Bazemore running strong, qualifies No. 5 in Topeka

DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2006 NHRA POWERade DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 9 of 23
O'REILLY NHRA SUMMER NATIONALS
Heartland Park Topeka (Kan.)
Race Date: May 26-28, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501; cell 203-243-2438;
jstropus@earthlink.net

BAZEMORE RUNNING STRONG, QUALIFIES NO. 5 IN TOPEKA

TOPEKA, Kan. (May 27, 2006) - Whit Bazemore and the Matco Tools Iron Eagle
Dodge Stratus Funny Car team continued their upward swing in performance at
the O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals by qualifying No. 5 in the NHRA POWERade
Drag Racing Series Funny Car field at Heartland Park Topeka.

Bazemore, who is looking for a three-peat in Topeka, after winning here in
1997 and 2004, ran his quickest elapsed time (4.893 seconds at 245.18 mph)
in the second qualifying session Friday night.

His other passes were a 4.962/300.00 in the first session, followed by a
tire-smoking 13.589/68.94 in today's hottest conditions: 90-degree ambient
temperatures and track temperatures reaching 130 degrees. The final round,
under even more intense heat, produced a solid 5.019/300.66.

"We're in pretty good shape, actually," he said. "We have lane choice, which
isn't that big a deal right now, but it could become a bigger deal, and
we're fairly satisfied with the performance of the car.

"In this last run we ran on all eight cylinders, which is important, and I
think we rebounded nicely from smoking the tires earlier today.

"We're very, very confident going in to race day that we have a good setup
for hot conditions and the absolutely most important thing right now is to
be able to run the car in the heat, because that's what we're going to have
tomorrow."

Bazemore faces Tommy Johnson Jr. in first round of eliminations on Sunday.

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