NHRA News and Notes from the Offseason
Written by David Lamm · December 20, 2005
The completion of the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series back in November doesn’t mean the owners, drivers and crews take the next three months off until the opening of the season in February. Here’s a quick round-up of what some of the drivers and race teams have been up to since the season ending Auto Club NHRA Finals in Pomona, Calif.
A JOLLY OLD ELF: John Force, 13-time NHRA POWERade world champion and winner of a record 119 races, put countless smiles on the faces of Southern California children as host of a recent holiday car show which benefited the California Highway Patrol’s “ChiP’s for Kids” toy drive. Force, doing his best Santa impersonation, entertained more than 18,000 fans with 780 show cars and autograph opportunities with NHRA superstars Eric Medlen, Robert Hight, Ashley Force and Brandon Bernstein, among others. The single-day event at his Yorba Linda, Calif.-based race shop, netted more than 10,000 toys for the program.
GRUBNIC GOES FOR SPEED OF 531 DOWN UNDER: “Aussie” Dave Grubnic, a native of Brisbane, Australia, will return to his homeland to race for the first time in his 11-year career over the holidays. During two exhibition races he will try to impress his hometown fans by pushing his StriVectin S-D dragster to a speed of 531 km/h, or roughly 330 mph. He will compete against Kalitta Motorsports teammate Scott Kalitta during two Top Fuel match-races: one at Western Sydney International Dragway, Dec. 26-27, and the other at Queensland’s Willowbank Raceway, Jan. 6-7. Grubnic, the 2004 Budweiser Shootout winner, earned his first national event victory in 2005 at Heartland Park Topeka in Kansas after seven previous runner-up finishes. Kalitta, who will move to Funny Car in 2006, is a two-time NHRA Top Fuel world champion and winner of 18 national event titles.
2006 PRE-SEASON TEST SCHEDULE SET: NHRA POWERade Series teams will be able to prepare for the 2006 season at one of three scheduled test sessions during the months of January and February.
- Nitro Blast Off, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Jan. 20-23
- National Time Trials, Firebird International Raceway, Phoenix, Jan. 28-30
- Last Chance Test Session, The Strip at LVMS, Feb. 3-5
- 14th annual Pontiac Pro Stock Showdown, The Strip at LVMS, Feb. 4
The 2006 NHRA POWERade Series season opens Feb. 9-12 at the CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The 23-race, $50-million series will be televised on ESPN2.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS - Two-time NHRA POWERade Series Top Fuel world champion Larry Dixon hopes to reach a milestone in elimination round wins at the 2006 season-opening CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, Feb. 9-12. Dixon, who drives the Miller Lite dragster for NHRA legend Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, will earn his 400th elimination round win if he’s successful in his first round meeting. Dixon is the winningest active Top Fuel driver, and among active drivers in all categories is fourth overall, behind only Funny Car kingpin John Force (926) and the Pro Stock Johnson tandem of Warren (818) and Kurt (418).
HE SAID, SHE SAID - As Funny Car dominator John Force prepares for a 2006 quest to reclaim his lost NHRA POWERade world championship crown, he admits that he learned a valuable lesson in ‘05 after finishing third to champion Gary Scelzi and second-place driver Ron Capps. “I made one very big mistake,” Force told Rob Geiger of nhra.com. “I thought I was unbeatable. I see now it was a mistake. After 14 winning seasons I felt like the Bismarck. I thought I was unsinkable. I didn’t get shot down. I shot myself. I took for granted that I was too big; that the machine was too strong. Then two really hungry guys came along and upset me
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i would like to know,why every one says go to nat dragster,to look for venders and dealers for parts,cars,trks,trailors,and when you do ,you find some of the highest prices that are out there.i thought it was the place to go for the deals if you were a racer.kinda sad you can buy same stuff from people who do not even have a clue about dragracing.can any one tell me why? thanks
Gary,
Thanks for reading. I am not sure who you are referring to when you say “every one says go to nat dragster”. National Dragster does have a vast list of companies that can help hot rodders find parts and accessories. I have found that the two major mail order companies that are active sponsors in the NHRA are the best.
http://WWW.Summitracing.com and http://www.Jegs.com are the two most popular and http://www.dougherbert.com is also a good one.
Happy shopping and if you shop around you can find some good deals. Hope this helps.