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NHRA: Yates set to defend his Pro Stock title under the lights in St. Louis

21 June 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

MADISON, Ill. - Jim Yates has been down this road before. In fact, it was last season when he and his Splitfire/Peak Pontiac Firebird crew was working feverishly to score a victory during the first half of the season, but just couldn't find the right combination.

Yates' luck changed, however, when he hit the quarter-mile track under the bright lights near St. Louis. A victory in that event gave the Alexandria, Va. driver momentum heading into the final 11 races, enough to secure a fourth place finish in the final Winston point standings.

Yates, a 22-time winner with two NHRA Winston championships, says he enjoys the thrill and excitement that nighttime racing brings. He'll certainly be pumped for three nights of 200-MPH action at the fourth annual Sears Craftsman Nationals, June 22-24, at Gateway International Raceway. Yates defeated Allen Johnson for the Pro Stock crown there last year and hopes to defend his title at the $1.9 million race, the 12th of 23 events in the $45 million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

"I've done a lot of night racing in my career and I really enjoy it," Yates said. "When you're under the lights I think it really helps the driver to focus a little more. "

In 1997, Yates was runner-up to Warren Johnson at the event, and in '98 he lost to eventual winner Kurt Johnson in the semifinals.

"We've got a good combination for that track," Yates said. "It's a track that gives you a lot of traction and it's really smooth. It rules out a lot of the variables, especially at night when you don't have to factor in the heat from the sun. It should be a very competitive race."

Yates has been in sort of slump lately, posting back-to-back first round losses at Dallas and Chicago. However, he's also posted consecutive runner-up finishes, at Houston and Richmond, Va., so he knows his team has the capability to win.

"Here lately we've had some problems adapting to the changing weather conditions," said Yates. "It'll be hot and humid at one moment and then less than 12 hours later it'll be really cool. We've made some changes to the car for St. Louis and I think we'll be back on track. We'll have our full summer package in the car by that time and we expect our performance to pick up."

He'll need to pick up the pace with first time winners like V. Gaines and Ron Krisher making statements.

"I think having guys like V. and Ron win races it shows the parity in the class," Yates said. "We've got a lot of fast cars and anybody that qualifies in the top 16 can win the race. I think when different guys win the fans enjoy it. This category isn't about four guys. There's a ton of quality racers out here."

Like runaway points leader Jeg Coughlin, a six-time winner this season in his Jeg's Mail Order Oldsmobile Cutlass. Coughlin defeated Yates in both of his final round appearances this season. Yates would like to even the score at Gateway.

"Jeg certainly has a lot of talent and the team they've put together is really strong," Yates said. "He doesn't flat outrun everybody, but when he comes to the line he's got a good setup and he's ready to race mentally. I think that's why they've got off to a strong start."

KRISHER SCORES FIRST: Pro Stock journeyman Ron Krisher lived a lifelong dream at Chicago by winning his first Pro Stock title. The driver of the Eagle One Pontiac Firebird defeated both Coughlin brothers - Jeg and Troy - to get the victory. He became the category's second first-time winner in as many weeks.

"We've got everything on this team that it takes to win," said Krisher, 52. "We just haven't been able to get there. We've been building confidence but we were just tripping over dumb things. In Chicago we managed to control it all and ran consistent numbers all day."

Krisher scored his first No. 1 qualifying effort in Las Vegas and duplicated that effort at Route 66 Raceway. He hopes to be a major threat in St. Louis as well.

"We have a good handle on what we're doing now," said Krisher, runner-up at the recent Pontiac Excitement Nationals near Columbus, Ohio. "We made significant improvements in the car last week and it's made an impact on our performance. I think you'll see us in the winner's circle some more."

W.J.'S STRUGGLES: Five-time Winston Pro Stock champion Warren Johnson hopes to put an end to a season of frustration with a victory at Gateway International Raceway, a track he dominated in 1997. Johnson has posted four uncharacteristic first round losses this season.

"I'm hoping for warm weather because we can do well when it's hot," said Johnson, who trails points leader Jeg Coughlin by 266 and is being chased for the second spot by Troy Coughlin, who is currently 47 points back. "If it's 50 degrees when we race in St. Louis, then I'll know something is definitely wrong. We're all dealing with the same conditions, and it appears that our competitors have a combination that's better for a cool track than ours. We'll just keep working to improve our performance."

PANELLA TRUCKIN: Bob Panella Jr. hopes his victory in Chicago ended Randy Daniels hot streak in Pro Stock Truck. The two Chevy S-10 drivers have been engaged in a tight battle for the Winston championship this season. Daniels has scored five wins, while defending series champ Panella has earned three.

"I hope that blue and white monkey is off my back," said Panella, who holds a slim 14 point margin over his rival, who drives a blue and white S-10.

"There's no doubt that Randy is going to be a factor all season. Last year when (Brad) Jeter, Mark (Osborne) and I had our battle we all had good spells and bad spells. None of our good spells were quite as long as Randy's has been this year. It finally broke in Chicago and maybe we can put together a good points lead between now and the summer break."

BROWN IS BACK: In Pro Stock Motorcycle, championship fortunes can change in the blink of an eye. Almost as quickly as Antron brown covered the quarter-mile distance in defeating Craig Treble for the win at Route 66 Raceway near Chicago.

Weeks earlier Brown, who had been infected with the second round blues, was already talking about developing a plan for the 2001 season. With his win over Treble, Brown's confidence is soaring. He's ready to conquer the category and pocket his first Winston championship.

"It feels good to be back in the winner's circle," said Brown, the 1999 AAA Road to the Future award winner. "We have had some problems early in the season but we overcame them together and finally got our first win of the year. We're closer to the points lead now than we were when we got our first win last year, so I'm ready to go after the championship. Team 23 is a force to be reckoned with."

Text provided by Anthony Vestal

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