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NHRA: Bazemore eager to find more winning magic at Sears Point Raceway

1 August 2000

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel

SONOMA, Calif. - Whit Bazemore had always dreamed of winning an NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series event in the fashion that he did last August at Sears Point Raceway.

Essentially, he dominated.

He earned the victory by posting four consistent elimination rounds in his Kendall Chevy Camaro. The Indianapolis resident also claimed the No. 1 qualifying position, posted low elapsed time and recorded top speed for the event to complete the weekend in grand fashion.

These days Bazemore remembers that weekend and sighs. The 2000 season has been a struggle for the veteran Funny Car driver, who has had trouble duplicating that kind of performance.

A multitude of problems and early-round exits eventually led team owner Chuck Etchells to make a personnel change following the event in Columbus, Ohio. Etchells hired Terry Manzer as the team's crew chief, replacing the longtime tuning duo of Tim and Kim Richards.

Two races later, with Manzer's addition, Bazemore made a return to the winner's circle, claiming a victory at Bandimere Speedway near Denver. "Chuck made a very tough decision about a month ago," Bazemore said. "It has been an emotional time. We are very tight with Tim and Kim, but life goes on."

And as life goes on, Bazemore hopes that more victories will be around the corner, too. He will try to earn his eighth career victory at the 13th annual FRAM Autolite Nationals, Aug. 4-6, at Sears Point Raceway. The $1.8 million race is the 15th of 23 events in the $45 million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

"My confidence was at an all-time low before Denver and that's saying a lot because usually I'm a pretty cocky guy," Bazemore said. "Now I'm really excited about the rest of the season. There's still a long way to go, but if we work and work and work, we can still salvage this season. I'll tell you what, you really find out what you're made of when you're at rock-bottom."

Bazemore advanced to five final rounds last season on his way to a third place finish in the Winston point standings. Although his memorable run at Sears Point produced his only victory, he gained ground in the points order by posting several semifinal finishes.

What a difference a year can make. Prior to his win at Denver, Bazemore had not advanced past the second round during the first half of the season.

"When you're winning, it's easy to be good," Bazemore said. "But when you're struggling, it's very, very hard. We needed to make a statement and we did."

Bazemore, who moved to eighth place in the points standings with the win, hopes the second half of the season is as good as the first half was bad.

"It felt odd having to reassert ourselves as contenders," Bazemore said. "Our backs were against the wall. We were nowhere near where we wanted to be. Hopefully the win at Denver will give us some momentum going into the next few races and we can build on it for the rest of the season."

FORCE, TOLIVER BATTLING: As John Force seeks a record 10th NHRA Winston title, the drama could become extremely intense as the season unfolds.

Current Winston points leader Jerry Toliver has already demonstrated that he's not going to give up pursuit of his first Winston championship without a fight.

With so much on the line for Force, expect crew chief Austin Coil to tune Force's Castrol GTX Ford Mustang for optimum performance. Rival crew chief Dale Armstrong will also have Toliver's WWF Racing Pontiac Firebird in championship mode.

The matchup - both on and off the track - has all the necessary ingredients to produce one of the most competitive and memorable Funny Car epics in the history of the NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

"Toliver's got a good team over there," said Force, who has claimed six wins in six final round appearances this season, his most recent coming last weekend in Seattle. "It's been fun to be in a fight. I think that brings out the best in this team. We're pretty motivated right now."

SARVER LOOKING TO BREAK INTO TOP 10: Perhaps the thing Bruce Sarver was thinking when he advanced to the semifinals in his first attempt at racing a 6,000 horsepower Funny Car was why it took him so long to make the switch from Top Fuel.

He drove his E-Moola.com Pontiac Firebird to a third round appearance at the season-opening Winternationals at Pomona, Calif., and looked to be on his way to establishing himself as a major threat for the NHRA Winston championship crown.

It took only the next two races to give him a big reality check. Back-to-back DNQs at Phoenix and Gainesville, Fla., led to a first round loss at Las Vegas, which eventually led to him missing the event in Houston while the team tried to regroup.

Since that time there have been no more DNQs, and Sarver seems to be getting more comfortable in the car with each passing event. A pair of second round appearances at Columbus, Ohio and St. Louis led to a semifinal appearance at Denver.

Sarver now sits 12th in the Winston point standings, but is certain that he can improve on that position and find his way into the Winston top 10 by season's end.

"We're only a few rounds out of 10th and if we could pick up the momentum I feel comfortable that we could crack that," said the Bakersfield, Calif. racer, a former Top Fuel competitor. "If things go our way, we might get some luck and then we can start playing hardball real soon. We're going to try and be a top-five car before too long."

Team owner Alan Johnson promoted Richard Hogan to the position of crew chief after Rob Flynn left the team to become a consultant for the two-car Checker Schuck's Kragen team. Sarver hopes the personnel shifts will add a spark to the team's performance during the season's second half.

"We go into every race with the attitude that it's a new season," Sarver said. "There are a lot of tough cars out here, but if you look at the top 15 teams, anyone of them could possibly be a top-five contender. I feel real confident about our chances right now."

KALITTA GOES FOR THREE: Doug Kalitta will try to become the first three-time Top Fuel winner at Sears Point Raceway as he defends titles he earned during NHRA's last two visits to the quarter-mile track located just north of the San Pablo Bay.

Kalitta topped Bruce Sarver for the victory there in '98, and defeated Tony Schumacher for the crown one year ago. Kalitta, who drives the MGM Grand Dragster, opened fast with a victory at the Mac Tools Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla., but has fell on hard times recently, posting three straight first round losses.

However, a runner-up finish in Seattle gives Kalitta hope about the team's chances for winning a third straight at what is quickly becoming his favorite track on the circuit.

"I think we're on the right track to getting the car consistent," Kalitta said. "We've changed some stuff around and the tune-up is more aggressive. I think we're going to be more competitive than we've been in the last couple of races."

Text provided by Anthony Vestal

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