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TOPEKA, Kan. -- After sitting out the first part of the 2008 NHRA POWERade race season, Joe Hartley is back in Top Fuel competition for the O'Reilly NHRA SummerNationals at Heartland Park Topeka. The local, mid-west team considers this event their hometown event and after a strong showing here just last year, expectations are positive. "We did some testing earlier," said Hartley. "We tried some new stuff that showed some promise, but we put our old tune-up back in it. It showed it was back on track and able run at the same level of performance as we did last year [in Topeka]." Hartley went on to comment, "I think our game plan right now is to go into this race and try to get something conservative so we can go from A to B. We would like to end up somewhere in the middle of the pack, which is a good position going into the night run. Hopefully then we can crank it up and shoot for the No. 1 spot. Right now, there are only 15 cars entered, so everyone will be shooting for the No. 1 spot so they can have a by-run first round. If nothing else we are just looking for A to B runs and the low car guarantees us to make the show, so it does take a little pressure off. We just want to try something consistent that will allow us to go some rounds on Sunday." Because the self-funded team has elected to run a limited schedule in 2008, the team is facing some series changes that is new to them. One of the major changes effecting Hartley Racing is in the qualifying format. With the top 12 keeping their Friday runs and the slate being cleaned for the remaining cars to earn one the final four spots on Saturday, Hartley feels this could indeed help a team just like his. "I haven't been a part of it yet, but I think it's a great thing," said Hartley. "You get to some of these tracks, last year Chicago stands out in my mind, where if you didn't make a good pass during that Friday night run, forget it. You weren't making it in the show. The track just wasn't there on Saturday to make it in. That makes things better then a one shot qualifier, and gives you an opportunity to make the last four spots. I think in the long run this is a good thing." With his eyes on what is important in Topeka this weekend, Hartley is hoping to put on a good show for the supporters of his Omaha based team. "This race is one we've typically done poorly at," joked Hartley. "It's going to be tough to live up to what we did last year. The only thing we can do is go some rounds, which is probably better then qualifying No. 1 like we did. Without the night session last year, it was a little easier for us to hold down the No. 1 spot." Hartley added, "If it's not in the car to be No. 1 qualifier, we'd much rather be No. 16 and go some rounds on Sunday. This is really a low pressure weekend all in all. We don't have very many races on our schedule this season. We're going to go out and have some fun and show we can still do this." The next stop for Hartley Racing is the Torco Racing Fuels Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Joliet, Il.
FRIDAY, May 30, 2008 Pit and Spectator Gates Open 7:30 AM Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel Dragster) 4:30 PM Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel Dragster) 7:00 PM Secure Track 8:30 PM SATURDAY, May 31, 2008 Spectator Gates Open 7:30 AM Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel Dragster / Funny Car) 12:00 PM Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel Dragster / Funny Car) 2:30 PM Secure Track 6:30 PM SUNDAY, June 1, 2008 Spectator Gates Open 8:30 AM Pre-Race Ceremonies 10:00 AM Final Eliminations 11:00 AM Secure Event 4:30 PM
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