VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car

In the Winners Circle ...

CLERMONT, Ind., April 30 -- The VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus Top Alcohol Funny Car, driven by Danny Townsend, chalked up a dominating win at Indianapolis Raceway Park, April 17. After using only two of the three qualifying runs, the car owned top qualifier honors, low elapsed time and top speed at the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series North Central Division event. On Sunday evening, Frank Parker, team owner, was answering his cell phone "Winners Circle, how may I help you?"

This was a complete turn-around from the car's 2005 National Hot Rod Association season debut, a month earlier, where it was eliminated in the first round. Parker commented on the debut ... "We were really excited about VIPsports.com joining our team and were looking forward to making a good impression at their first race. But the car still had some wrapping paper on it and we had no time for testing." The three runs in Gainesville were enough to steer Parker's crew in the right direction.

To improve their odds of winning, prior to the season opener, ParkerTech Racing Services acquired a Dodge Stratus top fuel body and had the highly respected "Murph" McKinney build a new alcohol chassis specifically for the body. This makes the VIPsports.com car the first in TAFC to use a true "nitro" body, not an adaptation. TAFC competitors are now on the alert for the flowing blue and white colors of the VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus.

With a padlock on the number one qualifying spot, the team prepped for the first round of eliminations. "I was disappointed, in Gainesville," said Townsend, "but I could feel potential in the car. Here, our second qualifying run was right down Broadway, in the heat of the day, in 5.708 seconds at 253.99 mph. Frank found the potential I felt in the car." With that, Townsend strapped into the car, put a huge chunk of that potential on the pavement and ran away with the win -- in spite of the engine shutting down just before the lights. A piston and bent valve were changed and the car moved back to the staging lanes. Round two was a repeat -- advantage, engine problem, win -- but this time the engine problem was terminal.

With time till the final round winding down, the crew from Mick Snyder's Torco Fuels TAFC pitched in to help get the VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus up and running. Watching a complete engine rebuild, between semi and final elimination rounds, is a bit like watching a movie of feasting Piranhas, but with the film running backwards so there is a happy ending. Throw in a second school of Piranhas and you have the scene in the VIPsports.com pit. The two teams got the car together, never once bit one another, and made the final round. Townsend again strapped in and laid down another Broadway run for the win, with a 5.746 at 253.66 mph -- only 4/100 of a second and 3/10 of a mile per hour slower than his qualifying run.

The weekend's accomplishments moved Townsend into the Division 3 points lead, 42 points ahead of Chuck Cheeseman and into second in the Jeg's All-Stars race-within-a-race competition, a mere eleven points behind Cheeseman. Mick Snyder is thirty-two points behind Townsend.

Once again, Fredrik Wadstein, North American Marketing Manager for VIPsports.com, was elated. "The car's debut was my first NHRA race. Even though we didn't win, I found the whole NHRA experience exhilarating. I couldn't attend this race and now I can hardly wait for the next one to see our car and ParkerTech Racing Services in action again."

VIPsports.com provides sports enthusiasts, around the globe, up-to-the-minute sports news, statistical information and safe, reliable sports wagering, casino games, horse racing and poker. Learn more about VIPsports.com, "Where the World Wagers(TM)," at http://www.vipsports.com/. Click on the VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus image for race action shots, crew photos, pit activities and more.

ParkerTech Racing Services thanks VIPsports.com and team associates Aeroquip Hoses, Allstar Performance, Auto Meter, Crane Cams, Gates Belts, Hoosier Tires, Mancini Racing, Mopar Parts, Mr. Moly, Mr. Gasket, NGK Spark Plugs, Ringers Gloves, Total Flow Products, Trick Titanium, Valco Cincinnati, Valvoline Oil and Weld Racing Wheels.

Frank Parker acknowledges the work of his crew: his father, Dan Parker, John Oen, Rob & Tom Cunningham, Tony Gulley, Barry Pilatowski, Tom Krebaum, Tom McVey and driver Danny Townsend.

The team will next take the VIPsports.com Dodge Stratus to the 25th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, May 12-15, in Atlanta, Georgia.