Steve Torrence Begins Top Fuel Career in SKULL Shine Dragster Friday in Torco Racing Fuels

Nationals In less than two years, Steve Torrence has gone from Super Comp racing to NHRA Lucas Oil Sportsman Series Top Alcohol Dragster champion to aspiring Top Fuel driver.

And Friday Torrence will make his first professional start in a Dexter Tuttle-owned, Evan Knoll sponsored SKULL Shine/Torco Racing Fuels Top Fuel dragster. The occasion is the inaugural Torco Racing Fuels Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park at Dinwiddie, near Richmond.

Torrence, who took one test ride in the new, Brad Hadman-built dragster Monday afternoon, is excited to open a new chapter in his racing career, one that has him teamed with rookie sensation J.R. Todd.

"This is a new team and a new car," said Torrence. "We want to make sure everything works like it should. We want to make the necessary adjustments and make the car competitive. We'd certainly like to qualify here and maybe win a round, but our priorities in the next three races are to get the driver seat time and the crew working well together so we'll be ready when the 2007 season begins.

"J.R.'s win at Reading (Pa.) Sunday gives us momentum as a team. What he accomplished will benefit us as two-car team. Jimmy (Walsh, Todd's crew chief) had the car running fast."

Torrence said Mark Oswald, his crew chief, asked him to shut it off at the 330-foot mark on the test run. "Things went well on that run," added Torrence. "The computer numbers said it would've run 4.62 to 4.64 seconds if we had driven it to the finish line."

Torrence, of Kilgore, Texas, gets two chances to do that Friday with qualifying sessions set for 4 and 7 p.m. Saturday's runs come at 1 and 4 p.m., and Sunday's eliminations begin at 11 a.m.