TONY PEDREGON / Q POWER NITRO FUNNY CAR TEAM READING
ADVANCE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 8, 2006
Media Contacts:
Allison Holt, JRL Group, (847) 291-7080 x201,
allison@jrlgroup.com
Janie Vogel, JRL Group, (440) 915-7627,
janievogel@yahoo.com
TONY PEDREGON
Q TORQUE POWER NITRO FUNNY CAR TEAM
READING ADVANCE
- Defending Reading champion hopes to repeat in 2006 -
EVENT:
NHRA Nationals
TRACK NAME / LOCATION:
Maple Grove Raceway, Reading, Penn.
<http://www.maplegroveraceway.com/> www.MapleGroveRaceway.com
DATE:
September 15-17, 2006
SERIES:
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
Nitro Funny Car Division
TEAM MEMBERS:
Driver/Owner: Tony Pedregon
Teammate: Cruz Pedregon
Crew Chief: Dickie Venables
Asst. Crew Chief: Kurt Elliott
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (September 8, 2006) - 2003 NHRA World Champion Tony
Pedregon and his Q Torque Power Nitro Funny Car Team head to Maple Grove
Raceway in Reading, Penn., next weekend for the NHRA Nationals, the 19th of
23 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series events in 2006. With three wins in 2006,
Tony is currently fourth in points in the NHRA POWERade Nitro Funny Car
division, and is in position to make a run for the 2006 world championship.
Hosted in cool climes in a tree-studded valley in Pennsylvania’s Amish
country, this race has a long history of barrier-breaking performances,
including the first side-by-side four-second and 300-mph Top Fuel passes and
the first 4.7-second Top Fuel, 6.7-second Pro Stock, and 7.0-second Pro
Stock Motorcycle runs. Historic Maple Grove Raceway, opened in 1962 and
continually improved, provides not only a scenic venue, but also the perfect
launchpad for the performance-rich stretch run to the season world
championships as well as national-record potential and dramatic racing.
"We are pretty excited about going back to Reading," Pedregon said. "It has
been one year since we won our first event (as a car owner/driver), and we'd
love to deliver another one for Q. It's a good race track and a big market.
It's also a great time of year to be racing there because of the cooler
climate. I feel good about finishing the season strong. Our goal is to win
at least a couple more races, and Reading would be a great place to start."
How to get to Maple Grove Raceway: The track is 15 miles south of Reading
off the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Exit 298). From Reading, take Route 176 south
to the Green Hills exit, then go south (left) six miles on Route 10 to
Alleghenyville Road and turn right, following signs to the raceway. From
Philadelphia, take the Pennsylvania Turnpike west to Exit 298, then take
Route 10 north six miles to Alleghenyville Road and turn left, following the
signs. From Wilmington, take Route 202 to Route 100 and go north to the
Pennsylvania Turnpike. Go west on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to Exit 298 to
Route 10 north.
After conquering the quarter-mile Maple Grove Raceway Park, the NHRA
warriors head to the NHRA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex in Dallas,
Tex., held on September 22-24.
For more information on Tony, please go to <http://www.pedregonracing.com/>
www.PedregonRacing.com.
TONY PEDREGON STORY ANGLES:
· Tony, along with brother and co-team owner Cruz, has just opened up
a brand new 25,000-square-foot racing shop, located in the new headquarters
for NHRA teams in Brownsburg, Ind. The shop, housing both teams, was
designed specifically to address the unique needs of Pedregon Racing, LLC,
and Cruz Pedregon Racing, Inc, along with input from Tony's wife Andrea,
Cruz's wife Sharon, and all of the crew chiefs;
· The new Pedregon Racing facility houses the restored version of the
Flamin' Frank Pedregon World's Fastest Coupe (a legendary top fuel dragster
from the 60's with a chopped Fiat body, driven by Cruz and Tony's father,
Frank Sr.);
· A special limited edition set of 1:64 scale Hot Wheels® models of
Tony and Cruz Pedregon's NHRA Nitro Funny Cars are now available exclusively
at Advance Auto Parts stores. These cars will be packaged in a special Hot
Wheels® 2-Pack Collector Car Set (while supplies last);
· With three wins in 2006, Tony is currently fourth in points in the
NHRA POWERade Nitro Funny Car division, and is in position to make a run for
the 2006 world championship;
· Tony and his Q Power Team ran a totally different paint scheme,
starting with the historic NHRA U.S. Nationals on Labor Day weekend at
O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis last weekend. The Q Torque Power Full
Synthetic stunning blue and gold paint job celebrated Quaker State's
introduction of this product on retail shelves, coinciding with the massive
U.S. Nationals event. The new advanced motor oil formulation is engineered
to help maximize torque in the engines of hard-working trucks and SUV's to
help give drivers the power they want for towing, hauling and off-roading.
Pedregon's car will also sport this new paint scheme for the upcoming races
in Reading and Dallas;
· Tony has a strong Hispanic following and can speak in Spanish;
· Tony just became certified with the Indiana Business Diversity
Council, designed to promote minority ownership of businesses in Indiana.
TONY PEDREGON HISTORY AT MAPLE GROVE RACEWAY:
Pedregon is the DEFENDING CHAMPION of this event (2005) and also won this
event in 2002; Number one qualifier in 1999.
2006 RESULTS:
Feb. 9-12 - Pomona:
Qualified: 3rd, 4.713; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.147 vs Worsham 4.894
Feb. 24-26 - Phoenix:
Qualified: 4th, 4.724; 1st Round: Pedregon 4.778 vs Densham 9.445; 2nd
Round: Pedregon 4.847 vs Johnson 4.809
March 16-19 - Gainesville:
Qualified: 16th, 4.900; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.018 vs Force 4.775
March 31-April 2 - Houston:
Qualified: 8th, 4.798; 1st Round: Pedregon 4.869 vs Bazemore 6.819; 2nd
Round: Pedregon 9.461 vs Force 4.761
April 6-9 - Las Vegas:
Pedregon ran a 4.79 Friday night but the pass was disallowed by the NHRA
when his team did not stop and weigh the car at the inspection station due
to the drama of an engine explosion at the finish line. This was Pedregon's
first DNQ in five years dating back to the Bristol race in 2001 (115
events).
April 28-30 - Bristol:
Qualified: 12th, 4.851; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.314 vs Johnson 4.817
May 5-7, 2006 - Atlanta - WON THIS EVENT:
Qualified: 9th, 4.797 / 275.00 1st Round: Pedregon 4.765 vs Bazemore 4.774;
2nd Round: Pedregon 4.735 vs Force 4.715 (Pedregon's margin of victory was
.0124 of a second (approx. 6 feet);.03 sec. advantage at the starting line
over Force, Pedregon's former car owner); Semi-Final Round: Pedregon 4.739
vs Medlen 5.083; Final Round: Pedregon 4,740 vs Hight 4.738 (Pedregon's
Final Round win was by about 5 feet - .0096 sec.)
May 19-21 - Columbus - WON THIS EVENT:
Qualified: 3rd, 4.728 / 323.58; 1st Round: Pedregon - 4.870 vs. Wilkerson
6.029; 2nd Round: Pedregon 4.865 vs. Scelzi 5.053; Semi-Final Round:
Pedregon 4.802 vs. Johnson Jr. 4.876; Final Round: Pedregon 4.923 vs.
Bazemore 6.368
May 26-28 - Topeka:
Qualified: 6th - 4.983 / 302.69; 1st Round: Pedregon 4.985 vs. Bartone
5.253; 2nd Round: Pedregon 5.044 vs. Medlen 5.097; Semi-Final Round:
Pedregon 5.092 vs. Force 4.968
June 9-11 - Chicago:
Qualified: 6th - 4.694 / 315.34; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.032 vs. Gilbertson
13.877; 2nd Round: Medlen 4.800 vs. Pedregon 6.585
June 16-18 - Englishtown:
Qualified: 5th - 4.812 / 320.58; 1st Round: Pedregon 4.926 vs. Kalitta
4.961; 2nd Round: Scelzi 4.947 / 311.41 vs. Pedregon - 5.310
June 24-26 - St. Louis - WON THIS EVENT:
Qualified: 12th - 4.909 / 313.37; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.198 vs. Worsham
6.183; 2nd Round: Pedregon 5.061 vs. Gilbertson 5.126; Semi-Final Round:
Pedregon 4.886 vs. Scelzi 4.877; Final Round: Pedregon 4.859 vs. Force 4.904
July 14-16 - Denver:
Qualified: 8th - 4.956 / 309.91; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.268 vs. Worsham
5.276; 2nd Round: Cruz Pedregon 5.588 vs. Tony Pedregon 6.866
July 21-23 - Seattle:
Qualified: 8th - 4.929 / 310.27; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.029 vs. Johnson Jr.
5.651
2nd Round: Pedregon 5.318 vs. Hight 6.117; Semi-Final Round: Bazemore 5.029
vs. Pedregon 5.129
July 28-30 - Sonoma:
Qualified: 5th - 4.816 / 319.75; 1st Round: Pedregon 4.910 vs. Johnson Jr.
4.947; 2nd Round: Pedregon 4.909 vs. Kalitta 9.070; Semi-Final Round:
Pedregon 4.910 vs. Ashley 7.813; Final Round: Medlen 4.854 vs. Pedregon
5.021
August 11-13 - Brainerd:
Qualified: 2nd - 4.773 / 321.04; 1st Round: Wilkerson 4.805 vs. Pedregon
4.858
August 18-21 - Memphis:
Qualified: 5th - 4.899 / 304.80; 1st Round: Pedregon 5.247 vs. Bartone
5.361; 2nd Round: Pedregon 4.892 vs. Capps 4.941; Semi-Final Round: Pedregon
4.895 vs. Hight 4.958; Final Round: Force 4.786 vs. Pedregon 5.048
September 1-4 - Indianapolis:
Qualified: 8th - 4.735 / 325.30; 1st Round: Ashley 4.754 vs. Pedregon 4.753
FUNNY CAR POINT STANDINGS:
1. Ron Capps, 1300
2. John Force, 1281
3. Robert Hight, 1141
4. Tony Pedregon, 1112
5. Eric Medlen, 1069
6. Tommy Johnson Jr., 1008
7. Gary Scelzi, 1001
8. Whit Bazemore, 956
9. Cruz Pedregon, 759
10. Phil Burkart, Jr. 756
READING WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
FRIDAY, September 15
Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel) – 3:00 pm ET
Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel) - 6:00 pm ET
SATURDAY, September 16
Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel / Funny Car) – 12:00 pm ET
Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel / Funny Car) – 3:00 pm ET
SUNDAY, September 17
Final Eliminations (Top Fuel/Funny Car) - 11:00 am ET
READING ESPN2 TELEVISION COVERAGE:
September 16 – Qualifying: 4:00 pm-6:00 am ET
September 17 - Eliminations: 7:00-10:00 pm ET
September 21 - Repeat Eliminations: 3:00-5:00 am ET
READING LIVE AUDIO BROADCAST:
The public-address commentary from the Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals will be
broadcast live over the Internet from
<http://www.nhra.com/2006/events/race19/broadcast.html>
http://www.nhra.com/2006/events/race19/broadcast.html. Follow the
wire-to-wire, play-by-play coverage from the 19th race of the 2006 NHRA
POWERade Drag Racing Series season. NHRA members get exclusive access to
listen live to Friday's and Saturday's qualifying shows; check in Friday and
Saturday at 8:45 a.m. Eastern Friday and Saturday. The all-access final
eliminations show – open, as always, to all NHRA.com visitors – begins
Sunday at 10 a.m. Eastern.
D R I V E R
T O N Y P E D R E G O N
The B A S I C S . . .
Car
Q Torque Power Monte Carlo
Birthdate
March 8, 1965
Residence
Detroit, MI
Website
<http://www.pedregonracing.com/> www.PedregonRacing.com
Career NHRA Wins
TOTAL: 32
FC - 32
Career NHRA Final Rounds
57
FC - 57
Career NHRA Best Elapsed Time
4.680 sec.
Career NHRA Best Speed
331.28 mph
The B A C K G R O U N D . . .
· 2005: Set career best for time when he and his brother (Cruz) each
ran 4.680s at Chicago 2; Finished the season on a roll with two wins and a
runner-up finish at the final five events; Earned his first victory since
Las Vegas 2 in his championship season of 2003; Qualified for all 23 events,
increasing his streak of successfully qualifying at national events to 110;
Earned three No. 1 qualifiers and had the low E.T. at three events
· 2004: In his first season as a team owner, finished No. 8 in the
final POWERade championship standings, his ninth consecutive season
finishing in the top 10; Established career-bests for both E.T. and speed;
Career-best E.T. is the seventh quickest Funny Car pass in NHRA history;
Recorded two of the 10 fastest Funny Car speeds in NHRA history (331.28,
Chicago 1; 329.83, Atlanta); His career won-lost record in elimination
rounds of 319-189 is 13th-best among all active pro drivers with 50 or more
decisions; Was the No. 1 qualifier three times (Las Vegas 1, Atlanta,
Chicago 1); Qualified for all 23 events, upping his national event
qualifying streak to 87 consecutive races dating back to Bristol 2001, fifth
best among all active pro driver
· 2003: Became the first driver other than John Force to win the
Funny Car championship since 1992; established career-bests for wins, No. 1
qualifying awards, elapsed time and speed; a career-best eight wins on the
season places him fourth on the all-time Funny Car win list with 24 career
victories; one of four Funny Car drivers to qualify for all 23 events;
earned $100,00 for winning the Funny Car bonus event in his eighth career
appearance
· 2002: Earned six victories in eight final round appearances; Was
contending for the POWERade championship until the semifinal of the last
event of the season; Finished No. 2 in the standings for the fourth time in
his career; Finished in the top five of the standings for the sixth time in
eight professional seasons; Won three consecutive races for the first time
in his career
· 2001: Won a race as the No. 1 qualifier (Englishtown) for the first
time in his career, beating team owner John Force; Won back-to-back races
(Englishtown and Topeka) for the first time in his career
· 2000: Went to the finals six times, collecting two victories
· 1999: Was the No. 1 qualifier at four events; Posted the quickest
time in history when he clocked a 4.779 second run at Gainesville; Runner-up
in the Funny Car bonus race at Indianapolis
· 1998: Earned two wins in two final-round appearances
· 1997: No. 1 qualifier at three events and raced in five finals;
Beat brother Cruz Pedregon at Houston in the first final-round meeting
involving brothers; Runner-up in Funny Car bonus race
· 1996: Made seven final-round appearances in first season with John
Force Racing; Named the inaugural winner of the Automobile Club of Southern
California Road to the Future Award, which identified the sport’s budding
stars; Finished second in driver points in first full season on the tour;
Earned first career victory (Atlanta)
· 1995: Ran limited Funny Car schedule for car owner Larry Minor
· 1993: Qualified for first NHRA event at the wheel of a Top Fuel
dragster
The F U N S T U F F . . .
· Wife: Andrea; Daughters: Cecily and Arielle; Son: Desidario
· Height/weight: 5´8", 165 lbs.
· Father, Frank, raced Top Fuel dragsters in the 1960s
· Brothers Cruz and Frank Pedregon also compete in the Funny Car
class
· Pedregon is an accomplished painter whose work adorns the helmets
of fellow drivers John Force, Cory McClenathan, Cruz Pedregon, and others
NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series 2006 Schedule
February 9-12 - NHRA Winternationals, Pomona, CA
February 24-26 - NHRA Nationals, Chandler, AZ
March 16-19 - NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville, FL
March 31-April 2 - NHRA Spring Nationals, Houston, TX
April 6-9 - NHRA Nationals, Las Vegas, NV
April 28-30 - NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol, TN
May 4-7 - NHRA Southern Nationals, Atlanta, GA
May 18-21 - NHRA Nationals, Columbus, OH
May 25-28 - NHRA Summer Nationals, Topeka, KS
June 8-11 - NHRA Nationals, Joliet, IL
June 15-18 - NHRA SuperNationals, Englishtown, NJ
June 23-25 - NHRA Midwest Nationals, Madison, IL
July 14-16 - Mile-High NHRA Nationals, Denver, CO
July 21-23 - NHRA Nationals, Seattle, WA
July 28-30 - Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals, Sonoma, CA
August 10-13 - NHRA Nationals, Brainerd, MN
August 18-20 - Mid-South Nationals, Memphis, TN
August 30-Sept. 4 - NHRA U.S. Nationals, Clermont, IN
September 14-17 - NHRA Nationals, Reading, PA
September 21-24 - NHRA Fall Nationals, Ennis, TX
October 6-8 - Virginia NHRA Nationals, Richmond, VA
October 26-29 - Las Vegas NHRA Nationals, Las Vegas, NV
November 9-12 - Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, Pomona,
CA
MANY THANKS TO THE Q POWER RACE TEAM
2006 SUPPORTERS
Q POWER / QUAKER STATE - <http://www.qpower.com/> www.qpower.com
SNAP-ON - <http://www.snapon.com/> www.snapon.com
GREAT STUFF - <http://www.greatstuff.dow.com/index.htm>
www.greatstuff.dow.com/index.htm
HERZOG - <http://www.herzogcompanies.com/> www.herzogcompanies.com
FETERL - <http://www.feterl.com/> www.feterl.com
MOUNTAIN VIEW CHEVROLET - <http://www.mountainviewchevrolet.com/>
www.mountainviewchevrolet.com
GOODYEAR - <http://www.goodyear.com/> www.goodyear.com
SLICK 50 - <http://www.slick50.com/> www.slick50.com
LARRY MINOR MOTORSPORTS - <http://www.larryminor-motorsports.com/>
www.larryminor-motorsports.com
SIOUX CITY TRUCK & TRAILER - <http://www.siouxcitykenworth.com/>
www.siouxcitykenworth.com
EARL'S PERFORMANCE PLUMBING - <http://www.holley.com/> www.holley.com
WELD RACING - <http://www.weldracing.com/> www.weldracing.com
MR. GASKET COMPANY - <http://www.mrgasket.com/> www.mrgasket.com
THE PALMS CASINO RESORT - <http://www.palms.com/> www.palms.com
FRAM - <http://www.fram.com/> www.fram.com
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