GAINESVILLE, FL – Round by round, veteran Pro Stock driver Shane Gray and his Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro race team progressed up the qualifying ladder of this weekend’s 47th annual NHRA Gatornationals, finally earning a lofty top-half berth with a best run of 6.631 seconds at 208.17 mph.

After aborting his first run Friday at the rain-threatened event at Gainesville Raceway, Gray and crew began pecking away at the tune-up, posting a 6.655 at 206.54 mph and a 6.639 at 208.14 mph before ultimately carding his run of record in the final time trial.

“My guys are working hard and it’s paying off,” Gray said. “We’re still not where we want to be, but it’s extremely encouraging to see us going in the right direction every round. We’re all thinking we’ve got plenty more to gain, so hopefully we’ll continue our upward trend in Round 1.

Continue reading →

GAINESVILLE, FL – Pro Stock driver Shane Gray and his veteran crew have been “testing the wheels off” their sleek Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro since the season-opening NHRA Winternationals, and the team is more than ready to have a big showing this weekend at Gainesville Raceway.

“The guys have done a fantastic job of straightening this car out and matching the power the engines are making with the new electronic fuel injection setup,” Gray said. “By the last test session, we were right there with the top cars in the class, so we’re very pleased and optimistic about our chances.”

After a sluggish start to the season in Pomona, Gray and crew made the unusual decision to skip the second race of the year in Phoenix to go over their race car from front to back. Like most teams in the class, Gray Motorsports had some challenges adapting to the newly mandated EFI configuration, as well as the rpm limitations and shorter wheelie-bar length instilled by NHRA.

Continue reading →

MOORESVILLE, NC – Unsatisfied with the performance his Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro displayed at the season-opening Winternationals, Shane Gray has elected to skip this weekend’s CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Ariz.

“We’ve got some work to do on this car in order for us to run at our full potential, and I thought it was better to bite the bullet right now and straighten this thing out rather than allow ourselves to potentially slip further behind,” Gray said. “Skipping this race will allow us the time we need to contend for race victories beginning with the Gatornationals in mid-March. It’s a small setback but one we believe we need to take.”

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA – Pro Stock driver Shane Gray drove the wheels off his Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro at the season-opening 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals and left town with a respectable quarterfinal finish in the first of 24 races on the NHRA schedule.

The No. 11 qualifier after posting a best pass of 6.660 seconds at 208.81 mph during time trials, Gray used a nice dose of starting-line prowess to upset the higher-qualified race car of Chris McGaha, who entered the day in the No. 6 slot. But despite another great start in the quarterfinals, Gray was caught and passed by No. 3 qualifier Bo Butner to end his race day.

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA – Shane Gray will kick off the new era of NHRA Pro Stock from the No. 11 spot at the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season opener, the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

For this season, NHRA mandated new rules for the Pro Stock class, including fuel-injected engines limited to 10,500 rpms and shorter wheelie bars. Gray and his Gray Motorsports team spent the entire off-season building new engines for the retooled Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet, testing several times.

“The guys did a lot of work between now and the last time we were here,” Gray said. “We’re not where we want to be, of course, but only one guy is today. We’ve got some good speed in the car, and we’ll keep working on it to get some better e.t.s.”

Continue reading →

POMONA, CA – This weekend’s 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals marks the beginning of a new era in Pro Stock. Electronic fuel injection has replaced carburetion, hood scoops are a thing of the past, wheelie bars have been shortened, and rpm is limited. And if popular pro Shane Gray has his way, a new champion will be crowned in the factory hot rod class.

“We have a clear goal this season: We want to win the Mello Yello Pro Stock title,” Gray said. “We’ve got all the pieces in place. I’m surrounded by the best crew in the pits, we have tremendous horsepower, we have wonderful and enthusiastic corporate partners, we’ve tested a bunch and feel we have a great handle on the new configuration with EFI and everything else, and I feel like I can be steady enough behind the wheel that we can earn a good amount of points every weekend.

Continue reading →

DENVER, NC – Valvoline will continue its partnership with Gray Motorsports and Pro Stock racer Shane Gray for the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season.

In addition, Gray Motorsports welcomes a new partner, Nova Services, for several races in 2016. The company specializes in serving the needs of the oil and gas industry and has been a major player in the oil field since 1989.

Valvoline is a business unit of Ashland Inc., a global leader in providing specialty chemical products, services, and solutions that meet customers’ needs throughout a variety of industries in more than 100 countries.

Continue reading →

BRADENTON, FL – Shane Gray and his Gray Motorsports team became the first operation to make a full pass in the new Pro Stock configuration when Gray’s Chevrolet Camaro tested this week at Bradenton Motorsports Park.

NHRA has mandated several rules changes for 2016, including using fuel-injected engines with a rev limit of 10,500 rpm and shorter wheelie bars. All the changes, Gray said after the second of four days of testing, have definitely affected the class.

“Well, it’s slow,” Gray said. “I think it’s about 5 mph off and at least a tenth off of last year’s stuff. I think it’s maybe a tenth to 15-hundredths off of last year’s stuff. Right, in the present position we’re in, realistically, it’s 14-, 15-hundredths off and about 5 mph down.”

Continue reading →