BIG O TIRES NHRA NATIONALS
WHAT: 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals, the final of 10 events in the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series. The race will also showcase the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.
WHERE: The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas. Track is located approximately 15 miles north of downtown Las Vegas off Interstate 15.
COURSE: Championship drag strip; Track elevation is 2,100 feet above sea level; Track direction is southwest to northeast.
WHEN: Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 27-30.
SCHEDULE:
FRIDAY, Oct. 28
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES qualifying at 11:45 a.m. and 5 p.m.
SATURDAY, Oct. 29
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES qualifying at 10:30 a.m.; first round of eliminations at 3:30 p.m.
SUNDAY, Oct. 30 - Pre-race ceremonies, 10 a.m.
GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES eliminations continue at approximately 2:30 p.m.
TELEVISION:
Sunday, Nov. 6, ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise 30-minutes of racing highlights at 2 p.m. (ET).
2010 WINNER: Brad Personett
TRACK RECORDS:
5.859 seconds by Brad Personett, Oct. ’10; 254.57 mph by Personett, Oct. ’10.
NATIONAL RECORDS:
5.772 sec. by Melanie Troxel, June. ’11, Englishtown; 258.71 mph by Troxel, June ’11, Englishtown.
TICKETS: For tickets call Las Vegas Motor Speedway at (800) 644-4444, or visit www.LVMS.com online.
GENERAL ADMISSION (includes pit pass) - Thursday: Adult, $16; Junior (12-under) Free; Friday: Adult, $34; Junior (6-12 years), $11. Saturday: Adult, $55; Junior (6-12 years), $11. Sunday: Adult, $55; Junior (6-12 years) $16. Children five years and under admitted free to general admission and pit areas each day.
RESERVED SEATS (includes pit pass) - Friday: Adult, $44; Junior (6-12 years), $21; Child (Five and under), $10. Saturday: Adult, $65; Junior (6-12 years), $26; Child (Five and under), $11. Sunday: Adult, $65; Junior (6-12 years) $27; Child (Five and under), $11.
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NHRA GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD SERIES POINT STANDINGS
Updated 9/18/2011 (Following the ninth of 10 races; victories in parentheses)
1. Khalid Balooshi, Doha, QATAR, Speedtech '68 Chevy Camaro (2) 608
2. Danny Rowe, Laguna Hills, Calif., Sterline Bridge '68 Chevy Camaro (1) 553
3. Melanie Troxel, Duluth, Ga., RoadRage.com '53 Chevy Corvette (1) 444
4. Kenny Lang, Grande Pointe, Manit., Summit Racing Equipment '69 Chevy Camaro 440
5. Mike Castellana, Muttontown, N.Y., Al-Anabi '69 Chevy Camaro (2) 432
6. Rickie Smith, King, N.C., IDG '12 Chevy Camaro 429
7. Ed Hoover, Gilbert, S.C., Trussell '68 Chevy Camaro (1) 414
8. Mike Janis, Lancaster, N.Y., Eaton '11 Ford Mustang 397
9. Dennis Radford, Baker City, Ore., Radford Trucking '70 Plymouth Duster 362
10. Jay Payne, Ontario, Calif., FireIce '68 Chevy Camaro 354
ROWE HOPES FOR A LITTLE LUCK IN CHAMPIONSHIP HUNT AS NHRA GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD DRAG RACING HEADS TO LAS VEGAS
LAS VEGAS – Ask any drag racer and he or she will tell you that winning rounds is the key to winning races.
But for Pro Mod driver Danny Rowe, winning or losing rounds doesn’t just
mean the difference between winning or losing a race. For the driver
currently sitting second in the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag
Racing Series point standings, it equates to the difference in winning
and losing a world championship.
As the series makes its final stop of the 2011 season, the Big O Tires
NHRA Nationals, Oct. 27-30 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway,
Rowe sits 55 points, just five points shy of three round wins, behind
points leader Khalid Balooshi. For Rowe, those are round wins that
determine whether he’s hoisting the world championship trophy over his
head in Las Vegas or finishing runner-up for the second consecutive
season.
“We need a little bit of luck on our side, that’s for sure,” said Rowe.
“If he qualifies and wins first round, we’re done. If he loses first
round, then we have a chance if we can win the race. We may get it, but
it’s definitely going to be a big challenge, that’s for sure.”
Rowe is all too familiar with the current situation. After a first round
loss at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals, Rowe could only sit
back and watch as Von Smith clinched the 2010 world title when he took
the green light in the first round of eliminations in Las Vegas.
“We all worked very, very hard last year and this year is no exception,”
said Rowe. “We’ve tried to stay competitive all year long with all
these other cars. It’s a challenge and we don’t want to think that we’re
going to sit back and accept the No. 2 spot. We’re definitely chasing
the championship.”
Rowe knows that he has a fighting chance to take the points lead away
from Balooshi and race to his first world championship. In the last five
races Rowe has collected three final round appearances including a win
at the NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, N.J. in comparison to
Balooshi, whose best finish in the past five races was a semifinal round
loss to Rowe in Bristol. It is this hot streak that Rowe hopes will
help propel him into the points lead.
“We know we have a good car and a good program and have all year,” said
Rowe. “Obviously there are variables that make it a challenge, but our
program has been consistent all season long and we know we have to run
our own race. After that, you just have to sit back and let the cards
fall where they will.”
Rowe will have plenty of competition for the race win in the Pro Mod
category as the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series
makes its final stop of the 2011 season. The R2B2 team of Melanie Troxel
and Leah Pruett have dominated the class and raced to a combined two
wins in the past four races, while fifth place driver Mike Castellana is
hoping to collect his third race win of the season.
Featuring the world’s fastest and most unique doorslammer cars with an
extremely diverse collection of vehicles, including ’63 Corvettes, ’68
Camaros, ’67 Mustangs, and ’68 Firebirds as well as late-model cars, the
NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series offers something
for every kind of hot-rodding enthusiast.
The Big O Tires NHRA Nationals will also be part of NHRA’s 60th
anniversary celebration. Drag Racing legends Don “The Snake” Prudhomme
and Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen will be on hand to sign autographs, meet
fans and participate in the festivities.
• SCHEDULE: Get Screened America qualifying sessions are scheduled for
11:45 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Oct. 28 and 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 29. The first
round of Pro Mod eliminations begins on Oct. 29 at 3:30 p.m. Pro Mod
eliminations resume on Oct. 30.
• TICKETS: Tickets are available for the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals.
Please call (800) 644-4444 or visit www.LVMS.com to purchase tickets
online.
• ON TV: ESPN2 and ESPN2HD will televise 30 minutes of racing highlights
from the Get Screened America Pro Mod Series portion of the Big O Tires
NHRA Nationals on Sunday, Nov. 6, at 2 p.m. (ET).
• ON THE WEB: Get live timing, scoring, multimedia and the latest news
updates from every NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Series event on the
Internet at www.nhra.com. Visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook,
YouTube and Twitter.
