NHRA
ROUTE 66 RACEWAY TO HOST BURNDOWN AT SUNDOWN
JOLIET, IL – The NHRA North Central Division is at Route 66 Raceway on June 2-4 for the Burndown at Sundown. 
The Burndown at Sundown on Saturday evening starts at 5:45 p.m. with Top Alcohol Dragster and Funny Car qualifying along with Jet Cars and a Wheel stander capping off with a Fireworks Finale.
Eliminations continue Sunday at 9 a.m. with Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car running eliminations at noon. Racing categories include Top Alcohol Dragster and Funny Car, Comp Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock Eliminator, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street. The division’s Top Dragster Series and Top Sportsman Series will also run in conjunction with the event.
Admission tickets are available for adults at $20 each day. Children age 12 & under are free on Friday and Sunday. Saturday pricing for children is $5.
FRICKE FAMILY WINS BIG AT MAPLE GROVE
Reading, PA – The Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series hit the Northeast division, for the second time of 2017. Fans were in 
attendance as racers from all over the nation visited the drag strip to compete on Memorial Day Weekend. Husband and wife Shawn and Jackie Fricke, led the winners circle at Maple Grove Raceway Sunday, along with their nephew Cory Ream.
Top Alcohol Dragster champion, Jackie Fricke worked her way through the field, facing off against Richard Bourke in all New Jersey Top Alcohol Dragster final round. Fricke of Flemington, didn’t have too much trouble returning to winner’s circle as Bourke of Tappan tripped the red light at the starting line. Jackie Fricke recorded a victory pass of 5.284 seconds, 277.66 mph.
The Top Alcohol Funny Car final round featured an east versus west coast battle. Sean Bellemeur, Placentia, Calif., ran 5.470 seconds, 267.91 mph edging out Northeast TAFC standout Phil Burkart, Yorkville, N.Y., who runner upped at 5.553 seconds, 267.06 mph.
Ron Capps, Antron Brown, Tanner Gray, Stevie Fast Jackson, Austin Williams and Alan Reinhart on WFO Radio NHRA Nitro
HOLLYWOOD, FL – Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals Winners Edition featuring “Winnerviews” with Ron 
Capps, Antron Brown, Tanner Gray, Steve Jackson, and Austin Williams.
Ron Capps discusses his historic 4th consecutive Funny Car win, his role in stopping the last 4 in a row, and hanging with WFO listeners in Topeka.
Top Fuel winner, Antron Brown gives the details of his victory, talks a little Top Gear America, and has a message for Stevie Fast.
Pro Stock winner Tanner Gray takes a break from his school work to debrief on his 2nd win of the season.
BOB WILBER’S “BATS, BALLS, & BURNOUTS” AUTOBIOGRAPHY ON SALE NOW
Jumps into Top 50 on first day on Amazon.com
DALLAS — Veteran sports personality Bob Wilber has released his long-awaited autobiography, “Bats, Balls, & 
Burnouts” with publisher Outskirts Press. It is on sale to the public, effective immediately, and can be purchased online at Amazon.com and other internet retailers. It can also be obtained in both print and digital versions. In just its first day on amazon.com it moved into the Top 50 Sports Biographies or Memoirs on sale.
The memoir traces Wilber’s life from the age of three to the present day, including tales of a childhood as the youngest son of a former Major League catcher (Del Wilber) and a radio-personality mother (Taffy Wilber) before recounting numerous stories about his own baseball career, his sports marketing experiences, and three stints as a senior-level executive for professional indoor soccer franchises in St. Louis, Kansas City, and Indianapolis.
In 1991 Wilber was named general manager of Heartland Park Topeka, and in that position he saw his first drag race. In 1996, he began a career working directly for National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drivers as a team manager and public relations representative, initially for Funny Car star Whit Bazemore, followed by Funny Car driver Del Worsham (1997-2008), as well as Worsham’s Funny Car teammates Frank Pedregon (2000-2002), Johnny Gray (2003-2004), Phil Burkart (2004-2006), and Jeff Arend (2007). Wilber then completed his 20-year career with Funny Car star Tim Wilkerson (2009-2015).
MAPLE GROVE TO HOST LUCAS OIL SHOWDOWN AT SUNDOWN
READING, PA – Maple Grove Raceway hosts the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series NHRA Northeast division on May 26-28 highlighted by the Showdown at Sundown on Saturday. The event is one of 46 scheduled across the country where drivers earn points leading to divisional, regional and national championships as well as a chance at a share of the year-end purse of more than $519,000.
Categories include Top Alcohol Dragster, Top Alcohol Funny Car, Comp Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock Eliminator, Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street. The division’s MXI/Magnaflux Top Dragster and Top Sportsman Series’ presented by Select Performance will also run in conjunction with the event.
Saturday night features the Showdown at Sundown with Jet Funny Cars, along with the Top Alcohol Dragsters and Funny Car eliminations once the sun sets beginning at 5 p.m. See schedule below for details on run times. Pricing for each day is $20 per day, children 12 and under are free with paid adult. A special $25 per car load price is offered on Saturday after 3 p.m.
LUCAS OIL WINNERS CROWNED AT ATLANTA DRAGWAY
COMMERCE, GA – In the final results of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Southeast Division event at 
Atlanta Dragway, past national champions, Kevin Brannon and Jeffrey Barker, as well as a double up win from David Rampy highlighted the list of winners for the fifth of seven events in the Southeast division.
David Rampy, Piedmont, Ala., gained two trophies for his collection, taking home the win in Comp Eliminator and Super Stock. In Comp Eliminator Rampy ran down Jim Kimbrough, Pace, Fla., posting a winning lap of 7.230 seconds at 183.62 mph. Rampy’s win in Super Stock was won at the tree, defeating Alain Cauchon of Drummondville, Quebec.
Winners Crowned at Cavalcade of Stars
Spectacular racing was in the spotlight at the 11th Annual Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser, May 19-22, 
2017 at Summit Motorsports Park.
The NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event which went into overtime when rain rolled in on its last scheduled day also featured jet engine-powered vehicles and fireworks.
Top Alcohol Dragster driver JP Gutierrez led qualifying with a 5.42 and 261 mph hit from his MGM Grand Detroit/Children’s Center of Detroit car and won with a 5.52 at 259 mph over Brandon Greco’s 6.17 at 128 mph. The top qualified position and the win are firsts for the Michigan-based driver who’s been working his way up in the category he’s been in for five years.
DIXON, GUTIERREZ TAKE WINS AT CAVLACADE OF STARS
NORWALK, OH – Former NHRA Top Fuel World Champion Larry Dixon took home the win and the trophy in his NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Top Alcohol Funny Car debut at the wheel of the Bartone Bros. ’17 Camaro for this weekend’s Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser at Summit Motorsports Park.
Dixon, Avon, Ind., qualified in the No. 4 spot then defeated the No. 2 qualifier Andy Bohl in a close semi-final round match up with a 5.576, 261.57 to Bohl’s 5.616, 267.37 setting up a final round match up with Tony Bogolo. Dixon posted the quickest run of the event at 5.533 seconds at 265.90 mph to take the win over Bogolo who clocked in at 6.289, 178.45.
John Paul Gutierrez, Berkley, Mich., qualified in the No. 1 spot in Top Alcohol Dragster then knocked out reigning North Central Region Champion Mia Tedesco and Jared Dreher in rounds one and two. Gutierrez faced off with Brandon Greco in the final and laid down a lap of 5.527 seconds at 259.91 mph for the win as Greco slowed to a 6.172, 128.54 mph run. The win was the first for Gutierrez.
CALIFORNIA NATIVES DOMINATE IN FONTANA
FONTANA, CA – Seven California racers took home wins from the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, Pacific 
Division event at Auto Club Dragway at Auto Club Speedway over the weekend. Racers from all over the state were represented in the final rounds making this a golden weekend for NHRA racing in California.
It was a brotherly dual in Super Comp where Val Torres, Chino Hills, Calif., faced off against his brother Gabriel Torres, La Puente, Calif. Gabriel was better off the line posting a 0.018 second reaction time and a winning run of 8.920 seconds, 166.25 mph. The more experienced brother, Val Torres, who has six wins in Super Comp alone, had a 0.032 second reaction time and posted a runner up finish of 8.910 seconds, 173.09 mph.
COWIE, LOMBARDO LEAD WINNERS IN HEARTLAND
TOPEKA, KS – Shawn Cowie and John Lombardo Jr. raced to victory at the 29th annual Menards NHRA Heartland 
Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Park Topeka.
Cowie, Surrey, B.C., collected his 8th career national event win and his second of the 2017 season in defeating second generation driver Rachel Meyer, Springhill, Kan., in the Top Alcohol Dragster final. Cowie saved his best pass of eliminations posting a 5.214 second 277.54 mph lap as Meyer lost traction and could not recover as she watched Cowie power to the win. Cowie qualified number one with a career best 5.214, 275.90.
Lombardo, Brea, Calif., faced off with Annie Whiteley, Grand Junction, Colo., in the Top Alcohol Funny Car Final with both drivers loosing traction at the start. Lombardo peddled his ’16 Napa Auto Parks Camaro and recovered to post a 6.261 at 263.05 for the win and the 8th of his career. Like Cowie, Lombardo posted his quickest and fastest career pass in his second round win over Doug Gordon at 5.395, 274.16, just the third 5.30 run in history.
