Tue, 19 Oct 2010, 03:30 PM Wilkerson and Summit to Team Up in Vegas

By Bob Wilber

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. --

Wilkerson in the Summit colors.

NHRA fans are apt to do a double-take when Tim Wilkerson pulls to the line in his Shelby Mustang Funny Car during the Las Vegas Nationals, October 29-31, but there's no doubt they'll be impressed with the beautiful new design and stunning paint job on his popular Ford. Despite the fact the race will be contested over the Halloween weekend, this will be no costume or disguise for Wilkerson, but instead will mark a one-race departure from his standard Levi, Ray & Shoup Funny Car in order for Wilk to carry the colors of Summit Racing Equipment down "The Strip" at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Levi, Ray & Shoup will shift to the major associate position for the weekend.

As opposed to a large number of vinyl-wrapped "special edition" designs seen throughout the sport in recent years, Wilk's Summit car was hand-painted to best bring to life the aggressive new Greg Ozubko-designed look. The bold concept is sure to turn heads and garner a lot of attention before it ever takes a light, but Wilkerson is intent upon providing the maximum amount of exposure for Summit, an important associate backer on his LRS car.

"As good as the vinyl wraps have become, we just thought this one had to be painted," Wilkerson said. "It about knocks you over when you see it, especially out in the sun, so we're pretty thrilled to have done it this way and we think the Summit folks are going to be excited about it too.

"The goal now is to get deep into the field and win some rounds with this Summit car in Vegas. We've been involved with Summit for a number of years now, and they've not only been great to work with but have also always been eager to get outside the box to find new ways to make this association valuable. We've done in-car cameras for them, and even did a pit-cam deal a few races ago, but putting this Summit car on the track will take our program to a different level."

Jim Greenleaf, Motorsports and Events Manager for Summit, was pleased to expand his company's involvement with Wilkerson and his team, with this special one-race body in 2010.

"We've had a great relationship with Tim and the LRS team for quite a while, and they're the sort of group we really enjoy working with throughout the year," Greenleaf said. "As great as their results have been, taking us to the Winner's Circle on numerous occasions, we've been most pleased to be associated with a driver who is such a great ambassador for the sport and our company. The wins are great, but the partnership is very valuable to us.

"Even as we've explored other options with the Wilkerson team, including the various cameras we've installed for individual races, we were always looking for new ways to enhance the program and we were very pleased when Tim came to us with the idea to run this race with a Summit body on the car. It works for all of us, and we also want to thank Dick Levi and LRS for letting us have a share of the spotlight for one race. We're really looking forward to it."

Wilkerson was also quick to thank his longtime primary sponsor for allowing this program to take place.

"We think we have the best and most dedicated sponsor in the sport, in the person of Dick Levi and Levi, Ray & Shoup, and this Summit car is a great example of how he looks out for us. Our budget is what it is, and we maximize every dollar of it, so when Dick allows us to do something like this, to bring in some extra support and some more publicity, he knows it benefits all of us.

"Like I said, we've enjoyed working with Jim Greenleaf and Summit for years now, and this car is really a sight to see, so we have that part of the equation taken care of. Now, it's up to our team and me to do some good things once we get on the track out there in Las Vegas. We're looking forward to the challenge."

Tim Wilkerson's Summit Ford Funny Car may be a dandy trick on the Halloween weekend, but Wilk and his crew hope to provide the ultimate treat for Summit, LRS, and Wilk Warriors everywhere.