Rookie Carlson hopes third time is charm in Gainesville
DON SCHUMACHER RACING2006 NHRA POWERade DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 3 of 23
ACDelco NHRA GATORNATIONALSGAINESVILLE (FLA.)
Date: March 17-19, 2006GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 15, 2006) - Rookie Shaun Carlson, driver of the Team Mopar/SRT Dodge Stratus in his first year with Don Schumacher Racing, has been paying his dues in the ultra-competitive Pro Stock class on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series tour. Although he started out his first full season with DSR by missing the 16-car field at both Pomona and Phoenix, he's never lost his determination to succeed.
Shaun Carlson
Following three days of serious testing of car and driver at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga., Carlson feels he's moved a few steps further up the learning curve as the team heads to the NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway this weekend.
While teammate Richie Stevens Jr. was putting up big numbers (6.681-second elapsed time at 207.60 mph) in testing, Carlson was focusing on the small things necessary to put together full competitive runs. "I was working on keeping the car open at full throttle, taking my foot off the clutch quicker, getting better on the burn outs, and even got to break in some tires," he said. "We ran a6.724-second ET at 205.40 mph, which was my best, and it was pretty good compared to what some other people were running out there.
I wasn't that far away from a really good run, so that makes me feel good going into this weekend." In total, Carlson made 13 runs in the Team Mopar/SRT Dodge. "I feel much more comfortable in the car, and if I could have gotten 100 more runs in, I'd be that much better," he added. "It's only going to take time, but the Valdosta test gave me the chance to look at my runs on both the computer and on film, and learn from it. I feel like a more complete driver now, and the more runs I get, the more I'll be able to build off that," said the Southern California native.
"If you look at the people who have recently come into the class, like Erica Enders, it shows how hard this class is. I think she had like 100 passes before she came into the class full-time, and it took her some time (to qualify well and go rounds), but look at her now. Even if you have the best team, you can't come out with a new driver and dominate. It's like the saying goes for engines: there's no replacement for displacement. And, in this class, there's no replacement for laps.
"SCHEDULE
Friday, March 17, professional qualifying sessions are at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 18, pro qualifying continues at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. On Sunday, March 19, pre-race ceremonies are at 10 a.m., and final eliminations begin at 11 a.m.
TELEVISION
Sunday, March 19, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of qualifying highlights at 12:30 a.m. (ET). On Sunday, March 19, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will telecast NHRA 2Day, a 30-minute weekly news magazine show, at 11:30 a.m. (ET). On Sunday, March 19, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of final eliminations at 5 p.m. (ET).
SATELLITE:
Friday, March 17, 8:30-9 p.m. (ET) SBS 6/Transponder 17K (downlink freq: 12117, MHz horizontal) Saturday, March 18, 8:30-9 p.m. (ET) SBS 6/Transponder 17K (downlink freq: 12117, MHz horizontal) Sunday, March 19, 8:30-9 p.m. (ET) SBS 6/Transponder 17K (downlink freq: 12117, MHz horizontal) SHAUN CARLSON QUICK FACTS:
* DNQ'd in first two events (of 23) of the season
* Rookie season in Pro Stock class
* First year with Don Schumacher Racing
* Owned and drove his Team Mopar SRT4 in the NHRA Xplod Sport Compact Racing Series in 2005, grabbing one win and finishing fourth in points.
* Finished fourth in 2004 Sport Compact points standings
* Is a two-time Sport Compact event winner
* Subbed for an injured Darrell Alderman in the 2004 NHRA Winternationals Pro Stock event at Pomona, grabbing an early round win and nearly advancing to the semifinals in his Pro Stock debut.
* Finished third in '03 Pro FWD points
* 2002 Xbox Cup champion in the Pro Outlaw class
* A famous engine builder and FWD performance guru, Carlson has worked on projects such as the world record-holding import drag car driven by Stephan Papadakis. * First FWD builder to run in the 9s and 8s.
* Built the first Sport Compact drag car with a tube chassis
* Has been drag racing professionally since 1999
* President and founder of NuFormz, an 11-year-old company that builds aftermarket components in Ontario, Calif.
SCCA Pro Racing SPEED WORLD CHALLENGE Touring Car Championship Round One race
SEBRING, Fla. (March 15, 2006) -
Combined practice results for Friday's SCCA Pro
Racing SPEED WORLD CHALLENGE Touring Car Championship Round One race,
part of the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring weekend at Sebring International
Raceway, with position, car number in parentheses, driver, hometown,
car, fastest lap time, and speed in miles per hour.
1, (43), Eric Curran, E. Hampton, Mass., Acura RSX, 2:21.050, 94.434.
2, (1), Peter Cunningham, Grafton, Wis., Acura TSX, 2:21.061, 94.427.
3, (42), Pierre Kleinubing, Coconut Creek, Fla., Acura TSX, 2:21.083,
94.412.
4, (2), Bill Auberlen, Rolling Hills Est., Calif., BMW 325i, 2:21.410,
94.194.
5, (73), Randy Pobst, Gainesville, Ga., Mazda 6, 2:21.478, 94.149.
6, (97), Charles Espenlaub, Lutz, Fla., Mazda 6, 2:21.661, 94.027.
7, (72), Jeff Altenburg, Ellicott City, Md., Mazda 6, 2:21.842, 93.907.
8, (38), Seth Thomas, Cumming, Ga., BMW 325i, 2:22.501, 93.473.
9, (99), Jeff Courtney(R), Slinger, Wis., Audi A4, 2:22.569, 93.428.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006 Reese’s Corvette quickest in SPEED GT Sebring practice
by Eric Prill
SEBRING, Fla. -- Leighton Reese, of Minnetonka, Minn., set the fastest time Wednesday during practice for Friday’s SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Championship opening round at Sebring International Raceway. Fellow Chevrolet Corvette pilot Lou Gigliotti and Dodge Viper driver Tommy Archer completed the top three.
RESULTS</FONT>
SEBRING, Florida - Combined practice results for Friday's SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge GT Championship Round One race, part of the Mobil 1 12 Hours of Sebring Weekend at Sebring International Raceway, with position, car number in parentheses, driver, hometown, car, fastest lap time, and speed in miles per hour.
Every time I see this stuff I go home and try and find it on tv.I can NEVER find any of these races on the boob tube!!!! Can someone please enlighten me as to what damn channel these races come on???
Date 2006-03-15 CONQUERING TRACK, EARNING BONUS POINTS ARE SCELZI'S GOALS FOR GAINESVILLE
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 15, 2006) - Three-time Top Fuel champion and reigning Funny Car titleholder Gary Scelzi has 32 career event wins to his credit at every venue at which the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series competes, except three: Englishtown, N.J., Denver, Colo., and Gainesville, Fla.
Scelzi has his sites set on conquering Gainesville Raceway at this weekend's NHRA Gatornationals as well as setting a national elapsed-time record with the new Mopar/Oakley Dodge Charger R/T he'll debut here. In an already tension-filled chase for the 2006 Funny Car championship after only two events, Scelzi says every point and every round win is going to count if he's to defend his Funny Car title.
He's already one spot ahead of where he was in the point standings (ninth) last year at this stage of the season, despite early-round losses in the first two events. Recent Phoenix testing results have also buoyed Scelzi's confidence.
"I've been runner-up here in Top Fuel and Funny Car," says the Fresno, Calif., native. "God, yes, I want to conquer it. I'm really excited this year coming back to Gainesville because of the test we had in Phoenix (after the last event) on Monday and Tuesday. The car just acts totally different with the parts that we've changed; it was very consistent. It reminded me a lot of last year towards the end of the year. It was very good.
"We're going to treat Gainesville just like it's Indy (the prestigious U.S. Nationals) because this is one that I've never won and it's very important, in my mind. I've had a lot of accomplishments and a lot of things I should be proud of. One thing I want to do is to win at every single venue that we go to. And Gainesville is one of them. We're not going to be at those other two (Englishtown and Denver) for a while, so Gainesville is the one that I'm looking at right now.
"If the weather is right, who knows? We may be able to set a national record here. Depending on how qualifying goes, if this Mopar/Oakley Dodge Charger does what I think it's going to do, we're definitely going to go for it. Because that's 20 points that we'd like to take away. We know (John) Force is going to go after it and we feel we've got a car capable of setting a national record."
It's early in the season, but the desire to defend the Funny Car championship that was so emotionally draining to win at the end of last season is high on Scelzi's and crew chief Mike Neff's lists.
"We don't want to get behind," adds Scelzi, who has set 20 top speeds in his Funny Car career. "I feel that this year will be as good or better than last year. I still believe that there's going to be five cars going for the championship at the end of the year. And I feel that those five cars will be winning a lot of rounds. I don't think it's going to be like last year, that the good cars will get beat early. I feel that the good cars are going to be excelling, going to the semis and going to the finals. And I think that's where we need to be, and that's where our goals are set right now, to go to the semis and the finals and win races."
Erin Crocker has been struggling, but that's probably expected, as tough as the Craftsman Truck series is. But this weekend, Crocker, the former Sprint car star, will really be on pins and needles, and so will team owner Ray Evernham, in her first race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
"We have been working really hard since we struggled at California," Crocker said. "Ray has put a lot of the Cup resources into the truck. And Atlanta is a track that suits my driving style a little better. I think we will be a lot better this weekend.
"I have never been to Atlanta, so I have been playing the NASCAR 2006 video game on Play Station 2. And I watched the Truck race from last year to prepare for this Friday's race.
"It's definitely a little setback going to a track I've never been to. You cannot beat experience, especially at Atlanta, probably the fastest on the schedule. And it is definitely a handicap with the new testing rules."
NASCAR's proposed "car of the future" continues to create waves in Detroit, even though NASCAR Chairman Brian France is delaying full rollout until 2009.
It is to debut next spring at Bristol, where aerodynamics is not a significant a factor. And France is trying to get the whole program rolling, but it has been dead-in-the-water because the car, as currently configured, is simply unraceable because of its aerodynamics.
Nextel Cup team owners are paying lip service to France over the issue, or at least not complaining quite so loudly. But testing has been halted.
Dodge's John Fernandez is trying to be optimistic about the overall concept, though he concedes he is worried about technical issues, particularly the fact that drivers cannot drive the car safely in traffic.
"We're a little nervous, yes," Fernandez conceded.
"NASCAR is, I think, settling in on a 'front-splitter' and rear-wing as the way to go. From a manufacturers' standpoint, that might offer some advantages, because those two aerodynamic devices could be the dominant aerodynamics of the car, freeing up the body for more 'identification.'
"We have a long way to go to perfect that car and make sure it is a good, safe product."
The current hang-up - NASCAR hasn't provided any good, solid blueprinting for the car, or any assurances that the version they're looking at today will not change radically down the road.
3/16/2006 - The Preferred Line - Road racing news and commentary SPEED World Challenge Sebring 2006 Special Edition - GT Qualifying (March 16, 2006) By Jim Bourn
"We won practice and we won qualifying but now we have to win a race for Banner Engineering. That would be an absolute thrill! - Leighton Reese putting his pole position in perspective.
Photo: Leighton Reese is congratulated by his crew chief Joe Kantarik moments after winning the GT pole at Sebring.
Leighton Reese powers Banner Engineering Corvette to pole position at Sebring
Leighton Reese's week got off to a rocky start as he and crew chief Joe Kantarik couldn't agree on a setup. But the Opening round of the SPEED World Challenge GT Series here at Sebring has definitely improved for the veteran Minnetonka Minnesota racer as he and his Banner Engineering Chevy Corvette C6 seemingly have the field covered.
Reese used an aggressive approach to qualifying and blasted away the track record with a time of 2:08.764 en route to winning his third World Challenge pole position.
"We were in a good position due to our last year's finish in points and we know from the practice the car goes well in really clean air with no one in front of us," said Reese of his qualifying strategy. 'I got in front of Tommy (Archer) and I made a play to get by Andy (Pilgrim) but he wanted no traffic also so we drag raced for a couple of corners and I decided to back off and let him go because I didn't want to get my tires too hot on the out lap."
"It worked out well, there was enough spacing and I didn't hold Tommy up and I didn't catch up to Andy so it worked out well," Leighton concluded.
"All we wanted was enough room for a clean lap and not to catch up to anyone," said Reese's crew chief Joe Kantarik. "We only needed two good laps." Actually only one lap was needed as Reese tried to improve on his initial time and thought he was faster on his second lap was shocked to learn that he was almost 1.3 seconds slower!
One driver who did improve on his second pass was Mike McCann who powered his McCann Plastics/K&N Filters Dodge Viper into second spot less than two tenths off the pole.
Mike, who has been rock fast all week reported that he didn't he probably didn't get his tires up to temp before his first lap so he dropped almost exactly 1/2 second on his second pass. Same driver, same car, different team but Tommy Archer turned in a 2:09.224 which held up for 3rd on the grid in his c3controls/Autohaus Dodge Viper. Tommy is all smiles as he is just about right where he was last year when he won this race so watch out for the #5 tomorrow!
3/17/2006 - The Preferred Line - Road racing news and commentary SPEED World Challenge Sebring 2006 Special Edition - WCTC Race Report (March 17, 2006) By Jim Bourn
Hugh Stewart finished 15th in his SpeedTechnik Dodge SRT-4 winning the Sunoco Hard Charger Award for the second time at Sebring in as many years.
Joining the significant and historic cars to tackle the famous Mount Panorama circuit at the WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival next month will be some of the latest cars from the world’s great marques.
The Festival will play host to the second round of the Speed Energy Drink Australian GT Championship on April 13-16.
The championship pits Manufacturer against Manufacturer in a battle of some of the most prestigious vehicles on the planet. Competing vehicles include the Ferrari F360 and F430 Challenges, Dodge Viper ACR, Lamborghini Diablo GTR, Porsche GT3 Cup, Chevrolet Corvette, Lotus Elise Sport and Honda NSX.
Attracting one of most diverse groups of drivers in Australian Motorsport with veteran drivers mixing it up with young, budding stars and those out for some high adrenalin action on a weekend for recreation, the championship provides a fantastic spectacle.
With a record field of over 35 entries received for the second of eight rounds in the 2006 championship the action is assured to be intense at the Festival.
During last month’s opening round at Wakefield Park Allan Simonsen and Greg Crick shared the spoils with Simonsen gaining a narrow advantage in the championship points in his Ferrari 360GT ahead of Crick’s Dodge Viper.
Crick, a veteran of Australian motorsport, has competed in the Great Race on 14 occasions and even led the race in 1994 but competing in a round of the GT championship is something the Tasmanian driver is certainly looking forward to.
“Bathurst is undoubtedly the motorsport Mecca in Australia and I think the Festival can become a significant event on the calendar for all motorsport enthusiasts,” said Crick.
“I can’t wait to compete at Bathurst in the Viper, I think it will be sensational up the hill and across the top of the mountain. I have had some good memories of Bathurst which include leading the race in 1994 and topping the time sheets in final practice one year.”
Former Australian GT Champion and Porsche Challenge winner Bryce Washington will be out to make amends for a disappointing start to his championship defense aboard his ADRAD Radiators Porsche GT3 Cup Car. After the opening round Washington is almost 20 points in arrears of the championship leader in third position.
Other drivers expected to figure prominently in the GT championship round at the WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival include the Koundouris brothers, James and Theo from Canberra, in their Porsche’s and Peter Hackett in the Lamborghini Diablo GTR.
The Honda NSX driven by Ian Palmer and the Dodge Viper of D’Arcy Russell are another two great cars which will be a huge hit with spectators as they thunder their way around the Mount Panorama circuit.
The WPS Bathurst International Motor Festival will be held on April 13-16 at the famous Mount Panorama circuit. Promoted and managed by a joint venture between the Bathurst Regional Council and Global Entertainment Team Pty Ltd the event has gained inspiration from the world renowned Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival in the UK.
The on-track action for the Festival will include a Legends event in V8 Utes, car club parade laps, Historic Touring Car racing, Aussie Racing Cars, Team Australia demonstration laps, GT Championship Cars as well as several manufacturer sessions.
There will also be nostalgia sessions where race and road cars from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s will cut laps of the famous 6.213km Bathurst circuit.
Off-track entertainment is set to include historic car displays, product displays, bands, dirt bike expression sessions and kids’ entertainment areas.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 18, 2006) - Pro Stock rookie Shaun Carlson, driver of the Team Mopar/SRT Dodge Stratus for Don Schumacher Racing, was optimistic heading into the NHRA Gatornationals this weekend. He had recently completed a promising test session at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta, Ga., and he and the team expected to qualify for their first NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event.
Carlson's four qualifying runs, however, were not enough to make the quickest Pro Stock field in NHRA history, but his final and best qualifying run of 6.740 seconds at 205.38 mph was his best-yet official elapsed time since joining DSR in February. His other runs consisted of a 6.798/204.80, 6.780/205.01, and a 6.790/204.49.
The Southern-California native is focusing on the positives from the weekend: "I finally started to do my job a little better," he said. "Obviously I'd like to get qualified to give back to the team. If you look at the (final) run, it was much straighter and I hit my shift points better.
"Bob (Glidden, crew chief) came on the radio at the end of my run and said, 'Shaun that was a good run, probably your best run so far.' That gave me goose-bumps as I was pulling off (the track). I was upset that I didn't make it, but at the same time I hope I'm showing people that I will get better.
"The Valdosta test was good for me because I started to break my passes down and look at them individually, and work on fixing them one at a time. I felt like we had some momentum coming out of that test, but this is a tough class and I know it's not easy to get in."
He knows experience is his ally. "It's inevitable that I will get par for the course as far as driving ability, but it's just passes that will get me there."
Carlson now looks forward to the NHRA Spring Nationals at Houston Raceway Park, March 31-April 2.
Despite racing to the Funny Car final, Capps still found himself needing
to win it all to maintain the points lead. But the Brut Dodge Stratus
R/T driver rose to the occasion and took out Force with a 4.860 at
316.78 mph to Force's 4.990 at 305.49 mph, which was erased after his
Castrol GTX Ford Mustang was automatically disqualified for crossing the
center line.
"This is one of those races that when it comes time to retire you
definitely want to look back and know that you won it," Capps said.
"It's right there with Indy and Pomona as far as what it means to win
here. It's a biggie, and it's awesome to add this trophy to the
collection."
Capps' lead in the standings grew from 15 to 31 over Force. This was the
18th victory of his career in 39 final rounds. Force falls to 119-70
when there's a trophy on the line. This was the second final of the year
for both men.
RESULTS:
FUNNY CAR: 1. Ron Capps, Dodge Stratus; 2. John Force, Ford Mustang; 3. Robert
Hight, Mustang; 4. Eric Medlen, Mustang; 5. Del Worsham, Chevy Monte
Carlo; 6. Cruz Pedregon, Monte Carlo; 7. Phil Burkart, Monte Carlo; 8.
Tony Bartone, Monte Carlo; 9. Mike Ashley, Monte Carlo; 10. Gary
Densham, Monte Carlo; 11. Tommy Johnson Jr., Monte Carlo; 12. Gary
Scelzi, Dodge Charger; 13. Jeff Arend, Monte Carlo; 14. Jim Head,
Stratus; 15. Tony Pedregon, Monte Carlo; 16. Whit Bazemore, Charger.
PRO STOCK: 1. Tom Martino, Dodge Stratus; 2. Erica Enders, Chevy Cobalt; 3. Greg
Stanfield, Pontiac GTO; 4. Ron Krisher, Cobalt; 5. Greg Anderson, GTO;
6. Rickie Smith, Cobalt; 7. Max Naylor, Stratus;8. Larry Morgan,
Stratus; 9. Jason Line, GTO; 10. Warren Johnson, GTO; 11. Mike
Edwards, GTO; 12. V. Gaines, Stratus; 13. Jim Yates, GTO; 14. Richie
Stevens, Stratus; 15. Dave Howard, Cobalt; 16. Allen Johnson, Stratus.
Friday, March 17, 2006 Team Mopar rises to challenge of Dodge Charger drift car buildup
by Darren Jacobs
CENTER LINE, Mich. -- When Team Mopar decided to campaign the Mopar Dodge Charger in Formula D Drift competition in 2006, it went in with the knowledge that it wouldn’t be a simple task. Transforming a Dodge Charger chassis into a drift car that Samuel Hubinette could pilot to another Formula D championship hasn’t been easy, but it’s a challenge that Team Mopar has faced head-on.
“This wasn’t a typical project,” said Eric Vickerman, the SRT (DaimlerChrysler’s Street and Racing Technology division) engineer heading up the Mopar Dodge Charger project. “We had a lot of challenges. This is the first-ever attempt at a race car based on the SRT8 Charger platform. We are really breaking new ground, and under a tight deadline. It’s hard work, but everyone who worked on the project at SRT enjoyed the challenge.”
One of the main challenges for the SRT group was to trim the fat out of the Charger.
“We did quite a bit to get the weight down,” explained Vickerman. “The street Charger clocks in at about 4,100 lbs. To cut weight, we removed the interior for the largest weight savings, and replaced the body panels with carbon fiber panels. Replacing the glass with polycarbonate also significantly lowered the weight.”
Another challenge was the disparity between the Charger and the Viper SRT10 that Hubinette piloted to a runner-up finish in the 2005 Formula D Series.
“They’re not similar at all. Everything is different,” Vickerman said. “The weight, the length, the engine, the starting platform, everything is different. We really had to start from scratch. It was not easy. We didn't have a lot of reference for what we were doing. That was probably one of the greatest obstacles.”
Vickerman and his group made do with the little info they had.
“We worked with Formula D in the off-season to answer our questions, as we built the Charger,” said Vickerman. “When it came to the suspension, we had three previous events from which to draw data and driver feedback. SRT competed in the One Lap of America with a Chrysler 300C (based on the same platform as the Charger), which gave us about 5,000 miles of development, and we also had two cars (the 300C and Charger) compete in the Targa Newfoundland event, racking up another 2,800 miles. All this feedback and data was invaluable to the suspension development.”
Another major factor in overcoming the buildup obstacles was the help and input of driver Hubinette and the NuFormz Racing team, led by owner Shaun Carlson.
“We’ve really worked hand-in-hand with NuFormz,” Vickerman said. “With Shaun’s job description changing [after being named to pilot the Mopar/SRT Pro Stock car], we agreed to help out with building the Mopar Dodge Charger. Shaun came out to the SRT headquarters early in the year and we reviewed the entire project. His contributions of input and data have been invaluable. We had a lot of feedback from Sam, and e-mailed back and forth. We had his input on the seats, the steering, and the seatbelts. We also developed the roll cage specifically to accommodate tricks that Samuel performs, such as hanging out the door while drifting, without compromising the integrity of the car.”
Phase II of the Mopar Dodge Charger buildup is currently in progress, as Carlson and the NuFormz Racing team take the baton from SRT and finish up the final work on the Charger. Hubinette and the NuFormz Racing team will aim to debut the Charger at the first Formula D event of the season at Long Beach, Calif., on April 2.
Lux gives Viper SRT10 Coupe first two SCCA T1 victories
Lux gives Viper SRT10 Coupe first two SCCA T1 victories
by Tom Moore, NayKid Racing
WILLOWS, Calif. -- That rumbling sound you heard coming from Willows, California’s Thunderhill Raceway Park this weekend wasn’t the work of Mother Nature. Instead, the thunderous growl echoed from Dodge’s SRT V10 as it launched Cindi Lux (Aloha, Ore.) to two Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) victories on the three mile course. Lux gave America’s premier super car its first two SCCA Touring One (T1) class victories in its closed-top, Coupe iteration. The Double National race weekend proved a high performance declaration that the twin KUMHO Tires/ Dodge Motorsports/ SRT Vipers of NayKid Racing were gunning for the SCCA National title with both Lux and teammate Scotty B. White (Puyallup, Wash.).
The opening salvo that rocked the traditional fortress of the Chevrolet Corvette came in qualifying for the first race. White narrowly beat Lux to the pole position by an astoundingly tight three one-hundredths of a second in his No. 3 KUMHO Tires/ Dodge Motorsports/ SRT/ CORSA Exhaust/ Red Line Oil Viper. However, it was Lux that sprinted to the lead from the all-Dodge Viper SRT10 front row. Once at the point, the 1999 American Le Mans Series Women’s Global GT Series Champion fought off White to take the checkered flag in the first race. The victory was the first National race victory for Viper’s Coupe, launched late last year and developed by Dodge Motorsports, SRT and Lux Performance LLC over the winter for T1 competition.
“The KUMHO Viper SRT10 was really hooked-up at Thunderhill,” recounted Lux. “For a brand new race car, I couldn’t be any happier. What we learned with the Roadster seemed to really click with the Coupe too so that will make it a lot easier transition. This hot rod really is shinning out there.”
Making the victory in Race One even more remarkable was that Lux, the 2003-‘05 Northern Pacific (NorPac) Divisional Champion in T1, was suffering from torn ligaments and tendons in her right arm. The injuries were the result of a fall in the paddock just minutes before the start. She would rally to beat White, a seven-time T1 Division Champion, in a nose-to-tail battle between the two teammates.
With the second, and final, race of the weekend ready to take the green flag with White on the pole, Lux had to fight through the pain to take her second victory of the season. She gained a break when the stiffest competition to her No. 78 KUMHO Tires/ Dodge Motorsports/ SRT/ Nike/ MOMO USA/ Forgeline Viper, White, was disqualified for a pit lane violation early in Sunday’s race. From there it was a matter of persevering through the pain and holding back the remaining competition.
“Saturday’s race, after I took the fall, I was OK,” said Lux. “Not too much pain and I was really happy with how the race went. Sunday was a different story. That took a lot more out of me. That was probably the toughest race, physically, I’ve ever run. To win that race, even though it came at Scotty’s expense, was really gratifying. Scotty cannot buy any luck this season. When we did have clean sessions, the Vipers were solid on track and they felt GREAT. Can’t wait to get to the next race and put the hammer down!”
With two class victories, Lux leads the NorPac Division T1 class. White is currently second on the Southern Pacific (SoPac) Division title chase. The dual KUMHO Tires/ Dodge Motorsports/ SRT Vipers will compete in 12 more races prior to the 2006 SCCA National Championship Runoffs at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kan. October 10-15.
Racing series NHRA-SM Date 2006-03-21Harker scores quarterfinal finish at Gators
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Transplanted Aussie NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car pilot Steve Harker scored a quarterfinal finish during this past weekend's AC Delco Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway. Harker was the picture of consistency all weekend, but lost a close race to eventual winner Dave Ray.
Harker, who is originally from Brisbane, Aus., qualified his 2001 Dodge Avenger ninth in the field with a 5.681 at 253.09 mph. In round one, he took out Mark Billington with another 5.681 at 251.60 mph. In his second round matchup with Ray, Harker slowed to a 5.732 at 250.48 mph which could not catch Ray's 5.630 at 254.38 mph.
"We came into the race wanting to be consistent and we achieved that," said Harker. "We burned a valve and had to change a motor in qualifying, so for having a couple of new crewmembers, to bounce back from that was a good thing. The crew worked real hard and did a good job all weekend. I've just been having a problem shifting the car a bit early in high gear. Once I get through that, the car is running the numbers down low to run low 5.60's. We'll just keep working on that and go from there."
Gainesville was the first of a three-week swing for the Harker Motorsports team. The team will head straight to Memphis for this weekend's Division 4 Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event there, then to Houston for the O'Reilly Spring Nationals the following weekend.
"We're going to stay here for a day or so getting the car serviced," commented Harker. "My daughter Kate, who works on the car and handles our marketing is flying back home in Georgia, to work on some sponsor projects. We just want to pick up where we left off in Memphis and have another good outing."
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