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NHRA: Amato Has New Car, Rules for Pomona

31 January 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
What's new for Joe Amato in Y2K? It might be easier to ask: What ISN't new?

The five-time Top Fuel champion opens the NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series this weekend (Feb. 3-6) with the AutoZone Winternationals at California's famed Pomona quarter-mile. Among the things which have changed since Amato won five events and finished third in points last year: His car. Amato will pilot a new Brad Hadman-built chassis, officially called the DynoMax/Valvoline/Keystone Automotive Top Fuel dragster, with updated red color design and graphics.

The rules. Major changes, intended to improve safety and enhance the entertainment value for fans, include limiting fuel to 90 percent nitromethane, imposing point (10) and financial penalties (up to $1,000) for oildowns, and reducing time between rounds to 75 minutes from 90 minutes.

"In a lot of ways, we have a new NHRA for the New Year," says the 55-year-old winner of a record 50 Top Fuel races. "Tom Compton is our new president and we have a great new TV package with ESPN2 and TNN and a major new national event in Las Vegas (April 6-9). While those are things people have been talking about, nothing can beat the new rules as the big topic around our DynoMax/Valvoline/Keystone Automotive Top Fuel dragster shop (Exeter, Pa.)"

Amato had low ET (elapsed time), 4.685 seconds, and top speed, 313.58 mph, in the recent National Time Trials at Arizona's Firebird Raceway. His comments on dealing with the dramatic competition changes:

"I think the fans will like the racing because the 90 percent nitro mix, that is going to slow the cars down a little bit, but they'll still go well over 300 mph. Probably 4.60s (seconds) and maybe even high 4.50s if the weather conditions are correct.

"Moroso built a real neat dry sump oil system for us to try to keep oil off the track so we don't get the points penalty and fines. Nobody wants to suffer the embarrassment of blowing up your motor and then paying a fine for doing it!

"The 75-minute rule definitely means we'll do some things differently. Some parts the crew normally would look at and fix, like the cylinder heads, for example. Before, we would take the cylinder heads if we didn't burn a piston or do any damage, we would just change the exhaust valves and check the springs and if they needed a little bit of work, fix them. Now they'll probably be forced to just change them on race day, just put new heads on and fix them after you're done racing. You'll throw more fresh parts at it rather than looking at them. The team is finding ways of saving five minutes here, 10 minutes there. It's still going to be tight, but we'll make it work." Crew chief Jimmy Prock also has added full-time mechanics, bringing the at-track total to nine.

"I support what NHRA is doing," Amato concluded. "I'm anxious to get to Pomona to see how all of these changes are doing to work out."

Text Provided by Valvoline

Editors Note: To view hundreds of hot racing photos and art, visit The Racing Photo Museum and the Visions of Speed Art Gallery.