NHRA Kurt Johnson Pre Race: KJ Looks to Keep the Ball in His Court in Topeka

ACDelco Cobalt crew looks for solid outing at Heartland Park Topeka 

 

Sugar Hill, Ga., May 24, 2006 - Throughout the course of a POWERade Drag
Racing Series event, competitors must deal with a series of variables.
On every pass, they must find the proper tune-up to maximize their
performance, taking into account the atmospheric conditions and how they
affect the race car, as well as the amount of traction available in the
particular lane on the specific race track on which they are competing.
In addition, the driver must perform his job to the best of his
abilities, from posting a strong reaction time to ensuring the car stays
in the racing groove. In a sport measured in tens of thousandths of a
second, each decision can be critical.

 

However, as Pro Stock standout Kurt Johnson is quick to point out, there
also are many vital aspects over which teams have no control, from the
weather to track-related items under the jurisdiction of the sanctioning
body.   With disparate racing lanes and timing systems issues playing a
pivotal role in deciding the outcome of the last two races,  Johnson and
his ACDelco Cobalt Racing team enter this weekend's O'Reilly Summer
Nationals in Topeka, KS determined to minimize their vulnerability to
such outside influences.

 

"One of our goals heading into Topeka is to make sure something out of
our control doesn't help decide our fate," said Johnson.  "Admittedly,
we had our own issues fighting a clutch problem in Columbus, and it put
us in a bad position. We had enough clutch in it to pull the tower down
on Friday, and it was still slipping.  Even so, we kept working at it
and made a decent run in the last session on Saturday, the second
quickest in the right lane.  However, with the left lane being three
hundredths quicker in a category as close as Pro Stock, we came up five
thousandths short.

 

"We realize we're going to have problems getting down the track from
time to time, but when you do make a good run, you expect the lanes to
be equal.  We try to make our ACDelco Cobalt ultra-consistent so we can
see performance advantages and disadvantages, but having as big a
difference between the lanes as we have seen on occasion this year makes
it very hard to race.  

 

"Even so, we're not going to complain or worry about things we can't
fix.  We're going to concentrate on getting our race car in perfect
shape, and go on to the next race and attack it.  We plan to do a little
testing and will go over our notes for Heartland Park before we get
there so that we are ready for whatever comes at us."

 

With one third of the season completed, every event becomes critical for
those looking to gain ground on the leaders.  Therefore, the Johnson-led
crew sees this weekend's race at Heartland Park Topeka as the next
opportunity to solidify their position as a contender for the 2006
POWERade title.

 

"Looking at the forecast for this weekend, it's supposed to be in the
90's, making it the warmest conditions we've raced in this year," said
Johnson.  "Fortunately, we have plenty of tuning data on our ACDelco
Cobalt for those types of conditions, so we'll just plug in our hot
weather combination and get after it from there.

 

"We can't deny that last weekend's results hurt us.  However, we know
we're as good as anyone out there and there's no reason we shouldn't be
in the winner's circle.  My goal is to reach the middle of the season in
the Top Five, and that is still within our reach.  It will certainly not
be easy, but we need to win a couple races in the next few weeks to get
ourselves back in the swing.  Of course, everyone else in Pro Stock is
thinking the same thing, but we know we can do it.  It's time to get to
work."

 

Quick Notes on Kurt Johnson & the ACDelco Cobalt Racing team entering

The 18th Annual O'Reilly Summer Nationals:

 

KJ is Targeting Topeka:  This will be KJ's 19th career appearance at
Heartland Park Topeka, where he has two final round appearances in 2003
& 2004, and a 19-16 elimination round record for a .543 win percentage.
It is one of only five tracks on the 2006 POWERade Drag Racing Schedule
where he has yet to win.

 

KJ's Qualifying Stats in Kansas:  In his 16 previous career starts in
Topeka, Kurt has one No. 1 qualifying performance (in 1995), 14 starts
in the top half of the field, and an average starting position of 5.31.

 

One year ago:  Kurt qualified third with an elapsed time of 6.740
seconds and a top speed of 205.10 mph, but was upset in the first round.

 

Topeka track record holder:  KJ's 205.10 mph top speed set in qualifying
one year ago is the current Pro Stock track top speed record at
Heartland Park Topeka.

 

Career Best Elapsed Time: 6.663 sec., Dallas, TX, 10/7/05

 

Career best top speed:  207.72 mph, Pomona, CA, 2/12/06

 

Event Schedule:

Friday, May 26:                Two qualifying sessions at 4:30 & 7:00
p.m.

            Saturday, May 27:           Two qualifying sessions at 12
noon & 2:30 p.m.

            Sunday, May 28:               Pre-race ceremonies starting
at 10:00 a.m.

                                                     First Round of
Eliminations at 11:00 a.m.

Television Coverage:

            Qualifying:

                        Saturday, May 27:    8:00 - 9:00 p.m.

            Eliminations:

                        Sunday, May 28:      10:00 p.m. - 12:00 midnight

            NHRA2Day:

                        Sunday, May 28:      11:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon

 

(All times Eastern.  Please check your local listings for exact
broadcast times in your area.)