Tue, 20 Feb 2007, 10:50 PM Doug Kuch Returns to Foley and Lewis

Courtesy of John DiBartolomeo

Doug Kuch

Roughly a week and a half after the resignation of the Foley & Lewis Top Fuel team's newly named crew chief, and after announcing that tuning duties would be temporarily handled from within the team, a familiar face is back on board.

Doug Foley announced today that Doug Kuch would once again be handling the tuning duties for the Torco Mach Series Accelerator-sponsored team.

"After the Pomona race," Foley said, "we did not want to rush into anything before the next national event, and so decided to utilize the talents we already have on our team. We have complete confidence in our car chiefs, Scott Morell and Glenn Camp, but we're real close to debuting our second car with a new team driver and we couldn't go too long without filling the crew chief position. Fortunately for us, the timing couldn't have been better and when Doug Kuch's services became available, it was only natural that we re-hire him."

For the past three years, Kuch was the tuner for the Foley & Lewis team which resulted in the team's rise to the top of the standings on the IHRA E-Max Drag Racing Tour, as well as success at several NHRA/POWERade events. Kuch's most notable accomplishment has to have been his ability to make a habit of getting the Foley & Lewis car to travel the quarter-mile under power more times than none. Last year that consistency paid off as Foley led the IHRA Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Top Fuel points standings before an untimely accident sidelined the team with two races left.

Foley said, "Winning requires getting from Point A to Point B under power and Doug has proven he certainly knows how to get that done."

Team co-owner Tim Lewis said, "When we heard that Doug Kuch was available we immediately set into motion a plan that would bring him back to our team. We've always said that a large part of our success has been because of the guidance of Doug Kuch, as well as the solidarity and cooperation of our entire crew, of which we're extremely proud."

Kuch said, "I had chosen to leave the team at the end of last year to pursue different opportunities that didn't pan out. When that happened, I had several offers from other teams, but I chose to come back here where I feel like it's home. Even though I've only been gone a short time, I think this team has grown and knowing that Scott, Archie, Glenn, Joe, Chris and Charlie and the rest of the team are in place and more than capable of preparing the car which will allow me to focus strictly on tuning decisions."

The Foley & Lewis team will be in attendance at this weekend's Checker Schuck's Kragen NHRA Nationals in Phoenix, Arizona, looking forward to returning right back to where they left off in 2006.

Foley said, "I'm excited now about our future and I just can't wait to get back behind the wheel this weekend. Evan Knoll and his Torco team have been great supporters and sponsors throughout it all, and we're looking forward to getting back on the same championship track we were on last year."

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