McClenathan's championship bid comes down to one final race in Pomona
DON SCHUMACHER RACING 2009 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES Round 6 of 6 in Countdown to 1 playoffs Round 24 of 24 for season 45th annual AUTO CLUB NHRA FINALS Auto Club Raceway at Pomona (Calif.) Nov. 12-15, 2009 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Judy Stropus, 203-438-0501; cell 203-243-2438; jstropus@earthlink.net McCLENATHAN'S CHAMPIONSHIP BID COMES DOWN TO ONE FINAL RACE IN POMONA BROWNBURG, Ind. (Nov. 10, 2009) - "A little bit of all of the above," Cory McClenathan answered when asked if he was crazy nervous, crazy anxious or crazy excited about ending the 2009 Full Throttle Drag Racing Series this weekend in Pomona, Calif., with a chance to win his first Top Fuel championship. Having notched just one victory this season compared to the five each for the Nos. 1 and 2 in points, Tony Schumacher and Larry Dixon, No. 3 McClenathan is right in the mix as the 24-event season comes to a conclusion at the 45th annual NHRA Finals this weekend. The top three are separated by 48 points, an indicator of how tight this championship quest has become in the last few events. Schumacher leads Dixon by one point, while McClenathan sits in third, 47 behind Dixon, well within striking distance. "I'm really eager to get it over with and see what the outcome is going to be," said McClenathan. "At the same time, we're not in the best position that we could be. It would be nice to be a little closer, like within one round, instead of a little over two rounds. "If Tony and the Army team do their jobs, and Dixon and his team go out and do their jobs, they're going to be fighting for it instead of us. But we've seen a lot of different things happen this year. We've seen a lot of top people go out first or second round. And if that happens to either or both of the guys in front of us, and we go on to the final and win this thing, then we can put ourselves in a position to win the championship. "I think the fans are getting exactly what they wanted and it's making us crazy, but I think we're up to the task. I'm excited about that. To be able to have a chance to win the championship is really cool, because there are a lot of people who don't have a chance. "The Countdown to 1 has brought it all down to one race, and there are three of us ready to win Top Fuel, and, after looking at all the categories, it looks like Top Fuel is going to be the one to watch." As for setting a national elapsed-time record to earn 20 bonus points, "It's very attainable," said McClenathan. "The temperature is predicted to be 68 degrees for a high on Thursday, so the conditions should be good. There's 20 percent chance of rain on Friday, so we know it will be cool then. We're also going to run later in the day, so it's very attainable at this point. "But, first we need to qualify ahead of these guys in as many sessions as we can. We need those little points right now." NHRA offers bonus points (three, two and one) to the top three qualifiers in each qualifying round. "We don't see any reason not to go for the record, but we want to get qualified in the field right away and then we'll bear down on it. If we can run really well on Thursday in that one session, then we'll go for it Friday evening." McClenathan is a two-time Pomona 2 winner: In 1992 and 2002. He's also been a Pomona 2 runner-up in 1994 and a Pomona 1 runner-up in 2003 and 2008. He was low qualifier twice in Pomona 1 (1993 and 1994), and twice in Pomona 2 (1993 and 1996). CORY MCCLENATHAN QUICK FACTS: * No. 3 in Countdown to 1 playoffs standings with a victory in Concord, N.C., the opening round of the playoffs * Just 48 points out of first place, 47 short of second * Four final rounds so far in 2009 (one win) * No. 5 in 2009 "regular season" Top Fuel point standings, with three runner-up, three semifinal, nine quarterfinal and three first-round finishes in first 18 events of season * Qualified No. 6 in 2008 Pomona 2, lost semifinal round to Larry Dixon * Two-time Pomona 2 winner (1992 and 2002); Pomona 2 runner-up in 1994 and Pomona 1 runner-up in 2003 and 2008 * Low qualifier in Pomona 1 twice (1993 and 1994) and twice in Pomona 2 (1993 and 1996) * No. 3 in 2008 Top Fuel point standings, including one win in three final rounds, as well as eight semifinal, six quarterfinal, seven first-round finishes and two No. 1 qualifiers * Has 31 career Top Fuel victories in 57 final rounds * First driver to break the 320-mph barrier with 322.17-mph run in Dallas in 1997 * Has recorded 466 career round wins in Top Fuel * Qualified No. 1 32 times, with a career-high seven times in 1993 * Recorded 400th round win in Top Fuel in Richmond 2007 * Has finished No. 2 in the standings four times (1992, 1995, 1997 and 1998) * Finished No. 10 in rookie season in 1991; made first 4-second run * Made NHRA history with first run in the 4.70s (4.799) at Reading in 1992 * Swept the three-race Western Swing in 1997 en route to four consecutive wins and career-high six victories in eight final rounds * Won four of the first six races in 1998. Equaled career-best with six wins in eight finals * Won the U.S. Nationals twice (1996, 1999) * Missed four races in 1993 after crash in Rockingham and still finished sixth in the Top Fuel points * Age 46 (January 30, 1963); born in Wichita, Kansas, now lives in Brownsburg, Ind.; daughter Courtney (10/25/90) * Joined Don Schumacher Racing in 2008; 2009 is fourth season with sponsorship from FRAM Cory Mac Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brownsburg-IN/Cory-Mac/74199417179?ref=ts#/pag es/Brownsburg-IN/Cory-Mac/74199417179?v=wall&viewas=14308109 Cory Mac Fanatics Group: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brownsburg-IN/Cory-Mac/74199417179?ref=ts#/gro up.php?gid=73981312612 On Twitter he may be followed on http://twitter.com/Cory_Mac_TF SCHEDULE: THURSDAY, Nov. 12 PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSION at 1:30 p.m. FRIDAY, Nov. 13 PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSION at 1:30 p.m. SATURDAY, Nov. 14 PROFESSIONAL QUALIFYING SESSIONS at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. SUNDAY, Nov. 15 Pre-race ceremonies begin at 10 a.m. FINAL ELIMINATIONS begin at 11 a.m. TELEVISION: Saturday, Nov. 14, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of qualifying coverage at 10:30 p.m. (ET). Sunday, Nov. 15, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will air NHRA Race Day, at 11 a.m. (ET). Sunday, Nov. 15, ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise three hours of final eliminations at 7 p.m. (ET). SATELLITE (Analog feed): Friday, Nov. 13, 7 - 7:30 p.m. (ET), AMC 16 / Transponder 14K (11980 MHz, horizontal) Saturday, Nov. 14, 9:30 10 p.m. (ET), AMC 16 / Transponder 14K (11980 MHz, horizontal) Sunday, Nov. 15, 10:30 - 11 p.m. (ET), AMC 16 / Transponder 14K (11980 MHz, horizontal) Video news release contains race action highlights each day and winners¹ interviews on Sunday. ***