Sun, 07 Sep 2014, 09:54 AM NHRA U.S. Nationals Winners Coming to Maple Grove Raceway in One Month

Courtesy of John Bisci Photo copyright 2014 NHRA

MOHNTON, Pa. --

Eddie Krawiec, Shane Gray, Alexis DeJoria and Richie Crampton celebrate 60th annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals win

What do Richie Crampton, Alexis DeJoria and Shane Gray have in common? They all won their pro classes at the NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis on Labor Day and are headed to Maple Grove Raceway in just one month.

The 30th annual NHRA Nationals will take place at MGR on Oct. 2-5, and the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series attracts the world's biggest names in professional drag racing each year to the Reading, Pa., area.

On Monday, DeJoria became only the fourth professional female racer to capture the coveted NHRA "Wally" trophy at the U.S. Nationals with her win. DeJoria faced the current points leader, 16-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force in the final round and placed him squarely in the runner-up category. In doing so, she became the first woman to win at least three events in the Funny Car class in one season.

Crampton hails from Australia and is a rookie in the NHRA Top Fuel Dragster ranks. His big Indy win against Steve Torrence came in his first-ever U.S. Nationals.

"Just like so many things that have happened to me this year, I can hardly believe what's going on," Crampton said. "I'm the luckiest guy in the world, bar none. Just to be driving a Top Fuel car is the dream come true for me. Then we were the 100th different Top Fuel winner in Englishtown (N.J.), and now we've won the 60th annual U.S. Nationals. That's two pretty historical moments we got to be a part of."

Gray faced teammate Dave Connolly in Monday's Pro Stock final and ran 6.641 mph/208.42 sec. to score the fourth victory of his career and his first in 2014.

Tickets for the 30th annual NHRA Nationals at MGR now are on sale and may be purchased by calling MGR at (610) 856-9200 or online at www.maplegroveraceway.com.

Young drag racing fans in the junior (ages 6-15) and children (ages 5 and under) ticket categories are entitled to substantial discounts for the Northeast's biggest professional drag racing event. For example, a reserved seat ticket for Sunday's final eliminations is $60 for adults, but only $20 for "juniors" (ages 6-15) and $10 for children (ages 5 and under).

Now in its 52nd year of operation, historic Maple Grove Raceway -- America's quickest and fastest drag strip -- is recognized as a leading facility in the sport of NHRA-sanctioned drag racing. Currently, MGR holds three national records: Top Fuel Dragster (Antron Brown, 3.701 sec., set in 2012), Pro Stock Motorcycle (Andrew Hines, 6.728 sec., in 2012) and Top Alcohol Funny Car (Frank Manzo, 5.411 sec., in 2011).

For tickets and information, please call Maple Grove Raceway at (610) 856-9200 or visit www.maplegroveraceway.com. Follow Maple Grove Raceway on Facebook and Twitter (@maplegrove).

30th ANNUAL NHRA NATIONALS

SPECTATOR ADMISSION
Thursday, Oct. 2 -- Sportsman racing only.
Adult general admission: $15.
Juniors (ages 6-15) and children (ages 5 and under): Free.

Friday, Oct. 3 -- Professional qualifying begins.
Adult reserved admission: $44.
Adult general admission: $40.
Junior reserved admission: $15.
Junior general admission: $10.
Children reserved: $5.

Saturday, Oct. 4 -- Professional qualifying continues.
Adult reserved admission: $60.
Adult general admission: $50.
Junior reserved admission: $20.
Junior general admission: $10.
Children reserved admission: $10.

Sunday, Oct. 5 -- Final eliminations.
Adult reserved admission: $60.
Adult general admission: $50.
Junior reserved admission: $20.
Junior general admission: $10.
Children reserved admission: $10.


NHRA NATIONALS WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Thursday, Oct. 2 -- Sportsman classes only.
8:45 a.m. -- Sportsman qualifying.
4 p.m. -- Comp Eliminator qualifying.
6 p.m. -- Secure track.

Friday, Oct. 3 -- Professional qualifying begins.
8:45 a.m. -- Sportsman eliminations.
10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. -- Comp Eliminator qualifying sessions.
11:30 a.m. -- Top Alcohol Funny Car and Dragster qualifying.
1:15 p.m. -- Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.
2 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.
3:15 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Funny Car and Dragster qualifying.
4:15 p.m. -- Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.
5 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.
7 p.m. -- Secure track.

Saturday, Oct. 4 -- Professional qualifying continues.
8:45 a.m. -- Sportsman eliminations.
10:30 a.m. - First round of Comp Eliminator eliminations.
11:15 a.m. -- Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.
Noon -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.
1 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Funny Car and Dragster qualifying.
2 p.m. -- Second round of Comp Eliminator eliminations.
2:15 p.m. -- Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.
3 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.
4 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car eliminations.
7 p.m. -- Secure track.

Sunday, Oct. 5 -- Final eliminations.
10 a.m. -- Pre-race ceremonies.
11 a.m. -- Final eliminations begin.
4:30 p.m. -- Estimated time of event completion.
Schedule subject to change.