Scelzi off to good start on his points-gathering quest in Phoenix
DON SCHUMACHER RACING 2006 NHRA POWERade DRAG RACING SERIES Round 2 of 23 CHECKER SCHUCK'S KRAGEN NHRA NATIONALS FIREBIRD INTL RACEWAY CHANDLER, Ariz. Race Date: Feb. 24-26, 2006 CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 21, 2006) - Defending 2005 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series Funny Car champion Gary Scelzi is off to good start after his quarterfinal finish at the season-opening event at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona (Calif.) Feb. 12. Driving the eye-catching Mopar/Oakley Dodge Stratus Funny Car for Don Schumacher Racing, Scelzi qualified No. 3 in Pomona while setting his 20th career Funny Car top speed (332.51 mph). Although he was eliminated in the second round, he left Pomona higher in points than he had in his 2005 championship-winning season. The Fresno, Calif., native is sixth in the point standings after one event; last year he left Pomona in 12th. He's now ready to attack the quarter-mile at the Checker Shuck's Kragen Nationals this weekend, where he tested in January, and where he qualified No. 5 at the 2005 event and lost to John Force in the second round. "We ran really good numbers in testing," he said. "The track had excellent prepping. We're looking for more of the same this weekend. We're not looking for any surprises. We're just looking to try to stay focused and go more rounds, try to go to the final round, try to win the race. "That's what we need to do. We need to try to win as many races as we can, to not leave any points on the table. We need to qualify well so we gain all the qualifying points that are possibly available and to get to the final round and win the race." As for setting any national records for those additional 20 bonus points: "I don't see records being set here," he said. "I know that John Force (who ran the quickest pass in NHRA history at Pomona - 4.664 seconds - but failed to back it up for a national record) is babbling that he's thinking he can set records everywhere he goes. I think we're going to struggle to see records in Phoenix, but you never know." Scelzi is the Phoenix Top Fuel winner in 1997, his only final-round appearance at this track, and was No. 1 qualifier here in Top Fuel in 2000. SCHEDULE: On Friday, Feb. 24, professional qualifying sessions are at 3:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. On Saturday, Feb. 25, pro qualifying continues at 12 noon and 2:30 p.m. On Sunday, final eliminations begin at 11 a.m. TELEVISION: On Feb. 25 qualifying rounds will air from 8-10 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Eliminations are scheduled to air on Feb. 26 from 7-10 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Eliminations show will repeat on Feb. 28 from 3-5 a.m. ET on ESPN2. GARY SCELZI QUICK FACTS: * Sixth in 2006 Funny Car points after one event * Claimed the 2005 Funny Car championship, his first, by eight points over his teammate Ron Capps, 32 over John Force * Won three times in 2005 (Bristol, Chicago 1 and Sonoma); was low qualifier six times (Las Vegas 1, Atlanta, St. Louis, Reading, Las Vegas 2, Pomona 2) * Became only the second NHRA driver to have won crowns in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. Kenny Bernstein is the first * Won Top Fuel in Phoenix in 1997; has never won here in Funny Car * No. 1 qualifier here in Top Fuel in 2000 * At 2005 CSK Nationals in Phoenix, he qualified No. 5, lost second round to John Force * Has set 20 Funny Car top speeds since joining Don Schumacher Racing in 2003 * Is a member of the largest team in NHRA pro history: Don Schumacher Racing, with nine teams - two in Top Fuel, three in Funny Car, two in Pro Stock, two in Pro Stock Motorcycle (all four pro categories) * Is first Funny Car driver to break the 330-mph barrier (330.15 mph at Route 66 Raceway in 2004) * Career Funny Car bests: 4.697-second ET (Chicago 2 '05), 332.51 mph (Pomona 1 '06) * Qualified in top five 19 times in 2005, No. 1 six times * Age 45, born and raised in Fresno, Calif., where he lives with wife Julianne and sons Dominic and Giovanni * Dominic, 8, races Junior Sprints * Runs Scelzi Enterprises, a custom truck body design and manufacturing business in Fresno with his two brothers * Is a three-time Top Fuel Dragster champion * Won his first Top Fuel crown as a rookie * Has seven Funny Car wins, 25 Top Fuel wins * Sixth in 2003 Funny Car points, his first full season in that class * 2006 is his fourth straight season racing for Don Schumacher Racing * Is the only NHRA driver to have won in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car. He accomplished this feat at Infineon Raceway in 2003 * Is one of the few Funny Car drivers who has a round winning record against the 13-time Funny Car champion John Force: 9-8, 3-1 in final rounds