Cagnazzi Racing pro Tucker to represent JEGS in Australia
DELAWARE, Ohio (April 5) -- Pro Stock driver Shane Tucker will field a JEGS.com-sponsored Holden Monaro at the upcoming Tin Top ANDRA Nationals, April 18-19, at Willowbank Raceway in Queensland, Australia.
Tucker, who has been patiently waiting for his chance to pilot a third Pro Stocker for Victor Cagnazzi Racing on the POWERade Drag Racing Series, jumped at the chance to return to his native Australia for the long-running Tin Top Nationals. He'll race alongside his father Rob Tucker with the duo trying their best to put two racecars in the first 16-car Pro Stock field in event history.
"I can't wait to drop the clutch," said Tucker, the 2005-2006 Australian National Drag Racing Association Rookie of the Year. "I've recently scuffed some tires for the boys over here [in the U.S.] but I haven't made a full pass since last June. I'm more than ready to give it a go."
Tucker burst on the professional scene in two impressive seasons Down Under before coming stateside to pursue his ultimate dream of racing NHRA Pro Stock. He led the ANDRA points for most of his rookie season before settling for second place. He followed that up with a respectable third-place result in '06-'07. Overall, he raced to three national event wins in five final-round showings in ANDRA action.
As a teammate to Tucker under the Victor Cagnazzi Racing umbrella, Jeg Coughlin and his brothers at JEGS Mail Order, an industry leader in the high-performance mail order parts business, will use their support of Tucker at this event to boost their sales in Australia.
"People certainly know of JEGS back home but we felt the need to get the message to consumers down there that JEGS can fulfill their orders in four days or less," Tucker said. "They can reach anywhere in the world and that's a service people need to know about. I'm honored they're backing me for this event."
Racing in full yellow-and-black JEGS.com livery, Tucker will pilot a brand-new Holden Monaro, the Aussie equivalent of a Pontiac GTO. The car is powered by a 400-inch small block motor capable of turning 7.1-second passes at 190 mph. Tucker's father will be racing the Pontiac Grand Am Shane drove in the past.
Gates open for the Tin Top Nationals at 3 p.m. Friday, April 18, with qualifying action throughout the evening. On Saturday, April 19, spectator gates open at 9 a.m. with time trials continuing at 10 a.m. Elimination will be run later in the day.
