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CLERMONT, Ind. -- The Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Lucas Oil was an historical event for Kenny Bernstein Racing. On Sunday (Sept. 6) of NHRA's crown jewel of races, Kenny Bernstein announced that after three decades of Budweiser sponsorship and campaigning a red dragster, beginning next year he would field a blue dragster with primary sponsorship by Copart, Inc., an online company that sells more than 1 million cars per year. Bernstein, son and driver Brandon, along with Copart president Jay Adair made the announcement live on ESPN2 and then followed with local and national media one-on-one interviews. The new sponsorship message was delivered on Bernstein's birthday, and he acknowledged that he couldn't have a better present than the addition of a primary sponsor for his race team. "We are happy to announce the birth of the Copart/Lucas Oil dragster," said Bernstein. "We are pleased that Lucas Oil will remain with the team, marking their ninth season." In Mac Tools U.S. Nationals track action, Brandon was the No. 3 qualifier at O'Reilly Raceway Park with a 3.846/316.30. In the opening round of race day competition, Bernstein rolled to the starting line to face Bruce Litton. Litton left before the green light was illuminated on the Christmas tree and was disqualified with a red light start. Bernstein clocked 3.915/307.02 to take the round win along with lane choice over second round opponent Cory McClenathan. In the quarterfinals the Budweiser/Lucas Oil dragster crossed the finish line first with a 3.887/313.73 to McClenathan's 3.899/303.71. Bernstein reclaimed fourth place in Full Throttle point standings by virtue of this round win. "This was a must win round for us, "said Bernstein. "We had been in the top four in points all season long, then Cory got by us in Reading and we dropped to fifth. We were only nine points behind Cory going into the race today and we were focused on regaining fourth place. We were able to accomplish that goal." Bernstein did his job on the starting line in the semifinals against Tony Schumacher, nailing the Christmas tree with a .026-second reaction time vs. Schumacher's .096. Bernstein was in the lead until half track when the car lost traction and that brief stumble allowed Schumacher to win the round, 3.877/312.06 to 4.107/254.66. "We had a nice lead in the bank by virtue of our reaction time," said Bernstein. "Our incremental performance numbers matched his so we had a lead of about seven-hundredths. "We were looking good until half track and then the car lost traction. I caught it and pedaled it and it recovered, but by then we couldn't do anything but watch Schumacher drive past us. "It was a shame. The team has worked really hard lately to find the gremlin in the clutch area that has plagued us recently. We believe we have found the culprit, but we'll have to wait another year to chase a victory here in Indy. "We're looking forward to the first round of the playoffs that begins next week in Charlotte." Points for the top 10 teams qualified for the Countdown to 1 will be reset. Brandon will be fourth, 50 points out of the lead when qualifying begins Sept. 18 for the Carolina Nationals. Budweiser Lager Lesson: In the mid-nineteenth century, German-American brewers perfected the crisp, refreshing beer style now called American lager, changing not only Americans' choice of beers, but how and where Americans enjoyed beer, ultimately converting America into a country of beer lovers.
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