Scelzi's objective: to win, gain points, finish high
DON SCHUMACHER RACING
2006 NHRA POOWERade DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 19 of 23
TOYO TIRES NHRA NATIONALS
Maple Grove Raceway
Mohnton, Pa.
Race Date: Sept. 15-17, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501; cell 203-243-2438;
jstropus@earthlink.net
SCELZI'S OBJECTIVE: TO WIN, GAIN POINTS, FINISH HIGH
MOHNTON, Pa. (Sept. 13, 2006) - As the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
winds down to the final five of 23 season events, reigning Funny Car
champion Gary Scelzi recognizes that his chances of defending his title are
pretty much non-existent. He is 299 points behind leader and teammate Ron
Capps.
The driver of the Mopar/Oakley Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car plans now to
become a spoiler while targeting the highest position in the points rankings
he can attain as the series comes to Maple Grove Raceway, outside of
Reading, Pa., this weekend for the Toyo Tires NHRA Nationals.
Seventh in the standings, Scelzi is just 68 points out of fifth place and
140 short of third. Up ahead, Capps and 13-time John Force are in a see-saw
battle for the championship - a fight Scelzi is familiar with, as he, Capps
and Force were in a three-way scrap for the title at the end of 2006.
"The only thing that is positive," says Scelzi of the remainder of a season
in which he and his team have struggled, "is that we can cause the other two
havoc. Even though Capps is my teammate and Force is a friend of mine, we're
going to Reading to win.
"The Friday night qualifying session will set the tone, because Maple Grove
is one of those race tracks that is very porous, so when the sun comes out
your times drop off dramatically. When you get off the concrete the car has
to be running hard. Otherwise, it spins the tires when it gets to the
asphalt. Unfortunately for us, our car doesn't seem to be very quick early.
It's from 300 feet to the finish line that it really runs. And that could be
an issue.
"The good news is that the Mopar/Oakley Dodge Charger guys have gone over
every inch on this car and found a few things that could be causing our
problem, but we won't know until we pull into the gates at Reading.
"Our goal is to qualify in the top half, which would set us up for the Skoal
Showdown for next year, to be up on top, and to win as many points to
salvage the highest finish we possibly can at the end of the year."
Scelzi's record at Maple Grove is stout: three wins (two in Top Fuel, one in
Funny Car), one TF runner-up and three No. 1 qualifiers (1998, '99 and '05).
GARY SCELZI QUICK FACTS:
* Seventh in 2006 Funny Car points after 18 events
* So far, in 2006, his best results are a win in Denver, runner-up in
Englishtown, N.J., runner-up in Brainerd, Minn., and three semifinal
finishes in Bristol, Tenn., Joliet, Ill., and St. Louis. Also has five
quarterfinal finishes
* Claimed the 2005 Funny Car championship, his first, by eight points over
his teammate Ron Capps, 32 over third-place John Force
* Won three times in 2005 (Bristol, Chicago 1 and Sonoma); was low qualifier
six times (Las Vegas 1, Atlanta, St. Louis, Reading, Las Vegas 2, Pomona 2)
* Is a three-time Top Fuel champion
* Became only the second NHRA driver to have won crowns in both Top Fuel and
Funny Car. Kenny Bernstein is the first
* Has three wins at Maple Grove (two in TF, one in FC) and three No. 1
qualifiers ('98, '99 in TF, '05 in FC)
* At 2005 Toyo Tires Nationals, he qualified No. 1, lost semis to Tony
Pedregon
* Has set 24 Funny Car top speeds since joining Don Schumacher Racing in
2003
* Is a member of the largest team in NHRA pro history: Don Schumacher
Racing - two in Top Fuel, three in Funny Car, one in Pro Stock, two in Pro
Stock Motorcycle (all four pro categories) - and one individual team
competing under the DSR banner: Mike Ashley's Funny Car team, managed by DSR
* Is first Funny Car driver to break the 330-mph barrier (330.15 mph at
Route 66 Raceway in 2004)
* Career Funny Car bests: 4.696-second ET (Pomona 2 '05), 332.51 mph (Pomona
1 '06)
* Qualified in top five 19 times in 2005, No. 1 six times
* Age 46 (Aug. 11, 1960), born and raised in Fresno, Calif., where he lives
with wife Julianne and sons Dominic and Giovanni
* Dominic, 9, races Junior Sprints
* Runs Scelzi Enterprises, a custom truck body design and manufacturing
business in Fresno with his two brothers
* Won his first Top Fuel crown as a rookie
* Has eight Funny Car wins, 25 Top Fuel wins
* Sixth in 2003 Funny Car points, his first full season in that class
* 2006 is his fourth straight season racing for Don Schumacher Racing
* Is the only NHRA driver to have won in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Top Alcohol
Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car. He accomplished this feat at Infineon
Raceway in 2003
* Is one of the few Funny Car drivers who has a round winning record against
the 13-time Funny Car champion John Force: 11-8, 3-1 in final rounds
WEEKEND SCHEDULE:
FRIDAY, Sept. 15 PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSIONS at 2 and 5 p.m.
SATURDAY, Sept. 16 PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSIONS at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
SUNDAY, Sept. 17 Pre-race ceremonies, 10 a.m. FINAL ELIMINATIONS begin at
11 a.m.
TELEVISION:
Saturday, Sept. 16, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of qualifying
highlights at 4 p.m. (ET).
Sunday, Sept. 17, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will broadcast NHRA 2Day, a 30-minute
weekly news magazine show, at 11:30 a.m. (ET).
Sunday, Sept. 17, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise three hours of
eliminations coverage at 7 p.m. (ET).
SATELLITE:
Friday, Sept. 15, 8 8:30 p.m. (ET) GALAXY 11 / Transponder 15K (12003
MHz, horizontal) analog
Saturday, Sept. 16, 8 8:30 p.m. (ET) GALAXY 11 / Transponder 15K (12003
MHz, horizontal) analog
Sunday, Sept. 17, 9 9:30 p.m. (ET) GALAXY 11 / Transponder 15K (12003
MHz, horizontal) analog
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