NEWS NUGGETS
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NHRA HEADS TO BRISTOL DRAGWAY OVER FATHER’S DAY WEEKEND: Fans of all ages love the Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Tri-Cities Area Ford Dealers, but kids now have one more reason to head to Bristol Dragway to share Father’s Day with their dads: free admission. In celebration of Father’s Day, Sunday’s Junior tickets (ages 12 and younger) will be free with the purchase of an adult admission ticket. The promotion is limited to two free kid tickets per adult ticket. Junior-weekend-combo ticket prices have been lowered to reflect the free Sunday admission. To take advantage of the offer, adult tickets for the event must be purchased by Thursday, June 14, at 5:00 p.m. For tickets, call 423-989-6900 or log on to BristolDragway.com.
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ANDERSON EARNS WIN NO. 100 FOR KB RACING: Summit Racing driver Greg Anderson added yet another milestone win to his storied career on Sunday, capturing the KB Racing team’s 100th Pro Stock victory and returning the Chevrolet Camaro to an NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series winner’s circle by taking home the title at the Toyota NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, New Jersey. Anderson’s 74th win, and 100th for KBR, came in an all-KBR final round and at the debut race of his Summit Racing Chevy Camaro. Chevy recently debuted the Camaro this season, and Anderson’s win is the first for a Camaro in Pro Stock racing since November 2000.
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CAPPS, PEDREGON TO JOIN NASCAR STARS IN PRELUDE TO THE DREAM: NHRA Full Throttle Funny Car stars Cruz Pedregon and Ron Capps will race in the 2012 Prelude to the Dream dirt-track race for charity June 6 at Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio. The proceeds from the race will benefit Feed the Children, an international, nonprofit relief organization. Pedregon and Capps will be two of more than 25 world-renowned drivers battling in the dirt, including Tony Stewart and other NASCAR stars, such as Jimmie Johnson, Ryan Newman, Clint Bowyer, Danica Patrick and Kyle and Kurt Busch. The Prelude can be watched live, commercial-free on pay-per-view on HBO beginning at 8:00 p.m. (EDT) with an immediate replay following. The $24.95 order can be made with any digital cable box or satellite service. You do not need to be an HBO subscriber. For ordering information, log on to PreludeToTheDream.org or HBO.com.
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TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR THE O’REILLY AUTO PARTS ROUTE 66 NHRA NATIONALS: The 15th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by Super Start Batteries, June 28–July 1 at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago, will mark the 11th stop of 23 races in the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season. As always, ticket holders are granted exclusive pit access and treated to spectacular sights, including jet cars on Friday, Saturday’s JEGS Allstars bonus race for Sportsman competitors, and Sunday’s Nitro Generation track walk. Also, Chicago’s world-famous Chi Town Hustler and Stardust Funny Cars will be taking fans back in time on Saturday night as they race down Route 66 Raceway. For tickets, call 888-629-RACE (7223) or log on to Route66Raceway.com.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
FORD NHRA THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS PRESENTED BY TRI-CITIES AREA FORD DEALERS, BRISTOL DRAGWAY, June 15–17: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series makes its 10th stop of 23 events in the 2012 season, and drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will earn points in the battles for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series world championships. The 2011 winners are Larry Dixon (Top Fuel), Robert Hight (Funny Car) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock). For tickets, call 423-989-6900 or log on to BristolDragway.com.
O’REILLY AUTO PARTS ROUTE 66 NHRA NATIONALS PRESENTED BY SUPER START BATTERIES, ROUTE 66 RACEWAY, June 28–July 1: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series makes its 11th stop of 23 events in the 2012 season in Chicago, and drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle will earn points in the battles for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series world championships. The 2011 winners are Del Worsham (Top Fuel), Mike Neff (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and LE Tonglet (Pro Stock Motorcycle). For tickets, call 888-629-RACE (7223) or log on to Route66Raceway.com.
SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA NATIONALS, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT MOTORSPORTS PARK, July 5–8: The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series makes its 12th stop of 23 events in the 2012 season in Norwalk, Ohio, and drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle will earn points in the battles for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series world championships. The 2011 winners are Del Worsham (Top Fuel), Mike Neff (Funny Car), Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle). For tickets, call 419-668-5555 or log on to SummitMotorsportsPark.com.
HE SAID, SHE SAID
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TOP OF HIS GAME: Top Fuel driver Steve Torrence earned the first win of his career in Atlanta and backed it up with a win two races later in Englishtown, New Jersey, which has earned him the No. 5 spot in the championship points standings. “It’s really a little surreal coming out and having success in a short time. I figured this team to be a competitive team and run with these guys, but I didn’t expect to do as well as we have. It’s really gratifying to be able to go out and do that well. The car that I’ve got right now is the best Top Fuel car that I’ve ever driven, so I do feel like we have a championship-contender car if it stays the way that it’s running. We’re trying to get some parts built up for the Countdown, and when that time comes, we’ll start looking in that direction. I don’t want to get the cart before the horse. I just want to go out here and keep racing and hopefully get some round-wins.”
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
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5: CAPPS IS IN THE RECORD BOOKS THANKS TO FIVE FINALS IN A ROW: After the addition of tuner Rahn Tobler to the NAPA Auto Parts Funny Car team, Ron Capps has been unstoppable, making it to five final rounds in a row. Capps has earned one win in those finals and sits second in championship points. With his fifth final in a row, he is the fifth driver in NHRA Funny Car history to advance to five finals in a row, joining Don Prudhomme, John Force, Kenny Bernstein and Cruz Pedregon. Prudhomme holds the record for most consecutive final rounds in Funny Car with 13.
DID YOU KNOW…
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RACEWAY PARK IS THE QUICKEST RACETRACK ON THE CIRCUIT: Ron Capps became the quickest man in Funny Car history when he ran a 3.964-second pass during Friday night qualifying in Englishtown, New Jersey, only the second sub-four-second pass in NHRA history. Spencer Massey followed suit and became the quickest Top Fuel driver when he recorded a 3.728-second pass that same night, making Old Bridge Township Raceway Park the quickest stop on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series circuit. Neither driver was able to certify the times to make them official NHRA national records.