NEWS NUGGETS
TRAXXAS JOINS LIST OF NHRA OFFICIAL SPONSORS; SPONSORSHIP INCLUDES TOP FUEL AND FUNNY CAR SPECIALTY RACE PROGRAMS: The
NHRA has announced that it has signed a multi-year agreement with
Traxxas—a leading manufacturer and seller of high-performance
radio-controlled vehicles. The agreement designates Traxxas as the
“Official Radio Controlled Performance Products of the NHRA” and will
fully integrate the Traxxas brand into all aspects of the NHRA,
including extensive multi-media rights, broadcast elements and a strong
on-site presence, including interactive displays, signage and
entertainment features. The sponsorship includes new Top Fuel and Funny
Car specialty “race-within-a-race” programs, both sponsored by Traxxas.
The specifics of the specialty programs, including locations for each
event, will be announced at a later date. Traxxas will provide $260,000
to fund the two programs, with the Top Fuel and Funny Car specialty race
winners receiving $100,000 each.
NEWS NUGGETS
TOYOTA SECURES SPONSORSHIP OF ENGLISHTOWN NHRA FULL THROTTLE EVENT: Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A has expanded its participation in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing by becoming the title-rights sponsor of the event at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown. The 43rd annual Toyota NHRA SuperNationals will be held May 31–June 3.
TOYOTA SECURES SPONSORSHIP OF ENGLISHTOWN NHRA FULL THROTTLE EVENT: Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A has expanded its participation in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing by becoming the title-rights sponsor of the event at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown. The 43rd annual Toyota NHRA SuperNationals will be held May 31–June 3.
Put on the B.R.A.K.E.S.,
a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to teen safe-driver
training, will host its Inaugural Southern California Benefit Dinner
February 24, at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona,
California.
NEWS NUGGETS
TRAXXAS TO SPONSOR COURTNEY FORCE’S 2012 FUNNY CAR DEBUT: John Force Racing (JFR) announced Tuesday that the youngest daughter of the Funny Car legend will be competing in the 7,000hp category alongside her JFR teammates, including father John, brother-in-law Robert and mentor Mike Neff. The 23-year-old followed in her sister Ashley Force Hood’s footsteps working her way up through the ranks by racing Super Comp and Top Alcohol dragster before she began testing her nitro-burning Ford Mustang in 2011. Already a skilled interviewee, reality TV star, spokesperson for Ford Motor Company’s Driving Skills for Life program, national marketing contest winner and fan favorite, Courtney will make her professional driving debut February 9–12 in the 52nd annual Kragen O’Reilly Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, California.
TRAXXAS TO SPONSOR COURTNEY FORCE’S 2012 FUNNY CAR DEBUT: John Force Racing (JFR) announced Tuesday that the youngest daughter of the Funny Car legend will be competing in the 7,000hp category alongside her JFR teammates, including father John, brother-in-law Robert and mentor Mike Neff. The 23-year-old followed in her sister Ashley Force Hood’s footsteps working her way up through the ranks by racing Super Comp and Top Alcohol dragster before she began testing her nitro-burning Ford Mustang in 2011. Already a skilled interviewee, reality TV star, spokesperson for Ford Motor Company’s Driving Skills for Life program, national marketing contest winner and fan favorite, Courtney will make her professional driving debut February 9–12 in the 52nd annual Kragen O’Reilly Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, California.
NEWS NUGGETS
GEICO RENEWS WITH MORGAN LUCAS RACING THROUGH 2014: Insurance giant GEICO has renewed its agreement with Morgan Lucas Racing and NHRA Top Fuel driver Morgan Lucas for three more years. GEICO joined Lucas’ drag racing team in 2009—a career-best season for Lucas that included three victories and a berth in the Countdown to the Championship. The former Sportsman star has become a fixture in the elite top 10 ever since, representing GEICO at more than 20 NHRA Full Throttle national events each year.
GEICO RENEWS WITH MORGAN LUCAS RACING THROUGH 2014: Insurance giant GEICO has renewed its agreement with Morgan Lucas Racing and NHRA Top Fuel driver Morgan Lucas for three more years. GEICO joined Lucas’ drag racing team in 2009—a career-best season for Lucas that included three victories and a berth in the Countdown to the Championship. The former Sportsman star has become a fixture in the elite top 10 ever since, representing GEICO at more than 20 NHRA Full Throttle national events each year.
NEWS NUGGETS
NHRA CHAMPS WORSHAM AND HAGAN NAMED AARWBA ALL-AMERICA FIRST TEAM SELECTIONS: The American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association (AARWBA) has announced its 2011 All-America Team and Top Fuel champ Del Worsham and Funny Car champ Matt Hagan have earned First Team honors in the Drag Racing category. Each year, members of AARWBA select a special team of drivers who represent the broad spectrum of professional motorsports. AARWBA then brings them all together at a gala dinner gathering where each is presented with the organization's coveted "Horsepower" trophy, which symbolizes top performance in each category. It is the first time that Worsham and Hagan have been AARWBA First Team All-America selections. Both will be among the candidates for the Jerry Titus Award, which recognizes AARWBA’s driver of the year. The Titus Award winner will be revealed during the All-America team banquet, Sunday evening, January 8, in the Grand Hall at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Indianapolis. AARWBA also recognized NHRA Top Fuel driver Antron Brown and NHRA Pro Stock world champ Jason Line with second-team honors, and Top Alcohol Funny Car champion Frank Manzo was honored with a second-team honor in the At Large category.
NHRA CHAMPS WORSHAM AND HAGAN NAMED AARWBA ALL-AMERICA FIRST TEAM SELECTIONS: The American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association (AARWBA) has announced its 2011 All-America Team and Top Fuel champ Del Worsham and Funny Car champ Matt Hagan have earned First Team honors in the Drag Racing category. Each year, members of AARWBA select a special team of drivers who represent the broad spectrum of professional motorsports. AARWBA then brings them all together at a gala dinner gathering where each is presented with the organization's coveted "Horsepower" trophy, which symbolizes top performance in each category. It is the first time that Worsham and Hagan have been AARWBA First Team All-America selections. Both will be among the candidates for the Jerry Titus Award, which recognizes AARWBA’s driver of the year. The Titus Award winner will be revealed during the All-America team banquet, Sunday evening, January 8, in the Grand Hall at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Indianapolis. AARWBA also recognized NHRA Top Fuel driver Antron Brown and NHRA Pro Stock world champ Jason Line with second-team honors, and Top Alcohol Funny Car champion Frank Manzo was honored with a second-team honor in the At Large category.
NEWS NUGGETS
TICKETS ON SALE FOR 2012 O’REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA WINTERNATIONALS: Tickets for the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries—the season-opening event of the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, February 9–12—are available for purchase. NHRA’s tradition-rich season-opening event will be contested at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, California, and will be every NHRA fan’s first opportunity to see all of the new cars and new paint schemes and meet all of the drivers who will be racing at speeds of more than 320 mph in an attempt to add their names to the record books as O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals champions. A win at this event can mean great momentum for every driver on the circuit in the chase for NHRA Full Throttle world-championship glory during the 23-event season that crisscrosses the United States. To purchase tickets for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals, call 800-884-NHRA (6472) or log on to NHRATIX.com.
TICKETS ON SALE FOR 2012 O’REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA WINTERNATIONALS: Tickets for the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries—the season-opening event of the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, February 9–12—are available for purchase. NHRA’s tradition-rich season-opening event will be contested at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, California, and will be every NHRA fan’s first opportunity to see all of the new cars and new paint schemes and meet all of the drivers who will be racing at speeds of more than 320 mph in an attempt to add their names to the record books as O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals champions. A win at this event can mean great momentum for every driver on the circuit in the chase for NHRA Full Throttle world-championship glory during the 23-event season that crisscrosses the United States. To purchase tickets for the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals, call 800-884-NHRA (6472) or log on to NHRATIX.com.
NEWS NUGGETS
FULL THROTTLE TOP FUEL WORLD CHAMPION
Del Worsham
Al-Anabi Racing Dragster
Round Win/Loss Record: 53–14
No. 1 Qualifiers: 7
2011 Race Wins: 8
2011 Runner-up Finishes: 3
Season Summary: After competing 20 years in the Funny Car class, Worsham began his first full season in Top Fuel competition by racing to the win at the Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals and the points lead. From there, Worsham held the points lead throughout the regular season and entered the Countdown to the Championship at the top of the Top Fuel class. Back-to-back second-round losses in Charlotte and Dallas—the first two races of the Countdown—bumped Worsham down to third in the standings. But with a runner-up finish in Reading and a win in Las Vegas, Worsham clinched his first NHRA world championship with his semifinal round win over Spencer Massey at the Auto Club NHRA Finals in Pomona. Worsham would go on to win the event—his eighth of the season.
NEWS NUGGETS
WHO’S IT GOING TO BE? FIRST- TO FIFTH-PLACE DRIVERS ALL HAVE CHANCE FOR FULL THROTTLE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP:Exciting. Thrilling. Heart-pounding. These are all words that can describe the battle for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing world championships in both Top Fuel and Funny Car as the series makes the final stop of 2011, at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals this weekend at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The reason for the excitement? For the first time since the NHRA Countdown was introduced in 2007, five drivers in Top Fuel and eight drivers in Funny Car all have a mathematical chance to win the world championship at the season-ending event. In Top Fuel, the talk heading into the event has been all about points leader Spencer Massey, second-place driver Del Worsham and third-place driver Antron Brown. But with fourth-place driver and defending world champion Larry Dixon 44 points out of the lead, the top four in the category are all within range of racing to theworld title.
WHO’S IT GOING TO BE? FIRST- TO FIFTH-PLACE DRIVERS ALL HAVE CHANCE FOR FULL THROTTLE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP:Exciting. Thrilling. Heart-pounding. These are all words that can describe the battle for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing world championships in both Top Fuel and Funny Car as the series makes the final stop of 2011, at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals this weekend at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The reason for the excitement? For the first time since the NHRA Countdown was introduced in 2007, five drivers in Top Fuel and eight drivers in Funny Car all have a mathematical chance to win the world championship at the season-ending event. In Top Fuel, the talk heading into the event has been all about points leader Spencer Massey, second-place driver Del Worsham and third-place driver Antron Brown. But with fourth-place driver and defending world champion Larry Dixon 44 points out of the lead, the top four in the category are all within range of racing to theworld title.
NEWS NUGGETS
DO-OR-DIE TIME FOR MANY COUNTDOWN DRIVERS AT BIG O TIRES NHRA NATIONALS: Top Fuel pilot Del Worsham knows that it is do-or-die time. After leading the points for nearly the entire regular season and entering the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship with a 30-point lead, Worsham could only watch his points lead diminish as drivers below him in the standings raced their way to consecutive final-round appearances. A runner-up finish in Reading, Pennsylvania, gave the Al-Anabi Racing driver a confidence boost he needed, and now, as the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series makes its penultimate stop of the season at the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Worsham, currently fourth, knows that this may be his last chance to make a push toward his first world championship.
DO-OR-DIE TIME FOR MANY COUNTDOWN DRIVERS AT BIG O TIRES NHRA NATIONALS: Top Fuel pilot Del Worsham knows that it is do-or-die time. After leading the points for nearly the entire regular season and entering the Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship with a 30-point lead, Worsham could only watch his points lead diminish as drivers below him in the standings raced their way to consecutive final-round appearances. A runner-up finish in Reading, Pennsylvania, gave the Al-Anabi Racing driver a confidence boost he needed, and now, as the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series makes its penultimate stop of the season at the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Worsham, currently fourth, knows that this may be his last chance to make a push toward his first world championship.