Blake Alexander to Debut Gates Auto Funny Car at E-Town

Courtesy of NVW Motorsports Promotions

ENGLISHTOWN, NJ – For nitro Funny Car rookie Blake Alexander, the 43rd Annual Toyota NHRA SuperNationals is not just another race. It marks a major milestone with long-time supporter Gates Auto. His Paul Smith-tuned Funny Car will be sporting a special-edition Gates look.
 
“Gates has been supporting my racing efforts since I was sixteen. Their involvement early on in my career was really a boost that has helped me get to this point. To have them on-board over seven years through Comp Eliminator, Top Alcohol Dragster, and now Nitro Funny Car, it’s really special,” said the 23-year old college student.
 
Blake is looking forward to putting his last race behind him. A positive weather forecast and lessons learned at Atlanta have Alexander and the Paul Smith Racing team expecting better results in Englishtown.

 
“From our team’s perspective, we’re hoping to have everything run a little smoother. We tried to incorporate some new parts into the system that didn’t quite work out as anticipated. The team found the gremlins, so we’re hoping to be quicker and a little more consistent to get the Gates car qualified,” Blake said.
 
Following the SuperNationals, the Gates body will run again in Bristol, Tennessee for the Thunder Valley Nationals, then again at the U.S. Nationals and Fall Nationals.
 
Funny Car qualifying at the Toyota NHRA SuperNationals starts off on Friday afternoon with two sessions, followed by two more sessions on Saturday. Eliminations are set for 11 am on Sunday. Two hours of qualifying coverage will air on ESPN at 4:30 pm (ET) on Saturday. ESPN2 eliminations coverage starts at 4:30 pm on Sunday.