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BRISTOL, Tenn., July 3, 2007 - Despite an inauspicious start to the 2007 NHRA POWERade season, Tommy Johnson Jr. and his Don Prudhomme Racing team have the Skoal Racing Chevy Impala SS hitting on all cylinders as they make a final push to make the final eight for the Countdown to the Championship at this weekend's 7th annual O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. Johnson has qualified in the top half of the ultra-competitive Funny Car field for the last five NHRA contests including his eighth career No. 1 qualifier at Englishtown two weeks ago. Even more impressively, the Skoal Racing team overcame a first-round fire at Englishtown and parlayed the season's first No. 1 qualifier into the team's first win of the season. Although Johnson stubbed his toe with a first-round loss at Norwalk after qualifying fourth, the Avon, Ind., resident sits ninth in points and likes the turnaround the team has made heading into the final six races that det ermine the eight qualifiers for the Countdown to the Championship.
"We're heading in the right direction," Johnson said. "At Topeka we went back in a different direction (with the car), and it took us a race or two to actually get the tune-up back to where we knew how to make a run. We had changed so many things that it took us a little awhile to get the thing back to where we knew how to run it. Now, it really responds. When (crew chief) Mike (Green) makes a change to the car, it does what he tells it. Earlier in the year, he'd make a change and it really wouldn't do anything. Once we got the problem solved and started tuning the race car, it made all the difference in the world. And the better downforce (with the new Impala SS) we have over what we had last year has allowed us to run much better half-track speeds. Even though we've struggled, we've learned along the way what makes this thing tick, and we're now reaping the rewards from that.
After a season-low points position of 15th after Atlanta, Johnson finds himself just 10 points out of the coveted elite eight and gives all the credit for the season's turnaround to the hard work and dedication of his Skoal Racing team.
"The whole time we struggled the first 10 races, or 11 races, whatever it is, there wasn't a chin down in our pit area," Johnson said. "They were determined to beat it. I think you learn a lot about a team in the bad times more so than the good. The only reason the turnaround has happened is because they've never quit working. I can honestly say we've tested more than anybody out here this year. Being a single-car team, we have to test any chance we get. During the St. Louis to Topeka break where we didn't run Bristol, we tested three times, so there's not been a lack of effort."
Johnson's win at Englishtown was the ninth of his career (7 FC/2 TF), but given the circumstances of the weekend and where it puts the team in the points chase, it might rank right up there with one of his best. And to add icing to the victory cake, he and teammate Larry Dixon were able to give team owner Don Prudhomme a double-up weekend with wins in both Funny Car and Top Fuel.
"Every time you win, you think that's the best win," Johnson said from the winner's circle at Englishtown. "As hard as the guys worked and to be here in front of the (team sponsor Skoal) corporate headquarters, to come out and run No. 1 qualifier and then go out and put together a day like today, this is probably one of the biggest (wins) there is. It's hard to rank wins, but this is at the top. I told 'Snake' (team owner Don Prudhomme), after watching the guys work so hard after that fire and get that thing back together, there's no way I could let them down."
WATCH VIDEO - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Funny Car team prepares for quarterfinals at the SuperNationals following a first-round fire that destroys their primary body; Englishtown, N.J., June 24;
Part 1 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 2 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 3 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 4 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 5 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Post First-Round NHRA June 24
Part 6 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Post First Round NHRA June 24
"The cars are running good," Prudhomme added from Englishtown. "It's like a baseball team, or whatever sports team, it's strong, it's good, and you can't wait until the next game instead of the agony when you go in there when you know you don't have your act together, and we've seen plenty of that. It's really fun."
O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
Bristol Pre-Race Stats & Facts
. Dave Connolly made the most of home cooking by placing his Torco Racing Fuels Chevy Cobalt in the winner's circle for the second time this season last weekend at Norwalk. The 24-year-old grew up just 30 miles from the track in the western Cleveland suburb of Elyria. It was the 138th win all time for Chevrolet in the Pro Stock category.
. Of Chevrolet's 138 Pro Stock victories, Kurt Johnson is tied with the legendary Lee Shepherd for the most wins behind the wheel of a Chevrolet at 26.Chevrolet also leads the race for the 2007 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup with 2040 points and is 1360 points ahead if its nearest competitor. Chevrolet has won 15 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup championships (1966-69, 1973-81, 1983, 2002), the most by any manufacturer in the history of the sport.
. Chevrolet has a commanding lead in the race for the 2007 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup and currently has 15 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup championships (1966-69, 1973-81, 1983, 2002) to its credit, the most by any manufacturer in the history of the sport.
. A Pontiac has been in the Pro Stock winner's circle for every race at Bristol Dragway except for 2003 when Kurt Johnson won in his Chevy. GM Performance Parts Pontiac driver Warren Johnson is tied with Summit Racing Pontiac GTO driver Greg Anderson for the most Pro Stock victories at Bristol Dragway with two apiece. Anderson claimed the first of his 49 career wins at Bristol in 2001 and then again in 2004. Johnson won in 2002 and 2005, and Anderson's teammate Jason Line is the defending event champion.
. Line not only won last year's race but also set both ends of the the Pro Stock track record at Bristol Dragway with an elapsed tome of 6.708 seconds at 205.35 mph in his Summit Racing Pontiac GTO.
. Greg Anderson has a string of six consecutive No. 1 qualifiers going back to the Summit Racing Nationals in Atlanta, and he's also qualified at 104 consecutive events, the longest active streak in the NHRA Pro Stock category. Anderson has been No. 1 qualifier at Bristol once in 2004.
. With six wins this season in six final-round appearances, Pontiac's Greg Anderson leads the POWERade Pro Stock standings with 992 points. Team Chevy's Jeg Coughlin is in second place with 825 points, his teammate Dave Connolly has his chevy in third place with 775 points and Pontiac's Jason Line is in fourth place with 682 points. ACDelco Chevy Cobalt driver Kurt Johnson is in seventh place with 452 points, and Pontiac's Warren Johnson is tenth with 475. Only six races remain until the Countdown to Eight which will be determined following the Reading (Pa.) national event on Aug. 19.
. Jeff Arend in the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Chevy Impala SS is the only Funny Car driver to have qualified for all 11 races so far this season.
Qualifying coverage of the O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will be telecast on ESPN2 on Saturday, July 7, beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern. NHRA Race Day will kick off eliminator coverage on July 8 starting at 11 a.m. Eastern on ESPN2, and a three-hour telecast of final eliminations will start at 9:30 p.m. Eastern.
Tommy Johnson Jr. Heading in Right Direction Toward the Countdown
Funny Car Veteran Looks to Put Skoal Racing Chevy in Elite Eight
BRISTOL, Tenn., July 3, 2007 - Despite an inauspicious start to the 2007 NHRA POWERade season, Tommy Johnson Jr. and his Don Prudhomme Racing team have the Skoal Racing Chevy Impala SS hitting on all cylinders as they make a final push to make the final eight for the Countdown to the Championship at this weekend's 7th annual O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. Johnson has qualified in the top half of the ultra-competitive Funny Car field for the last five NHRA contests including his eighth career No. 1 qualifier at Englishtown two weeks ago. Even more impressively, the Skoal Racing team overcame a first-round fire at Englishtown and parlayed the season's first No. 1 qualifier into the team's first win of the season. Although Johnson stubbed his toe with a first-round loss at Norwalk after qualifying fourth, the Avon, Ind., resident sits ninth in points and likes the turnaround the team has made heading into the final six races that det ermine the eight qualifiers for the Countdown to the Championship.
"We're heading in the right direction," Johnson said. "At Topeka we went back in a different direction (with the car), and it took us a race or two to actually get the tune-up back to where we knew how to make a run. We had changed so many things that it took us a little awhile to get the thing back to where we knew how to run it. Now, it really responds. When (crew chief) Mike (Green) makes a change to the car, it does what he tells it. Earlier in the year, he'd make a change and it really wouldn't do anything. Once we got the problem solved and started tuning the race car, it made all the difference in the world. And the better downforce (with the new Impala SS) we have over what we had last year has allowed us to run much better half-track speeds. Even though we've struggled, we've learned along the way what makes this thing tick, and we're now reaping the rewards from that.
After a season-low points position of 15th after Atlanta, Johnson finds himself just 10 points out of the coveted elite eight and gives all the credit for the season's turnaround to the hard work and dedication of his Skoal Racing team.
"The whole time we struggled the first 10 races, or 11 races, whatever it is, there wasn't a chin down in our pit area," Johnson said. "They were determined to beat it. I think you learn a lot about a team in the bad times more so than the good. The only reason the turnaround has happened is because they've never quit working. I can honestly say we've tested more than anybody out here this year. Being a single-car team, we have to test any chance we get. During the St. Louis to Topeka break where we didn't run Bristol, we tested three times, so there's not been a lack of effort."
Johnson's win at Englishtown was the ninth of his career (7 FC/2 TF), but given the circumstances of the weekend and where it puts the team in the points chase, it might rank right up there with one of his best. And to add icing to the victory cake, he and teammate Larry Dixon were able to give team owner Don Prudhomme a double-up weekend with wins in both Funny Car and Top Fuel.
"Every time you win, you think that's the best win," Johnson said from the winner's circle at Englishtown. "As hard as the guys worked and to be here in front of the (team sponsor Skoal) corporate headquarters, to come out and run No. 1 qualifier and then go out and put together a day like today, this is probably one of the biggest (wins) there is. It's hard to rank wins, but this is at the top. I told 'Snake' (team owner Don Prudhomme), after watching the guys work so hard after that fire and get that thing back together, there's no way I could let them down."
WATCH VIDEO - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Funny Car team prepares for quarterfinals at the SuperNationals following a first-round fire that destroys their primary body; Englishtown, N.J., June 24;
Part 1 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 2 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 3 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing Post First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 4 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy Skoal Racing First-Round Thrash NHRA June 24
Part 5 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Post First-Round NHRA June 24
Part 6 of 6; YouTube - Team Chevy's Skoal Racing Post First Round NHRA June 24
"The cars are running good," Prudhomme added from Englishtown. "It's like a baseball team, or whatever sports team, it's strong, it's good, and you can't wait until the next game instead of the agony when you go in there when you know you don't have your act together, and we've seen plenty of that. It's really fun."
O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals
Bristol Pre-Race Stats & Facts
. Dave Connolly made the most of home cooking by placing his Torco Racing Fuels Chevy Cobalt in the winner's circle for the second time this season last weekend at Norwalk. The 24-year-old grew up just 30 miles from the track in the western Cleveland suburb of Elyria. It was the 138th win all time for Chevrolet in the Pro Stock category.
. Of Chevrolet's 138 Pro Stock victories, Kurt Johnson is tied with the legendary Lee Shepherd for the most wins behind the wheel of a Chevrolet at 26.Chevrolet also leads the race for the 2007 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup with 2040 points and is 1360 points ahead if its nearest competitor. Chevrolet has won 15 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup championships (1966-69, 1973-81, 1983, 2002), the most by any manufacturer in the history of the sport.
. Chevrolet has a commanding lead in the race for the 2007 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup and currently has 15 NHRA Manufacturer's Cup championships (1966-69, 1973-81, 1983, 2002) to its credit, the most by any manufacturer in the history of the sport.
. A Pontiac has been in the Pro Stock winner's circle for every race at Bristol Dragway except for 2003 when Kurt Johnson won in his Chevy. GM Performance Parts Pontiac driver Warren Johnson is tied with Summit Racing Pontiac GTO driver Greg Anderson for the most Pro Stock victories at Bristol Dragway with two apiece. Anderson claimed the first of his 49 career wins at Bristol in 2001 and then again in 2004. Johnson won in 2002 and 2005, and Anderson's teammate Jason Line is the defending event champion.
. Line not only won last year's race but also set both ends of the the Pro Stock track record at Bristol Dragway with an elapsed tome of 6.708 seconds at 205.35 mph in his Summit Racing Pontiac GTO.
. Greg Anderson has a string of six consecutive No. 1 qualifiers going back to the Summit Racing Nationals in Atlanta, and he's also qualified at 104 consecutive events, the longest active streak in the NHRA Pro Stock category. Anderson has been No. 1 qualifier at Bristol once in 2004.
. With six wins this season in six final-round appearances, Pontiac's Greg Anderson leads the POWERade Pro Stock standings with 992 points. Team Chevy's Jeg Coughlin is in second place with 825 points, his teammate Dave Connolly has his chevy in third place with 775 points and Pontiac's Jason Line is in fourth place with 682 points. ACDelco Chevy Cobalt driver Kurt Johnson is in seventh place with 452 points, and Pontiac's Warren Johnson is tenth with 475. Only six races remain until the Countdown to Eight which will be determined following the Reading (Pa.) national event on Aug. 19.
. Jeff Arend in the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Chevy Impala SS is the only Funny Car driver to have qualified for all 11 races so far this season.
Qualifying coverage of the O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals will be telecast on ESPN2 on Saturday, July 7, beginning at 4 p.m. Eastern. NHRA Race Day will kick off eliminator coverage on July 8 starting at 11 a.m. Eastern on ESPN2, and a three-hour telecast of final eliminations will start at 9:30 p.m. Eastern.
