Team MoparR's Allen Johnson No. 3 in Friday Qualifying at SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals

April 16, 2010

Contact: Darren Jacobs, (248) 553-4566, Cell: (313) 530-9910
E-mail: djacobs@jrthompson.com  

 

TEAM MOPAR(r) QUALIFYING REPORT
2010 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES
Round 6 of 23
April 16-18
SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Team Mopar(r)'s Allen Johnson No. 3 in Friday Qualifying at
SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals


Las Vegas, Nev. (April 16, 2010) - Team Mopar(r) driver Allen Johnson
continued to shine in his NHRA Pro Stock Mopar Dodge Avenger, seizing
the No. 3 spot in the first day of qualifying today at the
SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor
Speedway. 

 

The opening session offered the warmest track conditions (121 degrees)
that NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series competitors have faced this
season. Johnson's Mopar HEMI(r)-powered Dodge proved it could take the
heat, as the Greeneville, Tenn. native posted a 6.732-second pass at
204.88 mph to jump to the No. 2 spot in his first qualifying run. His
second Friday pass yielded a solid 6.737/204.73 mark. Johnson wrapped up
the first day No. 3 in the qualifying order heading into tomorrow's two
final sessions as he seeks to capture his eighth career NHRA Pro Stock
victory and his first at the Vegas venue.

 

"I think we've got a car with a really big window right now," said
Johnson, who will attempt to claim his eighth career No. 1 Qualifier
Award tomorrow. "Coming to this air here in Vegas we're probably down
about 100 horsepower and it's a real hot, slick racetrack, and we
adapted to it. I think we've got a car now that we can tune on.

 

"We've made two really good runs. We'll tweak the car a little bit, but
that's about it. I think we can get another hundredth of a second out of
the Mopar Dodge Avenger. It's big to qualify well here. This is one of
the tracks where lane choice is important, so it's good to maintain it
as long as you can."

  

V. Gaines penciled in his Mopar HEMI-powered Dodge Avenger at No. 7
following today's two qualifying sessions. Vinnie Deceglie, still
driving a Mopar-powered Dodge Stratus as he awaits a new Dodge Avenger
following his crash at the NHRA Phoenix event in February, clocked in at
No. 9. Danny Gruninger was No. 22 in his Dodge Stratus.