Scelzi reaches semis in difficult Seattle race

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2004 NHRA POWERade DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 14 of 23
CARQUEST AUTO PARTS NHRA NATIONALS
PACIFIC RACEWAYS
KENT, WASH.
Race Dates: July 23-25, 2004


KENT, Wash. (July 25, 2004) - It was a difficult race all-around this
weekend, with the 85-percent nitromethane rule, a new Goodyear tire and
newly-mandated tire pressures on top of racing on a resurfaced race track
and extremely hot conditions. Another wrench was thrown in the mix today
when a canopy of clouds covered the track for early eliminations and
temperatures dropped nearly 25 degrees from the day before. Then, just
before the semi-final round, the sun popped out to additionally confound the
crew chiefs.

Gary Scelzi and his HEMI-powered Oakley Dodge Stratus Funny Car tuned by
Mike Neff were ably prepared for the challenges, as Scelzi plowed through
the field to reach the semifinal round for the sixth time this season in the
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

The Fresno native first dismissed Bob Gilbertson, then John Force's teammate
Gary Densham, before facing John Force in the semis. Scelzi had enjoyed a
winning record against Force in his two years in the Funny Car category
(5-2), but today the statistics changed to 5-3, as Force took the win light
ahead of Scelzi with a 4.952/314.24 to Scelzi's 5.013/295.92.

"Well, we had a slight glitch which caused the blower belt to break," he
said. "Even at that, we were just about a hundredth (of a second) behind at
every incremental. But we didn't smoke the tires. With all the changes we
had to make, and with the 85-percent rule, the new tire, the extreme heat,
the coolness today, I think Mike Neff and these guys did a great job. I'm
not unhappy at all."

Scelzi remained fourth in the point standings, but closed the gap slightly
to his teammate Whit Bazemore in third (55 points behind) and on Del
Worsham, who lost to Force in the quarter-final (64 points back of Worsham).
Following Force's win today, Scelzi is 157 points out of the lead.

With Gary Densham (sixth in points) and Eric Medlen (fifth) losing in the
second round, Scelzi earned some breathing space. "We got another 20 points
on Densham and Medlen," he said. "That's what we want to do. We want to
distance ourselves from the pack. And we don't want the leaders to get too
far away. With the exception of Force, we're OK. We picked up 20 points on
Worsham. I think it was a great weekend, all in all. I'm looking forward to
going to Sonoma."

As for the change in conditions before the semis: "We knew what we needed to
do because we had been running in that heat (the last two days) and it
wasn't quite as bad as it had been. We did what we thought was right and it
wasn't. It's just one of those things. It was a good race, we were right
with them, we just didn't get the win light.

"From the second round on it was swing for the fence," he added. "We knew
against Densham we had to bring out the big guns, because with (crew chief)
Jimmy Prock you never know what he could do. He could do a lot of damage. We
weren't taking him lightly, just like we weren't taking John Force lightly.

"You want to get John when he doesn't have a breath of air in him. You want
to just hammer him. They're on their game right now; they're going to be
dangerous from here on out."

Mike Neff survived the weekend, despite all that was thrown at the crew
chiefs. "It was definitely the most challenging weekend in a long time," he
said.  We didn't really have the best car, but we learned a lot, we were
making progress. The last race there against Force was a close race, but it
just spun the tires down track and blew the blower belt off it. All in all,
I'm really satisfied with the progress that we made for as difficult a
weekend as it was. To go the so semis and basically finish third place here
for the weekend as far as the points go, we're satisfied with that."

Next up is the Fram-Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma,
Calif., July 30-Aug. 1.

FUNNY CAR POINT STANDINGS:

1. John Force, 1034
2. Del Worsham, 941
3. Whit Bazemoree, 932
4. Gary Scelzi, 877
5. Eric Medlen, 823
6. Gary Densham, 807
7. Phil Burkart Jr., 767

***