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• Richie Stevens Jr. stats
• ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals event details
Center Line, Mich. — Team Mopar® and Don Schumacher Racing driver Richie Stevens Jr. isn’t in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock title chase. Nevertheless, he continues to fight for every round win. Heading into this weekend, the Louisiana native is looking to defend his event title and aid teammate Allen Johnson in his Countdown to 1 playoff drive at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals scheduled for Oct. 26 - 28.
At the previous NHRA event in Richmond, Stevens was the ideal teammate, piloting his Team Mopar/Valspar Dodge Stratus R/T to the semifinals. By defeating Kurt Johnson, he ensured [Allen] Johnson, part of the J&J Racing team that maintains and tunes Stevens’ Stratus R/T, a spot in the two-race Countdown to 1 title shootout. Stevens would like nothing better than to bump off more of Johnson’s Countdown competition while defending his 2006 Vegas event title.
“Our motivation is good,” said Stevens, who is currently ninth in the points standings. “Really, I’m focused on A.J.’s car and trying to get him into that championship spot and get him where he needs to be. I’m going in as the defending event champ and it would be nice to win the race and obviously that’s my goal. It would be nice to make a name for myself and make sure I have a seat next year.”
Stevens added, “I feel pretty good. We’re coming off a good race at Richmond. We did pretty well there. I took care of [Kurt] Johnson in the second round and solidified a spot for A.J. in the Countdown. He [A.J.] was pumped up. It was neat to see it, and I was glad to do it for them. They’ve been really good people to me, Allen and his dad [Roy Johnson, J&J Racing’s co-owner and engine builder], and Mark [Ingersoll, crew chief for Stevens and Johnson], and everybody else on the team. To help them out when they needed it, it felt good.”
He concluded, “Being that I’m not a contender in the Countdown, the ultimate goal would be to qualify on the opposite side of the ladder [as AJ] and possibly draw one of the other three guys in the Countdown in the first round and possibly take them out. But it’s so hard to just qualify in the field, much less to jockey for position. I guess we just have to hope for the best and hope that I end up racing Jeggy [Coughlin], Greg [Anderson] or Dave [Connolly] in the first round.”
Richie Stevens Jr. stats• Has the ninth spot in the NHRA Pro Stock points standings
• Won the 2006 ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals, defeating Jason Line in the finals
• Had two wins (Dallas, Las Vegas) in the final five events of 2006
• Recorded a career best ET and speed of 6.598/209.20 in qualifying second at Englishtown in June
• Finished in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock top 10 for the fifth time in his career in 2006
• Has six career wins and 11 career final round appearances
ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals event details
The ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals is scheduled for Oct. 26 – 28 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The race is the first of two events in the NHRA Countdown to 1 championship fight. Two hours of qualifying coverage will air on Saturday, Oct. 27 starting at 10 p.m. (EDT) on ESPN2. Three hours of eliminations coverage will air on Sunday, Oct. 28 starting at 7 p.m. (EDT) on ESPN2. For more info on the NHRA, log on to NHRA.com.
70 Years of Mopar
When Chrysler bought Dodge in 1928, the need for a dedicated parts manufacturer, supplier and distribution system to support the growing enterprise led to the formation of the Chrysler Motor Parts Corporation (CMPC) in 1929.
Originally used in the 1920s, Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) was trademarked for a line of antifreeze products in 1937. It was also widely used as a moniker for the CMPC. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s – the muscle car era. The Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth “package cars” equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of “Special Parts” for super stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use.
Today, Chrysler LLC’s Global Service & Parts division is responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of nearly 250,000 authentic Mopar replacement parts, components and accessories for Chrysler, Jeep® and Dodge vehicles sold around the world. To assure quality, reliability and durability, all Mopar parts and accessories are designed in strict adherence to Chrysler engineering standards.
Playing A Spoiler Role Suits Richie Stevens Jr. as He Looks to Defend ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals Title
• Richie Stevens Jr. stats
• ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals event details
Center Line, Mich. — Team Mopar® and Don Schumacher Racing driver Richie Stevens Jr. isn’t in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock title chase. Nevertheless, he continues to fight for every round win. Heading into this weekend, the Louisiana native is looking to defend his event title and aid teammate Allen Johnson in his Countdown to 1 playoff drive at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals scheduled for Oct. 26 - 28.
At the previous NHRA event in Richmond, Stevens was the ideal teammate, piloting his Team Mopar/Valspar Dodge Stratus R/T to the semifinals. By defeating Kurt Johnson, he ensured [Allen] Johnson, part of the J&J Racing team that maintains and tunes Stevens’ Stratus R/T, a spot in the two-race Countdown to 1 title shootout. Stevens would like nothing better than to bump off more of Johnson’s Countdown competition while defending his 2006 Vegas event title.
“Our motivation is good,” said Stevens, who is currently ninth in the points standings. “Really, I’m focused on A.J.’s car and trying to get him into that championship spot and get him where he needs to be. I’m going in as the defending event champ and it would be nice to win the race and obviously that’s my goal. It would be nice to make a name for myself and make sure I have a seat next year.”
Stevens added, “I feel pretty good. We’re coming off a good race at Richmond. We did pretty well there. I took care of [Kurt] Johnson in the second round and solidified a spot for A.J. in the Countdown. He [A.J.] was pumped up. It was neat to see it, and I was glad to do it for them. They’ve been really good people to me, Allen and his dad [Roy Johnson, J&J Racing’s co-owner and engine builder], and Mark [Ingersoll, crew chief for Stevens and Johnson], and everybody else on the team. To help them out when they needed it, it felt good.”
He concluded, “Being that I’m not a contender in the Countdown, the ultimate goal would be to qualify on the opposite side of the ladder [as AJ] and possibly draw one of the other three guys in the Countdown in the first round and possibly take them out. But it’s so hard to just qualify in the field, much less to jockey for position. I guess we just have to hope for the best and hope that I end up racing Jeggy [Coughlin], Greg [Anderson] or Dave [Connolly] in the first round.”
Richie Stevens Jr. stats• Has the ninth spot in the NHRA Pro Stock points standings
• Won the 2006 ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals, defeating Jason Line in the finals
• Had two wins (Dallas, Las Vegas) in the final five events of 2006
• Recorded a career best ET and speed of 6.598/209.20 in qualifying second at Englishtown in June
• Finished in the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock top 10 for the fifth time in his career in 2006
• Has six career wins and 11 career final round appearances
ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals event details
The ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals is scheduled for Oct. 26 – 28 at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The race is the first of two events in the NHRA Countdown to 1 championship fight. Two hours of qualifying coverage will air on Saturday, Oct. 27 starting at 10 p.m. (EDT) on ESPN2. Three hours of eliminations coverage will air on Sunday, Oct. 28 starting at 7 p.m. (EDT) on ESPN2. For more info on the NHRA, log on to NHRA.com.
70 Years of Mopar
When Chrysler bought Dodge in 1928, the need for a dedicated parts manufacturer, supplier and distribution system to support the growing enterprise led to the formation of the Chrysler Motor Parts Corporation (CMPC) in 1929.
Originally used in the 1920s, Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) was trademarked for a line of antifreeze products in 1937. It was also widely used as a moniker for the CMPC. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s – the muscle car era. The Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth “package cars” equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of “Special Parts” for super stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use.
Today, Chrysler LLC’s Global Service & Parts division is responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of nearly 250,000 authentic Mopar replacement parts, components and accessories for Chrysler, Jeep® and Dodge vehicles sold around the world. To assure quality, reliability and durability, all Mopar parts and accessories are designed in strict adherence to Chrysler engineering standards.
