Wed, May 27, 09:34 AM Team Winston Gary Scelzi

Courtesy of Rob Goodman, Sports Marketing Enterprises Fram Route 66 Nationals

JOLIET, Ill. -

"Team Winston is a win looking for a place to happen, and hopefully that place will be Chicago."

-- Team Winston Top Fuel driver Gary Scelzi

Notes & Quotes

Gary Scelzi was the No. 1 qualifier at the Mopar Parts Nationals in Englishtown, N.J. He covered the quarter-mile with a track record pass of 4.582 seconds at 315.64 mph. Counting the Winston Invitational, NHRA's all-star race, it was the third time this season that Scelzi was the top qualifier.

In eliminations, Scelzi defeated Steve Smith and Eddie Hill before losing to Cory McClenathan in the semifinals when he fouled at the starting line. The foul was the first of Scelzi's professional drag racing career. Englishtown was Scelzi's third semifinal in as many races and his fourth of the season.

Scelzi's qualifying performance has been excellent all season. Through the first nine races of the year including the Winston Invitational, Scelzi's average qualifying position is 3.66 with an average e.t. of 4.632 seconds.

During routine maintenance on the Team Winston dragster after Dallas, crew chief Alan Johnson determined that the car was bent to the point at which it was unsafe. So he went to the car which ran the second half of the season last year. The 1997 Hadman chassis was put back into service at Englishtown.

Scelzi is currently third in the NHRA Winston Top Fuel standings. He trails points leader Cory McClenathan by 194 points.

Scelzi prior to Chicago:

"We finally have a racecar that is raceable. When Alan asks this car to do something, it does what it's told, and that's something we haven't had in all of 1998. I think bending the old car in Dallas was a blessing because it let us know for sure that we've been fighting a chassis problem all season. Every time Alan made a move at Englishtown, the car responded exactly like he thought it should. We had one tire-smoking run in qualifying at Englishtown, and that was by design just to see how good this car really is.

"We are extremely pleased with the results we had at Englishtown. I got a little too overconfident and too aggressive and made a stupid mistake in the semifinals when I red lit against Cory. That hurts, but with the performance and the knowledge we gained at Englishtown, my confidence level is high again. I know we're ready to strike. Team Winston is a win looking for a place to happen, and hopefully that place will be Joliet.

"If we could win the inaugural race at Chicago, it would be my first win of the year, which we feel is long overdue. To win an inaugural event is always great because it's a first, and I love doing things first."