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| Robert Hight drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to his third-consecutive
victory of the season Sunday at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Summer
Nationals. |
NEWS NUGGETS
HIGHT WINS THIRD IN A ROW; SCHUMACHER WINS 100TH FOR ARMY IN TOPEKA: Robert Hight drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to his third consecutive victory of the season Sunday at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka. The win marks the first time that Hight has ever won three in a row and moved the driver past teammate Ashley Force Hood to take the second position in the point standings, just 49 points behind leader and teammate, John Force.
“This is stuff you dream about,” said Hight. “I’d never won more than three races in a season, so to come out here and win three in a row and win from the pole, that’s tough to do; not many guys do that. We went down the track convincingly all weekend long in the heat, and what’s cool about it is that it’s safe. [Crew chief] Jimmy [Prock] is tweaking and making changes, and the car is responding. But there are eight other guys on this team that are putting that thing together perfectly every single run and not making any mistakes.”
Hight was joined in the Winners Circle by Top Fuel pilot and defending world champion Tony Schumacher. Though it was Schumacher’s 64th win, it was his first at Heartland Park Topeka, leaving Atlanta Dragway as the only track on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing circuit where Schumacher has not won a race. It also marked the 100th drag racing win for the U.S. Army, dating back to the days when Don “The Snake” Prudhomme raced under the Army banner.
“We needed to get (Topeka) off the list,” said Schumacher. “It’s been a great career, but there were two tracks I hadn’t won at—here and Atlanta. I’ve got Atlanta left, and I’ve still got time in my career to go out and do that. I enjoy those big moments, where you have to really pull something off, and that’s what we had today. Cory (McClenathan) is a great driver and he gave us a great race. We knew it was going to be just inches no matter what.”
Pro Stock world champion Mike Edwards was also victorious at Heartland Park Topeka, racing to his fifth win of the season and second at the track.
“It’s been a while since our last win in Topeka (1999), although we were runner-up to Allen Johnson last year,” said Edwards. “But what made this weekend so special was the fact that my parents, A.C. and Gladys, were here to see the win. They’ve never been to any of the races that I’ve won before, and you can’t believe how much it means to me for them to see this one.”
For more results from the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Summer Nationals, visit www.NHRA.com.
INDIANAPOLIS NHRA UNLEASHED TICKETS AND RACER REGISTRATION ON SALE MAY 29: Spectator tickets and racer registration for the highly anticipated NHRA Unleashed event in Indianapolis will go on sale to the general public on Saturday, May 29. NHRA Unleashed is a celebration of pure American horsepower and will make its inaugural stop at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis on August 6–8. Tickets for NHRA Unleashed will go on sale at 10 a.m. (EST) and can be purchased by visiting NHRA.com and clicking on the NHRA Unleashed logo box. Spectator tickets will also be available the day of the event at the gate.
NHRA Unleashed tickets are $10 for adults on Friday and $20 for Saturday and Sunday. A three-day pass is $40, and a Saturday–Sunday pass is $35. Tickets for children 6–12 are $5 for one day, or a three-day ticket is $10. Children 5 and under are free.
Racer registration for all racing classes that will be showcased at the NHRA Unleashed events will open the same time spectator tickets go on sale. Only a limited amount of entries per category are available, so all participants are encouraged to register early. Racer entries can also be purchased through the NHRA Unleashed section of NHRA.com. Two half-hour shows will be produced from each of the four NHRA Unleashed events, including the event at O’Reilly Raceway Park. Shows will also be produced from the events at Atlanta Dragway in Atlanta (June 11–13), National Trail Raceway near Columbus, Ohio (September 10–12), and Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville (November 5–7).
For more information, visit www.NHRA.com.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
UNITED ASSOCIATION ROUTE 66 NHRA NATIONALS, ROUTE 66 RACEWAY, June 3–6: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series heads to the Windy City in the Chicago metro area for the 10th event on the 2010 schedule. Defending event winners include Spencer Massey (Top Fuel); Tony Pedregon (Funny Car); Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock); and Matt Guidera (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
NHRA SUPERNATIONALS, OLD BRIDGE TOWNSHIP RACEWAY PARK, June 10–13: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series heads to the East Coast just outside of New York City for the 11th stop on the 2010 schedule. Defending event winners include Larry Dixon (Top Fuel); Tony Pedregon (Funny Car); Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock); and Craig Treble (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS, BRISTOL DRAGWAY, June 18-20: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series returns to the Thunder Valley of north Tennessee. Defending event winners include Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel); Del Worsham (Funny Car); and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock).
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| Jim Head's supercharger exposion in Topeka. |
HE SAID, SHE SAID
ONE WILD RIDE: Funny Car driver Jim Head on his supercharger explosion in Topeka:
“Zero vision. I thought the body was on the car, I had no idea. I thought the body was on the car, and I was really wishing the fire would go out. That was starting to get a bit hot. Not a burn to me, not an injury to me. It’s a real testament to those race cars.”
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
364: The number of points Funny Car driver and defending world champion Robert Hight has collected in the past three races, all of which he won. Before that time, Hight had only collected 315 points in the first six races of the season.
DID YOU KNOW…
…that after a two-week, one-race break, the Pro Stock Motorcycle class will return to action at the United Association Route 66 NHRA Nationals, June 3–6 at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago. Former world champion Andrew Hines hopes to continue the success he had in Atlanta and grab his third win of the season, but points leader and defending world champion Hector “The Hammer” Arana is hungry and still looking for his first win of the season.