Capps has championship on his mind

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2005 NHRA POWERade DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 21 of 23
O'REILLY NHRA FALL NATIONALS
Texas Motorplex
Dallas, Texas
Race Dates: Oct. 7-9, 2005

CAPPS HAS CHAMPIONSHIP ON HIS MIND

DALLAS (Oct. 5, 2005) - Ron Capps has quietly placed the Brut Dodge Stratus
R/T Funny Car back smack in the middle of a heated NHRA POWERade Drag Racing
Series points race after winning his second race of the season last weekend
in Chicago.

He knows the Brut Dodge has not been the quickest or fastest Funny Car out
there (he has no track records and has not been low qualifier this season),
but crew chief Ed "Ace" McCulloch has made it consistent and reliable and
Capps finds himself looking directly into the eye of a potential first Funny
Car championship for himself and team owner Don Schumacher. Capps' teammate
Gary Scelzi is in the same boat as he leads the standings with three races
left, beginning with this weekend's O'Reilly Fall Nationals at the Texas
Motorplex, while Capps is just 45 points behind in third.

What an exciting season this has been in arguably NHRA's most popular
division. Capps has bounced around between 11th place and second place all
season after starting out the year in Pomona, Calif., in 14th. Scelzi,
meanwhile, started out in 12th then hung on in the top five after winning
his first event of the year in Bristol until a semifinal finish in the U.S.
Nationals flung him into first by one point.

So, who's talking championship? Scelzi tried to keep that discussion under
wraps but has since been caught leaking out his thoughts. And Capps is
shouting out loud.

"Those guys lie when they say they don't think about it," he said after his
win in Chicago. "That's a bunch of crap. It's all you think about. When
there's two weeks off I wake up in the morning, I take my kids to school,
I'm thinking about it dropping them off at school. I get in the shower, I'm
thinking about it. There's not a moment that I don't think about it. I want
to call Don Schumacher. I call him a lot. I want to call him every five
minutes to go, OK I'm ready to go racing, [We're] excited and I knew we
could prove ourselves given a chance to get back out here.

"Texas Motorplex is a place that I always look forward to," he said of this
weekend's venue, where temperatures are expected to be in the 70s. "It's
great that it is one of the races that is going to be crucial in the points
chase," added Capps, who is two points behind John Force in second, 25 in
front of Robert Hight and has 55 points more than fifth-place Eric Medlen.

"To still be in the championship battle, and, by all means, we're right in
the thick of it, is a thrill," said Capps. "We had a hiccup in Reading
(where he fell to fifth place after losing first round), but this team is
too good to stay down."

The California native has one Funny Car win here, in 1998 1, and was No. 1
qualifier here in 1997 2.

SCHEDULE:      
On Friday, Oct. 7, professional qualifying sessions are at 4:30 and 7 p.m.
On Saturday, Oct. 8, pro qualifying contginues at at noon and 3 p.m. On
Sunday, Oct. 9, pre-race ceremonies are at 10 a.m., final eliminations begin
at 11 a.m.
 
TELEVISION:     
On Saturday, Oct. 8, ESPN2 will televise two hours of qualifying highlights
at 4 p.m. (ET). On Sunday, Oct. 9, ESPN2 will televise three hours of final
eliminations at 8 p.m. (ET).

RON CAPPS QUICK FACTS:
*  Third in 2005 Funny Car point standings, after 20 events, 45 points out
of the lead
* Has two wins, four runner-up finishes in 2005 (St. Louis was his first win
for DSR in '05), won last race at Route 66 Raceway
* At the 2004 O'Reilly NHRA Nationals, Capps qualified 11th, lost first
round to Cruz Pedregon
* Has one Funny Car win here, in 1998 1, No. 1 qualifier here in 1997 2
* A perennial fan favorite, Capps has driven and won in both Top Fuel and
Funny Cars since he began his pro NHRA career in 1995
* His best season points finishes were seconds in Funny Car in 1998 and 2000
* He has 16 event wins in 36 final rounds to his credit
* In 2003 he finished in the top 10 in the Funny Car class for the seventh
consecutive season.
* His career best elapsed time (established during an event) is 4.732
seconds, set in 2005 at Chicago 2
* His career best speed is 329.02 mph (Chicago 2, '05)
* Age 40 (June 20, 1965); born and raised in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
* Lives in Carlsbad, Calif., with wife Shelley and daughter Taylor (8) and
son Caden (3)
* Is the subject, along with son Caden and the Brut racing crew, of a number
of Brut ads appearing this year in mainstream magazines, such as People,
Sports Illustrated, etc.
* New to Don Schumacher Racing this year after eight years with Don
Prudhomme.
* Has tested for IROC Series and competed in Skip Barber Formula Ford, Dirt
Late Models and Go-Karts