MELANIE TROXEL ZOOMS TO NO. 5 IN BRAINERD QUALIFYING

BRAINERD, Minn. (8/12/06) -- NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series Top Fuel championship contender (currently No. 2 in points) Melanie Troxel put herself in a solid qualifying position for this weekend's Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway by collecting the No. 5 spot in the Skull Shine/Knoll Gas-Torco Race Fuels Top Fuel dragster.

Troxel was at the top of the charts in each of the first three qualifying sessions, holding either No. 2 or No. 3 positions until the final round. She produced three strong, consistent passes: first a 4.653-second pass at 324.36 mph, followed by a 4.564/325.22 and a 4.585/322.58. She lost traction only in the final qualifying run, posting a 7.080/104.03.

"It's definitely nice to come out and make a lot of good passes down the track," said the 33-year-old fan favorite. "In that last session we found out where the edge is," she said of spinning the tires at the 330-ft. mark. "So, that's always good to know.

"We made it down the track three out of four runs, and we have a solid setup
for this track. The weather conditions should be similar tomorrow, so I feel like we have a good plan."

She faces fellow Torco Race Fuels-sponsored J.R. Todd in the first round of eliminations, as Knoll Gas-Torco Race Fuels owner Evan Knoll is in attendance this weekend. "It's too bad we have to see J.R. in the first round. It obviously means we can't meet up in the finals, which I'm sure Evan would like to see," said Troxel.

"They've been a tough team for the last several races, but we feel really good about how we are running right now, and we're looking forward to Sunday."