NHRA NEWS: NOMINEES ANNOUNCED FOR 2006 AUTO CLUB ROAD TO
THE FUTURE AWARD
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: NHRA Communications Dept., (626) 914-4761
BRADSHAW, NAYLOR, TODD AND WILL NOMINEES
FOR 2006 AUTO CLUB ROAD TO THE FUTURE AWARD
GLENDORA, Calif. (Oct. 11, 2006) - Four National Hot Rod
Association (NHRA) rookie drivers, representative of two pro categories,
have been selected as nominees for the 2006 Automobile Club of Southern
California Road to the Future Award, it was announced today by officials
from the NHRA and Automobile Club of Southern California.
Alan Bradshaw (Top Fuel), Max Naylor (Pro Stock), J.R. Todd
(Top Fuel) and Hillary Will (Top Fuel) are nominated for the prestigious
award, which annually recognizes the top rookie competitor in the NHRA
POWERade Drag Racing Series and offers a $20,000 prize and traditional
trophy to the winner.
The Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the
Future Award will be presented during the NHRA's annual championship
awards ceremony on Monday, Nov. 13 at the Westin Mission Hills Resort in
Rancho Mirage, Calif.
"For more than 100 years, the Automobile Club of Southern
California has represented integrity, commitment and professionalism to
our millions of members. The Road to the Future Award has come to
symbolize those same attributes in the sport of NHRA POWERade Drag
Racing," said Thomas V. McKernan, president and CEO of the Auto Club.
"To be nominated recognizes not only that a rookie driver had a
noteworthy first season, but also that they demonstrated exceptional
potential for the future. We congratulate each of the nominees for this
year's award and look forward to enjoying their achievements both on and
off the race track for many years to come."
Bradshaw, 38, from Odessa, Texas, drove his BME/Okuma Top
Fuel dragster to a semifinal finish at Chicago and quarterfinal finishes
at Las Vegas 1 and Seattle while competing on a limited schedule. He
posted a qualifying best of 11th at two races, including his home event
at the Texas Motorplex and recorded career-best performances of 4.545
seconds, 326.32 mph.
Naylor, 53, from New Buffalo, Pa., a late-bloomer in the competitive
world of NHRA Pro Stock racing, raced to quarterfinal finishes at the
ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals and the Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals
at Pacific Raceways near Seattle. He clocked performance bests of 6.662
seconds and 206.89 mph in his Jagermeister Dodge Stratus.
Todd, 24, from Lawrenceburg, Ind., raced to victories at
Denver, Sonoma and Reading and in the process became the first African
American to win in Top Fuel. In two of those victories, Todd defeated
three-time world champ Tony Schumacher in the final round and in the
other he outran Schumacher in an early round. Todd posted a qualifying
best of second and clocked career-best performances of 4.494 seconds,
328.06 mph. The former NHRA Jr. Drag Racing League competitor also
posted semifinal finishes at St. Louis and Seattle. Todd is currently
10th in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series Top Fuel standings.
Will, 26, from Fortuna, Calif., powered her KB Racing Top
Fuel dragster to a runner-up finish at Memphis in her only final round
of the season. She posted semifinal finishes at Englishtown and Sonoma
and is currently ninth in the NHRA POWERade Series Top Fuel standings.
Will's KB Racing dragster has been one of the most consistently quick of
the season as she is ranked third in the NHRA Full Throttle Pit Crew
Challenge standings. She qualified a season-high second at Denver and
clocked career-best performances of 4.507 seconds, 328.78 mph.
In 2002, the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to
the Future Award and the NHRA Rookie of the Year Award were combined to
create one award recognizing the future stars of the sport. Past winners
of the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future Award
have developed into some of NHRA's biggest stars, including Tony
Pedregon (1996, Funny Car), Ron Capps (1997, Funny Car), Doug Kalitta
(1998, Top Fuel), Antron Brown (1999, Pro Stock Motorcycle), Melanie
Troxel (2000, Top Fuel), GT Tonglet (2001, Pro Stock Motorcycle), Gene
Wilson (2002, Pro Stock); Brandon Bernstein (2003, Top Fuel); Jason Line
(2004, Pro Stock); and Robert Hight (2005, Funny Car).
Recent NHRA Rookie of the Year winners have included the
late Darrell Russell (2001, Top Fuel), Don Lampus (2000, Top Fuel),
Scotty Cannon (1999, Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin (1998, Pro Stock), Gary
Scelzi (1997, Top Fuel) and co-winners in 1996, Mike Edwards (Pro Stock)
and Matt Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
Rookie drivers in all four of NHRA's professional categories
are eligible to win the Automobile Club of Southern California Road to
the Future Award. More than 100 of the nation's most distinguished auto
racing journalists will select the winner through a voting system based
on the following criteria: number of events participated, performance on
and off the race track, participation in NHRA promotions and
relationships with fans, sponsors and media.
In addition to the Automobile Club of Southern California
Road to the Future Award, the company is the title sponsor for the
Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, Nov. 9-12 at
historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The company also is a major
sponsor for John Force Racing, providing primary sponsorship for the
Mustang driven by Hight, as well as associate sponsorship for the Ford
Mustangs driven by John Force and Eric Medlen. In addition, the company
is the presenting sponsor for the California Hot Rod Reunion, contested
each year in early October at Auto Club Famoso Raceway in Bakersfield,
Calif.
The Automobile Club of Southern California is the largest
affiliate of AAA. Today, the Auto Club's members benefit by the
organization's emergency road service, financial products, travel agency
and trip planning services, highway and transportation safety programs,
insurance products and services, automotive pricing, buying and
financing programs and automotive testing and analysis.
Headquartered in Glendora, Calif., the NHRA is the primary
sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. It
presents 23 national events through its NHRA POWERade Drag Racing
Series. The NHRA has 80,000 members and 140 member tracks. The
NHRA-sanctioned sportsman and bracket racing series' provide competition
opportunities for drivers of all levels. The NHRA develops the stars of
tomorrow by offering the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, NHRA Summit
Racing Series, NHRA Xplod Sport Compact Racing Series and the NHRA
Street Legal Drags presented by AAA. The NHRA also offers the O'Reilly
Auto Parts Jr. Drag Racing League for youths ages 8 to 17.
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