Tue, 29 Sep 2009, 11:30 PM Millican Focused on Winning Memphis Hometown Race

Courtesy of Joe Sherk

MILLINGTON, Tenn. -- Memphis-area drag racing fans have the opportunity to watch favorite son Clay Millican at work during the O'Reilly Mid-South Nationals at Memphis Motorsports Park, Friday through Sunday.

This time around, Millican, a Drummonds, Tenn. resident, arrives as one of the 10 Top Fuel drivers in contention for the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series championship. With two of the six deciding events already completed, Millican is 10th with 2062 points. But he's only a round win out of ninth and, should the Hope4Sudan/Motorvation dragster get on a hot streak, he'd climb higher.

"We would go a long way toward filling in a lot of the valleys we've had this year if we win this race," Millican said. "It would mean a lot. It would certainly be something I could write off my to-do list - win the Memphis race, win my first NHRA race . . . and to do it all at home would be just awesome.

"The people at Memphis Motorsports Park have done so many things for me and we've done so many things together over the years.

"At this point, we're looking to make runs down the race track. We still have hopes of moving up in the top 10 and we know we have to make the car run better than what it has been. That's what we plan on doing."

Being close to home once in 24 races does have its perks.

"For one, I get to leave the shop in the morning and drive to the race track," Millican noted. "That's kind of fun. It's better than leaving the hotel and driving to the track. And I get to sleep at home. That's a big bonus."

The crew gets a break, too. This is the third of four successive races and it gives them extra time at home before traveling to Richmond, Va., for next week's event.

"The weather should be good," Millican reported. "Maybe we'll get to see some really good runs at home, which would be awesome. A lot of times this race has been run in hot weather. Hopefully it will be cool. Race cars like cool weather.

Millican will be part of Thursday's NHRA/Memphis Motorsports Park Fan Fest at Hooters on Beale Street. An autograph session featuring NHRA drivers is scheduled from 7-8 p.m.

Schedule:
Qualifying: Friday, Pro sessions at 2:15 and 4:45 p.m.; Saturday, 11:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. Sunday, eliminations, 11 a..m.
Television: ESPN and ESPNHD
All times ET
Saturday, two hours of qualifying highlights, 10:30 p.m.; Sunday, NHRA Race Day, 11 a.m.; three hours of eliminations, 7 p.m.

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