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NHRA Newsmakers Your inside glimpse at the world's fastest motorsport NEWS NUGGETS * 'DRIVING FORCE' MOST SUCCESSFUL DEBUT SINCE 'DOG': The premier of "Driving Force" was a smashing success, pulling in almost two million viewers for the debut last week. The real-life television show based on the lives of 13-time NHRA Funny Car world champion John Force and his three drag racing daughters was A&E's most watched series premiere since its 2004 premiere of "Dog the Bounty Hunter." "To get more than a million viewers is just amazing," Force said. "A&E is really excited about the show, not just for the numbers and because the racing is always exciting, but they got a big charge at their preview party from people who can relate to our family, the contact of their parents and their families to our children, so they feel they have a balance. We're grateful to all of the people who helped get the show made, and we hope that drag racing fans and everyone else will keep watching us." Check out the family blog at NHRA.com <http://www.nhra.com> . The latest press releases and family photos ready for publication can be found at A&E Networks Press Site <http://www.aetvpress.com/index.jsp> . * BAZEMORE ENDS YEARLONG DROUGHT: Whit Bazemore couldn't have written a splashier headline for himself if he'd tried. The driver of the Matco Tools Dodge Charger ended a yearlong winless streak in Seattle - but perhaps just as significant is the person he defeated. Bazemore earned his 20th career victory when he downed his teammate and current POWERade Series Funny Car point leader Ron Capps in the final round of the 19th annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals presented by Lucas Oil. Arguments between the two have been in the news periodically this season, but statements released by both drivers after the second race of the famed Western Swing were diplomatic. "A lot of guys say you should never look at who's in the other lane. Well, I'm not that kind of person," Bazemore said. "I always know who I'm racing. You want to know their characteristics and sometimes it's easier to get motivated to race other people than it is some other people, which isn't good. I do better under pressure and when you're racing a guy like Capps, or any of our guys on the team, there's more pressure because we certainly want to be the best guy on the team at the end of the day." Capps now leads second-place John Force by 88 points in the standings in what is shaping up to be yet another historic fight for the POWERade world championship title. "It was good to see those Matco Tools guys get a win, especially for Don Schumacher," Capps said. * TROXEL STALLS AS SCHUMACHER SHINES, KALITTA HOLDS POINT LEAD: Early season success spurred a frenzy for Melanie Troxel, who handled a president-worthy schedule of appearances and interviews. But after struggling through the first two events of the Western Swing, the driver of the Skull Shine/Torco Race Fuels Top Fuel dragster had a slight reprieve from the NHRA spotlight - a welcome calm for this half of motorsports' fastest married couple that's meant she can focus more on performance than persona. "We seriously need to turn this deal around," said Troxel, after losing in the first round for the second event in a row. "There's not any one thing that you can point to and say that has changed. We just don't seem to be having any luck, and I hate to say that, because it's certainly not all luck out here. You just have to get a little momentum, or mojo, or whatever, and we don't have that right now. We're hoping to find something to get things turned around out here." Troxel relinquished the point lead in Denver and now sits 88 points behind leader Doug Kalitta. Troxel's teammate Tony Schumacher, the three-time and defending category world champion, is making a mid-season surge with a win in Seattle in his second final-round appearance in a row. Schumacher is 150 points out of the lead, in fourth place. * WASHINGTON RESIDENT WINS SEATTLE FAN NATIONALS: Taren Smith, 12, of Puyallup, Wash., won the 14th round of the NHRA POWERade Fan Nationals, at the 19th annual Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals. Smith, a seventh grade student at Kalles Junior High School and a competitor in the NHRA O'Reilly Jr. Drag Racing League, defeated hundreds of area fans to claim the POWERade Fan Nationals victory by driving realistic Funny Car simulators. With the victory, Smith will have the opportunity to race for the ultimate title of 2006 POWERade Fan Nationals Series champion in November at the 42nd annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals. COMING ATTRACTIONS * FRAM-AUTOLITE NHRA NATIONALS, SONOMA, CALIF., JULY 28-30: Infineon Raceway hosts the final stop of the Western Swing, where POWERade Series world championship contenders often reveal themselves and brace for the season's final eight events. * LUCAS OIL NHRA NATIONALS, BRAINERD, MINN., AUG. 10-13: Last year at Brainerd International Raceway Tony Schumacher powered his U.S. Army dragster to the fastest quarter-mile speed ever recorded at 337.58 mph. * O'REILLY NHRA MID-SOUTH NATIONALS, MEMPHIS, TENN., AUG. 18-20: Funny Car legend John Force claims to have seen Elvis at 1,000 feet down the quarter-mile track at Memphis Motorsports Park during this popular event. * MAC TOOLS U.S. NATIONALS, INDIANAPOLIS, AUG. 30-SEPT. 4: The world's most prestigious, richest and longest running drag race is a Labor Day weekend tradition at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. Every driver wants to win the super bowl of drag racing and join eight-time winner "Big Daddy" Don Garlits in the NHRA record book. INSIDE THE NUMBERS * 10: With his victory in Seattle, Whit Bazemore has now won at least one event every season for the last ten years. WHO'S HOT! * 'SARGE' CHARGES BACK: A weak start to the season spurred plenty of gossip about the state of three-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher's camp, but any negative energy that may have surrounded the defending world champion has been shattered. In Seattle Schumacher powered the U.S. Army dragster to his second win in three consecutive final-round appearances - placing him just 150 points behind POWERade Series leader Doug Kalitta with nine events left to go in the 2006 season. DRIVERS TELL ALL * ALLEN JOHNSON REACHES WINNER CIRCLE, DEFEATS MARTINO: Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson earned his first win of the season over surprise runner-up Tom Martino in Seattle - but although Johnson hadn't won an event since early last year, he wasn't surprised to earn the Wally in Seattle. "We've had the best car for the last four races, so this isn't a big surprise to me," Johnson said. "We've struggled a little with our race day tune-up and we especially stubbed our toe in Denver in the first round, but that mistake really taught us what we needed to know to get down these hot, gummy racetracks. If we hadn't done that there we probably wouldn't have learned enough to do well here." For more information, contact NHRA Media Relations at (626) 914-4761. Lachelle Seymour NHRA Media Relations Manager 2035 Financial Way Glendora, CA 91741 (O) 626.250.2230 (C) 626.253.6337 (F) 626.914.1491 www.nhra.com