Mon, 13 Oct 2003, 12:03 AM Papadakis and Silvers Race to Streetglow Extreme Rush Titles

Courtesy of NHRA Communications Photo by:Auto Imagery, Inc.

ENNIS, Texas -- Stephan Papadakis (Pro RWD) and Jarrod Silvers (Pro FWD) raced to the victory in their respective categories Sunday at the StreetGlow Extreme Rush sport compact exhibition during the 18th annual O'Reilly Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex

Papadakis used a dominant 6.7-second tune-up to earn the win over rival and category points leader George Ioannou. Papadakis earned the Pro RWD Extreme Rush victory when Ioannou fouled at the start. Papadakis blasted his AEM/Driver FX Honda Civic to a run of 6.711 seconds at 207.46 mph. Papadakis' slowest E.T. during eliminations was a 6.775-second pass during a semifinal victory over Abel Ibarra.

Stephan Papadakis

"This car has had these E.T's in there all year long," Papadakis said. "It's unfortunate that all the runs weren't side-by-side races, but the E.T's we posted speak for themselves. Consistency is the key to winning a title, not just running fast at one race. We're looking for more. Hopefully we can get through the season-finale at Pomona smoothly with another consistent race."

Silvers earned his first victory in NHRA competition when he drove his Evotion Honda Civic to the win, holding off Jerrold Rhodes in the Pro FWD final round. Silvers clocked a run of 8.912 at 161.81 behind the wheel of his Honda, while Rhodes trailed with a run of 10.689 at 126.72 in a Honda CRX. Rhodes recorded runner-up finishes at both StreetGlow Extreme Rush exhibitions this season.

"The first NHRA win feels great," Silvers said. "We finally got the car to run the way it should. We should run a lot better at Pomona in a few weeks at the Finals. This is a relief, it feels good to finally have a consistent race car."

Papadakis and Silvers each earned a $4,000 bonus by winning the StreetGlow Extreme Rush.

The final NHRA Summit Sport Compact Drag Racing Series event of 2003 is the third annual Mazda NHRA Sport Compact World Finals presented by Toyo Tires, Oct. 25-26, at Pomona Raceway in Pomona, Calif.