Thu, 24 Oct 2002, 12:57 PM ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals Fact Sheet

Courtesy of NHRA Communications

LAS VEGAS -- Second annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals, the 22nd of 23 events in the $50 million NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. Professional competitors in four categories earn points leading to 2002 NHRA POWERade championships.

Sportsman competitors in five categories earn points leading to 2002 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series championships.

WHERE: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas, Nevada. From the Las Vegas Strip or McCarran International Airport, take I-15 north approximately 15 miles north of downtown to Speedway Blvd. Turn right.

WHEN: Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 24-27.

PURSE: Cash and contingency awards of more than $2 million.

SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, Oct. 24 -- Gates open at 7 a.m. Qualifying and sportsman time trials, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FRIDAY, Oct. 25 -- Gates open at 7 a.m. Qualifying and sportsman eliminations, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSIONS at 2:45 p.m. and 5:45 p.m.

SATURDAY, Oct. 26 -- Gates open at 7 a.m. Sportsman eliminations, 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSIONS at 11:15 a.m. and 2:15 p.m.

SUNDAY, Oct. 27 -- Gates open at 7 a.m. Pre-race ceremonies, 10 a.m. FINAL ELIMINATIONS begin at 11 a.m.

TELEVISION:
Saturday, Oct. 26, ESPN2 will televise one hour of early qualifying highlights at 5:30 p.m. (ET).
Sunday, Oct. 27, ESPN2 will televise two hours of qualifying highlights at midnight. (ET).
Sunday, Oct. 27, ESPN will televise two hours of eliminations at 5 p.m. (ET).

2001 WINNERS:
Darrell Russell, Top Fuel; Ron Capps, Funny Car; Mark Pawuk, Pro Stock; Shawn Gann, Pro Stock Bike.

2001 REWIND:
Rookie sensation Darrell Russell earned his second Top Fuel victory of the year in his seventh final round appearance, driving past Kenny Bernstein in the final. Ron Capps gave team-owner Don Prudhomme his second straight Funny car win at The Strip (Tommy Johnson Jr., April 2001) when final round opponent Bob Gilbertson fouled at the starting line. Mark Pawuk became the 15th different winner in Pro Stock, denying former NBA forward Tom Hammonds his first career win in his second straight final round. Shawn Gann snagged his first career win atop his Suzuki in Pro Stock Bike, beating Antron Brown to the finish line in the final.

WHAT TO EXPECT:
This high-elevation track features one of the smoothest surfaces on the circuit, which combined with the right weather conditions can provide the recipe for producing some awesome performances from Top Fuel and Funny Car teams. National record opportunities do exist, as the track records for the nitro categories are very near the national marks. The naturally-aspirated Pro Stock and Pro Stock Bike categories, however, work extra hard to find the correct tune-up for maximum performance in the thin air. While all four pro category championship crowns could be presented at this event, only one is likely to be sealed. Angelle Savoie enters the event 173 points ahead of second place rider Craig Treble. She needs to leave the event with a 139 point lead to capture her third championship, tying her with Top Fuel legend Shirley Muldowney for most NHRA chamionships won by a female.

SEASON UPDATE:
Larry Dixon leads retiring Kenny Bernstein by 108 points entering the penultimate race on the 23-event schedule. Dixon needs to gain 31 points more than Bernstein during the weekend to clinch his first-ever NHRA Top Fuel crown. Bernstein needs Dixon to experience some bad luck and go on to win the event to keep his title hopes alive. Bernstein has had great luck at this track since it opened in 2000 and would love to hit the jackpot and carry the championship chase on to the season's final event in Pomona, Calif. The Funny Car crown is up for grabs in a big way, as John Force leads Tony Pedregon by 13 points in the closest points chase of NHRA's four pro categories. Technically there is a scenario in which Force could clinch his 12th NHRA crown, but highly unlikely given the way Pedregon has performed in the last four events. In Pro Stock, Jeg Coughlin also can clinch the championship by earning 31 points more than his closest challenger, Jim Yates. Angelle Savoie is in good position to clinch her third Pro Stock Bike crown in Las Vegas, as she leads Craig Treble by 173 points. In order to clinch, she needs to finish the race with a points lead of 139 or more.

FAST FACTS:
Kenny Bernstein will be making his final visit as a driver to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a track that has been very favorable to the "King of Speed" as he has two wins in three career final rounds since the track joined the NHRA circuit in the spring of 2000...

Pro Stock championship contender Jeg Coughlin has won seven of the last 10 events and will try to keep the streak going at Las Vegas, a track where he has had some success (two wins in five starts)...

The event will feature the return of Pro Stock Bike competition, which last was featured in Reading, Pa. ...

Top Fuel championship hopeful Larry Dixon will try to sweep Top Fuel honors at Las Vegas this year as he won the spring event from the No. 1 qualifier position... With a victory, Dixon can tie the season mark for most victories in Top Fuel, currently held by Gary Scelzi (9, 2000) ...

Should Angelle Savoie clinch the Pro Stock Bike championship, she will become the second female in NHRA history to win a trio of pro category championships, joining Top Fuel great Shirley Muldowney on that list.

QUOTABLE:

Tony Pedregon, driver of the Castrol Syntec Ford Mustang, on closing in on John Force's Funny Car points lead and the competition among the teams -- "We still function as a team even though there's this competition within. In all the years that we've raced, the competition has pushed me as a driver and I know it's pushed John. We've never allowed that to be destructive. Competition within a team or with another opponent is a good thing. In a champion, it always brings out the best. The last thing I want to do is put pressure on John because he is the kind of driver who is better under pressure. He thrives on it."

Jeg Coughlin, driver of the Jeg's Mail Order Chevy Cavalier, regarding allegations of rules violations by his opponents -- "Those guys (Jim Yates and Greg Anderson) can't complain now. They both had a shot at me (in eliminations at Dallas) but we came out on top both times. There have been lots of rumors and this and that floating around in the pits. We're not going to focus on that. There have been lots of pokes directed at us. I guess it comes with the territory. No one's pointed the finger at us directly and we've been in the barn [for NHRA technical inspection] at every race, so it's all just stupid talk."

Larry Dixon, driver of the Miller Lite dragster, regarding his championship chances -- "I do know that the championship trophy is not given out until the season is over. I don't have a lot of control over that; we only have control over our race car. If we do well at the races, the championship will come to us. If we don't do well, especially in the final stretch, then we don't deserve it. Flat out, that is just the way it is."

Warren Johnson, driver of the GM Performance Parts Pontiac Grand Am on the parity in Pro Stock - "With 20 years of stability in the Pro Stock rules, parity is obviously here. That's evident in the closeness of the qualifying and the competitiveness of this class. Anybody can win on any given Sunday."

Kenny Bernstein, driver of the Budweiser King dragster, who trails Larry Dixon by 108 points with two races to go-- "This team isn't ready to throw the towel in yet. We all still have the 'fire in the belly' to win, and I guess even if we didn't have a mathematical chance, we'd be out there trying just as hard. Larry's team is strong, and both our cars seem pretty evenly matched right now. To make it more difficult, there are some spoilers in the mix. Doug Kalitta has really been running well and so have four or five other teams. So at the last event in Dallas we were sweating Dixon in the second round, then Kalitta in the semifinals. It's like facing the firing squad every time you pull to the line. There's no breather."

ABOUT THE TRACK:
Located on 1,600 acres, Las Vegas Motor Speedway officially opened in 1995. The multi-facility motorsports complex includes a 1.5-mile superspeedway, half-mile dirt oval, 3/8 mile paved oval, quarter-mile drag strip, road courses and various go-kart and motocross tracks. Speedway Motorsports, Inc., purchased the facility in 1998. The state-of-the-art drag strip was completed in the spring of 2000 featuring the first of its kind corporate suites to be located on the back of the spectator grandstands. A foot tunnel underneath the drag strip allows spectators easy access from the west and east grandstands.

TRACK RECORDS:
        Top Fuel-- 4.509 seconds by Larry Dixon, Oct. 2001; 326.08 mph by Kenny
Bernstein, Oct. 2001
        Funny Car-- 4.748 seconds, 323.04 mph by Whit Bazemore, Oct. 2001
        Pro Stock-- 6.933 seconds by Jim Yates, April 2001, 198.50 mph by Greg
Anderson, April 2002
        Pro Stock Bike - 7.289 seconds by Angelle Savoie, Oct. 2001; 187.29 mph by
Matt Hines, Oct. 2001
NATIONAL RECORDS:
        Top Fuel--  4.477 seconds (June 2001, Joliet, Ill.)
                    332.18 mph (Oct. 2001, Reading, Pa.) by Kenny Bernstein
        Funny Car-- 4.731 seconds (Oct. 2001, Reading, Pa.) by John Force
                    326.87 mph (Feb. 2001, Pomona, Calif.) by Gary Densham
        Pro Stock-- 6.750 seconds (Oct. 2001, Reading, Pa.) by Jeg Coughlin
                    204.35 mph (Oct. 2001, Reading, Pa.) by Mark Osborne
        Pro Stock Bike -- 7.049 seconds (May 2002, Englishtown, N.J.) by Angelle
Savoie
                          194.10 mph (May 2002, Englishtown, N.J.) by Matt Hines.


TICKETS: For tickets call The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, (702)
644-4444. Tickets also available at Ticketmaster.
GENERAL ADMISSION (includes pit pass)
Thursday: Adult, $10; Junior (6-12 years), free.
Friday: Adult, $20; Junior (6-12 years), $10.
Saturday: Adult, $40; Junior (6-12 years), $10.
Sunday: Adult, $50; Junior (6-12 years) $15; Child (5 years and under), free with
paying adult in general admission and pit access areas each day.


RESERVED SEATS (includes pit pass)
Saturday: Adult, $50; Junior (6-12 years), $20; Child (5 years and under), $10.
Sunday: Adult, $60; Junior (6-12 years), $25; Child (5 years and under), $10.

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