NHRA veteran Top Fuel racer and pioneer Eddie Hill will be inducted into the
Texas Motor Sports Hall of Fame April 11 at The Speedway Club at Texas Motor
Speedway. In addition, Texas Motor Speedway and Happy Hill Farm Academy
announced that legendary car owner Roger Penske and NASCAR drivers Tony Stewart
and Jeff Burton will be honored during the awards ceremony.

The 1993 NHRA champion, Hill joins previous inductees A.J. Foyt, Johnny
Rutherford, Terry Labonte, Lee Shepherd, Kenny Bernstein, and Jim Hall. Hill,
inducted into the NHRA Division 4 Hall of Fame in 1978, is credited with
numerous milestones during his storied career. The record books show Hill to be
the first driver to cover a quarter-mile in less than five seconds as well as
the first to break the 200-mph barrier in a gas-powered car when he attained a
speed of 202.07 mph in Hobbs, N.M., in 1962.

Although rain hampered his qualifying efforts at this weekend’s 20th
annual O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park, Top Alcohol Funny
Car driver Daniel Wilkerson is still in good spirits following his first career
win in his Levi, Ray & Shoup Top Alcohol Funny Car
at last weekend’s NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event at Memphis Motorsports Park. 
Daniel has one of the best mentors he could have, his father, NHRA Funny
Car veteran Tim Wilkerson, and combines a partial race schedule this season with
Team Wilkerson Racing with his pursuit of a college degree in
accounting.

The
18-year-old college freshman from Springfield, Ill., qualified his Chevy No. 2 at
5.677 seconds at 255.24 mph to Steve Harker’s No. 1
qualifying effort in his Chevy Monte Carlo at 5.642 seconds and 256.60 mph.  Wilkerson defeated Ron Morrison’s Chevy in
Round 1 and Kebin Kinsley in the semifinals to face
Harker in the final. 
Wilkerson defeated Harker from Gainesville, Ga., with an elapsed time of 5.894
at 251.91 mph to Harker’s 6.285 mph at 195.56 mph for
his first career Top Alcohol Funny Car win and an early birthday present – he
turns 19 tomorrow.

Professional Products, manufacturers of automotive performance parts including
intake manifolds, harmonic dampers, throttle bodies and fuel system components
and more, has recently appointed industry veteran Stephen M. Belanger as their
Director of Marketing & Promotions.

A memorial service that will allow his hometown to grieve the loss of Eric
Medlen, one of professional drag racing’s most popular young drivers, will be
held at 11 a.m. Saturday at the River Oak Grace Community Church, 7712 Rodden
Road in Oakdale. 

Greg Ozubko and the staff at Vandergriff Apparel Group deserve
thanks and recognition for providing Eric Medlen tribute tee shirts at the
O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park.

J.R. Todd experienced a tough month of March. Houston's triumph provided an
opportunity to cheer.The trials began with the abrupt departure of tuner
Jimmy Walsh and just last week the passing of close friend Eric Medlen. Today
was the completion of his most crucial mission ever.

"You bet your ass it was mission
accomplished," said Todd. "All week long I worried how long it would take me to
win a race so I could dedicate it to Eric and John Force Racing. I want to win
every race and every final round I am in. I know Eric was looking down on us. We
needed it for sure."

Two former teammates had one thing in common with two different outcomes. Their helmets controlled their respective destiny. 

Both
Ron Capps and Whit Bazemore experienced incidents where their helmets
got out of alignment temporarily breaking their attention and line of
sight. Capps won and Bazemore lost.

Some dreams conclude when you wake up. But for Joe Hartley, he kept pinching and  each time he was awake.

Hartley opted for a Cinderella impersonation instead.

Houston Top Fuel runner-up Hartley enjoyed the greatest day of his short
racing career by reaching his first Top Fuel final round.