O'Bannon bounces back for semifinal finish in Sonoma
SONOMA, Calif. - NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car rookie Sean O'Bannon bounced back from a DNQ in Seattle last weekend to post career best numbers during this past weekend's Fram-Autolite Nationals at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. O'Bannon and the Tequila Patrón/Forest River RV's team was locked in the 5.60 zone during eliminations until parts failure slowed the Jack O'Bannon Racing Dodge Charger in the semifinals.
O'Bannon,28, from Fontana, Calif., qualified the Sam Shockley tuned machine eighth in the field with a then career best 5.635 second run at 253.99 mph. In round one, he took out Jeff Carroll with a 5.661 at 256.60 mph, then defeated Mark Woznichak in round two with another career best, a 5.633 at 257.38 mph. In his semifinal bout with Jason Rupert, O'Bannon held the early lead, but slowed when valvetrain parts failure eventually caused him to slow to a 6.130 at 185.10 mph to Rupert's 5.671 at 255.53 mph.
"We would have liked to have had a shot in the final, but we're real happy with the weekend," said O'Bannon. "The car is really coming around. We were hoping to run a high .50 in the semifinal against Rupert, but it dropped a cylinder at 1.4 seconds into the run and that was the end of that. The car is starting to run good mph, which is a good sign. We're starting to get this Tequila Patrón/Forest River RV's Dodge Charger to the competitive level it needs to be. Sam, Randy [Anderson] and the crew are constantly working to make this car better."
The Western Swing continues for the Tequila Patrón/Forest River RV's team as they extend their stay at Infineon Raceway for this weekend's Division 7 Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event there.
"That will be a very tough race," commented O'Bannon. "Nearly all of the cars that were here this weekend will be there next weekend. I fully expect to see the quickest field ever. The air is supposed to be better, and I was No. 8 with a 5.63, so we could see a low .60 bump, or even a .50 bump. It's going to be a slugfest, but we're looking forward to it."
About The Patrón Spirits Company:
Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, the company's eight distinctive products now share the Patrón label; Gran Patrón Platinum, Patrón Añejo, Patrón Reposado, Patrón Silver, Patrón XO Café, Patrón Citrónge, Pyrat Cask 23, Pyrat XO Reserve. Each brand is the finest in their category. The newest, Gran Patrón Platinum, is an extraordinary triple distilled pure tequila. sPatrón Tequila is today, the world’s number one ultra premium tequila. In 2004 & 2005, Patrón Tequila was recognized with the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences Five Star Diamond Award. Patrón is the first spirits brand ever to receive this prestigious honor. Patrón Tequila continues to set new sales records every year.
To find out more about the Jack O'Bannon Racing Team, visit their website at www.jackobannonracing.com
To find out more about Jack O'Bannon Racing's quality partners, visit these websites:
