The following are the pre-entries received for the 8th annual Eastern Spring Test Nationals presented by Torco's CompetitionPlus.com hosted by South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga. 

Doug
Herbert announced today a new theme for his Top Fuel operation for the 2008
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Season.

Herbert,
whose long term association with Snap-on Tools is one of the longest sponsor
relationships in all of drag racing, will be piloting the SnaponFranchise.com
Top Fuel dragster, shedding light on one of the top ten franchise opportunities
in the country.

Latrell Preston, Chief Financial Officer for Torco Race Fuels, Inc.,
announced yesterday, January 8, 2008, that the company has suspended
some of its drag racing programs.
 
Evan Knoll, President and C.E.O. of Torco Race Fuels, was involved in a
single-car accident dating back to November 2004 in which the vehicle
he was driving went off of the highway and struck a tree. He was later
diagnosed with a severe concussion and later developed multiple brain
bleeds. This medical condition worsened to the point that Knoll has
opted to take a leave-of-absence from his company to properly heal.
 
Preston conducted the following question and answer session on Wednesday afternoon.

Professional Funny Car driver Tony Bartone will give drag racing fans a sneak
peek at the 2008 season when he brings his Chevrolet to the starting line at the
Jan. 18-20 Nitro Blast-Off Preseason Test Session at The Strip at Las Vegas
Motor Speedway.  Bartone’s Jim Dunn Racing Funny Car now is sponsored by CANIDAE
All Natural Pet Foods and its bright green-and-yellow paint scheme is
highlighted by canine silhouettes on the hood and doors.  Another
eyebrow-raising item on Bartone’s colorful entry is an associate-sponsor sticker
on the rear spoiler: Speedway Illustrated Magazine, a respected stock car racing
publication.

Team owner Dunn is one of the original
pioneers of drag racing. He began his career as a competitor in 1950 when the
popularity of the sport was starting to take hold on local strips throughout
Southern California. Over the years, the acclaimed driver/crew chief/team owner
has accumulated numerous wins and performance records.  Since retiring from
driving in 1990, Dunn's career has continued to flourish as a respected crew
chief, technical advisor and car owner.

Four-time NHRA world champion Gary Scelzi, driver of the Mopar/Oakley
Dodge Charger Funny Car, took his first stint behind the wheel of his
Scelzi Enterprises/Jeg's/K&N Filters USAC car in a practice session
for
the Dodge Chili Bowl Nationals this past Tuesday night.

For Scezli, those laps were the culmination of several years of
planning and going to school to learn how to drive a sprint car. For
some the sight of a drag racer climbing into a car that has to make
four left turns might be a jaw dropper. However, for Scelzi it's just
another experience in the world of motorsports.

“It is absolutely true,” Scelzi replied when initially asked over the
winter if he was going to compete in the Chili Bowl. “ I own a USAC
pavement car and a USAC dirt car that (17-year-old) Michael Faccinto
drives. And one of the things I've wanted to do since I drove the Ford
Focus celebrity race in 2003 (at the Chili Bowl) was to race the Chili
Bowl itself. And now that I own my own USAC team I told everybody on my
team that, OK I'm going to run the Chili Bowl this year.

After many months of negotiations, Bob Gilbertson announced that after five
years of support from the Honeywell Consumer Products Group, he will go into the
2008 drag racing season without Autolite and Prestone as associate
sponsors. 

Chris Powell of Las Vegas Motor Speedway has responded to a letter
distributed to professional nitro racers not attending the upcoming
Nitro Blast Off, January 18 - 20, 2008 at the Strip in Las Vegas.

The following are the pre-entries received for the 8th annual Eastern Spring Test Nationals presented by Torco's CompetitionPlus.com hosted by South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga. 

Torco’s
CompetitionPlus.com has learned the NHRA will not sanction the upcoming Nitro
Blast Off hosted by The Strip in Las
Vegas. We also learned that there is a letter sent
to members and non-members of the Professional Racers Organization [P.R.O.], with
Bernstein quoting Graham Light as pointing to tire safety as one of the leading reasons for the NHRA's decision.