WJ is Ready for a Break Out Win in Sonoma
GM Performance Parts GTO crew ready to build on Seattle semifinal
finish
Sugar Hill, Ga., July 25, 2006 - For fifty weeks out of the year, Pro
Stock legend Warren Johnson can be found in one of two places. If the
six-time NHRA champion is not behind the wheel of his powerful GM
Performance Parts GTO, he is back at the team's headquarters in Sugar
Hill, GA, working on ways to improve its performance.
However, every July Johnson assumes an added responsibility, as he
shares motorhome driving duties with his wife Arlene during the NHRA's
traditional Western Swing, wheeling from Denver to Seattle and on to
Sonoma, CA for this weekend's NHRA California Nationals. Not
surprisingly, the man responsible for many of Pro Stock's technological
advances uses the time productively. In fact, he credits hours spent at
the helm of his massive Monaco Dynasty with the genesis of his dramatic
turnaround this past weekend in Seattle, a performance that a few have
jokingly referred to as the "Missoula Miracle".
"Driving the motorhome gives me plenty of time to do a lot of thinking,"
details Johnson. "With so many hours at your disposal, you have time to
take a fresh perspective on what's going on, because you're not
inundated with phone calls, or grinding manifolds, dong this or that or
worrying about a host of other items. All you can do is think of what
you've been doing, and analyze what you've done wrong or right.
"For example, on the drive from Denver to Seattle, I shut off my cell
phone and asked Arlene not to speak to me. I then started to backtrack
over the last year and a half, going over the evolution of what ended up
as a deficit in performance, and about the time I arrived in Missoula,
Montana, I was able to determine where it all started and how to correct
it. I got on the phone to the shop and had them ship the parts we
needed to Nick's (Drzayich, father of crewmember Adam) shop in Seattle.
"We started working on our GM Performance Parts GTO on Tuesday, finished
up on Wednesday afternoon, spent Thursday at Renegade Raceway in Yakima,
and came up with a pretty sporty performance in Seattle, which we hope
to improve on this weekend in Sonoma."
Once he arrives in the Bay Area, Johnson will also take some time from
his pre-race preparations to visit one of San Francisco's greatest
tourist attractions, Alcatraz. Leading a large contingent from the Pro
Stock community for the Wednesday afternoon visit to famed correctional
facility, including members of both his GM Performance Parts and son
Kurt's ACDelco crews, The Professor" believes there will be a tremendous
opportunity for team building.
"I'm going to bring our guys over to Alcatraz and show them where their
new home will be if they screw up this weekend," joked Johnson. "But in
all seriousness, everyone knows about Alcatraz, and I enjoy going there
because it has so much history.
"For example, few realize that it actually started out as a military
hospital. It's such an ominous location, and you can really get a feel
for what the prisoners went through. Being able to see and from what I
understand, hear how the rest of the world was able to enjoy life such a
short distance away must have really let them know the severity of their
actions. It's quite an experience, and I'm glad we'll be able to share
it with our teams."
However, once he returns to the Napa Valley and Infineon Raceway,
Johnson will get back to his business of racing in arguably the most
competitive division in all of motorsports. With another tightly packed
field expected in Pro Stock this weekend, he will put the satisfaction
of a solid performance in Seattle behind him and look to add yet another
accomplishment to his impressive racing resume. Having been inducted
into Infineon's Wall of Fame, he will look to become the first racer so
honored to win a race at the multipurpose, state-of-the-art facility.
"Obviously, winning races is the object of this whole exercise, and I
think we are getting ourselves back to that point," said Johnson. "We
can once again depend on our GM Performance Part GTO, making changes to
it and knowing how it is going to respond, as it did in Seattle. This
allows me to go back to working on the engine side, which will only help
our efforts. I'm pretty optimistic that both Kurt and my cars will
become significant forces to be reckoned with, and we hope to provide
evidence of that this weekend. The people at Infineon Raceway gave a
tremendous honor one year ago by adding me to their Wall of Fame - this
year, I'd like to make a return appearance to another special location -
the winner's circle."
Quick Notes on Warren Johnson & the GM Performance Parts GTO team
entering
The 19th annual NHRA California Nationals:
WJ has Won in the California Wine Country : This will be Warren's 19th
career NHRA national event at Infineon Raceway. In his previous 16
starts, he has three wins in five final round appearances, and a 27-12
elimination round record for a .692 win percentage.
WJ's Qualifying Stats in Sonoma: In 16 Infineon starts, WJ has four No.
1 qualifying performances, 13 starts in the top four positions and a
4.813 average starting position.
One Year Ago: Warren qualified fifth with a 6.689-second elapsed time
with a top speed of 205.13 mph, but was upset in the first round.
Career Best Elapsed Time: 6.679 seconds, Gainesville, FL, 3/20/05
Career best top speed: 207.88 mph, Englishtown, NJ, 6/16/06
Event Schedule:
Friday, July 28: Two qualifying sessions at 3:15 & 6:45
p.m.
Saturday, July 29: Two qualifying sessions at 10:00 a.m. &
2:45 P.M.
Sunday, July 30: Pre-race ceremonies
starting at 11:00 a.m.
First Round of
Eliminations at 12:00 noon
Television Coverage:
Qualifying:
Saturday, July 29: 8:00 - 10:00 p.m.
Eliminations:
Sunday, July 30: 8:00 - 11:00 p.m
NHRA2Day:
Sunday, July 30: 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon
(All times Eastern. Please check your local listings for exact
broadcast times in your area.)
