Funny Car - Lights, Glitz, Action - Tasca Heads To Vegas

LAS VEGAS, Oct. 27, 2011: It’ll be lights, glitz and action for Bob Tasca III this weekend in Las Vegas, as the NHRA Full Throttle Series arrives for the next-to-last race of the year.

Lights? Lots of them, from the amazing light show at the NHRA Fan Fest at Fremont Street Experience to the Christmas Tree starting device at the track. Glitz? The glamour of Las Vegas can’t be denied. And action? How about piloting the 8,000 horsepower Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Funny Car down The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for action?

Tasca and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team has been hard at work since an early exit in Phoenix last week and he’s happy to head back to Las Vegas, where he hit the throttle on a nitromethane-powered Funny Car for the first time.

“I love to race in Las Vegas,” Tasca said. “I have a lot of runs down the (The Strip at LVMS), between testing and racing. I’ve spent a lot of time in Las Vegas in a race car. It’s clearly one of the premier facilities. It’s certainly crunch time in the Countdown (to the Championship) group. For us, we’re focused on another top five finish. The championship is a little bit of a longshot, so a top five finish in back-to-back years is what we’re focused on.”

Tasca has a packed schedule before and after the race. Today, he will attend NHRA’s annual Fan Fest at the Fremont Street Experience, in old downtown Las Vegas. It’s a highlight of the schedule he looks forward to. After the race, he’ll make appearances at both the SEMA and AAPEX shows with Ford teammates from John Force Racing and his Motorcraft/Quick Lane and FordParts.com teammate Trevor Bayne, driver of the No. 21 Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

He’ll also be a guest of honor at the SEMA breakfast hosted by NHRA that will put the spotlight on the First Families of NHRA, including Tasca’s own.

“It’s an exciting end to an exciting season,” Tasca said. “Clearly, we’re very driven and focused on picking up that first elusive win for the year, and putting the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang solidly in the top five.”