY GAINING STRENGTH

Following weekend meetings with Bob Fox and his team at Charlotte, NC, Moore Good Ink is pleased to announce that Fox&Cagnazzi-web.jpgDiamond Pistons, Trend Performance, and Spintron have joined the growing ranks of the Moore Good Ink ad agency.

In recent years, Diamond has enjoyed a dramatic rise in piston
production, capitalizing on their reputation for quality and on their
remarkable successes in the high profile, tough racing markets.  In
2007, Jeg Coughlin won the NHRA Pro Stock championship with Diamond
pistons, and in the preceding four years with KB Racing, Greg Anderson,
and Jason Line, Diamond was the piston of choice.  Trend pushrods and
wrist pins are the items of choice for NASCAR championship winners
Hendrick Motorsport and Joe Gibbs Racing.

SREMP'S HALLOWEEN CLASSIC FEATURE ITS LARGEST PURSE EVER

The K&N Worlds Best Air Filter 35th Annual Halloween Classic
presented by Harland Sharp will be, without question, the biggest cash
purse in history! There has never been another Classic that has even
come close to matching this year’s prizes! Super Pro purse increases by
$1000.00! Pro purse increases by $1000.00! Super Bike purse increases
by $500.00, and Sportsman increases by $200.00! The total Main Event
prize money is a whopping guaranteed $40,000.00! Those are just the
increases in the payouts, not the bottom line figure. We’re going to
give our racers a Classic to remember, and this is one great way to do
just that!

HALLOWEEN CLASSIC ELITE 8 RESTRCITIONS EASED

The K&N Worlds Best Air Filter 35th Annual Halloween Classic
Presented by Harland Sharp will feature the Elite 8 for the first time in the
history of this race. Elite 8 open, and Elite 8 full will light up Summit
Motorsports Park like no other racing class at the Classic ever has

NHRA SPORTSMAN RACERS GEAR UP FOR JEGS NORTHERN SPORTSNATIONALS

For the fourth-straight year several hundred
of the best sportsman drag racers from all over the country will descend on
National Trail Raceway near Columbus for the JEGS NHRA Northern SPORTSnationals.
Designed as a showcase for racers in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the
SPORTSnationals is one of the last opportunities for competitors to earn points
towards national championships. Racers will also be competing for a share of
nearly $65,000 in cash and an additional $400,000 in contingency awards.
 
One of the highlights of this year’s event will be the JEGS Bonus Bracket
Bash, which is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 19. The special E.T. bracket event,
which is open to all SPORTSnationals competitors, will award a guaranteed $5,000
to the winner.
 

MASSEY'S OPPORTUNITY ARRIVES

Current IHRA Top Fuel points leader Spencer Massey will make his NHRA Top Fuel debut behind the wheel of Mitch King’s massey_top_end.jpgBexar
Waste sponsored entry during this weekend’s O’Reilly Super Start
Batteries Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex just south of Dallas,
his home track.  The Ft. Worth native will also pilot his trusty A/Fuel
Dragster in the Top Alcohol Dragster category this weekend.
 
Massey, 25, is excited about making his NHRA Top Fuel debut at his home track.
 
“I’m certainly excited about getting to make my NHRA debut at the
Motorplex,” said Massey.  “I’ve dreamed about getting to race at this
level my whole life.  This is the place where I saw my first Top Fuel
car way back in 1987.  This is where the dream began.

WJ PRAISES BILLY MEYER FOR DRAG STRIP INNOVATION

Throughout his Hall of Fame career, Warren Johnson has been one of the
leading innovators in the sport of drag racing. 

Image

When not behind the
wheel of his GM Performance Parts Pontiac GXP, he can be found deep in
his research & development work, searching for ways to improve his
team’s performance.  It is a long and labor-intensive process,
involving hours of experimentation, the results of which are not always
readily apparent to others.

However, as the POWERade Drag Racing Series heads to the Lone Star
State for this weekend’s O’Reilly Fall nationals, Johnson wanted to
acknowledge the significant contribution made by someone else, namely
Texas Motorplex owner Billy Meyer, who  22 years ago introduced the
sport to the all-concrete racing surface.

“What is often overlooked when discussing racetracks is how Billy Meyer
was essentially a visionary, building the first concrete racing
surface, which still stands today and on which we’ll race our GM
Performance Parts GXP this weekend,” said Johnson.  “At the time, I
remember he was roundly chastised for doing it, but today a concrete
track is the direction many of the newer tracks are taking, including
the state-of-the-art facility we just left in North Carolina.

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