The world's premier eighth-mile drag racing league announced on Wednesday that Jon Kaase Racing Engines will be the sponsor of the Kaase Tuning Challenge in Extreme Pro Stock, which will pay out a $500 bonus to the crew chief and team who has the lowest combined E.T. of all four qualifying sessions.
"I think the guys in the class will like this a lot," Jon Kaase Racing Engines Owner Jon Kaase said. "It's really a crew chief's award in a way. To be the quickest car over four runs, you can't make any poor runs.
"You have to run well during every qualifying attempt and that says a lot about the car and the people working on it. We want to add a little more excitement for the guys during qualifying."
The Kaase Tuning Challenge will differ from Low Qualifier Programs in other ADRL classes that award the quickest single run during qualifying.
For this challenge, all four qualifying sessions will count, creating an even more competitive atmosphere in one of the tightest racing classes in the ADRL.
"Something like this is always fun and it usually always comes down to the last round of qualifying," Kaase said.
The Kaase Tuning Challenge will start at the Penske Truck Leasing Inaugural Northeast Drags on May 6-7 at Maple Grove Raceway, which is the third race on the nine-stop 2011 ADRL Tour.
"It's going to be a lot of fun to watch," Kaase Racing Engines Project Manager Cliff Moore said. "It's all about making a perfect run every time. Everything has to be perfect."
JKRE are at the heart of numerous XPS cars, including class standouts like Brian Gahm, the winningest XPS driver in ADRL history, Bob Bertsch, Trevor Eman and Cale Aronson.
With more than a dozen XPS teams using the engines, it's a testament to the time and detail put into each powerful product.
JKRE sees the tuning challenge as a way to give back to a class that continues to thrive in the ADRL.
"This is the place for Pro Stock racing. It's a fun place to race and the ADRL is doing a great job," Moore said. "I expect great racing all year and we want the class to prosper."
