NHRA Northwest Nationals in Seattle to Highlight Federal-Mogul Points Chases
28 July 2000
SOUTHFIELD, Mich., July 27 There will be little margin for
error available to the dozens of sportsman drag racers still in serious
contention for national points titles as the NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing
Series arrives in Seattle for the Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest
Nationals. The event begins today and continues through Sunday at Seattle
International Raceway.
In addition to NHRA's five professional categories, the Northwest
Nationals will highlight hundreds of NHRA Federal-Mogul sportsman drag racers
fighting for well over $400,000 in season-ending championship bonuses.
Among the key national-event points battles that could see major changes
this weekend are in the Federal-Mogul Funny Car category, where just 38 points
separate the top three drivers, and the Competition Eliminator category, with
just 14 points between the first and third spots.
"Seattle offers the opportunity for a couple of leading teams to gain a
little breathing room," said Federal-Mogul Motorsports Marketing Manager
Shelley Pepmeier. "If history is any guide, though, the national points
championships in at least four of the Federal-Mogul categories will come down
to final weeks of the season in October."
The Northwest Nationals is the 15th of 24 national-event stops in the 2000
NHRA Federal-Mogul Drag Racing Series. The series covers all competition
within the eight NHRA Federal-Mogul sportsman categories -- Federal-Mogul
Dragster (FMD), Federal-Mogul Funny Car (FMFC), Competition, Super Stock,
Super Comp, Stock, Super Gas and Super Street. More than 36,000 drivers are
registered nationwide within the Federal-Mogul classes.
In addition to tight points chases, Seattle presents a compelling
storyline in the form of three-time defending FMD champion Rick Santos, who
hopes to avenge a final-round loss during last year's Northwest Nationals.
Santos, who has won every national-event stop in his 2000 schedule, shook the
tires off the line in 1999 in his final-round appearance against Melanie
Troxel. Troxel has since made the move up to the professional Top Fuel ranks.
"Rick and his team have established themselves as the dominant entry in
the Federal-Mogul Dragster category," Pepmeier said. "It's a case where it's
major news if they don't make it to the final round."
There's a different news angle in the FMFC category, where Pat Austin,
winningest NHRA sportsman driver of all time, has moved into first place
nationally. Of course, he doesn't exactly have a lot to celebrate given the
fact that three-time defending champion Frank Manzo has moved to within 10
points of the lead. Manzo already has four national-event titles on his 2000
resume.
"Although the thousands of sportsman racers who participate in our series
do so primarily out of their sheer passion for the sport, the year-end cash
bonuses from Federal-Mogul certainly make all of their hard work worthwhile,"
Pepmeier said. "These drivers typically spend 40 or 50 hours on the job each
week, then devote the rest of their time and energy to their racing careers.
That's why Federal-Mogul is involved -- we share the same passion for
automotive performance."
Federal-Mogul's passion for sportsman drag racing has reached a new level:
The company -- which manufactures and markets such automotive products as
Sealed Power engine parts, Champion spark plugs and Fel-Pro gaskets --
announced in June that it has extended its series sponsorship commitment
through 2003 and raised championship bonus packages nearly 50 percent.
Federal-Mogul also introduced a Sealed Power low-qualifier award that will
pay out more than $172,000 in prize money each year, beginning in 2001.
"We're serious about rewarding the talents and hard work of these
dedicated drivers, and we're equally committed to supporting the key engine
brands that have established Federal-Mogul as one of industry's premier
suppliers," Pepmeier said. "Brands like Sealed Power, Champion and Fel-Pro
dominate their product categories and can be found under the hoods of hundreds
of cars at the track each weekend. More importantly, they're the brands
repair technicians prefer when they select products for their customers'
vehicles."